This week’s blog fare is varied. Throughout the week we’ll focus on some of the smart and clever things cats do—one of my favorite topics. As a contrast, I’ll share stories of cat oopsies—some of the missteps cats take. We’ve all watched comical episodes of cats losing their grace. I’ll also talk about some amazing cat happenings in the news, and I’ll give an update on an upcoming book with a timeline as to when you can order it.
Today I’m sharing portraits I’ve collected over the years—some are friends’ artwork and others are some of my favorite cat photos. I also photograph birds, and I have to say it’s easier to get an amazing bird shot than a great photo of a cat.
I took a class once in cat photography and learned something valuable. It was actually one
of those duh moments. My strategy when photographing my cats is to snap a picture when I see one of them striking a pose. And it works most of the time with Lily. If I have to move to reach the camera phone or go into another room to get the camera or move closer to the cats, Sophie’s gone. She’s a horrible photo subject. Lily, however, will usually stay in the pose until I’ve gotten my shot.
The photographer who led the workshop I attended suggested setting the scene for cat photography, then allowing the cat to be a cat. The photographer goes into another room and closes the door. He places the props he wants in the shot, maybe lays out a blanket or cloth where the interesting props are and arranges the lighting to his liking. He might take a couple of shots to check the lighting, contract, color, etc.
His props might be Christmas decorations; a patriotic
Lily with battery-operated candle.
scene—small flag, etc. He might create a mood with candles (I recommend the battery-operated candles, not real candles). Maybe he brings in a fishbowl with a goldfish in it or he simply wants a photo with the cat sitting at a window with a view. Whatever theme he chooses, once he sets it up, he opens the door to the room and the cats either immediately or eventually go inside to check out the changes he’s made in there. You know how cats MUST check 
out changes to their environment. Whether it’s packages brought into the house after a shopping trip, the chair you moved to a different spot in the room, the jacket you draped over the sofa when you came in from outside, or a potato chip you dropped while munching. Cats are going to spend at least a few moments examining whatever is new in their space.
So the cats enter the area the photographer has set up and he is at the ready to take whatever shots they create. Does it work? Yes. I’ve tried it and it certainly does work. If you decide to experiment with this concept, I’d love to share the results with my followers.
This is the Catscapades blog and I don’t believe you’ll find a Dogs-capades blog anywhere on the Internet, but what cat person doesn’t also appreciate dogs and many other animals?
wonderful people who share my passion for cats. Many of them are extremely impressive in the time and expertise they give in such a variety of ways all to further the health and safety of our sweet fur-friends.
Try not to smile. I’ve posted pictures of sleeping cats before. Who doesn’t melt when seeing a cat so relaxed? I love watching internet videos showing cats sleeping in some of the most interesting, positions. Some of them are hilarious. How many of you have had a kitten fall 
asleep while eating? I used to worry about a kitten falling asleep while drinking her water and drowning. I guess it could happen.
What are some of your cat’s cutest or most humorous sleeping positions? I’ve had cats who curled up together. I think that is one of the most charming visions. In fact, I was tempted to adopt two half-grown
kittens yesterday when I saw the siblings snuggled 
together in a pen at the pet store. Lily and Sophie may sleep on the same sofa, curl up in kitty beds placed next to each other, but I’ve never caught them sleeping together. On the contrary, if Lily’s in what appears to be a great sleeping spot, Sophie might take it from her, but she sure won’t share it with her.
I’ve had as many as seven cats at once. I’d just lost a sweet marmalade tiger kitten through ignorance and started collecting cats. Tina Marie showed up on my doorstep and I took her in. Soon she had a litter of kittens. Fluff was wandering the neighborhood, so I started feeding him. There was another cat that I confiscated—a grey tiger stripe as I recall. That was a long time ago.
seventeen or eighteen years. Fortunate are those who have the companionship of a healthy cat for longer. There’s a cat in Britain who’ll turn 30 this year.
temperament or mentality to take responsibility for a bunch of them. It’s a big job—being responsible for one cat can be a big job, especially if it is a high-maintenance cat—one with a chronic illness, is elderly and failing, or has a dangerous habit, for example. There are cats that swallow string and ribbon and even chew metallic bows. Some cats are attracted to plastic and get themselves into some serious fixes when they eat a piece that doesn’t want to pass through their system. I know a cat who eats plastic bags. House plants can be a danger for some cats. Yes, some of us have to redecorate our homes for a cat with a dangerous habit or fixation. And what about a cat that can’t be litterbox trained. I loved one of those for seventeen years. He certainly forced many changes in our household.
