Reader,

At last the lovely sunny weather has arrived, but you wouldnt know it cause it was coming down in buckets all day today.... I know this, because I have been sitting here in the snug window, watching the aforementioned rain whilst (really) watching out out for a certain big white moggy who wont take the hint!

It's a stand off! ... but who's that nosey so 'n so

The reason I'm stuck here in limbo, incarceration, quarantine (call it what you will) is on account of my claw fight with a neighboorhood imposter who had the gall to repeatedly step on my patch of turf. Over the past three weeks I've been spraying and spraying to warn him to stay away,but ohhh noo, he didn't take heed did he ....well this show down had been on the scratching post for months.

It all came to a head Friday last. And now, here I am like the prisoner in Behan's jail, trussed up in this stupid headdress, cum bonnet so kindly loaned me by the Vet. And since I've got this extra time on my paws I thought I'd relate to you, dear reader, the story.

I lay dozing in the shade of my favourite pine when I saw, out the corner of my eye (as y'do), strolling casually down MY garden path, a big white beast of a moggy. To cut a long story short, I kept watching and he (the upstart!) began to nestle down in MY borage patch.

Well, I jumped up and trotted over for a closer peek and then when he saw me the 'I'm not budging' standoff began.

Twenty minutes later, we're still stood staring there, growling, muewing and hissing at each other. 'White Body Black Tail' as I like to call him, but my humans think of as 'Patch' (for obvious, unimaginative reasons), was slowly realising the error of his ways...

The final straw was his lunge at my face as he passed me, I turned swiftly and ran down the path in chase, but he was as fast as me and made the six foot fence in ten bounds. The Imposter was defeated but I was in one of those frisky moods, having been forced into spending the whole day in the garret.... and I followed upwards just for the heck of it. My sharp claws digging in to the old wood to help my climb.... Sadly, I then slipped (hope no one was watching) and (it tuns out) ripped a claw off in the process. Oh the pain... I strolled back home proud but bowed.

'White Body Black Tail' was gone but I had paid the price. For my sins the kindly (not) Vetinary Nurse presented me with a spring bonnet and slipped it on without my consent. Oh how I absolutely loathe it. The damn wound is itching like crazy and I can't now get to lick it better.

Forest wardens in India's Gujarat state have rescued a three-year old leopard which had fallen into an open well. The leopard is the second of its kind to be rescued in the area this week, highlighting the growing problem of creatures loosing their habitat and having to stray into populated areas for food.

A young leopard peers towards a rescuers torch beam

The distressed leopard was finally winched to safety after many hours of incarceration and trauma. The animal was tranquilised using a dart after its struggles against a noose round its belly were thought to be harming the animal.

Eventually the three-year-old animal was lifted from the water and hauled onto a wooden frame by a team of eight wardens in the village of Aambaliya.

It is said that the Leopard is becoming India's Urban Fox as incidents such as this are growing in frequency as shrinking natural habitats forces more of these big cats to venture into human territory. They approach settlements where they are tempted to prey on domestic livestock including dogs, pigs and goats, and of course they will always be in need of a drink of water.

Leopards were once common across all of southern Asia but have been recently classified (since 2008) as 'near threatened' by International Union for Conservation of Nature. In May 2010, the Wildlife Protection Society of India estimated that at least 3,189 leopards were killed in the country since 1994.

Norman and I are pleased the animal was freed from his ordeal but feel that incarcerating him in the local zoo (and not setting him free) was a little uncalled for. However we have no knowledge of affairs in this region and so hope the leopard is given a large home in which to live.

Cat of the Month ~ March 2013

Ptolomy, Patrick Moore's long time friend

"A catless house is a soulless house"

..so said Sir Patrick Moore the well respected and eccentric astronomer who sadly passed away in December 2012, (and he should know what he was talking about as he had seen into the deepest reaches of our universe! Norm)

As well as being a top flight Astronomer Sir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore CBE, FRS, FRAS was a researcher, radio commentator and U.K. television presenter, who also happened to love all things CAT.

