DaisyMaeMaus & the Feline Americans

A Mystery?

2012-01-20T00:42:00.000-08:00

On June 20th, 2003, Lucky Charmz ... known as Charmee ... came into our lives as a tiny little fellow with white furs, a light brown stripy crew cut, and a dark brown K-Mart tail. He didn’t look like any cats from our neighborhood. We know this ‘cuz we spend lots of time watching the street from our perches in the windows, an’ the only cats we saw were brown Tabbies or Orinch. Charmee is mostly Meezer. Oh, an’ his eyes are blue.

The date is familiar to us ‘cuz it was Mom’s last day of school before summer vacation an’ it was Grandma an’ Grandad’s anniversary. They were with us ‘cuz Mom got them a gift card to a restaurant as a present an’ they were going to redeem it. Grandma was driving an’ Grandad was waiting to get in the green masheen when he suddenly hollered, “STOP!” Grandma put on the brakes an’ Grandad looked near the rear tires where he saw Charmee walking. He scooped up Charmee an’ brought him into the house where Mom was cutting her hair. Grandma came in, too. She an’ Mom examined Charmee who was laying quietly in Grandma’s hands. She filled the sink with warm water while Mom got the cat shampoo, an’ they gave Charmee a bath to get rid of the myriad fleas that were feasting on his tender kitten self. He LOVED the warm bath and all of the attention, so he immediately started to purr. He purred an’ purred while Mom dried him off. Mom decided to keep him ‘cuz his eyes were blue like hers. Grandma called him “Lucky” an’ Mom’s “Prince Charming,” so his name became Lucky Charmz.

The big mystery is: Where did he come from? Who was his momma? and Why would someone put a tiny little fellow like he was under an SUV where he would assuredly be killed?

SOPA: We need to band together!

2012-01-18T07:32:00.001-08:00

Join us in protesting SOPA! This affects all of us with blogs! Post something like this on your blog or if you can go with a blackout. (And please pass this on!)

There is a bill in Congress that will affect your rights on the web and will censor all web sites, blogs, etc. In a nutshell :
SOPA explicitly states that companies will be liable for everything their users post. Sites like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Reddit, Wikipedia, or any sites that allow user generated content CANNOT exist under these laws. Immediately after this bill is passed, you will see the media mafia (MPIAA, RIAA, etc) replacing websites like Wikipedia with commercialized encyclopedia software. Mainstream media outlets will not cover this bill because they are the ones lobbying for it.

If you want to know more - Google created a doc to read and inform - SOPA for Dummies.

WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMAN AND STOP THIS BILL FROM PASSING!
To help you do this stop by Fight the Wall and connect with your Representative!

Thanks!
Cats of wildcat woods

Secret PAWS 2011!!!

2011-12-25T14:41:00.000-08:00

This is our morning of Secret Paws ... told like "Memento," in reverse order ... because darn Blogger screws up the order when downloading pictures. Our Paws, this year, were our furriends from Maryland at Mark's Mews: Ayla, Iza, an' Marley, an' their great food dood, The Big Thing!

Mom got our Secret Paws package about a week ago from the Man in the Brown Shorts (he's been at our house a whole bunch lately!), and she quickly stuck it under the ChristMaus tree in the living room without looking at the name of the sender 'cuz SHE wanted to be surprised, too!

We kept sneaking under the tree to check on our package to make sure that our Uncle James didn't take it with him when he an' Aunt Lori came to eat dinner last night.

Yep! It was still under the tree this morning when Mom FINALLY got up. I wanted to say in bed an' rest, so I didn't come out to the living room ... But Charmee an' Sparky Fuzzypants were there to snoopervise the retrieving of the package, the opening of the tape, and the PRESENTS inside the box!

But first, we had to check the address label to see WHO our Secret Paws were this ChristMaus: Lo, and behold, our presents came all the way from MARYLAND. We have some friends in Maryland whose bloggie we visit, so we weren't very surprised that our Secret Paws of 2011 were our furry good furriends, Ayla, Iza, Marley, and The Big Thing! If you haven't visited their bloggie, you should! You can find it at Mark's Mews. The Big Thing an' the kitties post efurry day, so there's aways something new going on! The Big Thing also takes many photos of his flowers an' the kitties exploring.

Mom was worried 'bout me, so she only signed the boys up for Secret Paws this year, but The Big Thing thoughtfully bought a present for me: Temptations for Kittens. Mom hadn't been able to find them for me locally, so it was Providence that The Big Thing thought of them and could find them at his Maryland PetSmart. They're chick-hen flavored an' just the right size for my little mouth. I wanna say a personal "thank you" to The Big Thing for this wonderful an' delicious gift!

As you can see from the photos, Charmee was in the packages helpin' to open them, but Sparky Fuzzypants preferred to watch from the safety of the La-Z-Boy.

Look at all of the fabulous stuff! An' it's in my favorite color of purple! There's mousies, an' a stocking of busy balls an' mousies, an' there's some Salmon Temptations an' some crunchies from Whisker Lickins, an' a nifty Kong with fev-vers an' a squishy, crunchy soft toy to bunnykick! Ooo ... an' MORE mousies! An' 'nip cigars with fev-vers, too!

An' The Big Thing even sent a present for Mom! She got some Godiva dark chocolate pearls that she says she loves! She's gonna take them with her to Portland tomorrow in case she needs some calming chocolate for the plane ride (she will!).

So, from sunny Sandy Eggo, we wanna send a huge and grateful "Thank You" to our dear furriends in Maryland at Mark's Mews. Thank you to Iza, Ayla, Marley, an' The Big Thing for all of the wonderful presents an' for making Secret Paws 2011 so PURPLE an' wonderful for us.

Smooches, head butts, and hugs!
DMM, Sparky Fuzzypants, Charmee, and mom, Jessica

A ChristMaus Message ...

2011-12-24T17:51:00.000-08:00

It has been quite a trying year an' we here at "DaisyMae Maus and the Feline Americans" would like to thank efurryone for their purrs an' purrayers when we needed 'em the most! You all came through when Pumpkin went to the Bridge back in February an' when I was havin' my own health crisis this month. I am feeling much better today an' Mom is furry grateful that I made it 'til ChristMaus (an' she doesn't have to worry about me as much when she leaves us with our grandparents while she visits our fambly in Salem, Oregon and Seattle, Washington).

I wanna say "thank you" to all of our furriends an' readers out there in the blogosphere whom we've come to know and love this past five years. You are what makes blogging worth the time an' we're privileged to know many of you all from Facebook, too.

Happy ChristMaus to you all. Mom says that she'll see some of you at Blogpaws in June 2012 in Salt Lake City!

Love you all ... and to all a good night!
DMM, the Feline Americans (Sparky Fuzzypants an' Charmee), and Mom

DMM is feeling very poorly

2011-12-01T19:43:00.001-08:00

UPDATE: As of Friday, DMM's v-e-t has reported that her gums have changed from "angry red" to a healthier "pink". She's responding well to the IV fluids, has eaten some of her food, has been given an antibiotic drip into her fluids, and has faithfully used her litterbox. Since the IV fluids have helped, I have agreed to let her stay at the v-e-t through the weekend and I'll pick up my expensive little patient on Monday afternoon.

Thank you for all the purrs and purrayers. Everything the blogosphere and FB have done for my Baby Girl has helped her to get better.

Jessica

DMM and the Feline Americans' mom here ...
DaisyMae is at the v-e-t and the news was not good ... Her teeth are covered in tartar and they won't give her anesthesia to do dental work because of her age (she's nearly 18) and her current health. She's lost a considerable amount of weight, is dehydrated, and is suffering from both kidney and liver failure. The protein level in her urine and bloodwork weren't favorable at the start.

She's been given IV fluids and a B-12 shot to help to stimulate her appetite. She has eaten a little bit of the food that they have her and has used her litter box. The v-e-t called twice in the last half hour to say that she's eaten more and is resting comfortably. The v-e-t is guarded in DaisyMae's case and doesn't want to provide false hope.

Earlier news from Grandma was that DMM won't make it to Christmas, but I want to give her at least until Saturday to let the IV fluids work for her. I'm selfishly not ready to give her up. She is, after all, my baby girl and the closest friend I have had in a very long time.

Facebook friends have been providing advice, positive karmic thoughts, virtual hugs, and compassionate support. I have said many times that the cat blogosphere is incredibly powerful. Please continue the purrs and purrayers for my Baby Girl so that I can love her for more time.

Charmee and Sparky Fuzzypants have been very subdued since I got home from work. I do believe that they understand the pink p-t-u and are searching for DaisyMae Maus. It's disquieting to watch them skulk about with their bellies on the floor ... They look rather haunted.

Thank you for reading.

Also, big thanks to NTM ... Mo aka Not the Mama ... for making this lovely graphic for my DaisyMae Maus

Gratefully,
Jessica

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2011-11-27T12:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to Feline American Mom! She's 44 years old ... absolutely ancient ... today.
DMM

November is DIABETES AWARENESS month!

2011-11-04T17:37:00.001-07:00

It's time for the Blog Blast for Peace!

2011-11-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

It's that time again to recommit to a world of peace, so kitties an' woofies (an' other household fambly members) should link paws an' purray for peace!
DONA NOBIS PACEM, efurryone! Let your peace globes fly!
DMM and the Feline Americans

Purrayers for Paula!

2011-09-20T15:09:00.000-07:00

Our furriend, Truffle's, momma is worried 'bout cancer an' has to see a dermatologist about a scary lesion. We're offerin' up our purrs and purrayers that this lump/bump/lesion can be removed in its entirety without horrible affects. Good luck to Paula!
DMM, Sparky Fuzzypants, and Charmee
and Jessica, too

Avast ye lubbers!

2011-09-19T18:23:00.001-07:00

Shiver me timbers! It's Meow Like a Pirate Day an' we're actually available to pawticipate! Arrrrrgh!

Mo Cats is Mo Better!

2011-09-09T19:03:00.000-07:00

Mom has told the Feline Americans and me plenty of times that her life would be pretty empty without us ... an' we believe her. At the largest, the Feline Americans was ten (TEN?!?) members an' mealtimes were kinda crazy! Now, we're just three. We believe in "Mo Cats"! Life is far better bein' members of the Cat Blogosphere an' havin' brofurs to snuggle (and fight!) with.

Happy Weekend, efurryone!
It's nice to have the power back on ... 'cept with the power OFF, we got a day to spend with Mom thanks to her school district an' the cancelled classes for today!

Happy Mo Cats Day!
DMM

Hangin' out with our furriends at BlogPaws 2011!

2011-08-28T10:40:00.000-07:00

The Food Lady, Skeezix's momma, graciously took us along to BlogPaws 2011 in Washington, DC. Even amidst a hurricane blowing Category One stormy winds, we still managed to visit the Vietnam Memorial to get our photos taken.

While at BlogPaws, we got to pose with (l to r): Mr. Emerson's momma, The Food Lady, an' Tyler's momma, Petcare Bev. We're havin' a marvelous time. Considering we're all adults an' there's a woofie at the table, too, it's surprising that there isn't more meowin' an' hissin', right?

We're heading home to sunny San Diego today an' avoiding the worst of the Hurricane Irene weather. Thanks for hosting us, efurryone!

DMM

Purrayers for Hurricane Irene pawticipants

2011-08-28T10:33:00.001-07:00

We're keepin' our paws crossed for our furriends and fambly members who live on the East Coast an' are dealing with Hurricane Irene as it pounds their homes and douses 'em with rain (awww ... rain! We wish we had some to get rid of this horrible humidity!). Keep safe, efurryone! If the weather folks say "evacuate," you've gotta GO!
DMM

PeeSss: Thanks to the Zoolatry Girls for the graphics! They do a fabulous job!

World Cat Day!

2011-08-08T00:02:00.000-07:00

In honor of World Cat Day, Mom is posting two of the photos that she took at Boomerangs on Caturday night when she met the Great Skeezix the Cat's Mom, the famous and wonderful Food Lady.

In this first photo, Sparky Fuzzypants, Charmee, and Skeezix are sitting on the table of the booth where Mom and the Food Lady ate their dinner. Bunches of people came by an' snapped out photos 'cuz we were in the presence of internet celebrities.

This is a photo taken atop the antique teak bar at Boomerangs. All of us were able to pose atop the bar an', if I do say so myself, we all looked pretty darn HOT!

From left to right: Skeezix the Cat, Charmee, Sparky Fuzzypants, ME, an' Mao in his very LOWD shirt.

We wanna say "thanks" to efurryone who came down to Sandy Eggo for the BlogHer conference.

A blast from the past: Charmee!

2011-07-27T12:32:00.000-07:00

Hey efurryone!
Mom was working in the computer lab with her horrible ninth graders and she found this photo was lurking on the school's server. She'd been looking for it on dozens of cds and thought that Charmee's baby picture was lost ... But here it is!

