OMAHA, USA-NEWS AND COMMENT: This is, for me, a case of very poor cat management. It appears to me that the woman simply lost control. The story also points to the problems that can arise when you adopt a new cat into the home of a resident cat i.e. your first cat. It can go badly wrong. Feline aggression. Generic image. Not the cat. Image: Pixabay. In this instance a couple of cats living in an apartment near 37th and Dodge streets, were fighting. The 52-year-old woman owner tried to intervene but one of her cats retaliated when the owner called timeout. I'm not sure what that means in this instance but it seems that the owner tried to intervene and was quite strict with the cat in telling him off, who, rather than submitting, retaliated and attacked the woman. RELATED:  Famously violent cat ‘Lux’ may have been systematically abused by man living in the home . As a consequence, the owner called the police for help. Mistake 🤔. What were the police going to and in any case, it w

Here is the celebrity cat Smoothie, a British Longhair who likes to play fetch, a dog-like behavior. Although if a cat likes to play fetch you can't say that cat is dog-like because some cats like to do this. It is fun. It is a form of play-hunting whereas dogs do it because they are working dogs trained to fetch birds that have been shot by their owner.  A horrible thought. There is a different motivator I believe. Female British Longhair: devastating pretty and likes to play fetch with a ball. Photo: Instagram. RELATED:  Smoothie is a British Longhair cat who should make this breed more popular . Many years ago, I decided that the British Longhair was probably the most attractive breed because it incorporated all the positives of the Persian without the health problems of that popular breed . Also, the British Longhair is not bred to extreme. It is just a nicely balanced all round cat but exceedingly attractive.  RELATED:  British Longhair Cat . Surprisingly, the breed is not tha

NEWS AND COMMENT-BERKSHIRE COUNTY, USA: This is a particularly unpleasant variation of how to be cruel to domestic cats by dumping them by the side of the road. In this instance a man, Joshua Christman, was driving along a country lane in the snow when he came across 10 cats hunched up or wandering around in the middle of the road. They had been abandoned in 3°C temperatures, with the temperature falling apparently, and with a storm on the way. 10 cats left abandoned on snow covered road in Berkshire County, USA. Videocam screenshot. The site where it happened is near Richmond Pond. Christman knew that he had to help and as it happens, he filmed the encounter which accounts for the video on this page. Christman called the police and animal control. He posted on Facebook Live asking people in the area to help. Christman, himself, was unable to take any rescue case because he had six already. About 20 people responded to the request to help and organisations such as Berkshire Humane, Ber

A Reddit.com user, Faris-Hilton said: " He’s 60 years old in cat years but clings to me like a new born child" . Why is this? The man was impliedly asking a question. It appears that he couldn't understand why. I think I know why. And I am using the knowledge of Dr. Desmond Morris a world-famous zoologist and animal behaviourist.  His theory, and I totally agree with him, is that we keep adult domestic cats in a state of mind where they believe that they are kittens for the simple reason that we provide all their needs. We are their surrogate mothers. This suspends their growth in terms of their mentality. It doesn't stop them developing as adults but it is suspended until they bring home a mouse at which point, they believe that we are their kitten and they need to train us how to kill a mouse. Reddit user Faris-Hilton says his middle-aged cat is 60 in cat years but a child in his behavior. Photo: Faris-Hilton. This might not happen every time but in the wild, the wi

NEWS AND COMMENT-WASECA, MINNESOTA, USA: This is an interesting little snippet of a feral cat story coming out of America. The Waseca Police Department has in the past been handling feral cats; specifically transporting and impounding feral cats. It seems that they have been involved in the management of feral cats by taking them off the streets and sticking them in shelters. A version of animal control as I understand it. Generic police car image in the public domain. Waseca Police Dept. announced: Starting today, with the guidance of the City Council at their January 18th meeting, The Waseca Police Department will only transport and impound cats with collars. Hopefully, their collars will also have a City of Waseca license on it since cats should be licensed with the Waseca Police Department (City of Waseca ordinance 95.17). The Waseca County Sheriff’s deputies will no longer impound cats from the County. They've announced a change in their policies. They have declared on Faceboo

