Dites 33 !

Pour ce nouveau numéro, voici une trouvaille de toute beauté…

Il s’agit d’une belle aquarelle de parue dans le blog Rachel’s Studio intitulée Siamese cat  watercolor “Habib”. Cliquez dessus pour la voir en couleurs, sinon vous ratez quelque chose…

Cela date de septembre 2009, depuis, les petit-e-s curieu-ses-x pourront y trouver tout un tas de nouvelles œuvres de Rachel Parker mettant en scène félins et plus précisément siamois (achats possibles).

Bonne ballade !

So I have a siamese-y cat called Osiris. We named him that before we realised it was the God of Death. Cheerful. But it stuck, and it’s such a good name. You can get so many little versions of it like, Ossie, Ossie the Boss etc.

Unfortunately though, I don’t think he actually realises that’s his name. We got him ’second hand’ from the Cat’s Protection League. His original name was Lucky, which we instantly scrapped. Everyone calls their dogs Lucky! It does man however, that he still answers to it.

It’s actually quite a drag having to get a cat like that, it means that you have to retrain it to your standards, especially if it appears that the original owner’s standards were very low.

For instance, Osiris was definately used to being able to sit on the table, or at least on the lap of someone at meal times. It took forever, and a whole lot of pushing away for him to get the idea. But he still gets up on his hindlegs to look over the table top, in the hope that there’s something he can eat.

Even if there was, he couldn’t. He has a ’sensitive siamese stomach’, so he has special food. It was terrible in the beginning, before we knew what was wrong because he was barfing everywhere! And then he eats the grass, which he apparently doesn’t learn about, because he pukes everytime after that as well. Such a pain.

My cat, Osiris

I’d miss him though. For some strange reason, I know that I’ll miss kicing him out of the room, constantly checking to see if my door’s closed and he can’ t push it open. I’ll miss his meowing, constant need for affection, and his motorcyle purring. Isn’t it strange how we can get so aggravated by something, and yet need it?

Nouveau modèle de calendrier, édition 2010 pour nos chouchous les siamois.

Celui-ci est en vente sur Ricardo (le pendant helvétique d’eBay) au prix de CHF 19.80 (hors frais de port).

Las características de la raza de Milena, es que son levemente atigrados, el color puede variar entre chocolate, amarillo, café pero siempre con el patrón tabby, en medio de la frente las rayas forman una letra M, los ojos azules intensos y las almohadillas de las patas del color que sea dominante.

En donde les nacen los bigotes tienen motitas de color.

Estos gatos son de origen asiático, aparecieron en lugares como Tíbet, Tailandia entre otros países cercanos, son muy nobles, les gusta estar en casa y dormir 12 horas seguidas pero cuando estan despiertos son hiperactivos, como otras razas asiaticas.

En 1880 fueron llevados a Inglaterra para comercializarlos y en 1890 fueron traídos a Estados Unidos, y ahora están disponibles aquí en México pero no se desde que año.

Características del Gato Siamés.

Cabeza: de talla mediana pero nunca grande; tiene forma triangular con el vértice en la punta de la nariz-mentón, las líneas laterales se continúan por los costados laterales de la cara, por las orejas, que son grandes y terminadas en punta. Este triángulo puede variar de equilátero a isósceles.

Perfil: largo y continúo que va desde la punta de la nariz hasta la parte superior de la cabeza entre las orejas. Está formado por una línea suave sin depresiones ni cambios bruscos de ángulo, puede ser ligeramente convexo. Nariz larga, recta, sin depresión naso-frontal pronunciado. Carrillos chatos. Hocico fino. Sin pinch. Mentón firme, formando una línea recta con la punta de la nariz.

Ojos: medianos, son de forma almendrada y posicionados en forma oblicua, lo que se denomina set tipos orientales y separados por el tamaño de un ojo por medio o más. En todos los casos son de color azul y se valora la mayor intensidad del color.

