2011

Honesty

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

Recently I read a very honest post on Mike’s blog titled Glass half… It got me thinking about how difficult it can be to be completely honest my with myself. I’m sure you’ve all had the same difficulty at times.

Then this weekend my good friend Sye came round to visit. Sye and I have a rather unique relationship – we can tell each other anything (and I mean anything). We had a long chat about different things going on in our lives going in to the early hours of the morning. I won’t go into the detail of the conversation as it’s private and unimportant, but what is important is what I’ve realised: I’m not always being completely honest with myself. I do a fantastic job of avoiding the issues that I have and distracting myself with other things.

This avoidance of these issues has led to them seeping in to my everyday life with out me even realising. Look at my blog for example, when’s the last time I wrote a personal post? In the last few months it’s been review after review, books, TV anything to avoid writing from the heart. Well that’s going to be the first change. I’m still going to write reviews (as I quite enjoy it), but the most recent personal post will be a sticky. This means the most recent personal post will appear as the first blog post on the home page. If you like reading the reviews remember to check further down the page for the most recent review. Oh and I know I’m a few Torchwood episodes behind, but I do intend to catch up.

So first completely honest point – I am struggling to decide what are my own feelings and those of others. In paganism and indeed most spiritualities there is a belief that everyone and everything are interconnected. The theory goes that we are all connected and that if enough people feel negative it spreads making more people feel negative. Have you ever been to see a friend feeling really happy but they are down in the dumps and you leave them feeling down yourself? It’s kind of like that but on a much larger scale. We are constantly being bombarded with negativity, more so than ever before, just think: bankers, corrupt politicians, the economic climate (and all that it brings – lack of job security, etc.), the list could go on.

So that’s my first challenge to decide how I feel about everything in my life. To sort through things in my head and listen to what my heart says. From there I can decide what and how I am going to change the things in my life that need changing.

Write soon,

Antony



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Book Review: Bengal Cats by Dan Rice

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Reading Time: 3 minutes
Bengal-Cats-Dan-Rice Bengal Cats by Dan Rice is an absolutely essential book for any bengal cat owner, as far as I’m concerned. With a good balance between beautiful photographic illustrations and information. Dan’s writing style is engaging and easy-to-read yet still conveys his obvious passion for bengal cats.

The book covers everything you could want to know about having a bengal cat(s), split in to sections: an introduction to the breed (covering history of the bengal and hydridization), understanding your cat, owning a bengal, getting ready for your bengal kitten, shopping for your purebreed bengal, bringing your kitten home, nutrition, grooming, showing your bengal, breeding advice, health care, etc.

It basically gives you all the information you’ll ever need to raise a happy, healthy, fun loving bengal cat. Dan even includes a section on training your bengal cat(s) to use a toilet like humans. The drawing of this bengal cat on the toilet made me laugh until my stomach hurt! Needless to say to me a cat is a cat, let them use a cat litter tray – as nature intended.

There are some absolutely stunning photos of bengals in the book and it’s quite a quick read at 93 pages (which includes pages with photos on).

With bengal cats in mind, I thought I’d use this opportunity to post some recent photos of Dylan and Russell (my bengal kittens):

(Dylan & Russell playing with their new tent and blanket. They love that tent!)

(One of them – not sure which saying ‘Hello’ in the tent. Think it’s Dylan.)

(Awe brotherly love. Dylan sniffing Russell’s face, they love doing it to me. I think it’s the cat equivalent of a human kiss.)

(Dylan having a clean. You can tell he’s vain, he just has to be on all the photos.)

(Click on any of the photos for full size image.)

Oh…back to the review. You can buy Bengal Cats by Dan Rice on Amazon. I was unable to find any criticisms of this well written and beautifully illustrated book and would highly recommend if you’ve got bengal cats or are planning on getting some.

Working towards becoming the mad cat man,

Antony



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Book Review: The Complete Cat by Vicky Halls

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Reading Time: 3 minutes
the-complete-cat-vicky-halls The Complete Cat by Vicky Halls was a book that was recommended to me on a Bengal cat forum as a soon to be new owner of two kittens (see New editions to the family & Kittens at home and spending time with Family and Friends).

Vicky Halls is apparently well known in cat circles as the clever cat woman and The Complete Cat demonstrates her knowledge of the feline species. The book is over 500 pages long and starts with an introductory letter to the person considering getting the cat:

Hello,
Let me tell you what a cat will bring to your life.

