This week's favorite waif

Mom has another favorite waif. Trinity is still available but mom wants to introduce you to another special kitty. 

Meet Tiger:

Tiger is a 6 year 11 month old tabby.

Grrrr! Now that I've got your attention I want you to know I'm one of the sweetest, friendliest, most affectionate cats you will ever meet. I was adopted from Wayside once before, but I was returned because my family felt they weren't right for me because they had young children and a dog, and I was scared of them. So I would prefer that my new family have no dogs and no young children under the age of 12. I like other cats, so if you have a friendly feline who needs a buddy, I might be a good fit. My previous family said I'm a lap kitty and like to snuggle at night. Here at Wayside, I've become known as a love bug. 

There's one more thing you should know about me: I am FIV-positive. That's not as scary as it sounds. It just means that my immune system is slightly compromised, so it's extra important that I have an indoor lifestyle, good food and regular veterinary checkups--the things any great adopter would provide for their furkid.

Want to learn more about me? View my profile at http://www.waysidewaifs.org/. Or better yet, come visit me at Wayside Waifs! 

Featured Waif - Trinity

Mom has been very bad and not posting my blogs! I need to retrain her! I know she's busy but she has slacked off and I have things to say. For example, she fell in love with a new Waif. Actually she fell in love with several but they got adopted this weekend so we are going to tell you about a special girl who hasn't found her forever family yet.

Meet Trinity! 

Trinity is a senior kitty at 10 years, 11 months old but don't let her age fool you. She still has a lot of spunk! Trinity is missing her back right leg but it doesn't get her down at all. She moves quick on her 3 good legs! Take a look at this beautiful dilute torbie girl as she scoots away from mom during playtime at Wayside Waifs last week. 

She is very affectionate too! She didn't mind at all that she could smell my and sisfur Mia's scent on mom's shoes. 

Trinity is an active kitty that likes being talked to, pet, and even playtime! She has very soft fur and loves to purr. Trinity is a Wayside alumni but has been returned due to not doing well with the other cats and dogs in the home so she would do better as a single pet in the home. If you are looking for a mature, loving companion Trinity might be your girl! 

To learn more about Trinity follow this link. There's a write up about her and even a video. Or better yet, go visit her in person at Wayside Waifs! 

Purrs that sweet Trinity finds her forever family this holiday season! 

Featured Waif

Mom has a new love and his name is Aiden. Isn't he a handsome kitty?!? Mom sure thinks so!

He is a 3 year old domestic medium hair mix. Mom doesn't know much about him since she just met him at Wayside Waifs yesterday but she fell in love with him! Of course she can't love any kitty as much as she loves me but... Aiden has certainly gotten her smitten. Good thing we are at our limit of kitty's in our home or she just might adopt him! Since mom can't adopt him she hopes some nice family comes in soon and chooses Aiden to become their fur-kid.

He is such a sweetie. Mom spent about 30 minutes with him yesterday. She likes to volunteer on the holiday's the best because the shelter is closed to the public and volunteers have the animals pretty much to themselves. Although some people might think the animals get lonely on the holidays, rest assured many volunteers and staff visit and play with all the animals! They get plenty of treats, petting, playtime and quiet time. Anyhoo... back to Aiden. He loved the attention he got from mom. He wanted to be pet and brushed and even played a little but petting was the best. He couldn't get enough head scritches. Mom sure hopes he finds his forever home soon! I bet he will! He's been available for adoption for just a few days as he only came to wayside last week.

To learn more about Aiden and other adoptable kitties and pooches visit http://www.waysidewaifs.org/.

Pet Emergency Kit Checklist

Do you have an emergency kit for your furbabies? If not, here's a good list to get you started:

Mom has most of the stuff on the list in a bag she keeps close to the door along with our carrier in case she needs to get us loaded and out to safety quickly. We had a tornado warning a few weeks ago. Mom wasn't home or she would have loaded us up and taken us to a safer location. An upstairs apartment isn't the safest place to be if a tornado were to touch down. Thankfully sever weather season is almost history for this year so hopefully we won't hear those loud scary sirens again anytime soon! It's always good to have a plan in case of emergency. Be safe pals!

