Some of my earliest bylines as a “pet journalist” appeared in Cat Fancy magazine. I got my first book contracts because a NYC editor read and liked a couple of my Cat Fancy articles. But the magazine sold in 2013, and published a final issue in 2015. Much of the content remains important and share-able. The last article I wrote for Cat Fancy (updated below) covered feral cats and TNR.
Feral Cats, Community Cats, TNR & New Research
There are an estimated 60 to 100 million free-roaming feral and community cats in the United States. They caterwaul from alleyways, give birth in woodpiles, and slink beneath dumpsters, eking out a meager existence on the scraps of civilization. Nobody knows how many live homeless and unloved, but wherever cats gather, controversy soon follows.
Caring cat lovers tried many “solutions” and opinions abound regarding the best way to deal with un-owned and feral felines. In the last decade, a small army of dedicated and caring cat advocates, including Riverfront Cats, and the Feral Cat Project (which lists several success stories!) believes that TNR is a viable and ethical answer. But it’s expensive, and labor intensive. What about other answers?
Research Helping Ferals
Clearly, we need new strategies beyond trap/neuter/release (TNR) programs. “The importance of finding viable, safe, humane and cost-effective techniques for nonsurgical sterilization in community cats cannot be overstated,” said Dr. Kathy Tietje, Vice President of Scientific Operations at Morris Animal Foundation. Two studies recently approved by Morris Animal Foundation addresses this issue with nonsurgical methods to control reproductive capacity. “We’re excited about these innovative projects and their impact on population control of this specific group of cats.” The projects begin in 2023 and should last 12-24 months.
Reducing the number of cats entering the shelter system and improving overall feline health outcomes are the primary drivers behind these new studies. This also reduces the environmental impact of free-roaming community cats through humane population control. The University of Georgia project aims to developing an oral vaccine to decrease male cat fertility by reducing reproductive hormone levels. The Tufts University project focuses on decreasing hormone levels in female cats through an injectable medication. Until then, TNR continues to lead the charge for feral cat welfare.
What is TNR?
TNR stands for “trap-neuter-return,” a program designed to control and decrease the numbers of roaming felines. Trapped cats receive a health exam to identify very sick cats, which are euthanized. Sterilizing healthy kitties and vaccinating prevents reproduction or contagious illnesses such as rabies.
Friendly adult cats and tame-able kittens are adopted while the feral (wild) adults live out their lives—sometimes a decade or longer—in the managed colony. The removal of one ear tip identifies these cats as managed. The caregiver(s) monitor the colony and provide food and shelter.
TNR In The Beginning…
TNR first appeared in Europe and became better known once animal welfare societies in Great Britain began advocating the approach more than 40 years ago. Louise Holton, an early proponent, first learned of TNR in the mid-1970s while living in South Africa. “I fed colonies of cats in Johannesburg,” she says. “As soon as they started talking about TNR, it just made sense to me, and I trapped my colonies and fixed them through the Johannesburg SPCA.”
It took longer for the idea to reach America. While working in animal protection, Becky Robinson noticed feral cats in downtown Washington, DC, at around the same time that Holton moved to the area. Animal welfare organizations offered no help. “I was pretty shocked when they said I should bring cats in for euthanasia,” says Holton. Believing education was the key, Holton founded Alley Cat Allies (ACA) in 1990 as an educational resource for humane methods of feral cat control. Today, ACA staff and directors continue the work.
The TNR concept gained national attention in 1995 when Joan Miller of the Cat Fanciers Association presented a talk on cat lifestyle diversity at the AVMA Animal Welfare Forum. The next year she and Dr. Patricia Olson (then affiliated with the American Humane Association) co-coordinated the first National Conference On Feral Cats in Denver. Presenters offered a variety of views, and concluded that national coordination was necessary. “Alley Cat Allies grew more rapidly after that,” says Miller.
Not everyone supports TNR. “Pro and con is an easy way to categorize,” says Dr. Margaret Slater, a veterinary epidemiologist from Texas A&M University and author of Community Approaches to Feral Cats. “But almost everybody has a gradation of views. Nothing is black and white.”
The most common objections focus on protecting the cats themselves. People argue that as a domestic species, it’s our responsibility to keep cats safely confined. People dislike stray cats pestering their own pets or messing in their garden. But feral cats rarely tame or adapt to confinement.
