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Quirky Folk - October 2008

The Ancient Egyptians Sure Knew how to Treat Their Cats

October 30th 2008 21:00



Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.


I learn something new every day. Curled up in bed last night, I was reading yet another book about cats. This one was Legacy of the Cat by Gloria Stephens. Like many cat books, this one began with a history of their domestication. The difference was the author explained how revered cats were in ancient Egypt: she said cats were so valuable that the ancient Egyptians made laws that made it a capital crime to kill or injure a cat. If there was a fire, people were expected to save the cat first, then the humans. Unlike today’s Western society, it wasn’t taboo to grieve for a deceased cat. When a cat died the whole family went into deep mourning. They would express their grief by crying, shaving their eyebrows and beating their breasts. The deceased cat would also be mummified and buried in a special cemetery. What a refreshing outlook when compared to how cats are treated in many societies today.


Imagine what a difference we could make to animals if they were all valued like this.
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Butterscotch’s Changeling?

October 29th 2008 21:01




Playing with Butterscotch the other day, I had the strangest thought: what if the cat I was playing with actually wasn’t Butterscotch but a changeling? Just think about it: a few months ago my friend Brett let Butterscotch out so he could climb up onto the roof. He and his brother, Gingersnap love to do this. A few hours later Gingersnap comes back home but there’s no sign of Butterscotch. Brett is worried but goes to bed, hoping Butterscotch will come any minute. The next morning, Brett knows something’s up; Butterscotch has never stayed out for so long. The search for Butterscotch then begins and ends four days later with a phone call from a lady saying she thinks she has his cat. The two are happily reunited. End of story. Or maybe not.


Logically speaking, I know my thoughts are ridiculous. Firstly, Butterscotch is a Tonkinese cat and, as far as I know, there’s not many of these lying around. Secondly, when Brett found Butterscotch he called out his name and he responded. A changeling wouldn’t have done that.

Still, it doesn’t help that Butterscotch looks different in the latest batch of photos I’ve taken of him. He looks less imperious and grumpy. In fact, in the photo above, his eyes look soulful and gentle. His fur also looks darker – Butterscotch used to be cream coloured but now his fur looks more ginger-coloured – just like his brother’s. Compare that photo to the one below and you will see why I’ve been having these changeling thoughts.
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Butterscotch Almost Hits the Roof

October 28th 2008 21:01




I was at my friend Brett’s place the other day, playing with his cat, Gingersnap. After a while I asked Brett where Butterscotch, his other cat, was. Brett said “Up there.” I looked up in the direction he was pointing to and gasped in shock. There he was, right on top of the pantry, his head almost touching the ceiling, doing what comes naturally to him which is to perch on the highest object in whichever room he’s in and watch the world. Now I’ve heard cats can really leap high distances but can he really fly two metres? Considering Butterscotch is the size of an average cat and hasn’t got wings, I find this amazing. What is even more amazing is my ex-neighbour’s cats, who weigh about 8 kilos each can also do this. They’re not fat cats; they’re just a large breed. So wouldn’t their weight literally hold them back? Too bad I’ve never seen a cat fly up so high as I’d love to know how they do this. Mind you, Brett has said he has seen them to this.

Brett says he finds it funny to watch his cats Butterscotch and Gingersnap try to fly up onto the top of his pantry. Brett says Butterscotch can easily make the two metre leap but Gingersnap, being the smaller and less feisty of the two, usually misses and ends up landing on his bum.

I was so amazed by the sight of him up so high I had to take a picture. Here is my darling, handsome boy.
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PetMedics: Your 24-Hour Pet Ambulance Service

October 27th 2008 21:00


I read about this in last weekend’s Sun-Herald. PetMedics, the brain child of Sydney couple Niccole George and Gareth O’Connor, is a 24-hour animal emergency service. What a wonderful idea! And it’s about time.
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Would you Leave Your Dogs $700,000?

October 26th 2008 21:00


Now I wish I was a dog. Two dogs named Wags and Deefa inherited $700,000 when their wealthy owner passed away six months ago.
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Not Another Cat Book!

October 23rd 2008 21:00


Being a fan of all things feline and a bit of a hoarder, it took me a while to decide whether or not to buy this book:
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The Incredible Talking Cats

October 22nd 2008 21:00
Now I have a book at home that covers talking cats and dogs, winged cats and calculating horses but I found it hard to believe until my sister sent me this video:


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Cleaning up After Higgins and Miggins

October 21st 2008 21:00


Higgins

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Please Let Your Puppy Sleep

October 20th 2008 21:00
My sister sent me the link to this very cute puppy trying to sleep on the stairs. I wish the owner would stop talking and laughing and just let the poor thing sleep. Imagine how you would feel if you were curled up in bed, trying to sleep and someone is talking loudly at you in an annoying, cackling voice. The puppy looks exhausted with its head slumped over the step. At first I thought the puppy was leaning over a table because that’s what the step looks like. Wow! To think the puppy is so small.


