Woof Woof Wednesday

Though the photo is too bright, overexposed, and all that jazz, pup Astrid nonetheless wanted to show you all her snout. It's white with wisdom. See?

Astrid wishes you all lots of happy napping today!

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Doodle of the Day

Today's doodle is another random piece of concept art. This is one of my rare doodles that does not star a cat or dog. Instead, it stars a horse.

I'm quite fond of horses. Right out of college, my first job was at a large animal clinic at the university I attended. I worked very closely with horses, and I really enjoyed their company. One of the horses was named Jeffrey, and he was one of the tallest horses I've ever met. He was also the most docile, calm, sweet, and easy to handle horse I have ever met. Jeffrey the friendly horse was a bay, like the one in the doodle above.

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Tidbit of the Day

Today's tidbit regarding COVID-19 and furbabies is the fact that there's no reason to believe that animals in shelters and rescues should not be adopted during this pandemic. First of all, as we've already said, it's been deemed very unlikely for a cat or dog to spread the novel coronavirus to a human. In addition to this, many shelters and rescues are regularly cleaned and sanitized, helping to reduce the chances of pathogens such as the coronavirus spreading within them. So, don't be under the impression that adopting an animal from a shelter is off limits during this time. This all being said, if you wish to visit a shelter in hopes to find a new member for your furry family, do first contact the shelter and learn their current protocols. Some shelters are currently only adopting animals out through appointments, for example, so make sure you know what the pandemic protocols are at your shelter or rescue of choice.

Going along with the above statements, it's also important to realize that adopting an animal is not the only way to offer support to a shelter and the homeless animals it's housing. Some shelters need foster homes, some shelters need supplies and other donations, and others need assistance in other ways. If you'd like to offer a helping hand to an animal shelter or rescue during this pandemic, contact them and ask what kind of help might best benefit them. Any help at all will be appreciated by the workers and animals at the shelter.

Twofer Tuesday

For today, two kitties decided to pose together for a photo. If you translate that previous sentence, the truth is that this here human found two kitties sort of cuddling and begged them to stay where they were for a photo. Luckily, they obliged.

None of the kitties at my house are huge into cuddling each other, so when I find a scene like this I'm all for it. I can almost guarantee that Evan was there first and Tonks joined him. There's essentially no chance it happened the other way around.

Wishing a terrific Tuesday to all!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

Tuesdays are typically a day for a flashback doodle on our blog, and so today we have a page out of last year's sketchbook. It was sort of a piece of concept art, but it was mostly just an excuse to draw a kitty and some books.

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Tidbit of the Day

Today's tidbit regarding COVID-19 and our furbabies relates to keeping your kitty or pup happy and healthy even during a time of quarantine and isolation. We're talking about more than just keeping them healthy in a physical, more traditional sense. Today, we're more so referring to keeping your cat or dog healthy mentally, behaviorally, and so forth.

These days, things aren't all that normal. Many people are staying home far more than usual. After all, many are following shelter-in-place, self-isolation, quarantine, and other such guidelines. This might be affecting furbabies in a variety of ways. Dogs or even cats who are more used to going out and about with their humans might be staying home more than usual. Those furbabies who are used to staying home might be noticing that their humans, both adults and children, are going against their usual routines and hanging around the house far more than they typically do. However your schedule and overall routine has changed during this pandemic, it very well could be affecting your furbaby. Routine can be a very important thing to a cat or dog, and it's important to realize that going against routine can make some furbabies anxious, restless, and so on and so forth.

In addition to the above, don't forget that our furbabies are also excellent at sensing and feeding off of our emotions. If we're anxious, our kitty or pup could very well sense that, and in many cases they might also feel anxious in return. It's often difficult to feel calm and content these days, but it's also important to remember that our mood can affect our kitties and pups.

As our above comments indicate, there are multiple reasons why our kitties or pups could be feeling some form of anxious these days. Cats and dogs might be sharing their house and time with their humans more than they are used to. Not only that, but the humans who are home more often might be feeling a bit extra anxious during these days of the pandemic. For such reasons, keep an eye on your kitty or pup and watch for signs of restlessness, anxiety, and so forth. For kitties or pups who are missing out on certain time outside of the home, be sure to play with them at home or in the yard and overall give them extra attention and help them expend energy as best as possible. For those kitties or pups who might be missing their usual alone time, provide areas in the home that are calm and quiet for them to enjoy on their own. For example, perhaps have a room where you or children home from school know to keep calm and quiet for your furbaby, or something along these lines. You know your furbaby and their routine best, so be sure to pay attention to how they're doing during this pandemic and help them comfortably acclimate to any changes to their norm.

