September 2015 | Lola The Rescued Cat
Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Catswell Nutrisca Grain Free Food - A Chewy Review




Hello everyone, this is Lexy checking in with another fab review.  This month our friends at Chewy.com had another great list of things to choose from, and I chose the Catswell Nutrisca Grain-Free Truly Shredded Chicken and Tuna Entree in Savory Broth.  


Mother opened the case before she took a photo. 

We had never heard of this brand and I thought it would be nice to have a little change.  





Monday, September 28, 2015

A Book Review by Caren and Cody!

Oh my stars! Miss Caren of Cat Chat With Caren and Cody  reviewed our book! We are meowless about all the nice things she wrote.  


Photo courtesy of Cat Chat With Caren and Cody

You can read the review here.  Thank you Miss Caren for reviewing our book and for all of your kind words. 

Puppy Mill Awareness Day

Hello and Happy Monday! Yesterday we celebrated Lexy's birthday. That was a very fun day, but yesterday was also another very important day - Puppy Mill Awareness Day. 

Puppy mill dogs live a cruel and inhumane life.  The life of a mill dog is one of intense suffering.  Most females are bred as frequently as possible, with little to no recovery time in between.  Approximately 800,000 dogs are suffering on puppy mill production lines.  Despite this puppy mills are a billion dollar industry AND... they're LEGAL! This is just terrible! Horrible! 

A story always tends to stick in people's minds more than random facts, so I'd like to introduce you to my friend Maddie Belle, a puppy mill survivor.  






Maddie Belle shared her rescue story for my book and we cried tears when we read it.  Maddie Belle was raised in a puppy mill in Louisiana in a 2' X 2' cage and was forced to have puppies whenever she was in season - twice a year for 12 years.  That's right, I said 12 years.  When she was finally rescued, Maddie Belle was covered in feces, fleas, soaked in urine and her hair was heavily matted.  She couldn't eat or drink because her mouth was full of heavily rotted teeth and infection.  

Maddie Belle was nursed back to physical health, but her emotional health still had a way to go. When she was adopted by her forever family at first she was very scared.  All she wanted was to be held and had terrible separation anxiety.  She had to learn to love and trust people and to play with toys.  She has chronic stomach problems (puppy mill dogs often develop ulcers from the stress) but her medical needs are easily managed.  

Today Maddie Belle is proud to be a spokes dog (with her mamma's help) for legislation to stop puppy mills.  She shares her views and information on her Facebook page.  She also reminds people about spaying and neutering, adopting older dogs, and adopting black dogs and cats. Her most important role is that of Ambassador to Ninna’s Road to Rescue, the rescue that saved her.  She attends all adoptions and functions in which Ninna participates and also serves as a fundraiser for the rescue. She has been on local TV sharing her life and the importance of spaying and neutering. That's very special to be on TV! 

Maddie Belle is one lucky dog, but there are thousands of others who are not lucky.  Since sharing her story with us, Maddie Belle welcomed a sister, Chantel, into her family.  Chantel is not a puppy mill dog, but she also came from Niina's Road to Rescue.  Both of these gorgeous girls have the motto "Adopt Don't Shop!" 


http://awarenessday.org/

http://nationalpuppymillproject.org/facts/

http://www.thepuppymillproject.org/ 
Sunday, September 27, 2015

Happy Birthday Lexy!

Today is Lexy's birthday! Mommy doesn't know her exact birthday, but Lexy shares this celebration day with someone special - our human Grandmother, Mommy's mother, who is an angel now.  

Lexy is about seven years old today! I don't think she looks a day over five! 

Happy Birthday, big sister! I hope you enjoy all the extra catnip you'll be getting today! 



Saturday, September 26, 2015

And the Award for Best Bed Warmer GoesTo...

...me! Hello and Happy Saturday Caturday! I've decided to give myself an award. 



I think I'm the best bed warmer ever! I know humans use electric blankets and things like that, but who needs that when I'm around? 