Even back when he was just six weeks old, he was a biter! Look how he's attacking his Burt! He's getting ready to bunnykick him!

Charmee was so young in this photo that he didn't have his dark brown spots yet ... But you can certainly see his K-Mart tail! If you look carefully, you can see where he got the nickname "Nippies" ... Hee, hee!

Ugh ... School has started AGAIN!

2011-07-24T12:59:00.000-07:00

Mom started her classes last Wednesday an' I want her HOME! I had only six weeks with Mom on her vacation, and while she didn't go anywhere an' spent lots of time with me, I didn't get enough. What's the deal with people? How come they hafta go day-hunting efurryday when they could spend time takin' naps with us?!? Nine weeks better go pretty quickly 'cuz I want my MOM!

Sparky Fuzzypants LOST?!?

2011-07-13T16:32:00.001-07:00

Mom was freakin' out this morning when she couldn't find Feline American Sparky Fuzzypants anywhere in the house. Today is our new day with the garbage trucks an' recycling trucks. Grandad was helping to take out the trash an' swears that Sparky didn't escape while the door was open. Sparky is fast an' Grandad is not furry careful when he's around the door ... so where was Mr. Pants if he didn't make a run for it? No one knew ...

With Mom being who she is, she searched the whole house. She looked high an' low. She got out the canister of Temptations an' offered snacks to all of us. No Mr. Pants. Where could he be? He LOVES Temptations an' wouldn't miss the opportunity to have some.

Mom asked us where Mr. Pants was. He's not furry smart, but he's not the hiding type, either. No Mr. Pants ... Mom was starting to panic 'cuz she said that she saw a kitty who got sent to the Bridge by a car. That kitty was black an' Mr. Pants is stripy an' brown. That didn't stop Mom from panicking anyway.

Then Mom got smart an' remembered how Feline American Pumpkin hid under her bed when he was afraid of the cat sitter. Mom got a flashlight an' got down on the bedroom floor to look for Mr. Pants. And that goofus was under the bed yawning at Mom. She said, "Thank God!" When Sparky Fuzzypants heard her voice, he meowed at her an' came right out from under the bed like he'd been playing "Hide and Go Seek" and just got found!

When he came out to the living room to sit on the back of the recliner, I told him that he was a big furry stupid-head an' that WE had gotten some Temptations!

Dumb brofurs!
DMM

2011-07-10T07:08:00.000-07:00

Today marks FIVE years that I've been blogging an' I totally would have forgotten if KC hadn't sent me a reminder! Wow! Such an important moment!

I wanna say "thanks" to efurryone who has been instrumental in the achievement of this milestone to include Skeezix the Cat who was the reason I started blogging in the first place!

Much love and meows!

DMM

Vote for my dad!

2011-06-14T19:19:00.000-07:00

http://uniontrib.upickem.net/engine/Details.aspx?contestid=33665&pagetype=VOTING&SubmissionID=8917083

My brother is entered in this Fathers' Day contest and would like to win. Vote for #62: James Jepsen. You can vote one time a day from any computer, smart phone, iPad, etc.

Thanks!

We're sorta back

2011-06-03T18:04:00.000-07:00

We've not been blogging 'cuz the ginormous bloo computer died about two weeks ago an' Mom had to bring her laptop from school. All of our photos are on zip drives an' since Mom's school let out for six weeks of summer today, we're hoping to be better at connecting with our furriends.
Not excuses, just explanations ...

DMM, et. al

AP practice test!

2011-04-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

Mom's wakin' up early on a Caturday to administer a practice AP English Language test to her students before they take the real thing on May 11, 2011. We wanna go with her to keep her company 'cuz proctoring exams is furry boring (Mom would rather TAKE the test herself than watch people take 'em). There goes our sleepin' in! Sigh.

Start your purrin' ...

2011-04-29T18:25:00.000-07:00

The Vienna cats, Kashem, Othello, and Salome, are honoring all of our furriends and family who "have gone before" or run off to the Bridge this year, with Rememberance Day. What a lovely gesture, 'cuz in addition to losing a plethora of furriends in the past year, we've also lost Feline American Cocoa Puff last May an' Pumpkin in February. That's too many to lose an' we miss 'em.

Also, please keep the good people of the Southeast of the United States in your purrayers as they battle some dastardly tornadoes an' rain. Our fambly has already evacuated to North Carolina from their new home in Alabama.

Zoolatry Girls have designed the banner to remind efurryone about the folks battling for their lives, homes, an' property. Let's purr for 'em!

Purrs for Eric & Flynn's Mum ...

2011-04-10T17:09:00.000-07:00

Wordy Wednesday Challenge 2011

2011-03-16T00:01:00.000-07:00

Hey efurryone! Once again, we're participatin' in the Zoolatry Girls' Wordy Wednesday Challenge.

Mom helped us to choose an appropriate word to describe our "mood" ... We're most definitely obstreperous ...

Win a FLAT PET from PetCare Bev!

2011-03-09T17:55:00.000-08:00

You know us by now an' how we like to lend a paw (or some green papers) to help our furriends, so keep readin' to find out what we're doin' to help the kitty an' woofie community ... an' our woofy furriend Tyler's momma!

Our dear furriend, Bev, wants to spread the word 'bout a great organization near an' dear to her heart: Small Paws Rescue.

She says:
"Small Paws Rescue (www.SmallPawsRescue.org) brought Tyler (my sweet fluff boy) and me together. But even before Tyler, Small Paws has been important to me. Small Paws is a courageous group of 800 volunteers and 6,000 supporting global members. Over the past 12 years they’ve helped over 8,000 Bichons, Bichon blends, and dogs who have had a passing affiliation with a Bichon to find forever homes. Volunteers foster dogs in their homes across the United States. Small Paws Rescue embraces the philosophy of “no-kill” –- nearly all their donations go to pay vet bills. And the little fluffy dogs that Small Paws rescues usually come from horrible situations. So there’s always vet bills."

At her bloggie, Bev is focusing on Small Paws and she's doin' a giveaway at her hobby site called My Flat Pet where she has a cut-out, life-sized photo of Tyler that she takes to different places and photographs. The photos end up on My Flat Pet.

During the month of March, to encourage people to donate (and to increase the flat pet population), Bev is going to give away 4 flat pets. Also, Karen Nichols, the Catster blogger and the owner of Flat Skeezix, has also offered to create one of her amazing, personalized mixed media pet portraits to use as a give-away during the Flat Tyler Small Paws Fundraiser! This is an incredible prize worth $100.00! You can see some examples HERE. The pet portrait will be given away at the end of March.

MORE DETAILS!

Purrin' for KC!

2011-03-08T07:26:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin went to the Bridge

2011-02-15T18:10:00.001-08:00

We're furry sad because today our own Feline American Pumpkin had to be helped to the Bridge. His diabetes hadn't been furry stabilized this month an' he kept crashing. This morning, his blood glucose was low an' he had to have some Karo syrup. He went to the v-e-t this afternoon when his organs started failing. The Banfield v-e-t said that it was time ...

We'll miss our boy of orinch: William Jefferson Pumpkin.

Godspeed, dood. 'Til we meet again ...

Pablo has gone to the Bridge ...

2011-02-06T10:45:00.000-08:00

Our dear furriend Pablo has gone to the Bridge an' we'll miss him terribly. You can leave your condolences at Pablo.

Grandma an' Charmee's bite update

2011-01-09T17:41:00.000-08:00

Mom an' Grandad went to the hospital right after Mom arrived back in Sandy Eggo ... Mom was worried 'bout Grandma 'cuz Grandma had to stay in the hospital for FOUR days an' had surgery on her thumb to suck out the poison from Charmee's bitey. Grandma has a bunch of black stitches on her thumb an' her entire hand is wrapped in gauze.

It turns out that Grandma takes on most of the responsibility for the bitey 'cuz she'd been makin' laps for Charmee an' then gettin' up to do stuff. She'd done that a bunch of times an' Charmee had been tryin' to get his beauty sleep, but couldn't. He was fed up an' told her so by bitin' her HARD on the thumb. Grandma was apologetic to Charmee an' her forgave her for bein' wiggly. Essentially, he'd been trying to tell her to stay put.

So Grandma is recuperatin' at home an' Charmee's been catchin' up on his sleep. Things are gettin' back to normal (Mom goes back to school tomorrow). Grandma gets her stitches out in a couple of days. Sigh.

DMM

Uh, oh ...

2011-01-03T00:05:00.000-08:00

While Mom is visiting her auntie, uncle, an' some cousins in the Pacific Northwest, Grandma an' Grandad are watching us. I've, of course, been on my very best behavior ... I've even been forgiving 'bout my missed gotcha day ... But Charmee has been BAD! Today he bit Grandma on the thumb an' made it bleed an' swell up! Grandma is in the HOSPITAL for observation. Mom's gonna be pretty upset with Charmee, so he'd better get his story together before Mom gets home on Thursday!
DMM

ChristMas an' Secret Paws 2010!

2010-12-25T18:10:00.000-08:00

Today is ChristMaus an' Mom finally relented an' let us open the package under the ChristMaus tree that had OUR names on it. It was from the Chesney Cats who live in the midwest. Mom said that it's cold an' "wintery" at their house ... an' that they probably had a "white ChristMaus" 'cuz of snow. We don't have snow, but we do have ice ... in the water bowl.

Anyway, Charmee an' Sparky Fuzzypants were furry excited when Mom finally got up at 11:02 AM ... They were all about opening that package.

Mom didn't hafta help them, 'cuz someone who is mostly white an' has a long black tail that he got from KMart decided to sneak peeks into the package at the back part where he thought that no one named "Mom" would look (but she did!).

The package had a box inside an' there was a card with a picture of Emma, Sammy an' Festus. They look furry pretty on their card.

In the card was some coupons so that Mom can use 'em at the store if she ever goes an' gets us any stuff (Mom here: In my defense, I stocked up in September/October and have a cabinet full of stuff for them to eat!)

Their cousins in Oregon ... Zoey and the Furballs ... sent a package with a 'nip toy in it, but as soon as it was opened, Charmee made it disappear somewhere an' no one can find it to take a photo!

So that was what we did today .,, We played with the toys that the Chesney Cats sent in our Secret Paws: Fev-ver butt mousies, a 'nip pillow, an' four super-cool handmade Squiggles! Squiggles are the BEST!

Thank you!
Ho, ho, ho ...
DMM and the Feline Americans

Merry ChristMAUS!

2010-12-24T17:09:00.000-08:00

We here in sunny(-ish) Sandy Eggo wanna wish efurryone on the Innernets the happiest of holidays an' a politically incorrect Merry Christmas!
DMM and the Feline Americans
And Jessica, too

Help Animals this Holiday ...

2010-12-22T15:13:00.000-08:00

Pets on Wall Street!

2010-12-22T15:09:00.000-08:00

**MEDIA ALERT**
THURSDAY, DEC. 23, 2010

Iams Home 4 the Holidays Celebrates the Holiday Season and Raises Awareness for Pet Adoption

Adorable Orphaned Dogs and Cats Lend a Paw to Representatives of Helen Woodward Animal Center and Iams Home 4 the Holidays to Ring the Closing Bell® at the NYSE

What:
Orphan dogs and cats available for adoption during the 12th annual Iams Home 4 the Holidays will visit the New York Stock Exchange on Thurs., Dec. 23 to raise awareness for pet adoption.

In honor of this occasion, representatives of Bideawee, Helen Woodward Animal Center, and Iams Home 4 the Holidays will ring the Closing Bell, along with the help of orphan dogs and cats.

Iams Home 4 the Holidays founded by Helen Woodward Animal Center, aims to place 1.5 million orphan pets in happy, loving homes this holiday season. The program kicked off on Oct.1, 2010 and will end on Jan.4, 2011.

When:
Thursday, December 23, 2010
3:45 p.m. Iams Home 4 the Holidays group moves to the Trading floor
4:00 p.m. The Closing Bell rings

Where:
NYSE
18 Broad Street (and Exchange), New York, NY

Photos Available:
Visuals of the four-legged friends who are helping put a cute, furry face on the topic of pet adoption.

More Information:
For more information about Iams Home 4 the Holidays, visit www.iamshome4theholidays.com.

Contact:
FOR PHOTOS, PLEASE CONTACT:
Chad Darwin
cdarwin@painepr.com

Photo/Video:
Photos available via Associated Press/New York (212.621.1902), Reuters America (646.223.6285) and Bloomberg Photo (212.617.3420).

The Closing Bell (starting at 3:55 p.m.) feed is available via Ascent loop #4009. Media seeking footage via The Switch should contact the NYSE Broadcast Center at 212.656.5483.