My cat looking cute keeping warm between my legs while I work on the website. He loves the warmth. He is very keen, like many domestic cats, on heat. My cat snuggling up. Photo: MikeB Note: If you click on the photo, you can see it in large format. It looks much better and it shows how good the Samsung S20 camera is. It is a superb camera. My cat takes up this position while I work on the website on my computer which is on my lap. On this occasion I removed the computer to allow myself to photograph him. I used a Samsung S20 ultra. You can release the shutter on the camera by saying certain words such as "smile" or "shoot". This is incredibly useful because you can hold the smart phone much more still when you release the shutter. You don't have to fiddle around trying to tap the shutter release button or tap the screen. I love this facility. It allows me to get sharp photographs such as this one under low-like conditions. This looks as if it was well lit but it

NEWS AND COMMENT-UK: This is a story, currently in the news media, which essentially repeats what concerned cat owners already know, namely that there is an obesity epidemic among UK's domestic cats. The same, by the way, applies to America's cats. In fact, as I understand it, it is worse in America but there's not much difference. 2022 - the world's most obese domestic cat? Name: Liznya (Russia) It's a known fact that obesity can lead to type II diabetes. This occurs in humans. The same thing is happening in our domestic cats. This is unsurprising because humans feed domestic cats. If they feed themselves too much, they feed their cats too much as well. It's a well proven formula 😒. On my understanding of the process of obesity causing Type II diabetes, it is the fat which gathers around the organs which makes them malfunction. This applies to the pancreas which produces insulin. When the pancreas malfunctions there is less insulin in the bloodstream and bl

NEWS AND COMMENT: This is a story that has been rumbling along for a while. If you are up-to-date with the Boris Johnson news you will know that he is under a lot of pressure at the moment for allegedly breaking Covid social distancing rules and allegedly lying about it. It is the latter which is probably more important than the former. The knives are out for him. He may not remain as the Prime Minister of the UK as a consequence. Letter from Ms Harrison MP to Paul Farthing of Nowzad showing the alleged involvement of Boris Johnson in the evacuation of animals from Kabul. Source: MSN News. Thrown into the mix is the story of Mr Pen Farthing and the animals from his Nowzad operation in Kabul. This was and probably still is an animal rescue organisation based in Kabul. There was a big story about how he would get his animals out during the mass evacuation when thousands of people were flown out of Kabul after the Taliban took over. RELATED:  Breaking news: Nowzad animals and staff clear

The serial cat killing in Brighton by Steve Bouquet, 54, went viral in the online news media. The reporting was extensive. He was convicted and sentenced to more than five years in prison. The outcome was unusual because normally cat killers get away with it because of a lack of evidence. Steve Bouquet slipped up. He was videoed on a security camera when he went back to have a look at a crime scene. And the police found a knife in his home with cat blood on it. Steve Bouquet. Photo: Sussex News and Pictures At the time of the serial killing, the news media and therefore the public were unaware of the fact that that Bouquet was dying of terminal cancer. He is now dead. He died in prison . Cat lovers will not mourn his passing. They may be delighted. Although he escaped his punishment. But what concerns me today, is why did he do it? What makes a person want to kill 16 cats with a knife and succeed on nine occasions? We have a glimpse of an insight into answering that question from th

The title is amusing when you see the video. This couple of hairless cats are so committed to grooming the white Persian that you would be forgiven for believing that they were envious of her hair. I don't think it's true. The emotion of envy is a human one. The desire to groom a friend of yours, if you are a cat, is a strong motivator. You probably know that it is called allogrooming.  If a cat is envious of another cat because they have hair, the cat who experiences the emotion of envy must recognise the fact that they don't have hair. In order to recognise that simple fact they have to be self-aware. They have to be self-conscious. And this is one of those massive debates. People aren't sure whether cats are self-conscious.  This means a person or animal: recognises themselves objectively and can assess themselves compared to others. At the moment people are unsure that cats can do this. They probably can't. If that is true then it confirms what I have said that