Memorial Day Remembrance

In the United States, today is Memorial Day. On this day, we remember those who have lost their lives while serving in the armed forces. Today, we thank and honor all those who have died for our freedom.

To all those who have fought to keep us safe and free, thank you for your bravery, service, and sacrifice.

To our friends in the US as well as those outside of the US, we wish you a safe, happy, and healthy Monday!

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Did you know?

We're taking just a short break from our tidbits relating to COVID-19 and our pets to repeatw a fact we shared on Memorial Day last year. We've all certainly heard of and respect the many amazing canine war heroes. Did you know, though, that cats, dolphins, and sea lions, among others, have also played roles in war? Cats have been sought out to serve as mousers and ratters, for example, keeping bases and ships sanitary and safe from rodents. Dolphins have served roles such as detecting underwater mines. The sea lion is another underwater animal who has been trained to serve in the armed forces, such as to detect enemy divers, and even to attach tracking devices to these enemy divers. Animals are heroes in more ways than one, and that includes a great many of them earning the title of war hero.

Shiny Sunday Selfie

A certain lady cat decided to snap a shiny selfie for today.

Thimble doesn't mind that her selfie is shiny if it means she has a sun puddle to bask in. We hope the sun is shining for all of our friends out there!

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Doodle of the Day

I scribbled up another little piece of concept art for today. Among other things, there's of course yet another kitty in this one, but this kitty is a bit, well, different.

That there is a robotic kitty, which I prefer to call a robokitty. Believe it or not, this is not the first time I've doodled up a robokitty. For anyone who might remember, a couple years ago I doodled up and shared here on our blog at least one robokitty. What inspired me to scribble up this robokitty? None other than Thimble! When Thimble was a tiny kitten, she had the gruffest, most mechanical sounding meow. She still has a meow that sort of sounds like that, but nothing as gruff and robotic as when she was just a few weeks old. I got in the habit of calling kitten Thimble RoboKitty, and now I enjoy drawing all sorts of robokitties. So, there's that.

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Tidbit of the Day

Today's tidbit relating to COVID-19 and our furbabies regards the symptoms of COVID-19 when it comes to our kitties and pups. During these times, it might be best to know the symptoms of COVID-19 in pets, especially in the event you think your kitty or pup was in any way exposed to the novel coronavirus. Symptoms include coughing, lethargy, and decreased appetite, but of course are not limited to just those. Overall symptoms will depend on the individual animal and their case. Should you see any concerning symptoms in your cat or dog, contact your veterinarian. As we've mentioned before, there are only a few rare cases of animals, mostly cats, contracting COVID-19, but it has happened. As we've also said before, it has been deemed that animals are more likely to get it from us than us get it from them, so it doesn't hurt to know the symptoms just in case.

Caturday Art

Our Caturday Art doodle is another concept piece for some stories I'm scribbling up.

This is one of my favorite concept art doodles I've scribbled up so far. That there girl is a character I created for all the animal lovers and animal rescuers out there. Her animals also all have their own stories in my head, and that altogether has just been really fun for me. As my concept art doodles might have already evidenced, I cannot create anything that doesn't heavily involve animals. What can I say.

Happy day to all!

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Tidbit of the Day

Today's tidbit regarding COVID-19 and our furbabies is a simple recommendation to stay up-to-date with your veterinary office's current protocols. Whether you kitty or pup suddenly becomes ill, or whether they are simply in need of their annual exam, make sure you know your veterinary clinic's current procedures ahead of time. During this pandemic, many businesses are having to change the way they do things. This includes veterinary offices, many of which are currently offering services in some form of curbside pickup. Other clinics are allowing people to come in with their cats and dogs, but with proper social distancing being observed. So, figure out how your veterinary office is currently doing things so that you know what might be required should you need to make a trip there with your furbaby. What's more, do a little research to find out which other veterinary clinics in your area, including emergency clinics, are open and how they are operating at this time. This is simply a suggestion to help cover all your bases, should your furbaby have a sudden emergency when your usual veterinary office is closed or booked up. Times are a bit strange these days, so make sure that you stay in-the-know of how your local veterinary offices are operating so that you don't run into any hiccups or snags in the event of a furry emergency.

Friendly Fill-Ins

Happy Friday, friends! How about we fill in some Friendly Fill-Ins? If you'd like to participate, we'll share the fill-in statements again below. Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two, and I came up with the second two.


1. I would love to be a fly on the wall in _________.

2. I am missing _________.

3. I could use more _________ in my life.

4. I could do without _________.


My answers are below in bold.