Iams Home 4 the Holidays: 2010 Update

2010-11-14T10:19:00.000-08:00

Carly, a public relations specialist for Iams Home 4 the Holidays, sent us this update on how the promotion is goin' ... Here are the stats through November 9th (when we received the email) ...

"After a month of hard work and dedication, we've tallied adoption numbers, meals donated and Facebook fans and wanted to be sure you and your readers knew the stats! We cant thank you enough for all of your support. Because of you, weve been able to keep the momentum going and spread the word about pet adoption this holiday season.

Since October 1st, we have helped find new loving homes for:

Dog/Puppy 150,037
Cat/Kitten 131,956
Other Adoptions 6,191
Total adoptions: 288,184

Facebook Fans 50,551
Total Meals Donated 439,746

Important Campaign Details:
Iams Home 4 the Holidays runs from Oct.1, 2010 to Jan. 4, 2011
This years goals are to find forever homes for 1.5 million pets AND provide 5 million bowls of food to shelters in need
1.3 million pets were adopted last year alone
3,500 partner animal organizations (21 participating countries around the world)
Information on how to get involved, how to find a participating shelter in your area and other important tips for new parents can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/iams or on IamsHome4theHolidays.com

Please help us continue to spread the word so we can reach our goal to get 1.5 million pets adopted by January 4, 2011!!

Thanks,
Carly"

11-4-2010: Blog Blast for PEACE

2010-11-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

Hi efurryone ... We're joinin' in an' posting for peace on our bloggie. Won't you do your part to wage peace in your little corner of the world? If woofies an' kitties can do it, so can YOU!

Shhhh ... Charmee's sleepin'!

2010-10-18T19:07:00.000-07:00

Monday morning is often the least favorite day an' time of the week ... 'specially if you hafta work like Mom does. As she was leavin' this morning, she snapped a photo of a furry sleepy Charmee wrapped in the afghan that Mom made a bunch of years ago. He was comfy an' was tryin' to get more than his typical eighteen or so hours of sleep. It's rough bein' a cat. He slept much better after Mom snapped off the overhead lights an' closed the bedroom door. Shhhh ... He's still sleepin'!

Kick-Off: Iams Home 4 the Holidays 2010

2010-10-08T19:11:00.001-07:00

Here's an email that we got this week from Chad Darwin who works with Iams (an' might be a furriend of our furriend, PetCareBev) ... 
He wanted us to know that  Iams Home 4 the Holidays was kickin' off an' that we all can participate to help other kitties an' woofies 
who live in shelters to find their furever homes this  holiday season.    
He said,    "I hope this email finds you well. We wanted to be sure your DaisyMaeMaus and the Feline Americans readers knew 
about our holiday pet rescue campaign from  Iams….    With pet homelessness on the rise, we need to work together more than
 ever to help homeless pets. This year, Iams Home 4 the Holidays has set a goal to save  the lives of 1.5 million orphaned pets 
AND donate 5 million bowls of food to animal shelters in need!!   
Important Campaign Details:    
Iams Home 4 the Holidays runs from Oct.1, 2010 to Jan. 4, 2011 
This year’s goal is to adopt 1.5 million pets 
1.3 million pets were adopted last year alone 
3,500 partner animal organizations (21 participating countries around the world) 
Information on how to get involved, how to find a participating shelter in your area and other important tips for new parents
 can be found on Facebook at  www.facebook.com/iams or on IamsHome4theHolidays.com    Here’s a link to all of 
our campaign assets including photos, video, fact sheet, etc.: http://pitch.pe/92203    
We really look forward to working with you to save LOTS of furry lives this holiday season!    
Thanks,    
Chad  
www.iamshome4theholidays.com

Live Strong!

2010-10-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

Today, October 2, is "Live Strong Day" in the blogosphere ... an' the Zoolatry girls made us this special picture with Feline American Sparky Fuzzypants so that we can represent! Thanks, ladies!

Charmee's playin' with his Lance Armstong "Live Strong" silicone bracelet ... FETCH!

Mom's busy ...

2010-09-18T20:18:00.000-07:00

Mom's gradin' papers ... again. Oh, an' Charmee's helpin' ... He's keepin' the papers warm an' he's decoratin' 'em with his furs. Yay!

9/19: Meow Like A Pirate?

2010-09-18T20:14:00.001-07:00

Oh, goodness ... We missed it AGAIN! What's the deal, Mom? How come we keep missing "Meow Like A Pirate" Day?!? Don't you love us?

Arrrrgh ... I guess that's as much "pirate" as I'm gonna get. Sigh.

DMM

It's been NINE years since the September 11 attacks ...

2010-09-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

In honor of the ninth anniversary of the September 11th attacks on America, we are revisiting the patriot we now consider our own. Her name was Laura M. Longing and she was, in every sense of the word, a hero to this country who lost her life ... and who left behind a loving family.

Laura M. Longing
Age: 35
Resident of Pearl River, NY

Laura M. (Pettus) Longing of Pearl River, New York, was an extraordinary woman. In her thirty-five years, she accomplished much and touched the lives of many. She was a loving wife and mother, an accomplished businesswoman, and a patriot. She was an Assistant Vice President for Marsh USA. Her office was on the 96th floor of the World Trade Center in the North Tower (Tower I). She managed projects in the technology information systems department. During her ten-year career, Laura worked for Marsh & McLennan Companies and their subsidiaries.

Laura graduated from Nanuet High School in 1984. While a student, she played varsity soccer and softball. After high school, Laura earned her Bachelor's Degree in Management from Pace University in 1988, and went on to earn a Master's Degree in Finance from Iona College in 1994.

In addition to being a successful businesswoman, she was the mother of William and Bryan, and a loving wife to her husband, Chris. She was the daughter of Kevin and Anne Marie Pettus, and sister to Keith and Peggy Pettus. Laura had four nieces and nephews: Rory and Grace Pettus, and Brendan and Erin O'Shea. She was the daughter-in-law of Helen Longing and sister-in-law of Dierdre Pettus, Donna O'Shea, John O'Shea, Lorraine Longing, and Anne Longing.

In her leisure time, Laura loved the outdoors. She spent much time camping, and playing golf and softball.

She touched the lives of her family, friends, and coworkers. She put the needs of others before her own. Although she lost her life in the World Trade Center tragedies of September 11, 2001, she lives on in the memories of those she loved and who loved her.

It is our privilege to honor her memory as one who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country in the name of freedom. Laura M. Longing is truly a hero worthy of recognition on this day and on all that follow.

Respectfully posted,
DaisyMae Maus & the Feline Americans (and Jessica, especially)

Check out my new template!

2010-09-10T19:41:00.001-07:00

Hey, efurryone! I was gettin' tired of my old bloggie template, so I asked Mom for some help in makin' a change. Isn't the new style much nicer? No more boring boxes an' checks for me ... Now I've got green trees an' I didn't have to lose a speck of my content! Yay for Blogger 'cuz the new template is much more ME!

DMM

Temptations are plentiful once more ...

2010-08-28T19:05:00.000-07:00

After discovering the dearth of Temptations at my house last week, Mom got some "emergency" packages to last the week 'cuz our local PetSmart had only a couple of bags available in our flavor: Seafood Medleys. So when she went out today with coupons an' a shopping list, I made sure that "TEMPTATIONS" was at the top of the list written in BIG letters so that she couldn't claim that they "skipped her mind."

Mom was gone for most of the day an' we got furry worried.

When the black masheen pulled into the drive, Charmee an' I met Mom at the door an' carefully inspected efurry bag. An' you know what?!? What did "Thumbs" do? Did she fall down on the job ... again?!?

Nope. She bought Seafood Medley-flavor Temptations. Not one bag, not two ... She bought six jumbo bags and a dozen regular-sized bags. In fact, Mom says that they were on sale with the PetPerks card an' she bought efurry single packet for us.

I guess we'll keep her ...

To show his appreciation, Charmee is playing "THoE" up and down the hallway! Yippee!

Mom?!? We're outta TEMPTATIONS!

2010-08-21T09:23:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it?!? Mom actually allowed our plastic Tempations bin to empty! All that are left are some crumblies at the bottom. We took a vote ... an' four paws raised high makes it unanimous ... we're gonna mutiny if Mom doesn't make a trip to Target, or PetSmart, or Petco to buy us eleventy-squillion green bags of Seafood Medleys-flavor Temptations! I think that we're upset enough to overthrow her as "mom" and elect someone else who is more responsive to our demands ... I mean "needs" ...

Would YOU deny this sweet ... and hungry ... face a handful of yummy Temptations whenever she wanted them? Me, either ...

Iams & Eukanuba: Voluntary Recall continues ...

2010-07-31T10:08:00.000-07:00

Our furriend, Bev, of P&G Pet Care, sent us an email an' asked us to pass on this information to U.S. pet owners who feed their pets Iams an' Eukanuba foods ... We're happy to comply ...

"Earlier this week (Sunday 7/25/10) you may remember that P&G Pet Care announced a voluntary recall of two lots of Iams Veterinary Formulas Feline Renal. We are expanding this recall to include all Iams Veterinary Formula Diets (dry), Eukanuba Naturally Wild, Eukanuba Pure, and Eukanuba Sensitive Skin." Bev sent pictures of the bags that we'll attach to this post ...

"Any other Iams or Eukanuba cat/dog diets, biscuits/treats or supplements are NOT included in this recall."

This is the press release from Proctor & Gamble:

Contact: P&G Consumer Relations – 877-340-8823
July 30, 2010

P&G Expands Voluntary Limited Recall of Specialized Dry Pet Foods
Due to Possible Health Risk

CINCINNATI, July 30, 2010 – The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) (NYSE:PG) is voluntarily expanding its recall to include veterinary and some specialized dry pet food as a precautionary measure because it has the potential to be contaminated with salmonella. No salmonella-related illnesses have been reported.

The following dry pet food products are included:

Product Name Version “Best-By” Dates UPC Codes

Iams Veterinary Dry Formulas All dry sizes and varieties 01Jul10 – 01Dec11 All UPC Codes

Eukanuba Naturally Wild All dry sizes and varieties 01Jul10 – 01Dec11 All UPC Codes

Eukanuba Pure All dry sizes and varieties 01Jul10 – 01Dec11 All UPC Codes

Eukanuba Custom Care Sensitive Skin All dry sizes 01Jul10 – 01Dec11 All UPC Codes

The affected products are sold in veterinary clinics and specialty pet retailers throughout the United States and Canada. No canned food, biscuits/treats or supplements are affected by this announcement. A full listing of UPC codes can be found at www.iams.com.

These products are made in a single, specialized facility. In cooperation with FDA, P&G determined that some products made at this facility have the potential for salmonella contamination. As a precautionary measure, P&G is recalling all products made at this facility.

Consumers who have purchased the specific dry pet foods listed should discard them. People handling dry pet food can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with surfaces exposed to this product. Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

Pets with Salmonella infections may have decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, pets may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

For further information or a product replacement or refund call P&G toll-free at 877-340-8823 (Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM EST).

Media Contact: Jason Taylor 513-622-3205

Vacation's nearly over

2010-07-17T18:59:00.000-07:00

Mom's six-week "summer vacation" is over on Monday an' she has to start a new school year. We'd hoped that this year would be a little easier 'cuz she'd done all of the class prepping the last school year and could use this one to fine-tune the lessons. Nope. It's gonna be much, much harder an' more time-consuming 'cuz instead of just teaching sophomore English, she's now teaching AP English Language and Composition, English 11, English 12, and a CAHSEE class to twelfth graders who failed the CAHSEE multiple times. She hasn't taught English 12 since 1991. The last English 11 class she taught was in the fall of 1994. She's NEVER taught AP English before ... EVER! The only class she's taught recently is the CAHSEE class. It has four students in it, but it will seem like FORTY.

Perhaps now is the time to buy a Lotto ticket?

DMM

Happy Belated 12th Gotchaversary!

2010-07-05T16:29:00.000-07:00

Mom couldn't help me to post on July 3rd, so I'm gonna say a happy BELATED 12th gotchaversary to Mr. Sparky Fuzzypants. Yay for Mr. Pants!

Voluntary RECALL: Iams

2010-06-10T17:33:00.000-07:00

Our furriend Bev, in the interest of getting the word out to the widest number of readers possible, asked us (in addition to a large number of other bloggers) to post the TRUTH about the voluntary recall of Iams Canned Cat Food (the "stinky goodness"). Only certain cans are being recalled, so please read the whole posting to know if YOUR food is part of the recall ... (Please note that the italics and bold-faced type are our own additions to the emailed text).

Bev states: "I am writing to you because of an emerging issue involving my company. We are voluntarily recalling Iams Canned Cat (wet) Food because of insufficient amounts of vitamin B1 (also known as thiamine).

