Cat Reviews

Only rarely does a book cross my desk that makes me smile just when I look at it, before I even read and review it. Purr More, Hiss Less written by Allia Zobel Nolan and illustrated charmingly by Erika Oller is such a book. On the cover, two fat cats recline together. One is smiling, the other wears a scowl. The meaning is clear, the author and artist know and love cats!

As I turn the pages, I am reminded by short passages and amusing watercolors, how sweet life is when you share that life with a cat. “Don’t be a show-off!” reminds one page as an orange-striped tomcat does a one paw handstand on a fence next to two not even amused Queens. “Be Flexible” another passage encourages as a kitty stretches from end to end on someone’s lap.

I see many of my cats’  reflected on these pages. Many of the characteristics only understood by true cat lovers show on each page- “Live in the Moment…”Be Your Brother’s Keeper” and other sayings keeps you smiling ear-to-ear.

At the end of the book, I am craving more of these wisdoms, needing more smiles and giggles and rememberances of dear feline friends long passed.

 And now, if you will excuse me, I believe it is time for me to stop and smell the catnip…………

With so many claws running around the house, the more scratch products I have on hand, the easier it is on the household furniture. The Scratch Lounge combines the cats love for scratching with their fascination for cardboard boxes by producing a top-of-line 3-sided scratching pad. Although with my crew, “launching pad” would be a more fitting description as this scratching pad has become the most coveted spot in the house. Cats are being routinely tossed off their post on the Scratch Lounge by the stronger alphas in the group.

Cats need to scratch- it proves their dominance, leaves their mark, sheds off old brittle nail coverings and stretches their back and leg muscles. Scratch Lounge isn’t flimsy and lives up to all  feline expectations able to withstand the constant scratching activity without sliding all over the floor or leaving cardboard shreds on the carpet.  

Most cats enjoy roughness against their skin and the Scratch Lounge supplies this requirement. If the Miller kitties aren’t using the Scratch Lounge for scratching purposes, they are using it for napping purposes! So our sofa gets a double break, the cats aren’t using the sofa for their scratching games and they are sleeping on the Scratch Lounge instead of the couch cushions.   

It arrives fully encased in it’s own cardboard frame. Just a tip, if you have only one or two cats, leaving the box completely encircling the pad is a good idea. If you have more than two kitties, take off the end flaps and fold them down. The kitties will likely need a quick get-away as the alphas challenge them for the privilege of using this product. 

Made in the USA (and not many products are these days) some of the proceeds from the sale of a Scratch Lounge are donated to animal rescue to help with spay and neuter costs. It’s a win-win situation however you look at it.In the Miller home, the Scratch Lounge was an instant hit.

Order at http://www.scratchlounge.com/index.htm 

If you are a multi-cat home- order several- your cats will purrsonally thank you!

Most cat owners understand well, the frustration that arrives after putting an e-collar on their cat following surgery, injury or other trauma. The cat  is scared, on edge, and fights the collar. Because the e-collar is so bulky, kitty  can’t sleep in a comfortable position, she tries to eat and gets upset when the e collar gets in the way. Plus, the very presence of the e-collar can send most cats into a panic. Once the collar is attached, the cat flies around the room in an imitation of Super Dog, some becoming airborne in their fright. 

The PetsGuard collar removes this angst for owner and cat. There are ¼ cut pullouts in the center for easy fitting, but before pulling these out, test the collar by sliding it over your cat’s head with a twisting motion.

Sounds a bit easy doesn’t it? For cats brought up with love and laps of comfort, I suppose it would be. But for my feral crew, I have to sometimes think outside the litter box. My cats don’t like new objects, especially objects that dare to touch them. This collar could interfere with their whiskers (a sensitive area) so in placing the collar, I carefully manuevered it around their whiskers.  

Although the kitties were first intimidated by the collar. The PetsGuard Cat Collar turned out to be open to feline investigation. The soft foam carried an interesting smell, not one that my kitties responded to. I grabbed the Feliway Spray and gave the collar a light spritzing. Now, it smelled “friendly.”

Meeting opposition with some of the clan, I brought out the treats, placing Kitty Kaviar in the center of the collar and holding the collar up to the group until Everest took the plunge and stuck his head through the center to grab the treat, I quickly pushed the collar over his head in a twisting motion. The process took only a few seconds and the PetsGuard Collar was on before he knew it.  I then held him on my lap. He calmed down a few minutes later, and other than shaking his head a few times, he was fine.  Over the next few days, I tried the collar on several more of my team. None of them had major objections so long as I offered treats along with the collar. 

