Yes, You Can Train Your Cat (by WSJ)

By nature, our feline friends are solitary, antisocial hunters who bristle at being cooped up—but we can change the way we relate to one another

The Wall Street Journal 12 August 2016: "Dogs are man’s best friend. Cats? They’re more aloof. Even the millions of doting cat owners will often acknowledge that their pets can be enigmatic, hard to please and frustratingly antisocial. They run away. They hide. They scratch. They refuse to get in the carrier when it’s time to go to the vet. They kill rodents and birds and offer up the bloody carcasses up as if they were gifts.

None of this is the fault of cats. They are just being cats, obeying the rules that nature has laid down for them and in them. The fault is ours—both for holding wrongheaded expectations of these natural-born, solitary hunters and for failing to train them (yes, cats can be trained) in ways that make sense for felines, not just humans. It is long past time that we changed the way we... read on"

Simon's Cat Logic - Do Cats Fall In Love? - About Neutering and Spaying

As always, Simon Tofield has created a lovely clip, and goes with his "Cat Logic" videos a step further. Cat expert Nicky Treverrow talks about mating habits and the advantage of neutering and spaying, starting at 1 min 05 secs ...

In Timaru, New Zealand, Cats keep going missing (via TheGuardian)

One owner who set up a Facebook group to search for pet Moses uncovers a peculiar and unsettling trend in suburbs of Timaru, New Zealand.

The Guardian 7 July 2016: "When Ashleigh Hicks’s cat Moses went missing, she was concerned because it was unusual, but assumed he would soon return home. However, it appears Moses is not the only one to have disappeared in odd circumstances. He is vanished cat No 50 this year alone in the city of Timaru, in New Zealand’s South Island. '

A common factor I have noticed in the majority of these stories is that the cats simply disappeared for no particular reason, cats that don’t tend to wander far,' Hicks said. 'We all thought this is too much of a coincidence and suspected foul play.' After Hicks set up a Facebook closed group called #freethefurbabies, she realised just how many of the animals had gone missing in similar circumstances. The group now has more than 100 members. Members have begun pooling information; including times and..." read on.

The History of the Cat - Die Geschichte der Katze (Documentary in German)

Last weekend I discovered on Germany's national TV ZDF a new documentary: The History of the (House) Cat. Available in German language only, I still find it worth a few notes of facts I got out of this well presented and filmed documentary.

Screenshot from the documentary © ZDF

• The cat is the pet number 1  >^..^<
• She is only a cousin of the big wild ones, such as lion, tiger, cougar, leopard, lynx, etc. The cat as we know it stems from another forefather that lived in Europe, parts of Africa, Asia.
• It was during the Stone Ages some 7,000 years ago that the cat entered the symbiosis with the human being, when mankind started to settle down and farm, storing the harvested crop. Rodents took advantage of the grain stores, while cats discovered a new feeding ground. And soon they became a beloved (and useful) member of the clan. They quasi domesticated themselves. And all that happened in Old Egypt, from where the (house) cat spread into other cultures.
• Excessively hunted and killed during the (dark) Middle Ages due to religious belief that the cat is the manifestation of the devil, in some areas in Europe she was almost extinct. Rodents prospered again, and with them came the plague. 
• Today there are over 60 different breeds.
• Cats are designed to jump savely from trees and heights, and always land on their 4 paws. Slow motion shows that they automatically turn their bodies towards the ground, shortly before they "arrive". During a test way back in 1948 in simulated zero gravity on a plane, this mechanism didn't kick in, and the kitties where zig-zagging around just like the astronauts-to-be. 
• The highest ever recorded fall, a cat survived, was in Manhattan, New York, from the 32nd floor.

German speaker, check out the documentary, as long as it is online on ZDF Mediathek. 

What the documentary did not cover - except for a quick take about the Torre Argentina Cat Colony/Sanctuary in the center of Rome - was the growing number of stray cats in many countries and the imperative need to TNR. 

Simon's Cat Logic - Why Do Cats Sleep in Unusual Places?!

Good to know - why do cats sleep in these places and change them frequently? - Nice video:

A cat's tale: Ralphie's amazing journey

Daily Messenger 7 May 2016: "The city life appears to be as much of a lure to Ralphie the tomcat as catnip is to a housecat.

Or maybe Ralphie likes hanging around with Nancy Yacci — the cat whisperer, as a friend calls the Gibson Street resident — so much that he keeps coming back.

“She is the protector of all felines in the city of Canandaigua,” joked Dave Sauter, who owns a barn in the town of Canandaigua.

Or, as Yacci said: “I have sympathy for strays.”

Whatever the reason, against all odds, perhaps in a way only a Disney movie could tell, Ralphie is back with..."
read on.

Video: What is the maximum weight of a fish that a stray cat can carry?

UK: Foreign Office employs chief mouser, Palmerston the cat

The Foreign Office is hiring a cat to wage war on mice inside the famous building in Whitehall.

illustration by original post

BBC Newsbeat 12 April 2016: Palmerston will be living at one of the country's most famous addresses among the UK's top diplomats and ministers.

Foreign Office bosses has been quick to point out he will be no burden on the taxpayer.
"Palmerston's domestic posting will have zero cost to the public purrse as a staff kitty will be used to pay for him and all aspects of his welfur."