Jennie and Sir Patrick in amongst the globes.

The Cats Paw Nebula, located in the constellation Scorpius

Cat of the Month ~ February 2013

Bob the street cat and his friend the Street Musician (and now author) James Bowen have been inseparable since their chance meeting in Spring 2007.

James Bowen was once a homeless musician, barely scraping though, until he had an encounter with a homeless ginger Tom cat he named 'Bob'.
One day James returned to his sheltered accommodation in Tottenham north London when he saw

"...a pair of glowing eyes in the gloom and the sound of a faint meowing"

Over the next few days James found that Bob was a half starved stray who had been wounded (probably) in an animal fight. Clearly Bob was not owned by anyone in the vicinity, so was taken in, given food and nursed back to health, with the help of the local RSCPCA center, who incidentally asked James to pay 22 pounds (or a day wages) for the drugs to treat the poorly creature.

Back at home, James was really glad of the company of lively Bob but at this point he decided he was going to let Bob go back to his street home and life as a stray cat....but ginger Bob was having none of it....

Bob had decided that that savior who had come to his rescue would forever be His friend. Bob began to shadow Jim around wherever he went. So what could Jim do?... of course Bob became Jims' best friend. When James plays guitar on the street Bob accompanies him. He rides round on James' shoulders when he doesn't want to walk and also gives James High Fives..Paw to Hand! Bob proved to be a real attraction to the passes by too. James found that his takings for entertaining the passing public grew and grew.

The story ends and begins with James writing a book about his adventures and his eventful life on the street with Bob. James opens by saying

" ...we are all given a second chance every day of our lives.. meeting bob was one second chance that I took and looking back on it something tells me it might have been Bob's second chance too..."

James could not have imagined how this meeting with a stray cat would change his life forever.

Cat of the Month ~ January 2013

Longleat's four Amur (Siberian) Tigers were fascinated by the deep snow outside and were always going to make the most of 'snow day' when it came around.

... but when their keepers decided to build some snowmen, things got more exciting and they just had to go in to investigate....

So what were these strange white creatures with orange noses.....

So inquisitive were the four handsome beasts that they caused the fragile snowmen to collapse.....

...and so, it was off to explore the rest of their snow bound enclosure before retiring to a snug warm pen for the evening.

Heres the video of the whole episode

...or head over to the Longleat website for these and many other wonderful animals.

And whats an Amur Tiger you might ask. Well here's a pretty concise article on the National Geographic website

All these posh moggies have to endure hours in cages for their art and beauty. But they do have all mod cons in there, including plumped cushions, fireplaces and (in one case) tins of cider.... Norman tells me that's all very well but how the heck do they cope with the boredom of being stuck in a cage for most of the day!

Hercules is indeed a massive and sturdy beast, being the largest living liger. If fact he is also recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest living cat on Earth, at 6 foot tall and weighing in at over 410 kg (904 pounds or 64 stones). He is a completely healthy and lively cat and is expected to live a long life. (how would you like to get in a play fight with him, eh Ed? (Norm).

Hercules and his brother Aries (born in 2010) are both being raised at Myrtle Beach Safari Park wildlife reserve in South Carolina. It is said that the breeding of these large cats was (in this case) a complete accident. Many Believe that the interbreeding of different species of cat (or any animal for that matter)is not to be encouraged as it can cause medical disorders in the offspring.

Long ago (in 19th century India) ligers were first discovered in the wild (born out of encounters between Lions and Tigers when the territories and breeding grounds of these big cats overlapped). Today no such wild ligers are known to exist.

So then, Ligers are a cross breed between a male lion (Panthera leo) and a tigress (Panthera tigris). Just like their mothers (Tigers) Ligers love to swim, and like their fathers (Lions) they are very sociable and playful. Notably, ligers typically grow larger than either parent species (unlike Tiglons which tend to be about the size of a tigeress).

