Cat Lovers Thread

[Bill Angel]

He was lounging in the front yard of a rowhouse until I walked by and spooked him.
So he retreated to the house's front porch, where he kept his green eyes on me.

Cat with Green Eyes

 

[gallantwarrior]

I like panthers.

Dang! Those are two monsters! What do you feed them so I can avoid it?

 

[gallantwarrior]

I miss fostering. I fostered kittens for most of my adult life, hundreds and hundred of the little blighters. Loved them all then sent them on their way.

After losing several foster litters a few years ago, I decided to take a break and haven't been back to it. Then, moved cross country and have not gotten back to fostering. I am back to working with birds of prey - conditioning for release. Problem is, they look at kittens as noms.

Still - visiting LOL Cats just isn't enough.

I used to foster cats until I sold the house. With limited space, I can only keep a few cats but I donate gallons of goat milk to a couple of local fosters and shelters every year. I've been told that the milk makes a difference in many kittens health. Oh, and I support my feral colony that lives in and around my barn. I feed them kibble and milk, they keep the vermin at bay.

 

[gallantwarrior]

Nice poem. I act as a caretaker for homeless cats in my apartment complex (along with a few other people who do that same). I started a cat rescue group, and now have 7 people in it. Each of us has an area that has its own group of homeless cats there. They are all at dumpsters, which the cats used to go to for food before we started feeding them every night.

Some of the cats are fully feral. Others are castaways that people callously put out and abandoned. The castaways are friendly and let you pet them, and sometimes follow you home, after being fed. I'd like to take some of them in, but I only have a small apartment, and I already have 2 inside cats.

We have also brought some cats (10) to the Humane Society, and had them fixed. Now we have 10 cats running around with the tipped ear of fixed cats.

What I've been doing lately is creating shelter boxes for the cats to give then a place to cuddle up in, and get out of the cold. They're just cardboard boxes with a small, square entry hole in one side, and a soft cloth on the bottom. To look at them you might think they wouldn't be so warm. They are though. The cat's warm body heat warms them up. Same as the little pup tents I slept in, when I was in the Army.
I'm in Tampa, Florida, so only rarely does the temperature sink down to the 30s (VERY rarely to the 20s), but the cats use the boxes when the temperature goes to the 40s. Rain is a problem, but we have a relatively dry winter here, so I only occasionally go out and cover the boxes in plastic bags, before the rain,as I did tonight.
In colder climates up north, cats really NEED these cold shelter boxes, and I would encourage people to make them and set them outside where cats hang around. Instead of using cardboard, I'd recommend using a PLASTIC storage tub, turned upside down, with the top clicked on, but on the bottom, making it the floor of the box. The cut a square hole on one side, towards the now top, and put something soft inside for the cats to sit on (towels, old sweater, pet bed, etc). These are superior to the cardboard, because they are water repellent, and don't get soaked. I have one made like this here, and plan to replace the cardboard ones with plastic tubs.

PS - when feeding the cats, put the food (dry) on plastic plates or bowls to keeps the ants off them. Also, put out water with the dry food. Cats don't have water faucets.

All of this is some work, but it's also fun and rewarding. I like to walk a few steps away from the feeding spot, then stop, turn around and look at 6 or 7 cats feeding their little faces.

Many times, after the kids start arriving, I will find the feral cats tucked into the warming boxes with the baby goats, all in one pile. I've also watched one old queen actually playing with the kids.

 

[gallantwarrior]

If I had a lot of cats, I would do what you did, Koosh. But..I am not really a cat person. They find ME. And it is always one. Just one.

Hehe. Believe it or not, I'm not really a cat person, either! I used to be until we got our dobermans. That was it! Now I'm a dog person. But nobody else was helping these stray cats so I had to do something. I can't stand to see animals suffer. You're lucky only one finds you at a time!

Actually, I haven't seen a stray cat around here in a couple of years. I see cat footprints all over in the snow, but those may just be from someone's cat that is allowed to roam free. All the stray cats live in my house now!

And not one of them sprays in the house! They all use the catboxes. I am soooo lucky!

Last couple of tomcats I took in I told my husband I think I may run out of luck. What would I do if they spray in the house. He said, just put them back out. At least they would have had a chance. So I brought them in and they didn't spray. I think I'm done with it, though. No more cats. Only dogs from now on. (famous last words)

Male cats are supposed to stop spraying when they are neutered. Also, their strong urine goes away after that.

That isn't true. I've had neutered males who were perfectly well behaved until another cat came into the household and they felt threatened, or needed to demonstrate dominance. And enough cat urine, or any brand, will stink.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

Hehe. Believe it or not, I'm not really a cat person, either! I used to be until we got our dobermans. That was it! Now I'm a dog person. But nobody else was helping these stray cats so I had to do something. I can't stand to see animals suffer. You're lucky only one finds you at a time!

