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Gorgeous Cat Tree with Faux Fur? Ooh La La!

by Joi

Free Shipping. 76" Casita Bungalow Cat Tree - Faux Fur

I visited my oldest daughter and her baby girl (a gorgeous black kitten named “Janie”) this afternoon. As I laid in the floor playing with her (Janie, not my daughter!), I couldn’t help thinking, “Why would anyone ever want to live in a house without a cat?” Cats make a house a home and the only people who don’t realize that are the ones who don’t have cats.

My daughter (Emily) said she’d love to get Janie a cat tree. I know she’d LOVE it! Cats love to climb, scratch, and even sleep on cat trees. They also love to lie on one of the perches and keep an eye on everything their humans get into. Big, beautiful cat trees like the Casita Bungalow Cat Tree – Faux Fur shown here are so beautiful that any cat parent would be proud to welcome it into their home… and any cat would be ecstatic to see their new paradise.

Product Description:
Give your cat a wonderful environment for playtime or naptime, anytime! The amazing Casita Bungalow Cat Tree is durably constructed with Sisal Rope wrapped posts that will withstand the toughest claws. This beautiful residence features many levels and heights, a spacious main residence, plenty of feline fun and surprises! They’ll enjoy the multiple perches high above to relax for a mid-afternoon siesta, or just chill out to see what’s going on with the family. Brand New in box! Assembles in minutes with simple step by step instructions and tools provided. Cleans easily with a vacuum and damp cloth.

This item ships directly from the manufacturer. Product usually arrives in 2-8 business days, depending on destination, including order processing and shipping.

See Free Shipping. 76" Casita Bungalow Cat Tree – Faux Fur for more information. There are tons of other cat trees to choose from – different sizes, etc.

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Beware of Cat Wall Sculpture: You’re Going to Love This!

by Joi

Beware of Cat Wall Sculpture

This adorable Beware of Cat Italian Wall Sculpture: Attenti al Gatto can let your visitors know just what (or who) lies ahead! I figure it’ll be a great way to warn visitors to our home about Alexa. After all, she’s Carly’s descendant so wildness is completely in her blood.

Sigh. I still miss Carly. We’re saving $100s on band-aids, but I miss my little Holy terror.

Product Description:
Leave it to the Italians to come up with this imaginative way to warn trespassers! Our cat warning plaques tell the world that your furry friend’s a force to be reckoned with! Inspired by similar sculptures we saw in a small Florentine shop, these warning plaques are artistically sculpted just for Toscano before being cast in quality designer resin with a smart slate finish.

9½”Wx1″Dx10″H. 2 lbs.

See Beware of Cat Italian Wall Sculpture: Attenti al Gatto for a closer look. While on the site, you HAVE to check out their other cat (big and small cats) statues, wall sculptures, etc. They have an amazing collection.

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Alexa: The Holidays Make Her a Glamor Puss

by Joi

My Beautiful Cat Alexa Striking a Pose

I thought you just had to see Alexa’s glamor shot.  We were playing a rousing game of “bat the catnip mouse around the Christmas tree” when she totally pooped out on me.  She laid herself out on a few presents a la Rita Hayworth and I grabbed my camera.

After a few misses, I took the one above and told her we had the “money shot.”

She plans to put them in her Christmas cards this year with the caption, “I don’t always pose for pictures, but when I do…. Money Shot.  Stay Glamorous my friends.”

 

Check out the gorgeous cat stocking below. Click through for a closer look. What a beauty!

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Outoor Cat House Keeps Outdoor Cats Warm and Dry

by Joi

Outdoor Cat House Keeps Outdoor Cats Warm and Dry

What’s the best way to keep outdoor cats warm and dry during winter months (and safe and cozy year round)? With their own cat house, of course! The great looking The new and improved Kitty Tube. Fully insulated outdoor cat house., shown here, is the perfect solution.

Winters here in Kentucky can be pretty intense, so keeping our outside cats warm and dry is always a concern. It is of no concern to our inside cat, Alexa, so she has yet to extend them an invitation to join us inside.

