conscious living, health and happiness for cats and their humans
Of all the cat events I attend each year, Cat Camp NYC is one of my favorites. A weekend packed with educational lectures, round table discussions, lots of vendors offering fantastic cat-themed products and best of all, thousands of cat lovers who are not only there to celebrate their love for cats, but genuinely care about making all cats’ lives better – this is where loving cats intersects with advocating for cats, and it doesn’t get any better than that!Continue Reading
I’m a huge fan of Jonathan Van Ness – there’s just something about his infectious smile and positive energy that makes me happy. I was delighted when I found out that he is a cat lover, and heartbroken for him when he lost his beloved Bug not too long ago. Jonathan recently adopted two kittens, Liza and Bug the 2nd. “Losing Bug has been one of the saddest experiences of my life. Getting two gorgeous kittens in that full grown cat shaped hole in my heart is helping my reparative process immensely,” wrote Jonathan on Instagram. I’m keeping an eye on his Instagram for more photos of his new family members!
If you missed any of the stories featured on the Conscious Cat this week, here’s a recap:Continue Reading
Today is the first day of CatCon 2018, and I can’t wait! If you’re a cat lover, Pasadena, CA is the place to be this weekend. Taking place at the Pasadena Convention Center, CatCon is the biggest cat-centric, pop culture event in the world dedicated to all things feline. I’m honored to be among a star-studded lineup of cat-loving celebrity talent and celebricats. I’ll be hosting a one hour “Ask the Cat Expert” Q&A session on Sunday, August 5 at 11am. This year’s line up includes Lil BUB and her dude Mike Bridavsky, New York Times bestselling author Gwen Cooper, and Trapking Sterling Davis, as well as numerous celebrity cats. For more information, and to purchase your tickets, visit https://www.catconworldwide.com/. If you’re going to be there, make sure you introduce yourself – I’d love to you in person!
If you missed any of the stories featured on the Conscious Cat this week, here’s a recap:Continue Reading
You’ve adopted a new cat from a shelter or rescue group. You’ve set up a safe space for your new family member, and you’ve gradually introduced her to your home and/or your other cats. You’re excited about getting to know your new friend. While some cats will bond instantly with their new humans, others may take more time, and sometimes, a lot of patience from the human who just wants to love and be loved.Continue Reading
The second Cat Camp NYC was a high energy, fun filled two day event celebrating cats. From educational lectures to panel discussions covering topics ranging from how to start a TNR (Trap Neuter Release) program, how to use social media to help cats, and how to address feline behavior problems, to the inspirational keynote address by Jackson Galaxy, the event drew thousands of enthusiastic cat lovers. In addition to the educational offerings, there were vendors offering cat-themed products.Continue Reading
Numerous human studies have confirmed that chronic stress is detrimental to our health. The increase in inflammatory activity in the body triggered by stress can weaken the immune system and has been associated with just about every health condition, including cancer. A landmark study conducted at the Ohio State University in 2011 looked at how stress impacts cats, and the findings led to a new understanding among veterinarians and cat parents on the connection between environmental stress and urinary tract disease.Continue Reading
Welcome to our regular “Ask the Cat Doc With Dr. Lynn Bahr” segment! Once a month, Dr. Bahr answers as many of your questions as she can, and you can leave new questions for her in a comment.
Dr. Bahr graduated from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine in 1991. Unlike most veterinarians, she did not grow up knowing that she would become a veterinarian. “It was a cat who got me interested in the practice and I am forever grateful to him,” said Dr. Bahr. Over the course of her veterinary career, Dr. Bahr found that the lifestyle of cats has changed dramatically. As the lifestyle of cats has changed, so did Dr. Bahr’s client education. In addition to finding medical solutions, she also encourages owners to enrich their home environments so that their cats can live long, happy, and healthy lives.
This new understanding led Dr. Bahr to combine her passion for strengthening the human-animal bond with her veterinary background and knowledge of what animals need and want to start her own solution-based cat product company, Dezi & Roo, inspired by two cats of the same names.
For more information about Dezi & Roo and their unique and innovative cat toys, please visit their website.Continue Reading
Of all the cat events I’ve attended over the years, last year’s inaugural Cat Camp NYC was one of my favorites. A weekend packed with educational lectures, roundtable discussions, lots of vendors offering fantastic cat-themed products and best of all, thousands of cat lovers who care about making all cats’ lives better – it doesn’t get any better than that!
And this year’s Cat Camp promises to be even bigger and better. Returning as Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Camp. the event will take place on May 5 and 6, 2018 at Penn Plaza Pavilion, located at 401 7th Ave, New York, NY 10001.Continue Reading
I actually found a definition for the word “zoomies” in Urban Dictionary, and even though the definition was for dogs, it’s exactly what I’m talking about: “when your dog runs around the house like crazy jumping on the couch, running up and down the stairs, and all over the house. It usually ends with them falling to the floor, panting like crazy and taking a nap.”
At our house, Ruby is the Queen of the Zoomies. Several times a day, she races through the house, up and down the cat tree, and up and along the back of the sofa. Her zoomies loop seems to be almost exactly the same every day. Continue Reading
Most cats enjoy knocking things off tables and counters, and while this behavior may be frustrating for us humans at times, it makes purrfect sense from the cat’s perspective. “A lot of cats knock things over because they have learned it is a quick and easy way to get their human’s attention,” cat researcher Mikel Delgado, a postdoctoral fellow at the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis and our resident cat behavior expert, told Inverse. “This behavior typically stems from boredom and/or a failure of the owner to acknowledge cats for good behavior.” Visit Inverse to read more about why cats do this, and what you can do to stop the behavior.
If you missed any of the stories featured on the Conscious Cat this week, here’s a recap:Continue Reading
I don’t keep track of the number of books I read each year, but my best guess is somewhere between 150 and 200, and at least half of them have something to do with cats. I review books here on The Conscious Cat almost every week. Last week, I featured my Top 10 Cat Books of 2017, and today, I’m announcing my pick for Best Cat Book of 2017.Continue Reading