Feline the Love

Happy Valentine’s Day to one and all! We love to feature stories of our readers and this month we were lucky to hear about Luna’s adoption love story!

If you're thinking about adopting, don't wait! The shelters are full of wonderful animals just waiting to complete your family. On these snowy days, there's no better time to introduce a lap cat (or dog!) to your family.

Adoption Highlight: Luna
 

Photo provided by the Storms Family

Luna was 5 years old when she was brought to a local shelter as a stray. The shelter staff knew she must have had an owner at one time since she was already spayed and front-declawed. She was adopted out almost immediately, but returned quickly due to the adoptive family's allergy situation.

That's when the Storms family found her. They hadn't been looking to add a cat to the family as they already had one cat, two crazy dogs, and two noisy young children. But when they saw Luna, they fell in love instantly.

What makes Luna a perfect fit for the loud and rambunctious Storms household? She's deaf! This sweet feline sleeps through the noisiest episodes of barking dogs and squealing children.

Now, at 9, Luna is an indoctrinated part of the Storms family who snuggles, cuddles, plays, and chirps (she's very vocal despite being deaf).

Feline Fun with The CAT BALL®

Cats Love The CAT BALL®

The CAT BALL® is a modern cat bed that's a must-have for any cat owner and the company's goal is to create wonderful, unique, high quality beds for your cats. (But they don't mind if dogs use them!) 

Our own house is owned by four picky felines and we can honestly say our cats adore them.  We've even gone so far as to given them out as presents to our cat-lover friends.   We love this product so much that we just had to talk to its creator to find out more! So we interviewed Jennifer Boaro, the creative mastermind behind The CAT BALL® and here's what we learned.

TH: You have the cutest cat models.  Tell me something unique about them that would surprise me.  Do they have any quirky habits?

JB: We have two cat models, Retro and Tink. They are both cross eyed, blue eyed, lynx point kitties and sometimes people get them confused. That would be easy to do at first, or if you haven't seen many photos, but the two cats look really different. Here's the scoop:

• Retro: He's big. Like people are surprised how big he is. He stalks around the house smoothly, confidently, and with his bold tabby stripes and twitching tail, he looks like a miniature tiger. We got him as a kitten through a Craig's List post. A cat breeder made a mistake, and the result was a litter of half Angora, half Siamese kittens. His coat is short, smooth, shiny and sleek. He's so beautiful, and he inherited the full range of Siamese vocalizations. 

• Tink: Tink is tiny, she's almost half of Retro's weight. Her head is like a little Satsuma tangerine and her eyes are really crossed and weird. Tink walks around with a head tilt, rotating her head up so she can look up at us from the inside corner of her eye, and it's really charming. We aren't sure about her history, as we adopted her from the Purrfect Pals cat shelter, after she'd been found wandering the streets of Everett, Washington. Tink has a fabulous coat. Her fur is a medium length, and has an unusual puffy, silky texture. She's an absolute delight to touch. Tink is the boss of this house.

TH: I noticed you feature Zen by Cat on your website. Zen by Cat sounds like a wonderful group heading FIP Research. What has inspired you to work with the Zen by Cat organization?

JB: Zen By Cat is a neat organization! Their founder, Peter Cohen, reached out to us with a proposal to work together.  If you use coupon code FIPWARRIORDONATE on our site, we give a 20% donation to Zen By Cat to help fund research for FIP treatment.  Did you see the video of Peter's amazing house? He's done an incredible job!


TH: Your shark novelty bed might just be the most popular novelty creation, as I've seen it featured on My Cat from Hell.  What inspired you to create the shark bed?  How did it make its way onto the show and into Jackson Galaxy and Kate Benjamin's book?

JB: My husband would like you to know that the shark Cat Ball® cat bed was his idea. When I moved in with Chris, he did not have pets, but he understood that I required cats, and he soon found himself enjoying the kittens I brought home. Chris also likes sharks, and watches the Discovery Channel Shark Week shows every year. After getting the kittens he asked me if I could make a shark Cat Ball® cat bed, and I sat down to figure it out. The final product that we make now has changed very little from the first prototype, and it's very popular. People like feeding their cats to sharks. Eventually a producer for My Cat From Hell reached out to us to request product for the next season of the show, and they told us that there was a family with an ocean theme, so it made sense to give a shark to them. I'm so glad that we did, because the ocean themed cat room that they created was incredible!


