Jazmine and Kizmet are my poster cats for Dr. Buffington’s Feline Home Environmental Study.

Feline enrichment is a subject dear to my heart. The correlation between providing our feline friends a stimulating and enriching environment befitting their instinctual nature in relation to their happiness, health, and well-being is significant, especially considering most cats now live indoors for their safety.

We humans as their entrusted caretakers provide them with everything they need – food, water, shelter, and more. They no longer need to hunt for survival, which is one of their primary means to release pent up energy and keep their minds and bodies fit and sharp. Without proper environmental enrichment, cats are suspectable to obesity, heart disease, dental disease, gastrointestinal disease, kidney disease, thyroid disease, and diabetes. They can also become bored, which often results in behavioral problems, such as litter box issues. Read more

Jazmine enjoying her dinner in her Dr. Catsby feeding bowl.

Hey everyone! The human is taking a break today, leaving us kitties the responsibly of blogging today, and since it’s Super Bowl Sunday, we thought we’d talk about bowls. We’re not sure why bowls can’t be super on Friday, or Monday, or even Wednesday, because for us, any day with a bowl full of food is a super day. But to be honest, we’d be happy if you put food on a plate, on the floor, or just about anywhere else, if it was something yummy to eat! Our human, she’s a bit more rigid when it comes to eating etiquette, insisting we eat from special, ergonomically correct bowls designed specifically for us kitties!
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For a cat, it’s not a matter of being naughty or nice, it’s a matter of a cat just being a cat!

It’s officially the holidays and for our cats, perennial creatures of habit, it can be a time that literally turns their everyday world and routines completely upside down. They are instinctually wired to be both curious and cautious, depending on the circumstances, so every day presents new stimuli to process. For example, seemingly out of thin air, a tree magically appears in the house – a tree with dangly, tantalizing shiny objects hanging from it! Furniture is often moved, boxes and bags filled with goodies pile up in the house, and the kitchen can become an intoxicating den of foods not typically experienced throughout the rest of the year. Read more

It can be stressful for us to leave our kitties when we travel but it’s also stressful for them and they shouldn’t be left alone without supervision.

Halloween has come and gone, so its officially that time of year when the holidays – Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year’s – rapidly descend upon us. For many of us, our lives become completely topsy-turvy, especially for those that pack their bags to go visit with friends and family for some, or all of these special days. In these instances, even if it’s just for an overnight stay, if you’re a cat parent, it’s important to make arrangements for your feline friend and not leave her unattended because her life has become topsy-turvy as well. Read more

Zee, very busy assisting with our home renovation project.

Dan used to lament that Zee, our brown tabby Maine Coon I got for him as a kitten as a housewarming gift when he moved in with me in 2005, did not grow into the cuddly lap cat he was hoping for. But Zee was perpetually busy. It began with him instigating rabbit-kick fighting with our adult Ragdoll cat, Jazz, (twice his size), and when we renovated our house a few months after Dan moved in, he was curiously involved in every aspect of it, as the tell-tale paint on his tail and spackle on his ears would reveal. Cuddling? Who had time for that? Read more