Sparkle the Designer Cat's Blog, page 342
July 8, 2016
Meet Mia – a Real Kitty Turns Kid’s Book Character
One of my human’s oldest pals in the cat blogging world is the artist BZTAT, whose cat Brewskie Butt was a big Twitter presence when Sparkle was around. BZTAT has a bold, colorful painting style and she does lots of pet portraiture. Her style is also perfect for two types of books: coloring books and children’s books. Her coloring book, Just Meowin’ With Brewski Butt, came out earlier this year, and now she is working on a really cool kid’s book called Oh My, Mia Meow!.
Before I tell you about the book, I want to introduce you to the rescue kitty behind the book: Mia!
As you can see, Mia is a very pretty tortie and white girl. She was born to a feral calico mom in Canton, Ohio. BZTAT had been volunteering with Peace for Pets, and was determined to catch the mom, Patches, to get her spayed so she wouldn’t keep having litters of kittens. It was not that hard to catch Patches and Mia’s brother (although anyone who does TNR can tell you it is rarely easy!), but Mia was another problem altogether. BZTAT was concerned about Patches getting pregnant again so she had to take Patches first — but then it took three days to get Mia!
Mia’s brother was friendly and found a home as soon as he could leave his mom. Mia was feisty and not sure she wanted to be socialized, so BZTAT took her home to work on that… and fell in love with her. Can you blame her? You can tell from the photos what an awesome spirit she has.
I’m not surprised that Mia inspired Oh My, Mia Meow! — now let me tell you about the book.
All About Oh My, Mia Meow!
Mia Meow is an ordinary cat who learns how to use creativity and ingenuity to overcome all sorts of obstacles. The book is fun and inspiring. It shows kids:
Our true power is in our imagination and creativity.
That our actions can have unintended consequences, but conflict can be managed through creative problem solving.
To aspire beyond limitations, but there is also a reminder that boundaries serve a purpose to provide safety.
Immense physical strength is not required to have power and mastery in life. Anyone can succeed through creativity and ingenuity.
What you may not know about BZTAT is that before she was an artist, she spent 20 years as a therapist for children coping with trauma. Even though she retired from this profession, she still works with young kids as a teaching artist. So she understands firsthand how art and storytelling can help children learn and flourish.
This is a very special book, and BZTAT is planning on making it available in November of this year. Right now, she is working on funding it through an Indiegogo campaign. If you have kids or grandkids, young nieces and nephews or just have friends who have children, this book would make an awesome gift! You can get copies of the book through the Indiegogo campaign and help support it at the same time. Here’s a video about the book — as you can see, there are already some illustrations of Mia and her friends.
Check out the Oh My, Mia Meow! Indiegogo page. I hope you support this project!
Note: all photos of Mia are courtesy of BZTAT.
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Meet Mia – a Real Kitty Turns Kid’s Book Character appeared first on SparkleCat.
July 7, 2016
Ten Things Cats Can Do… That Human’s Can’t!
Sometimes I feel sorry for humans. There is so much in life they miss out on, not being kitties. Seriously, think of all the things cats can do and experience that they can’t. I came up with a list of ten of the many things that will make you glad you’re a cat!
We cats…
Can enjoy the awesome feel of cheek scritches
Use our ears to change our facial expressions
Know that whiskers are almost like having an extra sensory organ
Relish the fact that moths and butterflies taste like chicken cotton candy
Revel in that sense of relief when we scratch our itchy noses… with our tongues
Or scratch an itchy ear with our back foot!
Know the private joy of sitting in a box
Get that amazing sense of relief once we’ve tossed up that annoying hairball
Have the gratifying ability to make ourselves really, really flat, no matter how, um, zaftig we are.
And of course, we make that most healing and relaxing of sounds… the purr
What else do you kitties enjoy doing that humans can’t?
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Ten Things Cats Can Do… That Human’s Can’t! appeared first on SparkleCat.
July 6, 2016
July 5, 2016
Therapy Cat Thoughts
The day before the Fourth of July (that would be the third of July!), I went down to the hospital once again to do some therapy cat rounds.
On this visit, the other team that met us in the lobby included a Corgi named Roxie, who was totally thrilled to be there! I’d never seen her before, but my human remembered Roxie from the orientation she attended after I passed my evaluation and went home.
The rounds we did were on several floors of the hospital. The lobby is on the third floor, and this was either the fifth or the sixth floor. There were some patients to visit on three different floors, plus the staff was always thrilled to see me, and a few of them took photos with me! There were all sorts of different patients, from one lady who wanted to spend lots of time with me, to another lady who didn’t want to spend time with me at all because she was scared of cats (she was interested in what we do, and did ask lots of questions, though — plus she enjoyed visiting with Roxie). Some patients didn’t speak English, and it made my human sad that she only speaks a smattering of Spanish, French and Cat and no other languages. It would be so useful for us if she could speak to some of these people so she could tell them more about me, and maybe hear about their cats at home.
It was a very good visit, and I think I learned something this time. The woman who was scared of me? I bet she is scared of cats because she doesn’t know our language. If she did, she would have known I am one of the least scary beings you could ever meet! My human is not at all scared of cats — she knows which ones to leave alone and which ones to befriend — but she is a little scared of dogs she doesn’t know (unless they are therapy dogs — she totally trusts them!). Why? Because she’s not very good with dog language and doesn’t really understand them. And isn’t it the same with people who live in different cultures and speak different languages? If humans don’t speak each other’s languages and don’t understand each other, it’s only natural they are going to be afraid of each other. Maybe if humans worked harder to learn other cultures and languages, they would have a better understanding of other people, and while they may never become good friends, maybe they would more easily find ways to coexist. That’s just my thought for the day.
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Therapy Cat Thoughts appeared first on SparkleCat.