The past few days have been not only cool, but extremely windy. This great looking insulated cat house would have been IDEAL. Hannah hates the wind as much as most cats hate rain.  The problem with Hannah is one a lot of cat parents run into, she wants to be close to the spot(s) she’s most familiar with. In her case, it’s the carport.  Her favorite outdoor furniture is there, her dishes are there, and (naturally) that’s where she sees her family the most.

When it gets cooler (and windy), I carry her out to the garage and show her around – trying to entice her into sleeping in there. My husband keeps the door open just enough for them to come and go as they please.  Queen Fatima and Jelly Bean love the garage.  They head for the loft and sleep for hours on end.

Then there’s Hannah.   Yesterday I kept looking out and seeing her hovering by the steps, cursing the wind.  It called for drastic action, so I fashioned a tent over a few outdoor chairs and placed her a blanket on the ground inside her tent. She practically ran inside.  Naturally, this earned her some of her favorite cat treats.

This ingenious cat house would be the answer to our problems.  Read and see for yourself how great it sounds!

Product Features

  • The Kitty Tube provides an economical, safe, and secure home for up to 3 cats. The Kitty Tube’s unique door design will also protect your cat from predators.
  • The Kitty Tube includes a custom, machine washable pet bed on top of the fully insulated floor. The floor, walls, and roof are all insulated with a high quality, high R value insulation. The Kitty Tube will stay cool in the summer, and is ultra warm in the winter. (Style of the custom pet bed may vary.)
  • The built in lifting handles can be adjusted to supply full flow through ventilation for the summer, and can be closed to retain heat in the winter.
  • The Kitty Tube is made from 100% post consumer content, consisting of recylced milk and detergent bottles. The Kitty Tube is an extremely green product, and proudly made in the USA.

See The new and improved Kitty Tube. Fully insulated outdoor cat house. for a closer look.

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Keep the Litter Box Area Clean and Tidy for Your Cat with a Litter Box Carpet

by Joi

Litter Box Carpet

The ingenious LitterMaid LMC100 Litter Box Carpet shown above is just what Miss Alexa needs. I won’t say our little girl’s messy but when she “cleans up” at the litter box, litter sprays across 3 counties.  Then she has the gall to get offended by the mess!  There simply can’t be any animals quite like cats… they’re so picky and they’re such neat freaks on one hand, then on the other – you have a litter throwing nut like Alexa.

Product Description:

Prevent scattered litter from your cat’s box from messing up your floor. The LitterMaid Litter Box Carpet rests under the litter box to catch all the mess. It’s made from 100-percent polypropylene fiber and latex foam, and can also be used for your cat to scratch. It’s easy to install, use, and clean. Just vacuum the carpet, or rinse with water. Measures 27 x 33 inches.

Click through the image or link for a closer look. I think I’ve just solved a very untidy problem, but let’s allow Alexa to think it’s her idea.

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Help Your Cat Live Longer!

by Joi

Alexa inspecting the Dryer

Alexa Inspecting the Dryer

Good on you! There you are, reading a cat blog article about keeping your cat healthy and extending his/her life. As a cat lover, myself, I applaud your love for your cat(s).  We all want our precious little furry babies to live as long and as well as possible. Fortunately, there are lots of things we can do to help make that happen.

If you’re a regular reader, you probably already know that we had a much (much much much, much…) loved cat named Prissy, who I named after my favorite Gone With the Wind character, who lived for over 20 years. Within those years… 20, wow, that’s a lot of years…. she only had to go to the vet once, when she was 3 – for a sinus infection of all things.  Prissy was a house cat, which certainly helped her achieve such an impressive lifespan. In fact Keep your cat safe and secure inside your home at all times was listed number 1 on Real Age.com’s Cat Health Tips for Helping Your Cat Have a Younger Real Age.

Of course, there are times when your cat has to live outside the house rather than inside the house. They’re still much beloved family, of course, their section of the house simply doesn’t have a roof.  If your cat has to live without a roof, as some of our cats do, read How to Help Your Outdoor Cats Live Longer.

