13 New Things

Rocky: I've been very busy snoopervising and assisting my human artists with new product development ...... but I want to take a break to reveal to you 13 New Things we'll be offering over the rest of this year to help raise funds for Cat Friends Helping Friends and the Rescue Farm ...

1) Kitty ceiling fan/lamp pulls (Coming very soon!)

2) Crazy Cat Lady necklace & earring sets (Coming soon!)

3) Cat charm eyeglass holders
4) Kitty keychains
5) Kitty plastic grocery bag holders/dispensers
6) Kitty wineglass charms
7) Kitty napkins rings
8) Cat Christmas tree ornaments made from gourds
9) Hand painted litter pan privacy screens
10) Hand painted dried potpourri bowls made from gourds
11) Cat-themed gourd birdhouses
12) Woven wire cat pins
13) Lots of new cat-themed jewelry

Happy Earth Day!

I'm thrashing on my Gizzy with joy, because my humans are back home after leaving me for three days! (Well, to be fair, they arranged for my buddy Jim to be our slave while they were gone.)

I didn't get too mad because they went to my Grandpa Bob and Grandma Vivian's 23rd Wedding Anniversary Surprise Party! Yes, tomorrow my two human artists' dad and stepmom will have been married more than half a century!

More than 150 family members gathered in the ballroom waiting to shout "Surprise! Happy Anniversary!!" when Grandma & Grandpa came in ....They were definitely suprised! Here they are with my humans' half-sister Vickie ... which I don't understand because she's always looked like a whole sister to me ....
Here are my human artists Sharolyn & Suzanne with their dad, my Grandpa Bob. They're the oldest of his nine children! He was an only child, and says he vowed to make sure none of his children would ever be lonely. I'd say he was pretty successful ... even more so because he raised a family of cat lovers - everybody wore cat furs to the surprise party! And I'd say this is an appropriate Earth Day post, since Grandpa Bob did his part to populate the Earth with cat lovers! ...
There was cake and food and a beautiful photo collage and a scrapbook of their lives together ....
And dancing ... here's Grandma & Grandpa kicking it off with an honorary first dance to the song "Stand By Me". Hey, my Grandpa still knows how to 'cut a rug'! ....
I wish I'd been there - I know a few things to do to rugs, too! Hey, everybody, if you'd like to wish my Grandpa Bob & Grandma Vivian a Happy Anniversary, you can leave a comment and I'll make sure they read them!

Also, I'd like to ask everyone to sign the petition urging the city of Brazil to leave the Rothrock cat rescue alone and let them do their important work. My mom will be attending the city hall meeting Thursday with the Rothrocks.

P.S. We're still having aftershocks - a 4.5 one yesterday morning. I think the Earth is trying to shake some sense into its humans around Earth Day!

URGENT HELP STILL NEEDED!

Yesterday I received a Best Friends email about the plight of a cat rescuer -- located 15 minutes from me, so I contacted her to offer my help. Tammy Rothrock lives in Brazil, Indiana, where she and her husband, in their home of more than 20 years, have been rescuing stray cats and providing them with safe, healthy lives. Right now they have 31 kitties in their large home, all spayed, neutered, and vaccinated, with regular vet care. Just look at some of these precious babies ...The Rothrocks are operating legally: the City of Brazil issued a kennel license to them last year, and they were in the process of organizing as a non-for-profit rescue shelter. Now the city has suddenly decided that her area isn't zoned for "business", that her kennel license isn't valid, and they've ordered her to get rid of all her cats. And they've also ordered her husband to immediately shut down the auto repair business he has operated on the property for more than 20 years!

This loving couple is using their own money to do the city's work by taking in and caring for stray animals that would otherwise be out on the streets breeding. And instead of thanking them and supporting them, the city is making Tammy get rid of the cats she loves, destroying the family business and taking away their income ... and ultimately making them give up their family home, because rather than give up their beloved cats and their rescue efforts, the Rothrocks have put their house up for sale!THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS and I ask the entire Cat Blogosphere to join forces to prevent what their city is doing to the Rothrocks. Here's what we can do:

1) First, I ask you to please read the full information and watch the news video:

