Rescue Articles Written By Rachel

Rachel

Rachel is a guest contributor and high school junior who loves writing, science, astronomy - and cats. She has been writing for CharityPaws for almost 2 years and you can find her writing about cat and small animal rescue. You can view all of her articles here.

The Room 8 Cat Adopts A Classroom!

12/11/2019 by Rachel Leave a Comment

Over 50 years ago there lived a cat lovingly named Room 8 who, by his own choice adopted a classroom at a local school.

Elysian Heights Elementary School in Echo Park, CA was home to Room 8 who wandered into the classroom through an open window in 1952 and returned every school year until the 1960’s.

The Room 8 cat would make his way back to the school every fall when it started and then when summer break hit he would disappear – but like clockwork he would find his way back when the kids came back.

Room 8 Cat With Students — photo credit: Art Worden/Herald-Examiner Collection, LAPL Archive – September 14, 1964

Room 8 Cat Memorial — image credit: Scott G/findagrave.com

Every year when school was back in session it would be a celebration of sorts with newspapers and local television stations making their arrival on the first day of school to wait for him to make his way back for the new school year.

During his reign as supreme cat he was receiving roughly 100 letters a day addressed just to him and he would go on to be written about in a book called A Cat Called Room 8 and even featured in a documentary called Big Cat, Little Cat.

Room 8 passed away in 1968 and has a special grave that features his story and image in the Los Angeles Pet Memorial Park where people can visit! The funds for the memorial came from the students of the school.

His death was talked about in papers like the Los Angeles Times and as far away as the Hartford Courant proving his notoriety was far and wide.

Even after Room 8 had passed away students from the school learned about the legend of Room 8 and the school went on to be an animal friendly environment allowing other strays to roam around!

Learn More About the Room 8 Cat

The Room 8 Memorial Cat Foundation was named in his honor by the “cat lady of Pasadena” Hettie L. Perry. Although she and her husband have since passed away, the foundation still exists solely to help cats! Please visit them and support them!

You can also read a few stories from people who attended the school on the A Cat Called Room 8 book page – and although the book does not seem to be available, the comments are priceless!

Room 8 Cat Napping — image credit: John Malmin/Los Angeles Time

Reptile Rescues Across The States

11/04/2019 by Rachel Leave a Comment

If I say pet, most people think of soft, fuzzy critters like cats, dogs, and rabbits– but snakes and lizards are pets too and definitely do not get the attention they deserve.

From geckos to turtles to chameleons and more, there are many different kinds of reptiles, all with a wide variety of needs. UV lighting, heat lamps, special housing, and sanitation are all critical factors to consider when taking care of a reptile [1].

But, even though lots of people are prepared for the special responsibilities of a reptile, just as many people aren’t.

Keeping various scaly or hard shelled creatures – like a pet chameleon require more attention and upkeep than most people realize and sometimes this extra work results in these types of pets being dumped.

This is where reptile rescues come in. Yes, this is really a thing!

Like any other rescues, reptile rescues take in reptiles that needs their help, and care for them until they’re adopted out. These rescues also cater to reptiles’ specific needs, like heat lamps and food, and help to educate the public about reptiles as a whole.

Reptile Rescues Profiles

Here’s a list of some reptile rescues that really look out for out scaly friends so you can get an idea of how hard these rescues work! We could not profile every single rescue – but these few will give you an idea of the type of work all rescues do.

Forgotten Friend Reptile Sanctuary – Pennsylvania

Forgotten Friend Reptile Sanctuary is one of my favorite reptile rescues. Their mission is to “give reptiles a chance, by rescuing reptiles that need our help, and by providing fun outreach programs to spread our love of reptiles”.

They’ve conducted more than 2,000 shows, in a wide variety of schools, libraries, churches, television programs, and more– all aiming to showcase reptiles and how great they really are. The “outreach” side of their website is chock-full of information about the study of reptiles (herpetology), and how to get involved with local herpetological groups if you’re in the Pennsylvania area.

If you’re interested in donating, or just reading a happy story, the “rescue” side of their website is complete with donation links, and a list of some of the reptiles they’ve helped find homes for so far.

The Gecko Sanctuary – Massachusetts

Like many local rescues, The Gecko Sanctuary is a small scale group. Based in Massachusetts, they are “dedicated to helping geckos (and other reptiles and amphibians) in need within New England”.

As the name implies, the Sanctuary mostly works with geckos– but this doesn’t stop them from helping bearded dragons, snakes, and a wide variety of frogs!

Most notably, the Sanctuary aims to rehabilitate reptiles surrendered by their owners, working closely with vets and willing fosters to ensure nice, speedy recoveries. They give care to reptiles with more severe needs, too, including geckos with metabolic bone disease, bearded dragons with parasites, and malnourished or otherwise mistreated reptiles.

They also work towards reptile education with educational shows and openness to questions from the public.

If you are interested in helping the Sanctuary, please be sure to check out their website to see how you can help!

Friends of Scales Reptile Rescue – Illinois

Friends of Scales Reptile Rescue is “dedicated to the care of the ill, injured, abandoned, and the aggressive/dangerous”.

As an insured reptile rescue, Friends of Scales is totally able and willing to take on a role in the promotion of responsible reptile ownership. They also promote reptile conservation efforts and help inspire the public to help protect the animals they love.

Volunteering is critical for Friends of Scales, and we cannot stress enough the importance of volunteering in the first place. If you’re interested in volunteering, you can find more information here.

Even if you can’t volunteer with Friends of Scales, please keep in mind all the other rescues on this list. Animal rescue takes a lot of work, and without volunteers, it’s hard to keep up!

Aside from volunteers, Friends of Scales also accepts surrendered reptiles from owners who can’t take care of their pets anymore. In the event that they are over capacity, or simply cannot accept a surrender at this time, Friends of Scales is also willing to connect surrendered pets with people willing and able to take them in.

As with all the other rescues on this list, be sure to look over the Friends of Scales website if you’re interested– and make a donation if you’re willing!

Colorado Reptile Humane Society – Colorado

Like all the rescues on this list, the Colorado Reptile Humane Society (CoRHS) focuses on education, conservation, and adoption.

Unlike some of the other rescues, however, CoRHS offers unique opportunities such as animal sponsoring and foster care. These programs are especially meant to help educate the public about reptiles and their needs, and fostering or sponsoring will both help warm your heart!

CoRHS aids in two important conservation efforts in the state of Colorado– wildlife rehabilitation, and the Colorado Box Turtle Project, which studies the effects of human activity on the native Colorado Box Turtle population. The information from the project, CoRHS hopes, will help establish “population viability and conservation needs before it becomes too late to prevent local extinction.” You can read more about both of these projects here.

On top of those massive conservation efforts, CoRHS also has volunteering opportunities, and internship opportunities with the Colorado Box Turtle Project. Altogether, CoRHS’s many opportunities make it a very unique rescue, and we definitely recommend checking it out!

As always, if you’re interested in supporting the Colorado Reptile Humane Society, you can find further information and details on their website.

American Tortoise Rescue – California

Although they’re based in California, the American Tortoise Rescue (ATR) helps turtles and tortoises from across the globe.

Since its founding in 1990, ATR has rehomed more than 4,000 turtles and tortoises. They also sponsor World Turtle Day, an annual celebration on May 23rd that aims to bring attention to the plight of turtles and tortoises, as well as educate people about turtles and tortoises, and encourage action to help these beautiful animals thrive.

Even so, ATR no longer provides rehoming or assistance with adoptions, except in rare cases or for special needs turtles. Now, much of their time “is spent with a dedicated commitment to education, legal issues facing turtles and tortoises and expanding World Turtle Day® activities on May 23rd annually”.

Instead, they have a wealth of information regarding reptile rescues throughout the United States, Canada, the U.K., and elsewhere.

Run solely by volunteers, ATR relies heavily on donations, like most other rescues. Their focus on education, activism, and information for turtle owners is, all and all, fantastic. Be sure to donate if you’re willing, to make sure ATR is around to help for years to come.

A Few More Reptile Rescues!