The Vacuum Effect
Moving them becomes difficult when sanctuaries fill up. An area cleared of cats that offers hot or cold weather feral cat shelter and food quickly attracts more cats—a “vacuum effect” that argues for maintaining the colony in its original location. Even if trap and kill programs weren’t expensive and ineffective, most Americans dislike treating cats as vermin.
As an introduced or “exotic” species, critics such as the American Bird Conservancy argue we should remove cats from the environment to protect native wildlife, particularly endangered species. Cats cause the most problems where ecosystems are already in the most trouble, such as on island ecosystems where any predator is a problem. TNR is not a good choice in these fragile environments.
But proponents argue that mostly, cats hunt more rodents than birds, and usually only catch sick, old, or very young birds. “Cats get blamed for a lot of things, but it’s almost never just cats,” says Dr. Slater. For instance, rats also are an introduced species, and quite good predators of many birds. Robinson adds, “A bulldozer on a spring day probably does more damage to the ecosystem than a feral cat in his entire life.” Even critics of TNR often support the programs in situations such as barn cat relocation or city cat colonies, since they risk no endangered species.
Making A Difference for Feral Cats & TNR
Holton, now with Alley Cat Rescue, says they conducted a national survey of feral cats groups (in 2013). “This survey proves that Trap Neuter Return (TNR) works and that many groups and individuals volunteer their own time and their own money to control and stabilize the nation’s feral cat population.”
Most feral cat groups provide spay/neuter services to “owned” cats, as well as offering TNR services for ferals. This, of course, PREVENTS future colonies from forming.
Most (96%) of the TNR groups practice neuter-before-adoption for the stray cats they place in homes.
One quarter of the groups report that their colony cats are 6 to 8 years old. Thirty-five percent report their cats are between 9 and 12 years old, and over 14% report feral cats 13 years old and some even older!
96% of the groups provide rabies vaccinations to feral cats; 64% provide distemper; 11.76% provide feline leukemia shots; 62.18% deworm feral cats; 63.87% provide flea treatment.
One third reported that there were 26 to 30 kittens in each colony before TNR; 42.86% said there were 0-5 kittens in colonies after TNR.
71.42% said they had relocated some cats in their colonies — this means an immediate drop in numbers of cats in colonies, something that Alley Cat Rescue has experienced many times with our own colonies.
Sadly, 61.34% said their local animal control agencies do NOT offer TNR and 36% said animal control agencies had trapped and killed whole colonies in their areas. And as expected with trying total eradication, 27.73% said cats moved back into these areas where they were all trapped and killed, most within 2 to 3 months after the cats were removed.
Nearly all the groups (82.35%) educate the public about feral cats and TNR—65% say this has been “somewhat” effective, with 17.65% reporting their outreach programs to be extremely successful.
In response to “working with animal control,” this answer was split between most saying this was “difficult,” a little less reporting “somewhat successful” and 21% reporting “positively.”
Working on TNR with local city/government: Although only 15% found this easy to do, I think that is a positive indicator that we are moving in the right direction.
Sadly 57% reported that it was “difficult” trying to work with their local wildlife groups.
“We have come a long way since I started on this mission to promote TNR in 1990. Back then, there was only a handful of forward-thinking groups and individuals working on implementing TNR in America. [This survey by ACR] found nearly 700 groups and we will work on identifying more in the future.”
Looking for Common Ground for Feral Cat Control
There is common ground. People on both sides of the TNR fence agree we should sterilize community cats and feral felines, and safely confine them. “Rather than fighting over TNR, we need to think about how to turn off the source of cats,” says Dr. Slater. “There’s always going to be more cats if we can’t turn that faucet off.”
Feral cat programs have impacted our world in an intangible but perhaps even more important way. TNR demonstrates that all cats have a value, even those that can’t be touched. We as human beings now recognized our ethical responsibility toward these community cats and that they should be cared for and treated humanely.
“TNR changes public attitudes about the value of cats,” says Miller. “That message is enormous.”
If you know of an organization successfully using TNR, please drop the name and link in the comments section–let’s show ’em some purr-fect love!