Keeping kitty safe over the Fourth of July

Who's looking forward to the Fourth of July? or better yet, whose kitty is looking forward to the Fourth of July? I know my sisfur is not! Mia doesn't like loud noises which means she will be under the bed most of the weekend. I'm ok with loud noises as long as it's not a fire truck screaming in to the apartment complex with its sirens blaring!

Anyhoo... here are some tips to keep kitty safe this holiday:


1. Turn Down the Volume

Cats and fireworks don’t play well together. If your cat is scared of thunder, she’ll definitely be scared of the nonstop booming on the Fourth of July. Close your windows and turn on a radio — tuned to a station that plays mellow music — to counteract the noise of fireworks.

2. Keep Kitty Inside

If your kitty is normally an indoor-outdoor kitty, don’t let her go outside on July 4 or the surrounding days that fireworks are being shot off in the neighborhood. This will keep her safe from any number of dangers, such as getting lost if she bolts in panic during fireworks displays. 

3. Give Kitty a Place to Hide

Frightened cats will seek shelter, immediately. Many cats will run and hide under a bed or in a closet when the doorbell rings. Imagine what they will do when a bottle rocket goes off nearby. It will help your kitty if you prepare a sanctuary in advance. If you don't have an extra room, try a cat bed inside a closet in an interior room. Another suggestion is to rub a towel or small blanket with her scent and put it in the bed. Show her where it is well in advance of the 4th, so she will know it's her own "safe place." 

4. Make sure kitty has proper, updated ID

If kitty does manage to escape, this will increase the chances of her safe return. If she isn't microchipped, it's a good idea to consider getting it done before the holiday.

5. Get Her a Thundershirt

The Thundershirt, which has been soothing dogs through storms and other anxiety-provoking situations, is now available for cats to provide a sense of safety and well being. Recent reviews show that the device, which is designed to produce a light pressure all around the torso, is working just as well for cats as it has been for the canines.


6. Consider Tranquilizers

No, not for you (although you might want one!), but for your kitty. If your favorite feline is normally the skittish type, you might want to ask your veterinarian about a mild sedative or tranquilizer, just to get the cat through the day. If you're not fond of drugs for cats, there are some natural remedies that have a calming effect. 

7. Spend some time with kitty over the holiday

Try to take time out from the activities of the holiday to spend a few minutes with your cat, every couple of hours, petting her and talking to her. She needs to know you haven't abandoned her during these stressful hours, and the brief break will be good for you, too.

Have a Happy and Healthy Fourth of July pals!

xoxo,

CJ and Mia

 & 

Whisker Stress - What is it?

Whisker Stress - what is it? Well I know I had whisker stress when my whiskers were burned off in our nasty fire a few years ago but I don't think that's what the V E T is talking about.

See? No whiskers....

Do you or have you seen a kitty that doesn’t want to eat their kibble in their bowl, preferring to pull it out one piece at a time with their paw, then eating it off the counter or floor? Or maybe a kitty that only seems to like to eat the top layer of food out of his (or her) bowl, acting like he needs to get a refill, even when there is still plenty of morsels left on the bottom of his dish? You may be witnessing Whisker Stress! Mom always thought I did this because I was afraid brofur Cosmo was going to eat all the food but I still do it. I even did it when I was the only kitty in the house after Cosmo passed away and before mom adopted Mia. Mom isn't particularly fond of my need to drag food all over the floor to eat rather than eat from the dish but I am spoiled so I get to do what I want. 

Anyway, back to the topic at hand. Many cats suffer from whisker stress daily, and your kitty might too. Domesticated cats that live and eat indoors don’t have the luxury of eating their food anywhere they’d like.  A feral cat can hunt down her prey, and consume it wherever she pleases. Circumstances are much different in a domestic environment where the human is in charge of when, where, and how the kitty will eat (we'll pretend the human thinks they are in charge for arguments sake!). So how do a cat’s whiskers play into all of this?

The role that whiskers play in cats is mainly to augment their short-distance vision.  A kitty has approximately 8 to 12 of these whiskers on each side of their face, arranged in horizontal rows that fan out sideways on each side of the upper lip, plus some tufts of shorter whiskers above their eyes, on their chin, and even on the back of their forelegs, just above the paw!  