Orejas: de grandes a extra grandes, bien separadas entre sí, anchas en la base, puntiagudas, continúan los lados del triángulo viendo de frente la cabeza. En algunos casos, la base de la oreja puede estar levemente por debajo de la línea imaginaria del triángulo.

Cuello: delgado, largo, elegante, ligeramente arqueado.

Cuerpo: es largo y tubular, delicadamente muscular y firme, sobre patas altas y delgadas. Hombros y caderas del mismo ancho. La estructura ósea es fina y delicada.

Extremidades: de osamenta fina, largas y delgadas. Pies ovalados pequeños.

Cola: larga y en forma de látigo. Se afina de la base a la punta.

Pelo: corto, brillante, fino, suave, apretado y adherido al cuerpo. Tiene mediana cantidad de subpelo, prácticamente inexistente, lo que hace al pelaje en conjunto relativamente denso.

Color del manto: el siamés se caracteriza por su esquema de color pointed típico, es decir, por una coloración más oscura en los puntos donde la temperatura corporal es menor (extremidades, cola, cara y orejas), que constrasta con el resto del cuerpo.

 Las enfermedades mas comunes que atacan a esta raza son:

1. Alteración del nervio óptico por el gen cs: estrabismo y nistagmo
2. Nudos en la cola, alteraciones en los cartílagos del esternón
3. Alopecia auricular congénita
4. Tesaurosis: mucopolisacaridosis VI, Gangliosidosis GM1, Lipofuscinosis ceroide
5. Paladar hendido, piloroestenosis, dilatación esofágica
6. Hidrocefalia (gen hy), Porfiria (gen po)
7. Carcinoma mamario (doble de riesgo)
8. Alteraciones del comportamiento, pica, succión de lana.
9. Asma bronquial
10. Amiloidosis

 Desgraciadamente mi gata Sofía padece de Alopecia auricular congénita, ósea que se esta quedando pelona de las orejas y tiene nudos en la cola, alteración de los cartílagos del esternón.

Una curiosidad de estos gatos es que en invierno son más oscuros y en tiempos de calor más claros, me parece fascinante que cambien de color.

 Una fotografia que le tomé a mi gatita Milena, espero que les guste.

Sony 12.1 Megapixels

Tonight I had to accompany my girlfriend with her little Siamese cat, Sula, to the emergency vet surgery in Glasgow. Sula had been ill for a long time, and this was the first time I’ve ever seen an animal euthanised. It was gentle, dignified, and very sad. She was a very loving cat and brought my girlfriend great comfort in times of immense sadness earlier this year, when she also lost her father.

Siamese (cat)
The Siamese is one of the first distinctly recognised breeds of Oriental cat. … In the twentieth century the Siamese cat became one of the most popular breeds …

Siamese – Breed Profile
An in depth look into the Siamese breed, one of the world’s oldest … Siamese Breed Standard. Breed Article: The Siamese – Cat Fanciers’ Almanac November 2000 …

Siamese Cats
Siamese cats take their name from their country of origin, Siam, better known … Brushing can actually damage the color and texture of a Siamese cat’s coat. …

Traditional Siamese Breed FAQ
The Traditional Siamese Breed FAQ provides answers to frequently asked questions about the Traditional Siamese breed of cat. … traits a Siamese cat is known …

A Portland man who attacked his ex-girlfriend and impaled her pet fish this summer has been sentenced to two years probation, a psychological evaluation and community service.

Donald Earl Fite III, 27, pleaded guilty to animal abuse and domestic violence assault.

According to court records, Sarah Harris had broken up with Fite but returned to her Portland apartment July 25 to find him lying on her bed, saying he wanted to get back together.

When Harris tried to leave, Fite shoved her against a wall, grabbed her hair and tossed her against a bathtub.

Harris fled but returned with an officer to find her fish — a bright purple betta named “DeLorean” — on the wood floor with a knife through it.