Even though there are only 5 rescues on this list, there are many, many more throughout the U.S.!

Here’s a few smaller mentions:

Angela’s Reptile Rescue is based in Sandy, Utah, and is dedicated to bettering the lives of animals. Angela’s work also has her helping teach others about reptiles, at schools and expos alike. If you’re interested, you can find her webpage here.

Creepy Critters Rescue is in Los Banos, California, and focuses on rescuing, rehabilitating, and rehoming reptiles and arthropods. Above all else, Creepy Critters prioritizes healing, socializing, and finding forever homes for “amazing, misunderstood critters”. Their website can be found here.

Slimy, Scaly, Taily Reptile Rescue in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, is one of many small reptile rescues across the U.S., and was initially founded by a little boy’s love of reptiles. Now, the rescue takes in “abused, abandoned, and relinquished reptile, amphibians and arachnids”, and aims to find every animal a loving forever home. You can read more about their efforts on their Facebook page, here.

All Reptile Rescues By State

Below is a comprehensive list by state of all the reptile rescues we could find. We will add to this list as new rescues come our way – if you have suggestions, we are all ears!

While we were able to find these websites and verify they are still active websites – we did not validate whether the people behind the site are still active in rescue – so you should definitely reach out!

Most of these reptile rescues are small organizations with limited funding and resources. If you love these animals – then helping any of these rescues is highly recommended!

Making The Decision To Adopt A Reptile

Lastly, if you need any more information before you try to find a scaly friend, I would recommend checking out ReptiFiles. ReptiFiles is full of comprehensive care guides for a variety of reptiles, from leopard geckos to corn snakes, to blue-tongued skinks.

Mariah Healey, author of the website, also keeps all her information as up-to-date and accurate as possible.

Beyond that, ReptiFiles has pages of resources for all your reptile needs– so, if you are serious about getting a reptile, be sure to check them out for anything you might need when caring for your new best friend.

Make sure you do a search – talk to experts and really do your due diligence to ensure that having a reptile as a pet is the perfect option for your whole family!

If you have any local reptile rescues you’d like to share, please do so in the comments below!

[1] Many sites like texvetpets.org review the special needs of reptiles. If you’re interested in keeping one as a pet, be sure to make sure you read up on how to keep your pet healthy!

Adopting a reptile is a wonderful thing! Find a reptile rescue near you and learn more about a few that are doing great things!

Trucker Cats May Be The Coolest Cats!

08/26/2019 by Rachel Leave a Comment

For what it’s worth, having a pet is hard work.

Love is easy enough to provide while on the road – but food, water, space, and entertainment are all needs too, and sometimes hard to come up with.

In the case of dogs especially, playtime is the hardest need to fill for truckers. After several hour-long walks, a game of tug-of-war, and an afternoon in the sun spent playing fetch, who wouldn’t be tired? But for truckers this can be time consuming and delay important deliveries!

That’s why many truckers have turned to cats as the solution for those lonely road trips.

With most of their time spent on the road in a little truck cab, cats are the perfect companion for truckers– and here’s some of the best reasons why according to one trucker’s resource:

Cats are low-maintenance: they eat less than their canine counterparts, take up less room, and don’t need as much playtime.
They’re loving and affectionate: cats are just as sweet as any other animal, once they have a chance to warm up to you.
They’re obedient, and trainable: cats can do tricks and walk on leashes, with the proper time and training!
They’re protective: though not as scary as a dog, cats are perfectly capable of altering truckers if something looks, sounds, or even smells off.

Other reasons topping truckers’ lists include cleanliness, cuteness, and the fact that having a cat in a truck is a pretty good conversation starters. Some even say that having a feline friend is a constant reminder to drive and act safely during the long haul.

With the rise of cats in trucks, there’s been an equally heartwarming set of stories to match: cats have been rescued from roads, lovingly nursed back to health, and even adopted in some awesome cases.

When one Internet-famous cat, Waylon, ran away from his owner, the Internet came to the rescue, and the cat was found – and returned, uninjured! – not even a day later.

From trucking forums to subreddits, these road-bound felines have contributed to the Internet’s unending obsession with all things cat.

Some Pretty Awesome Trucker Cats

We found some really cool cats out there that have an amazing trucker life!

Here are a few of our favorites if you are looking for a few trucker cats to see how they live and love life on the road. Peanut, Maverick and Percy are all well loved companions to some pretty cool truckers!

This is peanut the trucker cat, he travels around with his owner that drives a semi-truck for a living. from aww

Where’s Maverick the Trucker-Cat? from aww

Trucker Cat Percy — image credit: Paul Robertson / Percy the Cat

Truckers Helping Animals

But, beyond that, cats and their truckers have gone on to influence the world of animal rescue, too.

The Texas nonprofit Operation Roger, for example, helps transport rescued animals to their new forever homes. Though they mostly transport cats and dogs and the occasional mouse, Operation Roger lets pets hitch a ride with willing truck drivers, to take them cross-country to wherever they need to be.

Founder Sue Wiese told NBC, “We’re a ragtag group of pet lovers who want to help pets who already have a home to go to, give them some T.L.C., and a hitchhike to get there.”

And, thankfully, they aren’t alone in their charity.

Other groups like the Pilot.dog Foundation, founded by Pam and Steve Rhode in 2015, accept requests from non-profit dog rescues to “assist them with flights of dogs for medical care or relocation from kill shelters”. Sometimes, they even get to fly these dogs to their forever homes!

Pilots N Paws is a similar non-profit, which aims to engage volunteer pilots with the world of animal rescuing, sheltering, and adopting. Through their Pilots N Paws discussion board, volunteers can “exchange information regarding animal transports, coordinate and schedule transports, share rescue stories and recruit volunteers”.

By dedicating their time and skills to animal rescue, these non-profits and truckers are helping to change the world, one animal at a time– and for that, we thank them!

Are You A Trucker Who Wants To Have A Cat Ride Shotgun?

We LOVE this idea and think a cat can make a great companion for those long haul trips that get lonely. If you already have a cat – then you will want to make sure they have the outgoing laid back attitude to be a great partner – not every cat is a great match for long haul rides.

If you are looking to adopt a cat as a road trip companion, make sure you tell the rescue or shelter so they can help you find the perfect side-kick! They will know the personalities of their available cats the best and will help you find the most chill cat possible.

We would deter you from having a kitten on board – and would highly recommend a middle age or older cat as they are calmer and will cause less turmoil while driving!

Other things you need to think about:

Feeding/Water Bowls – we highly recommend a non-skid bowl combination that will prevent too much sliding around in the truck. Also making sure the bowls are deep enough so you can add a little water and food and it will not slosh around. You can of course add more food and water during those sleeping hours when the truck is parked. Another option is to add velcro to the bottom of the bowls to help them stay put!

Litter Box – of course the cat should always have access to do their business! You can use poop bags or sandwich bags to clean their box daily. Depending on how much space your track has will depend on the type of box you get. A little sprinkle of baking soda every day can also keep the smell away.

Toys – you will need to have a few things for your kitty to do on those extra long trips! While napping and enjoying the scenery will be fun for a bit – a few toys will help keep them frisky and fun.

Scratching Post – there are a few small options like scratching boards instead of big trees that will help them have a safe place to scratch.

Bed – this is critical! Make sure your travel buddy has a soft space to lay their head so they can feel safe and secure.

Training Your Cat For Trucking Travel

If you have a cat that you want to start traveling with – or are in the process of adopting one, then training your cat to get used to life in a cab is critical to making a happy healthy transition to becoming a trucker cat.

First you will want to take your cat into the cab of your truck just to get them used to it. Do not start the engine, just let them explore it on their own. Bring a few treats or favorite blanket to help them feel more secure. You want to make the cab a POSITIVE environment for them.

If you feel that your cat is pretty comfortable at this point – then go ahead and start the truck. Now let them explore on their own again with the engine running. They may be frightened at first – so be sure to talk to them, give them treats and help them feel secure!

