What you should know before getting a cat

Animal shelters are consistently overwhelmed with unwanted and abandoned animals. Often people don’t know what they are getting into when they pick up that cute little ball of fur. Before investing money, time, energy and emotions on the too hard to resist kitten or cat make sure you are prepared to take care of it for the long term.

Are you prepared to make a lifetime commitment for 10 or 20 years or is this an impulse, spur of the moment kind of thing? Cats can live up to 30 years, though most indoor cats live between 10 and 20 years. Make sure a cat fits within your lifestyle before you decide to bring it home.

How will the cat fit into your home? What type of environment is it? Is it cat friendly? Is it even safe for your cat? For example ivy plants are toxic to cats, as are many other house plants. Do you have other pets or people living there? Before you bring a cat home you need to know how everyone and every animal in the home will react. There is no point in bringing home a cat if it is going to cause problems with the other residents of the home.

Kittens grow up into cats. They don’t stay cute, they can become quite temperamental. They expect attention or don’t want anything to do with you. They control the relationship, not you. Cats want what they want and when they want it and don’t care about what you want or are trying to do.

Cats don’t take care of themselves, even outdoor cats need care. Many people have this idea that cats are very independent. However they still require someone to feed them and make sure they have clean water. They require attention of their people, to cuddle or pet them as well as feed them. They don’t clean their litter box, you do.

Cat hair ends up on everything, even if you get a short hair. There are some hairless cats, but most people have cats with fur. Long hair cats may require regular grooming from daily brushings to actually going to a pet groomer. Hairballs and the mess that comes with them are to be expected, even with short hairs.

Will your cat be an indoor or outdoor cat? Outdoor cats have a shorter lifespan than indoor cats. The average outdoor cat lives about 2 years, a well taken care of indoor cat can usually live 10 to 20 years or longer. There are a lot of risks for outdoor cats, not all of them obvious. Many outdoor cats just don’t come home one day. They may have been picked up by animal control, hit by a car, eaten by a dog or any number of negative reasons for not returning home. They also tend to pick up bugs, not just flees but hidden internal bugs and worms that can be harmful not only to the cat but other pets and people. Indoor cats tend to be healthier and live longer.

A question many people not buying a cat from a specific breeder forget to ask is “Where did this kitten/cat come from?” It may seem like a strange question but it can be a very important question to ask. It can affect a cat’s personality and health. There are good and bad breeders out there. Some take care of their cats and insure they are healthy and well socialized. Others have pens full of cats that they breed with the sole intent to sell off the kittens. They are not always so careful with the family lines, or overall health of the kittens, and don’t make any attempt to socialize them. There are many cats and kittens waiting in shelters for a good home. There is nothing wrong with them, they are often abandoned by people who were not prepared for the responsibility of a pet, or could not afford them anymore. Often when you go to an animal shelter or pet rescue center the cats and kittens have up to date medical care, and the cost will often include the spaying or neutering if they have not already been spayed or neutered. Many pet stores will also work with rescue centers and have rescue cats available, but you will not know if you don’t ask. Rescue kittens and cats have often been fostered and are well socialized. People will be able to tell you about the cat or kitten and the personality it has. Also it can feel real good to adopt a rescue cat or kitten, knowing you kept it from being put to sleep simply because there was no more room at the shelter.

Can you afford a cat?

Sure it seems like all they need is food, water and a place to go bathroom. The reality is that owning a cat or kitten can be expensive. There are a lot of things to consider. For example it may seem like a good idea to buy cheap food. The quality of food is going to directly affect the health of your cat from everything from its energy level to the quality of its fur. Cheap pet food will often be full of fillers, and are not usually the best choice. The cat will eat more because it is not getting what it needs, this means you buy more. The cat will often use the litter box more frequently as a result, causing you to have to clean it more often and buy more litter.

Then there is health care for your cat. Vets can be expensive. You may choose not to go to a vet, and your cat may become quite ill resulting in death or having to spend money on a vet visit and medications. It is much better to budget for vet checkups and unexpected vet visits. There are some quality pet insurance companies that will pay for unexpected vet visits or illness. However they usually require the cat to have a well documented medical record with consistent and proper healthcare being provided. There are many shots that may be expensive at the time but are real life savers.