NEWS AND COMMENT-KAMBERG, KWAZULU-NATAL: Conservationists have taken charge of a purebred African wildcat which was trapped by farmers in the Kamberg area of KwaZulu-Natal. African wildcats were incredibly common in South Africa. Incidentally, KwaZulu-Natal is a coastal South African province known for its beaches, mountains and savannah. It sounds delightful. Note: it is nice to know that the farmer called the conservationists and did not simply kill the cat. I guess he was protecting livestock. But the ubiquitous African wildcat is quite special nowadays as indicated by the report on the website iol.xo.za. The problem is this: they crossbreed with domestic and feral cats. This results in a first filial wildcat hybrid. Such cats are not purebred. They can't be described as wildcats. And this has watered down the population and the purity of the genes of the African wildcat in South Africa and elsewhere on the African continent. RELATED:  African and Asian wildcat – complete inform

NEWS AND COMMENT-LAREDO ANIMAL CARE SERVICES, TX: The reporting is a little sketchy but the story is good. An animal control officer, Jose Aranda (also reported as Jesus Aranda) has been recognised by the Laredo City Council for his quick thinking and bravery in saving the lives of 45 shelter cats from a fire at the Laredo Animal Care Services cat shelter. Jose Aranda recognised for his bravery in saving the lives of 45 cats at the Laredo cat shelter fire. Photo: Danny Zaragoza /Laredo Morning Times. The rescue occurred in the early part of January 2022. It was quite late at 10 PM according to the reports. Aranda was at the shelter to process some animals when he noticed smoke coming from the roof of the building in the cat shelter section. Rather than call the fire department and wait, he took action himself. He opened the door to the shelter. There was excessive heat and smoke. He saw the cats and realised that unless he released them immediately, they would probably die. "I

This is a cute video, although the cat was totally overwhelmed by this gang of puppies who appear to have been brought to the cat's home for the first time. They immediately raced out of the carrier and swarmed all over the cat who was forced to escape. It's quite cute as I mentioned but, in some ways, I feel sorry for the cat. The big question is why were these puppies so eager to meet the resident cat? I can think of two possible reasons. Firstly, they have been socialised with domestic cats when they were raised by the dog breeder. They learned to like cats and when they were removed from the breeder's home, they developed an urge to meet a cat again. As soon as they saw the resident cat in this home, they dived at him/her to say hello. Gang of poppies a release from the carrier and swarm all over the resident cat who has to escape. Screenshot. Another possibility is that they had never seen a cat before and wanted to explore! That would seem to be unlikely but just a

You have to admit that Jay Leno is smart and talented. He also loves automobiles. You may have seen his fantastic collection in his own super-clean facility in California. He says that California is a great place to collect cars because the weather is so good. It doesn't get wet and damp which eventually damages a car's appearance. He also loves cats. Which means that I love him because anybody who loves cats and who is smart and talented has got to be admired. He took the trouble of making a video, a funny cat video, for his appearance on The Ellen Show. This is partly a testament to his wealth I would say. He has the money to ask one of his colleagues to knock together a funny cat video. He is quite involved with the making of videos because he has a very successful YouTube channel in which he presents his vehicles. But it's just nice to see him do this in a smart/funny way. RELATED: ‘ Cat love bites’ – what do they mean and why do they happen ? An Internet search quickly

The video covers a number of domestic cat body language signals. I will let you explore them (Galaxy is good) but one of them is always important. It is when a domestic cat goes 'belly-up' and presents their belly to their human caregiver. How do you interpret it? And I think the answer actually is not a black-and-white one. And it is also difficult to generalise. Different cats respond in different ways. But you'll find that Jackson Galaxy makes one essential point. He says that when a dog presents their belly to the human caregiver it is a request to be petted in that vulnerable area. This is not the case with domestic cats, however. It is not an invitation to pet their belly but more a signal that they trust you and even love you if you believe that there can be love from a cat to a person. RELATED:  ‘Cat love bites’ – what do they mean and why do they happen ? It is a signal that a cat is relaxed in the company of their human caregiver and in the home. And to take th

