Paul O’Grady, we love you

We were so sad to hear of the passing of dear Paul O’Grady that we wanted to include a tribute to this great man on our humble site.

This is just a short story about Paul and about the time he ventured into ‘the dark side’ or so said Battesea Dogs home … but we here like to think he ‘saw the light’ :-). So cover your ears Mrs Mog we may mention dogs . What is for certain is that Paul loved all animals and kept many kinds at home including five dogs, pigs, sheep, chickens, goats, alpacas and even owls.

Paul O’Grady made viewers of For the Love of Dogs jump back in their seats when he ventured into Battersea’s Cattery (for the first time) and fell in love with a pair of orphaned kittens.

Paul with kittens Thomas and Toby

Photograph: © https://www.battersea.org.uk/

Sadly, at the time, as the kittens began to find their feet and as Thomas thrived, it became clear that Toby was struggling more than his brother as he was unsteady on his feet and his head wobbled uncontrollably. Expert vets said this kittten’s rare condition (passed on from his mother) would hopefully heal completely, but it would take time.

Paul took to these tiny creatures and, as he did with many of the dogs he encountered on his travels, wanted to take them home with him.

Paul O'Grady - RIP.
Paul, With some of his more usual ‘pals’ at Battersea.

Photograph: © Sky News

Born to a working-class Irish migrant family in Tranmere, Cheshire, Paul James O’Grady MBE DL moved to London in the late 1970s, initially working as a care officer for Camden Council. He developed his drag act in 1978, basing his comic character of Lily Savage on the antics and personalities of his female relatives.

Touring England as part of drag mime duo ‘The Playgirls’, O’Grady then went solo as a stand-up comedian in the early 1980s. Paul went on to present a string of highly successful programmes across the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, including The Big Breakfast (1995–1996), Blankety Blank (1997–2002), and Lily Live! (2000–2001). After winning several awards more work followed, For the Love of Dogs (2012–2023), Paul O’Grady’s Animal Orphans (2014–2016), Blind Date (2017–2019), and Paul O’Grady’s Great British Escape (2020). He also published several books, including a four-volume memoir.

He was given a special recognition award at the 2018 National Television Awards for the impact the ‘For The Love Of Dogs’ series had on helping find homes for rescue animals nationwide.

His contribution to animal welfare was also recognised with an RSPCA animal hero award.

We remember Paul as host of his own Radio 2 show (Paul O’Grady on the Wireless) on every Sunday for many years. He was the most friendly and down to earth presenter in all of his shows, and always had an amusing story to share with us listeners. We just loved him.

Paul, your kindness and care for animals was inspirational to us all.

RIP

 

 

Dave the Cat

Well now, the England Football squad are currently in Qatar and training in the Heat of Doha, but some of their news has been hijacked by Dave the cat. Dave, who has been so named by John Stones, seems to have caught the hearts of Stones and Walker (no surprise there, that’s cats for ya).

Dave the Cat
Dave – The world Cup Cat for the England Football Cat

Photograph: © The Independent

There are many stray cats in Doha but Kyle Walker has said that, if possible, he would like to adopt Dave if England win the World Cup.

Dave with Kyle in the England Squad Football Camp.

Photograph: © Kyle Walker

We wish the team well for Saturday, so come on you Lions! And, of course those three lions would certainly care about a fellow cat like Dave.

The three lions - engan football team.
Good Luck to the three lions from the Moggyblog bunch.

International Cat Day

Every year on August the 8th International Cat Day is celebrated. These beloved and household and backyard companions are one of our most common and ancient pets. They provide us with so many benefits to our health and wellbeing that its only right we should pay them back in some small way.

Equally, the wild cats (whether a big cat like a Lion or Cheetah, or a small delicate Kodkod Cat) are important as an integral part of the natural world and its ‘balance of nature’. We surely need em!

International Cat Day ~ 8th August 2022

International Cat of Mystery

Photograph: © Ed

Location: Packwood House, Warwickshire, U.K.

The ‘holiday’ (hey, maybe it should be one!) was conceived and created by the animal rights organization ‘The International Fund for Animal Welfare‘ in 2002, in the hope that cat owners and fans wouldwide would begin to honour their fabulous furry friends. It is a day for us to raise awareness for cats (big and small, wild and domestic) and learn about ways to help and protect them.

In 2020 custodianship of International Cat Day passed to International Cat Care, a not-for-profit British organization that has been striving to improve the health and welfare of domestic cats worldwide since 1958.

As custodians, iCatCare has announced the theme for this year is Cat friendly resources. They teamed up with world-renowned animal artist and illustrator Lili Chin to design educational materials to help us humans make sure we’re providing cats with the essential resources they need to stay physically and mentally healthy in a cat friendly way.