If you got past the 1st steps above now is the time to go for a short ride around town and see how your buddy does. If they are terrified, then your cat may not do well on the road and you should consider getting a more laid back cat! If they seem to be OK and just a little nervous – do a few more trips around town before you head off on your big trip so they have more time to gain the confidence they need!

Cat-tastic Cat Puns To Amaze Your Friends

05/13/2019 by Rachel Leave a Comment

Well hello there fellow cat lover!

We imagine you are on the prowl looking for some perfect funny cat puns to amaze your cat loving friends and boy do we have you covered.

We have spent a lot of time compiling this list of cat puns and sayings that will bring smiles to those you share them with.

Some you may have heard before – but we are confident there are some cat-tastic ones you have not heard before. (<– see what we did there with, cat-tastic? ). Funny cat puns are a great way to break the ice with strangers – or show your friends what a cat lover you are.

Cat Puns That Are Just Plain Punny!

Cat-tastic
Kind of like fantastic, only better because it includes a cat! Use it when you are talking about how awesome something is.
Usage example: This post is cat-tastic!

Hiss-self
Goes with the word himself and can be used to talk about any male.
Usage example: Did you see Bill being a jerk last night, he should really get over hiss-self.

Cat-titude
A great way to describe a personality! If you know someone who has the attitude of a cat – you know they only want attention when they want attention or hiss at you when you rub their belly, they may have “cat-titude”.
Usage example: Boy does Cheryl have so much cat-titude today.

Clawsome
The perfect cat pun to describe something that is amazingly awesome! If you are tired of using the word awesome, then use this one as an alternate.
Usage example: That movie was so clawsome!

Another option for the pun clawsome is pawsome which can work the same way and can be used as a dog pun or cat pun!

Procatstinate
Those moments you spend playing with you cat instead of doing chores or work is what procatstinate is. Can also be used as a verb with the term procatstinating!
Usage example: If I did not procrastinate so much I could get much more done every day.

Furry
A great alternative to the word very in a variety of ways.
Usage example: That ice cream cone was furry good!

Hiss
Makes a great play on words for the kiss.
Usage example: I cannot wait to get my very first hiss.

Pawlease
When you need an exaggerated alternative to please – this hits the mark perfectly.
Usage example: Oh, girl can you pawlease stop acting like that.

Purrsonality
Typically used to describe someone, especially if they have attributes that are cat like – like being spunky!
Usage example: That actress has so much purrsonality.

Catastrophe
When things just go wrong as they sometimes will and it is a major event, you may consider it a catastrophe.
Usage example: That car accident on the way to the vet was a catastrophe.

Furtunate
When one is lucky or has lots of good things happen to them they may be considered furtunate.
Usage example: That cat was so furtunate to have found such an amazing family to adopt them.

Cathletic
Finding one to be truly skilled in sports or to have cat like reflexes.
Usage example: The way that cat climbed that tree was so cathletic.

Self-Pawtrait
When one draws or paints a likeness of themselves.
Usage example: That self-pawtrait he did is amazing.

Pawsitive
One one is sure of something and needs a way to describe it.
Usage example: Are you pawsitive that chocolate is not good for animals?

RSPCA Queensland Cat Pun Illustrations

The RSPCA of Queensland has created a few adorable cat pun illustrations that we think you will enjoy! Below is one of our favorites that showcase the funny cat aspect of our feline friends! This is such a creative way for a rescue or shelter to get a little extra attention too. By creating these types of memes for people to share they are getting more exposure for their organization.

Cat pun illustration from Queensland RSPCA — image credit: Queensland RSPCA

If Cat Puns Were Not Enough, How About Some Cat Jokes?

Here are a few of our favorite pun inspired cat jokes from around the cat-osphere.

What do cats eat on hot summer days? Mice cream of course!
What is a cats favorite TV show? The Evening Mews!
Where does a cat go when it loses its tail? The re-tail store.
What do you call cat who loves music? A Meow-sician!
If there are 5 cats in a boat and 1 jumps out, how many will be left? None, because they are all copycats.
What do you call a pile of cats? A meowtain.
Where do cats love to shop the most? Cat-alogues.
Why do cats enjoy sitting on computers? They like to keep an eye on the mouse.
What is the most popular car for cats? A Furrari

Landysh Cat Pun Illustrations

Another great illustration that are puntastic from an artist named Landysh that are featured on Lingviston.com. You can find a lot of great cat related items that have puns on them from t-shirts to prints. Below is one of her designs with a cat saying we just love.

Cat mermaid pun print from Lingviston.com. — image credit: Lingviston.com

Creating Your Own Cat Pun

If you are creative with words you can probably create some new cat puns yourself.

Think about cat related words that you can use to replace similar sounding words or part of words.

There are also a couple of tools you can use to help you come with your own like the Cat Pun Generator or Kittify.

Other Creative Cat Puns

Deck the Paws
Meowy Christmas
Help Meow-T
Purrrty Girl
You have got to be kitten me
Are you pawsitive
I am feline fantastic

Pretty Litter: A Review By A Finicky Cat & Her Human

02/20/2019 by Rachel Leave a Comment

Pretty Litter is a newer cat litter in a pretty saturated market that claims to keep tabs on your cats health – but does it really work?

We are lovers of Tidy Scoop and have been using it for years — it took a few litter tests to find one that our cat loved as cats seem to be picky about these things, and for us Tidy Scoop seemed to be her favorite. Overall it has been a good litter — but even though it claims to be “dust proof” we still get dust everywhere so that is always a frustration I have had.

This is why we wanted to at least give Pretty Litter a try and see how SnoopyCat liked it. Also, with her getting older we thought it would be great to have the color change feature to indicate if there are any health issues going on.

What is Pretty Litter Exactly?

Pretty Litter is a unique cat litter that has a special technology that will allow you to see if your cat has any common health issues by showing a color change in their urine.

The litter can trace some more common cat health issues like:

Alkaline – which can signal a urinary tract infection. If Alkaline is found in your cats urine, the color of the litter will turn a share of blue or green.

Blood – can mean your cat has bladder stones or inflammation. Blood in your felines urine will turn the litter red.

Acidity – shows issues with the kidneys such as metabolic acidosis. The litter will turn shades of orange if your cat is showing low pH levels.

Ordering Pretty Litter

We do love the easy ordering they offer and the auto delivery which will make busy lives so much easier. This is how easy it is:

Let Pretty Litter know how many cats you have in your home.

Thats it. Just tell them that – submit your payment and you will be billed monthly and your litter will arrive on your doorstep every month. Shipping is FREE in the 48 contiguous states too!

Buy Pretty Litter

What is Pretty Litter Made From?

Pretty Litter is created with super absorbent Silica Gel. This gel is combined with a proprietary formulation of indicators that give you the color change for urine issues that may be present. Silica gels are made from sodium silicate and are clear to the eye.

The litter is clump-free and more absorbent than more common clumping litters so you actually need less litter to do the same job.

Will My Cat Use The Litter?

Pretty Litter notes that most cats do actually acclimate to the litter fairly quickly, but because we know cats are finicky little creatures some do have a harder time with the change.

With Snoopy we had to actually place one of her poops from another box and place it in the new litter a few times before she actually realized what it was and began using it. This was a recommendation from the Pretty Litter team.

They also suggest possibly mixing old litter with the new on a 75% Pretty Litter and 25% original litter mix.

Because the texture of Pretty Litter is so different and there is essentially no smell – sometimes cats are not clear on what this strange item is in their box! Just give them some time and have some patience while they get used to the new litter.

What Snoopy Says

My girl Snoopy seems to like the new litter now and is using it with no problems. We are in week 6 at the time of the writing – and she likes not leaving a big miss on my bathroom floor anymore because she knows mom was frustrated always stepping on litter.

Because she is a lady she also likes how less stinky she is these days!

Her box is located in the bathroom in my bedroom and I have 2 different pet odor control candles burning – but man cats can be stinky because they do not always help! She is less embarrassed now because the litter does a great job lessening the stink!

So far there has been no color change with her urine, so we cannot account for whether that is working or not – but since I want my cat happy and healthy – I am glad the litter is not changing color!

