Choose Your Own Jellicle Cat

Choose Your Own Jellicle Cat

Did you know cats can sing? Of course, they cannot. No cat can sing. They either moan or cry. But what if there was a theatre musicale that featured singing and dancing cats? Does it sound familiar? Yes, you already know where this is going.

Maybe you have already heard, if not seen, the Cats musical. Cats is a musical play about a yearly gathering of the Jellicle Cats – the Jellicle Ball. It is during this annual event that these cats share stories for their leader and be that chosen one to ascend to the Heaviside Layer and be reborn in a new life.

Shot in the dark, you’re already a feline enthusiast. But you, reading this specific article on this page, tells only one thing. You need help in choosing what cat breed to own. And it is not easy, right?

A lot of people base their choice to the climate they will raise their cat. A larger body of people base their choice on “how convenient the cat can be left alone at home.” The others have no specific wants and embrace the cat given to them by circumstance.

Why not beg to differ?

If you’re looking for a different way to do it, why not pick a breed of cat that has starred in the 1980’s Broadway musical Cats?

Each cat has its own qualities and characteristics that uniquely identify its role in the play. Here’s a corresponding or relating breed you can consider if you think of owning a Jellicle Cat.

  • Old Deuteronomy (the wise and respected leader) – Norwegian Forest Cat
  • Munkustrap (the master commander) – Norwegian Forest Cat
  • Grizabella (the exiled Madonna) – LaPerm and Selkirk Rex Mix
  • Rum Tum Tugger (the rebelious rapper) – Maine Coon
  • Victoria (the innnocent dancer) – Turkish Angora
  • Demeter and Bombalurina (the unseperable BFF) – Abyssinian
  • Mister Mistoffelees (the conjurer of magic tricks) – Tuxedo Bombay
  • Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer – (the acrobatic twins) – Oriental Short Hairs
  • Macavity (the Napoleon of Crime) – Red Tabby
  • Gus / Growltiger (the rougheset cat to roam alive) – Norwegian Forest Cat
  • Jennyanydots (the house mother) – Ragdoll
  • Skimblehsanks (the Railway cat) – Cornish Rex
  • Bustopher Jones (the old fancy and wise) – Scottish Fold

These are just a few of the singing, rappin’ and tappin’ breed of cats you may fall in love with in the play. The play itself is a litter of cute and admirable cats.

Before you pick which breed of cat you want to take home, you may want to watch Cats and delve further in getting to know the characteristics of Jellicle Cats. Who knows? You may end up adopting them all and throwing your own a home-based production of the theatrical cats.

In the end, picking a cat is like choosing a partner you get to go home to. You may end up choosing a sneaky and wise cat like Macavity or an obedient and orderly warrior like Munkustrap.

 

Meow for now… Kristian

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Cats That Drink Tea

Cats That Drink Tea

Are you a cat owner? Or do you simply just love cats? If so, I’m sure you have noticed that your feline pet has the tendency to smell, lick, or even dip its head into your food or drink. Cats are known to have these intimate tendencies towards their owners to the extent of dipping their heads into their owner’s meal or drink, which is rather cute. However, if you are fond of drinking caffeinated drinks like coffee, energy drinks, and especially tea, then better read through this article as this may give your kitty more than just nine lives.


Why do cats like tea?

With its natural and soothing scent, tea, of all caffeinated drinks, attracts your feline companions. Though a nice cup of earl grey or chamomile would be good for our afternoons, it is potentially life threatening for our beloved kitties. Cats are naturally carnivores and require meat. They occasionally go for some aromatic herbs such as oregano. But most of the time, they are only attracted to the scent of herbs and would end up just playing with those leaves and throw them away.

What are the symptoms you should look out for?

Although there are some teas that are naturally herbal based, teas with high caffeine content may harm our cats if they ingest large quantities. The toxins present in caffeine are too much for kitties to handle, and these toxins may poison them. However, we all know that there are times that we just cannot keep our eye on our pet, so these things can happen; and with that, there are a few symptoms that you can check to know if your cat has been poisoned or has taken too much caffeine. Below are the symptoms:

  • Restlessness
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Heart Palpitations
  • Rapid Breathing
  • Muscle Tremors
  • Fits
  • Allergies

If you notice any of these symptoms on your cat, consult a vet right away; or better yet, take your cat to a veterinary clinic as soon as possible so that appropriate treatment can be given immediately. The life of your kitty depends on how quick you act. The longer these symptoms are present with your cat, the more dangerous it can be for them. Most of these symptoms may lead to other complications such as dehydration, seizures, coma, or worse, death.

Are there cats that can drink tea?

There are certain cats that are just fond of drinking tea though. These breeds are found to have more tolerance for caffeine. What’s common among these cats is that they were domesticated and brought up ever since they were born with tea as part of their diet. Though with study and observation, the scientific explanation to these kinds of cats is that the tea that was given to them was purely herbal thus, free from the toxins and with less to no caffeine content.

