Category Archives: life lessons

Before you adopt, cat facts, health benefits, life lessons, Uncategorized

I am Proud to be called an Indoor Cat!

I am an Indoor cat. I am not ashamed. I am Proud to be called an Indoor Cat.

Us Cats do get a bad rap when it comes to outdoor living. We have a strong, natural prey instinct, that yes, includes prey! Prey really is anything that wiggles, or scurries, or flies. Did you know, loose cats are estimated to kill hundreds of millions of birds each year!

What are the benefits of being an OUTDOOR Cat? Well, the biggest benefit is probably that your feline will be more trim because he is often the one being HUNTED! Depending on where the cat calls home, there could be fox, coyotes, snakes, alligators, and even the neighbor’s dog hunting your cat! Oh boy, if this isn’t enough to bring your cat indoors…I don’t know what is.

What are the benefits of being an INDOOR Cat? There are sooo many! But the best reason is…

YOU will have many many more years with your feline friend. An Outdoor cat will (if she is lucky) live just 2 years – while an indoor cat could live over 17 years! Now, that is a lot of kitty kisses, purr healing magic, and cat snuggles. Just think, I am almost 3 years old. If I lived outside, I would probably be on my 2nd, 3rd, or maybe my last life! I would not even have met my human family yet (big double meow sigh).

Do I miss outdoor living? Not at all, I haven’t been there (ha ha). But, like all cats, us Indoor Cats need exercise, mental stimulation, and ways to be a “cat”. So, we need things like scratching posts, toys, perches to rest on, and other cats to play with. Even a friendly family dog will do (sometimes)! Plus, of course, we need our humans to interact with us on a daily basis. If you are thinking of bringing home a new feline family member, and an indoor one – thank you!, here are some tips to get your home (and your family) ready.

If you still insist on having an Outdoor Cat, please consider the following:

  1. Keep your feline updated on all necessary vaccinations (you will need lots more for an outdoor cat)
  2. Bring your feline indoors at night (every night!), and most importantly – consider keeping your cat indoors all of the time (hey, can’t blame a cat for trying).
  3. Also, when you adopt a cat from a shelter (thank you!), and plan to have your cat be an outdoor cat (although, I would love you to reconsider), please keep your cat Indoors Only for the first 3 months! A cat needs this amount of time to learn where “home” is. Unfortunately, I have heard recent stories of adopted cats from shelters sometimes getting lost and not finding their way back to their new home or even running back to the shelter (where they called home), because they just weren’t ready to be outside yet. Please give your new cat time to feel comfortable in your home. Some cats just take a little longer than others.

So my Feline Friends – Stand Tall and Be Proud to be called an Indoor Cat.

Cheers,

Norman

Cats and wildlife live longer when cats stay indoors. 

Don’t forget to spay & neuter your cats & dogs.  There can be too much of a good thing!  There’s only so much catnip to go around. 

FELNE FAVORITE OF THE DAY

Cadbury at El Refugio Costa Ballena

Cadbury

Hi, my name is CADBURY. My siblings and I were found at a bus stop when we were tiny kittens. Thankfully an El Refugio volunteer saw us and brought us to the shelter. 

I am now a young male cat.  If you like sweets, I’m your cat!  With my purrs, my eye kisses, and my paw tickles, you will be the happiest human ever. I love getting petted on my back too! Let’s make chocolate together!  I am waiting for you at El Refugio. xoxo Cadbury

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cat facts, funny, health benefits, life lessons, love, shelter information, success story, Uncategorized

How to talk Cat. I’ve got the secret catnip!

Have you ever wondered how to talk to your Cat? In my last blog “Whoever said Cats don’t speak never stopped to truly listen” I shared with you how to listen to your feline friend’s meows and know what he is saying to you.

Now, I will share with you the secret language between felines and humans. So, go find your favorite feline and cuddle up for some tantalizing catnip. Both you and your feline will be soo happy you did!

First things first, bring up my last blog “Whoever said Cats don’t speak never stopped to truly listen” and reacquaint yourself with how a cat speaks to you through verbal meows and body language.