Here are some important points about the issue:

P&G (Procter and Gamble) is voluntarily recalling specific lots of its Iams canned cat food in North America as a precautionary measure. Diagnostic testing indicated that the product may contain insufficient levels of thiamine (Vitamin B1), which is essential for cats.

This recall is limited to only Iams canned cat food distributed in North America. No other Iams pet food is involved.

Affected Products:
Product Name
Iams ProActive Health canned Cat and Kitten Food – all varieties of 3 oz & 5.5 oz cans

Date on Bottom of Can
09/2011 to 06/2012

Cats that were fed these canned products as their only food are at greater risk for developing signs of thiamine deficiency.

Early signs of thiamine deficiency may include loss of appetite, salivation, vomiting and weight loss. In advanced cases, signs may include ventroflexion (downward curving) of the neck, wobbly gait, falling, circling and seizures.

Contact your veterinarian immediately if your cat is displaying any of these signs. If treated promptly, thiamine deficiency is typically reversible.

Consumers who have purchased canned cat food with these codes should discard it. For further information or a product refund call P&G toll-free at 877-340-8826 (Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM EST).

... [W]e thank you for your help in sharing accurate information pertaining to the Iams Canned Cat Food recall.

Sincerely,

Bev
Community Manager, P&G Pet Care"

If you are eatin' this type of Iams stinky goodness, please check the bottoms of the cans to make sure that you're not eatin' something that's part of the recall ... Be safe an' be smart. Your furriends, DaisyMae Maus & the Feline Americans

Cocoa Francis Puff: RIP

2010-05-27T16:04:00.001-07:00

We are so sad.

Our dear Cocoa Francis Puff went to the Rainbow Bridge today after a brief illness.

He will be missed ...

August 1997 - May 27, 2010

Yay! Auntie El is coming today!

2010-05-22T11:21:00.000-07:00

Our Auntie Ellen is thirty minutes into her flight down to Sandy Eggo from Seattle. Auntie Toni, mom of Ben Fuzz, dropped her off at Sea-Tac for a 10:55 AM flight down to spend ten days with us. Mom's very excited!

Auntie El hasn't seen us since Charmee was a wee little pipsqueak, so we've got lots to show her ... We hope that Mom doesn't wear her out before we get some cuddling time. Mom's gonna take her shoppin', out to eat, an' to the movies ... Today they're gonna get haircuts an' pedicures. Tuesday, El's gonna help with Mom's awards banquet. Wednesday is the senior awards night. Thursday an' early Friday are GRADNITE at Disneyland! They're gonna do more shopping on Saturday an' Sunday. Then, El boards the plane for her first class trip back to Seattle. It's gonna be a busy vacation!

We hope that efurryone is havin' a restful weekend!

I'm gonna be tryin' to kick up another hairball ... I've got a tummy-ache.

DMM

Can YOU help Mango, too?

2010-05-05T17:42:00.001-07:00

We get Twitter updates from our furriend, Skeezix the Cat. When Mom remembers, she lets us read all of the news that he provides connecting the world of people with the Cat Blogosphere an' sometimes allows us to "do something about it." Today was one of those days:

Skeeze reported about a sweet kitty girl named Mango who was badly burned by some horrible people an' has since been taken to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary to heal from her injuries. After lookin' at her beautiful Calico face an' readin' her sad, sad story, we begged Mom to let us spend some green papers an' make a donation for Mango's care. Of course, Mom couldn't resist OUR sweet faces, so she let us use her plastic money.

Please consider makin' a donation to help Mango. When we made ours, we put "Earmarked for Mango the Calico kitty's care" in the comment window to make sure that Mango knew that we were tryin' to help her to get better.

Thanks, efurryone!
DMM

In the home stretch ...

2010-05-02T20:08:00.001-07:00

May is a BIG month at our house with Cinco de Mayo, AP testing, Teacher Appreciation Day, staff development, Awards Banquet, the arrival of our Auntie Ellen from Montesano, CSF Banquet, Senior Awards Night, GradNite, Memorial Day weekend, and sliding into home with the end of the spring food drive, graduation rehearsal, and graduation itself at 2 PM on Friday, June 4th. It's a good thing that Mom has to do all of this stuff 'cuz I'd get so worn out!
DMM

Okay ... Now what?

2010-04-16T20:56:00.000-07:00

Grandma kept today's appointment at the v-e-t for Puffy and Pumpkin. Both boys had a special "sugar" test for their diabetes to re-evaluate how much insulin they should be taking. Mom was gonna buy more insulin and needles this weekend 'cuz they were running kinda low ... she was prepared for that.

But what happened today? Mom doesn't really understand an' Grandma wasn't too good at explainin' what Dr. Hannigan had said. Needless to say, both boys came home today totally freaked out (ask Mom 'bout the rivulet of pee that led from the livin' room clear down the hallway an' under her bed that Pumpkin made when he was released from the PTU).

Apparently, Puffy's sugar was at 67 an' Pumpkin's was at 43 when they were tested in the early afternoon today. They both got their insulin shots at 8 o'clock this morning as they're supposed to have ... Mom's careful 'bout insulin AND only feeds us the diabetic diet from Prescription Science Diet (although she'd rather we eat the prebiotic diet from Eukanuba). We're all losin' a little bit of weight from the "fat cat" food ... but now NEITHER Pumpkin nor Puffy needs insulin. The v-e-t thinks that their diabetes can be controlled with diet exclusively.

Mom's happy for the boys (an' her pocketbook 'cuz insulin an' needles are pricey), but she's confused, too. Pumpkin had been nearly dead back in early November and became Lazarus-like after the miracle of insulin. What happens now that he's no longer gettin' two shots a day? How's she supposed to watch him drink water an' pee in the litterbox when she's at work?

I've promised to do my best to snoopervise the boys an' report back to Mom with what I see. At least Charmee's still on the Buspirone twice a day. Can you believe that he sits on the floor under where Mom keeps the pills to alert her when it's 8 o'clock an' he is due for another dose? I guess he likes the flavor of the Pill Pockets, right? Or ... It's like I've been singin' all along: Charmee is WEEEIIIRRRRRRDDDDD!

EaRtHqUaKe!!!!

2010-04-04T19:22:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter to efurryone ... and YES(!) we had ham for dinner.

Mom asked me to blog so that efurryone will know that we who live in Sandy Eggo are just fine after the 7.2 earthquake that we had today at around 3:40 PM PDT. It was in Baja California, Mexico, an' while we could FEEL it, it didn't do any real damage where we live. I watched Mom jump up an' hold onto the doorjamb, but I just rode it out on the bed pillows watching the ceilin' fan rock back an' forth. Don't get me started 'bout those wussy Feline Americans ... the boys FREAKED OUT an' looked for places to hide!

In the past four hours, we've had a bunch of aftershocks (one was out east in the Imperial County area an' was about 5.1) ... There were so many that I kinda lost count ...

Just so that efurryone knows, we Californians have LOTS of earthquakes efurryday (mostly really little ones) ... I do live on a fault ... so it's part of a "normal" day. Please don't spend your day worryin' 'bout us, 'cuz we're gonna be just fine.

DMM

In Honor of Easter an' bunnies efurrywhere!

2010-04-03T18:06:00.000-07:00

I know that this isn't "new" ... an' that others, like Derby, have it on their bloggies for Easter, but I just couldn't resist puttin' it up on mine 'cuz Mom's furriend, Rose, sent it to her in an email today ...

All I need to know I learned from the Easter Bunny!

Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
Everyone needs a friend who is all ears.
There's no such thing as too much candy.
All work and no play can make you a basket case.
A cute tail attracts a lot of attention.
Everyone is entitled to a bad hare day.
Let happy thoughts multiply like rabbits.
Some body parts should be floppy.
Keep your paws off of other people's jelly beans.
Good things come in small, sugar coated packages.
The grass is always greener in someone else's basket.
To show your true colors, you have to come out of the shell.
The best things in life are still sweet and gooey.
May the joy of the season fill your heart.
AND MAY GOD BLESS YOU!
Happy Easter!

TWO cats with diabetes ...

2010-03-21T21:36:00.000-07:00

By now, efurryone knows that Feline American Pumpkin has diabetes an' is takin' injections of 5 ccs of insulin twice per day, but did you know that Cocoa Francis Puff is ALSO diabetic? Yep, he is ... an' he's takin' 2 ccs of insulin twice per day.

Mom an' Grandma picked up Puffy after his appointment with Dr. Hannigan an' she confirmed his diagnosis with a special glucose test. Puff isn't a big fan of the v-e-t an' really dislikes the stabby place. He's lost about two pounds in six weeks an' I can tell you that some of it was in pee 'cuz that dood was stinky!!!

Mom didn't like Puffy's aroma, so she an' Grandma used some Bed Head spray bath on him. They thought that they could avoid the mega-bitey that way, but he just got sticky an' foamy on his furs. So ... Mom an' Grandma gave him ... a bath. Yep. They hosed an' soaped an' hosed again. Puff was NOT happy an' tried to put the bitey on any pink skin near his teeth. He wasn't successful in puncturing any humans, but he did get clean. He smells much better now an' his furs aren't flaky like a pie crust.

Let's hope that the rest of the Feline Americans (an' me, too!) don't become diabetic cats.

Fresh Air Fund: Hosts URGENTLY Needed!

2010-03-17T17:10:00.000-07:00

Sara Wilson from The Fresh Air Fund contacted me an' asked if I'd put out some information on my bloggie 'bout a terrific organization that provides a "fresh air" experience for disadvantaged kids who live in New York City. hoping that we an' our readers might be able to help some of the kids.

She said, "As someone with a passion for animals I thought you and the readers of 'Daisy Mae Maus and the Feline Americans' would be interested in helping children who also love animals. The Fresh Air Fund is in need of host families for this summer. Host families are volunteers who open their hearts and homes to children from the city to give a fresh air experience to disadvantaged children from the inner-city. Even if you can't host a child yourself, just posting a mention of this program on your site or as a 'tweet' would be helpful to spread the word."

There's a site on the innerwebs where you can get more information if you're like us an' already live in a fairly large city like Sandy Eggo. You can find the site at Fresh Air Fund Hosts.

Since 1877, The Fresh Air Fund has been giving inner-city children the joy of a summer vacation with volunteer host families and at Fund camps, creating unforgettable memories and fresh possibilities. For some kids, this trip out of the city may be the first time to see stars! Can you believe it? Some cities have so much ambient light that something as run-of-the-mill as seeing a sky full of twinkling stars is out of the question!

Remembering Bailey

2010-03-14T16:10:00.000-07:00

This is an email from our dear furriend Bev who works for Iams. Her woofie, Bailey, recently went to the Bridge an' Bev is missing her intensely. In honor of Bailey, Bev is teaming up with that great feline (an' woofie) fundraiser, Romeo the Cat. Here's what Bev has to say ...

"On January 15 this year, my sweet Bichon, Bailey, gently went to sleep for the last time. Bailey would have been 14 years old on March 11. In her memory, I am working with another blogger, Romeo the Cat, to raise money for Small Paws Rescue, a Bichon rescue group. We are devoting the entire month of March to our online Bichon Bash fundraiser.

As part of the effort to raise awareness of Small Paws, I am posting information and photos of Bichons available for adoption from Small Paws every day on my blog. And each Sunday I will be posting an article detailing who Small Paws is,
what Small Paws does, and why the members of Small Paws work so hard. I have already posted 2 articles, which you can see here: Petcare Bev.

Donations are easy to make and can be securely done through

First Giving.

The favor: I would greatly appreciate it if you would mention our efforts on your blog. Our goal is to raise $1,000, but I'm hoping we can raise more before we reach our deadline of March 31.

Can you help us? Please let me know if you need additional information, and feel free to quote from my blog. Thanks so much!

Smoochies to the kitties,
Bev"

Mom agreed with me: No quotes necessary as Bev's email says it all. If you can help Small Paws, please click the link above to view their donation site.

Happy Squillions Day, efurryone!

2010-02-28T16:11:00.001-08:00

Thanks to our furriend ... Tara, Princess Meezer ... for remindin' us of Squillions Day! We wanna wish a happy day to Coconut Flake an' Pinky Schwinn who are our Virtual Squillions from the Cat Blogosphere Animal Shelter, an' to all of the squillions that Mom painted for our cousins an' furriends over the years. We wish efurry squillion a most excellent day!

He's gettin' better all the ti-iii-iiimmme!

2010-02-23T18:57:00.000-08:00

To crib from the Beatles ... "Better, better, bettttt-ttah!"

Yes. Our orinch ruffian, Pumpkin, is feeling so much better on 4 ccs of insulin in the morning and four in the evening. Mom knows that he's feelin' better because he's been singing in the hallway an' he's gotten up on the bed! Mr. P hasn't been up on the bed for nearly a YEAR.