Canceling

One of the things we hate is when you have to jump through hoops to cancel a subscription! Many companies make you call to do this – but Pretty Litter makes it easy.

Just login to your account and hit the cancel button! It’s that easy. We respect them for that.

The Pretty Litter Benefits

For those that want a summary of what makes this litter great – here you go!

Free monthly delivery
Urine health monitoring
Use less litter = save you money
Odor control
Less dust and mess than traditional litters
Lighter in weight than common litters

Read The Review

So, the above is our take on the litter and Snoopy and I are pretty darn happy with it and will be keeping it for now. The decrease in my amount of sweeping cat litter from my floors was enough to convince me!

But we wanted to share thoughts from around the web so you can make your own decision. As with anything in life, there are some people who did not love it, but it does seem more did than not. This review is based on a 1 cat home and she is a small cat that does not urinate or poop that much.

Your experience of course may be different – but we do think it is worth trying! Below are some of the more recent good – and bad from around the web that we could find to help you decide for yourself.

Pretty Litter reviews

Reddit discussion

Amazon reviews

Reddit discussion – litter dust

Pretty Litter Coupon – 10% Off

If you are ready to give them a try then we have a special offer for you! Pretty Litter is offering a 10% Off your first order!

Simply head on over to Pretty Litter and enter the coupon code AFF10 at checkout to get 10% off your first order.

If you have already tried it – let us know what you think!

The Kitty Convict Project

10/06/2018 by Rachel Leave a Comment

When we learned about the Kitty Convict Project campaign to end the issue of lost indoor cats – we of course had to learn more and what we found was adorable and beneficial to helping keep cats safe.

Three fabulous minds came together to create this campaign, Matthew Inman – the brainchild behind The Oatmeal and Elan Lee and Shane Small which are the creators of Exploding Kittens.

As a side note – I had never heard of the card game Exploding Kittens, but OMG this looks fun – and funny!

On our Christmas gifting list this year for sure for the cat lovers in our lives! There are a few different versions of the game including their original version, an adult only version and then a party pack for up to 10 players.

Ok, back to the important part of this post (sorry, got detracted by adorable exploding kittens)!

The play on words to “ending cat nudity” – while funny, takes on a not so funny challenge of keeping indoor cats safe when they are allowed to roam outdoors – whether on purpose or by accident.

Every year less than 5% of missing cats are returned home! The Kitty Convict Project hopes to change that!

Why such a low number?

There are a couple of reasons so many cats are not.

1) Cats often do not have collars and/or tags on to be able to contact owners.
2) People often assume a cat randomly loose in a neighborhood is a stray – so they tend not to be reported.

What Can Cat Owners Do?

The Kitty Convict Project focuses on dealing with what they call “cat nudity” – a funny take on a big problem. No one should have a naked cat lying around – so let’s get those kitties dressed for success!

The project promoted the idea of putting something ORANGE on your cat.

Maybe an orange collar with a tag.

Maybe an orange scarf.

They even mention the idea of an orange party hat!

Just make it orange – and give it a tag and your cat can be part of the Kitty Convict Project.

Why Orange?

Well to find out why – visit the Kitty Convict Project to learn more about their reasoning about the choice of orange. But in short – orange is bright and easy to see giving your cat a better chance of being found – and orange is a color commonly associated with convicts – hence the Kitty Convict project!

The Campaign

Here are some of their promotional images which we love!

You can share these with the hastag #kittyconvict to bring light to this awesome campaign and help inspire more cat owners to properly dress their cats so they stay safe when they make their ventures to the great outdoors.

What Would You Spend To Save Your Sick Pet?

09/28/2018 by Rachel 6 Comments

Having seen some crazy posts recently about how much people and even rescues are spending to save sick animals – I thought this would be a great conversation to have!

We believe every life matters, but how much money would you spend to save your pet if they became very ill?

My Story

My world was my 2 pit bull breed sisters Ginger and Riley who passed away at the ages of 14 and 14.5. You can read about Ginger here and Riley here.

I was sucker punched by the pain of losing these two so close together – but they were old and had a fantastic long healthy life until those later years.

Riley was filled with health issues from the time she was about 12 – from Lyme’s disease to Cushing’s we had a constant cabinet filled with medications to help ease her pain and discomfort.

She passed out in my kitchen one day and we rushed her to the vet where we let her go based on our the recommendation of our vet.

Ginger on the other hand stayed healthy – well until Riley died.

After her sister passed she became lethargic and went downhill fast. We took her to the vet and found out she had a tumor – now keep in mind we had her in for a checkup about 6 months or so before and they found her happy and healthy.

She was just over 14 years old.

Her sister was gone and she was showing a loss of love for life.

We could have treated her and tried to save her to get more time with her.

But, we didn’t.

We gave her pain meds – and waited until she told us she was “ready”.

Four months later she had a stroke – and we let her go.

It was hard – and sometimes I still wonder if we should have done more for her.

But between our 2 girls it is safe to say we spent well over $7K in the last 2 years of their lives. Most of that cost was for Riley.

Our Financial Choices!

All of the things below were considered with both our dogs in regards to what we would or would not do to help them.

Average Breed Lifespan

The average lifespan for a pit bull breed dog is 10-12 years, Ginger was a few months over 14 years when we got her tumor diagnosis, Riley was about 12 when we got her diagnosis of Cushing’s.

With both we gave thought to how much more life we would expect to get for either of them. They both lived very healthy – long lives, how much more could we really get with all the different medical innovations that are out there?

If you have a young dog – that will probably impact your decision, as it should. But for a senior dog that is at or past their lifespan expectancy does it make sense to spend thousands of dollars to help them live longer?

Pain & Suffering

Our dogs were both seniors – their bones ached, they were both losing control of their bladders, they were not walking as well as they had. Because I could not know for sure how much pain they were in – this was a tough one to consider!

Think about what they may currently be feeling – do you want to add to that? In my case for Ginger – we knew the tumor was causing some pain – would it be worth it to put her through surgery or cancer treatments and have her feel more pain?

Would that pain turn into a better quality of life for her?

Because of her age – we did not think it would.

If your 5 year old pup is diagnosed with cancer – then the decision may be different since cancer treatment can potentially give them another 10 years or so of great life!

Survival Odds

Can the treatment your pet is being suggested give them a good chance of survival? If a vet is saying it may give them a 20% chance of survival and the surgery is $5K – is it worth it?

Of course if it was 100% survival odds then absolutely!

Personal Finances

This is a biggie – and of course everyones circumstances are different.

I do not feel we should JUDGE ANYONE for the choices they make and will not condone that. I have seen too many posts of people judging others – for spending too much or for not spending enough to care for their pets. Judging helps no one, so lets not do that please!

Everyone has different priorities in life – and while our pets are one of our top priorities in our own home, I would still not max out credit cards or take a loan to provide medical care that will not have a 100% certain outcome. Personally, we do not have a huge savings to dig into for these types of costs – the care we gave our girls happened because I worked extra to pay off the bill with our vet. That was the only way I was able to do what I was able to do for them.

If you have to go into debt to save your pet – then you should consider your decision carefully.

Outrageous Stories of Costly Vet Care

Ten year old George is a goldfish that underwent surgery to remove a tumor on his head! His owner was so in love with him that apparently $200 was no problem to save his life and help him swim better and eat properly.
Another lucky fish named Conquer who at just 1 year old was still a baby underwent a $500 surgery to remove a pebble he ingested. His very aware owner noticed he was acting differently and rushed him to the vet – where he received the surgery and went on to get back to his normal self.
Bubbles was a rescue kitten who at the age of 7 developed colon disease and her parents were told he would die. Bubble’s owners had already spent $3K the prior year for vet care and medicines and now the only other option was a 4K surgery, which the couple decided to have done. So, over $7K was spent for the vet care to help Bubbles feel better – and thankfully the surgery worked and she is feeling great!
Then there is the story of the NJ couple that took their 8 year old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, named Remy, to Japan for heart surgery. After being diagnosed with mitral valve disease – the couple was told there was not many options to help him, but the couple decided that was not the answer they wanted. They later found a doctor and vet in Japan who could do a surgery to help their dog and they jumped all over it – at a cost of $17K – plus more for the travel needs to go to Japan to have it done.