A cat is a naturally undemanding creature that usually takes out of the relationship what you are prepared to put in and nothing more. Cats have moments when they seem intensely pleased to see you and yet they don’t sit and pine when you are out. They have a secret life outside your relationship, but when you are there you will be appreciated. They may show you love when you are busy and spurn you when you want a cuddle; it’s not always possible to turn their love on like a tap.

Cats seek out warm, secure places to sleep and so often prefer to share your bed. They see this as a privilege and not a right, so a hammock attached to a radiator or a place near the Aga will do instead.

If you are sad they will fall off the back of the sofa for you or lie with their legs in the air just to make you laugh. They are comedians in fur coats.

They will eat expensive prawns or simple cat food; the trick is to start as you mean to go on. They accept their lot – but the more you give, the more they will want. Be brave enough to have rules and you should still manage to maintain control of the household.

You will struggle giving them pills, hate car journeys with them, be revolted by their hairballs and have every comfy chair in the house covered with a cat blanket. What you will get in return from your cat, if you are lucky, is twenty years of shared experiences, house moves, growing children, heartaches and happiness. You will take a million photographs of him over years and eventually, you will develop your own personal language to understand what he wants and when he wants it. When he is gone you will mourn and marvel at how much you could miss such a small furry creature.

In conclusion, I am recommending wholeheartedly sharing your home with a cat. Once you have experienced the delights you will never regret your decision.

Yours Truly,

A cat lover

Copy Right Vicky Halls (2008).

This letter immediately got me hooked on The Complete Cat, enjoying Vicky Halls engaging writing style. The book covers everything you could ever want to know about cats including: selecting kittens, integrating adult cats, multi cat households, diet and nutrition, health and veterinary care, indoor versus outdoor, cat behaviour, etc. It’s like a one stop reference guide for everything to do with cats. The only criticism I have about the book is that it the information about different pedigree breeds was limited, a paragraph at best.

If you’ve got cats or are planning to get them The Complete Cat by Vicky Halls is well worth buying. I’m sure I’ll be re-reading sections of it as time goes by as a sort of reference guide when I’m unsure. The Complete Cat by Vicky Halls is available to buy on Amazon or at other good book retailers.

Will review Bengal Cats by Dan Rice soon,

Antony



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Teething Cats

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

While doing my weekly shop I picked up a fishing rod toy for Dylan & Russell (see New editions to the family and Kittens at home and spending time with Family and Friends).

However it wasn’t just an ordinary fishing rod toy, it had a sucker on the end of the stick so that it could be attached to units to dangle freely for the kittens to play. I set it up and stepped back as Dylan started to sniff it. He got his claws on to the toy and started to gnaw on the string. In less than a minute he gnawed through the string and the toy was broke.

I watched in amazement. That’s weird they’ve done that to loads of their fishing rod toys recently. Do cats teeth? I thought. A quick Google search revealed the answer.

Kitten’s teeth between 6-12 months (this is when they loose their kitten teeth and get their adult teeth). This varies from kitten to kitten as they are all individuals and develop at different times. So give or take a month either side. Full marks to me for sussing out what was going on! To help any new kitten owners out and make it easier on the babbies…ahem…kittens I’ve given some signs and symtoms of teething along with ideas to help them teeth below:

Signs and Symptoms

  • Inflamed gums (if they’ll let you get close enough to check).
  • Rubbing gums on hard surfaces (such as kitchen draw handles).
  • Gnawing through the string on fishing rod toys.
  • Chewing on electrical wires or anything similar (remember to switch off the electricals when you go out and if possible remove them from the environment).
  • Finding small, sharp kitten teeth around the house (I found one after the fishing rod incident).
  • Reduction in eating hard food (this must be carefully monitored and remember that if in doubt take to the vets).

Helping your Kittens Teeth

  • Give them a cardboard box – Something for them to chew on, relieving the pressure off the gums.
  • Give them Whiskas Sticks – A meaty treat but also allows them to chew on this rather than furniture, etc. My kittens love them.
  • Provide straws for them to play with/bite (my kittens also love these!)
  • Provide wet (or soft) food a few times a week to ensure they are eating and keep an eye on how fast the dry food is being eaten or not.
  • Provide a kitten-friendly environment. Move all wires out of the way possible. Those wires that you can’t remove remember to switch off at the plug before you go out (to avoid kitten electrocution) and discourage kittens from going near.
  • Consider buying special kitten chew toys. Some people swear by baby teething rings (can’t say that I’ve tried these yet).
  • Finally have a read on the Internet for further ideas a good site is All About Cute Kittens and I found this Yahoo Answers site useful.

Blog Soon,

Antony

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