Today is Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day and as the founder of the day, I’d like to invite a frank discussion. I founded the day on August 28, 2015, in honor of my angel cat Jazz, in large part because of the outpouring of comments and personal messages from friends, strangers, bloggers, writers, and everything in between who voiced their desire to have a place to share their feelings about pet loss after I shared Jazz’s end-of-life journey when he passed on August 28, 2013, and subsequently wrote his memoir Purr Prints of the Heart – A Cat’s Tale of Life, Death, and Beyond. The day was created with love, with all the best intentions and I didn’t think it would go too far, other than within my cat blogging/writing circle of friends.
Read more

I’ve met so many cool people (and cats) since becoming a blogger and writer in 2010, one of them being Arden Moore, America’s Pet Health and Safety Coach and Pet Safety Cat Casey. I actually met Casey – a handsome and dapper ginger cat at the Cat Writers’ Association (CWA) 25th-anniversary conference in St. Louis in May 2019. Yes, imagine that. Mere years ago, in a life where we once got on a plane, traveled, met people (and cats) in person, did not wear a mask, and we could stand closer to one another than 6 feet (or paws).

A little kiss from Casey. On the left is Arden Moore and on the right, Amy Shojai, CWA founder.

Arden was hosting our communications contest banquet and assisting her was Casey. I was president of the CWA then, so I also had a lot of podium time, including sharing the spotlight with Casey and a special kiss from him! So, when Arden asked if I’d like to join her, Kathy Black, approved judge for the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA), Casey, and Casey’s “brother” Rusty to be their featured guest for the CFA’s weekly online Meow Hour, I jumped at the chance. Not a literal jump – I’m getting up in age – this September will have me at 427 cat years, so I’m not quite the jumper I used to be.

If you missed it, or care to take a listen, let’s see… Maine Coon cats, Bengal cats Ragdoll cats, black cats, rescue cats, Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day, book giveaways, the Cat Writers’ Association, how many times I’ve moved, Makin’ Biscuits, Purr Prints of the Heart, Orange Crush Ginger Cat Love, Pawsitively Humane, Zee & Zoey’s Cat Chronicles, Cat Fancy, t-shirts, a drink that will give you the zoomies, and yes, even dogs! I guess it’s more like what didn’t we talk about!

All I know is I had a blast and I hope you enjoy it, too!

Today is National Black Cat Appreciation Day and being blessed with a mini-panther in my life, our handsome rescue, Shadow, I know just how special these beautiful cats are. But, beautiful as they are, black cats are still considered by many to bring bad luck, simply because of the color of their fur. Those of us with black cats in our lives know we are the lucky ones to have them and in honor of the day, I thought I’d share some facts on what makes a black cat, black as well as some tips on how to take stunning photos of them.

Read more

My first CWA conference in 2011 – White Plains, NY. I’m here with friend and fellow blogger/writer, Janiss Garza.

Wow. It’s been ten years since I’ve joined the Cat Writers’ Association (CWA) in 2011 and with a blog, three books under my belt, and several national print and online freelance writing gigs, it still sometimes feels like a dream. I didn’t start life out thinking I’d be a published writer, it just sort of fell into my lap when a tough economy in 2009, along with my two cats – Zee & Zoey – who had a litter of kittens that helped get me out of deep depression and inspired me to write my first book – The Chronicles of Zee & Zoey – A Journey of the Extraordinarily Ordinary, that it all changed. Read more

When you’re a parent you never want to see your child suffering. From infancy when you hear a cry in the middle of the night, coming from the room where your child is sleeping, causing you to bolt from bed to care for someone who is utterly reliant on you for their very survival, to a toddler with a scraped knee that you kiss to make them feel better, to those first break-ups or awful moments of peer pressure that most teenagers have to deal with, that you try ever so gently to reassure them are not the end of the world, even though it seems so to them. Even when they become adults, the instinct to protect and shield them from suffering doesn’t end. Read more