I'm very diligent about keeping the bed warm. When Mommy gets out of bed, I get right back in and start the warming process. 

tabby cat
I might look like I'm chillaxin' but I'm hard at work.
tabby cat
I have to stretch every now and then. 
Friday, September 25, 2015

We're Featured on Mousebreath!


Hello and Happy Friday! Lexy and I are very honored to be featured on Mousebreath today! The Funny Farmer Felines interviewed us and we had a great time meowing with them! We hope you enjoy our interview. 

Thank you to Mousebreath and the FFF!



Wednesday, September 23, 2015

WordlessWednesday - Lexy is Hiding


wordless wednesday|blog hop


Lexy
This is a Blog Hop! 

Monday, September 21, 2015

World Gratitude Day

Hello and Happy Monday! Did you know that today is World Gratitude Day? Yep, it is! Today is a day to reflect upon all of the things we are grateful and appreciative for in our lives. Here at the White House we believe that counting our blessings every day is important and we all know how lucky we are to be able to live a good life. 


Wednesday, September 16, 2015

#WordlessWednesday - Spying



This is a Blog Hop! 

Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Happy Cat Month - Happy Multi-Cat Week

September has been declared Happy Cat month from the folks over at Catalyst Council, and this week is Happy Multi-Cat Week.  I decided to share my experience with my cats, because in the beginning we were not a happy multi-cat household! But with patience and determination we got there.  (I’ll make a disclaimer here; I do not claim to be a cat behavioral expert in any way, I’m just sharing what worked for me and my experience.)

Lexy was an only cat for eight months when I decided she was lonely during the day and would be happier with a friend, so I started to look for a companion for her.  A month later I found Lola’s photo on Facebook. I thought I would start the introduction process as soon as possible, so I brought a towel that Lexy had been sleeping on to the vet (Manhattan Cat Specialists - the best vet in NYC!) where Lola was being medically cared for and asked the tech if it could go in Lola’s kennel.  It was advised against because Lola’s immune system was still compromised. On the flip side, it was also not advised to bring anything from Lola’s kennel home to Lexy.  So there went that idea!

When Lola came home I kept her in the bathroom for a week (mainly because she was still on medication).  Lexy was not happy with this intruder, to say the least.  She would sit and growl by the bathroom door at night – a growl I had never heard from her.  Lola wrote in her book that she thought Lexy wanted to eat her, and I agreed with her! During that week I showered Lexy with attention when she wasn’t near the door.  When she was near the door and sitting nicely, I showered her with more attention and treats. (I’m a Behavioral Psychologist by trade, and I figured the underlying principles of positive reinforcement probably don’t change much when working with animals.  I still don’t know if I’m right! But I followed my instinct.) When she sat by the door and growled I silently shooed her away with no other positive attention.  

When Lola’s medications were finished and she was ready to meet the world, I rubbed washcloths on both of their faces and let them smell the others’ scent.  The next day they changed places – Lexy went into the bathroom and Lola roamed the rest of the apartment.  I did this a couple of times, and Lexy didn’t mind snacking on Lola’s food.  (One morning during the switch Lexy got locked in my closet.  Don’t ask for more details, please. Just know it was a scene out of Seinfeld!) 

Then came the day for them to see each other.  I let them peek at each other through the bathroom door and Lola’s inner big cat came out. She growled and swatted and growled some more.  I brought Lola out in a carrier but it appeared she felt trapped so that wasn’t a good idea.  I brought her back out to the living room and sat her on my lap.

cattitude
I don't like that thing. 


