We had visits from a new cat over the weekend. A handsome boldly-striped tabby stopped by for a little food and a lot of petting.
Does this happen where you live? It doesn’t happen to us very often, but it happens. The first time we entertained what we thought was a stray was shortly after we moved into this house (over 30 years ago). The cat seemed needy. He was a cute, fluffy tangerine cat who told us he had no home and he was starving for affection and food. Turns out the little devil was a 
complete scammer. One morning we found him sitting on our porch as usual, but there was something unusual about him. He was wearing a post-it note on his forehead that said, “Don’t feed me. I belong to Tyler.” We looked up and there was Tyler and Mary waving at us from across the street. Nice way to meet neighbors.
Mary was the first person I called when the pretty tabby showed up this week. She has a lot of cats. This one, she said, was not hers.
We walked around the neighborhood trying to find this cat’s people. We posted a notice and his picture on facebook. Yesterday we took him to the Humane Society to find out if he had a chip. We didn’t know if he lived around the corner or if he had escaped from someone who was traveling through. There are so many possible scenarios. Turns out he does have a chip. The owner did not answer the phone, however, when the humane society reception called, so we left the sweet boy in hopes that he will be reunited with his family. I would have liked to know for sure he was going home and that he hasn’t been abandoned. I can only hope.
Are you a magnet for runaway or lost kittens and cats? How many of them have you kept? Over many years, I have to say I’ve kept maybe half dozen cats that showed up at my doorstep.
Book 54 of the Klepto Cat Mysteries is published and garnering many five-star reviews and ratings. You can now read either the print or Kindle version of Claw and Order. And don’t forget that books make great gifts. Order books from the Klepto Cat Mystery series or the Calico Cat Mystery series at Amazon.com. When you buy the Calico Cat Mystery print book, you can contact me with your address at 
Mystery for publication, hopefully before Christmas. The book is with the editor now. The cover is ready and waiting and so cute! Think cats and ducklings!!! The next step is my final edit, then we’ll format the book. I’ll proof the printout and, once it is approved, we publish the print version and wait another 10 days or so for the formatting of the Kindle version.
think I could get a good picture of her doing that? I never did. Oh, I got photos, but nothing really sharp. Usually when she’d see the camera she’d drop the cozy socks or the toy.
actually doing it.
the day.
Enjoy your day and remember to keep your cats safe—no turkey bones or anything chocolate, oniony, or garlicky—which often includes the stuffing. Just about the safest part of the Thanksgiving dinner for your cats is bits of the turkey meat (no skin) and maybe a taste of the pumpkin puree before you add the spices to make the pie.
outside porch, patio, or deck.
Yesterday we talked about alleviating stress in cats, today I’d like to explore the concept of cats as stress relief for us. I don’t know about you, but I smile when I see a cat on facebook, on the street, in a window, and when I’m shopping. Last week I met two cats at our local packing house where I buy my Valencia oranges. I’ve been there numbers of times, but this is the first time the cats have graced me with their presence. Pictured is one of them doing a nice job as greeter.
wander in and out of the set during our online chats with family and conferences and even newscast.
as those operating the citrus warehouse “hire” cats for a variety of purposes—as mousers, to delight the public, and as stress relief for employees.
Sometimes our cats get stressed—a stranger comes to visit, they’re taken to the vet against their will, a noisy truck rumbles past the house, an alarm sounds, another cat walks through the yard or someone they know and trust leaves the house (to go to college, perhaps). Some cats are just naturally edgy and some of those may adopt bad behavior—such as urinating outside the litter box. Oh my! That’s a topic for another 
There are a lot of things on the market to help alleviate stress in cats, from pheromone sprays, to thundershirts, relaxation chews to calming collars. There are videos for excitable cats to watch showing fish, birds and other animals along with calming music. 
Last night our TV crashed and we had to reboot it (or whatever process that’s called when you unplug and turn it back on again. Anyway, Olivia had been sleeping, but when the screen 
started showing words and moving lines of green and all, she became fascinated. She watched it with great interest until regular programming came back on.
when we we’re expecting an event that might stress the cat—you’re planning a trip, for example, and either taking the cat someplace or leaving her behind for a period of time. A close neighbor is traveling cross country soon with her cats to a new home, and she has put just 
about as much thought and planning into how to keep the cats happy for the 3 day journey and the transition to a new home as she has in preparing things for the family. She has researched how to comfortably transport the two cats and a dog in her small sedan. She has plotted how to safely move them each night from the car to the hotel room and she’s considered how to handle their basic needs along the way without one of them escaping—such as eating and using the litter box. She believes she has all of her ducks in a row with regard to her cats and she’s ready to launch out on her new life with her beloved pets. Crossing fingers and paws at this end.
I received a couple of reviews for my cozy mysteries in the last few months—book reviews by book reviewers who were unfamiliar with my books. Both of them said the same thing. There were a lot of things they liked about my books, but they complained that there were too many side stories. They said I should focus on the main mystery and eliminate the little tributaries I take my readers on.
comments as I always do reader’s or critic’s comments and I pretty much decided that after 57 cozy mysteries I didn’t think I’d change my style. HOWEVER, I felt it was important to check in with the critics that really matter—my readers.
the reviewers. They love the side stories—it makes the books richer, helps to develop the characters, give the cats more to do, and the side stories are just fun.
Many of us embrace a cat that shows up on our doorstep or that reaches out to us as we walk past their pen at a shelter. I’ll bet you have a story of at least one cat that chose you, rather than the other way around.
the fence or the street and they find a way to move into that home and into the hearts of the family there. It happened to me once. We brought home a large dog and one of our cats was not happy. She began spending time across the street with a dogless family. With our permission, that family took in Misty and she lived out her life in the home she chose.
There’s also the story of Gravy. He had a nice home with a loving couple and several other cats, dogs and even birds. He roamed the neighborhood by day and one morning he
found himself hanging out with a new neighbor. He seemed to love the quiet and calm at this home and the gentle attention he got, so he visited more and more often.
Do you share a cat? I’ve learned over the years that cats develop a different relationship with each person in a household. A cat might closely bond with one person and tolerate the others. She may entice one family member to play every evening, ask another one to feed her, and curl up next to a different one for an afternoon nap.
bed, watch him when he leaves and wait for him to return, follow him around, sit in his lap and so forth. Other cats seem to like everyone in the family, only they’ll establish a different relationship and determine different boundaries with each of them. There are the one-person cats, the every-person cats, and those that love-love-love the person who is 
handing out the treats at the moment or feeding or playing with them.
batch of cat grass or I’m asleep and Dennis is a willing massage therapist or playmate.
Did you see the viral image of the cat who got stuck in the potato masher? It’s one of those hand-held mashers that one could never imagine being a problem for a cat, unless the cat has the capacity to turn into Jell-O and ooze in and around the thing until the cat is wearing it like a too-tight shoe that won’t come off. Agustas certainly had himself in a tangled mess. In case you can’t imagine it, here’s a picture and the story:
in unusual and embarrassing predicaments, from being stuck sleeping between the furniture cushions to being caught in a screen door or in a small bird cage or even inside a bottle.
Plastic bags and gift bags can also be a problem for cats—as you’ll see in some of these photos. Our cat, Winfield, once became a little too snoopy at Christmastime and got his head caught in the handles of a gift bag. He ran to get away from it, but doggone if the thing didn’t chase him down the hall and under the bed. That was a hazard we sure didn’t expect and neither did poor Winfield.