Remember, cats rarely vocalize with other cats (unless they are angry), so the meow you hear from your feline family member is targeted at you (oh, aren’t you lucky!). She is trying to say something special to you. Open your ears and and also watch her body language to start the communication. Here are three purrfect ways to speak Cat.

Tone. The tone of your voice is very important when communicating with your cat. Let’s say your feline has a bad habit of jumping on your keyboard when you are working (hmmmm, I NEVER do that).

For us to learn this isn’t acceptable behavior, a firm “No” with a stern voice helps us cats know we did something that wasn’t acceptable. While we might try it again (and again, and again…), we will eventually figure it out with consistency. Consistency is the key (ha ha, get it? “key” – keyboard).

And for praise, we love your high pitched happy voice with a smile. A smile always goes a long way with communication. Keylor at the El Refugio Costa Ballena animal shelter is one of the most vocal cats at the shelter and he has the coolest smile.

Keylor at El Refugio Costa Ballena

And, here’s awesome Rocky from the El Refugio Costa Ballena shelter. He was talking to my human while she was at the shelter.

Rocky loves to MEOW

What do you think he is saying to her? I’ll give you three guesses. Yes, you are right! He is saying “Adopt me, take me home with you!”. Thankfully (for me), she didn’t understand him because she hadn’t read my previous blog yet! (I want my human all to myself.) And, I hear through the catvine that Rocky was recently adopted, so all is purrfect.

Hand Commands. When my human wants me to cuddle with her, she pats her hand on the couch for me to join her. Or, if she wants me to jump down from the counter because she doesn’t want me eating her dinner (sigh), she will say “Down” sternly and point her hand towards the floor.

Give your cat Love Blinks. Oh, I love this one! I LOVE when my human love blinks me. At least, I think that is what she is doing. Anywho, to practice a love blink, do this – close your eyes slowly as you think “I,” hold them closed as you think “love,” and open them slowly as you think “you.” This will surely make your feline Purr. And, the beautiful sounds of a purring cat not only make my human happy but also help alleviate her stress, her anxiety, and help heal her body. Aren’t cats amazing!

Now go practice some love blinks with your favorite feline. And, I’ll go take a well deserved catnap.

I LOVE my catnaps.

Cheers,

Norman

“I hate Mondays. – Garfield”


Don’t forget to spay & neuter your cats & dogs.  There can be too much of a good thing!  There’s only so much catnip to go around. 

Cats and wildlife live longer when cats stay indoors. 

FELNE FAVORITE OF THE DAY

A video of Cats that have been at the El Refugio Costa Ballena Shelter longer than 1 year!
Let’s ADOPT them all!!
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funny, health benefits, life lessons, love, Uncategorized

Are you searching for a Fortune? Search no further because…

Calico Cats are HERE to bring YOU good fortune.

A LONG Long time ago, Japanese sailors would bring Calico Cats aboard their ships because they believed the cats would keep the ship safe from harm (Wow furtastically amazing – ME-OW).

And in Japan, the calico cat is actually considered to be a symbol of fortune, where their signature lucky cat is a statue called Maneki Neko.

Maneki neko

Maneki is the Japanese word for “beckoning” and Neko is the Japanese word for “cat”. You will find these cat statues in many households and businesses throughout Japan. If the Maneki Neko is beckoning with its left paw up it is believed it will attract customers (great for businesses) and if the right paw is up, it is believed to attract success and money. And, the higher the right paw is raised, the luckier you are going to get!

You can also find the Maneki Neko in different colors. The most common and most sought after color is, yes, of course – CALICO, and it symbolizes EXTREME luck.

While you may not find a lot of Maneki Neko statues in Costa Rica (or in your home country), you will find some beautiful and actually quite rare real life Calico Cats, which are just as lucky as the Maneki Neko! For instance, at the El Refugio Costa Ballena animal shelter in Costa Rica, I think there are almost 40 cats right now at the shelter, but only 3 of them are Calico Cats (quite rare indeed!).

So, what is a Calico Cat? A Calico Cat is not a specific breed but a cat with the colors (typically) of mostly white body with orange and black spots. And, did you know there are 3 variations of the calico cat coloring? There is the standard calico with the mostly white body and patches of orange and black, like unique Mágica at El Refugio Costa Ballena Animal Shelter,

Mágica

and then there is the dilute calico with mostly white body with patches of gray, cream, and light orange like sweet Papaya also at El Refugio.