Still, it would be best to keep your tea out of reach from your cute and loving kitties so they can spend maybe more than just their nine lives with you

 

Meow for now… Kristian

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Don’t Feed Your Kitty Milk Yet

Don’t Feed Your Kitty Milk Yet

Cats are often fed with milk as we see on television. Tom, from the famous TV show Tom and Jerry, loves his milk so much that he doesn’t want anyone messing with him while drinking it. “Cats love milk,” they say. It may be true to most, but not to all. This is because cats can also have this condition called lactose intolerance.

In fact, adult cats don’t need milk at all. Research shows that milk only brings more potential harm than good to cats.  Kittens, on the other hand, can tolerate milk like water due to the bounty of lactase they have acquired during birth.

Like humans, cats also have lactase (a stomach enzyme in charge of digesting lactose found in dairy products, mostly milk). Lactose intolerance happens when the lactase is unable to break lactose (the sugar from milk) which results to a digestive disorder. It also means that they can be allergic to dairy – milk. It may be an uncommon case, but you may be feeding your cat milk and experience funny behaviors from them.

What to Observe

Lactose intolerance in cats is caused by their inability to tolerate lactose and casein, or protein from milk. When you think your cat’s health has been compromised, you can check how he acts and behaves. Has your cat experienced some of the following:

  • excessive gas
  • excessive scratching and licking
  • frequent shedding of hair
  • lack of appetite
  • weight loss
  • bloating of the abdomen
  • irritation of the abdomen
  • diarrhea

These symptoms may occur one at a time or all at the same time. If you see any or all of these symptoms from your pet cat, set an appointment with the vet immediately. Prolonging the cat’s unhealthy state may only lead to further complications.

Having a cat is a huge responsibility. It is important to pay attention to tiny details or mannerisms your kittens have acquired every week so that you can notice whether there are changes that need your attention.

The Alternative

Most likely, when the vet declares your cat is allergic to dairy or lactose intolerant, dairy should be completely cut from his diet.  However, some kitties will still crave for milk; and thus, as the pet owner, it is your responsibility to gradually wean them from milk. How? You need to find an alternative.

You can start by giving a milk substitute. Nowadays, there are types of milk that have been modified to reduce the amount of casein and protein. This way, cats can still enjoy the taste of milk with a lesser probability of having an allergic reaction. Same goes with kittens who still need their mother’s milk.

In a scenario where your cat has developed an inexplicable love for a specific type of milk, you can offer small amounts as a treat while gradually increasing the time interval and switch to the substitute enough for your kitty to not notice.

Before It’s Too Late

While circumstances dictate that the occurrence of lactose intolerance to cats are rare, it is never wise to not test the waters before taking a dip. If you decide to add milk in the diet plan of your cat, you can start by feeding him tablespoonfuls of milk. It gives you time to slowly observe if allergic reactions occur, and withdraw it immediately from the diet.

 

Meow for now… Kristian

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Easy Homemade Toys You Can Make for Cats and Kittens

Easy Homemade Toys You Can Make for Cats and Kittens

If you’re feeling crafty, and it so happens that you have kittens and cats under your care, you can make for them any of the following toys highlighted below so that you no longer need to spend so much on commercially available playthings.

Cardboard Cat Playhouse

Kitties, regardless of age and size, will love to wander around places they know they can explore. This is what makes the cardboard playhouse one of the best feline playthings.

You will need:

  • Window and door templates
  • Three sturdy cardboard boxes of the same size
  • Pencil
  • Bone folder
  • Ruler
  • Utility knife or razor blade
  • Self-healing mat
  • Glue gun

Here’s how you can make it:

  1. Print the window and door templates and cut them out. Position window and door templates on a box, using your ruler for placement. With a pencil, trace the templates to the box. Slide into the box a self-healing mat, making sure it is positioned behind the cardboard door; cut the top edge, the bottom edge, and the centre. Fold open along the straight parts. Repeat the tracing and cutting process on the second box, this time with the window template.
  2. Put together the bottom part of the first box: fold in flaps, making sure they are coated with glue, then fold the other flaps over the first flaps. Hold flaps together until such time that the glue has settled. One the open portion of the box, cut off the flap of every long side. Then cut half the flap from a short side off, then fold it in. Get hot glue and use it to secure flaps to box side. Hold in place the flaps until the glue has settled.
  3. Start creating the roof. At the top part of the second box, get a pencil and ruler and use it to create a line from top centre of a short-side flap to a bottom corner; draw another line from top centre to another bottom corner. Repeat at the opposite flap. Cut a long-side flap off; set aside. Proceed to remove a triangular shaped part from a short-side flap by cutting along a penciled line; cut along second line. Do the same with the other short-side flap–cut along a line and score the other.
  4. Cut the long-side flaps of the bottom portion of box number two. Cut a short-flap so once you have assembled and stacked this box to the one at the bottom, all holes are aligned. Secure flaps to side of box using an application of glue. Hold these flaps until such time that the glue has set. Coat top portion of bottom box with hot glue. Position bottom of second box over top portion of bottom box, and hold until the glue has dried. Use a short side flap you have reserved and apply glue to one side. Set this flap, coated side down, to top box floor to serve as reinforcement.
  5. Cut roof piece from box number three with crease down centre when it is folded from one short end to another. To attach the roof, you need to fold along scored lines on all short-side flaps located at the topmost section of the house. Glue the long flap to folded triangles from short sides. Coat pieces you have folded in with glue generously, and then set the roof on top of them. When doing this, make sure to hold pieces until the glue has settled. (Note: Do not glue shut the opposite side of the roof, as kitty will love to peek his head out from under there.)