Some people buy cats to breed them, not to have them as pets. If you are bringing home a pet then spay or neuter them. This is very important. There are too many unwanted cats and kittens being killed every day in animal shelters. Also it is not fun experiencing a female cat in heat. Many female cats are let outside or abandoned when they go into heat. Male cats will start spraying pee on things if not fixed in time. Spaying and neutering also prevents the difficult situation of finding homes for a litter of kittens. If you cannot afford to spay or neuter a cat then don’t pick one up until you can.

There are also unexpected expenses that are just part of owning a cat. They like to scratch things, and may destroy something expensive, even if you have things just for it to scratch. How are you going to deal with the claws? There are scratch posts and other types of cat products that can help. Proper clippers for cat claws are extremely helpful if used properly and consistently. Some people have the claws removed. Claw removal is often an expensive surgery that involves removing a portion of the cat’s toes. It is an amputation, not an extraction. This is not highly recommended by many cat lovers. Many people see it as a cruel operation and unnecessary expense when there are so many non-surgical options such as nail covers or nail clippers. There will be things pushed over and broken, for no apparent reason. And if a spraying issue develops there is the cost of consistent cleanings of furniture, walls and floors.

Cats can and do add to people’s lives. Owning a pet can reduce stress, provide companionship and unconditional love. However it is a commitment on your part to take care of them. If you are unable to make the changes to accommodate them or cannot afford to provide them with the care they need it is better to walk away then to bring the cat or kitten home.

How to keep peace between cats

There are many theories on how to best keep peace between cats. There are some very successful techniques used, and some not so successful. When it comes right down to it, it depends on the personality of the cats. One technique may be the perfect solution, or completely fail even when you do everything correct.

A common key factor is space. Even cats that don’t always get along very well get along better if they have the space to get away from each other. They can have their own territories and a common area to interact. Forcing cats to always be together is not going to make them get along. If anything it would cause event the best tempered cats to become stressed and fight for space or alone time.

The most recommended technique on how to keep peace between cats is to get them together, as kittens. This way they grow up together, the home and people are theirs and there is no invading of territory. There may be some dominance issues as they get older but for the most part cats raised together tend to get along. However, as always this will depend on the personalities of the cats. Just like people there are social and non-social cats. It is also recommended to have the cats neutered or spayed before they go into heat or spray. Often cats that are neutered or spayed as soon as possible have more social temperaments.

If you are introducing a new cat to your home and you already have a cat it becomes a bit more tricky. The new cat will be seen as an invader and there is usually a time period that the cats will not get along no matter what you do. There are some techniques that can help and will often reduce the stress on both cats. Just keep in mind that if you have a non-social cat it will be difficult to introduce a new cat, no matter how much you want the new cat.

Take it slow, don’t just throw them together. They need time to get used to each other before they even meet. If possible keep them in separate rooms for several days. This way they can hear each other and possibly smell each other. This lets them adjust to each other a bit before they actually meet.

You want to find a way to get them comfortable with each other’s smells and if possible get them to smell like each other. For both cats you want to find a blanket or other item that they sleep on. Use the blanket or item to introduce the other cats smell to each cat. This helps them become accustomed to each other’s smells and the smell will start to belong. Leave the blanket or item from cat A with cat B to sleep on or use it to rub cat B with it transferring the smell of cat A to cat B. Do the same to cat A with an item from cat B. This helps blend their smells so they smell familiar to each other. Introducing items that smell like the other cat is also a good way to judge it the cats are ready to meet. If either cat reacts poorly or attacks the item they are not ready to meet.

After a few days, and if you don’t see a negative reaction it is time to let them find each other. There are several techniques used for this. What is important is that they are not thrust together. One method is to put the new cat into a cat carrier and put it into the room and let the other cat find and investigate the new cat. This should always be done under close supervision just in case either cat reacts in a negative way. That is when you remove the new cat to its room and try again later.

