Most of us, who have had cats for a long time, know the dangers of the holidays for cats—toxic plants and flowers that might be brought into the house, the toppling of a beautiful Christmas tree, indoor cats getting out during holiday gatherings, seasonal foods that are toxic to cats. But aside from chocolate, onion-laden dishes, poinsettias and lilies, there are other dangers to watch for this season.
I had a cat that ate ribbon and string and yarn. I had
to give up ribbon around packages. One Christmas day we discovered that she was also nibbling on metallic bows. Now I no longer use those, either.
You may remember learning the dangers of tinsel and angel hair for cats in years past. But there are other things to consider. We had a cat get his head caught in the handle of a gift bag once. No damage done, but it sure gave the cat a fright.
What unexpected danger has your cat brought to your attention during the holiday season?
Olivia’s first Christmas story is making the rounds. It’s our top selling book this season—as it should be. Meanwhile, this morning I’ll finish the process of preparing the manuscript for Book 67 of the Klepto Cat series for formatting. The formatting will be done for the print book, then I’ll proof that version, which is another intense process. Once I’m satisfied, I’ll send that book to be formatted for the Kindle. It’s actually possible that we’ll publish before the end of the year, which would bring my total of books published in 2023 to 13.
manuscript is completed and it has been read by the beta reader. Once I hand off Book 67 to the Kindle formatter, I’ll focus on preparing Olivia’s Book 18 for the professional editing process. Look for it to come out sometime in January or February.
A few days ago I received the winter edition of Paws for the News, a beautifully done newsletter put out by RESQCATS of Santa Barbara. I have to admit this is not the only newsletter I receive from cat rescue organizations. I also get one from a local homegrown raptor rescue center and a local land preserve. But RESQCATS is one of my favorite charities.
through her amazing organization, RESQCATS for nearly thirty years. This is her passion and her life’s work. She has a beautiful facility where she houses the cats. With a 
small dedicated staff and volunteers, Jeffyne gives cats and kittens a place to rest along a sometimes difficult life journey. She treats any ailments and injuries (per her veterinarian’s instructions), socializes them, and works hard to find the appropriate home for each and everyone. She has, to date, rescued and cared for nearly 4,000 cats. What a worthwhile, exhausting, sad, beautiful, and satisfying way of life.
care for cats at a rescue facility on a Greek island. She wrote a book about her experiences there and has won some prestigious awards with that book and hopefully touched some hearts.
angel—one of many and one that I respect deeply.
this organization. I even did a little volunteering there, and this also happens to be where my beautiful calico, Olivia, came from. I adopted Olivia from a photograph in 2020 and had the task and privilege of finishing the socialization process with her. As you’ll recall, there were few if any 
opportunities for us to socialize with other people, let alone have people in to help socialize a kitten during that time. Olivia is my snuggle bunny, but we’re still working on her socialization with others. So far she has learned to trust her cat sitter. And she will come out of hiding and watch certain guests from a distance. Happy about that.
about the thousands of cats and kittens RESQCATS has rescued.
kitten in a garbage bin, and the struggles to save him. The happy ending came when Mr. Jeffyne (as they call Jeffyne’s dear husband), walked through the cattery one day. It’s a cute story because it’s actually against policy and house rules for Mr. Jeffyne to go anywhere near the kittens during kitten season. Why? Because he’s a 
foster cat failure. He has fostered kittens before and he always fails—meaning he always adopts them himself..
December is National Cat Lover’s Month—something most of us celebrate all year long and have for all of our lives. And the more cats we get to know and the more time we spend observing them, the more deeply we love cats. Here’s a gift for you. There’s always been controversy and mystery around where cats came from and how long they’ve been on earth and when they 
were domesticated. This article makes these questions even more mysterious. Well, not totally. There are some interesting discoveries noted here. I always enjoy learning more about the history of the domestic cat, but it is a little muddy. No one seems to be able to 
connect the dots. For example in this article you’ll see that cats were first seen as early as five to four million years ago.
5,300 years.
You’ve probably read numerous articles stating that no one actually knows what makes a cat purr—how it is mechanically possible.
of muscles around the larynx. Makes sense. But there are new answers to this age-old mystery, and you might find them interesting. They have to do with a small pad evidently recently discovered in the cat’s throat that is what creates the purr sound. Here’s a report with details. It’s interesting, but really, who needs to know how it happens when they’re curled up with a sweetly purring cat. It’s enough just to feel and hear the purr. I guess the next question will be why does a cat’s purr affect us so greatly—make us relax and smile, and feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Have you ever invited a cat in or brought one home from a shelter or rescued one from a box of kittens in front of a grocery store and realized later that it was meant to be? How often have you felt as if the cat rescued you as much as you rescued the cat? Maybe you suddenly found yourself smiling and laughing more as you cared for this fur-being and learned more about his or her 
personality. You felt good to give the cat or kitten a warm place in your home and soon found that creature was also warming your heart.
perhaps or from the pain of loss.
hurting or struggling. And most often their entrance into our life was not brought about by our conscious effort. It was as if the universe orchestrated the union, and sometimes we don’t even realize the impact a cat has on us until the cat crossed the rainbow bridge.
Thanksgiving is over. You are probably one of many who either entertained at home or you spent time in the kitchen preparing a dish to share and had dinner away from home. Either way, it surely upset your cat’s daily routine. She’s glad to be back to normal today, but maybe she’s also a bit needy—she needs you to assure her that everything’s okay.
up (make sure the screen is tightly in place), take her outside for a jaunt under supervision, of course. And you might want to add something new to your routine with your cat.
1: Introduce a new toy or two. If she has a basket full of toys, switch them around. Bring out some she hasn’t seen for a while. If she doesn’t know what to do with the toy, play with her—show her some interesting ways to play with the toy.
place toys here and there inside it.
watch your cat leap after them or spring into the air to catch them.
We all know that animals, especially, can often overcome a weakness by strengthening another aspect of their body or senses to compensate.
abnormalities. Injuries and neglect can cause physical damage. Here’s a site features some well-loved and adored cats with handicaps such as deformed limbs, Dwarfism, deafness and blindness as well as neurological issues. Have you ever treasured and pampered a cat with what might be considered a defect?
Those of you who read my Klepto Cat and Calico Cat mysteries know that I have my cat stars do some pretty wild and crazy things in these stories. They ride horses, go hiking, do a lot of exploring and make some interesting discoveries, take things, find things, lose things—oh yes, they’re busy and active for 
sure. But Rags’s and Olivia’s fictional pursuits pale in contrast to what some real adventuring cats are doing. And here’s a website to prove it.
I found it interesting that of the 9 cats featured, 3 are orange tabbies, 3 are hairless varieties of cat, and one is handicapped, but you ought to see what they can and will do and, by the way, seem to enjoy. One thing that fascinated me was the fact that not only are they all so comfortable wearing vests/harnesses and leashes, some will also tolerate goggles and other apparatus for their safety.
realize why I need a nap after a day of writing. I’m using a lot of parts of my brain and my awareness.
blog, of course, but I might also do book signings, blog tours, send out a newsletter, and more. I talk about my books everywhere I go, for example.
sides of your brain to do it right. And over 125 published books later, I still enjoy the process.