What Are Your Thoughts?

How much would you do to save your pet?

Do you have a “plan” in place for emergency pet care?

Do you have a pet insurance plan in place?

What do you think about some of the outrageous stories above?

What people spend on sick pets - would you?

Helping Animals When Getting Married

09/13/2018 by Rachel 2 Comments

Congratulations – your are engaged! This is an exciting time of your life and one where all the focus is on YOU – the bride-to-be. If you are a die-hard animal lover then you may be thinking, OK I finally have everyones attention – so how can I use this to help homeless animals.

Well we got you covered – and a special thank you for caring so much that you found this post!

Here are a few ideas that you can incorporate into your big day to help animals that are spending their time in a shelter or rescue instead of their forever home! And if you are really really really an animal lover than you can take a peak out our list of places to have weddings that benefit animals!

Kitten Hour Instead of Cocktail Hour

Wedding Idea Helps Rescues — image credit: F–k Yeah Weddings

We could not love this idea more! It is almost like having a kitten wedding instead of a people wedding!

A Seattle couple skipped the traditional open bar idea and went for what they called a “kitten hour” for their attendees. We think it is so awesome that a couple were able to find their related “cat mate” – since they both are clearly cat lovers, there is truly a match out there for everyone! They are parents to 2 special needs cats – so they reached out to the Seattle Animal Shelter with their idea and the shelter was totally on board.

The shelter picked the most social kittens they had and the happy couple not only made a donation to the shelter but asked that all their guests do as well in lieu of gifts.

Oh – and the best part – all the cats from the wedding were adopted.

Another great example of promoting your favorite rescue at your wedding is this couple! A paid of veterinarians who wanted to do something completely different and brought 2 rescue kittens to their wedding to promote a rescue where they often volunteer.

Table Numbers or Candles With Adoptable Pets

Photo Candle For Wedding With Adoptable Pets — image credit: Detroit Dog Rescue

By working with your local rescue organization you can give a great gift – exposure! With limited resources it is all too often that a rescue or shelter cannot get all the animals in their care the exposure they need. The table number can have an image of the animal with their important details such as age, size, personality etc. and the shelters contact information on the back in case anyone is interested in learning more about that particular animal.

If your shelter cannot get the information to you – see if you can make some time to swing by a few days before your wedding to get the information – you can even ask your photographer if they would be willing to take some time to photograph the animals for the shelter which would be an added bonus!

See if they can create the table cards too – many photographers who love animals would absolutely do this to help the animals!

If you love candles another option we love which was inspired by an event that Detroit Dog Rescue did was this creative candle. A batter operated candle with an insert of an image of one of their adoptable pets was displayed on each table.

This is a great idea for any wedding! Each table with their own candle – with and image and short description of the animal that is looking for their forever home is a beautiful accent piece that is doing something great!

Door Of Adoptable Pets

Image credit: Wedding Wonderland
Photo Credit: FrancescaFrancesa

We are not sure if this is specifically what this was because the website we found it on is in Italian, but we were inspired by it and thought it was a great addition for any wedding!

We love the country chic rustic feel of this door and the way the flowers are displayed throughout – it just gives it a sense of warmth and feelings of home and accents the images beautifully. But this can be used in any style wedding – a modern door with a more modern floral look and ribbon accents would also be a gorgeous accent! Or how about a large mirror with a gold or silver ornate trim accent surrounded by a wreath of images of local pets available for adoption.

Using prints of various pets that are in a local shelter and printing their information on the cards are a perfect way to bring exposure to animals who may otherwise not receive any.

You can also just print the images of the pets and attach them to a pretty paper then handwrite the pets details if that will fit in better with your wedding theme. There are so many ways this can be done!

Furry Friend Bachelor/Bachelorette Party

Yes – we know this is all about hanging with the besties, but why not make a pit stop beforehand to a local shelter to drop off some goodies and snuggle some puppies.

The impact a party of this size can make on a shelter or rescue is huge! Spend an hour of your time – together with your friends walking some dogs, snuggling with a senior cat and just do something together before you head out for a night on the town in your best duds!

I would like to thank Rochelle, from The Broke Dog for inspiring this idea! She is a friend from a pet loving community we both belong to and when she posted pictures from her sisters bachelorette party I was all giddy inside.

All of the girls got together with a bunch of goodies and delivered them to a local rescue – Eleventh Hour Rescue in NJ and while they were there – they got to snuggle puppies. What a way to kick off a fun night out!

Make Your Kissing Count!

Rochelle is also in the process of planning her own wedding – so congratulations to her! When I contacted her about the bachelorette party for her sister she was kind enough to share something she is implementing at her own wedding that we thought was a fabulous idea as well.

There is the tradition of tinging glasses to get the newly married couple to kiss at the reception.

At her wedding they are changing things up a bit.

They will have 2 jars on their table – one for a charity her new husband will choose and one for the charity they adopted their dog from. Every time someone puts money in one of the jars, they will kiss!

To top it off – they are having a little friendly competition between them, and are going to donate an additional $50 to the jar with the most money in it at the end of the night. Seriously in love with this idea and think this should completely replace the glass tinging as a way to get couples to kiss!

Wedding Favors – Money Wasted Can Be Money Well Spent!

If I could tell you how many little bottles of wine and bags of fancy candy I have received over the years from wedding favors – it would probably be enough to feed a shelter dog for a month.

No one drinks those wine bottles.

No one eats those candies.

And I am sure there are a lot more wedding favors either sitting and collecting dust or are long gone in the dump.

Why not take that money and make a donation to your favorite animal organization instead?

If you know you are going to do this before you send out your invitations you can let your guests know ahead of time and also ask them to consider donating on your behalf as well.

Do You Really Need Those Wedding Gifts?

Weddings Helping Dog Rescues — image credit: Bernd Rac

Statistics show that people are getting married later in life – so you have more time to build a career and save money. If you are fairly comfortable in your life – how much do you really need the monetary gifts that your guests will give?

Think about the impact you can make for a local shelter or rescue by having your guests donate instead of giving you a gift.

A couple in Las Vegas did just that!

A pair of true animal lovers who had recently adopted 2 dogs from a local rescue wanted to come up with a way to make a difference at their wedding. So they requested that in lieu of any wedding gifts that their guests donate to their favorite animal rescue.

This resulted in a $4,000 donation to A Home 4 Spot in Las Vegas.

Another example of this was NFL player Logan Ryan who married his wife in St. Lucia and asked their guests to donate to a local rescue there instead of giving the newlyweds a gift.

This couple are two awesome examples of animal lovers having also created a social media presence to help shelter dogs – largely pit bull breeds – find their forever homes. Visit Ryan’s Monthly Rescue to learn more about what they do!

You can also ask guests if they can bring food, toys and other items that shelters and rescues need in leue of money!

Because Cats Are Jerks: A Photo Calendar Plan Gone Wrong

06/25/2018 by Rachel 31 Comments

UPDATE: Thank you to all that supported this effort! Our calendar raised a grand total of $1,063.84 for Karma Cat +Zen Dog Rescue!

Let me preface this post with – I LOVE ANIMALS.

All of them.

But cats are truly jerks – sometimes even assholes.

(And if I offend anyone with this term, I am sorry – this post is all in fun and most people I know who love cats – get it!)

I actually have a cat – and I always knew she was an asshole, but I thought it was just her. I was wrong.

My most recent life lesson is understanding why more photographers are not out there scrambling to put together cat calendars as fundraisers for the shelters or rescues they love. I have done a fundraising calendar in the past – but it was just dogs. That was easy.

I am a pet photographer – I think I am actually pretty good, not the best but good. I can normally engage any animal and typically walk away from every session thrilled with some of the images I took.

But that was not the case with this project.

Because – well, cats are assholes.

They are cute as hell – they are fun and can be entertaining – sometimes they are even snuggly and cute, but the rest of the time they are probably being assholes.