Video & TV news: Rescue Shelter forced to shut down

Newspaper: The city of Brazil has gone catty

2) Then, I hope you'll join me in emailing the following city officials to protest their actions and suggest more humane solutions before their "work session" next Thursday, Apr. 24. Let them know the state you're writing from so they'll realize this is more than a local response, and please copy me at artsycatsy(at)yahoo(com) so I can compile a record of the emails for the Rothrocks. (Remember to be polite and courteous - anger could make the situation worse!):

Michele Altman, City Plan Administrator: michele@brazil.in.gov

Mayor Ann Bradshaw: ann@brazil.in.gov

Sam Glover, City Council Member: samglover@brazil.in.gov

Patricia Heffner, City Council Member: patheffner@brazil.in.gov

Karen McQueen, Clerk/Treasurer: karen@brazil.in.gov

3) You can also email a Letter to the Editor of the Brazil newspaper.

4) If anyone has any experience with this kind of situation and might have some advice for the Rothrocks, please email me at artsycatsy(at)yahoo(dot)com and I will immediately pass your info on to Tammy.

5) Finally, if you could put a link to this story, or re-post it on your blog or Catster, or anywhere else you can think of, it will help get even more emails to these people.

Thank you SO MUCH for anything you can do! This situation tears at my heart, because I could find myself in the same situation - the number of rescued cats in the Artsy Catsy household exceeds that allowed by my city's ordinances ... as may be the case for many of us in the Cat Blogosphere. As a recent Alley Cat Allies mailing said:

"Across this country, citizens are being punished for caring for stray and feral cats. These caregivers did not create the colonies of cats - they are serving their communities by humanely caring for them. But according to antiquated animal control laws and uninformed community leaders, each of these Good Samaritans deserves to be punished ... WE must change outdated animal control laws, policies and practices. WE must stop caregivers from being punished for doing the right thing."

~~ Sharolyn

Saturday Ocicat-urday

Oh, look at this gorgeous brother & sister from the Rescue Farm

who need a loving furever home!

Sawyer (left) and Nani (right) are stunning 1 ½ year old purebred Ocicats who were given up when their owner couldn't properly care for them. Sawyer is a neutered male; Nani is a spayed female and they're both front declawed. Sawyer is a "Hot Chocolate" Ocicat and Nani (below) is "Cool Chocolate."

Sawyer and Nani love each other so much they snuggle and cuddle all the time, so they simply can't be separated. If you, or someone you know, would love to give a furever home to these spotty bundles of sweetness, email Jodi at the Rescue Farm. Their combined adoption fee is $300.

If we didn't have such a houseful, Sawyer and Nani would be snuggling with us right now!!

...............................

About the Ocicat:

An Ocicat may look wild, but its temperament is anything but ferocious - it has a sweet, mild purrsonality. It is a lot like a dog in that it is absolutely devoted to its people. The Ocicat is not a demanding, clinging-vine type, but is confident as well as dedicated to its owners. Most Ocicats are also quite extroverted around strangers, not at all bashful about checking out the possibilities for a few playmates or a lap to curl up on when visitors come to call.

Ocicats are quite bright, very outgoing and easily trained. They are often considered to have the spirit of a dog - in a cat's body. Most can easily be trained to fetch, walk on a leash and harness, come when called, speak, sit, lie down on command and a large array of other dog-related tricks. Some even take readily to the water.

Because of their adaptability, they are a joy to work with and easily get used to traveling. Their sociable nature makes them a good choice for a household already blessed with other cats or dogs. They are not prone to any particular health problem and their broad genetic background gives them vigor and vitality.

Ticked Off Tuesday

I am seriously ticked off. My human artist went out of town Saturday on a bead buying trip and four days later she still isn't home! I've gone four days with no chin scritcher, no bed buddy, no toy tosser ... this is totally unacceptable!


But that's not the worst of it. Just look at what she's staying with at her friend Terry's house. She's supposed to be shopping for beads. I ask you, do these look like BEADS?

This is NOT a bead! This is Stinky - yes, that's his name. Well, I suppose he could pass as a giant 21-pound pendant. She even let Stinky sample her avocado salad. Beads do NOT eat avocados ...And these are NOT beads. These are Miss Hissy (left) and Taz (right). Taz was almost one of my staff members when my mom rescued him when he was a kitten, but she found him a furrever home with her friend Terry ... Here are Stinky and Taz with another NON-bead, Rhoda Sue, who was also almost a member of my staff when my mom rescued her as a kitten. Just look at the eyes of these NOT-beads! They're trying to hypnotize my human artist into staying with them, robbing me of my lawful mom rights. I WILL NOT HAVE IT!!

