Just found a story from www.ny1.com about the introduction of three snow leopards to the Central Park Zoo in New York.
Snow Leopards are an endangered species and are native to central asia.
According to zoo officials, they hope that the female of the three snow leopards will produce a litter soon to bolster the number of snow leopards in the world.
Top 5 Facts about the Snow Leopard
1. Despite being called a leopard, it’s actually more closely related to the tiger.
2. It is estimated that despite Native to a significant part of Central Asia, there are only approximately 5,000 snow leopards left in the wild.
3. Snow Leopards will feed on anything including carrion.
4. Snow Leopards live for between 15 and 18 years.
5. It can’t roar.
Posted on June 13th, 2009 by admin
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I take it back. A while ago, I made a comment that Frontline didn’t work on Charlie. Well, everyone’s allowed a little back peddling.
So we did the regular flea control in our house (three lads cleaning their house from top to bottom and then hitting the pub while the flea spray does it’s magic on the parasite population).
Before we left, I gave Charlie Frontline treatment as it’s now available in our local Sainsburys supermarket and that’s a lot less hassle than paying booking vet appointments and paying vet fees.
Charlie’s been flea free (relatively) for the past month now so that’s all quite good really. He’s due the next treatment so hopefully it was actually the Frontline and not a freak downturn in the flea population.
So yeah, go buy Frontline.
Posted on May 10th, 2009 by admin
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OK, it’s probably not the most popular thing to admit but I do like my sci-fi. Anything with aliens and spaceships usually has my attention. NOw, I’m not the uniform wearing, converntion attending trekkie that you might find with their nose buried into a copy of the Klingon dictionary but I do like to watch the odd episode when it’s on and I have more than a passing knowledge of characters and actors.
How does this apply to cats I hear you ask. Well, the wife of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, Majel Barrett Roddenberry, who passed away last December, left a substantial sum of money from her will to the various pets she acquired over the latter part of her life and I do like a celebrity related cat story.
Legal papers don’t specify how many pets Majel had but it’s believed there are a mixture of cats and dogs.
Known as the “First Lady of Star Trek” due to her involvement in all the series since the original in the 60s, Majel also left a not insubstantial amount to her housekeeper in order that they can stay on at the Roddenberry mansion and look after the pets.
Apologies if you’re not interested in Star Trek at all. Guess I’m a sucker for a sweet story about animal welfare.
Image sourced from http:/dietrichthrall.wordpress.com
Posted on May 10th, 2009 by admin
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Incredible.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHXBL6bzAR4
Posted on April 23rd, 2008 by admin
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The blog fell slightly to the wayside in recent months due to other commitments. Never fear though. My cat based blogging odyssey continues.
So where am I cat-wise at the moment? Well, I can almost smell the oranges coming up the river so that must mean Summer’s on it’s way. Down here in Brighton, on the quiet road I live on, that means the local cats all venture out on to the kerbside to laze around in the evening sun. And my word, aren’t there a lot of them. I will endeavour to photographically document them all for posterity but for the time being, I’ll leave you with my personal nicknames for them such as One-eyed Tim, Cheeky Ginge and The Starer (believe me, he has a stare on him).
News-wise, the most recent cat related matter that’s been on my mind have been stories pertaining to Tiger Conservation and the worrying reports that the wild Tiger population may well be on the brink of extinction.
Obviously, we all know that Tigers are among the most endangered species in the world but when you hear that Government bodies are growing concerned, then it kind of makes your ears just prick up a bit more. It was a story on BBC News that made me look into the situation a bit more closely and now a variety of organisations are calling for more action to prevent the numbers dropping.
This is all a bit too in depth to go into right now. I need to read more on the matter and write a more extensive post. Needless to say, I think I’ve found a charity that’s close to my heart. If you need anymore convincing, check out this footage that’s been used in David Attenborough’s latest programme, Tiger - Spy in the Jungle.
Posted on April 23rd, 2008 by admin
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I gave Charlie his Frontline treatment the other day. I followed the instructions as possible - part the hair inbetween his shoulder blades and apply direct to a 3 inch long strip of skin. All well and good.