1. I would love to be a fly on the wall in my house when I'm sleeping at night.
(When I get up in the morning, I sometimes find the state of my house nothing like I left it the night before. My kitties relocate their own toys all the time, but I also find all sorts of other things moved or in some semblance of disarray. I'll find items that were hidden away on a counter under a closet door, and I'll find every blanket and pillow that had been on the couch strewn all over the floor, and I'll find what I thought was a closed and hidden container of catnip sprinkled all over the entire house. I'd love to see which of my kitties do what, when, and how while I'm sleeping.)

2. I am missing normalcy.
(Who isn't these days? Since I still go to work every day, my usual schedule isn't all that different during this pandemic. Nonetheless, things certainly don't feel normal. The overall atmosphere of the world right now is so different, and it just feels wrong, and I'd like it to go back to normal. I'm sure many people want that.)

3. I could use more hours in my life.
(Can I just have just a couple more hours in a day? Please? I have a lot of personal goals and endeavors I'm working toward in my life, and I'll admit that trying to fit in time to work on those on top of my full-time job is not very easy most days. I'm willing to work for my dreams, though, so time management is my elusive best friend these days.)

4. I could do without heat and humidity.
(We've pretty much reached the season of heat and humidity, and I'm not really into it. It's supposed to be nearly 90°F on Sunday here in my corner of the world, with high levels of humidity on top of that. Send help.)

Now it's your turn!

To add your link to the Friendly Fill-Ins Linky list, just click HERE!

You can also click on the badge below to add your link.

You are also welcome to complete the fill-ins in the comments below,

or in the comments on Ellen's blog, 15andmeowing.

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Your Eddy fix for today stars not only Eddy, but also yet another open window as well as her gnome friend named Chompsky. Remember this little pal of hers?

These two sure do enjoy fresh air. Wishing you all lots of window whiffies!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

The flashback doodle we're sharing today is one I created last year in honor of one of my favorite fruits. I'll be having a plethora of this fruit at a Memorial Day cookout with my parents and sister on Monday.

Who else enjoys some tasty watermelon? I'm also quite fond of grapes and strawberries, which I also got a stash of for Monday. I'll keep the toxic grapes away from the furbabies, but I will have to fight Toby for the strawberries, because he loves them so very much.

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Tidbit of the Day

Today's tidbit relating to COVID-19 and our furbabies involves medications you might take or might be prescribed should you fall sick. As you all certainly know, and as we've mentioned more than once, keep all human medications well out of your kitty or pup's reach. Some human medications can be incredibly toxic to our furbabies, and it's not worth risking them finding them and ingesting them. Just one example is Tylenol, or acetaminophen, which humans might take to help control a fever or pain. If this drug is ingested by a cat or dog, though, it can lead to damage to red blood cells or sometimes to the liver. This kind of toxicity could potentially occur even if a small dose is ingested by a cat or dog. Therefore, if you are taking acetaminophen for a fever or pain, whether it is related to a virus like the coronavirus or not, be careful with where the medication is handled and stored so that your kitty or pup has absolutely no access to it.

Thoroughly Poetic Thankful Thimble Thursday

It's Thursday and we're ready to rhyme. It is, after all, the day of Angel Sammy's Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge.

Our courteous poetry host always provides us with a photo prompt. This week's prompt is this humorous image here:

This is one of those times when I fully intended to heavily use this prompt to guide my poem. Then, though, my mind went wandering. My change of course primarily happened when I saw that tired couple napping in the gondola, and then for whatever reason the title "Napping on the Nile" just popped into my head. I know that the body of water in our photo prompt is most certainly not the Nile, but I could not get the title that popped into my head out of my mind. So, I just went with it and ended up with this:

Napping on the Nile

Allie was a grand adventurer.

She traveled everywhere and farther.

She journeyed through lands near and far,

As well as traveled through books with her library card.

Allie's most recent adventure led her to the Nile.

The thought of sailing down the river made her smile.

It was a long ride, though, Allie had to admit.

That's why she took with her a book to entertain her wit.

And so there Allie went, sailing down the Nile River.

It was balmy and warm, and she certainly didn't shiver.

The waters were blue and clear,

And green grass, reeds, and trees loomed near.

Allie enjoyed the view more than she could describe.

She alternated that view with seeing what words her book had inscribed.

The pages held the story of a great jungle tale.

It enhanced the experience of her journey without fail.

Allie gazed and gawked and read her book.

From the pages to the trees to the pages and to the river she looked.

The bobbing of her boat as she sailed the Nile was quite calming.

She grew comfortably sleepy as the weather grew more and more balmy.

Allie's eyelids grew heavy as she enjoyed both sights and words,

And her eyelids finally fell as she listened to the songs of the Nile's grand birds.

As soon as she fell asleep, though, Allie snapped awake.

