The Granny Cat Flat

If there’s one thing that’s constant at Paradise Ranch, it is change.  The cats are loving their new outside digs.  The new cat-trium is so spacious, and the cats really seem to enjoy having more room to play, bask in the sun, and run! The day after the cat-trium was completed, I began a new project finishing a Granny Cat Flat for my oldest rescue, Miss Jinxy.  Miss Jinxy is very advanced in her years and quite overweight.  However, one should never underestimate an athlete, no matter how much they weigh.  Miss Jinxy reminds me of a Broadway Musical character I marveled at many years ago.  He was extremely overweight, and totally surprised me by dancing throughout the play with great ease, abundant energy, and a lightness to his step. He seemed to defy gravity!  Well, Miss Jinxy is quite the same. She is so hefty it appears she would have difficulty walking, but Miss Jinxy’s agility defies all logic.

I tried my best to socialize Miss Jinxy with the other cats when I rescued her.  I tried countless combinations of cats and locations around my home in the hopes of finding a suitable companion for her.  Miss Jinxy loved human contact, but she wanted nothing to do with any of my ten other felines.  My teenage cats retaliated against her aloofness by taunting and teasing her, so I was forced to move Miss Jinxy out of the main cat area.  I brought her up to my bedroom to join an older kitty who has resided there for many years. Miss Jinxy proceeded to do what the teenage cats had done to her, she aggressively teased and taunted my cat Zoe.  A few nights when I went upstairs to bed, I found Zoe’s potty accidents awaiting me.  Given these accidents were just a few feet from her litter box, it was clear to me that Zoe was unhappy.  Almost as unhappy as I was cleaning up smelly kitty messes before retiring at the end of the day!

So I have now come to the conclusion that Miss Jinxy must have her own space.  Two rooms with a view! Given she is older and overweight, if put into a public shelter, she would be euthanized in a heartbeat, clearly not an option I would consider. Which brings me to a very important point...

California Governor Jerry Brown has proposed a repeal of Hayden’s Law, an action that would endanger the lives of all animals entering California’s pounds and shelters. Since its introduction in 1998, Hayden’s Law has successfully raised humane standards in California’s pounds and shelters and worked to reduce the number of animals killed. Repealing this law would undo progressive legislation and return California’s animal shelters to killing tens of thousands more animals each year. Three days in the shelters and they would be euthanized. Repealing this law would mean pounds and shelters would not be required to provide prompt and necessary veterinary care. It would mean they would not be required to hold animals for an extended period to increase their chances of adoption, being returned to their owners, or being transferred to a rescue group. It would mean that the minimal reporting that keeps Californians informed of what’s going on in their shelters would be lost.

Please contact Governor Jerry Brown today to tell him that you oppose the proposed repeal of Hayden’s Law.  It is so very important that we take action now.  Please watch this You Tube.

I am so grateful that I can play my small part in helping to rescue cats and dogs. And to be able to give my young cats a new playground and Miss Jinxy a comfortable new place of her own. She is indeed the queen of her own granny cat flat, complete with carpeting, comfortable beds and couches, and playthings. Sometimes it pays to be a granny!

 God Bless All Living things and please sign the petition to prevent this from happening.

Super Bowl ads go to the dogs and first play day in the Cat-Trium

Did any of you notice that many of the Super Bowl advertisements included dogs?  Seems we have gone from babies to dogs as the actor’s in the game’s famous ads. Some viewers say the Super Bowl commercial breaks are looking more and more like the Puppy Bowl.  Perhaps that is because the television commercials with dogs have the most bark and the biggest bite for their sponsors and viewers.

I was interested in the game, but actually more interested in the type of ads corporations spent millions on this year. The key to the success of these spots, the ad business executives say, are the dogs.  "The pooches act like nice people. Dogs seem to be more personable.  People can relate to them. The love for animals is universal."  A Great Dane for Doritos, a scruffy cute terrier-like dog named WeGo for Bud Light, a fabulous St. Bernard/Australian Shepherd mix named Bolt for Volkswagen, and an unforgettable cast of dogs singing the Star Wars song were all very heartfelt and entertaining.

A top advertising executive has been quoted as saying that "the only thing that trumps sex is a cute animal"!  If this year is any indication, this has become a basic rule of Super Bowl advertising.

In addition to the “cuteness” factor, advertisers may have chosen dogs for yet another reason. Last year one major advertiser chose Kim Kardashian as their spokesperson.  Dogs may indeed be a safer bet than celebrities.

After the game was over my Welsh Terrier Baley, who is quite taken with her own looks and personality, asked if she could audition for next year’s Super Bowl ads.  Hmm….she is quite the poser.   The thought of my one of my dogs financially supporting me for the next few years is indeed tempting.  But then I recall Baley’s lack of cooperation with commands and going along with anyone’s idea other than her own, and I come back to earth!

Long live the dogs of Super Bowl XLVI!

