Cat Breeds

Here are a list of some of the common and less common breeds. I won't include ALL of them since there are alot. I hope you enjoy. I'm doing A and B's this time around.

Abysinnian:

American bobtail

American curl

Balinese

Bengal

5 weeks

Well the babies are five weeks old now and wearing me out! They are continuing to play, chase, and run around all over. They are playing with nothing in particular or each other and it's a treasure to watch. Most of them are up to a pound, worms included. I can't de-worm these poor things until they are at least 6 weeks. They are all belly. They are getting bigger though so they are healthy. I will put up pictures as soon as I can

Made from Animals

Here's a few interesting things you might like to hear if you are an animal lover of any sort

Things made from animals:

Rennet: Enzyme from calf stomach, found in cheeses
Gelatin: Animal Collagen found in marshmallows, candies, gelatin desserts and yogurt
Isinglass: the swim bladder in fish used in some alcohols (beer and wine)
Fatty acids from animals: Make up several kinds of plastics
Glycerin: used from cows to made toothpaste and brushes
Bones and Horns: used from buttons
Civet's perineal glands: to extend the life of a perfume (they scrape the captive civet's anal glands)
Also in perfume: Ambergris in whales, musk from male deers, castor oil from beavers


These are just a few things made from animals for our own selfish use. Please, check the label before you buy groceries or really any product from toiletries to furniture.

Updates

I read an interesting article today about a man with over 600 cats on his five acre ranch! Quite an interesting story. Read all about it here:


http://green.yahoo.com/blog/guest_bloggers/69/man-builds-cat-sized-village-for-homeless-cats.html





Week Four: The kittens are much more active now! They play, jump, and run. They are still a little wobbly which is cute!




Work Stories:


We got in 5 maltese dogs today. Poor things were in a puppy mill and covered in their own feces. After three baths and a quick shave they look much better. We also got in 5 Dobberman/Weimareners who are to die for! They were kept in a kennel all their life so they didn't even know how to play! We are socializing them and they seem to be coming along well.





Praise Report: A lady in Clearlake was going to hold a "raffle" for her English Bulldog pups. She breeds the mom every year and sells the females as breeding puppies. They are horrifically inbred but we contacted the police dept and she won't be doing the raffle anymore! Hurray! When will people learn that we have too many animals in the world as it is!!

Please people, Spay/Neuter your animals!

4 weeks and counting! Color Patterns

Today my five little munchkins are officially 4 weeks old. They are starting to nibble on dry kibble, are running around and playing, and are much more hungry!! They are turning out to be such great kitties. All of their personalities are starting to show. I have two boys and three girls. I asked my husband last night to feed the brown tabby and he was confused as to which one that was. He made me laugh and think to myself that some people just don't know what colors some cats are. So lets clarify shall we?






Tabby: A tabby comes in many different colors but they all have those little stripeys. There are brown, grey, and orange tabbys.





Calico: A calico is a cat that has patches of colors usually white, orange and black with varied colors. They are solid unlike the tortishell.

Tortishell: Usually a dark brown or black with colors sprinkled throughout: orange, reds etc








Siamese coloring: This one is a little trickier since there are many different varieties of Siamese. There are flamepoint, lilac point, chocolate point, Lynx point, Seal point and I'm sure many others but those are the most common. Shown is a Seal point

Now I won't go into dilute tortie, calico or torbie since those get confusing without pointing out a specific animal.


Of course there are always different color patterns to these color so it can get confusing! For instance, my cat Moki has shades of Tortie AND Calico but she is a general Tortie.


Well hopefully, you now know what coloring your cat is. If you don't think your cat is particular breed (eg. Siamese, Persian, Abyssinian) then it's classified as a DSH, DMH, or DLH meaning domestic short,medium or long hair. So, for instance, my cat fox is a DMH Orange and White Tabby!


Well I hope this helps next time you are describing a cat. And because I am so fond of Siamese I'm going to show you the different points down below. Enjoy!
Lilac Point
Lynx Point

Flamepoint Seal Point








Sidenote: If you have a cat that is a solid color or a few colors then that's okay too. If there are no stripes they would be a solid white, black, brown or whatever the case may be. Multiple colors would be a bi-colored or tri-colored

Helpful Tools for Pet Owners

Some websites I would like to share to help my fellow pet owner!

