the top 10 cities for cats

Tampa, Florida, was named the #1 cat-friendliest city this week at the American Animal Hospital Association conference. “The council based its Top 10 list on criteria such as a city’s cat population, the percentage of microchipped cats, the number of American Association of Feline Practitioners members and the number of CAT FANCY magazine subscribers. Extra points were awarded for cat-friendly local ordinances and if the city’s mayor owned a cat.”

Damn, I knew I should have subscribed to Cat Fancy. That must be what kept New York off the list. Anyway, here’s the full list:

1. Tampa, Fla.
2. Phoenix
3. San Francisco
4. Portland, Ore.
5. Denver
6. Boston
7. Seattle
8. San Diego
9. Atlanta
10. Minneapolis

Seriously though, I should really get off my butt and subscribe.

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public service announcement

to the person, or any future persons, who arrived at World Wide Whiskers after searching google for “cat in vagina”:

NO.

Seriously, no.

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the closing of the cat hotel

This is Mini-Morris. He lives with several other cats at the historic Anderson House in Minnesota, a hotel known for the fact that, in addition to renting rooms, guests can also rent cats. Unfortunately, Anderson House is now closing, and I couldn’t be sadder about it. I would have loved the chance to visit this hotel and have a cat to curl up with while I was away from home (even if Jack might get jealous.)

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cats have to earn a living somehow . . .

I don’t know this cat’s name, but he works very hard.

He lives in Belarus with his owner, who has installed him on a street corner with a note that reads “need money for meat and fish, bless you.”

She rescued him from “the slaughters,” but couldn’t afford to feed him, so she put him to work begging for his supper. Regular readers of World Wide Whiskers know that I love cats with jobs, but I think this may be a little too much for me.

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a better use for leftover cat hair

Some people use leftover cat and dog hair to make handbags. Those people might just be a little bit crazy. But Linda Bruinsma, an Oregon animal groomer, does something better.

Linda with leftover hair, photo by Robin Loznak

Each month, Linda collects more than 50 pounds of dog and cat hair. The dog hair is then used to create hair mats that help clean up oil spills. The cat hair is used by a vet who helps create products for people with allergies.

Kudos to Linda for doing her part to help our environment. And also for not being crazy.

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“she just wants to be a good samaritan”

Tigger is a gray and white tabby cat who lives at the Master Made Feeds store near Fort Worth, Texas. Aside from helping the store keep their rodent population under control, Tigger has another job: surrogate mother.

After her own kittens were given to good homes, Tigger took up the job of mothering the store’s baby rabbits and chicks. Normally I’m not that into stories about interspecies mothering, but something about the way her owner describes Tigger just got to me. It’s like she just can’t stop being a mommy, and I think that’s just the sweetest thing ever.

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cat stuck in couch: update

You may remember this post from the fuzzkill about the cat stuck in a couch. The fuzzkill theorized that the cat was actually a demented invader with killing in mind. This still may or may not be true, but Callie, the cat, has now been returned to her original owner.

The story doesn’t end there, though. Callie’s owner, Bob Killion of Spokane, Washington, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2001 and given a year to live. He credits Callie and his other cat, Tiger, with prolonging his life.

Could the fuzzkill be wrong? Could Callie be a life-saver, not a life-ender? I don’t know, but my favorite part of the article was when Tyler, the 9-year-old son of the woman who bought the Value Village couch that contained Callie, said that when the family heard the mysterious meowing, he thought it meant that their new house was haunted by a cat. I like the way he thinks.

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House cat

You may remember a post back in December from the fuzzkill about Oscar, the nursing home cat who predicts patients’ deaths. Well, this story not only captured the interest of those of us here at world wide whiskers, but also the writers of House.

Last week’s episode, entitled Here Kitty, told the story of a nursing home worker, played by Judy Greer, terrified that a cat named Debbie had predicted her death. I won’t spoil the ending, but I will say that the possibility that Debbie killed the people herself (a possibility raised by the fuzzkill) is addressed. But not with as awesome a picture as this old favorite from the fuzzkill:

Shhh

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cute things falling asleep

I don’t love it nearly as much as I love Wake Up Your Cat and Take a Picture of It, but Cute Things Falling Asleep does have a few gems. The below is my favorite just because I love how his little back paws are sticking up.

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cat in exile still in exile: update

This is Small Cat.

You may remember her from a post back in February about her exile from her longtime home, Comma Coffee in Carson City, Nevada. To summarize: Small Cat lived happily in the coffee shop until an anonymous complaint was filed with the health department and she was sent to live at the owner’s home. More than 500 customers signed a petition asking the health department for an exemption (with another 800 signing online.) But then tragedy struck. The petition was stolen!

Luckily, Small Cat now has her own attorney, so here’s hoping she’ll be back at Comma Coffee soon.

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