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book give aways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
The book also won a special award. The Dr. Jim Richards Cornell Feline Health Center Veterinary Issues Award Winner,Sponsored by Cornell University’s Feline Health Center. It’s presented to the highestquality entry on the topic of technological advances, research, new medical developments, or innovations in feline veterinary medicine. Qualifying entries include single newspaper, magazine, or newsletter articles; columns or series of articles (print or online); blogs, a website, single books, or radio/television broadcasts. The award consists of $500 and a commemorative award.
This Cornell award is named for someone very special to the CWA and to me personally. Dr. Jim Richards was always available to me (and many other writers) whenever we had need of an expert quote or explanation of feline issues. He gave so much of himself, and was one of the inspirations for creating CWA, and Jim even gave the keynote banquet address some years ago at an awards banquet. At the time, he presented what was then called simply the Cornell Feline Health Center Award.
And then, Jim tragically died in a motorcycle accident. We presented him posthumously with the Shojai Mentor Award, because he did mentor so many of us. So this past weekend, to have my book honored with an award presented in his name…well, I’m rarely speechless but this nearly did it. 🙂
I have LOTS more to write about the happenings at the 22nd Annual CWA Conference events…but that will have to come later. With about 30 pounds (no joke!) in swag from CWA, BlogPaws and wonderful vendors, my Magical-Dawg, Seren-Kitty and Karma-Kat are in for a wonderful treat! Stay tuned.
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book giveaways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
Amy Shojai, CABC is a certified cat & dog behavior consultant, a consultant to the pet industry, and the award-winning author of 35+ pet-centric books and Thrillers with Bite! Oh, and she loves bling!
Many of y’all know that I’m a member and one of the founders of the Cat Writers Association. This year, I’m also helping with organizing our annual conference, which this year will take place in conjunction with the BlogPaws.com conference in June. And yes, YOU ARE INVITED, ya don’t have to be a member of either or both organizations to attend. Lots of great writerly and blog-istic learning ops, as well as many dogs, cats ferrets and other companion animals in attendance.
A highlight of the CWA conference is the awards banquet for the best published cat work of the contest season, and the AAFP — American Association of Feline Practitioners — is one of our sponsors.
I’m delighted that our CWA president Marci Kladnik took the time to interview CWA member Dr. Elizabeth Colleran about the AAFP, cat friendly practices, working with CWA members, and getting some cat-astic info out to writers to share with their cat loving peeps. Dr. Colleran will also be a panelist at the CWA Conference in June but here’s a preview taste. Enjoy this 30 minute video interview (and yes, I couldn’t resist…I added a few questions myself).
I learned some fun stuff about cats that surprised me–take a minute and post your surprises in the comments, too. Oh, and feel free to share the video! Don’t the cats deserve to get their story told? 🙂
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book giveaways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
Amy Shojai, CABC is a certified cat & dog behavior consultant, a consultant to the pet industry, and the award-winning author of 35+ pet-centric books and Thrillers with Bite! Oh, and she loves bling!
For the past week, I’ve battled the “crud” with congestion, fever, coughing, aches and more. Apparently everything from the flu, pneumonia, colds and any combination thereof have afflicted many of my friends here in North Texas. I sure hope you dodged the bug!
Magical-Dawg thinks he’s “helping” by stealing the soiled tissues. Eww…sorry, TMI.
When you work for someone or a company, there’s always a bit of “wiggle room” built in, and you can call the Boss to say you’re just not able to attend to business and need a sick day. But that doesn’t happen when you work for yourself. It reminds me of that commercial playing these days, where the parent tries to tell the toddler, “I need a sick day…”
When you work for yourself, that just ain’t happening.
So those of us who are self-employed limp along and do our best to fulfill commitments. I don’t remember the last time that I forgot to send in my newspaper column–how embarrassing! And I didn’t have much of a voice and knew that coughing on camera wouldn’t be appealing, so yesterday I stayed away from my regular TV Pet Talk segment. Meanwhile, I’d love to unscrew my head to get rid of the yuck and the painful breathing/choking/coughing trifecta.
I’m a bit better today. And I promise, you can’t catch my “bug” by reading the blog, it’s not that kind of virus, LOL! I did want to update y’all on my must-do-projects I worked on despite the brain-fuzz-icity.