According to court records, Fite quickly admitted killing the fish, telling police: “If she can’t have me, then she can’t have the fish.”

Fite’s attorney, Tom Macnair, said that killing the fish was a “very low point” in his client’s life.

“He is absolutely mortified and ashamed about what he did to the fish,” MacNair said in Multnomah County Circuit Court. Fite, who had no previous criminal history, declined to make a statement.

Harris did not attend the hearing. In a phone interview with The Oregonian newspaper, she recalled crying hysterically when she saw the fish with a knife sticking through it.

“Donald bought the fish for me, and I’m sure he knew how much I cared for it,” she said.

Betta fish, also known as Siamese fighting fish, are colorful freshwater aquarium fish that usually are between 2 and 3 inches long.

Prosecutor Eric Zimmerman told Judge Eric Bergstrom that Harris plans to get a memorial tattoo of the fish and wanted Fite to pay for it. Bergstrom, however, declined to make Fite pay restitution for the tattoo.

The judge ordered Fite to stay away from Harris, but said he could have contact with fish.

Allez, on continue la semaine avec un deuxième cliché de cette série…

Serait-ce un insecte qui le (la) met dans un état pareil ? A moins qu’il ne s’agisse que d’un petit coup de fatigue pris sur le vif ? Parfois, cela ne pardonne pas…

Last Friday we got a surprise package from Danijela!

Oooh, how happy we got when we discovered tons and tons of some of Jelena’s favorite candy in the bag!

The cats were helping tremendously. They love to organize stuff, though we often have different opinions on what “to organize” means.

Katie is a chocolate-point siamese cat who came to live with us on July 16, 2009.  In less than 3 months she’s taken over… our house and our hearts.  She’s an immigrant from the States, a California girl, but she moved to Canada at 5 months old so we consider her a Canuck.

Her last owner is a family friend who can’t take care of her any more.  Katie has a  minor health issue – asthma – which requires regular visits to the vet and an observant owner willing to administer a pill regularly.  No big deal for us – our last pet was a diabetic dog who required shots twice a day, feedings 7 or more times a day and walks in all weather.  Katie is easy and an indoor cat to boot!  Not having to walk her in the west-coast wind and rain is a huge plus.

Our vet commented at her first visit that Katie is a “lucky cat” and we have to agree.

L’heure est au choix de l’édition 2010 de son calendrier. Avalanche de nouveaux clichés en perspective…

En voici un second (rappelez-vous ce premier modèle trouvé en juillet dernier), plutôt pas mal. On le trouve facilement de 10.- à 15.- Euros environ sur eBay ou Amazon par exemple.

Références : Publication Willow Creek Press, ISBN 9781595439857, 30 juin 2009.

Traditional Siamese Cat ©Stockxpert

Le site Pictures-of-cats.org propose parmi ses pages une foultitude d’informations utiles par race de chat.

Bien que les références et données avancées me semblent très anglo-saxonnes, cela permet un bon comparatif et une bonne idée du point de vue Outre-Atlantique.

Paragraphes :

• Introduction
• Appearance
• Health
• Genetics
• History

Et voici, par exemple, les données chiffrées recueillies :

• Poids, coût à l’achat, caractère, espérance de vie, vie en appartement

• Critère de la santé du siamois

• Préférence type ancien VS type moderne

A l’occasion de ce dernier sondage, on se rend d’ailleurs compte ô combien nous sommes encore attachés au siamois traditionnel, puisque c’est la race qui recueille plus des 3/4 des suffrages…

Une jolie découverte que cette affiche pour un salon de thé “La chatte siamois(e)” made in China Town, ici déclinée en Tshirt.

On y devinerait presque le fond en porcelaine de Chine tellement c’est réaliste (à voir en couleur en cliquant sur l’image).

Source : eBay

“Thank God, it’s Friday”

Voici enfin venir la suite de cette série commencée en novembre 2008 !! Comme quoi, on peut dire qu’il est réellement difficile de tomber sur des siamois mécontents ;o).