TH: The Cat Ball has been so popular that I'm sure you've met your share of celebrities!  Is there a favorite experience that you'd like to share?

JB: We have encountered some celebrities, and it can be really interesting to see who buys cat beds. My favorite celebrities are the feline ones! 


Read more about the Cat Ball® on their fabulous blog or follow on their instagram, facebook, twitter, and pinterest pages.

Special CAT BALL® Promotion

Now you can save 10% off
your next CAT BALL®  with the coupon code:

ADOPTLOVE

Featured above: special edition Strawberry Cat Ball

Jackson Galaxy's Cat Camp 2018

Cat Camp is next weekend and we want you to know all the great things happening May 5th - 6th.    Tickets now on sale.

PETCO FOUNDATION NAMED PRESENTING SPONSOR

OF JACKSON GALAXY’S CAT CAMP

Sponsorship Will Expand Extensive Cat Adoption Area to the Public

New York, NY - Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Camp is excited to announce that the Petco Foundation has come on board as the Presenting Sponsor of this year’s event, taking place May 5th and 6th at the Penn Pavilion. Petco Foundation’s partnership will enable Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Camp to raise even more awareness for animal advocacy non-profit groups, senior and special needs cats by graciously funding admission to the event’s adoption center, making it free to members of the public for the weekend.

The official line-up includes special presentations from cat experts, rescuers, and advocates who will speak on a range of topics such as fostering kittens, behavioral issues, cats and social media, special needs animals, and much more. Meet-and-greets with notable cat community celebs include Lil BUB, Hannah Shaw aka Kitten Lady, and the Cat Daddy himself, Jackson Galaxy. There will be breakout workshops with NYC community cat experts and nationally recognized rescue professionals, panels on using social media for feline welfare, a Drag Bingo Fundraiser hosted by Goldie Lox and Ona Louise, and an exhibition area featuring the cutest, coolest, cutting-edge cat gear for both cats and their humans of all ages.

The Petco Foundation will also be on site at the event to film event goers sharing their personal stories about the everyday actions they take to help save cat lives across the country. These stories will be shared during the Foundation’s annual “Be a Lifesaver” campaign, which celebrates the individuals and organizations working to create a lifesaving nation.  

“I came up with the idea for Cat Camp while fostering a tiny kitten named Tia, whom I later adopted. Tia was less than 9 ounces at 10 weeks old, and the journey to save her inspired me to learn how we can do more for cats everywhere,” said Cat Camp co-founder Christina Ha. “I’m thrilled to be working with the Petco Foundation to bring stories to light about all the Tia’s all over the country. Our goal is to empower individuals to save lives - if we all do a little bit together, we can accomplish so much as a community and we are so proud to be doing this with the Petco Foundation.”

“At the Petco Foundation, we believe that it takes all of us to create a lifesaving nation for animals, which is why we are proud to support Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Camp efforts to inspire more people to take lifesaving action on behalf of cats nationwide,” said Susanne Kogut, president of the Petco Foundation. “From inspiring others to helping more cats find loving homes in the event’s adoption center, we can’t wait to see the lifesaving impact of this gathering of passionate feline advocates.”

The second annual 2018 event will span two floors within the Penn Pavilion, centrally located across the street from Penn Station on 34th St and 7th Ave, and will take place on Saturday May 5th and Sunday May 6th.

Please visit catcampnyc.com for full details, tickets and information.

2018 Saturday Schedule

Doors Open from 10am-6:30pm

Presentations

*All Access Tickets Required

• 10:30-11:30am: Special Needs Panel: Heartwarming stories about the relationships between people and their special needs cats. Featuring Mike Bridavsky & Lil BUB and Lauren DiPaolo of @littleman_mika

• 12pm-1pm:  Big Cat Rescue: Leading the Battle to End Big Cat Abuse with Jennifer Leon

• 1:30pm-2:30pm: Little Kittens, Big Issues: How to Save the Tiniest Felines with Hannah Shaw aka Kitten Lady