A few safety precautions all cat lovers will want to take include:

  • Make certain your houseplants are safe. Some houseplants are poisonous and shouldn’t be allowed in a cat’s vicinity EVER. I wouldn’t even keep one on the highest shelf in a room my cat never visits. Can you say not worth it? No plant is worth making a cat sick and it certainly isn’t worth the risk of killing a cat!  Please see Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants for Cats.  Needless to say, if you have dogs, be sure to check the same website for poisonous plants for dogs.
  • If you have an indoor cat, be certain that all guests to your home know that the cat is not allowed outdoors. Some people have cats that come and go and may automatically assume that your cat does so as well.
  • Please don’t allow your cat to lie on or play near ironing boards.  I see a lot of precious pictures online of cats lying on ironing boards (horrifyingly enough, sometimes the iron’s plugged in and is next to the cat) online.  I used to keep our ironing board up most of the time (with a blanket on top) because Alexa loved to lie on it and look out the window. One day, she had a terrible accident, though, and somehow managed to pull the ironing board down on her when she quickly jumped off.  One of the metal legs landed on one of her tiny back legs, breaking her leg in two places.  I’ll NEVER forget the pain she was in or the helpless, sick feeling I had. She had to have a cast and had to spend months in a large cage. It was absolute hell for me and her.  When we first brought her home from the animal hospital with a cast on her leg, I had trouble getting her to agree to the cage. At one point, she backed into a corner as tears, literally ran from her eyes (as well as mine!). It’s an image that will stay with me forever and will prompt me to beg cat lovers to keep their ironing boards put up at all times. PLEASE. If you have a cat blog, a facebook page, or a Twitter account, help me spread the word about the dangers of ironing boards for cats.
  • Always remember how inquisitive and nosy cats are! Be certain to always double check the dryer before closing the door – even if you’re almost certain your cat never came into the room.

Click HERE to read the Real Age.com article about adding years to your cat’s life. Great stuff!

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Love Black Cats as Much as I Do? You’ll LOVE This Wall Decal!

by Joi

Black Cats
Black Cats
Buy This Allposters.com
I read somewhere recently that black cats were the least adopted cats in animal shelters and pet stores. As a “mommy” to two black cats (in addition to other black babies I’ve loved over the years!), this both breaks my heart and blows my mind. I can only guess that it has something to do with the ridiculous “bad luck” saying, but it’s the most asinine thing I’ve ever heard!

Black cats are some of the most gorgeous cats in the world. Their shiny black coat is beautiful and silky soft and the contrast between the beautiful black fur and their beautiful eyes is something that’ll stop you in your tracks every single time.

What’s more, my experience with black cats has been that they’re super sweet and loving. I’m not suggesting that a cat’s fur color influences their personality or disposition, necessarily, but I can say this with absolute certainty: I have never had a black cat that wasn’t uncommonly sweet and affectionate. We had a very small black cat once we named Rene Elise. I named her after a beautiful actress who was on daytime television at the time (on One Life to Live, actually!). Rene Elise was a hugger. Any time you picked her up, she’d put her little arms around your neck and stay that way the entire time you held her or carried her around. She was beautifully solid black with a little pink nose and white whiskers. She was an absolute doll and couldn’t have been sweeter if she were covered in sugar.

Hannah is a black baby with a little white on  her and, like Rene Elise was, Hannah is as sweet as winter is long. Sweeter. Jelly Bean is solid black and is also a sweetheart.  Very affectionate and loving – a big baby! Which is really something because he was born to a feral cat that I cared for and fed.  She rarely let me touch her and her babies were the same way for a long time.  But once Jelly Bean and Fatima discovered that I was on their side, they became TOTAL love bugs!

If you, or someone you know, ever finds yourself looking for a cat to adopt, why not bring home a couple of black beauties? They’re very regal and you won’t regret it for a single second. In fact, you’ll probably go back for more!

Click through the beautiful and fun wall decal above for a closer look. Aren’t they precious?!?!

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Outsmarting a Cat with Cat Scratch Fever

by Joi

Alexa and one of her beloved cardboard scratching post

Alexa, in the picture above, seems to be voicing her concern over the state of one of her beloved cardboard Super Scratchers.  I try to keep them changed out often because the girl is MAD about them.  We keep several of them in the house, near some of her favorite places to scratch.  More than any cat I’ve ever had the pleasure of being Mommy to, Alexa is a furry little ninja when it comes to scratching.  I have to work to stay a step ahead of her, but placing scratching posts in her favorite areas helps.

