Industry Figure Tom Chappell

Tony, last year’s Christmas Catten, has been going through a rough patch lately, which doesn’t seem fair for a little guy who’s already had more than his share of challenges for a one-year-old.
I spoke to the vet this morning, and she said that his blood work suggested that he might have Addison’s Disease, [...]

Well, I took Tony, the Christmas Catten, to the vet, and she said that his abdomen was filled with some kind of fluid, and that his gums were pale. Not very good signs, and not a very easy life, so far, for such a young catten - just a little over one year old. [...]

…and then yesterday Tony (the Christmas Catten) started to look peaked again. Don’t know what’s up with him; maybe he has some sort of chronic infection. I’m taking him to the vet again this morning.
-Tom
That Darn Catten:

See Tuesday’s Catten post.

By now, I’ve spoken with several of my friends about the recent election. I, of course, am wildly elated, and have urged them all to “dare to hope for too much!” My friends are less sanguine, and while all are at least cautiously optimistic, from that starting point, they diverge:
Industry Figure Sally Helmerich [...]

I did a little Googling on the Internet today, and found the probable reason for Tony the Catten’s wobbliness:
Spastic cats (CH cats) are sometimes born to females who have suffered Feline Infectious Enteritis (FIE, Feline Panleukopaenia, Feline Distemper) during pregnancy. Cats which have suffered brain damage through an accident may also be unco-ordinated so these [...]

Yesterday, Queenie stopped avoiding Tony and started being hostile to him instead. Tony would sometimes stand and resist, and sometimes beat a hasty (though strategic) retreat.
Today, some sort of thaw has developed. Queenie is still chasing Tony around the house, and there’s still an aggressive component, a “This is me showing you who’s [...]

When I got up early on Thursday morning after Tony the catten’s first night here, he was still huddled in his cage. I went over to the cage and talked to him softly and petted him some more, and right then and there he stretched and said, “Well, I can’t stay in this cage [...]

I have mentioned before in this space the perils of visiting my Mother-in-Law, Virginia, who is active in cat rescue. And yet, Sylvia and I went over to her house twice this month, to visit with her and Phil, and her son Bill and his son Alan. And (and this is going to totally [...]

We live in Sunland, in California, and for years I would walk around the streets near the foothills at night, and hear these eerie tropical animal calls. And what would make crazy jungle calls in Los Angeles, you ask?
Hint: they sometimes say to the family, “Hey, kids, everybody onto the car!”

Click on [...]

Our wonderful cat, Batman, died tonight. He was a great cat, and he had a pretty good run, 16 years.

He is shown here under the grip of the Catnip Frenzy. He was an avid enthusiast, and would often move from cat to cat, bullying them out of their rightful share.