D’ailleurs, pour être tout à fait exacte, je dirais que celui-ci est plus surpris que mécontent, à voir ce qu’il tient dans ses pattes…

Source : eBay

Siamese cats are known for their distinctive coloring and blue eyes. Its subtle colors and many appealing attitude, and it was at the height of popularity in the 1950s. It is still a popular breed today, but less attention it receives today, compared to its heyday.

Almost everyone knows what looks a Siamese, as they are known. This is partly because of their popularity in the mystery film genre. Many believe it is their nature that makes them curious about the perfect choicefor a detective’s assistant.

Appearance – The distinctive characteristics of a Siamese cat are its long rectangular shaped body, a wedge shaped head, large ears, long and elegantly thin legs, a long graceful tail and brilliant blue, almond shaped eyes. The Siamese breed is a short haired cat and is available in several different colors and patterns such as Seal Point, Chocolate Point, Blue Point, or Lilac Point. Should there be different coloring, it is actually seen as a totally distinct Race, the race Colorpoint Shorthair.

Behavior and characteristics – The Siamese is an affectionate cat who enjoy and expect that the owner loves to around most of the time. Siam, who are in trouble as a rule, cats tend to run away to the left too much to themselves and have nothing to do interesting things, or they may mind.

However, if you a career oriented person and still have your heart set of ownership of a Siamese, you can check by using asecond cat into the house. This allows you to be your Siamese is not as lonely as well as partners in crime have. But do not worry, they will wait patiently to meet their master when the master one foot in the house.

This breed of cat is very devoted to his family and is more than willing to help with the housework, you company as you move from room to room or take in your lap for a nice relaxing evening. Siamese cats are very outgoing and meet and greet all whocomes to the door. The older generation seems to have a fondness for the elegant and affectionate Siamese breed standard have. The Siamese is alert and interested, and discovered many new tricks as opposed to move forward, if they call or get even.

But keep in mind that Siamese can easily decide melancholy and sometimes called, not to obey orders. Siamese cats are true to invent their playful nature and their own games to keep themselves amused. Games which they are made to worshiphide-and-seek antics, as well as sudden, playful pounces on unwary family.

When a cat to have that vocal and affectionate, and devoted to entertaining and provides a broad smile on your face, then the Siamese breed standard can only be the right breed for you.

Most mail order services offer a wide range of items. However, most of the items are either for gifts or for holiday decorating. As a matter of fact, the company puts up a catalog for each season of the year and includes the holidays of the season. But the mail order services also have a special section dedicated to pets. The also have the catalog for pet toys, clothing’s and treats. One new item has been included in the catalog, and the item is a cat stroller. This item is good for a birthday present.

I showed the picture of the cat stroller to my husband and asked him to get it for me as my birthday present. He thought this was too strange. He said that the cats would not go in the stroller. I have two cats. They are both indoor cats, but they love to go outside. I thought this would be a fun way for them to be outside with me and still be safe. The cat stroller looks like a baby stroller except there is a zipped screen that covers the opening. You place the cat inside the stroller then zip it shut, preventing them from jumping out. The screen material allows them to look out.

My husband told me to order the cat stroller if I wanted it, but he cautioned that I should not leave the yard with it the first few times I had the cats out, in case something would go wrong and they figured out how to escape. When the cat stroller arrived I was very excited to use it. I brought the stroller in the house and put both cats in it. One of my cats is a twenty pound seal point Siamese. The other is a ten pound alley cat. It was a tight fit, but I managed to get the screen covering zipped. I then carried the stroller down the steps and rolled down the driveway. The cats were fighting and meowing the entire time. I rolled down our driveway and walked the short distance to the neighbor’s house and rolled up their driveway. They saw me coming through their windows and came out to see if I was babysitting one of our grandchildren. They could not believe that I had the two cats in the carriage. The cats were not happy and they continued to meow and fight with each other. The smaller cat has her claws and she had one caught in the screening. I managed to get the stroller home and let the cats out on the step. On the way home one of the wheels came off the front of the cat stroller. As I was taking the cats out I noticed the warning that stated that the stroller had a twenty pound capacity. I have used the stroller with one cat at a time; they do not like their walks as much as I thought they would. Most of the time the cat stroller hangs in the garage and the cats sleep in the house.