Thanks to efurryone who has been keepin' him in purrs an' purrayers since he took ill. The power of the blogosphere never ceases to boggle my mind. You all are totally pawesome!

Valentine's Day 2010

2010-02-14T13:25:00.000-08:00

We wanna wish all of our Valentines an extra wonderful Valentine's Day today!

Charmee is sendin' smooches to Miss Willow ... He's also winkin' at her!

Sweet Miss China Cat is Cocoa Puff's sweetie again this year ...

Pumpkin is extra happy to be Miss Dazey's Valentine for the fourth year in a row ... He's extra happy to tell her that he's feelin' much better an' that he's gettin' his diabetes under control so that they can have MANY more years together as Valentines.

Sparky Fuzzypants is gettin' used to bein' stag on Valentine's Day ... In fact, he's Mom's Valentine an' has been keepin' the foot of her bed extra snuggly today so he can make her some Valentine's Day biscuits ... Hubba, hubba!

An' my Valentine again this year is the super-suave an' totally "geezer" Rocky the Gutter Cat. He sent a wonderfu present of primo 'nip, a 'nip heart (ready for bunnykickin'), an' a mushy card. I HEART You, too!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY, EFURRYONE!

Four-day Weekend ...

2010-02-13T12:09:00.000-08:00

It's the long weekend an' Mom has been spending time at home with us cuddling an' watching hours of television that she's recorded on the DVR. Not too bad a way to spend days off.

But Pumpkin an' Puffy went to the v-e-t yesterday for some shots an' bloodwork. Pumpkin's blood sugar level hasn't stabilized, so he's gonna get a larger dose of insulin to see if it will help. An' now the v-e-t thinks that Puffy might be diabetic, too ... His weight keeps vascillating an' his sugar was over 400, but the v-e-t thinks that MIGHT be because he was nervous an' scared. I don't blame him 'cuz the PTU is scary an' so is riding in the green masheen an' hearin' woofies barkin' in the hospital an' smellin' that terrible V-E-T smell. Don't get me started about gettin' goosed by a thermometer an' bein' put into a cage ...

So, things weren't furry pleasant for the Feline Americans for the first part of our weekend ...

But they were good for ME! I got a Valentine from Rocky with a big bag of primo 'nip (Yeeoowww! is the BEST!), a big furry heart from Siamese Rescue that says "Lick Me! Bite Me! Bunnykick Me!", an' a super sweet card from Rocky himself. Wow! He sure does make a Spicy Vixen like myself feel super special for Valentine's Day! Thank you, Rocky! Smooches!

I'm gonna post my Valentine's Day photos of the openin' of the package tomorrow ... Don't tell Rocky, but the Feline Americans have all bunnykicked that fragrant heart about ... Even Pumpkin!!

'Til tomorrow ...

DMM

Pumpkin's feelin' better ...

2010-01-31T17:39:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin has his first post-diagnosis check-up tomorrow. Mom has been monitoring him carefully ... feeding him the special diet, dealing with Clavimox and insulin. He looks much better and is walking much less "disabled" than he had ... He still needs to build his muscle tone back from what he'd become. The extra good news is that he's HAPPY and perky and NOT GOING TO THE BRIDGE. He's returning to good health and that makes all of us ... especially Mom ... furry, furry happy.

I do know that he's not going to be happy to be loaded into the PTU tomorrow an' there may be some serious chasing around the house and crawling under the bed to get him ready for his check-up. Hee, hee ... I plan to point him out 'cuz I'm just that kind of girlie! Better take a towel, 'cuz the Boy of Orinch is gonna put the "P" in PTU!

DMM

Pumpkin is back from the v-e-t

2010-01-23T17:55:00.000-08:00

Grandma an' Grandad picked up Pumpkin from the v-e-t yesterday while Mom was at work. Grandad held him in the green masheen an' they transported the PTU (full of p-e-e), a bag of Hill's Prescription Diet fat boy kibbles, twenty-four cans of some yucky, yucky stinky BADNESS (that I won't eat, but the boys all love ... I want Fancy Feast, but Mom said "no"), syringes, Clavimox, an' insulin.

Supposedly, Pumpkin could be off of the insulin in a few weeks after efurrything is stabilized, but the v-e-t doesn't really think so for him. He had a blood sugar level in the 600s while he was in the hospital an' now it's down to 320-ish, but it needs monitoring an' reducing still.

Mom mailed our cans of Fancy Feast an' Sheba to Michigan to our furriends, an' she made a trip to an animal shelter to give away our WONDERFUL an' DELICIOUS Eukanuba ... sigh. I've been tellin' Mom to email our furriend, Bev, to ask her if there is a Eukauba that we can substitute 'cuz Mom's makin' ALL of us go on Pumpkin's diet ... an' I really don't like his food. Besides, I'm not fat. Pumpkin's not fat either 'cuz you can feel his bones an' see 'em. I'm confused. That Hill's Prescription Diet M/D kibble an' W/D stinky-badness can't be good for you if you won't eat it, right?

At least I've still got Temptations 'cept Mom got a little pack of the new "kitten" Temptations an' they don't taste like my wonderful green Seafood Medley Temptations ... they taste like chick-hen an' I don't like 'em either. Sigh.

Pumpkin's at the v-e-t

2010-01-20T18:42:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin's dental appointment turned into something very different ... He went to his appointment at Banfield expecting to have a cleaning (with maybe an extraction or two). It turns out that the dental couldn't be done until after a blood test and some antibiotics for an infection in his gums. But wait, that's not all ... Pumpkin has diabetes.

Grandma an' Grandpa spoke to the v-e-t extensively after cleaning up the "accident" that he made in the PTU (they agreed to be the transport since Mom had to work). The "accident" made Puffy look like the king of v-e-t visits since he doesn't befoul the PTU and rides pretty quietly now that he's a veteran of the green masheen. Puffy had his v-e-t visit and has lost nearly four pounds since December 28th. The v-e-t had great words for Puffy's efforts and said that his abcesses are nearly healed, but the fur isn't growing back that quickly. Puffy came home with our grandparent.

Pumpkin, however, had to stay overnight and was very frightened. Grandad held him and told him to be a good boy (is there any other kind when you're talking 'bout Pumpkin???). They are gonna pick him up tomorrow with his insulin an' needles. Hopefully, he was stable enough this afternoon for the dental visit. Can you believe that he weighs over sixteen pounds? Mom was amazed 'cuz he seems so light.

Oh, an' it's POURING rain right now. Let's hope that it continues for a few days 'cuz Sandy Eggo is nearly "normal" for our "season to date" rain! It would be nice to be ahead of the rain curve for once in twenty-five or so years. Keep your paws crossed for our Pumpkin an' our rain (but mostly for our Pumpkin). Our dood of orinch is our biggest priority!

DMM

What's up on MLK, Jr. Day???

2010-01-18T19:21:00.000-08:00

Since this was MLK, Jr. weekend, Mom chose to do "service" for her club at school. The day after Thanksgiving, she bought a YuDu machine (paid for by the club) to print student t-shirts. Little did she know that the supplies are very expensive and that the task of making silk-screened t-shirts, while not particularly difficult, IS horribly time-consuming and tiring.

Michaels started a sale yesterday with Jerzees t-shirts at $2/each (a 100% savings over regular price), so Mom and Grandma zoomed all over the place buying red, white, and navy blue t-shirts in all manner of sizes. About sixty t-shirts were purchased along with YuDu ink in gold for Mom's club. Uncle James made the original design ... and it's pretty darn cool.

After messing up the first emulsion sheet, Mom finally abandoned the DVD that came with the machine in favor of better instructions on YouTube. The second emulsion came out terrific, and then the assembly line began. T-shirts got washed, dried, printed, dried again, and finally, ironed to heat-set the ink.

We'll let you know how the students feel about the t-shirts. I was able to get some of my fur onto them, so my job is done.

BTW: Happy MLK, Jr. Day to efurryone ... Mom needs a NAP!

DMM

Oh, Puffy seems to be recuperating pretty well from his second set of Charmee bites. Charmee is adjusting to the Busparin. Pumpkin needs his teeth cleaned ... Don't tell him, but Grandma is calling Banfield for a dental appointment tomorrow.

Back to work already?

2010-01-10T18:23:00.000-08:00

Well ... The vacation is officially over 'cuz Mom goes back to work tomorrow (at least it's a teacher prep day, so there're no kids).

Last week, she flew back from Seattle an' her visit to our Cousin Ben Fuzz in her usual seat on Alaska Airlines ... 4A. Mom sat for a few seconds in the "regular seats," but was glad to have her seat in First Class fixed and ready for her. She says that the seats in the rows of three are short and uncomfortable. She likes the stretching-out room in the front of the plane.

Anyway, she used her phone to take some photos while she was flyin' over stuff on her way back to Sandy Eggo. This is somewhere in the upper-middle part of California. She's not sure exactly where, but it's north of Oxnard.

Mom says that there are lots of photos to share from her trip, but she's got stuff to do before goin' back to work tomorrow.

To get efurryone updated: Puffy had another surgery 'cuz the Banfield v-e-t didn't get all of the infection out last time an' had to remove stuff when she took out the drains last time. Grandma an' Grandad took good care of Puffy an' made him take his medicine. They also gave him hot compresses on his stitches an' petted him a bunch.

Charmee got his medication to make him less felicidal (in other words, to keep him from killin' Puffy). He's takin' a bunch of pills an' they seem to be workin' a little bit.

Pumpkin is hanging in there an' might have gained a couple of ounces. Mom's still feedin' him bunches of food an' Temptations. He keeps sneakin' out into the livin' room after efurryone is asleep. He thinks that he's sly ...

I'm still Queen of the House. Was there any doubt?

Oh, an' Fuzzypants seems to be made of Velcro ... He sleeps on Mom's bed an' is makin' biscuits as fast as he can. Apparently, he thinks that this will keep Mom from leavin' us for vacations. I'll let you know if it works ...

An' I made a resolution for Mom: More bloggin' an' visitin' in 2010. Mom said that she'd think about it 'cuz she works awfully long hours.

I put my paw down ...

Our furriend is sick!

2010-01-05T17:14:00.000-08:00

One of our first furriends, Kismet, is mighty ill an' needs efurryone's purrs ... You can stop by Skeezix's blog for more information an' you can leave good vibes for Kismet an' Sophie.

We're furry worried. Kismet is the mancatliest ManCat we know next to Tripper an' we want him to get better!

Feel better, dood!

... Onward into the teens ...

2009-12-31T14:49:00.000-08:00

Mom is helpin' us to blog from our Aunt Toni's condo ... So, we wanna wish efurryone a safe New Year's Eve with the happiest an' healthiest 2010!

DaisyMae Maus, Cocoa Francis Puff, Sparky Kyoot Fuzzypants, (William Jefferson) Pumpkin, and Lucky Charmz

(and me, too ... Jessica)

Charmee and the Fling-ama-string

2009-12-26T15:00:00.000-08:00

For ChristMAUS, Mom got us a Fling-ama-string toy. This is kind of a dull video, but Mom's still learning how to "shoot tape" on her iPhone. Perhaps there will be more exciting videos in the future? Oh, an' don't bother turnin' up your speakers 'cuz Mom doesn't say a darn thing an' there's no music.

Secret Paws: ChristMAUS 2009

2009-12-26T13:17:00.000-08:00

We decided to jumble up all of the photos that Mom took of us openin' our Secret Paws packages for ChristMAUS this year 'cuz there were lots of photos an' Blogger doesn't make re-organizing them furry easy ... So, in no particular order:

Here's a photo of me on Boxing Day ... I didn't have anything to exchange 'cuz all of my presents are PERFECT for me (an' I'll even share with the boys). Now why is the photo sideways? Mom's iPhone an' the photo enhancement software make things kinda difficult ... So we're gonna leave the photos sideways. It just makes things more interesting. Right?
Sparky Fuzzypants is investigatin' the box that came from Hansel and Tesla. It had goodies in it like fev-ver butt FISHIES!

Samantha Black sent a Secret Paws box where efurrything was wrapped in tissue paper! Fuzzypants LOVES playin' in tissues, so he's havin' lots of fun here ... Mom didn't get a picture of Charmee dive-bombing Fuzzypants an' tissue flying efurrywhere ...

Ooo ... a fev-ver butt fishy is gettin' examined by Sparky Fuzzypants ... Fun!
This is a Watermelon Cat figurine that Mom's cousins, Kirsten an' Matt, sent for ChristMAUS. It's sitting in the china cabinet where efurryone can see him ... Oh, an' Kirsten an' Matt are the parents of Zoey, the Furballs, Cha-Ching, an' Tigger!This is what Samantha Black sent in the Secret Paws box ... There are toys like some 'nip wands (that smell yummy!) plus Sheba foods an' mousies, an' 'nip soft blocks, an' some Fancy Feast Elegant Medleys! YUMMO!
This is the card ... it's a non-vishus deer ChristMAUS cat an' a whole bunch of BOWS! Mom likes to stick the bows onto Charmee an' watch him shake them off ... He wasn't too enthused 'bout those bows.