Another method is to let the door of both rooms open and let the cats discover each other gradually. Again close supervision is required – and speed if they don’t react well. However if they hiss and act out a bit but don’t actually attack each other leave them be. They are trying to establish dominance. The new cat has to find its place in the home and the other cat needs to protect its territory, and decide to let the new cat stay. If they seem to be getting along, leave them alone, but separate again if you are going out or going to bed. Each day let them spend more time together and eventually you don’t need to always be around or separate them.

You will want to have separate food and bathroom areas at first. This way you don’t have them fighting over them. The less “territory” they have to fight over the better. Eventually you should be able to have both their litter box and food in the same areas, and in some cases just go to one litter box and one food dish, play that by ear.

Another theory is to let nature take its course. Let the cats work it out on their own. Once they establish dominance things should calm down. The way this works is you bring the new cat in and let them find each other. If a fight starts leave them alone, this is how they establish dominance. Personally I do not recommend this as it is stressful and traumatic to everyone involved, cats and people. Often it establishes a negative response and behavior in both cats. Also serious injuries can be the result of this method, for both cats and people. The goal is to have peace between them, not live in a war zone.

Once you do have peace between the cats the next step is to maintain it. Even the most temperamental cats can have their negative moments. To keep peace between cats you need to give them space and lots of places to get away from each other. This can be accomplished with a variety of ways. There are many products available at pet stores that can helpful. The scratching posts with cat houses or the layered cat houses are wonderful. However you don’t have to spend a lot of money to give your cats what they need. Sometimes it can be as simple as letting one cat sleep on top of the fridge and the other on the couch. Boxes are great. You can give them their own box, with bedding, or even create hideaways for them with boxes, or other items. Give them their own toys, and a verity of things to do so they are not board, and bugging each other just to have something to do. Always keep catnip around. It is a good way to distract and calm down the cats, and if you put catnip in two different areas consistently you can help establish mini territories that they can go to and get away from each other.

Most cats will develop a positive or somewhat peaceful co-existence. Some don’t and you will have to accept that and remove one cat from the home or provide them with their own territories so they don’t have to interact. No matter how much time and effort you put into keeping the peace between cats it is really up to them how they react and deal with each other. Though, a positive and low stress method of introducing cats, and giving them time to get used to each other, goes a long way in developing a peaceful co-existence between cats.

Denver Batman Shootings - Don't give him the fame he wants

I am going to start off with “I am sorry that an evening out with friends and family became a night of pain and death”

Let us deny the “shooter/killer” the fame he wants!

I cannot help but think that this guy’s motivation was to become famous. He had no intent of killing himself, or being killed. He had on a bullet proof vest on. He gave up without a fight. He set up his home with bombs and other devices to take out more people - to get a higher body count.  I think the best thing we could do is not use his name, don't give him the fame. He is the killer or some other "name" such as the suspect. Don't use his name, don't give him the fame - morn those that died and have been harmed by him, but don't give him the time of day.

Let us keep politics out of this.  Gun control or lack of gun control did not cause the Denver Batman shootings. A man determined to kill found a way to do it. He would have been willing to buy illegal guns if legal guns had not been available. He made bombs and other devices - if he could not find guns he would have made more bombs and other devices to use. Think about it. This is not a gun issue. It is about someone determined to kill. Time to make stars out of the victims and let him fade away as someone not worth our attention, because it is the attention he wanted and is getting. He is not worth it, the victims are.

If we give him attention he wins.  He gets exactly what he wanted!  I know the media is unlikely to call him the Suspect now that he has been identified, but I think it would go a long way to honor the victims if they all made a point of calling him the Suspect or killer and withheld the fame he seeks.  Stop plastering his face everywhere.  The media are not the only ones guilty of feeding his need for fame.  People are already using his picture to make posters and statements about him.  Stop doing that.  Make your statement without his name or picture.  I don’t care if it is for more gun control or a statement about how stronger gun control would not have helped.  He should not be the focus – give the victims fame, not the killer.