Lili created some new feline faces to the initiative. The ambassador cats Domino and McTatters.

Domino & McTatters

Domino represents pet cats that live in a more traditional home environment whilst McTatters represents the unowned cats that will vary in the way they live and interact with humans (if choosing to at all). You can grab your resources on the icatcare.org website

Peace and Love to all Cats (and Humans) everywhere!

References:

https://icatcare.org/international-cat-day/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Cat_Day

Hashtags – #BeCatCurious & #InternationalCatDay

Pitch black cat

It was John Acres who broke the news to the Wolves and Everton fans, and went on to fill nearly two minutes of prime-time television.

Black moggy
Our black moggy proved to be bad luck for Everton

Photograph: Getty.

 

John’s quick fire commentary of the cat’s movement across the Wolves penalty area, including the descriptive “it looks like a fully grown… cat. He drops a shoulder, jinks one way, goes another” and “the steward’s after the cat”…. “, but the cat knows it and puts in a turn of pace…”

Pitch Black Moggy
Pitch Black Moggy, what a star!

Photograph: Getty.

Eventually play was able to resume – with referee Lee Mason adding seven minutes of injury time at the end of the game.

Five Kittens Found

Five six-week-old kittens were found abandoned in a Moses basket in Ashford, Surrey last Monday afternoon.
The black and white kittens are now being cared for at RSPCA Millbrook Animal Centre, in Chobham, until they’re old enough to be rehomed.

They’ve been named after current rappers Kanye (West), Kendrick (Lamar), Kadi, Nicki (Minaj) and Gerald (G-Eazy).

Kittens Kayne, Kendrick, Kadi, Nicki and Gerald
Photo: RSPCA

RSPCA animal welfare officer Carl Hone said they were too young to have been taken from their mother, but were “thankfully all healthy and seem well”.
He said “there was always a huge influx of kittens every summer because there were so many unneutered pet cats and stray cats”.

Mr Hone urged owners to get their cats neutered to avoid any unwanted litters and extra pressure on animal charities and rescue centres.
RSPCA posters have been put up in the area appealing for the owner of the kittens to come forward.

Free to stretch thier little legs
Photo: RSPCA

Article Source: BBC

Snow Leopard

Cat of the Month ~ February 2014

With the heavy winter snows still affecting the United States, the cat of the month for February is the Snow Leopard. This beautiful cat was the mascot for the recent XXII Winter Olympics in Sochi and it was a fitting emblem for all the marvellous outdoor activities in Snow! Just like those athletes this feline surely is a master of its environment.

This special Leopard is currently found in ever dwindling numbers in Asia, Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Tibet and possibly also in Myanmar. To be more precise its geographic distribution runs from the Hindu Kush in eastern Afghanistan and the Syr Darya through to the Russian Altai mountains an on to the west of Lake Baikal.

It is a sad and daunting estimatation that there are now only approximately 4,000 (yes four thousand!) snow leopards left in the wild, although this number is not a fixed certainty. We are stunned by this finding and can only hope that there are undiscovered snow leopards lurking in even more remote regions throught the world (lets live in hope). The recent footage from the Snow Leopard Trust shows a fine and rare photograph of one of these magnificent cats caught on film by an automatic research camera.

A wild Snow Leopard triggers an automatic camera.
Photograph: Snow Leopard Trust.

Snow leopards show several adaptations for living in a cold, mountainous environment. Their bodies are stocky, their fur is thick, and their ears are small and rounded, all of which help to minimize heat loss.

Their paws are wide, which distributes their weight better for walking on snow, and have fur on their undersides to increase their grip on steep and unstable surfaces; it too also helps to minimize heat loss.

Snow leopards’ tails are long and flexible, helping them to maintain their balance, which is very important in the rocky terrain they inhabit. Their tails are also very thick due to storage of fat and are very thickly covered with fur which allows them to be used like a blanket to protect their faces when asleep. The snow leopard also has a short muzzle and domed forehead, containing unusually large nasal cavities that help the animal breathe the thin, cold air of their mountainous environment.

Both the WWF and the Snow Leopard Trust are working to protect this incredible cat. The Snow Leopard trust have been studying these felines for many years in Mongolia’s South Gobi. You can read about the cats Agnus, Arian (Pure), Ariumbeleg (Pure Spirit), Dagina (Beautiful Princess) and Dvekh (phoenix rising) on this meet the cats page.

In the future lets hope we see a lot more cubs like this sturdy soul…

snow leopard cub

A wild Snow Leopard Cub, prowls for food (no doubt)
Photograph: Snow Leopard Trust.

Article Sources: Snow Leopard Trust, Wikipedia