04.09.07
Posted in Cat News at 9:10 pm by pawpathblog
An Oklahoma fourth-grade class raised enough money to pay for pet wheelchairs for a quadriplegic cat and two disabled dogs through bake sales, pet parades and community donations.
Xavier is a 10-month-old yellow tabby cat from Pawtucket, R.I., that is unable to walk because of a neurological disorder. Now, in the pet wheelchair he received in March, he’s able to get around on his own. Amy, a disabled Chihuahua from Cayce, S.C., was born without front legs. Amy moved by hopping on her back legs until she received her rear-wheel cart from the money raised by the fourth graders. Zach, a 13-year-old Beagle from Melbourne, Fla., also was unable to walk because of a weak back end. Now, in his wheelchair, he moves freely and gets the exercise he needs.
Kathy Barton, a fourth-grade teacher in Velma, Okla., organized the students’ fundraisers. For the past few years, Barton has helped her classes raise money to support disabled cats and dogs.
In 2005, Barton’s class raised almost $1,000 to fly an injured Dachshund in Tennessee to her new home in Maine and purchase the dog wheelchair she needed to walk again. In 2006, Barton’s class raised $1,100 to provide equipment to dogs in South Carolina and New York.
Barton has worked closely for years with HandicappedPets.com, an organization that teaches people pets with handicaps can lead happy, healthy lives.
Barton said she began developing a curriculum that focused on helping pets three years ago. Her fourth graders have learned about handicapped pets; blind pets, pets with cancer, pets with special needs, such as wheelchairs, harnesses, slings, diapers and more.
“It has changed how these children see animals and people with disabilities, and it breathes new life into the pets they help,” Barton said. “The class has some children with behavior problems who have exhibited a new level of focus and excitement toward this project.”
For more information on wheelchairs for disabled pets, visit http://www.handicappedpets.com/
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04.07.07
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 1:45 pm by pawpathblog
As of April 5, 2007, Sunshine Mills is voluntarily recalling its dog biscuits as a precautionary measure, including These brands include: Nurture Chicken & Rice, Nurture Lamb & Rice, Pet Life Large, Pet Life Extra Large, Pet Life Large Variety, Pet Life Large Peanut Butter, Lassie Lamb and Rice, and Pet Life People Pleasers Dog Treats. Private label biscuits for six of Sunshine’s customers were also affected. A complete list of affected biscuit brands, sizes, and codes is available below or at our website, www.sunshinemills.com. Sunshine’s other biscuit brands and products that include small and medium sized biscuits were not affected. It is also important to note that dry dog and cat food and soft and chewy treats for dogs or cats manufactured by Sunshine are not affected and not included in this recall.
Read the Sunshine Mills Press Release >>
Also, the FDA said that Menu Foods, the manufacturer from which the recalls originated last month, will be amending its original recall to extend some product dates. The extended recall now covers products dated from November 8, 2006 through March 15, 2007. The original recall spanned products dated from December 3, 2006 through March 15, 2007.
Bookmark & check the AVMA Pet Food Recall Page for up-to-date information.
However, only about 1% of commercially available pet food has been contaminated with melamine, a substance used as a fertilizer and in the production of plastics, such as kitchenware and whiteboard surfaces. Read the FDA Press Release about melamine >>
Please keep in mind that many common household foods and products can be dangerous for your pet. Check out the Cat Fancier’s Association Page’s Ten Tips for A Poison-Safe Household. It also lists human food & household plants that can be deadly to cats.
A reader wrote to us telling us about her cat, Charlie, who unfortunately was poisoned last Christmas when he broke a snow globe and ingested the liquid inside which contained antifreeze. She asked us to share her story. Our hearts go out to you, Charlie!
Here is a link to the Antifreeze Warning issued by the ASPCA and National Animal Poison Control Center.
So please remember that although you should monitor the pet food recall carefully, there are many more common household products you need to protect your beloved pet from.
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04.02.07
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 11:47 pm by pawpathblog
We took a brief respite from blogging, but we are back and will try to be more regular with our posting!
Here’s something that we should have posted a while back, but here it is anyway:
Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d dry added to recall list
We were lucky that we only eat Fancy Feast cat food, which is currently not on the recall list. We hope all you cat bloggers out there are safe and sound! For an updated list of the cat foods that have been recalled, go to http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_cat.html. You can also visit http://www.avma.org/aa/menufoodsrecall/default.asp for update news on the recall.
