{"id":1424,"date":"2016-08-08T04:48:51","date_gmt":"2016-08-08T12:48:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=1424"},"modified":"2016-08-08T04:48:51","modified_gmt":"2016-08-08T12:48:51","slug":"mindful-monday-smarty-cats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=1424","title":{"rendered":"Mindful Monday \u2013 Smarty Cats"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1425\" src=\"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/MullicanFamilyJuly2009-053-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"MullicanFamilyJuly2009 053\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/MullicanFamilyJuly2009-053-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/MullicanFamilyJuly2009-053-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/MullicanFamilyJuly2009-053-500x375.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/MullicanFamilyJuly2009-053.jpg 1012w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>I suppose all cat people consider their own cats exceptional. Some believe their cat is heads and tails above the rest. You know some of these people: They go through life either disliking or simply disinterested in cats until\u2026Yes, until a cat wraps herself around his or her heart. Suddenly, this person (let\u2019s call him Jack) allows himself to know a cat. Hack invites one into his home, begins paying attention to one that\u2019s hanging around his office, or inherits one, perhaps. He comes to enjoy the cat\u2019s company, notices that the cat is kind of cute, responsive, has a fun personality\u2014she\u2019s different from other cats, you know. I love these stories. But rarely, do you ever get people like Jack to admit that cats are okay\u2014no, because the cat he has come to know is different\u2014not like other cats\u2014exceptional.<\/p>\n<p>But then all cats are exceptional. We often marvel at how smart Sophie and Lily are\u2014how<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_423\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-423\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-423\" src=\"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/im000252-300x224.jpg\" alt=\"Sophie retrieving a fax\" width=\"300\" height=\"224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/im000252-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/im000252-500x375.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-423\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sophie retrieving a fax<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Sophie seems to know when it\u2019s their supper time by what program\u2019s on TV, how Lily comes to me and lays flat on the floor when she wants her back scratched, how they both know when I\u2019m opening the freezer door to get something out to thaw for our dinner or when I\u2019m retrieving their catnip.<\/p>\n<p>There are many levels of intelligence and probably conditioning and even mind-reading among cats. And how they each react and respond as a result of these things is fascinating. Some people have even dared to list the cat breeds they believe are the most intelligent. Since the majority of us are more familiar with cats whose heritage is unknown, we rarely know where their instincts, traits, characteristics, personality comes from. Surely it\u2019s from some of the most intelligent cat breeds on the planet. Here\u2019s a partial list of those: Siamese cats, they say, enjoy mental stimulation\u2014they\u2019re extremely inquisitive. So often, when you\u2019re filing, fixing a leaky pipe under your sink or doing needlework, your Siamese is in your face over-helping.<\/p>\n<p>Everyone knows that an Abyssinian is physically agile, but she also needs a mental workout or she will get bored and maybe a little destructive.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-341\" src=\"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/cookiepartyatperrys2011-041-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"cookiepartyatperrys2011-041\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/cookiepartyatperrys2011-041-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/cookiepartyatperrys2011-041-375x500.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/cookiepartyatperrys2011-041.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/>The Bengal is fun loving and likes to be the center of attention. They\u2019re climbers and very good at using their paws (and claws). They\u2019re also thought to be among the smartest cats in the world.<\/p>\n<p>Burmese cats are good at figuring things out. That takes brains.<\/p>\n<p>The Turkish Van is particularly friendly. She likes to connect with people, which is a sign of intelligence. They also like to play fetch.<\/p>\n<p>The Tonkinese is on the smart list, too. They thought to be good at solving puzzles and they learn new tricks easier than most. It is recommended that you rotate toys regularly to keep the Tonkineses from getting bored. Beware if you decide to breed your Tonkinese. They have large litters. One is known to have had 19 kittens.<\/p>\n<p>Do you see your cat among these traits? Perhaps she has a little Burmese in her or she\u2019s vocal and cunning like a Siamese, active like an Abyssinian, or good at working herself out of difficult situations like a Burmese cat might.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up this week, we\u2019ll cover the world\u2019s smallest cats and the most affectionate. Chime in if you\u2019d like me to cover a particular cat topic or type.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I suppose all cat people consider their own cats exceptional. Some believe their cat is heads and tails above the rest. You know some of these people: They go through life either disliking or simply disinterested in cats until\u2026Yes, until &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=1424\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1424"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1424"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1424\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1426,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1424\/revisions\/1426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1424"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1424"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1424"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}