Here is a package you can add onto your Honda Element that is strictly for dogs. Here is what it includes:

Rear Dog Kennel Spill resistant water bowl
Kennel Organizer Rear fan
Pet Bed Dog friendly emblems
Stowable Ramp and more!
Dog pattern seat covers
All-season floor mats

http://automobiles.honda.com/element/dog-friendly-extras.aspx

Something for people who don't want scratches from their kitties but don't want to put them through the painful process of de-clawing (trust me, it is so painful for them)
go to www.softclaws.com. Basically what it is: Safety caps on nails that have been trimmed. It stunts the growth of the nails for 4-6 weeks so a whole box lasts 4-6 months. Please consider this as a safer alternative to declawing! You can even get different colors!!

Check out our adoptable animals at the shelter I work at at www.co.lake.ca.us. Click on Animal Care and Control on the right hand side, then Animal Adoptions. Click on Dogs or Cats. You can also make a donation toward the Spay or Neuter of an animal here at the shelter!

www.moderncat.net is a great website for the "modern" cat. There are modern toys, furiture, litter boxes, treats and alot more. It's a great website to look at if you want some out of the ordinary things for your cats :)

If anyone has other websites that are helpful, please leave a comment and share the knowledge!

Orphaned Kitten Care

I recently acquired two foster kittens. They were doing great. They were out of a litter of five. Another volunteer of sorts took the other three home. A week has gone by and my kittens are plump and content. The other day the other volunteer came to shelter to say she couldn't care for them anymore. This saddened me. Who would foster animals and them dump them off to someone else? Not an animal lover I know. Nevertheless, I took them in too and their appearance made me literally gasp. They were ragged, skinny, flea ridden and miserable. I asked her calmly (while under the surface fuming) if she had gotten up several time in the night to feed them because orphaned kittens needed it. She said no and that they suffered through it. At that time she left (thank God) and I was left with these poor excuses for kittens. I didn't have to get up for midnight feedings for my kittens anymore because they had started to eat wet food. I had to start the process all over! It was worth it though. Two of the three kittens still need bottle feeding but they are coming along nicely. They are all flea-free and love the heated blanket and nice area I set up for them!

Some tips when caring for orphaned kittens:

0-1 week: Ear canals and eyes will be closed. Umbilical cord will be intact till around day 2. No teeth. Blue eyes (All kittens are born with blue eyes) 3-4 oz in weight. Kittens need milk and help eliminating waste. To do this get a warm, damp towel and rub their hind parts to eliminate.

2-3 weeks: Eyes are ears begin to open at week 2. Suckling reflex becomes stronger and baby teeth emerge. 6-8 0z. Can start introducing wet mush mix (2 cans of wet food mixed with hot water and dry food. Add wet food after dry food is soft) Kittens still need help to eliminate waste

4-5 weeks: Start introducing the litter box. They wont understand at first but they'll get it. Crawling and grooming begin. Kittens can eliminate on their own. Play becomes a central activity. 10-14 ounces

6-7 weeks: Kittens can eat solid food and use kitty box. They gain the ability to stand. Reactions to sights and sounds begin. Human interaction is critical at this point 1 lb.

8 weeks: Kittens can officially be spayed/neutered at 2 lbs at most veternarian clinics!!

When setting up an orphaned kitty environment here are some tips:
1. Always have available food and water!
2. Have a warm place for them to sleep (heating blanket or pad is a must!)
3. Have someplace for them to sleep in the event the heating pad is too hot for them (a blanket or bed will suffice)
4. Use puppy potty pads to encourage elimination and teach them to "go" in one area
5. Give them lots of attention and care!!

Working at Animal Control

People often tell me while I'm working that they love animals "too much" to do what I do. Let me tell you something. If I didn't love animals with all my being, why the heck would I work at an Animal Shelter. I recently got promoted/moved to another position. I'm a dispatcher. This means that when you call the Animal Care and Control you will talk to me. People seem to be alot more bold a.k.a rude when they are on the phone. I suffer through this because 1. It's my job and 2. I love animals. I am currently fostering 5, 3 week old kittens. Yes, this means midnight feedings, only being away from home a few hours at a time, and a constant motherly instinct everytime I hear a "cry" I do this for animals, for all of them. I know that to some people I am the big, bad Animal Control who take away your animals and euthanize little kittens but remember I am a person too and everything I do is to further the "humanity" of animals everywhere.