2 day later, he’s still got the little blighters running over him. Of course, being white, it’s easy for me to target them and annihilate them between the spine of his comb and my thumb nail but that’s not the point. I thought Frontline was supposed to be this all powerful flea treatment.
It’s also odd that it’s worked in the past but not now.
I might just go back to the Bob Martin pill based treatments I used to use. They seemed to do the trick.
Posted on January 10th, 2008 by admin
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According to an article on Fox Business (that source of worthy news), Iams and Eukanuba have been given a seal of approval by Good Housekeeping magazine despite high-profile campaigning against the methods used to test both products.
Basically, they’re tested on dogs and cats.
Don’t believe me? Check out the proof .
Don’t buy Iams and Eukanuba just because it’s good for you pet. Think about why you think so much of your pet. Now think would you ever wish them to live in the conditions that animals used in Iams and Eukanuba testing live in?
There’s plenty of alternatives for giving a pet a healthy, nutricious diet and it shouldn’t have to involve torturing an animal in the process of developing the food.
Posted on January 10th, 2008 by admin
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His Royal Highness decided to relieve himself on the kitchen floor this evening. Fortunately, he choose to leak on an old polythene bag that was lying next to my housemate’s bike. Very considerate of him I must say.
Understanding what he wants always seems to be a bit of a rocky road. Recently, gathering around his bowl has meant “feed me”, “let me out”, “comb me” and “give me your calf so I might dine on it”. It’s not just the bowl speak either. It seems that the signal of half clawing my scalp at 8am every morning that previously indicated that the sun had arisen and it was time to open a tin of breakfast, can now be taken to also mean “hey, get out of my spot on the bed”.
I think I need to locate one of thosde books about understanding cat lingo.
Posted on January 4th, 2008 by admin
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Despite only just starting, I had to have a small break just to deal with some festive partying and suchlike. Happy Christmas (or festival relevant to your culture) and a Happy New Year to you all.
Back to the subject of cats though. The main item that caught my eye was the unfortunate event of a tiger escaping from the San Francisco zoo, killing one person and mauling two others. The news abounds with reports that the cage and wall that kept the tiger in weren’t high enough. Harsh, not only for the people killed and hurt but also because the tiger had to be shot by police to stop it’s rampage.
With all this said though, it seems some people are still adamant their defenses are adequate and a story even cropped up about chap in India who throws himself into the local tiger cage. At least the Indian authorities used water cannons and not guns to keep the tiger down after it had a go at the maniac for jumping into her cage.
Other than that, the usual drive by charities to tell the public not to buy pets for people as Christmas presents and stories revealing the depths that some people go to get rid of their cats. It always shocks me that this sort of thing still goes on. Idiots around the world still feel the need to impress their kids and other loved ones by giving them a kitten for Christmas only to throw it away like a used toy a few weeks later. I would gladly take all of these cats off their hands if I had the money and time. Alas, it isn’t the case.
REALLY want a cat? Go and check your local animal rescue centre. I’m sure they’ve got some felines in need of a new home.
Posted on January 1st, 2008 by admin
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This article from the National Post has introduced me to one more place I must visit before I die - a cafe where I can relax with a cup of hot chocolate and a cat.
No, I’m not messing with you fellow cat obsessives, this is an actual reality.
Takafumi Fukui, a 34-year-old former employee of a TV games show company, quit his day job and opened the Cat Cafe Calico - a cafe with 14 cats in residence - in March.
Mr.Fukhui’s idea was to create somewhere for people to relax, especially cat lovers who get a bit of short shrift due to the tight housing regulations in Tokyo.
For 800 yen (about £3) an hour patrons of the Cat Cafe Calico can access a big room where the 14 well-groomed cats hang out. Mr.Fukhui obviously understands the potential odour and hygiene issues that might arise from having 14 cats in one enclosed space so air fresheners are on hand and the litter trays are placed are out of sight.
While Japan isn’t in my top ten of places I want to visit (yeah, yeah, everyone else reckons it’s the bomb but Mongolia and the Yucatan Peninsula hold more interest to me), I can honestly say it’s just got a hell of a lot more intriguing..
Posted on December 15th, 2007 by admin
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