Cat Writers’ Association Collaborates with BLOGPAWS!
I’m honored to be the 2015-16 CWA Conference/Program Chair, and this week we announced an official collaboration with BlogPaws Conference 2015. I’m delighted that the CWA-branded WRITER TRACK of two professional panels will be highlighted at this prestigious blogging and social networking event.
Publish Or Perish? This publishing panel features pet book authors and publishers Amy Shojai of CWA, Pam Johnson-Bennett a best selling cat behaviorist and author, Lisa Erspamer a best selling publisher of cat and dog books, and Bob Mayer, a best selling author and publisher. The panel will discuss the current state of publishing from the “traditional” to “indie” paths, how publishing has changed, why bloggers should write a book (or become a publisher), how to choose your publishing path, pitfalls to avoid, and how to leverage social media and blogging to build your author platform.
Bridging the Gap Between Bloggers and Publishing This publishing panel features Layla Morgan Wilde, Janiss Garza, Alana Grelyak, and Deb Barnes. The session will be a “how to use your blog as a springboard to professional publishing” by learning how to write, research, edit, and design your blog posts in such a manner that they become a portfolio of quality work to help open the door to publishing deals. Learn more about the speakers and events at the CWA Website here.
GOODNEWSFORPETS.com INTERVIEW!
I’ve had the privilege of knowing and working with Lea-Ann Germinder for many years, and am thrilled to be featured in an interview on her fabulous GoodNewsForPets site. You can check out the interview here–but be sure to check out all the marvelous pet-centric news and information provided in this stellar site.
SHOW & TELL PROGRESS
The next thriller has progressed in fits and starts, it seems. But I’m determined to get this book finished and into the “paws” of all of you fantastic reader-fans who have been sooooo very patient. I’m very much hoping to launch the next NAME THAT DOG and NAME THAT CAT contest late this month, so stay tuned. The first two books HIDE AND SEEK and SHOW AND TELL would never have happened without you…and the contests and wonderful characters y’all suggested made them that much better.
Now, it’s your turn. Have you been afflicted with the “crud” or something similar, but still had to work? How’d you manage? Did your boss understand? (My boss is a b*tch about being lazy, LOL!) Do tell!
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book giveaways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
Amy Shojai, CABC is a certified cat & dog behavior consultant, a consultant to the pet industry, and the award-winning author of 35+ pet-centric books and Thrillers with Bite! Oh, and she loves bling!
Those who regularly read this blog know that formal “reviews” don’t happen very often. But lately I’ve received some invitations and free products to try, and they somehow all seem of a common aromatic theme (ahem!) and so today the blog offers a litter-ary assortment for kitty potty products. I was sent free samples from the manufacturers, and all opinions expressed are my own…and Seren’s.
Last November at the Cat Writers Association conference, those in attendance received thumb drives from Tidy Cats (a longtime conference sponsor) that included some quite clever promotions of the new “natural” product Tidy Cats Pure Nature. They also provided each attendee a coupon for a free bag of the litter product for us to try.
Full disclosure, my cat Seren is a longtime fan of the Tidy Cats clay/clumping product so I wasn’t sure how she’d appreciate a change. At 16, she’s a bit of a fuss-budget old lady cat, too. I stuck the coupon in my purse, and each time litter box re-fill rolled around I shopped for the new litter.
I’m sure the nice folks at Tidy Cats expected a mention much earlier but it was nearly six months before Pure Nature appeared in our local stores. I only recently had the chance to give Seren the opportunity to weigh in.
As a result of attending the recent BlogPaws conference, I met with lots of paw-some products companies and got an invitation to review the Litter One kit, a self-contained fully disposable and biodegradable litter box system using pine pellets. The kit lasts 4 to 6 weeks and costs $24.95. I was sent a free kit to test with Seren, her Cranky-ness.
About the same time, I received an invitation to review the Litter Genie (above). How convenient! It’s designed along the same lines as the diaper pail product for babies only works as an odor/crappiocca container for litter box creativity. I’ve been using the Litter Locker for many years, ever since I won one as part of a Cat Writers Association awards (do you see a trend here? 🙂 ) With the new cat box substrates to test, it was a no brainer to accept a free Litter Genie to see how well it compared to my previous containment system.