I already know that my view is not very popular.  People want to know about this guy and why he did this.  Simple, he wanted to kill, to be famous.  Other people will take this as I am for guns and others for more gun control.  Sorry but I am not making that type of political statement.  I simply don’t want him getting the fame he wants.

Simply put – An armed man killed 12 people and physically and mentally harmed countless others in Aurora, Colorado early in the morning of July 20, 2012.  He used guns to kill.  He put bombs in his home to kill even more people.  Fortunately the bombs were disarmed before they could harm anyone.  He was a person with issues, and wants to be famous.  The victims deserve more than becoming his means to fame.  Celebrate the victims and don’t give him the attention he wants.

I am proud of how some people have handled this horrible event – Such as this article The Batman Shooting.  Fundraising and support for the victims is much more valuable than any attention given to the “suspect”.  I fully support the Think Geek fundraising and only wish they would have more (Sodium * 16) + Batman shirts printed as they sold out to quickly for most of us to be part of this.  We need more of this type of articles and corporate support with the focus on the event and victims – not the man who caused this.

Summer Fun with the Kids on a none existent budget

School is going to be out in a few days. My children are going to be home all summer for the first time in years. No summer camp this year. So what am I going to do with them? This is going to be the tightest summer yet. For the first time ever even bus rides are going to be difficult.

For the last few weeks I have trying to come up with things for us to do that will not break the bank.  I have been having a hard time trying to figure out what the kids can do.  I have to admit part of it is that I want to take them to the water parks, the fairs and other fun things summer is full of, and I cannot.  The funny part is, the kids are happy to just play at home.  I don’t think they care as much about what they are not doing as I do. They are more interested in video games, watching TV and playing board games with us.  Not that they are going to be doing a lot of that!  When I think about it they are going to be having a summer more like the ones I had growing up.  My family never did the things I have been feeling bad about not doing with my kids.  So what if we can’t go out and do a bunch of stuff. Who said we had to!  (me, lol).

We have a recreation centre within walking distance. The pool is open for a couple of hours every day to the public. We have our passes already. Once I know the schedule I will know part of what we will try and do each day.  Swimming is a lot of fun and it will help keep us cool.

Water Parks. We cannot afford to go to the local water park this year. However there are some free mini water play areas at some of the parks. The one up the street has a tinny section with water activities, more of a water spot for babies and toddlers.  Also there are no bathroom facilities there. So that kind of takes that off the plans for summer. There is a nice water play area at the biggest park in town. It is one bus ride, and there are bathroom facilities there. Drawbacks, we have to bus and that is $10 each time. Also the park is where all the big festivals take place. We don’t want to take our kids there when a festival is on because we just don’t have the money to go to a festival.  We are not going to put our kids through that if we can help it. So trips to the water play area are going to be few, if any.

Beach.  We go every year at least once, sometimes twice. We will save so we can go this year. Some changes though, more packed lunch, less buy something there. The kids always have a blast and want to spend all day at the beach.  This has always been our big family summer event, and we are going to make sure we can do it this year.  It takes planning, and using a granny cart to bring all our stuff on the bus but it will happen this year at least once.

Parks – we have a nice one just down the street, no bathroom facilities though. I think we will be going to the park on nice days. We can walk home to use the bathroom.

Playing in the back area. It used to be nice, than the landlord took the play area out. Now we have an open area. The bigger kids are using to play soccer, football and even baseball. They don’t let the little kids have any space. So my kids will be going out when the teenagers are not using the area. They have room to bike, run around and have fun.

We are going to be putting all our water play stuff in the front yard this year. Why, because the teenagers have taken over the back area. Also there is not a lot of shade in the back anymore, we don’t have a sun shade this year. However we still have a wiggly worm, slip and slide and a little wading pool the kids can sit in.  Water guns will be a big thing this year. They can play and water the grass at the same time.  I am sure we are going to be going through a lot of chalk this year.  Also I think we are going to let the kids take out toys that were indoor toys only last year.  The more things they can do and play with the better. They can enjoy playing with the kids around here and their own toys instead of being at summer camp all day.  They both like the fact that they are not going to camp, even if it means they miss out on all the trips to the big water parks and other fun things we cannot afford to do.

