Cat meets Dog.. it's all good

Sorry i've been gone so long! We got a dog and she is taking a lot of time and energy for a fantastic return. The first moment we brought her home, we call her Sara, Bella the cat let her know that Bella was the queen of the house. Bella also let us know that she was relieved we got a dog and not another cat..;-) the feeling was like, fewheew... a dog i can handle.
They have been playing together.. mostly tag. Sara runs around and Bella is centrally located, and darts out and tags Sara as she flies by. It's pretty funny to watch. I'm gonna try and get some video and see if i can post it.
Happy May Day!
jod

Cat drinking water FUNNY!

Hi, everyone, I just got the funniest cat video. I can't post it because I don't know where it came from or who owns it. If you are interested, send me an email and I'll send it back to you. My eyes are still wet from laughing!
jodyrussell@yahoo.com

Most Excellent Cat Scratching Post

I've had a cat scratching post for our cats forever. They loved the one on the back porch that was a limb off our peach tree. I also had a really nice carpeted one that we had inside. No one ever used it much. I read that cats don't like carpet to scratch on, so on her outside climber I turned the carpet inside and left the backing out. Ehh.
Finally last month I took off the carpet on the inside post and just left the bare 3x3 wood. Bella the cat was much more interested and actually used it but I could tell that she still wasn't thrilled. Today I finally wrapped it in sisel rope. I showed Bella how it worked and she came over and gave it a half hearted try. When she actually got her claws into it she gave me this surprised look and then really dug in and gave me a cat grin! Then she was exhausted and is still taking a nap. We'll see how it really plays tonight. Maybe Barbara will get her wish that we can take the towels off the chairs and Bella won't keep using them for cat scratching posts.
Stay tuned..;-)

Cat Painting

So... I've been painting my bathroom and hallway. The lovely Bella cat is eager to help! After my first session she managed to get into a closed room and paint her tail. Just a bit of undercoat and a little on the tail tip. Fortunately the color is not incompatible with her grey and cream markings. Barbara managed to get most of it off but Bella is determined to keep a little.
Today I finished the bathroom door and frame. I was working on the inside of the door and I turned away for a second and the cat most recently known as Bella, joined me inside. I scooted her out. When I finished I closed the doors to the hallway and the door to the back of the house so air could circulate but Bella couldn't. Of course she managed to sneek by me at the last moment and scampered thru the hall. Happily, I was able to get her out the door on the other side before any paint was cat-taminated.
Exciting news coming soon on helping grumpy or scaredy cats!

It 's hard to say goodbye to a cat or anyone really...

Not just "Goodbye Fluffy, see you tonight", but "Goodbye Fluffy you've been a wonderful friend and companion. You've let me laugh and cry and dance and mope. You've warmed my lap and heart when all humanity has let me down. I never felt judged by you, except when I made you wait too long for dinner."
My friend Karen had to put her best friend and cat Fumar, to sleep today. Her kidneys failed. Karen sobbed, and I sobbed with her remembering my last 2 cats we put down when age caught up with them.
I remind Karen as I remind myself, and all of you, Breathe... And grieve. I remind myself whenever I leave anyone really, but especially those that I love the most, to tell them that I love them. People die unexpectedly all the time. Young and old and in between. Do your best to keep your love up to date...;-) Really you never know which goodbye will be your last. Peace everyone.