Had she been awoken by her snoring, or did her boat quake?

She blinked away the sleep in her eyes.

Then she yawned and stretched her arms high.

As she did so, she heard from the trees,

"What brings you here, if you don't mind, please?"

Snapping her head and gaze here, there, and everywhere,

Allie suddenly felt a bit of a scare.

"What? Who said that?" she asked.

"I did," said a great big panther of black.

The giant cat had spoken from the branch of a nearby tree,

And it wasn't the only new arrival that Allie did see.

Also amongst the trees on the shore slithered a giant snake,

As well as a tiger and a bear with fur of none other than grey.

"What's going on?" Allie said as she gripped the sides of her little boat.

Didn't the Nile house animals like crocodiles and hippos?

Why was she instead surrounded by these strange critters?

Seeing them all quite honestly gave her the jitters.

"I'm not here to bother you," Allie said with a frail smile.

"I'll be down the river and out of your hair in just a little while."

The bear took a step forward and actually grinned.

It said, "You're not bothering us one bit, miss."

The tiger skipped and jumped through some reeds,

Saying, "You're free to join us on land for some rest if you're fatigued."

"Yes, indeed. We're always happy for a new friend," the snake hissed and agreed.

The bear then added, "What's your name, miss? Would you tell us, please?"

Still in her boat and trying not to panic,

Allie answered, trying to keep her voice from sounding manic,

"My name's Allie. I'm an adventurer."

"Oh, now that sounds fun!" the bear replied with a shake of his fur.

After a bit more seemingly idle chatter,

Allie began to wonder if these critters wanted to serve her on a platter.

The snake slithered and then dangled from a tree limb,

And the tiger put a paw in the water as if gearing up to swim.

On shore, the bear simply started doing a jig in the reeds,

But the panther in the tree overhead suddenly became concerning indeed.

"It's best not to fall asleep at the wheel, Allie," the panther said,

And then it jumped from its tree perch and seemed to come straight at her head.

Allie jumped and yelled and ducked beneath her arms.

She waited and waited, but realized she had come to no harm.

Peeking over her arms her eyes grew wide.

There was no panther, tiger, bear, or snake in sight.

She sat up in her boat and look all around,

And the sight around her made Allie's heart leap and bound.

The boat was headed straight for a waterfall just ahead!

She zipped and zoomed and finally directed it in the other direction instead.

Catching her breath, her gaze fell to her feet.

The book she had been reading sat open just beneath her seat.

Allie realized she had fallen asleep as she sailed and read.

Had the panther and the others been a dream that kept her from ending up dead?

One thing was for certain, Allie could not lie,

She would never again fall asleep at the wheel, not a single time.

She closed the pages of the tale and to the river ahead she did look,

As her fingers ran across the cover's title that read, The Jungle Book.

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Now, Thimble is of course ready to participate in Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

Last week Thimble expressed how grateful she is for belly rubs. This week, Thimble is following up with that. She's still thankful for belly rubs, but she's also thankful for all sorts of other pets and rubs.

Thimble indeed loves her belly rubbed, but she also loves to have her chin scratched. Really, though, just touch her anywhere and she'll be happy. Thimble's not picky. She just wants love. I myself am incredibly grateful for that.

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Last but not least, we have the fill-in statements for tomorrow's Friendly Fill-Ins challenge. Ellen of 15andmeowing crafted up the first two, and I came up with the second two.


1. I would love to be a fly on the wall in _________.

2. I am missing _________.

3. I could use more _________ in my life.

4. I could do without _________.

We'll see you tomorrow, friends!

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Tidbit of the Day

Today's tidbit on COVID-19 and how it can relate to your furbaby is a followup to yesterday's bit of info. Yesterday we talked about making proper plans for your furbaby's care in the event that you get sick. There are other considerations to make if you think or know you have the novel coronavirus, and we'll discuss them now.

If you become sick, as difficult as it sounds, it is likely best to reduce contact with your kitty or pup. One reason is because, as we've mentioned before, there is rare yet still present evidence that humans can potentially spread the novel coronavirus to animals, such as cats. In addition, though animals are not ideal transmitters of pathogens like this virus, it's not guaranteed that an animal's fur, collar, or leash could not potentially spread the disease. So, especially if you live with other people, or if your cat or dog has any access to other people, reduce contact with your kitty or pup as much as possible. As difficult as it is to hear or say this, if you are sick, kissing, hugging, and other such close cuddling with your furbaby is not truly hygienic or safe for your furbaby or other people who come in contact with your cat or dog. Again, as difficult as this is, if you think or know you are sick with COVID-19, try your best to refrain from too much direct contact with your furbaby, as this is one way to help prevent the spread of this disease.