This box of goodies is from our SECOND Secret Paws present. It came all the way from Iowa! Patches an' Nemo were our Secret Paws ...

If you look closely, you can see a photo of Patches an' Nemo. They are furry photogenic (an' give excellent presents). There's a turtle fishing toy an' nummy Temptations! Oh, an' some Tiki Cat foods ... Even two plushy 'nip toys called "Flea" an' "Tick" that we'll enjoy biting!At dinnertime, our Uncle James an' Aunt Lori came an' opened the Secret Paws present to our woofie cousin, Shadow. Hansel an' Tesla's woofie was Shadow's Secret Paw! Shadow got some cool presents like a plush LOBSTER!

All of Shadow's loot looked furry interesting, but we didn't investigate it 'cuz that LOBSTER looked mighty ferocious an' we were scared.

These are two of the FIVE boxes that we guarded until ChristMAUS.
This ginormous Gizzy-style quilt was made by Mom's cousin, Kirsten. It is a ChristMAUS tree made of hundreds of one-inch boxes of fabric. It must have taken a long time. Unlike our Gizzy quilts made by Millie's momma, our mom won't let us lay on it. She says that it is hers an' not ours. When will Mom learn that EFURRYTHING in the house is ours?
Here is Charmee searching for his blue fev-ver butt fishy from Hansel an' Tesla.
Oh ... THERE it is! Oooo ... an' that nifty catapult toy is attached to the front door's knob right now ... Don't tell Charmee, but I have plans for that mousie that's currently attached ... hee, hee.
This is the ChristMAUS letter that Hansel an' Tesla sent ...
Charmee is snoopervising the box's contents an' wants Mom to open the Catapult NOW!
Charmee checks out Patches an' Nemo ... an' the presents they sent, too! Hmm ... treats look furry delicious!
Charmee checks to see that all of the presents have been opened an' is disappointed to see that they have ... Charmee asks, "How many more days 'til ChristMAUS?"
Okay, back into the box. Charmee wants Fuzzypants' fev-ver butt fishy, too!
"Okay, okay! Keep your fur on, Charmee! I'll give you a fishy."
"Ahhhh ... There's nothin' like a cardboard box an' a fev-ver butt fishy!"
If Charmee hides beneath the tree, he thinks that he's invisible ...
Check out all of the tissue-wrapped presents from Samantha Black! Mom had a good time helpin' us to open them.

This is what the package from Patches an' Nemo looked like before Mom opened the photo an' the card. Thank you, efurryone! We will be sending appropriate "thank you" notes this week ... Smooches to Samantha Black, Patches an' Nemo, and Hansel, Tesla, an' their woofie!

Love,

DaisyMae Maus, Cocoa Francis Puff, Sparky Kyoot Fuzzypants, Pumpkin, an' Lucky Charmz (and Jessica, too)

Charmee attacked Cocoa Puff AGAIN!

2009-12-23T19:09:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Mom an' Grandma spent the better part of the day at the Banfield Pet Hospital with both Puffy an' Charmee ... Mom had been smelling a rather rank odor in the living room and washed just about everything including Puffy's buns, but the odor wouldn't go away. Mom felt Puffy's ears and they didn't feel hot (like last time), so she got closer and sniffed Puffy's back. Ah ha ... the source of the odor was indeed Puffy. After running her hands down Puffy's back, Mom discovered some infected tooth marks and this time ... a pair of nasty abcesses. Charmz had once again tried to murder Puffy.

This time, Mom took both boys to the v-e-t for evaluation. Puffy needed surgery and the insertion of TWO drains this time ... plus a hefty dose of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds. Charmz got a full evaluation and rather than filing his teeth, he's gonna be put on some anti-anxiety medicine called Buspirone that will HOPEFULLY reduce the "felicidal/fratricidal" rages from him. Charmee was very good for the doctor, but he tried to rip Mom's face off when she was trying to insert him into the prisoner transport unit ... It was so bad that Mom had to put an Elizabethan collar on him so he couldn't bite her.

Puffy is resting comfortably, but the grandparents are gonna hafta deal with the doctor visits an' dosing Charmee while Mom is gone on her trip.

Think healing thoughts for Puffy, patient thoughts for our grandparents, and anti-psychotic thoughts for Charmee ... okay? Thanks!

DMM

Our ChristMAUS newcomer!

2009-12-23T19:00:00.000-08:00

Yay! Just in time for ChristMAUS, we have adopted Coconut Flake from the Cat Blogosphere Shelter ... an' she is HERE! Yay! We're so happy to welcome her to sunny Sandy Eggo. Whoo hoo!

DMM an' the Feline Americans

December 21 ...

2009-12-21T18:25:00.000-08:00

Well ... It's December 21st an' Mom is FINALLY finished with the last of her pre-vacation duties: Today was the trip to the dentist for a check-up an' cleaning.

Since she's now officially on vacation (an' leaves for her visit to Seattle next week), I'm makin' sure the sheets an' pillows are extra-comfy on the bed so that we can get in some snuggling time before she leaves us with our grandparents for a week or so.

You'd think that Mom would WANT to spend her vacation here in Sandy Eggo where it's warm an' she can do lots of fun stuff like chillaxin' an' snugglin' with me ... But no. She wants to visit the cold, wet snow an' hang out with our cousin, Benjamin.

Sigh.

Happy ChristMAUS to you an' your famblies ...

DMM

Did I mention that Mom's gonna miss my sixteenth Gotchaversary an' that it's just ten days away??? Well, she is.

Argh! Get the lead out, Mom!

2009-12-08T17:58:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe that I haven't posted since Turkey Day! What is with my mom anyway? She can't be THAT busy that she hasn't been available for bloggin' when she knows how important it is to me that I get to visit my furriends and leave comments on their bloggies, right?

I got a Secret Paws package yesterday an' Mom stashed it beneath the otherwise naked tree sittin' in the dining room. I know that Skittles has matched me up with someone(s) an' the Feline Americans, too ... but have we mailed ours yet? No. In Mom's defense, the boxes have been constructed an' addressed. The presents have been purchased (I've seen 'em). But nothin' has been put INTO the boxes yet.

The same goes for our cards. We got a furry cute Kliban card from Perfectly Parker TODAY! Parker is on time an' Mom is late, late, late! Mom has printed the cards an' purchased the envelopes, but nothing has been addressed yet ... so there's still time. IF you haven't ever received a ChristMaus card from us an' you want one, please email me before Friday, Dec. 11th. OR if you've moved since last ChristMaus an' we don't have your snail mail address ... an' you'd like a card, please email before Friday, Dec. 11th. Mom has promised us the use of her thumbs all weekend ('cuz she bailed on us last weekend to build two china cabinets an' she tweaked her right elbow kinda nastily). So hurry, efurryone! It's nearly ChristMaus!

Smooches ...

DMM

It's THANKSGIVING an' I'm furry thankful ...

2009-11-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

On behalf of the Feline Americans, Mom, and of course, ME (!): Happy Thanksgiving to efurryone who is celebrating today (and Happy Thursday to efurryone who is thankful that it's Thursday) ... We're gonna try to visit all of our furriends today an' spread some welcome holiday cheer!

I also wanna mention that I'm thankful for good health, a warm place to sleep, nutritious food (ham an' turkey, right Mom???), ice water in a raised water dish, Pumpkin still among the living, the Feline Americans, Grandma an' Grandad, Mom, an' even that little brat, Charmee. Oh, an' I'm especially thankful for all of my furriends and readers in the blogosphere. You all are the greatest!

Gobble, gobble!

DMM

PeeSss: Happy Birthday to Mom who's older tomorrow ...

Wordless Wednesday: Never eat pumpkin pie again?!?

2009-11-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

Good-bye, Bathsheba ...

2009-11-21T10:31:00.000-08:00

We haven't been blogging much this week, so we just heard that one of our best furriends, Bathsheba, has taken herself to the Bridge to be with my sweetie, Jake. She was sick with cancer and chose to leave this world last weekend. We are terribly sad at this news and wish Emerson and Nancy love and peace as they cope with their loss.

Please visit her brother, Emerson's, blog (linked above) to leave your condolences.

Godspeed, 'Sheba.

Pumpkin update!

2009-11-14T19:18:00.000-08:00

Well, Pumpkin is hangin' in there. He enthusiastically greets Mom when she's got his breakfast, or dinner, or Temptations for him to eat. Mom bought him a really nice fleecy cat cup from Cat Faeries that he relaxes in nearly 24 hours a day. Charmee tried it out when Mom opened the box, but Pumpkin put his smells all over it so we all know that it is his.

We will keep you updated on his progress. Mom still thinks that he had a series of small strokes, but Grandma thinks that he may have broken a hip or pinched some nerves. We dunno for sure.

Keep your purrers workin' for Ol' Mr. P, will ya?

Thanks!

DMM

Grandma's birthday! Pumpkin! Secret Paws!

2009-11-08T16:44:00.000-08:00

Today is my grandma's birthday an' she's sixty-four. Happy Birthday, GRANDMA! I've been sittin' on her lap while she's had a cold an' I think that she may have given it to ME! I'm kinda lethargic an' haven't been furry interested in my food. I guess it's not a hairball afterall. Darn those germs ...

Pumpkin is feelin' a whole lot better. I believe that all of those helpful purrs an' purrayers from the Blogosphere have helped him a whole lot. A week ago, Mom thought that he was goin' to have to be helped to the Bridge, but that thinkin' was a whole lot premature an' not furry pawsitive to say the least. We're furry happy that Pumpkin will be with us longer. He's wondering if Dazey will be his Valentine next year???

Oh, an' we wanted to put in a plug for Secret Paws. Miss Skittles mentioned that efurryone is signing up an' that if you wanted to participate, you should email your information to secretpawsATgmailDOTcom. We sent in our info (an' our woofie cousin's, too).

Peace Globes and Pawsitive Energy

2009-11-05T00:01:00.000-08:00

Our great furriend Mimi is holding another Blog Blast For Peace an' we are once again honored to be participating.

This time, we chose a quotation from Jimi Hendrix (partly because of his profound wisdom and partly 'cuz Mom was born on his birthday).

We think that you'll agree that if efurryone concentrated on peacefulness for even just one day, the world would be a far better place for all of us.

Peace!

DMM

Pumpkin

2009-11-01T10:57:00.000-08:00

Further Updated:

Nov. 2 at 5: 45 PM

Pumpkin seems stronger and is still eating enthusiastically. Thank you for your continued purrs and purrayers.

UPDATE: I am encouraged by Pumpkin's eating last evening and his enthusiasm for pets. He's showing greater energy (and I'm sure that it's because of everyone's positive thoughts, purrayers, and purrs). I've decided to play-it-by-ear and let him decide when he's ready.
Jessica

We are sad to say that Feline American Pumpkin has taken a turn for the worse an' will have to be helped to the Bridge early this week.

"Heartbroken" doesn't begin to describe how we're feelin' ...

Trick-or-Treat!

2009-10-31T18:04:00.000-07:00

Clip Art from Thumbs Dreamtime

We wanna wish efurryone a Happy Halloween ... An' remind all of you living in the United States to set your clocks back an' hour at 2:00 AM on Sunday, November 1st!

Be safe ... an' get lots of CANDY!

Mud Tacos book signing

2009-10-24T20:32:00.000-07:00

Rating: * * * 1/2 of * * * * *
How did Mom spend her evening? She went to the Borders bookstore in eastern Chula Vista to attend a book signing. Mario Lopez and his sister, Marissa Lopez Wong, wrote a children's book called Mud Tacos and Mom wanted to get a copy for our cousins, Ethan and Trentan, her god daughter, Sophia, and herself.

You see, Mario was Mom's student when she taught English 12 at Chula Vista High School back in the fall of 1990 when she was a baby teacher. At the time, Marissa was a sophomore and a cheerleader.

So Mom went to the signing and waited in a ginormous line more than two-and-a-half hours. She didn't get a photo taken because she had just her cell phone and the NBC people wouldn't allow a cell phone photo ... oh, well. But Mom did get all three of her books signed by Mario (Marissa wasn't at the signing). Mario was very cordial and was using his famous (infamous?) dimples to their full advantage. After signing so many books, he seemed tired. Mom asked him if he remembered her and he said that he did although he marveled that "someone so young looking could have been his teacher" (yeah, right). Mom didn't want a hug, but she did shake his hand politely and quickly left the building after getting the books signed.

Would she wait such a long time for autographed books if she had to do it over again? Sure. How many OTHER students of hers have written books? Not too many, I'd bet.

