Scaredy keeps on giving – in a cat sort of way
HodgePodge by Charlie Hodge
I do my best while going through this spin of life to not take things for granted. To be thankful for the many perks and blessings that come my way by simply being alive and enjoying the blessed, charmed, world that I do. Life, indeed, truly is largely what we make it, where our attitude navigates us through the challenges.
Ironically it’s those things we should appreciate the most we often treat the worst, ignore, forget, or take for granted. Like our spouses, children, best friends, even pets – all of which often provide us with unrequested, selfless love and kindness.
It’s the latter category where I suspect Scaredy Cat fits in.
Scaredy, as regular HodgePodge readers might remember, is my highly treasured, famous, favourite, first-of-five four-footed felines. She’s the feral cat friend that won her way into my shed, then our heart, and now the house.
Unfortunately, the complications of adopting and adapting to her litter living with us has meant the four sons live upstairs and Scaredy down. Due to my noisy bi-pap and late-night writing addiction I generally sleep downstairs – especially when not feeling well.
Scaredy guards me.
Several times now, after significant surgery or hospital stays, Scaredy and Tez have been my mainstay. Scaredy has always been there next to me with calming purrs and snuggles and I swear the cat knows what I am babbling on about. Either way – Scaredy has been a best friend during the hardest times.
I have always loved cats and read about them when presented with the opportunity. This Christmas (as a stocking stuffer) Tez bought me a desk calendar with a cat fact or comment for every day of the week. I have written a bunch of them down here, in addition to scouring the internet for other gems or neat cat stuff I know. My list is too long for today so a second column soon on cat facts including the top names.
From Scaredy, Tez and I here you go:
The word ‘cat’ comes from the Latin adjective ‘catus’ which means ‘clever, intelligent, sagacious, clear thinking, cunning, crafty, sly, or shrill sharp”.
Most kittens are born with blue eyes. A group of kittens is called a kindle.
The oldest cat on record was cream puff from Austin, Texas. Born in 1967 she lived until 2005 just past her 38th birthday.
Warning – No Easter lilies for Kitty as they can be toxic to some (No chewing). I suggest a bouquet of catnip.
Cats don’t blink however they squint their eyes to convey affection and evoke ease around another cat or human.
The World Cat Congress organization was officially founded in 1994.
Catteries are where cats are commercially housed.
Some cat folks get a little carried away, like the adults who held a very fancy wedding for their furry important couple. They blew US $39,443. The groom arrived by helicopter with the bride via Rolls Royce.
In Virginia dog catchers are legally prohibited from bothering cats while they’re looking for dogs.
The journal of comparative psychology found that when both dogs and cats are tasked with solving puzzles dogs look to humans for help while cats attempt to find the answers on their own.
Cats can swallow and digest food without chewing it.
Cats can cock their ears 180°.
According to 2017 survey cat owners are four times more likely to work in a creative field then dog owners.
Like other animals adapted to living in trees, cats have evolved an incredible ability to survive extreme falls. In 1987 a NYC cat fell 32 floors and suffered only a collapsed lung and a chipped tooth.
A 2003 Australian study found having a cat in a home is the emotional equivalent to having a romantic partner.
Cats can run up to 31mph, slightly faster than a human sprinter can.
Cats have free floating clavicle bones that attach their shoulders to their forelimbs, allowing them to squeeze through small spaces.
Cats may refuse untellable food to the point of starvation. They can spend between 30 and 50% of their waking hours grooming themselves.
Grumpy Cat went viral for his permanent grumpy expression. He was immortalized in a book called ‘Grumpy Cat a Grumpy Book’ and spent ten weeks on the New York Times best seller list.
Cats rarely meow at another cat unless it is a sibling. They will hiss and growl with ‘stranger’ cats.
The largest litter of cats ever recorded was 19.
Claws are curved downward which means they can’t climb down a tree head first.
They sleep curled up in a ball to reserve the body heat.
A group of cats it’s called a clowder, a clutter, or a glaring.
Kneading is a sign of contentment.
Cats, unlike dogs, have no hierarchy of leadership or compulsion to obey. They might come if called – especially if they believe something good like food or cuddles is at the end of the voice.
Hearing is a cat strong sense. A cat can hear his size 64 kHz K while humans can hear only up to 20 KHZ.
A hairball is exactly what it sounds like a ball of hair in the cat stomach – there as a result from licking its fur.
The Manx cat, known for having Asterix tail or no tail, comes from the Isle of Man.
The origin of the domesticated cat is still debated though in 2004 French researchers working in Cyprus unearthed at 9,500-year-old remains of a human and cat buried side by side.
A Texan tabby named dusty born in 1935 holds the record for most kittens. Dusty had 420 kittens in her lifetime.
Cats can detect earthquake tremors 10 to 15 minutes before humans can.
Cats have scent glands on their tails, foreheads, lips, chins, and undersides of their front paws they use them to mark territory and humans.
A cat keeps his head level when chasing prey
White cats with blue eyes are prone to deafness.
This is a tad disconcerting. The parts of the brain controlling emotional information, processing, and decision making to the cerebral cortex are nearly identical in cats than humans. (They think like us)
Oh, by the way, just to impress your cat friends – tell them they are ‘ailurophilia’. That’s the term for loving cats.
Now curl up and think abut those snippets of information.
