Stand up for cats in rescue.... keep us apart and safe.

Cats in rescue ought to be kept in single houses - unless they already know their companions. Just dumping us in a pen full of strange cats is enormously stressful.

It may seem like a good idea to save money, or just to rescue more cats, but it doesn't pay off.

More stress means more disease. More disease means more vets bills. More disease also means more cats are euthanised.

Scientists have measured our stress levels in rescue, and a pen full of cats - coming in and going out to new homes - is the worst possible accomodation.

So, rescues, start thinking smart not fast. Build proper premises. Take in fewer cats, concentrate on homing them out fast.You will save money and you will save more cats.

And saving more cats is what we all want.

• For more feline thoughts on human behaviour go here.
  

Stand up for cats in rescue.... hideaways

Cats in a rescue shelter or a vet's surgery need a hideaway. They shouldn't be left without privacy, on a shelf being stared at by passing humans. Staring is very intimidating to us cats.

If we have somewhere to hide, we feel happier about coming out to interact with humans. And then we are more likely to be adopted.

So why don't humans give us a hiding place? Because they don't think like a cat. And they don't bother to find out what we need or read up on the topic.

It doesn't cost much. There is an excellent Feline Fort which should be in every vet surgery. It's got a perch and a hiding place. And for rescue shelters who have too little money, a box will do just as well.

Better still, it can go to the new home with the cat, so that the new home has a bed with a familiar smell. Smell matters.

Educate your local rescue....

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• For more information on human management techniques buy this book here.
  

Humans are getting hairier... and worse dressed

Jasmine has kept her fur beautifully groomed.

Are humans losing it? They seem to be getting hairier! Or is it just that they cannot groom themselves?

Look around at the humans you know, the ones that are now staying indoors most of the time. The fur on their head is growing longer and seems to be changing colour too - grey and brown instead of blonde.

The men are trying to grow whiskers. Poor things can only manage stubby facial fur not proper long and beautiful whiskers.

Compare this to your own fur -- still delightfully untangled, unchanged in colour, beautifully and sensitively styled and groomed. By you. Strong and sensitive whiskers, each tapered at the end for extra finesse.

And their clothes, that they cover their bodies with because they can't grow proper fur, seem to be changing too. Many of them are staying in dressing gowns or pyjamas or night clothes all day.

I have tried to set a good example by rigorous and stylish grooming all over my body. Not forgetting those tricky bits on the belly and lower down.

Humans seem to be losing what little self respect they once had, and becoming unable to care for themselves.

What can we cats do about this?

• For more on managing your human get my book here.

Stand up for Cats in Rescue.

Fear and frustration in a rescue

It's time somebody stood up for cats in shelters. Big rescue organisations often treat cats like second hand kittisens. Dogs get all the attention. Cats are just an add on. Humans, purrlease do something.

What is the worst?

Well the worst is the smell and sound of the premises. The scent of dog wafts everywhere - on the hands and clothing of the staff, on the clothing of the would-be adopters, in the veterinary surgery, and in the offices of the manager

Nobody remembers that most of us cats are scared by dogs.

Then there is the constant sound of barking. We cats have the widest range of hearing of almost all animals. We can hear a mouse's footfall. But do shelter staff care? Do they even think of the constant stress of the constant noise of barking?

Nobody remembers the noise of dogs scares us.....

Purrlease, humans, do something.

Educate yourself and others about what we need and want.

Stand up for cats in Rescue!

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Going up in the world....

For once my human has done the decent thing. I am going up in the world.
Bored in lockdown, I finally purrsuaded her to spend some real money on proper cat furniture like the one in the photos. Now at last I will be able to be in the my rightful position of being able to look down on all the humans below. 
Admittedly she is too mean to include a cat house. She's just got a ledge/perch/sitting place.
I can't wait for it... a really huge one.
Of course, I will keep her in her place by refusing to use it, while she is around. Instead I shall inspect and enjoy the cardboard boxes in which the catipilla arrives....
Keep her waiting. For how long? One week? Two weeks? A month purrhaps? But I shall sneak down in the night when she is sleeping and try it out.
If you want your human get one, the website is www.catipilla.com

• More on human management here.