Feather Cat Toy

Feather toys resemble birds, which kitties also love to hunt. Here’s how you can make your own wool felt feather toy.

  1. Using a template as your guide, cut one big feather and one smaller feather from differently-coloured wool felt.
  2. Use a hot iron and crease down the middle parts of every feather.
  3. Get a jump ring and add it to the jingle bell.
  4. Slip the end of a yard-long length of cord through the jump ring. At the bell, tie the feather stems to a cord, making sure that a square knot is used to secure the cord. Aside from securing the cord, knotting can also help prevent it from fraying.

Ring Ball

A ring ball is a ball made of cardboard rings. A treat can be placed inside this ball to serve as an incentive to the feline pet. You only need a cardboard toilet paper tube to create this toy.

  1. Cut four rings out of the entire cardboard tube, making sure that scissors are used to do so.
  2. Insert a ring to another ring. Insert the third ring, then the fourth ring, until a ball is formed.

As proven by the many toys that you can get from a pet shop, cats love to play with so many things. But there’s no need to spend so much on cat toys as long as you take time to learn to create your own kitty playthings from recycled materials.

 

Meow for now… Kristian

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Keeping Your Cat Safe and Comfortable on the Fourth of July

Keeping Your Cat Safe and Comfortable on the Fourth of July

When the Fourth of July comes around, it usually means one thing: a big nationwide celebration. Prepare yourself for lots of food, people, and fireworks. For your cats, however, it means chaos and a host of terrifying things. As a cat owner, you may already know that domesticated felines are sensitive creatures. Thus, this busy and exciting time is almost certain to overload their delicate senses.

While you shouldn’t forget about enjoying yourself on this annual holiday, you should also consider the well-being of your feline friend. Keep him safe during this time by following these tips:

  • Keep him inside.

This applies even to a cat that is used to exploring the outdoors. There are a lot of firecrackers going off during this time, and the sudden noise as well as the burning smell of the firecrackers can easily frighten and disorient him. Also take note that there might be some pranksters around who delight in frightening and terrorizing small animals on purpose. Keep your cat away from all the chaos and the people who might possibly harm him by keeping him indoors.

  • Keep an eye on the doors.

If you’re having some people over for your own Fourth of July party, remind your family members and your guests to be careful as they go in and out the doors to ensure that your cat doesn’t escape unnoticed. Check the doors and windows for any gaps, holes, or tears through which your pet might escape.

  • Update his information.

Just in case you do lose your pet during this busy time, make sure you’ve updated his information in the registry, if he has been microchipped. Collars with identifying information and a contact number can also be used. This way, the person who finds your pet will be able to get in touch with you and return him to you.

  • Hire a sitter.

While you and your family are busy viewing the fireworks, have a sitter look after your cat. This way, if your pet reacts negatively to all the chaotic noise, he will have someone nearby to console him as well as to supervise him.

  • Create a sanctuary.

Designate a quiet room in your house as your cat’s sanctuary. This should be far away from all the hustle and bustle of the holiday festivities. Keep the room’s door locked and set it up with your pet’s food, water, toys, bedding, and litter box so he has everything he needs.

  • Distract him with familiar noise.

Drown out the noise of fireworks and other Fourth of July noises by turning on devices that emit sounds familiar to him, such as a TV or a radio. The noises of these devices are things that your cat will certainly be familiar to and thus won’t be bothered by.

  • Consider medication.

If your pet has an extremely sensitive or anxious personality, you can consider giving him some calming medication. However, you should first talk to your veterinarian about this as such medication often brings about certain side effects.

However busy you are with the Fourth of July celebrations, don’t forget to spend time with your cat. Look in on him every now and then and see to it that all his needs are attended to. More than anything else, your presence is sure to be the most reassuring thing for him.

 

Meow for now… Kristian

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