If My Cat Were President

My first thought would be that it would be a disaster! However, he seems pretty smart about some things, like getting me to do what he wants me to do. Maybe he could get something done. However, the capital would have to move to Wyoming before he would even consider it.

Sammy, you are now President of the United States.

You don’t need to hide. It’s really true!

Oh, I can tell that you are REALLY EXCITED about this opportunity.

You’re going to have to give up some of your activities, such as ghost writing for me.

You’ll have to have an office staff

who hopefully won’t play around too much and get their jobs done.

Then there’s the matter of Congress. Hopefully, some cats will be elected that can do something for the country instead of being so dysfunctional. (Well, maybe not)

You’ll also have to work during the day most of the time and not the middle of the night.

Oh, let’s see. You’re going to need to have the Secret Service around you all the time.

Now that you have your staff, what are you doing to do for the country?

Homes for everyone.

Plenty of things to play with.

Food for everyone.

That’s pretty basic stuff, Sammy. Is there anything you do for us humans?

Oh, I see. You can listen to us and see what we need. That’s very nice.

It looks like the interview is over. He’s giving me that knock-it-off look.

Guess we’ll have to wait until the “President” is ready to talk to us again.

Have a wonderful President’s Day on Monday, everyone.

Marion Lovato is the author of Sam, the Superkitty.  Her book describes an ordinary cat changing into a superhero to protect his family from things that go bump in the night.  Available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle edition.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1604588667

Why Your Cat Will Play With Just About Anything

For humans, summer is the time to play and relax as much as possible. Go camping, golfing, fishing, take a vacation or whatever you choose to do to unwind. Cats have the luxury of being able to play every day regardless of the weather or where they are living. According to a cat behavioral consultant, Daniel Quaghozzi, from San Francisco, most domestic cats are pretty bored. We, as humans, underestimate the amount of interactive play they need on a daily basis. We get excited about a brand new toy we’ve bought them, but most of the time, they prefer the packaging it came in! Sound familiar?

Let’s take a look at some cats playing with THEIR choice of toys.

They get their exercise for the day playing with this.

Nice try, but not a good excuse!

Cardboard is always a favorite toy.

Don’t think you’d want to see this!

Or this!

Sometimes you might not even know they’ve been playing around unless………

Sometimes they want to play with “little humans”.

They might get a surprise when they play with adults.

And, of course, there’s always the dog.

To sum up, cats don’t always get excited to play with the toys we think they should.

Sometimes our cats can be too curious for their own good. And while it’s fun to watch them turn just about anything into a toy, we have to be careful about what they can get their paws on. Stringlike objects, such as yarn, can cause intestinal blockages or strangulation. Plastic bags can suffocate and the handles can get caught on a cat’s neck. Small objects could be chocking hazards. Always use your good judgement.

What kind of everyday materials does your cat like to play with? Would love to hear your stories.

Marion Lovato is the author of Sam, the Superkitty.  Her book describes an ordinary cat changing into a superhero to protect his family from things that go bump in the night.  Available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle edition.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1604588667

Tank Goodness For Friday!!

I apologize, dear readers, for not being here the last two weeks. Back surgery was on 2/11 and much more invasive than I thought it was going to be. My younger son was here to help me, but he had to unplug my computer to plug his in so he could work from here. Didn’t have a chance to let you know what was happening before he unplugged me! Hope you enjoy the story.

Pudge was a very busy cat! He was an inside/outdoor cat and loved to explore. He slept almost sixteen hours a day, so he had to make good use of the six hours that he was awake. This didn’t always happen to be pleasant for the humans he lived with, but he WAS a cat, after all! Cats do what they want and humans have to get used to it. There were a variety of things that he could explore outside in his own yard as well as the neighboring yards. There were flowers, grass, and bugs to play with most of the time; when the weather was good, he also liked to go to the local coffee shop and hang out with the customers. In the winter he liked to go out and dig through the snow.

There were a lot more things to do inside which always seemed to get him into trouble. He wasn’t trying to be a bad cat; it just seemed to turn out that way. He loved laundry day because the clothes smelled so good when they came out of the dryer. Why did the humans get so mad when he would lay on them? So what if they were clean. Another warm place was on the computer keyboard. Humans didn’t like that either. Geez! His racing around the house at midnight also caused problems. When’s a cat suppose to get their exercise?

One week it seemed like everything went wrong. One of the neighbors yelled at him and chased him out of their yard for stalking their pet Chihuahua. The mailman didn’t appreciate a playful nip on the ankle. Pudge knocked over some spices on the kitchen counter when he was chasing a moth. He barfed up a hairball in a good pair of shoes. He missed the end table when he jumped from the couch and ended up hanging from the curtain. He decided that he better leave home for a while and let things calm down. So he headed for the coffee shop.

Marion Lovato is the author of Sam, the Superkitty.  Her book describes an ordinary cat changing into a superhero to protect his family from things that go bump in the night.  Available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle edition.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1604588667

 

 

Christmas Day (Kitty Style)

It was a different Christmas with Mom being gone, but the boys and I made it through. I hope your Christmas Eve and Day was joyful and full of hope. Looking forward to a better year.

The day of Christmas Eve was exciting since everyone was getting ready for Santa Claus. There were last minute things to finish up with wrapping presents, cleaning house, and getting ready for the Christmas service at church. Sometimes things got a little confusing.

While I was at church, the boys were making their lists and checking them twice.

But some of them didn’t want to stop and go to bed!

Finally, everyone was asleep and the house was quiet.

Christmas morning dawned bright and early with snow on the ground.

It wasn’t long until everyone wanted to see their presents, but there was a minor accident to clean up first.

Once that was cleaned up, it was time to open presents.

