Author Archives: catzandalldatz

Even Scientific American can be wrong

Posted on September 10, 2012 by catzandalldatz

So I was reading this article http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=strange-but-true-cats-cannot-taste-sweets and it says that cats cannot taste sweets. I immediately cried foul. My cats LOVE sweets. They have been known to break through wrapping to get to cookies, donuts and in one incident when Jean-Claude was a kitten raspberry kringle.

The scientists in question said that in high concentrations, there may be some taste. However, the scientists were utilizing what they knew from their world view and limits of knowledge. There are things in the world that we cannot begin to fathom. The way that God works and watches over us is one thing.

We often limit ourselves by our world view because we don’t know something is possible or we are afraid. Yes, cats like sweets but likely it will involve some innovative way of thinking about taste receptors to understand (and if anyone doubts cats mysteries, it is still not understood why and how cats purr!).

Let’s be like the cats today and enjoy our sweets without worrying about the possibility of why.

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Ni Hao & Bienvenue

Posted on September 6, 2012 by catzandalldatz

I saw this story and I thought I would share. I love that Ni Hao means hello in Chinese. Bienvenue means welcome in French. Cats often triumph in the face of outstanding odds against them. Today, let’s all take a little of Ni Hao’s spirit and conquer something that is holding us back.

http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_21476915/stowaway-cat-from-china-says-ni-hao-new?source=rss

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Adjusting to New Circumstances

Posted on August 28, 2012 by catzandalldatz

So as we’ve seen we have a new kitten Koko. There was definitely some discussion over her name. Koko was her name at the shelter and as we can well see our cats have names that have meaning. For example, Jean-Claude’s middle name is Calinvif which is loosely translated French for “snuggles hard” and Roxie’s middle name was Toshi which is loosely translated Japanese for Warrior.

I haven’t yet determined what would be appropos for Ms. Koko. Azeena frequently calls her Koko “Bean” which is cute, but I haven’t yet figured out what is the definition of her spirit. She is extremely loving towards humans but still gives JC a hard time. I think she hasn’t figured out that she can use his 16 pounds of cuddling to keep her warm at night.

I think it took Koko awhile to actually adjust to being home and recognizing that this is her permanent home. I think she was adopted before, so it will take awhile before she really trusts that she is a permanent member of the family. I am using scent and no stress spray to get her to be comfortable with JC as more than just a cat she shares space with. Luckily, we aren’t as bad as some people, like the couple who was recently on “My Cat From Hell” in that they can share some space and eat together and not always have it be fighting.

Most humans fear change. We delay actions and thoughts because of the fear we have in our minds. However, the older I get the more I realize that NOTHING has ever come out the way I feared it. When I’ve broken through the curtain of fear, everything has turned out to be wonderful. I have been able to accomplish things in my life that I never thought I would because I broke through fear. I have also let fear dictate some things in my life and hold me back. If we are honest with ourselves we will do those things we need to do to get over our fear and move beyond it.

We humans have resources untold available to us. We have groups, phones and can connect with people in a number of ways. We also need to to interact and connect within ourselves. Pray, a form of meditation, is a wonderful way to do this.

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Know Thyself

Posted on April 9, 2012 by catzandalldatz

Many of you have been following this blog for awhile and so you know the behaviors of the two cats. But one of the things that is interesting is when their behavior goes too far. We all have limits. There are limits between parents and children, work colleagues and limits placed on us by society. With animals, you have to set the limits early and keep reinforcing them. One of the days to do it this is through consistent reward and punishment. You reward behaviors you want and punish those you don’t want. The trick is that if you are punishing a behavior, you have to catch the animal doing it in the act. Unlike humans, cats and dogs have no real memory from an action and a consequence. If your cat jumps on the furniture, you can’t punish her an hour after the fact. Pavlov proved this and it is has been repeated.

So the reason for my long-winded story is that there are certain limits the cats have at each of our houses. For example, Roxie has very rarely peed at Azeena’s house, but she does so at my house with impunity. Window blinds are literally purchased  by the multiples at Azeena’s because  Jean-Claude breaks them at his grandmothers, but leaves mine alone.

In life the one thing  you can control is your behavior. You cannot control others, but you can control yourself. There are times when we all feel like we want to push our limits. Test the waters and see how far we can go. In some cases, this is a good thing – Can I go back to school full-time while working full-time and other times, it’s best left alone.

As a Libra, I spend my life looking for balance between stretching my mind, my self-examination and trying to stay grounded. Like Jean-Claude walking along the fence railing it is a hard act and requires constant attention. But I’m up for the challenge.

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Change is acoming!

Posted on March 26, 2012 by catzandalldatz

So the cats will be coming to my house. Tomorrow is the day. I have had to Roxie proof my house. Since on this blog we have blogged about Roxie’s need to pee outside of her litterbox when she is mad, I know that she will be looking for things to use to try to pee on to show her displeasure. In all honesty though, it will feel like I have new cats. We haven’t lived together since early January and it is now almost April!

Spring is here. Spring is the time of renewal, rebirth. In order to grow, plants must let go. For trees they let go of their leaves, some lose branches, but keep their roots.

We must do that. We must keep our roots, but let go of all the other things that are holding us back so that we can grow bigger and better.

Remember to work on your roots! Let go of everything else.

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