We've been honored!

We want to thank our new kitty friends Jackie, Gidget and Fritz, and their woofies Abby and Rosie, for featuring Artsy Catsy today on two of their mom's wonderful blogs: Catnip Corner and The Dog Log!

Catnip Corner was started by their mombean after she switched them to an all natural diet and saw a dramatic improvement in their health. Her interesting blog discusses kitty health, safety, adoption and rescue. The Dog Log is about woofie health, and she also has a third blog about human health, Living Well.

We invite all our kitty, woofie and bean friends to read the nice things our new friends said about us, and to read their very informative blogs. You might even want to email your stories to Jackie, Gidget and Fritz, because they feature stories about rescued kitties with happy endings!

Thanksgiving Thirteen:

We're thankful ...
1) …that our human artist Sharolyn rescued Rocky at 1 day old and raised him by hand so he could start Artsy Catsy and boss everybody around.
2) …for all the kind, loving beans in the world who rescue our abandoned brothers and sisters.
3) … for computers & the Internet, so we can have friends all over the world.
4) … for Temptations and chicken baby food and grilled cheese sandwiches.
5) … for 98.6-degree warm humans to snuggle up with and stay warm.
6) … for Thomas Edison so we have warm light bulbs when the humans can’t snuggle.
7) … that nip hasn’t been declared an illegal substance.
8) … that our humans are artists so we can roll in paint and change colors.
9) … for birds and squirrels and bugs and lizards to entertain us.
10) … for each other -- even if we hiss & whap sometimes, we still love each other.
11) … that it’s almost that time of year when the humans bring a tree inside for us to climb.
12) … We’re even thankful for v.e.t.s because they help us live long lives.
13) … But most of all, we’re so thankful for all our purrfectly wonderful cat blogosphere friends -- you’re family to us!

COME BACK TONIGHT for the

Thanksgiving-Christmas fundraiser

for the Care4Cats Emergency Fund for Cat Blogosphere kitties

and the Rescue Farm

Abandoned Kittens Need Homes!

Our sister Vickie in Sellersburg, Indiana rescued these 3 adorable kittens and they need homes. They were found abandoned in a wood pile behind Old Hickory Pit BBQ in Louisville, KY. There has been no sign of their mother.

And there is another feral mother with a litter of 7 even smaller kittens that she's trying to capture from the same location. The kittens' eyes are not yet open. The mother has obviously never had contact with people, and her tail is gone, probably burned from the fire pits behind the restaurant. A number of cats have died at this location because cats climb into the fire pits to get warm, but then they often can't get back out. They also get killed or injured when the wood is chopped. Metro Louisville Rescue will pick up the kittens, but they said they would have to euthanize them immediately due to the large number of kittens they already have.
These three are fat little sweeties, so their mom did take good care of them. Vickie is trying to capture both of the mom cats so she can have them spayed, even if she has to return them to where she found them.
But these beautiful babies, and the ones yet to be rescued, need furever homes! If anyone in the cat blogosphere could adopt them, or if you know of a no-kill shelter or other organization in the Louisville area that would take them and their mother cats without euthanizing them, PLEASE let us know! Vickie already has 11 rescued cats and can't possibly keep these 3 kittens or the 7 yet to be rescued, or their mothers, no matter how much she'd like to!

~~ Sharolyn & Suzanne

Formerly Feral Friday

My name is Rocky, and I'm a former feral. But I kicked the habit pretty quickly in 1999 when I came to live with my furrever mom Sharolyn when I was only one day old. Here I am in my mom's hands when I was just a few days old:

I was rescued from beside Raccoon Lake in Indiana after a raccoon sent my feral cat mother and littermates over the Rainbow Bridge. My beanmom Sharolyn didn't think I'd live because I was so young, but I showed 'em! Of course, it probably helped that she bottle fed me every 3 hours 24/7 then burped me and rubbed my belly so I'd go potty in a paper towel.

And here I am today, the CEO (Cat Executive Officer) of Artsy Catsy. See, even former ferals can grow up and be somebody! But as this photo illustrates, I still believe that mom's hands are for holding and feeding me and not for anything else! Well, that paper towel business I can do without. (And keep it quiet, but I still like to hit the bottle every now and then.)