It took a couple of months for all my whiskers to grow back. This pic is 3 months post fire and you can easily see my whiskers have returned! 

Whiskers are deeply-rooted, and rich in blood vessels and nerve endings that provide your kitty with information about surrounding objects and even air movement.  This exceptionally sensitive tool assists kitty's in many forms of navigation.  Each whisker functions as a mechanical transmitter, conveying pressure applied along the shaft to receptors in the follicle at the whisker base. So imagine what forcing those delicate instruments into a food dish must feel like. Ouch! The good news is that cat-friendly designers have come up with lots of beautiful flat feline feeding dishes to help your kitty avoid whisker stress. They look like elegant serving platters, wide and shallow, with plenty of room for your kitty to pick up the food with their mouth, without their whiskers touching anything. I am not sure why mom hasn't bought sisfur Mia and I those elegant serving platters, uh mom????

In short, making sure that your cat has an adequately sized food bowl could make a tremendous difference in how comfortable he (or she) is when he’s eating his food. It’s amazing what you will learn when you take the time to OBSERVE your kitty's!

How does your kitty prefer to eat?  Do they behave strangely sometimes when eating?  Do they stop and start again? Do they refuse to eat when they seemed hungry just minutes earlier?  Your kitty just might be trying to tell you that they have whisker stress and a new food bowl is a necessity! I'm wondering when mom will get the hint... to be fair, she has changed how she feeds us our dinner (on a saucer instead of from a bowl). Mom also knows that I prefer to drink water off the floor rather than from a bowl so she will sometimes intentionally spill the water on the floor so I can lap it up. The sink is a good option for water too!

Do my pals have any strange eating or drinking habits I wonder? Is it whisker stress or are they just spoiled like me?

Mom's on a mission!

*Editor's note: Mom had to defer her marathon to next year due to injury. She still plans to raise awareness for suicide prevention, it just won't be associated with the Marine Corps Marathon this year and that's why the widget is no longer on the sidebar. Thank you to everyone who visited the campaign and provided support! 

I know this isn't kitty related but mom's on a mission and I want to help her get the word out. If you know my mom, you know she volunteers at Wayside Waifs helping other kitties and doggies find their forever home. She even adopted sisfur Mia from Wayside. What you may not know about mom is that she also volunteers for the Red Cross to help others affected by disasters. She actually started volunteering at the Red Cross before our devastating fire and because of what we went through will likely be a lifelong Red Cross volunteer. We got a lot of help after our fire and mom believes in paying it forward. Many of you helped us after our fire and we are so grateful! I am glad mom does what she does to pay it forward. And as if she isn't busy enough, she has a new mission!

On October 25, 2015 mom will be running the Marine Corps Marathon to raise awareness and funds for Suicide Prevention for First Responders. The funds will go directly to support the groundbreaking collaboration of The Sweeney Alliance and Rethink The Conversation to develop national programs to educate first responders about suicide prevention and coping with the aftermath of a suicide.

People don’t want to talk about suicide because of the stigma associated with it. It’s time to start a conversation worth having. So many people struggle with depression, anxiety and other mental health issues but because of the stigma associated with mental health many people don't reach out for help. It's even harder for the helpers - those men and women that work in Fire, Emergency Medical Services and Law Enforcement - to ask for help. They are the helpers, who are they supposed to ask for help?

Why does mom want to raise awareness for Suicide Prevention for the helpers? You can go to her GoFundMe page to read the full story. The short answer is because she was deeply affected by the loss of 2 friends last year to suicide. You can read about one of those friends (Nico) on her GoFundMe page. He was a firefighter who lost his wife to suicide nearly a year earlier. He was deeply affected by her loss and the stress may have been too much for him to handle. First Responders see a lot in their careers but they are human too. They feel emotions that can affect them at work and also at home. They need to be able to ask for help and know that help is available. 

This is a cause that has mom's heart. She hopes it will have yours too! Will you visit her fundraising page and help? If you can help financially or even share the campaign with others mom would appreciate it!  Thanks pals! 

Here is the page:  http://www.gofundme.com/suicidehelp  and mom put the widget to the side of this blog for easy access too.