Here’s some more info:
Of the cats that suffered renal damage from eating contaminated foods, the following clinical signs were seen:
If your cat is known to have eaten one of the foods on the list and is showing any of the signs listed above, we recommend that you schedule an appointment as soon as possible with a veterinarian so that they can evaluate your cat for kidney damage.
If your cat was fed one of the foods, but has no clinical signs of illness, it still might be a good idea to have the cat evaluated and the kidney function assessed.
Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d dry has been voluntarily recalled by the Hill’s Company. Cat owners should stop feeding dry m/d (canned is fine).
Scary business. Hope none of you are sick!
purrs,
Leo & Bambi
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02.22.07
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 6:00 pm by pawpathblog
Spay Day USA is a national campaign to promote spay/neuter as a simple, humane and effective way to end the tragedy of euthanizing homeless pets, and events will take place across the U.S. on February 27, 2007.
Thousands of kittens and puppies are born every hour in the United States. While these baby animals are adorable, the fate of most of them is tragic. Spaying or neutering our pets and feral cats is the most effective way to reduce the vast numbers of animals who are born only to die prematurely and without a family who loves them.
Go to the Humane Society Spay Day USA Page to learn more, including information about organizing an event, volunteering at an event near you, becoming a sponsor, offering your veterinary skills and more.
To get a banner to put on your blog like you see above, CLICK HERE!
Now I’m going to take a nap and dream of a future where needless euthanizing is a thing of the past! Thanks for reading - Bambi
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02.21.07
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 6:18 pm by pawpathblog
We saw this in the news a few days ago and didn’t get around to posting it until today…
Cat adopts abandoned puppy
At the Meriden Humane Society in Connecticut, this wonderful mama cat Satin, who just had her own litter of kittens, adopted a 6-day old rottweiler puppy that was rejected by its mother. Now that’s a story to purr about!
Read more about this on USA Today >>
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01.14.07
Posted in Cat News at 10:40 pm by pawpathblog
There’s been a lot of interesting stuff going on, cat news-wise, so here are some notable stories…
First, our tubby friend, Hercules, who got himself stuck in a doggy door found his family, hooray! However, it seems that he was diagnosed with Feline Immunodeficiency Virus, so we send him many purrs.
Tiffany Noreuil, an animal care technician at the Oregon Humane Society, holds temporarily-named feline Goliath, Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2007, in Portland, Ore. Goliath, a 20-pound stray whose girth got him stuck in a pet door while trying to plunder some dog food, is back with his owner. His name isn’t really Goliath, but it’s close. It’s Hercules, says owner Geoff Ernest, who was reunited with his tubby tabby Thursday at the society. Gresham, Ore., resident Jadwiga Drozdek found the feline stuck in the dog door of her home a few days ago, helped free him and gave him a plate of food on her patio. (AP Photo/The Oregonian, Benjamin Brink)
Read more on Yahoo! News>>
An Australian family of four owe their lives to their pet cat after the animal prevented a house fire from turning into a tragedy, an official has said. After a mattress caught on fire in the night, the courageous moggie leapt to the aid of its sleeping owner by digging its claws into his face, waking him before the blaze engulfed the family home in north Queensland.(AFP/File/Mustafa Ozer)
Read more on Yahoo! News>>
This is just a really cute picture we found:
Greg Pike’s dog Booger, cat Kitty and white mouse Mousie, rest at the end of a day in Bisbee, Arizona, December 24, 2006. Picture taken December 24, 2006. REUTERS/Jeff Topping (UNITED STATES)
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01.10.07
Posted in Cat News, Just For Fun, Cat Sites - Our Picks at 9:56 pm by pawpathblog
Hey guys! That’s me, Bambi, taking a rest in the nice sun after doing some work. Here’s a longish sort of post with lots of stuff to catch up! We’re recommending a new blog, introducing a new cat cartoon book, and going over some cat news headlines!
Many of you have already met them, but Rocky (the CEO aka Cat Executive Officer) and fourteen other formerly feral cats has a great new blog called Artsy Catsy about cats like us who run e-commerce! Good luck with starting the business! Let us know more about how to order portraits, etc, and we can link from our e-commerce site!
