Category Archives: Cats

Am I Coming or Going?

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I was glad it was Mother’s Day last Sunday because I knew I’d be running a prior Mom’s Day post, thereby not needing to actually write. What a relief.

phew relief

Lately I’m so busy I don’t know whether I’m coming or going. That saying has some truth to it. I’m decent at multitasking but this is getting ridiculous. (And I’m not even due to write my Things I Find Ridiculous column.)

Preparing for our animal spay/neuter mission in Mykonos, Greece next week has been time consuming but I’ve also been attempting (rather pitifully) to plant some annuals and power wash my patio.

backyard annuals

My backyard minus the annuals

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Copycat

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I’m living with a copycat.

The weird thing is, it’s an actual cat. No surprise I guess, as I’m assuming the saying originated when someone astute recognized that kittens tend to copy their mothers. Hold on while I google that. Okay, I’m back. Turns out the earliest reference to copycat was in 1887 with no mention of felines. After that it gets too boring for words, so Iet’s move along.

My copycat happens to be my cat Tippi, so named because her tipped ear is severe. Seems ever since I adopted the ever-entertaining Jack a few months ago, Tippi’s personality has changed. And not, might I add, for the worse.

tippi

Tippi

I trapped Tippi in a feral colony 2 1/2 years ago in the small farming and ranching community of Valley Ford. Tippi and her 21 assorted siblings were born under the grocery store. Thankfully, the store owners asked us (Marin Friends of Ferals) to have them spayed/neutered before she had 41 siblings. Long story short, I ended up keeping Tippi after realizing she was a tweener – not adoptable at the shelter yet not feral enough to be content living under the market.

valley-ford-market

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A Dog’s Devotion (Pass the Kleenex Please)

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After a recommendation, I watched a movie called Hachi: A Dog’s Tale. It’s based on a true story of an Akita living in Japan in 1923. Hachiko (Hachi) was so devoted to his guardian, Professor Ueno, that for two years he walked him to the train station each morning then waited there for his return from work. Sadly, Professor Ueno died at work, never to return home on the train where Hachi still waited at the station.

hachi-waiting

But that’s not the end of the story; it’s really just the beginning. Death couldn’t break the depth of loyalty Hachi felt for his guardian. In fact, he continued his daily vigil for the next 9 years. A permanent fixture at the station, he became a celebrity of sorts. Hachi died near the spot he’d occupied all those years just outside the train station doors. He was 12-years-old. Continue reading →

Loving Every Minute

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Everyone knows I have a slew of animals. Does seven make a slew?

Anyway, when I looked around the other day, I realized how much my pets impact my life, both good and bad. They’re my furry family. Yep, I have an animal house and I love every minute. Well, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration.

animal house

Four of my seven

Let’s just say I’ve had to make compromises for having dogs, Nellie, Callie and Skip and cats, Oliver, Savannah, Tippi and Jack. I can’t expect my nice things to stay nice, so my furniture is often covered like a winterized beach home. I have tables with embedded teeth marks and a backyard with a hole almost deep enough to bury a Mini Cooper, courtesy of Nellie. Continue reading →

Making a Difference

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So often in our feral cat rescue (Marin Friends of Ferals) it feels like we’re barely making a dent in controlling breeding. You think rabbits and mice are prolific baby-makers? Well, unaltered felines are like polygamists with 5 kids per wife, or maybe the Duggar family (19 Kids and Counting). They have no Off switch.

The Duggar’s

But the difference with cats is that they can’t control their mating and subsequent reproducing. No, I’m afraid this one’s on us. People refuse to spay and neuter pets for many reasons: they believe it will make the animal lazy and fat (false); some are simply against birth control; others just can’t be bothered. You name it, I’ve heard it.

NOT a result of being sterilized

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