Papaya

And, finally there is also the calibby (Yes, part Tabby, part Calico – my favorite!) which is a cat with the same color variations as a calico cat but with the added signature Tabby stripes and the signature “M” like El Refugio’s Sun (and I heard Sun was just adopted, someone just got really lucky!!).

Sun with the “M” on her forehead and the signature stripes!

Now, if you don’t remember what “M” stands for you must read my previous blog “Why M stands for Tabby“. It is quite fascinating, as are all us Tabbies!

Another interesting cat fact about Calico Cats, is they are almost always female (99.99% of the time!). Some believe that the very rare male calico cats bring a lot of luck, but unfortunately not so much for the cat because often the male calico cats are born sterile (Yow!) with unfortunate health issues.

And one more very interesting fact about Calico Cats, is they have BIG personalities. But, really now, what cat doesn’t??

Okay, so if you are looking for more luck or fortune in your life, or more success in your business, your search is over. Because all you need to do is adopt a Calico Cat. A Calico Cat will bring you lots of LUCK, and definitely lots of LOVE, and as always lots of PURRSONALITY!

Cheers,

Norman

Look on the bright side…Monday only happens once a week.

– Garfield the Cat

Don’t forget to spay & neuter your cats & dogs.  There can be too much of a good thing!  There’s only so much catnip to go around. 

Cats and wildlife live longer when cats stay indoors. 

FELINE FAVORITE OF THE DAY

GODY at El Refugio Costa Ballena

Gody

Hi, my name is Gody. I am a young male cat. I was found in the ditch – can you believe it! Now, I wear a Tuxedo day and night – rags to riches for sure! I am a little shy but do love humans and get along well with other felines. I am waiting for you with my dancing shoes on. Come meet me at El Refugio Costa Ballena. Hugs Gody

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family, health benefits, life lessons, love, Uncategorized

Just call me Professor Norman!

In my last blog post I ended the post with some tantalizing catnip about how us cats can teach your children important life skills.

Class is now in session! Take out your notepad and your favorite writing paw (I mean pen), and let’s get started with “Life Lessons According to ME.”

Besides the many health benefits from having cats in your family (fewer allergies and less stress and anxiety I’ll cover just a few of the other many benefits for your children when adopting a cat:

  • Responsibility. Sharing some of the daily tasks associated with us cats can teach your child responsibility. Daily tasks such as FEEDING (my top priority), litter box cleaning (someone’s gotta do it and I can’t), and brushing our coat (especially if its a hairless cat – lol!) teach a child responsibility.
  • Empathy. A cat can teach your child about empathy. By your child simply petting a cat, listening to our purrs, noticing the positive reactions when stroking our ears, or rubbing our belly, these simple gestures can all teach your child how to respect and tune in to another being’s needs.
  • Love and Companionship. Cats will shower your child with unconditional love. With this overflowing cat love, your child will learn to also love others unconditionally, while also giving your child companionship (especially if he is an only child). Cats will help children combat loneliness.
  • Save a life!!! Adopting a cat, especially from an animal shelter, can teach your child the amazing awesomeness of saving a life. Now, that my beautiful humans, is a life lesson that keeps on giving.

So, my sweet mamas and papas out there, let me lighten your workload just a little, by adopting one of us cats. We will help teach your children some amazing life lessons, did I say FREE OF CHARGE!

Cheers,

Norman

“A balanced diet is having chocolate in both hands. Garfield”

Don’t forget to spay & neuter your cats & dogs.  There can be too much of a good thing!  There’s only so much catnip to go around. 

Cats and wildlife live longer when cats stay indoors. 

FELNE FAVORITE OF THE DAY

Jorge at El Refugio Costa Ballena, Costa Rica

Jorge

SURFING FOR YOU! Hi, my name is JORGE.  I am a young adult male. I was found at the beach and brought to El Refugio. I get along with other cats. But, I am past the kitten stage, so less playing with kittens and more spoiling my human.  Can I spoil you??  I am waiting for you at El Refugio. xo Jorge

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