NEWS AND COMMENT: Charles Darley was the chief executive of Cat Protection for 3 months. This is Britain's largest cat charity. It is based around cat fostering. The Times reports that he has quit his role because he does not think that Linda Upson, chairwoman of the trustees of the charity, can defend having so many cats in her home on welfare grounds. Linda Upson and one of her cats. Photo: Daily Mail. Upson has 18 cats in her three-bedroom home; 6 are foster cats. The story prompted me to immediately check on the rules that Cats Protection impose upon their fosterers. I know that they have quite strict rules. One of them is to separate the foster cat from any other cats in the home. This is a permanent state of affairs. And on their website, they refer to one cat being fostered. I guess they allow you to have more than one cat especially when there is a litter of kittens to take care of. That said, Upson was apparently complying with the rules. It's reported that she had

You might have heard of the story: a woman recognised the sound of her cat's meow over the phone when she called her veterinarian. I presume that the sounds were in the background while she was talking with veterinary staff who said that the sounds had come from a black rescue cat which had ended up at the veterinary clinic. The woman, Rachel Lawrence, hadn't seen Barnaby in eight months. She had given up seeing him again. Rachel Lawrence's kids with Barnaby after the reunion. Photo: Rachel Lawrence (SWNS). She had called her veterinarian because her current cat required veterinary treatment and she was checking on progress. She mulled over the meowing sound that she had heard and developed a conviction that her long lost cat had coincidentally ended up at the same veterinary clinic after he had been found. In fact, she was confident that it was him. She asked the veterinarian in a subsequent telephone call if he was black and had a distinct white patch on his back foot.

Jamie Lynn Spears, the younger sister of singer Britney Spears, and an American actress and singer in her own right, has confessed that she has accidentally ran over her cats with her car when she starts up and drives off. Jamie Spears has acquired $6 million apparently in her career and therefore has disposable income. With that income she decided to buy a Tesla car. Being good for the environment must have been a factor. Jamie Lynn Spears says that her Tesla car is a cat-killer because it is too silent when it starts up. Image: Unilad. However, in an Instagram story shared by Pop Crave in January 2022, Spears tells us that her Tesla has caused her more grief and happiness. She said:  "Someone's got to let Elon Musk know that the Tesla is a secret cat-killer, and it’s a problem that we’ve really got to fix. We have now lost — I don’t even want to tell you how many cats — because they don’t hear the Tesla crank and unfortunate things happen and it’s really devastating and

I don't think that this is hard science, if you know what I mean, but it might interest a few people. The Metro.co.uk website states that the most common traits among women who engage in infidelity in relationships tend to like cats and be Libras. They are also more likely to have one or two cheating parents, use Botox, have a boob job and other cosmetic enhancements. Libra by Three Leaves on Deviant Art. In the UK they enjoy Love Island, like the music of Adele, drink Pinot Grigio, drive a mini and yes be born under the star sign Libra. They do say however that women most likely to cheat on their husbands are Geminis. As it happens, Boris Johnson the UK's Prime Minister is a Gemini. I thought I'd just throw that into the mix because he does have a reputation for creating a very large family which necessitates changing partners from time to time. Apparently, there is a "cheating gene". You inherit it from your parents which is why if your parents have been che

Do cats judge us? I was going to say that this is a silly question but it isn't that bad. But it is a question based on human behaviour. Judging other people is what humans do. It can be quite a bad habit. Sometimes people don't have the right to judge others because to do so is hypocritical. Cats don't judge us 😊. Image: MikeB But when you judge somebody you measure them against standards. These may be personal standards or universally accepted standards of morality and socially acceptable behaviour. It's quite a complicated process. I don't think babies or young children judge people because they have not learnt about those standards. They not learned about societal standards and they don't have any moral standards of their own. They have not had sufficient time to gain the necessary experience. I mention that because in many ways domestic cats are like babies. They are far more instinctive than humans. They don't have moral standards in my view. They