I recently blogged about how litter evolved, and what cats tend to prefer. I always tell my consulting clients, “don’t mess with success!” and if you have a cat loyal to the box and substrate, don’t change it. Seren has never had an out-of-body(box) experience, though, and is a very confident roll-with-the-punches sort of feline. Heck, she’s got the Magical-Dawg totally buffaloed. Even so, I very carefully introduced her to both of these new litters. I added about half an inch of her favorite clumping-clay litter over the top of the new varieties. And I set the boxes side by side.
SEREN’S REVIEW: LITTER ONE
Seren totally ignored the Litter One. I suspect she didn’t recognize the pine pellets as appropriate substrate for digging. Cats tend to like very soft textures as their paw pads are quite sensitive, and since Seren is quite arthritic, this may also have been an issue. Granted, if that had been ALL that I offered (she had no other choice) she may have transitioned more willingly to give this a try.
Personally, I very much like the “environmentally friendly” design, and the pellets smell fresh and do offer odor containment. Litter One was awarded the Becker’s Best Award at the 2013 Global Pet Expo as the best new product–(that’s my buddy and one-time co-author Dr. Marty Becker!) and the innovation is clever and appeals to pet parents. For cats already accustomed to pelleted substrate, this would be a terrific option. I would caution that the size of the Litter One box may be an issue with large cats. Although it is a standard commercial box size, those tend to run small which is why I often recommend purchasing a much larger plastic storage bin-type box instead. For a multi-cat household, remember the 1+1 rule (one box per cat, plus one) may impact the cost factor as well.
Litter One offers a variety of Partner Programs for veterinarians, humane societies, rescue centers and other cat service agencies–kudos to the company. I’m all for owner convenience and preference. But cat vote trumps humans paws down.
SEREN’S REVIEW: PURE NATURE
A 12-pound bag costs about $16
Seren immediately accepted the Pure Nature without hesitation.
It’s lighter weight than clumping clay, has a fresh scent, and feels (to me) very similar in texture but smoother. It clumps in a similar fashion to clay products, too. The clumps are not quite as solid, though, and may break apart if you scoop too soon after the…uh…deposit…but I didn’t find issues with them breaking apart. With multiple cats that tromp over top of waste before you have a chance to scoop, that could be a problem. This product has much less dust than the clay clumping Tidy Cats I used before, too.
The scent is a bit too strong for my tastes but didn’t seem to bother Seren–that could be an issue with some cats. Kitty doesn’t mind her own smell but harsh perfumes can really make her avoid the facilities. But where I really noticed a difference was tracking–there was almost no tracking compared to the clay. What did spill from the box vaccumed up completely while the clay clumping is so heavy it always leaves some behind. Seren’s primary box is in my office on carpet, in my walk-in-closet-aka-audio-recording-studio, so keeping it clean and fresh is important.
Will I purchase another bag when it’s time to refurbish the kitty potty? Absolutely–if I can find it locally again. That could be a deal breaker, although online suppliers do offer the product (click the picture for a link).
AMY’S REVIEW: LITTER GENIE & LITTER LOCKER
Now we come to the Litter Genie. It costs about $14.99 ($7.99 for refill) at Target, and requires disposable plastic baggy liners that come in cartridge inserts, about $24 for a 3-pack, each said to last up to two months per cat. I’ve not used it yet for two months so can’t speak to this. Once loaded into the plastic container, the lid opens for you to dump scooped waste into the top opening, which is contained inside the plastic sleeve liner. A spring-loaded internal plastic divider ‘pinches’ closed the neck of the bag to block the reservoir of waste below and contain odor. The system comes with a litter box scoop.
For a single cat, the Litter Genie may work effectively. I found that the light weight of the Pure Nature litter meant I had to shake the container to ensure the waste dropped completely through. I also had to juggle to pull out the divider so that it would pass through to the bottom of the bin, a somewhat awkward design. Therefore, I had to fill up the top bin to capacity, stop, pull out the divider and agitate the pail to make it drop through, and then release the spring loaded pinch-divider. Also, the scoop (which fits in the side) is tiny and pretty much worthless as a scooper unless you have a kitten. Once the bin becomes full, there’s a “child safe cutter” to cut off the bag but I couldn’t get that to work and used scissors. With Seren (a tiny single cat) the bin filled up pretty quickly and I can’t imagine how often a multi-cat household would need to do this. The Litter Genie worked well and effectively and is an economic option for single cat households. 9.5 x 8.5 x 17 inches ; 3.3 pounds
The Litter Locker is pricier–but also works better–at about $46 and inserts cost about $29 for a 5-pack.