The Foreign Office statement also said: "Palmerston is HM Diplomatic Service's newest arrival and in the role of FCO Chief Mouser will assist our pest controllers in keeping down the number of...read on.

Cool Initiative: Cats won’t wear condoms - get your cat fixed

wellandtribune.ca 28 February 2016:When it comes to having safe sex, count cats out. That’s the message the Port Colborne Feline Initiative wants you to know.

The organization launched a new T-shirt design Friday at the Port Colborne fire hall. The shirt was created to bring awareness to spay and neuter importance and programs. The front of the shirt reads “Cats won’t wear condoms, fix your cat.” Kristi Vogel of the Port Colborne Feline Initiative said the organization chose this slogan because it was provocative and eye-catching. She said it also gets the message across in a fun way.

For Vogel it is important to get cats fixed because the community is dealing with a large cat population. There are many strays in the city. The feline initiative is trying to help. “I think it is the right thing to do on so many different levels. It helps the community to have less cats roaming around, less cats ending up at the shelter, and it is just better for...read on.

How to Make a Feral Cat Shelter

Found this on Facebook and YouTube. An easy way to craft a warm home for feral cats.

Newsletter #1: Support us to get 'Islands of Cats' translated and printed - and receive your personal copy

There are many books about cats on the market - but no publication has ever been dedicated to the quiet work of stray cat carers in the Maltese Islands. 

Probably more than one thousand persons of all walks of life not only keep the many stray cat colonies well-fed, but also provide veterinary support and by neutering keep the population limited. A unique phenomena to Malta and Gozo, these feral cats are in top condition and no burden for the environment and the community. Au contraire, visitors to the tourist centers of the Islands speak in favour of the furry Maltese.

Written by Alexander Johnson and photos/design by Gabriele Ruttloff-Bauer, an interesting photo-story book is on its way portraying the valuable work of these devoted, volunteer stray cat carers. To keep all rights inhouse, this book will be published by Johnson and Ruttloff directly. All carer chapters and accompanying stories are well on its way, translations in Maltese and other languages to be started soon, and last but not least the printing process of Islands of Cats. This doesn't come for free, and Johnson and Ruttloff have started a crowdfunding campaign - to be rewarded by a signed copy.

 
» Read Islands of Cats Newsletter of Feb 7

» Visit the Funding Campaign on Kickstarter

Your contribution is important, as part of the book's proceeds will be donated to give much needed aid to the carers, who cover all food, veterinary and neutering expenses out of their own pockets.

Thank you very much for your consideration !!

Turkish man jailed for rape attempt prevented by ‘heroic’ cat

Daily News 6 February 2016: A Diyarbakır court has sentenced a potential rapist to 7.5 years in jail after his attempt to assault his 18-year-old aunt was prevented by the woman’s “heroic” cat.

The woman, identified only by the initials H.T., avoided an attempted rape by her sister’s son-in-law in 2014 after her cat named “Minnoş” lunged at the 20-year-old attacker, identified only by the initials S.B.

“I was faced with a villain, a pervert. He could have killed me but my cat saved my life by attacking him. [Minnoş] is my hero,” H.T. told reporters.

She said her husband had given the cat to her as a gift three years ago and added they are like a family now.

“People say cats are ungrateful. But in fact it is people who are ungrateful. Animals are loyal. Minnoş sees me as her mother. She is worth the world to me and she will always be with us,” H.T. added.

The woman’s lawyer, Deniz Emine Kayar, stressed that the rape attempt failed only because Minnoş was there to attack the assaulter...read more.

How to draw your own cartoon cat.

Change the word 'cat' into a cartoon feline!

Video: 7 Things You May Not Realize About Your Cat

Did you know that cats can subtly modify their purring to manipulate their owner? Watch more ...

Video: Don't Scare Your Cat With a CUCUMBER!

Videos are circulating in social media showing cats' fear of cucumbers. Here's a comment on this rather cruel "joke" - cruel for the cat.

Welcome to the Islands of Cats

A new kitten on the blog! We are an author and a photographer, with a shared passion for the Maltese Islands. We moved here in 2012, and soon observed that the Islands were also home to an abundance of cats! No matter where we went, we would meet cats bathing in the sun, or lying leisurely in shady corners. Even though  their permanent residence is in the streets, it doesn't go unnoticed that the strays are well fed and in top condition, gleaming with glossy fur and bright eyes. It is rare to see one that is unkept and sickly. Investigating even further, we noted ‘feeding stations’ where plates and bowls with food and water had been left for the feral cats.

We were as curios as a cat. Who was sustaining the purry felines?

In search of the answer, in October 2015 we embarked on an enlightening quest through the Maltese Islands, meeting persons from both genders and walks of life who, with a huge amount of self sacrifice, have not only  committed themselves to the welfare of their feline fellow residents, but in doing so have silently helped the Maltese environment.

And we are still travelling! Our journey will lead to a book dedicated to these devoted men and women. Introducing the reader to some of the individual caregivers, delve into their history and the reason for their chosen vocation. In the mean time, this blog shall serve as a permanent platform for stories and news about cats in Malta and around the Globe.