Steve at home with his furry family. Top - Roxy, bottom left - Hazel, and bottom right - Ethel.

Fifty Shades of Grey. No, not the book, but just how complex the subject of pedigree cats and breeding is in a world filled with rampant cat overpopulation. That was the reaction I got when I broached multi award winning pet expert, author, newspaper columnist, radio host, and animal advocate, Steve Dale, about this controversial topic. Not known to shy away from a tough subject, I knew Steve would welcome the challenge when I asked him for an exclusive interview.  Read more

Flawed. No, not the book or the story, but people in general. Whether we care to admit it or not, it is the one thing as human beings that we all have in common. None of us are perfect and most of us have our share of hardships, realities, hurts, pains, bad choices, and mistakes that hopefully we can learn from to make us better people. Some of us prefer to keep those moments buried deep inside, private, and some of us will tell our story to a stranger in line at the grocery store. I happen to be one of those people who prefer to keep my life private, and so does Jackson Galaxy, cat behaviorist and author of “Cat Daddy – What the World’s Most Incorrigible Cat Taught Me About Life, Love, and Coming Clean.“ That being said, ironically, both of us have written books that not only share our lives with the world, but in Jackson’s case, every raw, exposed, unadulterated, honest, and unhinged moment that brought him to the apex of where he is today. Read more

I can’t claim to be an expert on everything, for example, ask me about golf, cars, astronomy, and trigonometry and you will get a polite, but blank stare from me. Cats, however, is a different story all together and while I don’t have a fancy degree to back up my findings, I do have over 30 years of multi-cat household experience. I kind of feel I have earned my stripes to at least act as a quasi-expert and that is why I was thrilled when Gina Boekhout and her Tortie, Jessie, of the blog “Cat the Boss,” asked me to guest post about what it is like to live in a multi-cat household.

Are there challenges? Absolutely. Are they worth it? Equally absolutely.  For those of you that might be considering the jump from single to multi-cat ownership, this is a must read for you. If you already are part of a multi-cat home, please stop by to say hello and offer your own words of wisdom and advice.  Gina and Jessie are one of the newest additions to the cat blogosphere and would love to hear from you!

To read the interview, please click this link.

I was very happy to be presented with two wonderful opportunities recently to talk about my favorite things – cats and writing. In her “Spotlight on Amazing Women” series I was interviewed by freelance writer and fellow CWA member, Stacey Ritz, for Examiner.com. This series focuses on women who volunteer in communities, who operate their own businesses, or who are authors, so it was a perfect showcase to talk about how my writing career began and where it has led me to. To read the full interview, please click here.

The next opportunity was also presented to me by a fellow CWA member, Lorie Huston, DVM, for her animalCAFE podcast where I was able to discuss the pending situation with the feral cats being trapped and removed from the Loews Orlando resort properties as well as the misconceptions of feral cats. To read the full post and listen to the podcast, please click here.

I thank both of these ladies so much for reaching out to me and it gives me great pleasure to continue to help inspire others to follow their dreams, whether it be to write, volunteer, or crusade for the well-being of cats.

Given the media’s propensity towards the clever, chic, hip, and trendy, it is no wonder the story of the numerous charming cat cafes in Tokyo, the reverent worship of the Maneki Neko (a cat sculpture known as the “Beckoning Cat” that is said to bring good fortune to the owner), the infamous “Cat Island,” and cats dressed up in designer outfits is so popular with mainstream social outlets as to how the love affair between the Japanese people and cats are portrayed. Truth be told, it makes great copy and what cat lover wouldn’t want to visit a cat café or an island of cats? Disaster and tragedy, however, is not glamorous and the public can only tolerate the brutal images and reality for so long before they change the channel or turn the page to something lighter and less mentally taxing.

These perennially endearing little Neko sculptures can be found in any number of retail shops in Japan.

That is why the aftermath of the Japanese disasters of last March 11th is such a complex and difficult story to tell – it just does not make sense that so many cats were homeless and abandoned in a nation of such devoted cat loving people. As I continued my interview with Japan Cat Network (JCN) volunteer, Jennifer Koca, the only thing that remained clear, was that nothing was black and white, simple, or easy to understand, especially when it came to this sensitive issue. Read more