If you wanna buy the book, Amazon.com has it for less than list price and you can find it here: MUD TACOS. It comes in both English and Spanish versions, and is a very sweet story with good family values.

Oh, but don't get Mom started about the mother-and-daughte FREAK SHOWS who were right behind her in line. Can you say S•T•A•L•K•E•R•S???? They were two crazy chicks and Mom couldn't get away fast enough (Insert full body shiver here).

Mom told me that the best part of the whole evening was seeing her former student, Kathryn, who graduated from SDSU this last May. I like Kathryn, 'cuz Mom nicknamed her "Kitty Cat" an' of course, I like efurrything that has to do with kitties ... Don't YOU???

Mr. Tigger needs to go home to Texas!

2009-10-14T18:16:00.000-07:00

Mr. Tigger STILL hasn't gone back to his home an' his fambly continues to search for him.

So I'm gonna say, "Mr. Tigger ... If you can hear me ... GO HOME! Samantha Black an' Maverick an' your momma miss you a whole bunch an' they're not gonna rest until you get your stripy buns back home!"

DMM & the Feline Americans
(They don't call me "Miss Bossy Buns" for nothin'!)

Teefs ... are clean, shiny, an' WHITE!

2009-10-10T16:53:00.000-07:00

Mom put my harness an' lead on at 8 o'clock this morning an' trundled me over to the v-e-t to have my teefs cleaned. Since I'm sixteen, they did some kidney tests to make sure that efurrything was functioning properly ... an' other than some slightly elevated renal levels, I'm in furry good health for a geezer-ette.

The whole day of dentistry cost Mom a little over $300 green papers. I'm still groggy an' they shaved my right leg(!), so I have a Banfield bandage for another hour or so, but for the most part, I'm less worse for the wear.

I complained for some of the ride over (I serenaded Mom an' Grandma with my choicest an' bluest vocabulary ... Mom's not fond of "Me-yeowwwwwwuullllfffff" screamed at the top of my feline lungs), but was on my best behavior when I was weighed (10.4 lbs including harness an' lead), had my temperature taken (ouch!), an' had my pee an' blood stolen. I wasn't furry happy when I had my furs shaved ... Overall, the stabby place wasn't terrible.

Then ... Mom ... left ... me ... An' went out to breakfast with Grandma. They had bacon.

In the mid-afternoon, I was still really groggy ... excellent anesthesia on par to maybe a Grateful Dead concert ... an' wobbly, but my hearing was just fine. Big woofies were there when Mom was payin' the bill: A black ball-of-annoyance that weighed the same as me; a white puff-ball that weighed eighteen pounds (but I coulda taken him with one set of nubby clawrs tied behind my back), a fifty-one pound stripy pitbull girlie who'd recently had puppies an' had the attitude of a bent trash-can lid, an' then a GINORMOUS yellow lab girlie named Lady who musta weighed eleventy-squillion pounds an' had to wear a pink Halty on her nose 'cuz she was LOUDER than Mao ... Skeezix's brother.

While I was having my teefs cleaned, Mom dosed all of the Feline Americans with Feline Advantage 'cuz she paid for me to have some while under anesthesia (since I don't like havin' it put on) ... Mom DOESN'T wanna get any fleas in the house an' it seems like other "patients" aren't so careful 'bout pests like we are.

The v-e-t said that my back teefs looked pretty bad with all of that plaque and tartar on 'em. She even thought that she'd have to extract some of 'em! But once the calculus was removed, my teefs were BEAUTIFUL an' very healthy! Ta da!

I was so happy to see Mom an' Grandma ... They carried me in a twill bag rather than in the PTU an' I didn't pee on ANYTHING! Are you proud of me? On the way outta the store, Mom's former student aide, Stefany, saw me an' got to pet me on the melon. Stefany is a cashier an' she's wanted to meet me for years! I am famous!

So now I'm home an' less groggy. I've eaten some Temptations an' had a drink of water. I've even been to the 'box, but I haven't had to go much since my tummy's pretty empty.

I'll let you know how I'm feelin' tomorrow when I'm mostly back to normal ...

Oh, an' Mom bought my Halloween costume today ... Bast!

DMM

Teefs ...

2009-10-09T11:16:00.000-07:00

Mom was on the phone to the v-e-t today ...

It seems that Catster an' Skeezix's momma the Food Lady
have been bloggin' 'bout "how to keep geezer cats healthy" an' efurryone suggested keepin' a close eye on teefs.

Apparently, my breath isn't as sweet an' pleasant as it has been, so Mom inspected my teefs an' found that while I still have all of my teefs, the canines have some yellow tartar on 'em. Well, whaddya expect when there are WOOFIES in my mouth?

So I have an appointment tomorrow at 8 o'clock in the morning to get my teefs cleaned. Bast!

DMM

Empty house an' no more kitty cartons ...

2009-10-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

Our Oregonian guests are gone ... They spent the day at the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park an' then zipped up the freeway to Anaheim for some Disneyland/Disney's California Adventure followed by NASCAR at Fontana.

We didn't get to spend nearly enough time with them, but they did get to see an' do some things that they don't get in Oregon like the San Diego Zoo, Sea World, and the W.A.P. They also ate at local favorites like Boomerang's, Rubio's Mexican Grille (home of the fish taco), King's Fish House (which has better clam chowder than just about anywhere), In-N-Out Burger (don't get me started ...), Stuart Anderson's Black Angus (hee, hee ... I nearly typed "anus" ... darn lack of thumbs), Jalisco's for breakfast machacas, an' Casa Del Taco.

Supposedly, our cousin will be comin' back down to San Diego for a legal conference in February. That will be great. Mom might be travelin' up to the Pacific Northwest in the wintertime (like January) if the weather isn't too snowy.

But for now, they're gone. Sigh.

'Tocks Toozday: Check out my 'TOCKS for 'Tocktober 2009!

2009-10-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

Charmee is flashin' his 'tocks in honor of 'Tocktober ...

Don't tell him that we can see spots 13 an' 14 or he'll be pretty embarrassed (hee, hee ... pun intended).

BTW: Mom used the flashy box on Charmz before she used the kitty wipes on his buns. The brown crust is gone ... for now.

Yep, I'm a naughty Tuxie (blush) ...

DMM

WBCL ... in the new bags ... is in stores!

2009-10-05T15:53:00.001-07:00

Our furriend, Drew, from World's Best Cat Litter, sent us a second package today. It's the same litter, but in the new packaging. It looks pretty darned spiffy in the green an' black bag with the tabby kitty on the front. Inside the package with the litter was a card from Drew explainin' that the only difference is the bag itself ... Whew! That's a relief! We like the corn-kernel litter as is!

But there was a surprise in the box with the litter an' the card: A special litter mat with the new design all nice an' big! Cool!

(Sorry Rocky! I gotta tell it like I see it ... an' he's HOT!)

Mom has put the litter mat under our water bowl in the kitchen 'cuz we keep splashin' water on the cabinet (an' we have a mat under each litterbox anyway).

Thanks, Drew! The new packaging looks awfully purrfessional an' we really love the kitty on our new drink mat! Mom has filled my personal litterbox with the new litter already an' I'm drinkin' extra water so that I can be the first to use the box! Yee haw!

DMM

And the vouchers go to ...

2009-10-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

THANK YOU to Bev, Emily and Eukanuba for the five FREE Eukanuba cat food vouchers that we were able to give away to ...

First of all, we wanna wish our Grandad a happy 71st birthday. Mom got him a furry cute t-shirt from Crazy Shirts with Kliban cats on the front (an' back) that says "Dadcat." He really liked it!

An' now on to the recipients of the Eukanuba vouchers that Bev an' Emily sent.

Each recipient will also receive a little Yeowww! prize pack from us: Some Yeowww! catnip an' a Stinky sardine.

We're contactin' the "winners" at their bloggies so that we can get these into the mail as soon as possible. Whoo hoo!

Sparky Fuzzypants was supposed to do all of the selectin', but he didn't wanna ... He only chose one.

Sparky chose Latte's entry, so Latte will be receivin' a prize pack with voucher! Yay for Latte!

Cocoa Francis Puff stepped up an' endured the tape on his paw to select the other four. Yay! Furkidsmom (aka Sniffie an' the Florida Furkids) gets one of the prizes from Eukanuba.

Olaf an' the rest of the The Ozark Mountain Cats are gettin' one, too!

Our cousins, Zoey an' the Furballs with Cha-Ching an' Tigger, are winners.

An' the last voucher with prize pack goes to our new furriend, R.W. Emerson. He's Bathsheba's new brother.

Cocoa is an excellent chooser. He did furry well with the tape on his pawpads.

Too bad it wasn't that great blue painter's tape. We didn't have any 'cuz Uncle James took Mom's tape for paintin' the school an' he didn't have any left when he was finished (an' since he's good at takin' an' not replacin', we didn't get a new roll).

Here is Cocoa showin' off the terrific Yeowww! mini prize-pack from us. He REALLY loves Yeowww! 'nip an' that odoriferous Yeowww! Stinky sardine toy.

An' here are the vouchers good for one 4-pound bag of Eukanuba catfood that Bev, Emily, and the Eukanuba company sent for FREE! Our readers are furry lucky!

We wanna thank efurryone who left a comment on our September 20th post. Too bad we couldn't give each of you a voucher ... That would've been great. Sigh.

Concatulations to Latte Meezer; Sniffie an' the Florida Furkids; Olaf an' the Ozark Mountain Cats; Zoey, the Furballs, Cha-Ching an' Tigger; an' our new furriend, R.W. Emerson.

Please send us your snail mail addresses

(to daisymaemausATcoxDOTnet) so that we can get your voucher an' prize-pack into the mail!

Try Eukanuba with FOS!

2009-09-20T14:49:00.001-07:00

YOU CAN TRY A 4-POUND BAG FOR FREE!

Feline American Charmee proclaims,

"It's MINE! All of the bags in this box are mine, all mine!"

Do you have the courage to deny him?

A couple of weeks ago, our good furriend Bev (who works for Eukanuba), contacted us about taste-testing the new and improved kibbles that should be arriving in your favorite pet supply stores now. Of course, we were THRILLED to be doin’ anything for Eukanuba because we are huge fans ... But even better, we were gonna get to try these delicious kibbles FOR FREE from Eukanuba! Yippee!

Bev told us that Eukanuba was changing the look of all of the bags, and reformulating their kibbles to add a special prebiotic ingredient which they refer to as FOS. We were intrigued because the only “FOS” that we’ve ever heard of were the members of the Catster group Friends of Skeezix (the Cat).

But apparently the “FOS” in the Eukanuba food is actually somethin’ called Fructooligosaccharides. Hmmm ... never heard of ‘em. Thankfully, Bev knows all about those FOS an’ she provided some information to educate us ‘bout what they do:

“Fructooligosaccharides, a prebiotic fiber, provides a food source to the beneficial bacteria in the digestive tract, which helps reduce the bad bacteria. This helps maintain a healthy balance in the digestive system and supports healthy defenses. This prebiotic is now in all Eukanuba cat formulas.”

If you wanna get some additional information about FOS an’ what it does, you can visit Bev’s personal blog.

A few days after we accepted Eukanuba's offer to be taste-testers, our Man-in-the-Brown-Shorts arrived with a ginormous box of FREE Eukanuba bags! Bev sent food especially chosen for our unique needs: Charmee an’ Sparky Fuzzypants received bags of Eukanuba Indoor Hairball formula; Pumpkin got a bag of Eukanuba Kitten formula because he needs the additional nutrition after having a debilitating stroke; Cocoa Puff’s bag was Eukanuba Weight Control; and bein’ a “geezer-ette,” I got Eukanuba Senior formula.

When Mom put the box onto the dining room table, we all wanted to see what we’d gotten. It was better than CHRISTMAS! Charmee literally got into the box with the five bags of food an’ tried to open them with his teeth. Have I mentioned that we really love Eukanuba? When there’s a new bag of food in the house, Mom knows that she’s gotta open it up an’ let us have some right away. But not this time ... Mom had a job to do first an’ it didn’t have anything to do with “weaning” us onto the new formulation (Of course, efurryone knows that kitties with sensative tummies should eat a mix of their ”old food with their new food for a couple of days” just to be safe).

Why was Mom takin’ her sweet time before openin’ those bags an’ lettin’ us taste ‘em? Well ... She wanted to get the bags photographed first an’ they don’t look quite as pretty when one of us has his/her head stuffed into the bag an’ is gobblin’ away ...