If you haven’t been to see them yet, check out their blog at http://artsycatsy.blogspot.com/
In other news, there is a very fun new cartoon collection for women who love cats, called ”My Cat Loves Me Naked” by Stephanie Piro - check out her website at http://www.stephaniepiro.com/ or buy her book at Barnes & Noble by clicking on the link below!
My Cat Loves Me Naked
If you still need a calendar for 2007, check out our calendar store for lots of calendars with cats!
In cat news from around the world, here’s some headlines that caught our attention involving us fabulous felines:
An, ahem, big-boned kitty was caught stuck in a doggie door looking for food! Luckily, the people that lived in the house were very kind, got him out, gave him food, and took him to a shelter.
A cat missing for 7 months comes home! Kimba, an African jungle cat hybrid, had been missing since June. His owner cried herself to sleep and lost 50 pounds walking around the canyons looking for him! Sniff, sniff. We just love reunion stories like this!
On a more serious note, we found an interesting article about antidepressants for cats (& dogs, birds, horses, and other animals). Check out the LA Times article, “Fido’s Little Helper”>>
Leo will be back with more!!
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10.18.06
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 8:10 pm by pawpathblog
AP Photo/Shiho Fukada
A 4-year old short hair Calico Manx Spay, Grand Premier Fuzzy-Foot Confetti of Deydream from New Jersey won Best in Show this past weekend at the CFA-Iams Cat Championship at Madison Square Garden where 300 cats representing 41 distinct breeds competed for the coveted ribbon. Go and meet the winners!
See photos from the championship on Yahoo! News >>
Or watch a slideshow with commentary by the executive director of CFA on CNN >>
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10.16.06
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 12:50 am by pawpathblog
Some cat related news this week!
Genetic Savings and Clone, the company that offered cloned pets for $50,000 (they recently reduced the price to $32,000) is going out of business due to lack of demand.
The company was launched by John Sterling, the billionaire founder of the University of Phoenix who wanted to clone his hunting dog Missy. It was never accomplished. The company opened for business in 2000. The company has reportedly produced 5 cloned cats since it opened, but only sold 2 to paying customers. Needless to say, this practice has sparked intense ethical and scientific debate over cloning.
Animal rights activists rejoiced when hearing the news of Genetic Savings and Clone’s closing, as thousands of stray cats are euthanized each year and there is no need to make more cats. The Humane Society of the United States’ president, Wayne Pacelle, called Genetic Savings “…not just a bad business venture, but an operation grounded in the misuse of animals.” He stated that numerous failed cloned cats suffered deformities, chronic pain, and suffering.
Read more on USAToday.com or Reuters via Yahoo! News.
In more whimsical news, a stray cat has been hanging out in a cherry tree in a pigeon’s nest in Norfolk, England! We wish there was a picture, but there isn’t. What a strange cat! Read a brief article in All Headline News.
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10.13.06
Posted in Cat News, Cat Articles at 9:25 am by pawpathblog
The CFA-Iams Cat Championship will take place this weekend, October 14-15 at Madison Square Garden in New York. The show will place the spotlight on more than 300 pedigreed cats representing 41 recognized breeds registered by the Cat Fanciers’ Association. Also returning to this year’s show is a spectator favorite, the Feline Agility Competition (FAC), a challenge that is sweeping the nation. 500 homeless felines will also gather for the Adopt-A-Cat at the Garden. Visit the official site to learn more, as well as see the winners from last year.
AP Photo/Richard Drew
Here’s Tyler, a 12- year old domestic house cat, who is jumping a hurdle in the preview for the CFA-Iams Cat Championship on Wednesday, October 11th, at Madison Square Garden. See more pictures from the preview on Yahoo! News
Big deal, so that big-shot Tyler is jumping through a hurdle. Is there a prize for sitting in inconvenient places for attention? I’d probably win that. Just yesterday, I was sitting right in front of my mom on the forbidden table, on top of her papers doing just that. I made various sounds, from cute little mew’s to very masculine, low mmmm’s to very loud MMRRROAR’s. Mom kept saying it didn’t matter what I said, as she was “working” and “paying the bills” and that she’d hug me later…hm! That hardly seems very important compared to playing with me. But I digress. What’s the prize for this championship? Hugs? If that’s the case, SIGN ME UP, BABY, I’M IN!
-Leo
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