Once I’ve run out of the insert cartridges for the Litter Genie I’ll go back to using the Litter Locker (above). It costs more than double but has a much larger capacity to hold waste, and is much simpler to use without having to juggle pulling out/holding the canister itself. It also came with a (pretty worthless tiny) litter scooper, and I suspect this design “feature” is more for looks than functionality. It also uses plastic sleeves in cartridges inserted in the top. Waste also is dropped through the top opening–so far, very similar to the Litter Genie, but there the comparisons change.
There’s no spring-loaded pull-out smell-container to manage. Instead, simply close the lid, and then turn the side carousel a half turn. That wraps the waste-filled sleeve around the internal spindle. To empty, open the hinged middle, scissor off one end and knot, and toss the bagged waste away. Because of the larger capacity, it’s better able to manage multiple cats’ waste, and with my one tiny kitty, it doesn’t need to be emptied very often at all. The Litter Locker is 14″ long, 8.8″ wide and 15.4″ high.
How do you handle getting rid of your cats’ creativity? Do you prefer “natural” litter? How do you choose what kind of litter products to use with your cats–ever try something new and how did your cats vote?
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book giveaways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
Amy Shojai, CABC is a certified cat & dog behavior consultant, a consultant to the pet industry, and the award-winning author of 35+ pet-centric books and Thrillers with Bite! Oh, and she loves bling!
Today’s post will be short and sweet, just like “tips” should be. Lots of folks who visit blogs also host their own blogs–and images make ’em great! Just a caution, though, to treat images the same as you’d treat text and respect copyright. Some bloggers have learned this the hard way and been slammed with lawsuits by “lifting” images or even portions of text from other online sources. I’m not an attorney, but “fair use” generally covers all but the most egregious infringements–BUT, lately one law firm has targeted bloggers.
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Thanks to my colleagues a the Cat Writers’s Association for sharing information about the Righthaven Victims blog which explains how you can avoid being a victim of frivolous lawsuits. It includes definition of “fair use” so you have some guidance for your future blogs. There’s plenty of royalty-free images on the ‘Net and no reason to put yourself at risk. And yep, I own copyright in all the images in this post. *s*
Google copyright infringement case also got punted last week. They took it upon themselves to digitally scan and make available out of print books they believed to be in public domain–but lots of authors’ work got caught up in the round up, including mine. Why should Google harvest income from these books and force authors to jump through hoops to “opt out” of the program? Well, a judged agreed and rejected the proposed settlement. It’s not finished, of course–you can learn more about the whole @#$%^&*! situation here.
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Blair Sorrel, Founder of Street Zaps, sent a warning to beware of contact voltage hazards that can electrocute dogs, people, horses and their riders or really any critter. The voltage can mame, cause severe pain or kill your pet in an instant. Any metal fixture potentially could conduct current–and dogs in pain lash out and bite. Blair urges everyone to simply EYEBALL THE BLOCK, AND AVOID A SHOCK. Look for plastic, wood and cardboard that does not conduct electricity, and listen to your dog–if he’s resistent to walking in a particular area, change directions. It could save his life, and yours.
So where do you get your blog pictures? Have you ever had your writerly work swiped and used illegally? What about “shocking” pet situations–static electricity thank goodness is the most I’ve had to face.
I love hearing from you, so please share comments, tips and questions–and to stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter with pet book give-aways! Be sure and check out tomorrow’s Woof Wednesday for some breaking news!
Welcome to all my new visitors. I suspect my Pawnation article on senior cats may have led you here. Today’s blog comes a bit late, reporting some exciting news from last month’s Cat Writers’ Association (CWA) conference and contest. I’ve posted some photos from the event–you’ll notice that I enjoy wearing sparkles from time to time. *s* Yep, there are other professional journalist out there who have a special interest in cats (and in dogs, but that’s a future blog).