Actually, I haven't seen a stray cat around here in a couple of years. I see cat footprints all over in the snow, but those may just be from someone's cat that is allowed to roam free. All the stray cats live in my house now!

And not one of them sprays in the house! They all use the catboxes. I am soooo lucky!

Last couple of tomcats I took in I told my husband I think I may run out of luck. What would I do if they spray in the house. He said, just put them back out. At least they would have had a chance. So I brought them in and they didn't spray. I think I'm done with it, though. No more cats. Only dogs from now on. (famous last words)

Male cats are supposed to stop spraying when they are neutered. Also, their strong urine goes away after that.

That isn't true. I've had neutered males who were perfectly well behaved until another cat came into the household and they felt threatened, or needed to demonstrate dominance. And enough cat urine, or any brand, will stink.

As a general rule, if you neuter male cats early enough they'll tend not to spray. But if they start spraying before they're neutered, they will often continue to do so, although it won't smell quite as bad.

Sometimes invasions of their territory will result in spraying, too.

 

[gallantwarrior]

I love the photos.

I had a one eyed cat I called Wink. What a sweetheart he was.

We're down to two cats now. You guys are making me want MORE!!

If this doesn't make you run right out and get you another kitten, I don't know what will.

That little guy looks to be about the same age as my Sherman was when I rescued him. He and his sister were abandoned in the milking room. I usually don't mess with the kittens in the barn, as long as there is evidence that momma is still visiting. These little guys were loud, wet, and filthy. I don't know what happened to mom, she had been diligently caring for them. Anyways, the little girl died the night we took them in. Sherman, well, he'll be three this Fall. We cleaned him up, warmed him, and nursed him with goat milk until he was able to feed himself. He would lay on his back in my hand and support the bottle with all four paws.

 

[Kooshdakhaa]

I would like to say this, for those who say cats are so intelligent...I disagree!

Now, mind you, I live with six cats. Until a few months ago, it was seven cats, but Kan Balam died of kidney disease.

And I have come to the conclusion that cats are kind of dumb!

I told my cats the other day,"What the hell is wrong with you guys? You just rely on me not to step on you! That's stupid! You walk right across my path and expect me to be on the look out for you! That would be the equivalent of there being a Tyrannosaurus Rex stomping around outside and I'd go out there and walk back and forth in front of him and just expect him not to step on me! Jeez, wise up!"

That's what I told them. So then they tried to trip me on the stairs.

 

[Mertex]

I love cats - dead ones.

Aw....that's not nice.....I'll have to sic a cat on you.....

 

[Mertex]

 

[Bill Angel]

waiting at the steps...

 

[Mertex]

waiting at the steps...

Your cat looks like the twin of my Boots.....I'll have to post her picture, if I can ever take one. Every time I get the camera, she won't look at the camera....like she knows I'm trying to take her picture and she won't cooperate....

 

[Mertex]

Some cuties:

 

[Chuckt]

So what kind is the most needy, drooly, purry cat?

 

[Mertex]

So what kind is the most needy, drooly, purry cat?

That's a tough one. They are all purry.....if you treat them right. Needy? I don't know, most cats are very independent...and I don't know about drooly.....


This one is ready for play...

 

[Esmeralda]

This is my guy. But he's been gone now for 4 years. He was 16.

 

[Michelle420]

 

[Luddly Neddite]

I love the photos.

I had a one eyed cat I called Wink. What a sweetheart he was.

We're down to two cats now. You guys are making me want MORE!!

If this doesn't make you run right out and get you another kitten, I don't know what will.

ooooooooooooooooo

I can actually smell that sweet kitten smell they have.

But no - we're up to our eyeballs with raptor conditioning and we're planning two trips in the near future and .................

............... but look how beautiful they are ..................




`

 

[Luddly Neddite]

"purry, drooly"

I had the most wonderful long hair, pale yellow cat. He was huge and when my very young grand daughter firs saw him, she said, "that's not a cat. That's a plillow".

p-l-i-l-l-o-w

So, that became his name.

He would sit on the back of my chair with his front end on my head. He would purr and drool. Down my face.

Loved that cat.

We lived out in the desert and one day, he made a dash for the door. I was able to get him but he thought it was a game and the next day, he did it again. That time though, he spooked and made a dash for the desert. I searched for him for days and days but never saw him again.

 

[gallantwarrior]

So what kind is the most needy, drooly, purry cat?

The neediest cats I've ever owned were Sphinx cats. If I held still both Archie and Baldwin were all over me. I didn't even have to sit down, they would climb up on my shoulders or try to sit on my head!