Did you ever hear the one about the cat who went into 
a bar? Probably not because a cat’s sense of humor is more sophisticated than that. In fact cats are some of the finniest clowns around. Today I’d like to share some of 
my 
photos of funny cats.
Do you ever go looking for your cat and discover, after several minutes or more, that she’s hiding right under your nose? Before leaving your house do you check to see where your cats are? We’ve been known to close a cat in a closet—I mean, who hasn’t done that? And do you profusely apologize when you finally locate your cat in a closet, cupboard, high up on a shelf, or, heaven forbid, the refrigerator? Does it do any 
good? I mean, how can you explain to a cat, who has been deprived of his freedom for a couple of hours, that you didn’t mean to do it.
cover when they’re hunting for their dinner so they can get the drop on the varmint. Just watch your cat’s movements and activities throughout the day. While his antics may seem like play and he looks really cute peering out from under the sofa, in reality he’s probably acting on instincts carried over from his wild ancestors. When he leaps out at you when you walk into a room, he’s emulating a wild cat attacking his prey.
under the bed spread. But I have to wonder what’s really going through their mind? Are they imagining being on a hunt in the jungle or plains or are they oblivious to why they’re hiding? Is the instinct connected to a long-held memory or is it simply DNA guiding them blindly in these activities?
Ever since I established the inside-only rule for my cats, I’ve toyed with the idea of allowing them outdoor time in the sunshine. And I’ve talked about catios and other types of enclosure on the market. Here’s another one that could offer a cat plenty of room to roam in your yard. Have you examined the Purrfect Fence? Check it out here: 
about new-fangled litter boxes. I’ve attempted to isolate a few to review, but there are just so many and then there’s the litter choices, and let’s don’t forget about cat preferences. Here’s a site that lists what someone believes is the best of the best for 2019. Do you agree? Disagree? 
This site offers their pick for the best cat products of 2018. They include a folding cat tree. It looks rather like an interesting ladder for cats to climb. Cool. Also Jackson Galaxy has created a design for a new bed for cats—he calls it a donut cat bed. Sure looks comfy. But I just bought our cats a new kitty bed. I don’t know why I keep doing that. We have four beds now and only two cats. I’ll bring home a new bed and it sits empty for days—or weeks—even in winter when they’re more apt to cozy down in a bed. Lily has not stepped one paw into it at all. Finally Sophie curled up in it. She seems to like it. Success. Here’s the site showing best cat products for 2018: 
Yesterday I revealed Lily’s passion for tiny stuffed toys. She has a stuffed spider, little owl, baby otter, and, of course, a small stuffed kitten. Her lambie is one of her favorites. Lambie seems to come out of the basket first after I’ve scooped the toys up and put them away.
because once, when Sophie was a kitten, she got tangled up in the line and it scared her. This was during her socialization period—not good. So we shy away from toys with string or cord.
It’s interesting how they can fall into a routine. Our big boy, Max, used to jump up onto the cat tree when he knew I was getting ready for bed. He’d wait anxiously for me to pick up his soft rubber ball and toss it to him. He’d bat it back to me over and over again—both of us obviously enjoying the game.
cat likes to be covered up—you know, under the covers, they adore having a shelter they can crawl under and take a nap. We drape a lightweight blanket or towel over a chair or sofa and the cats immediately dive for cover, coming out only for food or treats. This is a great idea for when you leave your cats alone with the heat turned down on a cool day. They generate heat within the shelter and remain more comfortable.
What’s cuter than a baby cuddling with a teddy bear? Let me suggest that maybe it’s a kitten curled up with a teddy bear or sitting with a stuffed owl or posing amidst her array of animal toys—or cats cuddling with cats.
I think we all find cats fascinating. The more cats you’ve had over your lifetime, the more you know how very different cats can be from one another. A cat is unique in his/her own right, but also very much a cat with catlike qualities.
being discovered.
There’s another cat named Baloo who brings his humans a leaf every morning. How sweet. He used to bring in rodents, but I guess he didn’t like the response he got, so now it’s a leaf. Cute.