The CWA was founded in 1992, and our 17th annual events took place this year in White Plains, New York. I spoke at the conference about my “kindle-ization” experience that was first reported in this blog back in April, and resulted in bringing several books back to life including Complete Care for Your Aging Cat, Complete Kitten Care and others.
I was honored to receive several awards, including several Certificate of Excellence, three Muse Medallions (that’s like Cat Writers “Emmy”), and also two special corporate awards. Yee-haw! I’m still a-purring!
These included the Tidy Cats Behavior Award of a silver engraved bowl and cash honorarium, for my cats.About.com series of articles Cat Talk: Cat Language Explained Cat talk and cat language puzzles us. Cats have been regarded for centuries as mysterious, solitary, unpredictable creatures because we can t understand what they’re saying. But savvy cat owners can decipher cat language with this article.
The second special award was my third win of the Friskies Writer of the Year Award of a Baccarat Cat figurine and cash honorarium for all my work entered. These included Muse Medallion wins for a Catnip (Tufts University) newsletter article “Dispelling Feline Myths” and two more cats.About.com online articles that address problems typical of aging cats. Separation Anxiety in Cats often affects older felines as well as some youngsters. And very old cats can suffer from Kitty Senility, sometimes referred to as feline Alzheimer’s. Both articles offer suggestions for dealing with these issues.
Thanks again for visiting, and please come back–I’m an equal opportunity pet writer. Doggy issues are often covered here, as well as writer-ly angst, how-to, and more.
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book giveaways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
Amy Shojai, CABC is a certified cat & dog behavior consultant, a consultant to the pet industry, and the award-winning author of 35+ pet-centric books and Thrillers with Bite! Oh, and she loves bling!
The month of November had me running , and I’m still playing catch-up. First, the BIG NEWS–
I’ve a new book contract! This is a breed book on the American Pit Bull Terrier, and is due January 1st, so I’m typing like the wind to meet my deadline.
I spent the weekend before Thanksgiving in White Plains, New York overseeing the Cat Writers’ Association’s 16th Annual Writers Conference (www.catwriters.org) , to great success. We had several editors and agents, a host of great speakers, and an exciting awards banquet. I’m please to have won the association’s highest honor, the CWA Muse Medallion, for my Pet Peeves radio show at www.PetLifeRadio.com, my CBS-TV Pet Talk segment, and an online article on cat claw training at www.shojai.com.
In other news, I was flown to St. Louis by the Purina CatChow group earlier in the month for an all-day photo shoot (with cats!), to update the CatChow.com website and mentor pages. You see, I’ve written an “emotional health” online column as a Cat Chow mentor for many years, along with other veterinarians, and Purina plans to promote our advice columns more widely in 2010. This probably will be in conjunction with the Animal Planet “HousecatHousecall” show.
That same week, I traveled to Austin, Texas for the annual meeting of the CATalyst effort. This group seeks to improve/promote the profile of cats, in order to put them on equal footing (paws?) with dogs that receive more funding for health and other pet issues. I’ll write, radio, and tv on the subject in the future.
I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay up to date with the latest book giveaways and appearances related to my September Day pet-centric THRILLERS WITH BITE!
Amy Shojai, CABC is a certified cat & dog behavior consultant, a consultant to the pet industry, and the award-winning author of 35+ pet-centric books and Thrillers with Bite! Oh, and she loves bling!
Research Helping Ferals
The TNR concept gained national attention in 1995 when Joan Miller of the Cat Fanciers Association presented a talk on cat lifestyle diversity at the AVMA Animal Welfare Forum. The next year she and Dr. Patricia Olson (then affiliated with the American Humane Association) co-coordinated the first National Conference On Feral Cats in Denver. Presenters offered a variety of views, and concluded that national coordination was necessary. “Alley Cat Allies grew more rapidly after that,” says Miller.
The Vacuum Effect
Those who regularly read this blog know that formal “reviews” don’t happen very often. But lately I’ve received some invitations and free products to try, and they somehow all seem of a common aromatic theme (ahem!) and so today the blog offers a litter-ary assortment for kitty potty products. I was sent free samples from the manufacturers, and all opinions expressed are my own…and Seren’s.