Some were a little upset about cleaning up afterwards.

And some were a little too happy! Wonder what he got into.

And now it’s time to get back to “normal”, whatever that is. When you have cats, it’s hard to know sometimes. Whatever that happens to be, this is a definite………

See you in 2016!

Marion Lovato is the author of Sam, the Superkitty.  Her book describes an ordinary cat changing into a superhero to protect his family from things that go bump in the night.  Available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle edition.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1604588667

 

12 Reasons Your Cat Thinks That YOU’RE WEIRD!

I just finished going through the latest edition of a magazine that I received. I was laughing so hard at one of the features they had for the month and wanted to share this with you along with pictures. In order not to violate any copyright laws, the wording will be changed to protect the innocent. (Me!) Enjoy.

1. You don’t hang from anything!

Don’t you humans know that curtains are fun to hang from? Or anything else for that matter!

2. You don’t race around the house at odd hours.

The fun is finding out where you finally end up before you lie down to rest! It’s always a surprise.

3. You don’t sleep all day long.

There’s no sense in getting up if you don’t feel like it! We need our 15-16 hours of sleep. Humans spend too much  time and energy in worrying about everyday things. Just relax and be cool.

4. You don’t hack up hairballs or anything else.

Come on, what’s wrong with that. No big deal. If you have to get rid of something, you just do it. Which brings me to my next point. When you barf, you always have to do it in that big white bowl. Geez! You don’t barf on anything like chenille, silk, cashmere, or a sweater left on the floor. In fact, you don’t barf on ANYTHING good!

5. Some of you don’t raise chickens.

Most of you don’t even pluck your own chickens or traffic in chickens in any way. Hummm, chicken sounds pretty good right now!

6. You don’t have cardboard box furniture.

7. You don’t stare at anything.

 Don’t you know that you have to keep staring because you might miss something!

8. You don’t play with packages that come in the mail.

You don’t stand or sit on them. You don’t even squat in them. You don’t do anything except open them. What kind of weirdness is that?

9. You don’t use the couch as a play toy.

Don’t you know that’s what couches are for? As a side note, they’re great for clawing and sharpening your nails!

10. You don’t leave food on pillows or inside of shoes.

11. You don’t understand the complexities of inside/outside.

12.  You don’t bite ankles.

But, zombie cats do bite ankles to get to the brains. You don’t bite your friend’s ankles or even your enemy’s ankles. Is that any way to play?

The magazine gave 48 reasons in all; I combined some of them. Didn’t have pictures for everything, so I chose the cutest ones I could find. Hope you enjoyed it!

 

Marion Lovato is the author of Sam, the Superkitty.  Her book describes an ordinary cat changing into a superhero to protect his family from things that go bump in the night.  Available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle edition.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1604588667

6 Signs Your Home Is Ruled by Cats

Now that you have chosen your pet (or they have chosen you), let’s see what your home may look like once the newness has worn off. There’s a reason cat owners, as well as other animals, are sometimes referred to as “staff.” Cats have a way of burrowing in and taking over not only your heart, but your home too. Take a look at your house for these telltale signs that a cat is running the show.

1. Random Litterbox Locations

Corner of the dining room, smack dab in the middle of the home office, in the master bathtub? Use to keep mine in the bathtub so the litter wouldn’t get all over. Much easier to keep clean. Just lift it out when you’re ready to take a shower or bath. Cat owners know it’s easier to have it where the cats want it than to clean up a mess.

2. Cat Pillows

Your cat may find a favorite pillow they like on the couch, in a chair, or on the bed. You can tell by the indentation left by their body which one it will be. It will also collect an increasing amount of fur. Kirby has a favorite pillow on the couch that he always uses. Sunlight from the window will shine on him while he naps. Ah, such a life! Needless to say, Mom or I don’t use that pillow anymore.

3. Limited Access to Technology

Some cats love to lie on a warm keyboard. Cat-ruled humans know that removing the cat from the keyboard sounds much easier than it is. Your cat will keep returning to claim his spot — or force you to abandon your computer. Mine have never liked to lie on the keyboard, but they will get up in my lap or stand on the desk looking at the monitor and do everything to get my attention.

4. Uncomfortable Sleeping Arrangements

When you walk into your bedroom at night and see a cat lying on your pillow, what do you do? Squeeze in somewhere else, of course! Cat owners know that nobody but the cat gets to sleep where and when they want. My two would lie on the side of the bed and eventually move me completely over during the night by gently “kneading” my side. When I would wake up in the morning, I would be hanging on to the edge of the bed for dear life! They were smack dab in the middle wondering what was wrong with me.

5. Sleeping Schedules That Aren’t Your Own

Homes run by cats are those that rise early. If it’s not the furry face staring at you, it’s the incessant meowing, the blinds rattling, items falling off shelves or other disturbing noises the cat purposefully makes. No one sleeps through breakfast when cats are in charge. Kirby isn’t too bad, but Sammy is pacing all over my computer desk, the night table, up in the window, jumping down on top of me, or anything else he can think of!

6. Shredded Cat Trees

The 10-year-old, shag-carpet-covered, shredded cat tree is the one the felines want, so it’s what a cat-managed home has. And cat owners know this truth: Get rid of the favorite cat tree and put your furniture, rugs, windowsills and perhaps even your own body in peril. The one Sammy used was lying in pieces around the house before I finally got rid of it. He hasn’t liked anything I’ve bought since, so I have to watch him pretty closely with his scratching.

Is yours a cat-managed home? Please tell us about some of your experiences with your cat/s.

Marion Lovato is the author of Sam, the Superkitty.  Her book describes an ordinary cat changing into a superhero to protect his family from things that go bump in the night.  Available on Amazon as a paperback or Kindle edition.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1604588667