Caturday Art: The Protector Pup

We love weekends around here, one reason being the Caturday Art blog hop hosted by lovely Athena. In preparation for this week's hop, last week I asked if any of our readers had a suggestion for a drawing starring pup Astrid. It was our good friend Marg who offered the idea of portraying Astrid as the protector of her kitties.

Well, we really liked that idea, Marg! So, I rolled with that, and ended up with this:

So there she is, Astrid the Protector Pup. Talk about a tough job.

We hope all of our furiends have a wonderful Caturday!

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Our Tip of the Day:

Despite certain popular beliefs, it is quite possible for dogs and cats to coexist. For some cats and dogs, this may come easily or naturally, depending on their personalities. In other cases, it may take more effort. When this is the case, early introductions can play a large part in the future relationship. Remember to never force a cat and dog into a sudden, stressful introduction. Start with small steps. Let the furbabies see each other from far away. Let them sniff and hear each other from opposites sides of a door. Let them see and sniff each other through some sort of transparent barrier, and keep them this way until they begin to show a tolerance for each other. When moving on to more direct contact, supervise them, keep the dog on a leash, and always make sure the cat has an escape route. Again, don't force them to interact if they are not yet ready. It may take time and patience, and lots of it, but if done properly, the kitty and pup can indeed learn to live with each other. Even after they grow used to each other, though, it is important to make sure that the dog and cat each have their own areas of personal space. Make sure the kitty has some high places to go to, such as a cat tree, should he or she want some alone time from the dog. And make sure the pup has a similar space, whether it be in the form of a particular room, piece of furniture, dog bed, or cage.