Without Mom Wednesday

I, Callie, cannot exist without my human artist mom. See how sad and lonely I am? She has been away visiting friends and their cats, many of whom lived with us before they went to their furrever homes with mom's friends.

First she left me to go visit her friend Terry, who is owned by four cats. Two of them, Rhoda Sue and Taz, lived with us a long time ago. Rhoda Sue is a calico we found yowling and homeless in an alley when she was only 3 weeks old.


Taz, a lynx point meezer, was adopted from a "breeder" when he was 6 weeks old and full of fleas and mites. He earned his name because he was a little Tazmanian Devil!

Then she left me to go visit her friend, Jim. He is owned by only one cat now, Squidler, who is the great-granddaugher of Silvie, a beautiful white angora we rescued as a homeless adult roaming the neighborhood. My mom had to take Silvie over the Rainbow Bridge last year. Squidler is a petite little tabby whose tummy looks like she's trying to be a bengal.

Oh, listen! I hear mom's Jeep now! Should I be peeved and huffy and standoffish to pay her back for leaving me? Or should I meet her at the door with purrs and headbutts? Oh, I can't help myself -- purrs and headbutts it is!

Formerly Feral Fifteen Friday

On Formerly Feral Friday, we present a brief history

of the fifteen felines at Artsy Catsy:

Rocky, CEO (Cat Executive Officer) was rescued in 1999 at one day old when he was orphaned in the woods after his stray mother and siblings passed over the Rainbow Bridge at the jaws of a raccoon. Recognizing his potential as a future mover and shaker, he was bottle fed and burped by the humans every three hours 24/7 for many weeks.

Callie (Catministrative Assistant) was rescued in 1990 as a 6-weeks-old feral kitten from a garage by brave members of the household wearing body armor, helmets and gloves.

Fracas (VP Sales & Promotion) was rescued in 2002 at 7 weeks old from the engine of a pickup truck at a yard sale. Never having human contact, he immediately began howling, mewling, talking, yowling, yakking, caterwauling, chirping and gargling, which he performs constantly to the present day.

Lucy (Spokesmodel) was rescued as a young wayward Ragdoll in 1992 when she was found walking the streets. Her twitchy little tail and beguiling aura of innocence seduced the entire human household into treating her as a princess on a pedestal.

Littermates Atlas & Somber (Corporate Bookends) and LittleGirl (Quality Control Manager) were rescued in 1995 at three weeks old from an abandoned house.

Bitsy (Director of Corporate Espionage) was rescued from the streets in 1996 as a kitten, and it was many months before she would allow human contact.

Ivan (Information Technology Director) was rescued in 2003 when he was one year old from an unhealthy pet store who was closed by city officials.

Oscar (Maintenance Manx) was rescued as a tiny kitten from a stack of firewood in the Artsy Catsy backyard, where he was born without a tail and abandoned.

BlackieBear (Security Manager) was rescued in 2004 as an adult during his illegal entry into the ArtsyCatsy household to steal kitty treats.

Casey (Corporate Controller) was adopted from a no-kill shelter in 2002.

Sibley (Student Intern) was rescued in 2006 at 7 weeks old from the raided house of a drug dealer.

FredBaby (VP Artsy Catsy Europe) and his Catministrative Assistant Holly Golightly were adopted from the Humane Shelter in 1997.

From Atlas, Corporate Bookend

Since we work behind the scenes, some of us at ArtsyCatsy have been pretty low-profile. We might not be in your face giving orders like Rocky, or soundbiting like Fracas, or catastrophizing like Callie, but our jobs are still important.

We three littermates were rescued from an abandoned house at 3 weeks old, and started movin' on up until we became the backbone of this company. Take me - Atlas - for instance, and my brother Somber. As Official Corporate Bookends/Paperweights, we play a crucial role in keeping this company organized. Even though Somber can't decide whether his fur is black or white, and even though I almost died in 1997 from feline urologic syndrome, we still, so to speak, carry our own weight here - and it's ample.

And then there's our sister, LittleGirl. As a baby, she suffered an eye trauma before we were rescued, leaving her with only one good one. But it's good that ArtsyCatsy hires the handicapped, because as Quality Control Manager, LittleGirl does an excellent job keeping an eye on everything.

Okay, gotta go hold up some books and hold down some paper.