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James Dean being all handsome and fly with a couple kitty cats, and scope those specs no less! Heat.

“Only the gentle are ever really strong.” –James Dean

His cat’s name was Marcus. It was a present from Elizabeth Taylor.

Finally, a pen and ink drawing which was auctioned two years ago by his museum on good ol’ eBay. Dean drew it for Geraldine Page, his co-star in a Broadway play. I don’t really want to know what those two are doing, but you have to admit it’s a pretty damned good drawing, as bestiality sketches go.

The Siamese routinely steal the blanket now. We need another one. I’m sick of waking up freezing with two white cats looking at me like: “WTF, don’t disturb us human”.

They should really be nicer and more thankful for all the food we give them, the sand they spread over the apartment, the toys that lie everywhere and don’t get me started on that kitty-furniture on which they lie to watch over their servants. But we really don’t deserve better.

We pay to become slaves and somehow think it’s all worth it. Adorable fuzzy little furballs

Nouveau coup de foudre pour cette photo qui vient illustrer un article du blog Deal with pets. Il semble s’agir d’une certaine Masya, de toute beauté, non ?

Cet ouvrage qui, dois-je l’avouer, trainait de façon anodine sur la table de salon d’un des hôtes chez qui je me rendais pour prendre soin de son compagnon, s’avère être un magnifique recueil de (122) portraits félins.

• The essential cat
• Thomas Wester
• ISBN 0-586-20426-1

Résumé de la 4ème de couverture :

Cats on the prowl, cats in repose, cats in groups or in solitary splendour, running wild or in pampered domestic bliss-never before has a book so perfectly captured the manifold moods and behaviour of that eternal enigma, the cat.

As all true cat lovers will know, there is a mysterious quality about the cat: dignified, self-contained, alluring, seductive and aloof by turns. It may make us laugh, but it is never ridiculous. This is no collection of posed, chocolate box felines, but the natural cat in its own surroundings, doing exactly what it likes.

“This is, quite simply, the best book of cat photographs there is” Doris Lessing.

Les clichés sont d’une justesse, d’une qualité et d’une originalité qui en fait un ouvrage de référence, rien que cela, à mon humble avis.

Voici l’ensemble des clichés, de piètre qualité (car pris avec le téléphone), qui mettent en scène nos amis les siamois.

We spend a gazillion dollars (a rough estimate) each year in this country taking care of our pets. Our beloved little fur balls, our hounds…the ones who lick us relentlessly or rub their faces on our ankles…the ones who have huge chunks of our hearts. And anyone who has ever had a sick pet knows…money can become an issue. But for many pet owners, yours truly included, there is nothing we wouldn’t do for our furry children, even in this economy. Case in point: this week’s guest writer, one hell of a funny woman…Barbara, who takes us on an adventure that we all hope has a very happy ending. Here she is, in her own words:

 

There was a joke I loved as a kid.  It involved a very wealthy man who had little use for his family and the punchline was “He gave all his money to the Asthmatic Cat Foundation.”  I repeated the joke as often as I could.   I thought the Asthmatic Cat Foundation, or rather the idea of an asthmatic cat was the funniest thing in the world….I mean..ASTHMATIC CATS!!!  Who would have thunk it.   That is until I heard a joke about a parrot that had constipation forced upon him via a cork and asked an overweight visitor if someone was trying to make her fat too. 
 
This does tie in to what I’m about to tell you.  Nearly five years ago I adopted two tiny sister kittens, which, in time became cats.  Paris and Emily are Siamese mix but there’s little resemblance beyond that…

They have different color patterns and decidedly different dads as Emily is nearly twice the size of her sister…or sister-cousin, or whatever. Cats in heat are complete whores.
 
