Lazy Sunday

Cats are rather delicate creatures and they are subject to a good many ailments, but I never heard of one who suffered from insomnia.  ~Joseph Wood Krutch

Kittens are born with their eyes shut.  They open them in about six days, take a look around, then close them again for the better part of their lives.  ~Stephen Baker

You cannot look at a sleeping cat and feel tense.  ~Jane Pauley

Who among us hasn't envied a cat's ability to ignore the cares of daily life and to relax completely?  ~Karen Brademeyer

Backyard Jungle Adventure

Lately the kitties have been begging to go outside into the backyard, and usually I will rotate and take one out with me when I am watering the plants since they are not allowed out unattended. The other day Abby and Itty Bitty slipped out while I was heading into the backyard so I figured why not and let the whole gang go outside, minus High Cotton and Ms. Wiggles who were very concerned about the effects the humidity might have on their fluffy white hair. 

Itty Bitty dashed out into the yard only to remember he is a big giant scaredy cat, and he spent most of his time looking around like this to make sure nothing scary was after him.

Abby thinks she is a jungle cat, and out of my whole crew she is the one I am constantly on the look out for because she will dart out a door in a second if given the opportunity. She lives to eat the grass and always makes herself right at home. She likes to pretend that she is a big tough kitty, but once she has had her fun she wants back inside and does not like being left unattended while out in the big outdoors.

Bella went right to the good stuff, the dirt! She didn't waste any time heading for the flower bed where there was no shortage of wonderful dirt filled smells to be had!

Sophie, not one to be left behind, was hot on Bella's trail! I don't know why they do it, but my cats have a habit of pairing off according to color, so while Itty Bitty and Abby were busy watching for bugs in the grass, Bella and Sophie were strolling the flower bed, while High Cotton and Ms. Wiggles lounged on the porch sipping water!

When Bella hit the brakes to stop and sniff the ground, Sophie, never one to miss an opportunity regardless of where the situation presents itself, went in for the butt sniff!! Haha! Seriously, with all the exciting stuff outside, Sophie still could not pass up the chance to get a big whiff of Bella's behind! Sophie "The Perpetual Butt Sniffer" strikes again!

So what! I like sniffing butts, you gotta problem with that?!?!

Never one to be left out, Red was whining up a storm on the porch wanting to be let out into he backyard so he could have fun with the kitties too, so I finally relented and went to let him join in. Red was so overjoyed that he could come out and play too that he saw what he thought was Abby hanging out in the grass, and ran full speed towards what he thought was his bestest buddy. He was wrong, very wrong. 

It was in fact not Abby he was running towards, but Itty Bitty, his mortal enemy! It was too late by the time he realized, and tried to put the brakes on...

Puffed up kitty in 3...2...1...

Just a mere second before I snapped this shot, Bitty had made a almost successful attempt at removing Red's nose from his face! Haha!

I swear you could almost hear Bitty as Red ran away...

And don't you ever come near me again you big dumb dog! Unless, of course, you want your face permanently rearranged!!!

Poor guy, luckily Red was able to shake off his near death experience and enjoy the rest of his backyard adventure. After stopping to smell the flowers...

He found a nice cool dirt spot to relax in where he could keep a watchful eye on the kitties.

Bitty went back to bug hunting in the grass and all was well. All in all, the kitties and Red enjoyed their group outing to the backyard!

Summer Loving Kitty

It's officially reached that hot and humid point of the summer, where when you open the door to the screen porch you can feel the air just hit you in the face. Now when I open the door, the cats, instead of running right out, will feel the air hit them and contemplate whether they really want to go out there or not, and most of them turn right back around to find a cozy spot in the nice cool AC. Except for one, Miss Bella lives for the hottest summer weather. I think she must have been a lizard in a past life, because even in the middle of the day, when it's really hot and muggy out there, she will march right out and roll over on her back like she's trying to get a tan on that speckled pink belly of hers! Sometimes if it's too hot, I will have to go forcibly remove the silly fuzzball so she doesn't get overheated.

When she's not busy napping or soaking up the sun, she hops onto the back of the wicker chairs and takes in all the activity in the backyard and woods.

Sometimes if Abby's not commandering the kitty bed, she'll crash out there...

or steal a place on one of Red's beds...

but mostly she just finds a nice spot on the wood floor and stretches out to get optimal soakage of the sun!

Luckily, she is very good about taking a break from her tanning to rehydrate!

One of the fun things I like to do with the warmer weather is to drag the cat toys out onto the screen porch and bust out the catnip! This past weekend I brought some of the cats favorite scratching posts and toys onto the porch to enjoy the warmer temperatures, and with the added catnip it only amped up the fun! Of course, I forgot to video it, but I did dig out an older video taken at our last house and I thought I would leave it for you all to see the silly antics in person of my crazy little fluffballs. Make sure to keep an eye out for when Sophie kicks herself in the head with her own back foot when she is playing with her catnip snake, it's a hoot and she still does it to this day when she gets overly excited! Hahaha!