I guess the biggest thing I have learned is that my kids don’t need to go to the parks, water parks, and other large expensive activities to enjoy their summer.  They just want the freedom to run around and play.

Kittens on USTREAM

Broadcasting live with Ustream

These kittens are so cute. Lots of fun. Take a kitten break! (Sorry about the ads - part of USTREAM)

7 kittens born on Thursday June 7, 2012

About Us (and also answers to some of the most frequently asked questions):
- we are in Pittsburgh, PA USA
- mama cats name is Noodles
- she is pretty young (under 1 yr)
- she was a very hungry stray (lost or abandoned based on how friendly she is) that we found on our street and took in so she would have a safe space to have her babies
- we think that all of the orange variations are boys and the two torties are female, but we are not 100% positive yet.
- we only named Noodles and will let their new parents name the kittens. for now, we usually just identify them by color and size
- we are not keeping any of them (we already have 4 cats!) and they will be adopted out to their forever homes in August when they are old enough to be separated
- the runt (one that is similar color to mom) has been growing at the same rate as the rest, he just started out way smaller
- we do watch to make sure that they all get to eat throughout the day and it is not uncommon for one to sleep through lunch
- yes, kittens are cute, but PLEASE SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR PETS! they will be happier and healthier for it.

we usually mute the sound at night for privacy - if you want to hear their little squeaks and cries, check back between 9 am and 6 pm EST (give or take a couple hours).

Andrew De Loen - America's got talent

I have to say that this was unexpected. Not because of how he looks, but that he is self trained. This is not your usual style of singing for most teenagers. Wow though! Way to go Andrew De Loen. Glad you decided to be part of America's got talent!

Surprise, Pregnant at 43

Many people find themselves with unplanned pregnancies. Often people think of unplanned pregnancies as something for the young, not those of us who are not so young anymore. Well that is changing as more of us older folks are having children later on in life.

Now when I say unplanned, I don’t mean it is an unfortunate turn of events. Rather another baby was not something we were trying for. To be honest we had decided that two children was enough 6 years ago. Things happen, and now we are having our third child, it is not a bad thing, just an expected but happy turn of events.

However there are some real pros and cons with being pregnant at 43.

The cons are:

It is considered a high risk pregnancy. Fortunately more and more older woman are successfully having healthy pregnancies and babies in their 40’s and even 50’s. This means that I have to be smart about what I do and eat. I have to take care of myself and the baby. Well I did that with the first two. Only real difference is that I am being monitored more frequently and will be going to an Obstetrician sooner than later.

Our other children are older 7 and 9. For some parents that it is a good thing, you have babysitters when they turn 12. For others the gap can cause problems within the family dynamics.  I am looking at it in the positive; I am not going to have three kids all in diapers. Instead I have two children who can help out and at least for the most part do a lot of things for themselves, like get a drink or something to snack on.

I was through with diapers. Guess not, lol.

We got rid of all our baby stuff. Now we have to start all over, from scratch. At least with my second child we saved a lot of money because we still had most of our baby stuff from our first child. Also we had friends who had children just before us and after us. We all passed baby stuff to each other.  I don’t think we are going to have that this time around, though I could be wrong.

We live in a three bedroom! The baby will be in one of the other kids rooms. Not sure how that is going to go over. Lots of changes, and adjustments.

Who has money for a baby?

We have to come up with a good baby name – do you have any idea how hard that can be?

Pros:

We know what to expect, and what we are going to be going through: the lack of sleep, the crying, the diapers and everything else that comes with a baby.

We have some skill dealing with children, and are not bad parents. Yes we made mistakes with our first two, but we will be making completely different mistakes with this one.

Our children are older, so they can help out.

What is available for baby’s now is way cooler then what was available 10 years ago.

Most important pro: We are having a BABY – way cool.

Hampton Williams 'Exorcist Style' (Full Audition)

I have never seen anything like this before. Yes I have seen great dancing, but this is more then that.

