In 2005 I lost my dad to cancer. In 2007, my  mom, who had developed dementia, crossed over too. I use the expression crossed over because I just like the sound of it. A week and a half ago, my brother (the only family I had left) had a fatal heart attack…totally unexpected. To say that I’m in shock and devastated is understating it.

Such comfort!
Photo by Arkansas ShutterBug at Flickr.com

In each case, my cats have been a huge factor in my recovery from these horrible events that we all have to face and deal with.  They have been my angels, my saviors.

Animals are so in tune with our emotions, much more than humans I feel. They know when we are upset and are right there to comfort us. They stay closer to us, give us their wonderful unconditional love and let us cry without making us feel bad about it.

They keep me going. I have to make sure they are fed and their litter boxes cleaned, because, despite my despair, they come first.  I also have to step outside of myself and give them attention and love. I have to think of someone else besides me. They make me get up each day, when all I want to do is hide under the covers.

I have taken in my brother’s two cats and I have to help them cope. Their whole world has changed too and they need extra TLC. They miss my brother, they have to adjust to new surroundings, share with other cats…it’s so hard for them too. But having to help them helps me.

All of you cat lovers (or any animal lover) know what I mean. Our animals are such a comfort and I’d be lost without them. They can truly help you when you are drowning in grief and sadness. I am alone now as far as humans go (except for a few friends) but not truly alone because of all my babies. Frankly, they are better company than most people. For one thing, I can just be myself. They don’t judge me or make me feel like I have to put up a front.

If you’re reading this, thank you.  If you are going through a rough period, your cats will help you through it.

If you have a cat that sprays, you know the importance of having a good product to deal with the odor this leaves. It is so strong and unpleasant. Years ago I had a wonderful product for this purpose but, unfortunately, they quit making it quite some time ago.  Over the years I have tried so many different brands of odor/stain removers that I’ve lost count. I hate to say that most of them were not very good and one even made the odor worse!

Who me? I did what?
Photo by Tina Phillips at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Even if you aren’t dealing with a cat that sprays, we all have the hairballs, other vomiting incidents and missed litter box accidents to clean up. A friend of mine, Dawn, just recently told me about Fizzion, a product she uses. I ordered it from Amazon and have spent the last month testing it out. I will never recommend something to you that I don’t have personal experience with.

This product is terrific. First of all, the way you “prepare” it is great. You fill the bottle with water, drop in two tablets and let it sit until dissolved. No more trying to pour more solution from a heavy refill bottle into your spray bottle. If you’re like me, I usually ended up spilling quite a bit of it.

It is fizzy…hence the name, I assume…and is very effective at removing odors. Some of my ferals outside (who live in their screened- in house) spray the things I have  out there for them. I tried it on those items and the odor was gone. In the house, I have cleaned up several vomiting incidents and it has cleaned the carpet beautifully.

It will last for 18 months after mixed and there are  refill tablets you can then order. It’s also natural and safe for children, pets and your home. I’m thrilled to have found this and wanted to pass it on to you. Just click on image to order.

Something else: While this has nothing to do with cats, I like to share sites that I think are good and my friend Dawn Reklai has one for couples who are trying to have a baby and having problems doing so. It’s very informative, so if you have a need for this kind of site please visit hers at www.howtoconceiveababy. Thanks!

I can’t get enough of Maru, the adorable cat in these videos! Thought this might give you a much needed laugh for the day!

Photo by jon_a_ross at Flickr.com

I saw this somewhere: “Why do you think they call it furniture?” and thought it was cute. I have to admit I don’t clean the cat hair off my furniture as often as I should, but then there comes that point where it must be done! Here are the ways I’ve found to be the best way to do it.

My absolute favorite tool is a self-cleaning lint brush. These are wonderful at getting the hair off and then, with a few clicks back and forth, they put the hair into a chamber in the tool. Regular lint brushes are a pain, because you have to then rub them in the opposite direction to get the hair off. Then you still have the hair on something else…very time consuming and frustrating. The self cleaning kind aren’t expensive either…another huge plus in my world! Here are two from Amazon (an affiliate…if you click on it and buy it, I get a small commission) you can check out.

My next favorite method is a rubber glove. I usually use the disposable latex gloves. I get mine at Sams Club and so they are inexpensive. Some fabrics work better with this method. Just put the glove on, rub in one direction and it will gather up the hair. If it doesn’t work in one direction, be sure to try the other direction, as some fabrics will only clean well done in a certain direction.

One word of warning. The glove can get a little hot when you’re really working away at it, so take a well deserved break once in a while!  Also, it sometimes helps to just slightly dampen it. I have found some fabrics that just seem to defy being cleaned, but if I dampen the glove it works.

Along the same lines is using a damp paper towel. Make sure it’s damp enough but, obviously, not drippy at all. I use this on my pillow cases and it works great. That way I can freshen them up without having to wash them every day.

I used to use those sticky lint rollers, but they took forever to get the hair off and I would end up using half a roll just to clean a small area. I read that they leave behind a slight layer of that sticky stuff that actually attracts hair. Makes sense to me, so I have given up on them.

I think I have tried just about every tool and method out there and, honestly, the three I mentioned are the only ones that work for me. Hope this helps you “de-fur” your clothes and furniture. If you have a good method I haven’t mentioned, please tell me in the comment section below. I would love to hear about it!

It always kind of amazes me when a person’s cat gets scared and runs and they don’t understand why. The other day I was at a friends house and her cat was lying on the floor.  She made us some coffee and cake and had it on a large tray. We decided to go to the living room and had to pass Simone, her cat, on the way there. As she went by Simone, she swung the tray around to the side, which happened to be right over Simone’s head. Simone looked up, jumped and ran off. My friend looked at me and said, “What on earth? “  She couldn’t understand why Simone had taken off so suddenly.

I love my friend, but I couldn’t help but mentally shake my head over her total lack of understanding. I finally told her that I think the tray scared her. I’m not sure she really got what I meant, even then. Being my friend, I let it drop, but it made me realize how so many of us just don’t see things the way our cat does. Honestly, it took me a long time to think about this too.

Image courtesy of chrisroll at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Imagine you’re in New York City and your looking up at all of the skyscrapers. There they are, looming up above you and that sight can be somewhat intimidating. Now think about how tall your cat is and how tall some of your furniture is. That six shelf bookcase in the corner looks like a skyscraper to your cat. It’s intimidating.

Have you ever had a big bird fly directly over your head while you were outside? What did you do? When it happened to me, I ducked, even though the bird did not touch me.  If the bird continued to swoop at me, I would run. Therefore, when my friend swung the tray over Simone’s head, she ran. Even though the tray was at least 5 feet above her head, she just saw something coming at her. It’s really very simple.

Another example is when people lean down to pet or pick up your cat. They trust YOU so they don’t run (unless they think you’re going to give them a pill, if yours are like mine!) but a stranger is a different thing entirely. If someone squats down and just talks to the cat first before calmly reaching out to them, they will usually do fairly well. But imagine a person just bending over quickly and reaching out…that’s scary. Imagine even how big your hand looks to them.

As your cat gets used to their home and the furniture, they learn it’s safe. They don’t look at the bookcase as a looming skyscraper anymore…it becomes something they try to figure out how to climb! The next time your cat freaks out, get down to their level. Put your self down to their size and imagine what they saw. You’ll see what spooked them. They are so little and the world can be a scary place. Just picturing how they see things will make you more sensitive to their feelings and we all want that!