Thank goodness!

Cats love to scratch.  We have to remind ourselves that they have no idea they’re doing anything wrong. Scratching is as natural as eating and drinking for a cat.  Our approach has to be one of outsmarting the cat.  It’s absolutely impossible to make her NOT want to scratch.  Common sense dictates that we give our cats alternatives.  We can’t very well take the approach that they WILL NOT SCRATCH EVER AGAIN!  We’ll be woefully disappointed and our cats will think we’ve completely lost our minds.

If you have a ninja scratcher, too, give the cardboard Super Scratchers a try.  They’re in the pet sections of just about every store you can imagine and they’re ridiculously inexpensive.  They can help save your sanity, the furniture, the walls, the door frames, the drapes, and possibly your pants.  After all, we all know a cat’s philosophy…

Alexa!

When I found the hilarious picture of the cartoon cat above on I Can Has Cheezburger, I even saved it to my computer as Alexa!

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Cool Cat Toy: Boomerang Buddy with Catnip

by Joi

Take it from someone who spends oodles of time playing with cats, the Petstages Green Magic Boomerang Buddy is a kitty party just waiting to happen.

Like all kids, cats LOVE new and original toys. They love when mom and dad present them with something fresh, fun, and fabulous – you know, something deserving of their attention!

The Green Magic Boomerang Buddy is filled with 100% premium catnip for a powerful catnip scent, meaning your cat(s) will be over the moon.

Remember, playing with your cat isn’t just fun for you, it’s wonderful fun for you cat.  It’s also very good for his or her health – physical, emotional, and mental. Cats need the stimulation to stay mentally fit and the exercise keeps them physically fit and healthy.  Playtime is also a very special time to bond with your cat, so be sure to make time several times a day to just lose yourself in your cat’s world.

Earlier today, I was sitting outside with our outside cats (Hannah, Jelly Bean, and Queen Fatima).  I was playing with Hannah (with a long wildflower).  She’d paw at it, then go behind my back and pounce on it.  As you may remember, Jelly Bean and Queen Fatima were FERAL kittens when they came into our family.  It took months of extreme patience to get them to the point that I could even touch them! Thankfully, today I’m able to pet, rub, and babytalk them just as easily as I can Hannah or Alexa.

However, they’d never shown any inclination to play.  They’d always watch me and Hannah.  They’d sit right beside me, allowing me to pet them – and they’d even purr the entire time, but they never actually caught on to PLAY.

Until today.

As I slowly drug the wildflower on the ground in front of Queen Fatima (a tiny, adorable little grey cat), she pounced on it – kind of catching herself off guard.  I have no idea why, but tears sprang in my eyes as I tried not to laugh too loudly (they’re still really jumpy).  When I passed it in front of her again, she swatted at it and looked at Hannah as though to say, “Am I doing it right?”

Jelly Bean came over and decided to take part as well.  The only problem was, he decided to lay down right on top of our wildflower!

Game over.

He rolled over, exposing his belly, so of course I had to tickle it.  He playfully grabbed my hand, and I was very thankful he left his claws in.  I gotta admit, I was a little nervous.  I’ve tried to get pictures of them to add to the site, but they don’t pose nearly as well as Hannah and Alexa do.  They still aren’t sure about the whole camera thing and I’m not about to push things with them.  I’ve seen a lot of feral cats than NEVER let people touch them, I just feel extra blessed that my babies have come this far!

To take a closer look at the toy shown above, and treat your baby to something extra fun, click the following link: Petstages Green Magic Boomerang Buddy

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Happy Father’s Day to All Cat Fathers!

by Joi

Cat's Daddy Loves Her

 

Happy Father’s Day from Cat Pause to all Fathers – to those who’s kids have skin, those who’s kids have fur, those who’s kids have feathers, or even gills.  If your babies have either of the last two, keep it on the low – otherwise Alexa will want to visit you…. wearing a bib. Resulting in the worst Father’s Day ever for you and an even chubbier cat for me.

It’s the perfect time to say that any man who loves animals and is loving and kind toward them is BEYOND special in my book.  You can judge a lot about a person by the way they treat animals.

Image Courtesy of I Can Has Cheezburger

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