July 4, 2016
Failing for the Fourth
My human was determined to find a hat that would fit me, so she came home with this just a couple of days before Fourth of July. It was originally a hair clip, but she modified it.
Boodie didn’t have to wear it. She was just my stand-in. A good thing for her — if she’d been expected to pose for real, she might have gotten a bath!
My human wanted to create a backdrop with lots of stars and red, white and blue but she was having a hard enough time keeping the hat on me.
And then this happened. You might have guessed already, but that is not Boodie’s tail.
I swear, she can smell treats from the other end of the house.
I don’t think this is the last I’ve seen of her.
Hm. I think I’ve got an idea.
If she wants to be in the photo, she can wear the hat!
If you are wondering where Boodie was this whole time, she was next to the set. I think she was laughing at us.
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Failing for the Fourth appeared first on SparkleCat.
July 3, 2016
Fourth of July Cat Safety Tips (Infographic)
This is just a quick post — I wanted to share the below infographic with you about Fourth of July cat safety tips. It’s from the American Association of Feline Practitioners, who my human met at BlogPaws last week. I think you will find it useful, and all the tips can be done without having to go out and get anything extra. Have a safe and sane holiday!
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Fourth of July Cat Safety Tips (Infographic) appeared first on SparkleCat.
Independence Day Hat Selfies
When I went to BlogPaws, my human brought a couple of hats along for me, but I wound up not wearing either of them. One of them was this Independence Day hat. I think you can see why I wound up not wearing it. But I thought I would give it one more try for my selfie, since the Fourth is tomorrow.
Well… I am really tempted to just forget it, but I think I’ll try a different look before giving up.
It looks better like this, but I don’t think it’d make for a good selfie.
Maybe if I just wear it slung around my neck, it’ll work. Let me wrestle the iPhone away from my human so I can get this done.
I need to change the angle — there’s a terrible glare in the background.
I got rid of most of the glare, but now the hat slipped!
Oh, never mind. I’m just going to leave it. I hate this hat.
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Independence Day Hat Selfies appeared first on SparkleCat.
July 2, 2016
Saturday Catinee: Morning Binga
When it comes to tortitude, nobody does it better than Binga!
When the humans are in the kitchen, she puts on her happy face.
Her happy face also happens to be her demanding face… and she has the voice to match.
But don’t trust her cuteness! Behind it all is a vicious creature, ready to chomp on the nearest human appendage — and here’s proof in the video below. This is what my human wakes up to every morning. If she doesn’t get up fast enough to satisfy Binga, she gets punished.
If you can’t see the above video, click here to watch it on YouTube!
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Saturday Catinee: Morning Binga appeared first on SparkleCat.
July 1, 2016
Back to Normal
Which means my human and I stopped in at our local pet store! We were out of a brand of cat food she only buys there.
We browsed for a little while inside.
I made a new friend!
I checked out their rack of cat toys to see if there was anything new.
I wanted to see what was on the higher shelves, but my human wouldn’t pick me up and show me.
Oh, and I snooped around a little bit. Eventually my human bought the cat food.
Back in the car, I went inside the carrier myself, but I didn’t pull my tail in. Since we only live a few blocks away, and it’s all neighborhood streets, my human just zipped up the carrier on either side of my tail and I went home like that.
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Back to Normal appeared first on SparkleCat.
June 30, 2016
Help Browser the Library Cat Keep His Job!
We are big fans of library cats here, and I bet you are too. In fact, there’s even a library cat named Browser featured in the first Rescued anthology my human published. Just this week, I heard about a different Browser the Library Cat, this one living at the White Settlement Public Library in Texas. This Browser is in danger of losing his job because the City Council has voted to have him removed!
A photo posted by White Settlement Library (@wslibrary) on Jun 13, 2016 at 9:02am PDT
It all started when one city employee’s puppy wasn’t allowed to come to work. Apparently, this person didn’t understand the difference between a family pet and an animal that was performing a service and complained. Then a couple of cat hating council members took up the cause and voted to have Browser removed, claiming allergy concerns — this after being presented with a petition containing 618 signatures (not an insignificant number in a city of just over 16,000 residents) urging them to keep Browser. Several people (including cat allergic people) spoke in Browser’s favor. Even mayor Ron White wants him to stay. But Council member Elzie Clements told the local weekly, Grizzly Detail, “City Hall and city businesses are no place for animals.” This sad minority opinion won out.
A photo posted by White Settlement Library (@wslibrary) on Apr 6, 2016 at 1:19pm PDT
Browser is not exactly a kitty-come-lately at the library. The former shelter cat has been keeping children happy and mice at bay at the White Settlement Public Library since 2010. In fact, it was the City Council back then that voted to have him there. Keeping Browser at the library costs taxpayers nothing — expenses for his food and care are paid for by library employees, donations, and through yearly fundraising. Browser has even had his own calendar. The friendly cat has been a favorite among patrons young and old, and made the library a welcome place to visit. Library cats are important mascots, and often inspire people to be more supportive of their local libraries. That certainly has been true for Browser and the White Settlement Public Library. Now all that could come to an end in this small town when Browser’s 30-day notice is up on July 14.
There is one last chance to save Browser’s position at the library. Mayor White is hoping the Council will reconsider their decision at their July 12 meeting. Support is growing for Browser, including a petition that, as of right now, has over 7,500 signatures. Can you help show Browser and the library patrons of White Settlement that you’ve got their back? You can do so below:
Sign the petition for Browser to keep his library cat job here.
Write to the Council members of White Settlement here (remember, it pays to be nice!).
Show your support and follow Browser on Facebook here.
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See Summer’s 2016 calendars and other awesome merch at her Zazzle Shop!
The post Help Browser the Library Cat Keep His Job! appeared first on SparkleCat.
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