My Brilliant Idea for Karma Cat + Zen Dog Rescue

I had done shelter photography for a while but had taken a leave of absence due to burnout and the stress of the rescue world. But after a couple of years off I decided I was ready to get back into things. I pulled out my camera started practicing to make sure my skills were in tact and decided to jump in 100% to a project.

I had met Christie from Karma Cat Zen Dog a few years ago and hit it off instantly. She is a top notch rescuer and I admired and respected her and see all the good she does in her rescue – with no drama! 🙂

I noticed they had never done a photo calendar fundraiser and figured I would ask if she would be interested in doing one and she came back with a Heck Yeah! I was pretty psyched and excited to start planning to make this an amazing fundraiser that will not only expand her reach and visibility – but of course raise much needed funds for her rescue.

I started taking notes and planning and was super excited to get started.

Now, let me note that I had taken photos of shelter cats before – many times, but never had any major difficulties getting great shots. I clearly did not allocate how much different they would be in their own homes.

Recent Excitement About Karma Cat + Zen Dog!

We were thrilled to hear about their adoption center they planned on opening a few months ago – and we are excited to announce they have officially opened! We hope to be able to go to their grand opening which is taking place this Sunday – July 29th and will be sure to share some photos if we do!

We think this is a fantastic step for our local community to be educated and find their next family member! We wish the whole team at Karma nothing but success!

If you are located in NJ, then please try and stop by when you are in the area:

Karma Cat+Zen Dog Rescue Society
39 South Main Street
Milltown, NJ 08850

This makes us extra happy that our calendar proceeds are going to something so awesome!

The Contest

So the goal was to have Karma Cat reach out to their volunteers and supporters to engage them and have them submit their kitties adopted from the rescue to take part in the calendar.

Here is an outline of the contest portion of the calendar:

We created a photo contest on WooBox where supporters could submit a photo and description of their cat – we allowed this to be live for 2 weeks or so.
Once the photos were submitted we allowed 2 weeks for public voting. The contestants could share and promote their kitties to get the most votes so they could get their cat in the photo calendar.
The 12 cats with the most votes would receive a photo session and have spot in the calendar. One lucky kittie will also get the cover!

Once the contest was done we reached out to each of the contestants and setup their specific photo sessions times. Because the cats were all over we setup a few days – one day I did 6 sessions – so needless to say I was stressed and underestimated just how hard cats were.

The Calendar Theme

I brainstormed with my cat loving daughter on some theme ideas for the calendar. I love the idea of a theme in a calendar that ties it all together and this was something really important to me.

We had a few ideas including:

Rocker kitties – bad ass cats with a retro dark look, black leather lots of metals etc.
80’s kitties – yeah no explanation needed here, I am an 80’s chick!
City kitty goes suburbs – a take on being adopted from not so great areas to great homes in the suburbs – a graffiti look was the concept.

Yeah – none of them “thrilled” us either! Hey, I said they were just ideas!

But the one my daughter actually came up with I LOVED.

“A day in the life of a Karma Cat”

The inspiration would be a 24 hour look at how a Karma Cat lives the good life with their owners. The concept was going to use people but only to show the “bond” – there was not going to be any human faces. Just arms, feet or other body parts that tie the concept together.

A cat upside down on the couch between his owners after a long day of work (not that cats work of course).
A cat dipping his paw in a bowl of cereal at breakfast.
A cat snuggling up at night with his owners after a long day for a good nights sleep.
A cat playing with his toys during the day while his parents are away.

You get it right?

I still love this idea.

But it did not come fruition.

Can you guess why?

Because cats are assholes.

The Photo Session Realities

So I show up at the very first session filled with excitement and the plan above for a “day in the life”. I imagined a glorious image of Ronald with his mom doing whatever it is that they do in a day. Maybe snuggling on a couch. Maybe eating dinner together. Maybe playing a game of fetch – who knows what they do, but I was going to capture it.

Or not.

Below is how Ronald spent most of the session. Under a chair – under a table – under a desk, anywhere he could be under something, he was.

Ronald was not alone.

Most of the sessions went this way. It is like the all connected with each other mentally to play “keep away from the photographer”. Whether they were under chairs, under beds, under covers – in litter boxes, they did everything they could to keep me from photographing them.

I swear it was a cat conspiracy.

Oh, but let’s talk about the 2 cat homes.

Like Ronald’s housemate who could not stay away from me.

Everywhere I was – he was. This picture pretty much sums up the session. Great picture – wrong cat.

And as soon as I turned my lens on Ronald in the background there – yep, under the table he went.

The Photo Session Results

I am a Type-A photographer – meaning I hate putting out anything that is not perfect. I want purrfect exposure (see what I did there teehee), I want purrfect backgrounds and settings, I want purrfect facial expressions and I want images that tell stories.

Unfortunately, I cannot say I got that in every session for the Karma Cat Calendar.

Am I disappointed? Yes, of course a little bit – but I do know either way that I am making a difference – had a lot of fun doing these sessions and I know the pet parents will ultimately be happy with what I was able to get of their fur kids.

I did have to put aside my grandiose idea of a well thought out theme – because clearly the cats had a totally different plan for this calendar.

A couple of sessions I walked away just glad I got something I could use.

The Lessons I Learned

I am still working through everything to get the calendar together – I still have editing to do and design work to make it all come together and will do a separate post about the calendar itself and all the kitties I got to meet.

But, I learned a lot on this journey – besides that cats are assholes.

I learned that Karma Cat Zen Dog animal rescue is adored and respected in the animal rescue world. This warmed my heart to hear all the great things about them.
I learned that their adopters are some of the best and most loyal I have ever met.
I learned that for cat sessions – you will NEVER get them to do what you want when you want it. You need to be flexible and ready for the brief moment you may have to “get the shot”.
I learned that cats – well they are each so unique. Every one of them has their own preferences for sounds, smells, foods and more – what I tried with one cat would freak out another.
I learned catnip works on 99% of the cats tested. But I also learned catnip does not help get great shots – unless you want catnip filled cats rolling around on the floor as your subject – like CJ below proves.
I learned cats do not care if you like them.
I learned that cat people are a passionate and caring group with the biggest hearts and limitless love for their fur kids. Every cat I met was loved immensely – and had an amazing life.
I learned that I did not leave enough time for the sessions. Because I was driving all over and own a business time was an issue so I sacrificed precious photo time. I would rethink this process carefully if doing it again next year to allow more time with each cat.

Cat Calendar Photo Outtake — CJ high on catnip

The Final Cat Calendar

Below are all 12 months of the calendar! If you would like support Karma Cat and purchase one, then visit their location or give them a call to see if there are any left!

Will I Do This Again?

Hell yeah – and I hope this year is such a success we have to do it again next year!

As soon as we finish up the calendar and get a total donation amount, we will let you know how much was raised!

I just know that next year I will just have to plan a little better and not have such high expectations for what a cat is willing to do. I will have to schedule a little more time for each session and will use a different lens to allow me to create more distance between the cats and myself so I have a better chance of getting that magical image that tells the story of their rescue success!

So – Do You Agree or Disagree With My Cats Are Assholes Attitude?

I want to hear your cat stories – am I an asshole and not the cats? Do you agree and own an asshole cat? Did this post just piss you off?

Meow at me in the comments below!

How to Cope with Stress and Anxiety in Cats

04/28/2018 by Rachel Leave a Comment

Our intent for this post is to help those that are dealing with newly adopted cats who may be struggling to acclimate in their new home.

Maybe they had a home before.

Maybe not.

Maybe they were abused in their past.

Maybe not.

Maybe they were at the shelter/rescue for months or years.

Maybe it was just a few days.

The cat you have adopted has a mysterious past that you may know nothing about which of course can affect their personality – whether for a short time or forever. This means it is extra important that you understand what to look for to make sure your cat is as happy and content as they can be.

If your cat is exhibiting signs of stress or anxiety, then this article is for you. From understanding their symptoms to evaluating options to help them – we hope you find an option here that can bring your cat some sweet relief from whatever stresses them!

