You Need a "Chum"

Well, tonight’s shelter cat is another real sweetie. He doesn’t have a name assigned to him yet so I’ll just call him “Chum.” When I first approached his cage he was cuddled tightly into the back corner. I immediately felt sorry for him thinking he was scared of his new surroundings; so many great cats are overlooked because of this behavior. However, when I offered him the string from my camera he came right out and started eagerly playing. Chum is not a scaredy-cat, rather he’s just quiet but really friendly.

Chum is a 2-3 year old neutered male with luxurious blue and white longhair. He is declawed on the front. He will be a snuggly cat when he finds his forever home.

Now is as good a time as any to discuss the color topic. You’ll notice I called Chum a blue and white and you might be wondering if I’ve lost my marbles. I mean, how could a cat be blue? Well, the average non-cat person might have called him gray but in the cat fancy he is referred to as blue. Blue comes in many shades as well. I had an entire litter of blue kittens once and every one of them was different. When you have mixed breed cats you can have such a wide variety of colors it can be fun trying to figure out what to call them.

If you’d like a nice quiet, snuggly cat come meet Chum at the Story County Animal Shelter. Once again you’ll need to be prepared to groom his fur every day to avoid tangles and mats but I don’t think his fur is going to cause much trouble.

The shelter is located at:         975 W Lincoln Highway
Nevada, IA 50201
Ph: (515) 382-3338

Their hours are:                       M-F 11 am to 4 pm

                                                Closed on holidays and weekends

You can see more of the pets awaiting adoption at the shelter website and updates on their Facebook page.

The value of showing Household Pets

Jabberwoky Glitter and ACFA judge Don Finger

If you get the 2012 issue of the Cats USA magazine, out this month, you will see an article (by me!) about showing Household Pet cats (HHPs). And if you’ve read my past blog entries both here and on my earlier KCCI site you know that I love showing cats. I believe that cat shows not only showcase the pedigreed cats but also help educate the public about cats in general. In fact, I think education is the most important aspect of cat shows.

The presence of HHPs gives the public an opportunity to see what their cats should look like. To start with here’s a few “requirements” for HHPS:

·      they must be white, black, blue, red, multi-colored or any other color

·      they must be either longhaired or shorthaired, curly-haired or straight-haired

·      they must be either male or female but if over 8 months of age they must be neutered

·      they must be at least 4 months old

·      they must be healthy, well-groomed and easily handled by strangers

It is this last “requirement” that cat shows can help cat owners attain for their cats.

The term, healthy, refers to a wide range of considerations. First the cat should be vaccinated against the basic, common viral infections including Rabies. He should also be free of parasites including fleas, ear mites and intestinal worms. What about his weight? Your veterinarian can advise you best about that but you can also compare your cat’s “figure” to a body condition chart such as the one here: http://vet.osu.edu/vmc/body-condition-scoring-chart .

Grooming, as well, can encompass a lot of things. For instance, how often do you brush or comb your cat’s fur? For most longhairs a daily brushing would be best while for shorthairs you may be able to get away with weekly brushing. At least weekly you should be checking your cat’s ears, teeth and eyes for any sign of disease or just dirt. During each grooming session also run your hands down his body to check for any lumps or bumps. Knowing what is normal helps you to recognize when a pathological condition arises.

Sometimes show cats are simply born with outgoing personalities that win them awards but you can help your introverted cat improve his outlook on strangers. Ideally you should start when your cat is a kitten but even adults can learn to trust other people and situations. First, be sure your cat is accustomed to the carrier by leaving it out at all times and perhaps even feeding your cat in it. Take him on periodic car rides that don’t include a visit to the vet. It would even be a good idea to take your cat to other households or a pet supply store to get him used to strange surroundings and people. Any cat that can handle these situations should be a good candidate for cat shows. But even if you don’t intend to show your cat he will be much happier if he is comfortable around other people.

Thus when cats are presented at cat shows the cat-owning public gets to see healthy, happy cats; and showing HHPs lets them know that, yes, even mixed-breed cats are valuable members of the family. So many times at shows spectators approach my benching cage and ask what breed my cats are. When I answer that they are HHPs their response almost always is “Oh, just HHPs?” or “Oh, just mixed-breeds?” My immediate reaction is to smile and gently correct them by saying “we never say just.” With HHPs at a cat show the average cat owner can more easily relate to the cats. They may more easily see that their own cats are just as good as anyone’s.