The story goes that Elena Kovaleva, a professor of the nearby State Pedagogical Institute, saw some young boys playing with a bag. When she heard a kitten inside the bag squealing in fear and pain, Elena took the bag from the boys and brought the young kitten home. She named the kitten Varvara, but over the following months the kitten grew up like no other cat she had seen. It lost its hair and was treated (in vain) for this seemingly fatal condition. The cat thrived however and a few years later gave birth to both haired and completely hairless kittens. Strangely those kittens with hair also began to lose it, just as their mother had done years before.

Many thought that these hairless kittens were unhealthy and should be gotton rid of. However, a local enthusiast and professional cat breeder by the name of Irina Nemikina, rescued one of these kittens and in several years had managed to breed a completely new type of Russian cat (a hairless one) which she named the 'Don Sphynx'. 'Don' after the river which Varvara was found beside and 'Sphynx' because it was hairless just like the sphynx breed. It was The International Cat Association which gave this unique cat type the name of 'Donskoy'.

The Donskoy is a very elegant, highly inquisitive, and social cat. They are also very active and almost always extremely friendly. For owners the Donskoy is very loyal, good-natured, gentle, and easy to groom and handle. Their coats are warm and soft to the touch making then wonderful to hold and cuddle. They have a well balanced personality, show a lively interest in their surroundings, and enjoy making up & playing games. Donskoy are extremely affectionate and they have an irrepressible curiosity (even more evident than in other cats). Their social skills are also transferred to other animals to which they will offer companionship. It is recommended that these highly sociable cats are found companion pets and should not be kept in isolation with just humans. Owning a Donskoy you will find they will love to be a part of all your activities and they will be easy to train to follow your voice commands.

Their coats are:
Rubber Bald -- The rubber bald is born bald and remains that way throughout its life.

Flocked - The Flock coat appears to be hairless and has the texture of soft chamois leather. The Flock coat can sometimes disappear and the cat can sometimes become bald.

Velour - The velour coated kittens are born with a bald spot or Monk's cap on the top of the head. Their wool-like coat becomes wiry and disappears gradually within the first year or so with some residual hair remaining on the face, legs and tail. The Velour can also completely lose their coat and become bald over time.

Brush - Brush type coats lose only a portion of their coat over time. Their coat can be bristly, soft, wavy, and often wiry on their whole body with bald areas on the head, upper part of neck or on the back.

The Donskoy is further unique in that it can grow a winter coat (fine wool on the chest and hairs on the end of the tail) which it will lose when the weather warms. Their skin is similar to human: it sweats when it is hot and it can also become tanned by the summer sun.

Cat(s) of the Month ~ September 2012

The Society of Feline Artists, or S.O.F.A for short, was founded in September 1994. They have the aim of promoting the work of the best cat artists, whether established or unknown....and what an amazing collection of feline portraits they have in store on their website!

The society has had an annual exhibition of cat paintings at the Llewellyn Alexander Gallery in London for several years, featuring over 100 artists, some of whom exhibit internationally and showing more than 300 paintings in a range of media, making it the largest exhibition of cat art in the United Kingdom.

Subjects range from the humble moggy and the friendly domestic tabby to the more exotic breeds like Siamese, Burmese and Bengals and of course the Big cats. From the nobility and drama of the wild cat to the playful kitten - all are painted with the mastery of artists who know and understand their subject.

Norman and I have looked through the gallery on the S.O.F.A website and selected some of the pictures which have caught our eyes. We hope you like 'em too.

Barbara Thaxter

Jackie Coote

Kay Young

Marion Forster

.. for cats like Leo, who sit around waiting for a Friend to come along, the motto of Cats Protection comes to mind

Cats Protection is one of many different cat charities in the United Kingdom. It was founded in the in 1927 and today helps more than 230,000 cats and kittens every year through a network of over 250 volunteer-run branches. They also have 29 adoption centres and a homing centre. They certainly gave me shelter for months and helped me find a new home!

To think about all these English (and World) cats in need can be a bit disheartening, so it is better to think globally but act locally (this is indeed my motto when I go off and put my scent marks in other people's gardens).

