beauty

A Rose

 is a Rose

is a Rose

Have a great weekend!!

new cat in town

Oliver loves being an inside kitty at night. He's usually eager to come inside. And even though he spends nearly every night inside, he still manages to get into fights. Last week he got into a particularly nasty scrap. Who's he fighting with? 

This guy:

This black cat has been coming around for several months. He only comes at night, and being that he's a black cat, it's been difficult to distinguish him from Oliver's family. Oliver's not fooled by his appearance though, he sure knows that he's not a member of the family. The other night, when I went to bring Oliver in, I heard Oliver caterwauling. I hate that sound. I ran outside as fast as I could and tried to break up the fight. Oliver and this cat were going round and round. The new cat tried many times to run away but Oliver wasn't having any of that. I was beyond freaked.

These are images of the new cat having dinner in the feeder. Low light and poor camera resolution make the pictures fuzzy, but I've been trying to look for an eartip and I'm not seeing one. This guy must be homeless if he's willing to risk fighting Oliver for access to food.

This was the scene last night, as we got home. Oliver was up on the feeder ledge, having cornered the new cat in the feeder. When I distracted Oliver, the new cat made a run for it. Oliver darted in quick pursuit but thankfully I was able to tackle a very unhappy and poofy Oliver before anymore damage was done.

It's time to trap this new guy, but then what? I release him back in the yard and Oliver's not going to start sharing his yard with any cat, he's very territorial. 

Right now, I've got more questions than answers. I'm at my whits end trying to figure out how to solve the Oliver dilemma. I can't leave him inside all the time because he urine marks (even more now that he knows theres an intruder on his land). Theo is getting more and more anxious about having Oliver inside. Theo has the sharpest memory out of all the cats. He remembers that he once had access the back porch but doesn't anymore because Oliver's there. Now, he has lost nighttime access to the office room, because that's where Oliver sleeps. Theo is not happy about losing more and more territory to Oliver.

If I leave Oliver outside all the time he fights every neighborhood cat or newcomer cat around the neighborhood. I've entertained thoughts of trying to relocate him to a barn somewhere. He's very bonded with me, would do anything with me, but he only tolerates contact with Laura and doesn't tolerate any contact with any other humans. That and his persistent urine marking behavior make placing him in another home not workable. He loves being inside and loves being cuddled. With me, he's a very sweet, affectionate, playful and silly boy. I don't know that I could willingly give him up, I'm so very attached to him.

Oh Oliver, what am I going to do with you?!??

Theo being Theo

Have a great weekend!!!

tax assistance

Good help is hard to find

A Cat In Paris

courtesy of catinparis.com

A Cat In Paris is a short animated film that reveals Dino's double life. By day, Dino lives with Zoe, a little girl who has lost her voice after the recent violent death of her father. By night, Dino wanders out into the city and visits Nico, a slinky cat burglar. Together they pull off many jewelry thefts around Paris. All is well until Zoe decides to follow Dino one night and before you know it Dino's two worlds start to come together.

courtesy of catinparis.com

I really enjoyed this film! It is beautifully created and very cat-centric. I love all the fish pictures and rugs in people's homes! Dino is a sweet, complex kitty, who reminded me a lot of Oliver! And now I wonder what Oliver gets up to when he's out and about.

One thing I noticed throughout this film is that I was tense as I watched it, maybe because I wasn't sure where they would go with the story. Thankfully, the ending it good and happy. The only critter that dies is the poor lizard that Dino hunts early in the film.

You can watch a trailer of the film at CatInParis.com or if you subscribe to Amazon Prime, you can watch A Cat in Paris free online with your Amazon Prime account. Let me know what you think!

Catch up!

Where does the time go?! I've fallen behind on the news of the week. Time to catch up.

First off, our housemate recently moved into her new home, which means that Bear also now has a new home. Yea for them! He'll have some good kitty company in the new home as the two resident cats (Casper and Omar) are quite cool cats.

Jana and Bear in their new home!

photo courtesy of Jana

Bear starting to feel more comfortable in his new space.

 Exploring   photo courtesy of Jana

photo courtesy of Jana

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Darling Katie Isabella bestowed the Sunshine Picnic Award to us!! Can you believe it?! We got an award!! Seems like it will be ages before anyone has a picnic in sunshine around here, but it's something to look forward to! Thanks Katie, you awesomes kitty!

I think that sunshine picnic is about Fancy Feast and mouses and nips - all the good stuffs!

It's hard to choose who all to share this happy award with. After a long and hard search, the following kitties, please come forward and accept this award for spreading sunshine amidst the dark, cold winter. Thank you all for being very generous with the warm light.

Brian's Home - especially Gracie, that she's feeling better after a rough season. 

Angel Prancer Pie - sweet Prancer Pie recently crossed over the rainbow bridge - he still brings sunshine in my heart

Fur Everywhere - Carmine and Jewel both recently had to take a bunch of tests, I think they passed!

Fuzzy Tales - Sweet and crazy cute Nicki and Derry - you two have to endure all that cold snow. You guys need some sunshine up there! Purrs to you all as you remember precious Annie.

I've been a little away from many blogs lately, so I'm sure I'm missing some important kitties. So, if you've been spreading sunshine recently too, please consider yourself awarded this lovely award.

Now it's time to break out the Friday dance!!!

Happy Friday!

staying warm

We're in the midst of another crazy cold time.

Oliver and his sons know how to best stay warm - cuddle!

Oliver and Pierre

Oliver and Pierre

Oliver with MK draped over his back

MK and Pierre

Oliver and MK

Even with all these kitties cuddled up on toasty warm heating pads, I still wish I could do more to keep them warmer. Of course Oliver spends his nights inside, where he's safe and warm. I tried locking MK inside with Oliver the other night, but MK cried and cried, so I let him back out. Can't move too fast.

I do love seeing them snuggled up on the heating pads in their insulated homes, so much better than trying to sleep out in the open. Through out my work days, I tune into my outdoor kitty cams and warm my heart seeing warm kitties!

I hope you all are staying warm too and getting good cuddles!