Sophie + Kitty Grass = Funny!!

So the last time I was at my local pet supply store I picked up this nifty and quite lovely kitty grass container that I can sit on my kitchen table for the kittehs. The neat thing about it is that it comes with 4 different types of grass: oats, wheat, barley, and rye. It has proven to be a big hit amongst my crew!

Itty Bitty wasted no time diving right in...

Cotton was not so graceful, lol...but the whole smushed face thing surely didn't help his situation! Haha!

 

He was still able to get his nom on though!

They were a little peeved when they thought the grass was not organic though...

Madame, this grass is NOT organic!

Cotton was quite relieved to find out it was in fact, 100% organic!

Ahhhh, all is right in the world...

Then Sophie stumbled upon the new kitty grass and being the little diva that she is, she informed me that I needed to feed her some grass by hand! Of course, she had her preferences too...she didn't like the wheat, barley, or rye grass, but loved the oats!

Hmmm, what's this? Kitty grass you say...

Well, I guess I could give it a try...

You know, this is quite good!

Keep it coming food lady!

What do I look like, a little waif?! Bigger pieces I say!

Must have more nommage!!!

Nom, nom, nom, nom, nom...

Mmmmm, is nom nom so nom nom good!

If there ever was a face of total and complete happiness, I believe this would be it.

Never Trust A Cat

See these faces? They look all cute and innocent, sitting nicely together posing for the camera, all fuzzy and adorable...but Sophie and Ms. Wiggles are not to be trusted! If you leave a cup unattended around here, you can pretty much operate on the belief that if you left it alone for any amount of time, someone else's tongue has undoubtedly been in it! Ha!

The minute you turn you back, if even for just a few seconds, they quickly get to work...with Ms.Wiggles acting as the lookout, while Sophie goes in for the first drink!

Working as a pair, they switch off, with Ms. Wiggles taking her turn, diving in for a drink!

Slurp Slurp Slurp

So if any of you stop by for a visit, you can't say I didn't warn you! ;)

Siblings

It appears that something happens when you have one dog with six feline siblings. Without another dog around to play with on a daily basis, it seems that the cats have rubbed off on Big Red!

Examples to follow:

Kitty beds are fair game, no matter how small or even if the cat you have displaced is highly unamused and is sitting above you contemplating your demise...

"What!? It was empty!"

"What do you mean it's not normal for dogs to climb cat trees?"

"But they make great lookout towers!"

What can I say, he's a silly guy!

The Big Red Dog Blog

After much procrastination on my part and encouragement from my friends I have finally started my blog! You know that crazy cat lady down the street who has all the cats...well, I'm her + one dog! Ha! I kid, I kid...sorta! I currently share my home with 6 fuzzy felines and one ridiculously silly red mutt who is always bringing the laughs, my dorky boy Big Red.

My four Persian cats are members of the Persian Mafia along with their fellow cousins up in New York City - Dee Doo (The Don), Sweet Pea, and Miss Pansy.
Top Row: Sophie, Dee Doo, High Cotton
Bottom Row: Miss Pansy, Ms. Wiggles, Bella, and Sweet Pea

While they are busy enforcing things over on the East Coast, their canine friends, The DogFathers, are busy breaking knee caps taking care of things out on the West Coast. So if you are ever in need of a favor or some protection, I happen to know some people, and as it turns out they are very affordable as they prefer to be paid in cookies! ;)

There never seems to be an end to the silly antics my crew manages to orchestrate around here, so hopefully you all will enjoy them as much as I do!

For those not familiar with everyone, a quick rundown on whose who...

This is Abby, my rebel without a cause, the queen bee (just don't tell Bella she thinks that!), and Big Red's best friend. She secretly has a soft side, and I may be risking my life by telling everyone, but she can be a softie when she wants to!


Bella, the matriarch of my crew...a true love who is so very easygoing and makes it impossible not to just want to squeeze her every time you see her.


High Cotton, my most chill and laid back kitty. It takes a lot to phase High Cotton, and he is all about attention and the loves, and if you dare to ignore him he will make it be known, as he is a big talker.


Itty Bitty, my first foster failure. As far as perfect kitties come, Itty Bitty is as close to it as it can get, he is so good natured and very rarely ever gets into any trouble, and is just a sweet boy.


Ms. Wiggles and Sophie, are my youngest and are sisters. These two are a silly pair, who love to be together and pair up against Bella for games of chase. Ms.Wiggles lives for her people, so as long as she can be close to you she is happy. Sophie on the other hand, is a bit more of a Diva...okay, she is very much a Diva! Ha! Sophie does things her way or no way, but she still loves her attention, just as long as it is on her terms.


Last, but not least, there is Big Red. My super silly, all about the fun, dorky boy. A mutt of unknown origin from a rescue, Red is all about living it up, and having as much fun as possible! He never fails to bring a smile to my face, and is an endless source of laughter.