Saturday, September 12, 2015

National Day of Encouragement

Hello everyone, this is Lexy checking in.  Did you know that today is National Day of Encouragement? This is a concept that Mother believes in very much, so I decided to write a post about it.  Mother has been a supervisor for many years, and has been able to run her department successfully for a long time.  She always tells her staff "a supervisor is only as strong as the people who works for them", and is always motivating them and encouraging them.  Mother also believes that small words and acts of encouragement can mean the world to someone who is feeling down and out or who are not able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  

The National Day of Encouragement was founded in 2007 at Harding University in Searcy, AR and is celebrated each year on September 12. According to Andrew Baker, the organizer of the National Day of Encouragement and the Executive Director of the Encouragement Foundation “The National Day of Encouragement is about inspiring Americans to make deliberate words and acts of encouragement a part of this day first, and then a part of every day of their lives.” There isn't a lot of information on the internet about this day (or the foundation for that matter), but it doesn't take a lot of effort to participate.  We came up with a few ideas to help encourage people.



1.  Smile! A smile can cheer someone up in a second, and it 
     can also let a person know you accept them or their idea.

2.  Give someone a compliment! It's simple. it can be a 
     simple statement such as "you look nice today", "I really 
     like that color on you", or "that report you wrote was 
     excellent!" You get the idea. 

3.  Send a card. Mother has a friend that sends cards all
     the time.  One day when she was feeling down she 
     opened the mailbox and there was a card that told her
     not to quit. It made her day!

4.  Say Thank You!  Gratitude can never be expressed 
     enough.  And don't take for granted that people know 
     your grateful for something.  Tell them! 

5.  Show an interest in what someone else is
     doing!  Step out of your box and into someone else's. 
     Someone will be encouraged by knowing you're 
     interested in what they're doing. 




Do you have any other ideas about how you can encourage someone? We hope you participated today! 

Lexy

Tonight is Caturday and we're holding our weekly Caturday Night Meow over at our Facebook Page. Come meow with us! We start at 8:00 pm, but you can meow at whatever time you want! 



Monday, September 7, 2015

Happy Labor Day!

Hello and Happy Labor Day! Lexy and I decided to take it easy today and made a couple of niptinis. They must have been a little strong because they made us see stars! 




Did you know the first ever Labor Day parade was held right here in New York City? Yep! That's right! On September 5, 1882 10,000 union workers took an unpaid day off and marched from City Hall to Union Square in support of the holiday. In 1894 it became a national holiday.  Just another reason NYC rocks!

We hope you are enjoying a relaxing Labor Day. 

Lola
Saturday, September 5, 2015

It's Happy Cat Month!

Hello and Happy Saturday Caturday! Did you know that September is Happy Cat Month? The folks over at the Catalyst Council created this annual event to debunk the myth that cats are aloof and need less medical care than dogs do.  The goal of this event is to negate these stereotypes and make sure all cats get the proper care they need.  Pretty cool, huh? 

So today I decided to share a few things that make us happy. (Oh, by the way, the Catalyst Council says that taking us to the vet on a regular basis is a way to keep us happy.  Umm... I hate to burst their bubble... but getting a thermometer put you know where does not make a kitty happy).  

black and white cat
As long as Lexy has something to lie on she's happy. She lies on the strangest
things sometimes, like laundry bags, grocery bags, and shoes. 

Thursday, September 3, 2015

CatLadyBox was a big hit at the White House

Lexy agreed to hand over the reviewing responsibilities to me today because I was very excited to receive my CatLadyBox from Dorian Wagner.  

Cat Lady Box
Hurry up, Mommy! I want to see what you got!



Cat Lady Box
Mother will love reviewing this. 


Wednesday, September 2, 2015

#WordlessWednesday in the Kitchen Window


Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Don't Pass Up Your Chance to Win Some Purrfect Play Toys!

Hello and Happy Tuesday! We just wanted to remind you that you still have a few days left to enter out giveaway for a basket of Purrfect Play toys! 


a Rafflecopter giveaway

This has been one of our most popular giveaways, so get your entry in now! You can read Lexy's full review here and learn more about the toys. 

AND.... don't forget to use our exclusive code, just4lola, to get 20% off your order through September 5th.  (You can use the code twice!) 

Good Luck! 

Lola