Keep in mind they may even have an illness you are not aware of. There are even litters now that claim to detect certain issues cats may have which you can see in our pretty litter review. Making sure they are physically healthy should be done before addressing anything else!

What Is The Difference Between Stress & Anxiety?

Although they are similar – there are slight differences between stress and anxiety. Although the symptoms and treatments of both are very similar – it may be helpful to understand what they are to best help your cat.

Stress is more of a response to a threat in a situation a cat may be in. For example new home, new housemate or even a change in the food bowl location can cause some sensitive felines to become stressed. Basically there is a specific reason that we can validate that is causing the stress.

Anxiety is a fear or apprehension about an unknown situation. Most commonly pets will have separation anxiety which means they are anxious about what may happen when their owner leaves which will result in specific behaviors. Anxiety is often a little harder to manage since we may not always know what they are anxious about to be able to address it.

Signs Your Cat Is Stressed Or Anxious

It will be natural for your cat to feel stressed when you first bring them home. So many of the signs below you may see for a time after your adoption. But if the signs continue for too long and some of our suggestions below do not help – you may want to have medical intervention.

Remember, if you do not know their history – which is often the case, then stress is natural as they may be afraid and tired of so much change in their life.

Some of the signs you may notice include:

Lack of appetite
Hiding
Aggression
Not using litter box properly
Diarrhea or constipation
Excessive Scratching
Sleeps more than usual
Licking or biting themselves
Trembling
Destruction of items in the home
More sever cases may show cats “panicking” and looking to escape a situation which can cause harm

Common Sources of Stress In Cats

Not being neutered or spayed
Stray animals outside the home that your cat can see or sense
Inappropriate handling (holding too tight or pinning them down etc.)
Unfamiliar people in the home
New furniture or home decor
Moving
New baby
New pets
Bored or not mentally challenged
Changes in routine (different working hours – kids home more etc.)
Recently adopted into new home – not enough time to adjust before being handled and introduced to other pets

Adopted Cats Need Time To Adjust

Bringing your cat home is exciting – we get it! But remember, without knowing their history – you need to have patience with your addition!

When you get your cat home you should be prepared to allow a few weeks to adjust to your home. If you notice they are stressed or anxious from the day you bring them home, then you can try some of the below recommendations to help them feel more comfortable and secure in your home.

You can expect them to hide and be a little hissy for the first few days – and this is 100% NORMAL! Imagine being uprooted, defenseless and brought somewhere you have never been before – you might be afraid too.

Bringing Your Adopted Cat Home

Let them get to know the home – but restrict them to one room for the first couple of days.
Let them sniff and explore safely in that room – away from other pets and children.
Show them where the litter box is and their food bowls.
Spend time with them in that room – just lying on the floor will help them. While they may not acknowledge you – it will help them see you are the “good” in their life now.
Let them know that they have all the time they need to feel comfortable and safe and that you will be there when they are ready to start bonding!
Integrate other pets and children slowly – and be PATIENT. Not everyone will like each other right away, but they will learn to deal with each other on their own timeline. Keep dogs on leash or in a crate and let the cat sniff them. Do not allow the dog to chase a new cat – this can have really bad long term relationship effects. Do not let children hold cats unless they can do it safely.

Remedies For Cat Stress & Anxiety

There are a variety of remedies that may reduce or even remove the stress and/or anxiety your cat is feeling. Below are some of the best of the best based on reviews and feedback we found when doing research for this article.

We highly recommend only trying ONE of these remedies at a time so you know what is working and what is not. You should also always check with your veterinarian to ensure these remedies do not have any negative affects on any other medical issues your cat may have.

01. Rescue Remedy for Pets by Bach
A homeopathic remedy that features 5 varieties of flowers including Star of Bethlehem – helps pets let go of past trauma, Rock Rose – helps alleviate panic or terror in stressful situations, Cherry Plum – helps with barking, scratching or licking, Impatiens – helps with impatient pets and Clematis – for pets that sleep to much.Simply add a few drops to their water or on a treat and you should begin to see results. The overall sentiment on this product is very positive and seems to have brought relief to many cats for a variety of stress related issues. From car rides to vet visits – stories are being posted on the great results Rescue Remedy brings.
02. VetriScience Composure MAX Liquid
Composure MAX is a liquid that helps bring calmness to cats affected by the stress of travel, boarding, grooming and other environmental stressors. There are 3 main active ingredients including C3 Colostrum which is a calming complex that supports stress reduction, L-Theanine which assists in the production of amino acids to regain balance in certain neurotransmitters and B vitamins which helps the central nervous system.A 1/2 a teaspoon a day can make a big difference in the comfort of your pet. While not as popular as Rescue Remedy – the overall sentiment is positive for this product and many have reported success in the stress levels of their cats.
03. Comfort Zone Diffuser Kit
I actually met with the team from Comfort Zone at a recent event and I do have to say I was impressed with their concern for our pets – and their want to have a premier product. I will be doing an in-depth review on this product soon!The Feliway Diffuser Kit was created to basically mimic the pheromones that a cat gives off to give them a sense of comfort. Basically it helps cats feel like they are in a safe space by emitting scents that let them know it is a cat friendly zone – so a sense of security and comfort then brings them to a happier place. It is a plugin diffuser that covers up to 650 square feet and will emit the scent throughout the space.It can take a few weeks to really see the effects – and Comfort Zone recommends you use it for at least 1 month. They offer a few different versions, one is for Multi Cat – which can help alleviate stress between cats, and the other is for single cats displaying aggressive behavior like scratching. There is some mixed sentiment about this product – but it is because of a change within the company which we will discuss further. Many have reported great results in their multi-cat households when the instructions were followed and the proper time was given.
04. Sentry Calming Collar for Cats
Another product that focuses on the use of pheromone technology to help improve cat behaviors! The collar is meant to help with inappropriate marketing, increased meowing and scratching which are common stress activities in cats.Just like the diffuser above the pheromone that is released by the collar is meant to mimic the scent a mother cat produces – which in turn creates a calmness and comfort for the cat. This can be helpful during high stress situations like fireworks, storms, travel, vet visits and more.The collar can last up to 30 days and the effects can be immediate in most cats. The one downside we do see many reports of is that the collar does seem to stretch over time and when it does some cats have had it get stuck in their mouths. But these same reports also note that product does work. So it is important to ensure you keep an eye on the collar over time.

Other Ways To Help A Cat Showing Signs of Stress or Anxiety

Make sure your cat is getting appropriate exercise – a game as simple as follow the feather or chasing a laser light can help promote a healthier mental state and release stress.
If you know what the trigger for your cats’ stress or anxiety is – see how you can improve the environment. If you brought home a new pet or a baby – maybe move your cat to an area of the home where they can feel less stress with these new additions for a while.
Take them for a full medical workup. Unfortunately, cats are not able to tell us when something is bother them – so get a veterinarian to check them out and make sure nothing physically is wrong. Something as simple as an tooth that has broken to a UTI infection can cause stress in even the most calm cat!
Try relaxing music to create a comfortable relaxed environment for your cat. This can be especially useful if your normally friendly feline suffers separation anxiety! See the video below – and try not to become relaxed while watching it!
If you have tried the above and your cat still shows signs of stress or anxiety it may be time to call in a professional behaviorist to see if they can help you find the trigger. Best Friends has a great article on how to find a great cat behaviorist!

Keeping Cats Engaged & Happy

Sometimes their stress could be as simple as being bored or not stimulated enough. Cats are known for their ability to be perfectly happy alone – but they are also known for their ability to chase. With that in their nature – sometimes more active cats may need a lot more stimulation to decrease their anxiety or stress.

Below are some popular options that others have tried and had success with in brining back some happy to their cat. Most are affordable – and if it does not work for your cat we re confident any shelter or rescue would appreciate the donation for their cats to use!