If you can personally offer a home to a cat then there will be a cat rescue centre near you you can find online. Of course if you cant adopt then you could support the great work these Cat (and Dog) hostelries do with a one off inexpensive sponsorship or donation. You can get to visit all these lovely cats this way too. Just ask your local adoption centre for details.

As for me, well wouldn't you know its holiday time (for some) again, so I'm going to be temporarily joining the throng of disowned cats when I'm packed off to the local cattery.
So I'd best now wish all you cats out there a safe, healthy and happy summer 2012

All my love,

Norm. xXx

The year was 1969, and Christian had been put up for sale by the store for 250 guineas (or about 280 pounds). The store had acquired the cub from Ilfracombe Zoo as a sales gimmick, but it had all gone wrong when the inquisitive feline escaped from his cage one night to take a sniff at some goat skins on sale in the carpet department. Needless to say he proceeded to wreak havoc...

Cat of the Month ~ July 2012

Christian the treasured friend of Ace and John.

On seeing the lion the two friends were dismayed and convinced they could give the lion a better home. The two purchased the cub and took him to their flat above the trendy 'Sophistocat' furniture shop on Kings Road, in the heart of 60's "Swinging London".

Christian was a lively, friendly and intelligent cub who slowly built a bond of genuine friendship and trust with John and Ace. He also turned into a local celebrity over the next five months, and produced smiles in all who met him. However the cub was growing fast and in just a few months he became a giant of 185 pounds.

At this point Rendall and Bourke realized they couldn't keep the Lion much longer. The story has a first amazing twist when a fortuitous chance encounter took place...

One day Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna the stars of the 1966 film Born Free wandered into 'Sophistocat' looking for a writing desk. The actors, hearing of the friends plight at this ever growing Lion suggested that conservationist George Adamson be contacted (George's wife, Joy, wrote the book 'Born Free' about real-life experiences in raising a lion cub). So taking the good advice, Christian was soon shipped out to Africa where he was carefully rehabilitated and released into the wild.

The final chapter in the story occurred in 1974, when Rendall and Bourke decided to visit Christian for one last time. They knew he was now a wild animal, so could he be found in the wilds of Kenya....and if they found him would he remember the two surrogate friends? ... Adamson told them "it was doubtful that Christian could ever be found.... No one had seen him in nine months".

The two flew to Kenya anyway, and the amazing coincidence is that on the day they landed, Christian (not seen for those nine months) appeared outside Adamsons camp (perhaps knowing his old pals were coming to see him). He was seen waiting outside the camp until Rendall and Bourke arrived. The reunion of this Lion with his human friends is now a well known story which has been made into a film recounting his journey across the globe, rehabilitation in Africa and eventual return to the wild. The video shown below shows the reunion of Ace and John with Christian.

Christian is starting to get Big!

For lots more pictures please visit A Lion Called Christians Gallery Pages

Cat of the Month ~ June 2012

The Jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi) is a small but stocky wild cat native to Central and South America. Jaguarundis are also believed to have been introduced in the U.S. state of Florida and have then migrated to the coastal regions of Alabama. However, sightings are rare and no findings of live or dead specimens have been documented.

The physical appearance of the Jaguarundi cat is perhaps the least cat-like of all the cats. It has short legs, an elongated body and a long tail, giving it an appearance somewhat like an otter or pine marten. For this reason, these animals are sometimes referred to as "otter cats." The ears are short and rounded. The coat is unspotted and uniform in color, with, at most, a few faint markings on the face and underside. The coat can be either blackish to brownish grey (grey phase) or foxy red to chestnut (red phase); individuals of both phases can be born in the same litter. The two color phases were once thought to represent two distinct species. In some Spanish speaking countries, the Jaguarundi is also called leoncillo, which means 'little lion'. Other common names for the Jaguarundi include: "gato colorado", "gato moro" and "tigrillo". These names are also applied to the Margay Cat, but the resemblance between these two distinct species is minimal.

Portrait of a Jaguarundi