A few months ago Emily began doing ..something… repeatedly.  At first I thought it was one hairball she couldn’t get out..or perhaps she was choking on a piece of candy, a diet coke bottle cap…a kibble…a mouse…whatever it was…a lot.   HaaRRamphFF…BlaSCHmenPH…SHManoRIFF!!!  She sounded possessed and ended each episode with a long, pronounced swallow.  Cats can be gross.
 
To the vet we go! The vet suspected Emily had asthma.  Asthma! Funny!  She had a blood test and an X-ray at $150 a pop.   Once the tests came back showing this was LIKELY the case, I picked up steroid samples.  The word “samples” made me think they would be free, but these cost $17 and change.  And what the hell?  Steroids?  They bulk you up. Emily is a big, big girl, 18 pounds.  Turn her human and you’ve got a pissed off 280 pound Olympic weightlifter with acne.   
 
If they worked, we had proof she was indeed asthmatic, but the pills were no cure. The closest thing to that would be allergy testing with a starting price of $300.  Allergy shots are extra. Stop gaps, aside from steroids, were people antihistamines and asthma inhalants.
 
LOVE HURTS
 
Stop gap number one – the ‘roids did their thing.  Her attacks stopped, and by the way, I bleed too.  Cats do not enjoy swallowing pills.  Emily got me twice with her sharp little teeth.  The second time was so nasty that I went to a clinic inside a drugstore only to be told they don’t treat animal bites.  I paid 15 bucks for a tube of Neosporin, band aids and a bottle of rubbing alcohol and went home to operate on my finger.  I define surgery as poking in the cut with rubbing alcohol sterilized tweezers.  It hurt, but within a few days I forgot about it.
 
After the pills ran out I moved on to phase two of Treating Emily, a steroid shot.  Cheap!  Only about 30 dollars! This was supposed to be good for two months, but didn’t work, and neither did Zyrtec, which involved more cat bites.
 
I called the vet and told her I wanted to go ahead, plunk down the serious cash and get my prize cat tested for allergies.  But the catch is she had to be steroid free for two months, which would mean weeks more of HAMPushSCHEE or SmushsclOTH!  It was time to get her an inhalant.
 
ENTER THE BARBADIANS
 
It’s easy to get a cat inhaler.  After a couple of days of phone tag, my kind vet told me to go here.
 
http://www.aerokat.com/Animal_Health/ah_aerokat_fac.asp
 
This nifty gadget cost me 70 dollars, but I needed the medicine that goes WITH it.  After more phone tag she told me to get Flovent.  I have insurance but Emily isn’t on it.  And this stuff isn’t cheap.  And you need a prescription.  She suggested two magic words  – Canadian Pharmacy. 
 
Here’s a fun fact – The Canadian Drugstore…   http://www.tcds.com/default.asp ….isn’t in Canada at all.  Their customer service center, which I called, is in Barbados.  Oh man, this was one ass-whipping of a phone conversation. 
 
“I would like some Flovent HFA 125/120″
“How much do you weigh?”
(F#$@K Off!)
“One hundred and…(I give the indecipherable but polite Barbadian my weight…in kilograms.)
“Are you taking any other medications?”
(Like I would tell you?)
 ”This isn’t for me, it’s for my cat.”
“How old are you?”
“I’m four.”
“We need a prescription.  Who is your doctor?”
(Gyno, internist, dentist?  Which one?)
“My cat’s veterinarian.”
“Today we are offering a four percent discount if you give me your checking account routing number.”
(Not in this lifetime)
 ”No, thank you.”
“The medicine will be shipped from New Zealand.  Is that OK?”
 
It took four weeks and cost fifty dollars and Emily does not like it.  In fact she runs when I come near her with the thing. But she’s better and soon we go in for testing…and I’ll let you know how it goes.