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The Pressure is on to Adopt a Pet

October 19th 2008 21:00
I have a friend who often asks for difficult favours. Now, I normally am happy to help my friends out but this particular friend tends to ask for hard favours…such as getting her a job, lending her $400…I feel bad that I have to say no to her. Anyway, a few years ago she told me she had a ginger tabby kitten and could I please find a good home for it. The first person I asked was my cat-loving neighbour. She said no because she already had two cats (which she rescued after her daughter’s cat had an unwanted litter of kittens) and because she was allergic to ginger tabbies. I don’t know what happened to the tabby but again I felt bad about not being able to help her. I was also younger back then and with my nightclubbing lifestyle, I didn’t think I could give a cat enough attention.

Now another friend of mine knows someone who works at an animal shelter. So he’s asked me to check out their web site to see if there are any animals that I could give a home to. What’s holding me back is this persistent feeling I can’t give an animal enough attention. For example, my old neighbour is at home all day so she can play with her cats and keep them company (they love to lie on her while she is lying on her lounge, watching TV). I also have more practical considerations: 1) needing to get my landlord’s permission and 2) being able to find accommodation should I need to move in the future. It doesn’t help that this friend tells me he knows people who have pets who are finding it very hard to find pet friendly accommodation.
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Wanted…a Cat Costume for a Fancy Dress Party

October 16th 2008 21:00


Photo by Andreibanc. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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The Lengths Some People Will go to to Keep a Secret Pet

October 15th 2008 21:00


Photo by Adriano. Used in accordance with the terms of Wikimedia Commons’ GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.

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I Wished I was a cat Until I Read This…

October 14th 2008 21:00


Photo by Lurtur. Used in accordance with the terms of Wikimedia Commons’ GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.

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Bonsai Kitty Hoax

October 13th 2008 21:00
I first read about this practice on an anti-animal cruelty web site. Bascially, kittens are inserted into glass jars. The idea is, as they grow, their bodies will mould into the shape of the jar. I couldn’t believe anyone could try something so cruel. My Google on this practice revealed it was nothing but an elaborate internet hoax, much to my relief. The dead give away is pictures of an entire bonsai kitten are absent from the web site. The other give away is the numerous fake testimonials on the web site’s guestbook, and the few comments from people who’ve written in to express their outrage. I am sure if this was for real there would be more emails from the latter.

The web site’s creators, some students at MIT, say this web site is supposed to be a p*ss-take. Taken in this context, I can see how people would find the guest book section funny, although as an animal lover, I also find the web site tasteless. What’s next? Bonsai puppy?
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Faceless Cat Blog

October 12th 2008 21:00
I first read about this blog in the local paper. It mentioned this blog was about the life of a faceless cat called Chase. The cat had suffered an accident when she was a kitten. At first I thought the writer meant the cat had no head because how can a cat be without a face? But it would be impossible for a cat to survive without a head…like, der!

I looked closely at the story. Unfortunately (or should that be fortunately?) the pictures accompanying the story were really small so all I could make out was a black and white cat. There was nothing unusual about that except the cat had a pink face.
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Just Another Caterpillar Dream

October 9th 2008 21:00

Photo supplied by Thuresson. Used in accordance with the terms of Wikimedia Commons’ GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.


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Do You Have Invisible Pets?

October 8th 2008 21:00


Photo by Heinzelmannleinn. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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Some People Have Too Much Time on Their Hands…

October 7th 2008 21:00
If you look really, really closely on this video you might see an image of Jesus on this cat’s right foreleg. It’s fuzzy and took me a while before I could see it. Can you see it too? I feel sorry for the poor cat who’s wriggling around while being held up to the camera. It can’t be too comfortable to be held against its will.

There are certain people out there who have too much time on their hands and will read things into almost anything…
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My Friends Don’t Tell me They Have Nasty Pets

October 6th 2008 21:00


Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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Do You Believe Animals Have Ghosts?

October 5th 2008 21:00
On the night my beloved ducks Brown-o and White-o went missing, my sister, mother and I swore we heard them quacking softly in our backyard. When we went outside to check, there was no sign of them. My mother, who’s interested in the paranormal, said the sounds were of their ghosts and that the ducks had already passed on and it was their way of letting us know they were now okay.

I didn’t know what to think at the time but just as my mother predicted, we never saw the ducks again. If I was alone it would have been all too easy to explain the quacking away as being a figment of my imagination but when two other people say they have heard the same thing…
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Do Plants Have Feelings?

October 2nd 2008 21:00


This is another one of life’s big mysteries. Because plants don’t make sounds, we tend to assume although they are living, they don’t have feelings. Just imagine how people’s eating habits would change if they knew plants had feelings. For example, if flowers could scream when people tried to pick them, maybe that would make you think twice before plucking one out from the garden. What would vegetarians do? If the whole concept behind vegetarianism is not eating meat as that involves killing a living animal with feelings, wouldn’t that also apply to plants if they had feelings?
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Why do People Abandon Their Pets When They Move?

October 1st 2008 21:00

Photo supplied by Liftarn. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.


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This Had me in Tears

October 1st 2008 03:50
I am in mourning again. This time it is over the sad grisly fate of two dogs:

Your text goes here
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