I have been a fan of "So you think you can dance" for years. I was actually starting to loose interest in it, but Hampton Williams has made me sit up and look forward to seeing this years shows. It is going to be wonderful to see where Hampton Williams goes from here. He is exactly what "So you think you can dance" needed to bring views back, and add new ones.

The Real December 21, 2012 to Fear!

It is not going to be the world exploding, or a Sun flair creating an EMP that changes our world. It is not going to be a sudden unexpected event. The process or danger has been known for at least 30 years if not longer. We are already experiencing a small version of what is to come. We have been using our natural resources too fast: oil, water, space, energy and food. We have been destroying natural lands, polluting our air, water and soil, and pretty much killing off nature.  There are consequences for this, we know this. Or I should say I know this, I grew up knowing this, they told us in school a long time ago.

I think the world will reach peak oil production on December 21, 2012! As consumers we may never know that we have reached peak oil production. The large companies don’t want us to know. So there is not going to be a big announcement about it, we will just start feeling the pinch, until it becomes a strangle hold.

We already feel it at the gas pump, the grocery store, clothing stores and just about every aspect of our life. Prices are going up already, how much worse is it going to get? Almost everything is shipped from somewhere. If we have to reduce oil and other energy consumption how is our world going to change? The prophecy of 2012 is not destruction but change, real change in how we live. It makes sense to me that it referring to the changes we are going to experience in the next 20 years, or even 10 years as the oil becomes even scarcer, our energy sources will have to change, how we consume or use the energy will also have to change. Not just taking the bus instead of having a car, but everything from turning our lights off to where we get our food.

Things are going to change whether we want it to or not. We don’t have a choice any more. It is not going to be something as simple as reduce, reuse and recycle. We suddenly won’t have the things we have grown to expect as part of our standards in life. Change is coming! What we do now will determine a lot. We can hide from it, or start looking into real proactive change. You know, doing the things we have been told to do for the last 30 years.

Start investing in alternative energy creation such as wind power, now. We are in a position to do small things to make our lives better. We have to communicate with our Governments letting them know we want proactive, positive change now, not once it becomes a requirement. Let’s encourage the innovators now instead of bailing out the big companies that are trying to keep things the same.

Star Wars the Old Republic took over my Christmas

For months now all my son and husband have talked about was Star Wars the Old Republic. They both had their pre-orders in as soon as they could. They were on the Star Wars the Old Republic website and forums every single day. I knew more about the Star Wars MMORPG then I ever expected.

I think the last 6 months were all about Star Wars. The countdown to the release was even more important than Christmas. Fortunately they both got to be part of the Beta testing, which they enjoyed immensely. As a result they became even more enthralled by Star Wars the Old Republic.

We have two copies of the game, and two brand new laptops to play the game on. It was a Star Wars the Old Republic Christmas in our house. I even made them wait until Christmas to open their laptops, though they had been playing the game for several weeks at that point – thanks to beta testing and early access.

They are now part of the V Squad. At first the idea of being part of a guild was not something my husband was interested in. When we played Lord of the Rings we had some bad experiences with guilds more interested in getting their numbers up then the actual members. Update - my husband has changed servers. He will be creating his own guild - We are not a guild, guild. If you are interested in joining please contact Fenwolf on the East Coast server - the Jedi Covenent.

There have been days when it has been difficult to pry them away from the game. It is addictive. Huttball is a lot of fun. Though right now Fenwolf (my hubby) is playing Huttball and is getting his butt handed to him. Usually he does ok, but today, even though teams are created by random, it seems to be high level players against lower levels. Just the way things go.

So far the only main issue is the lag time. It has been frustrating players. As Fenwolf said, what is the point of upgrading to better computers if you have to reduce your graphic quality to low just to keep the graphics from lagging? Hopefully that will be fixed sooner than later. (Update was done Dec. 29 that seems to fix the lag)

Fenwolf has some of the Datacron locations. I will be listing them once they are confirmed to help out people playing Star Wars the Old Republic.

I hope everyone is enjoying the game as much as my family is.