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Since I don’t have any kids, Doofie has become the “kid” I proudly show off with photos like this, on our blog. She’s been very fickle with her new Lotus cat tree but has finally come around to enjoying it almost as much the tired, grungy carpet & sisal cat tree I pitched. I put her new Lotus out on our back patio since it’s become our outdoor gathering area. We have a beautiful view of a lake, golf course and mountains with ideal sun exposure. Trees surround us, with a plethora of very active, noisy birds. I don’t encourage you to consider situating the Lotus outside because it’s not designed for outdoor use; however our dry environment and covered patio provides an ideal spot for summer enjoyment, especially during cocktail hour. Often, we have friends stop by in their golf cart. Doofie scrambles to the top perch during our social hour to enjoy companionship and I’ve found the lower-level perch is an ideal glass holder! Now that’s functionality; a dual-purpose cat tree!

“I am sending you a picture of my two cats in their new cherry Lotus cat tree. They just love it! Padfoot is the “robust” gray and white short-haired male and Cleopatra is the lovely cross eyed Siamese mix. They’re both about 1-year old.”

Owner Courtney, has situated Cleopatra & Padfoot’s (?? what a great name!) new cat tree in the perfect spot for premium birding - what a view!! Perched up high like Padfoot, you might even be able to call it a “birds’ eye” view!

Sledging out to see who gets first dibs on top! Meet Zeek & Nicodemus, a couple of very spoiled male Ragdolls battling over trying to be king cat on the top perch of their new Lotus cat tree! That’s 30-40lbs of cat & fur! I bet they don’t even care that the mahogany finish matches their beautiful coats! Pretty classy, though. Thanks to Constance, their human who has a keen eye for clean modern cat furniture.

We received very sad news this week from one of our customers. Early this month, young Winslow escaped from home. He’s a 1-year old male Maine Coon with a predominantly white coat highlighted with red on his face, back & tail. Weighing only 13.5lbs he’s a very shy, skittish little guy. He lives in Danbury Connecticut. If you have found this cat or know anything about him, please contact us to help reunite him with his family. Thank you!

Like the rest of the world, I decided Doofie needed to have a Lotus cat tree. Honestly, it wasn’t like she really needed it, but oh well such is the extravagance of love. I got it last week, assembled it and put it out onto our back patio replacing the old tired carpet & sisal tree she’s had since she was young. The old tree was very large, heavy, quite ugly and tattered which is why I hid it outside! I dragged the old nearby out of the way, laying it on its side which was probably my first mistake. Lying down near it, she lamented its new posture while the Lotus cat tree stood proudly in its place ready for use. I got a dolly assist to dismantle the old one and she found me working on it in the garage! Oh dread, caught! She laid-down on the parts like wishing it to stay! We’re now into a week with the new Lotus. I put a cookie treat on the first level, then the next, then the next, and finally on top. Altogether, she gets about 6 cookies out of it! I decided today, she’s figured out if she hold outs, she can finagle the whole package of cookies! She probably will… she’s so smart!

The Winn Feline Foundation announced today that the HomeAgain Proactive Pet Recovery Network has pledged to donate $1 toward feline health research for every new cat microchipped and enrolled in HomeAgain during the months of June, July and August 2008. According to the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP), less than 5 percent of lost cats are reunited with their owners once they are taken into a shelter.

“No question, microchipping saves lives, ensuring far more lost cats are reunited with their families,” says Dr. Susan Little, president of the Winn Feline Foundation.

Most cats don’t wear collars, and even for those that do, collars and ID tags may fall off or be removed. Microchipping, plus enrolling in the data base, is the only permanent form of identification.

“HomeAgain knows that, in our database, cats are underrepresented in comparison to the number of lost and found cat reports we receive,” says Steve Shell, vice-president and general manager of HomeAgain. “Twenty-two percent of pets in the HomeAgain database are cats, but we actually keep more cats than dogs as companion pets in the US. Cats are not as well identified as dogs, with collars and tags, or with microchips and registration, putting them at great risk of never getting reunited with their owners if ever lost. It is our mission at HomeAgain to save pet’s lives. That’s why we are pleased to partner with Winn to help spread the word about the importance of permanent identification for all cats while supporting important veterinary research to enhance the health and longevity of our feline friends.”

Little adds, “When cats become separated from their people in an emergency, such as a tornado, hurricane, wildfires or flood – a microchip may be your only chance of getting your cat back. I also believe that people with indoor-only cats think their cats will never get out. Unfortunately, that’s just not true.” Click here to read more.

Here’s a motley crew: Beau (black), Bonnie (orange) & Jackson (brown/white). Their human, Kenneth tells us they each have very unique personalities. Beau thinks he’s a person and so smart he could be a winning quiz show contestant! Although he recently went through cancer radiation & chemo treatments, he’s their miracle cat and still commands the leadership role of the group. Bonnie the fluffy orange, has been told she’s very unusual and as such has adopted her royal position in life and perhaps just a little spoiled! Jackson it the new guy in the troop, definitely a Type A personality, and loves people!

“The scratching post has been great and they adapted to it very quickly. I tried to buy one previously from a chain store and they wanted absolutely nothing to do with it. Jackson & Bonnie are the two who love to play around the post and fight over it. Jackson is about the only one who is agile enough to get up on top. Bonnie & Beau are both 10+ years old. For some odd reason Bonnie loves to sit by the scratching post in the morning to be petted and this is about the only place where she tolerates being petted. Our cats certainly are enjoying the scratching post. Thank you for such a great product!”

In our quest to find the perfect cat toy, perhaps we should first look to nature to fill this purpose. Here’s Pixie showing just how much fun it is to go fishing. This 10-gallon aquarium is home to one of her favorite buddies, a Cory catfish who is about the size of a field mouse. She spends hours chasing after it as it swims back ‘n forth in the bottom of the tank! Too bad we only sell cat trees! 

A few years back, I took Doofie to the vet for her annual check-up. Odd, now that I think about it, I don’t have an annual physical, but my cat does! Anyway, the vet said she needed to have her teeth cleaned. I must have laughed because the vet made a point of insisting it was necessary. We returned a couple of weeks later for her dental appointment. The vet-tech indicated that Doofie was going to be “put under” for the procedure. Yikes! Of course that makes sense as I can barely keep her quiet enough to brush her coat. I was asked if wanted to be present during the surgery – absolutely! They warned me about putting her under. Admittedly it was just awful, but I was confident that they knew what they were doing. Sure enough, she had several teeth removed. $150 or so later and a little unsteady, we both survived her ordeal. No high-rise cat perch sitting for Doofie for at least a couple of hours. Here’s a terrific article on the importance of your maintaining your cat’s health through proper feline dental care.