• 3pm-3:45pm: (Trap Neuter Return) TNR 101: Lessons on Getting Started

• 3:45pm-4:30pm: TNR Panel - Stories from real people about TNR featuring Will from @flatbushcats and Sterling from @the_original_trapking and moderated by Hannah Shaw @kittenxlady

• 5pm-6pm: Cats vs. Dogs: How are they different, how are they the same, and can they co-exist peacefully in a home? featuring Jackson Galaxy and Zoe Sandor

Breakout Events Sponsored by Tomlyn

*Accessible with Shopping & All Access Tickets

• 11am-12pm: Ask the Cat Expert with Ingrid King

• 12:30pm-2pm: Ask the Vet with Tomlyn

• 2:30pm-4pm: The Scoop on Litter Box Issues with Beth Adelman

• 4:30-6:00pm: TNR Roundtable: Meet and Mingle with TNR Heroes

Meet & Greets

*Special Tickets Required

• 10:30am: Hannah Shaw Meet & Greet sponsored by PetAG

• 12:30pm: Lil BUB Sponsored by Halo

• 3pm-4pm: Jackson Galaxy Meet & Greet Sponsored by Litter Genie

 

Special Events

*Available to all, Limited Seating

• 4:30pm-6pm: Drag Bingo Fundraiser with Goldie Lox and Ona Louise

2018 Sunday Schedule

Doors Open from 10am-6:30pm

Presentations

*All Access Ticket Required

• 10:30am-11:30am: Fostering Saves Lives: A Panel Discussion featuring Nikki from @myfosterkittens

• 12pm-1pm: The Story of Lil BUB: Caring for a Special Needs Cat from Space with Mike Bridavsky and Lil BUB

• 1:30pm-2:30pm: Using Social Media to Help Feline Welfare: A Panel Discussion

• 3pm-4pm: Telling a Cat's Story through Images by Andrew Marttila

• 5pm-6pm: The Power of You: Keynote by Jackson Galaxy

Breakout Events Sponsored by Tomlyn

*Accessible with Shopping & All Access Tickets Unless Specified

• 10:30am-12:30pm: Cat Cafe Owners Unite! - Mix, Mingle, and Share the stories that only other Cat Cafe owners would understand with Adam Myatt aka Cat Man of West Oakland.

• 1pm-2pm: The Business of NonProfits - Learn how to turn your passion into a successful operation with Lee Domascewec of PhoenixFire Strategic Consulting

• 2:30pm-3:30pm: Peaceable Kingdom: Techniques to Increase the Success of Multi-Cat Households with Mikel Delgado

Meet & Greets

*Special tickets required

• 10:30am: Hannah Shaw Meet & Greet Sponsored by PetAG

• 12:30pm-1:30pm Jackson Galaxy Meet & Greet

• 2pm: Lil BUB Meet & Greet Sponsored by Halo

 

Special Events

*For Participating Adoption Groups Only

4:30pm-6pm: Drag Bingo Fundraiser with Goldie Lox and Ona Louise

* We are not responsible for changed or cancelled events.  Please check with the organizer for the latest information.
 

We Are A Finalist In Pet Valu's National Photo Calendar Contest!

We need your vote to land a spot in the calendar!

This photo is a finalist in Pet Valu's national photo calendar contest!  Votes determine who gets to be in the 2017 calendar.  There are only 13 coveted spots available in the calendar including the cover.  Please show your support and help get Misty a spot in this year's calendar.  Cast your vote once every 24 hours now through July 15th.   It's easy, just go to Pet Valu's facebook casting call voting page through the link below, click on the the "cats" button and find Misty's photo.

 Vote Here!

Follow Misty on Instagram @mynameismistycat

Pet Valu loves to give back to the local communities it store's support.  All calendar sales benefit animal rescue charities throughout the year!

Fun Facts About Misty:

1. She's a Humane Pennsylvania rescue kitty and has lived with us a few months
2. She loves to watch birds in the sun with her best friend Ronni
3. She secretly takes socks out of the laundry and hides them around the house
4. She prefers to play with golf balls over the plastic cat toys
5. One of her favorite past times is playing with the shower curtain
6. She knows her name and comes to you when called
7. Her absolute favorite spot in the house is underneath my computer monitor
8. Her second favorite spot is on my lap watching TV
9. Her favorite cat toy is Fling-Ama-String
10. She's the best thing that has happened to us