The cats can wiggle out of the collar, especially the kittens. The older cats are more accepting and after a fashion they resign themselves to the fact that the collar isn’t going anywhere without them. They were able to eat and drink easily. I even used this collar when I was treating a new arrival for a bad case of ear mites. For the first time, I didn’t get scratched after the medicine was applied, and Trumps ears didn’t turn bright red because he couldn’t get past the collar to scratch his ears and shake the medicine all over the room.

Compared to the stiff e-collar from your vet’s office, PetsGuard Collar comes out on top. The foam does get scratched easily, but it would take a lot of time and effort for a cat to work her way through all the padding and reach the site being protected.

It’s nice to know that during my next feline emergency- I have a collar waiting in the wings that will keep kitty from doing more damage to herself. 

Order at http://petsguard.com/default.aspx

You might ask, what is the FURminator?  The FURminator is a deshedding tool, it is not designed to remove large mats, but rather to gently remove the dense undercoat and loose hair with a special patented blade. The FURminator is equipped with a soft rubber ridged handle allowing for an easier grip. It comes in three sizes: small, medium and large. (There is sldo available an equine deshedding tool that would be a blessing in removing the winter coat.)

Several of my cats are not fond of being brushed with any grooming tool. Claws come out and teeth are bared whenever they even think I am getting close to them with the dreaded brushes or combs. I did not find this to be true with the FURminator.

In fact, my special needs kitty who dislikes anything touching her skin, began purring and kneading when I used the FURminator on her.

*It is important to note that the grooming session should not exceed 10-15 minutes. You might be tempted to go longer, but if you do, your kitty might lose more hair than you want her to.*

The FURmintor removes a lot of unwanted and excess hair. If there are small mats hiding in the undercoat, the FURminator will remove those with ease. The larger mats wouldn’t budge.

Besides reducing the shedding factor, the FURminator is a great hairball preventative. If someone in your home is allergic to pet dander, this tool should be part of your grooming routine. The bonding between you and your cat is also strengthened, for unlike other rakes and combs, the FURminator is gentle on the sensitive skin of your cat and doesn’t pull the hair, just gently removes it.

Visit the website at www.FURminator.com and take a look at the shampoos, conditioner and deshedding solutions also available.

Although many cat owners attribute their cat tearing and scratching the carpet as “bad behavior,” the truth is, cats need to scratch on all sorts of firm surfaces. Scratching allows them to shed off the castings of their claws, sharpen their tips while leaving their mark stating they have been there. Scratching on solid objects also permits them the opportunity to stretch their back muscles. They don’t scratch out of boredom or to upset the humans in their lives. They scratch purely by instinct.

When the cat scratch box arrived, my cats were immediately intrigued running over to take a look at the newest cat product in the house. Set in an attractive mahogany frame, the scratching pad measured 14”x28” making it large enough for more than one cat at a time to enjoy. Immediately, my alphas’ Matuse and Oliver claimed their right to this fine piece of feline furniture. As their claws found purchase in the filler (heavy-duty industrial corrugated cardboard, I braced myself waiting for the filler to fly across the room. It held fast. The noise of the scratching brought the other cats in at a run. They jostled each other striving for better position as they all marked this scratching pad to claim ownership.

The catscratch box has been here now over two weeks. Besides adding a touch of elegance to our front room, the catscratch box also doubles as a cat bed for my crew. More than once while making my rounds at night (doing a head count) I find three or four of the kittens laying on the cardboard surface purring their night’s content.

Our “sacrificial sofa upstairs (this old sofa was purchased at the thrift store) for the sole purpose of being a scratching post for the cats isn’t getting much action these days. During vacuum sessions, it only takes a minute to sweep across the corrugated surface and suck up any loose pieces wedged inside.

The beauty of this catscratchbox over the rest not only lies in the custom craftsmanship, but when one side of the cardboard wears down, all you have to do is simply flip the box over and you have a brand new scratching pad!

Although catnip arrives with the box (as an added enticement) the use of catnip wasn’t necessary. My cats gravitated towards the box, first of all because it was a new smell in their territory, and second of all, because cats are highly curious creatures. They are using this box and are purrfectly contented to give it a high mark on their appreciation scale.

Order at www.catscratchbox.com or call 1-978-416-7045