Hi everyone, I am Maverick and for those who don’t know me, this is my column “Cat Tales.” My friend, Spaghetti Betty, and her parents like our community so much that they are building a house here. That’s a picture of Spaghetti Betty at the housing site. She’s excited because there’s lots of trees and water. There will be big windows and window seats so she can watch all the wildlife and see the boats. If you remember Spaghetti Betty and her parents moved here earlier this year from California, and they love it here. They have been doing a lot of sightseeing on the weekends and getting familiar with the Yooper culture.
I want to give a welcome meow to Mr. Simon and his dad in Canada, readers of my column. I love it when people make comments or send an email. Remember you can always leave a comment at the end of each column like Mr. Simon’s dad or email me at maverick@eupnews.com. You can also like me on Facebook. Just be aware, I am not on Facebook so I can’t respond to any comments there. My mom doesn’t allow me to do social media.
In other news, you should see our office. We have two desks now, and my mom needs to reorganize everything. It’s super disorganized and messy. Neither of us likes working in these conditions and it seems like every time my mom starts to work on it something comes up and it doesn’t get done. But she has set a time frame for the end of August or Labor Day at the latest, and we’re hoping it will be done by then. It looks like a major catastrophe.
The great news is I now have my own desk, so my mom and I don’t need to share anymore. I think I should get a Panama hat and a cigar then I’ll look like a writer. My mom says I can get the hat, but not the cigar. I guess I could get a bubble gum cigar, but if I forgot and chewed it, then blew a bubble, I might be in a sticky situation. That wouldn’t be good for me or my mom so I guess I’ll just stick to the hat.
I was a little ornery this morning. My mom has been so busy working in our office getting things organized and changing things around that I have felt a little ignored. This morning while she was working on her laptop I came in to sit with her, but she had moved my bed out of the office into the living room so I got into some paperwork and chewed it. I know that wasn’t nice, and I was acting out, but in my defense, I was just a tad lonely. I wanted some attention. She checked out what I had chewed and told me she could reprint it. I didn’t feel so bad then, but she made me leave the office. As I was leaving she told me she would get me a smaller bed just for the office. The other one took up too much room.
I have talked about toxic outdoor plants before, but now I want to tell you about some highly toxic indoor plants that are dangerous to cats. According to Daily Paws, lilies are at the top of the list and are super toxic. They can cause acute kidney failure and are very dangerous. Other indoor plants that are highly toxic are asparagus ferns, sago palms, tulips, hyacinths, autumn crocus, azalea, cyclamen, daffodils, devil’s ivy, jade plants, kalanchoe, lily of the valley, philodendrons, oleander, and dieffenbachia. These plants can cause issues, such as diarrhea, vomiting, heart and kidney issues, breathing problems, drooling, and seizures. Philodendrons have a defense mechanism that shoots needle-like crystals when animals bite into it. The spiny crystals can irritate mouth and throat tissues and cause breathing problems. This is also true for oleander and dieffenbachia plants.
If your cat ingests these plants call your veterinarian immediately. You can also call – the Pet Poison Helpline at 855-764-7661 or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at 888-426-4435.
The other day, Spaghetti Betty and I came up with a list of French names for new kittens and cats. Some female names are – Fleur (flower), Avril (April), Vivienne (alive), Charlotte (feminine), and Amandine (worthy of love). For male kittens and cats, we liked these names – Etienne (crown), Gaspard (treasure), Matisse (gift of God), Leon (lion), and Muscade (nutmeg). I love French names.
Here are some fun facts about my friend, Spaghetti Betty. Her grandparents live in “Cat City” California. That’s short for Cathedral City. I thought she was pulling my leg when she told me that. Her favorite thing to say is “No silly.” She’s very energetic and kind. She frequently gets a case of the cat giggles and she has the biggest collection of different colored sunglasses that I have ever seen. That’s how you can tell she’s from California. She looks like a Hollywood star when she wears them. Maybe I should get some sunglasses too.
As I was getting ready to finish this something happened to my mom’s eyes. She has an emergency appointment. I’ll keep you updated. I hope she’s going to be okay.
That’s it for today. I hope everyone has had a great summer and continues to enjoy the last of summer. I will leave you with today’s quote: “People who love cats have some of the biggest hearts around.” – Susan Easterly
Take care.
Love Maverick
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