Needless to say, we couldn’t detect any difference in the flavor, color, texture, size or shape of our Eukanuba kibbles. We plowed through bowls of it each and efurryday just like we always do. Personally, I don’t think that you’ll notice any difference either ... Other than the labels on the bags (which feature larger kitties on each bag and clearer item descriptions). I suppose the intention was to keep cats’ intestinal tracts healthier by reducing the bad bacteria and enhancing the beneficial ones. Mom has noted that our litter boxes don’t tend to smell as odoriferous (Mom actually says, “Rank nasty!”) than prior to the beginning of our taste-testing. The odor change happened within seven days. Even Grandma has noticed a marked decrease in fecal odor in addition to fewer loose bowel movements from those of us with more sensative tummies. We owe this improvement to Eukanuba with FOS. The bags of food have also lasted a bit longer than normal, too. Mom’s attributing that partly to the warm weather reducing our appetites, but we think that the new formula is more satisfying than what we’ve eaten in the past. Hmm ...

YOU CAN TRY IT FOR FREE!
In addition to the five bags of newly formulated Eukanuba kibbles for kitties, Bev an’ her colleague, Emily, also sent us FIVE vouchers each good for a FREE 4-pound bag of Eukanuba Cat food. Five lucky commenters on this post will each receive a voucher (courtesy of Eukanuba) with a little prize-pack from me. If you wanna Eukanuba ... an’ your fambly lives in the United States (sorry international readers) ... leave me a comment on this post. If there is more than one kitty livin’ at your house, you can leave a separate comment from each kitty (up to five kitties total) ... to give efurryone a chance at a coupon. Only one coupon will be awarded to a household, so if Zoey, Cha-Ching, Chewie, Smoke, an’ Tigger each leave me a comment, an’ Chewie is selected to receive a coupon an’ prize-pack, then no other kitty at their house can get one. Unnerstand? Good.

In the interest of full transparency: DaisyMae Maus an’ the Feline Americans received the five FREE bags of new Eukanuba Cat food an’ the five FREE 4-pound Eukanuba Cat food vouchers to give away to readers courtesy of the Eukanuba Company and at no cost. Additionally, FOS was already in Eukanuba Cat Sensitive Stomach formula, so no change there. FOS has been added into all of the other formulas. The biggest change is in how the packages look.

If you are one of the five lucky kitties to receive a voucher for a FREE 4-pound bag of Eukanuba kibbles, please send Bev some feedback via her bloggie: Pet Care Bev. We think that you’ll enjoy Eukanuba Cat kibbles with FOS as much as we have. The five voucher recipients will be selected at 12:01 AM on Thursday, October 1, 2009 (Grandad's birthday!).

DaisyMae Maus an’ the Feline Americans are Eukanuba cats for life!

You can click on this link to visit Eukanuba!

Meow Like a Pirate 2009!

2009-09-19T00:01:00.000-07:00

Avast, me hearties! It be that time o' year again when we all don our finest pirate garb an' meow like the dred pirates we are! So square ye jib an' hoist yer sails for a trip across the bounding main! A stiff wind awaits!

Yo ho, yo ho efurryone!

Dred Pirate DaisyMae an' her crew o' Feline 'Merikans

Oh, BTW: The graphics were pirated from Facebook's furry own "Hatchlings" ... hee, hee

Cousin Gandalf went to the Bridge

2009-09-17T19:42:00.000-07:00

We are terribly sad to report that our cousin, Gandalf (member of Zoey an' the Furballs), was hit by a car last night an' went to the Bridge.

Please visit Zoey's bloggie an' offer your condolences. The whole fambly is heart-broken over this horrible tragedy.

Gandalf: We hope that you have plenty of Temptations an' Pit-R-Pats at the Bridge ... We'll miss you.

DMM & the Feline Americans

Happy Birthday to Skeezix! He's FIVE!

2009-09-16T20:09:00.000-07:00

We don't wanna forget to mention that our excellent furriend, Feline Fashionista Skeezix the Cat, is celebratin' his fifth birthday. He an' the Food Lady are the stars of this beautiful piece of art painted by Crazy Cat Lady Artist Susan Faye. You can find her paintings at

365 Cat Ladies.

Be sure to stop by Skeezy's bloggie an' wish him a terrific birthday full of Fancy Feast Turkey with Gravy an' stuff made in PINK!

Happiest of birthdays to you, dood! An' many, many more ....

DMM & the Feline Americans

Mmmm ... More Restaurant Week!

2009-09-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

Tonight, Mom went to Hunter Steakhouse ... an' had chicken. Hmm ... What's wrong with this picture? Yep. You don't order chicken in a steakhouse, Mom ... but we're glad that you did 'cuz you couldn't eat it all an' brought the rest home for US in a kitty carton. Yay!

Now why couldn't Mom eat all of her chicken? It's because the Hunter Restaurants provide WAY TOO MUCH GOOD STUFF before your dinner even arrives at the table. Mom had potato skins as the appetizer ('cuz Grandma an' Grandad had shrimp (ah, shrimp) cocktails an' each had one of the potato skins, too. Then there was the little loaf of molasses bread an' the lazy susan salad bar. Mom's desserts are in the freezer. She has two slices of carrot cake an' one chocolate mousse pie that looks more like chocolate cheesecake.

What's next? Thursday is the Butcher Shop an' Friday is Casa de Pico for Mexican food. Yay!

Mmmm ... Restaurant Week 9/'09

2009-09-15T19:11:00.000-07:00

Mom came home from a conference today an' then left again. It's Restaurant Week in San Diego for the second time this year an' Mom had reservations with Grandma an' Grandpa for the 94th Aero Squadron restaurant.

The 94th Aero Squadron is located near a small airport where diners can watch landings and take-offs of small non-commercial airplanes. Mom's always wanted to try this restaurant because the people she babysat for when she was a teenager would eat at the 94th whenever they wanted a romantic "night out." The inside is vintage WWII with Sirius Satellite Radio tuned to 1940s music for ambiance.

Anyway, the 94th Aero Squadron was featuring the $30.00 price point for its pre fixe menu, so with tip, Mom's check for dinner was $119.00 ... Not too bad for three adults.

Here's the menu:

Choice of First/Appetizers Course

Macadamia-Crusted Sea Scallops

Seared and served with a Roasted Bell Pepper Sauce.

Summer Caprese Salad

Fresh Mozzarella, Sliced Tomatoes, and Basil Leaves served over Bibb Lettuce with a Balsamic Glaze

94th Aero Squadron's Famous Beer Cheese or French Onion Soup

Choice of Second/Main Course

Slow-Roasted Angus Prime Rib of Beef

A 10-oz. cut, served au jus, with creamy horseradish and your choice of Baked Potato or Yukon Gold Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and Creamed Corn.

Grilled Fresh Halibut with Summer Salsa

With diced Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Red & Orange Bell Peppers, Fresh Scallions, and Mild Anaheim Peppers. Served over a Medley of Roasted Fingerling Potatoes.

Chicken Mozzarella Pesto

Baked Breast of Chicken stuffed with Mozzarella Cheese, Fresh Basil, Mushrooms, Fresh Spinach, Red Bell Peppers, and a Fresh Basil-Mint Pesto. Topped with a Thyme Beurre Blanc Sauce and served with Yukon Gold Garlic Mashed Potatoes or Rice Pilaf.

Choice of Third/Dessert Course

House Signature Apple-Walnut Upside-Down Pie

Served warm with Cinnamon Ice Cream

Flourless Chocolate Crème Brulée Tower

Served with Fresh Raspberry Sauce

Fresh Mixed Berries

Served with Grand Marnier Sauce & Whipped Cream

Mom had the beer/cheese soup, the prime rib (cooked medium-rare) with a baked potato and some absolutely decadent creamed corn, with the mixed berries for dessert ... she had to forgo the Grand Marinier Sauce, though.

Grandma had a mushroom and brandy-sauced skirt steak that was added at the last minute, and Grandad had halibut. Their desserts ... the creme brulee and the apple-walnut cake ... are boxed for Mom for later. Diabetic parents make great dinner guests 'cuz their desserts become OUR desserts. Meow!

Check back tomorrow for Wednesday's Restaurant Week menu ... Mom's goin' to The Hunter Steakhouse where she's gonna feast on prime rib again ... Oh, an' Thursday is the Butcher Shop. Do you detect a theme?

It's been eight years since ... We shall never forget!

2009-09-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

In honor of the eighth anniversary of the September 11th attacks on America, we are revisiting the patriot we honored back in 2006 on the fifth anniversary. Her name was Laura M. Longing and she was, in every sense of the word, a hero to this country who lost her life ... and who left behind a loving family.

Laura M. Longing
Age: 35
Resident of Pearl River, NY

Laura M. (Pettus) Longing of Pearl River, New York, was an extraordinary woman. In her thirty-five years, she accomplished much and touched the lives of many. She was a loving wife and mother, an accomplished businesswoman, and a patriot. She was an Assistant Vice President for Marsh USA. Her office was on the 96th floor of the World Trade Center in the North Tower (Tower I). She managed projects in the technology information systems department. During her ten-year career, Laura worked for Marsh & McLennan Companies and their subsidiaries.

Laura graduated from Nanuet High School in 1984. While a student, she played varsity soccer and softball. After high school, Laura earned her Bachelor's Degree in Management from Pace University in 1988, and went on to earn a Master's Degree in Finance from Iona College in 1994.

In addition to being a successful businesswoman, she was the mother of William and Bryan, and a loving wife to her husband, Chris. She was the daughter of Kevin and Anne Marie Pettus, and sister to Keith and Peggy Pettus. Laura had four nieces and nephews: Rory and Grace Pettus, and Brendan and Erin O'Shea. She was the daughter-in-law of Helen Longing and sister-in-law of Dierdre Pettus, Donna O'Shea, John O'Shea, Lorraine Longing, and Anne Longing.

In her leisure time, Laura loved the outdoors. She spent much time camping, and playing golf and softball.

She touched the lives of her family, friends, and coworkers. She put the needs of others before her own. Although she lost her life in the World Trade Center tragedies of September 11, 2001, she lives on in the memories of those she loved and who loved her.

It is our privilege to honor her memory as one who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country in the name of freedom. Laura M. Longing is truly a hero worthy of recognition on this day and on all that follow.

Respectfully,
DaisyMae Maus & the Feline Americans (and Jessica, especially)
http://daisymaemaus.blogspot.com

World's Best Cat Litter lives up to its name!

2009-09-05T11:34:00.000-07:00

If you remember a few posts ago, our furriend Drew who works for World's Best Cat Litter sent us a free bag to test (an' a link to a $4.00 off coupon) so that we could try his company's product. Many of you commented that you'd used this litter an' that you really liked it.

Well, we're a picky bunch an' we've used Target's brand of

litter for a really long time ... But Mom's been trying to find something that won't stick between Pumpkin's paw pads like clay litter does. Pumpkin had a stroke about nine weeks ago an' now he's not as able to control his rear legs. He's super fastidious, though ... An' having wet clay litter stuck to his paws makes him pretty upset.

Enter World's Best Cat Litter! This litter isn't made of clay at all; it's made of ground up corn. The pieces are a little larger than clay pieces, but they don't clump up into painful, sharp rocks like clay. The corn does a terrific job of eliminating odors (both ammonia and fecal) making it far superior to our current litter in that aspect.

Drew sent along a special metal scoop that works just fine if you're policing the box more than once a day. Mom likes to use a mesh trash bin to make the job faster ('cuz we have four litter boxes), but the World's Best Cat Litter doesn't go through the mesh: It's too big. That's Mom's only complaint.

World's Best Cat Litter is available at Petco and PetsMart stores (Petco.com and PetsMart.com, too) in addition to online at World's Best Cat Litter and other online retailers of pet products.

The company has reworked its packaging, so you might not find the yellow packages anymore. Additionally, labels have changed. This is the information from the company:

OUR LOOK HAS CHANGED. BUT OUR FORMULAS REMAIN EXACTLY THE SAME!

Still made from naturally absorbent whole-kernel corn, World's Best Cat Litter™ is getting new packaging. Fall 2009, look for our new packages on store shelves everywhere.

Please note that our actual product formulas HAVE NOT CHANGED! World's Best Cat Litter™ is made using the same patented, scientifically proven process and all natural, whole-kernel corn that has always delivered unsurpassed odor control, faster clumping and longer-lasting use.

We are, however, changing the formula names to better reflect our clumping performance. Our Original Formula is now called World's Best Cat Litter™ Clumping Formula. And our Extra Strength Multiple Cat Formula is now called World's Best Cat Litter™ Multiple Cat Clumping Formula. Both are still 100% all natural!

We like the product that we tried. It did exactly what we expected with the added bonus of far superior odor elimination. Pumpkin especially likes the fact that it doesn't make litter rocks between his toes. We're gonna take our coupon down to PetsMart an' stock up on World's Best Cat Litter 'cuz it lives up to its name.

Thanks Drew! We appreciate your lettin' us try your product. It's terrific.