And no, I haven’t forgotten about my cats…..below is a photo from the first day of a cat-trium play.  The contractor finished yesterday, but because cats don't like change and noise very much, it took a few hours after the boxes were completed for them to begin venturing out to play and explore.  They actually had a great time smelling, investigating, and crawling through the wooden boxes and shelves.  It was the first time in a long while that many of them had stepped out of their comfort zones, even if it were only to perch on the overhead bridge watching the others. The young ones (my teenagers) are running and jumping all over the cat-trium, seemingly inspiring the others.  Teasing the older cats and scratching the furniture is no longer as tempting now that they have their very own outside jungle-gym.  So glad I created this!

All 2012 Presidential Candidates must pass the sniff test

click on image to make larger

My dogs and I watched the results of the Florida Primary on television this week.  They were quite perplexed at the whole "dog and pony show" of American politics (pardon the pun).  The dogs were very vocal about the human condition in these debates. "The fighting goes on and on!  When we have fights they are over as quickly as they start!  Is there ever any forgiving and forgetting?  We see elephants and donkeys......maybe what these humans need is to have a Dog Party!!

And all this talk about parties.... it doesn't look like these people are having fun at all!"  

My dogs had many questions that I could not answer.  They remained in heated discussion long after I went to bed.   

The next morning I awoke to a dog-scratched note requesting that I consider their ideas about how to better judge our presidential candidates.  The note suggested I have several cups of coffee before considering their points of view.

Baley, with her Welsh Terrier ancestry, was convinced that no money should be put toward campaigning as is done in England.  Why should billions be spent on elections when that money could be used to build and maintain animal shelters?  Little Bit, a mixed breed like many Americans, was discouraged and saddened that candidates needed so much money to even be in the race.  Bodhi, my special needs dog, calmly asked why peace and harmony did not reign in these debates when every one of us should share the common goal of a stronger, better country.

The dogs agreed that if it were up to them, two simple questions would determine a candidate's appropriateness:  1) Does the candidate think before he barks? and 2) Does the candidate wag more or bark more?   They also drafted other potential questions that could be used by the more complex human voters. 

Does the candidate get along well with others?

Does the candidate keenly sniff out danger and trouble the way dogs do?

Does the candidate clean up his own messes or have others clean up after him?

Does the candidate bark before he bites? Or whine when he does not get his way?

Does the candidate need a Rottweiler to make him feel strong and in charge?

Does the candidate consider his bowl half full or half empty?

Is the candidate well behaved when no one is looking?

Does the candidate have anything buried in his back yard?  Like we do?

And one last question!  What candidate can spell their name backwards and it spells GOD?

Cat-Trium Progress at Paradise Ranch

Here we are and almost finished with the Cat-Trium for eleven very lucky cats. However, my cats and I are now negotiating about who should reside here.  As I stand inside this wondrous structure and look out at 180 degree views, I am considering turning over my bedroom to the cats while I move into this state of the art facility!  Sunrises and sunsets right in front of me!  Sounds of nature, birds singing, and Mother Earth right under my feet.  But then again, there are the sounds of coyotes howling, cars passing by, and occasional military planes flying over nearby Camp Pendleton.  And the Cat-Trium has no bathroom attached.  Perhaps I'll stay in my bedroom!

A teacher of mine from many years ago often stated that "all creatures' feet should touch the ground everyday".  I have never forgotten that, but I did underestimate my indoor cats need to run.  Two wonderful animal communicator friends, Samantha Khury and joanranquet.com,  reminded me that this was particularly important for my young cats.  Giving the cats more room to run and climb was essential for their sanity as well as my own.

My contractor friend loved this idea, and together with another friend, we created quite the structure for my kitties.  We enlarged the existing indoor/outdoor space to just over 450 square feet, more than double the structure's original size.  Now there are areas for both shade and sun, places to climb and hide, and most importantly, a large space in which to run, chase, jump, pounce and rest.  Huge dead branches from ficus and pine trees were assembled and secured to create a natural climbing jungle gym.  Several of the cats' climbing apparatuses were positioned along one side of the enclosure for fun and familiarity.

Materials were carefully chosen;  pine for maximum scratching, roofing that protects yet allows for sunlight and warmth, and terracotta siding from the ground three feet up so that coyotes can't see the cats running around on the ground.  We did our best to leave no detail undone.

I look forward to watching the kitties explore and chase each other, getting their exercise while hopefully having fun.  Having managed several young children's schools and daycare centers, I vividly recall the need for young ones to not be cooped up for long periods of time.  I shudder at the thought of eleven three or four-year old's not being able to run everyday.  OMG!

My contractor is so devoted to this project that he is giving up watching the Super Bowl to complete our Cat-Trium.  As I write this, he is building shelves and boxes for the cats to play and hide in, to be installed in the Cat-Trium this weekend.

I asked him how would he feel if every one of my blog followers asked for his help in creating their own Cat-Triums. No answer from him, just his warm, wonderful smile.

So with fingers crossed, prayers to Morris,Garfield, and all other famous felines, here's hoping the Cat-Trium provides enough space for peace and harmony for all four-leggeds and two-leggeds at Paradise Ranch.

More photos to follow on Super Bowl Sunday, with the promise of no wardrobe malfunctions or corny advertisements.