01. Oster Window Mounted Cat Bed

Maybe something as simple as a view from a window that faces the world can be enough to help your cat relieve their stress. Allowing your cat the opportunity to see the world from a high up position can bring out the happy in your cat! This window seat is a top-seller and holds cats up to 50 pounds. The easy installation and affordable price make it a great option to helping your cats stress issues.
02. ThunderShirt For Cats

Most commonly known for their dog brand of shirts – ThunderShirt also makes a cat specific version. Perfect for cats from 9-13 pounds this shirt helps create a snug environment for your cat which can give them a sense of security while traveling or for vet visits. There are a lot great reviews – but there is no promise it will work for every cat, but for the price point it is worth a try if your cat is very skittish.
03. Outdoor Habitat for Cats

This is something that you really need to understand if your cat will enjoy or become more stressed with. If your cat is exhibiting signs of “fear” then this may not be the right item for them. But it may be a great option for a cat that was adopted that had been a street cat and who may get stressed from being inside all the time! The cat tent features 30 square feet of space and is portable so you can take it with you if your cat likes to travel.

Final Thoughts

Personally we have a cat that is easily stressed. She was a rescue who was found walking the streets of a big inner city area so we understand her well. She loves to go outside – but stresses out when new people are in our home. She despises car rides and will hyperventilate when we even put her in her carrier. But we work with it to give her the best life we can! The snuggling and purring that she gives my daughter – well that makes it all worth it.

It is important to give your furry feline friend time to adjust and then carefully watch them to see what triggers their stress symptoms or anxiety.

Do you have an anxiety ridden cat or stressed cat? Have you found a solution to help them? We want to hear your stories!

Opposites Attract Campaign Gets All Cats Adopted!

03/30/2018 by Rachel 5 Comments

I attended a BlogPaws conference a couple of years ago and had such an amazing time! I was a speaker at the event speaking on Advanced SEO with my web business 2 Dogs Design to a group of animal loving bloggers, business owners and rescue personnel. It was an amazing opportunity and I met some really great people that I hope to build strong relationships with to do more for homeless animals.

One of the sessions I sat in on was called “How to Find and Tell Your Story for Social Media Success” which was specifically for rescues and shelters. It was a 3 hour workshop that focused on so many areas for bringing more visibility to your group and how to break out from all the noise that is social media.

We discussed concepts related to press and local news to taking the right pictures.

Which is why I am writing this post! I mentioned in the workshop about this great idea a shelter I was working with a while ago had!

The concept that they had come up with was called “Opposites Attract”. The campaign was created in the hopes it would inspire potential adopters to think outside the box when they choose a potential pet to adopt.

The shelter did the hard part of making it all happen in terms of getting our local Harley dealer involved and finding bikers – who loved cats enough to risk their lives! 🙂

The cats the shelter brought were amazing – each one had such a great personality which really helped make this photo fundraiser such a success.

We did 2 campaigns. In this post I am sharing our Bikers and Cats campaign – big burley bikers with sweet little cats – turns out they make an amazing combination don’t you think?

Our next post will focus on our Pretties + Pitties Pit Bull Adoption Campaign featuring local adoptable pit bulls and pretty girls at a shopping center.

One of the cats was so comfortable he actually fell asleep in the bikers arms and the cat literally held the bikers neck when it was time to go – he did not want to leave his side!

This campaign was a great success as it resulted in EVERY cat being adopted within weeks of this campaign going live.

We did another photo session under the “Opposites Attract” campaign as well – I will post those images as well in a few days.

But for now, here are a few of my favorite images from the session!

Let me know what you think about this campaign? Love it or hate it? Have you tried something similar with a rescue near and dear to your heart?

Opposites Attract Shelter Campaign - Bikers & Cats

Opposites Attract Campaign For Homeless Cats

13 Cat Shelters That Raised Money For Animals!

12/05/2017 by Rachel Leave a Comment

So what do you get when you get a group of architects together to do something amazing?

You get 13 unbelievably cool cat shelters that not only look amazing – but raise money for charity!

FixNation is the organization that was the recipient of the donations earned from the sales of these cat shelters. Working in Los Angeles, FixNation deals with one of the largest populations of stray cats in the country. They have had much success with their TNR ( Trap Neuter Return ) program and the humane colony management programs they have created.

Coined as Architects for Animals®, the Giving Shelter exhibit took place on October 19, 2017 at the HermanMiller Showroom in California. The event invites various designers and architects to build a cat shelter that can be used outdoors and is functional but yet one of a kind. While not meant to solve the real problems of homeless cats, it is meant to be a fun and engaging event to raise much needed funds – and it does just that!

Each of these unique shelters is auctioned off and all the money gets donated to FixNation so they can do more amazing work to help homeless cats.

If you are interested in seeing some of the great shelters created in previous events – or maybe get involved yourself, visit Architects For Animals to learn more!

Photo credit: Meghan Bob Photography

Architect: Abramson Teiger Architects

“White Jack” is a 3 tube creation that allows for cats to climb through it and explore. In the center of the tubes is a bed area where cats can snuggle up for the night.

Architect Designed Cat Shelter For Auction

Architect: Abramson Teiger Architects

A gigantic ball of yarn may just be every cat’s dream! The twine is manufactured into a giant ball with a cozy entryway to their bed. Loose pieces of string are purposely left for the cat to play with!

Architect: CallisonRTKL

Inspired by that safe havens of cathedrals this unique cat shelter is filled with geometric patterns and stained glass windows. The carpeted ramp leads to an indoor perch that will keep them safe from the elements. The ramp also has a safe space below it that cats can enter through arched entries leading them to cover and safety.

Architect: d3architecture

Focused on an environmental style cat shelter, this unique application offers materials that are commonly used in the streets and alleys of cities like old HVAC equipment. These pipes act as tunnels and passageways which we know cats love and while they are inside the center bed area they can feel safe and warm.

Architect: ES-EN-EM

“Meow Miaow” is an origami inspired cat shelter made of plywood with a urethan finish. It can fold flat for easy moving and can offer homing for several cats.

Architects: Formation Associates, Terremoto Landscape & Arktura

“Flora-Gato” offers a dual purpose take on a shelter. The biomorphic trellis offers shelter to the cats but also has a sitting area for the loving volunteers who care for these cat colonies. The trellis was created from recycled and fiberized plastic and made into rib style accents that are water absorbent – creating a great environment for plants. Spanish moss and Korean grass are both utilized in this super creative cat shelter.

Architect: HKS

“CAnT We All Get Along” is a fun take that incorporates a cat shelter with the various bird houses to keep kitties entertained! The house component is made to look like a fish shape from slatted wood.

Architect: HOK

Seven chambers of warm comfy felt enclosed by a warm faux wood to help keep kitties warm and comfy. The wood can hold up under any weather – making it a great addition for small cat colonies to huddle up and stay warm and safe.

Architect: Knowhow Shop

Cats will love this angular designed shelter with shingles and a base that is filled with indestructible peacock feathers. The cat house area will keep them safe from the evil beings that want to do harm and will keep them safe from the elements on those bad weather days.

Architect: Kollin Altomare Architects

“Cat’s Win! Cat’s Win!” was inspired by they “W” in Chicago giving this shelter an urban look that cats will love. The natural wood elements were used to give cats the ability to exercise and use their natural clawing techniques. The various heights of the elements can work those climbing muscles and can offer protection from predators.

Architect: Perkins+Will

“UnFURIed” is a almost tube like shelter that was designed to be adaptable and fun. The kit is interactive and easily interchangeable to help keep your cat entertained with its different variations that can be created.

Architect: RNL now Stantec

With its almost harp like look this fun cat shelter encourages the natural love cats have for stretching. The architecturally creative wooden element sits on a soft faux fur base offering cats the warmth and comfort of something soft to rest while giving them an activity that can help them stretch. climb and claw.

Architect: Standard Architecture|Design

The “Catosphere” offers a warm yet modern look with its brass rails that hold a concrete and wood accented pod with a comfy cat bed inside. This creative cat shelter can help protect cats from the elements with the wood wood louvres that can be opened or closed and the concrete was used because it helps gather heat during the day and can release it at night when it gets cooler. Reclaimed wood for this project was provided by East Teak.