Valentine's Day Extravaganza

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Truth be told, this here human really isn't much of a fan of Valentine's Day. I think I've mentioned this before. I'm the farthest thing from a romantic, and the only time I'm lovey-dovey is when I have something furry and cute in my vicinity. That being said, our Valentine's greetings today are brought to you by none other than my furry Valentines.

Our house panther housemates, Toby and Winky, who own my sister and live with us, are of course also my Valentines.

Yes, the only decent, recent photo I could find of little miss Winky was this Christmas shot. As I scrolled through my photos, trying to find a more recent, good image of Winky to share today, I realized that she is way up there with Eddy in terms of blooper abilities. Hence this last resort Christmas image on Valentine's Day.

Today, on Thankful Thursday, I am thankful for my furry Valentines. They are the loves of my life, and I would be lost without them.

***

We're not done with the Valentine feels just yet. After all, it's a day for rhymes, and we have some semblance of a lovey-dovey rhyme to share today.

Indeed, we are of course participating Angel Sammy and Teddy's Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge! Each week, our hosts offer a photo prompt to guide our poetic endeavors. This week's image is this mesmerizing one here:

My poem was indeed inspired by this stunning image. I feel like I sort of lost the original subject matter, though. My poem does, however, have some sort of galactic setting, and also some semblance of love. 

A Very Venus Valentine

When Andromeda turned 30 years young,
She was ready to say goodbye to her days of party fun.
Now a mature and grown adult,
Andromeda knew exactly whom to consult.

The young woman pulled out a brochure for a company not quite local,
That being the famed Intergalactic Matchmaking Mogul.
Now at a mature and grown 30 years young,
Andromeda thought it was past time her love life had begun.

The Intergalactic Matchmaking Mogul had a handful of rules,
So that no one treated the process like a fool.
Andromeda had to answer a question, or two, or three.
This was not a matter to treat with any amount of apathy.
The Intergalactic Matchmaking Mogul strove to find matches made in heaven,
And that was certainly nothing to sully or put second.

Andromeda told the Intergalactic Matchmaking Mogul what they needed to know,
Trying to make sure her answers were honest and just so.
She told them she was looking for a companion to snuggle on the couch.
Perhaps, preferably, one who was not much of a grouch.

Andromeda submitted her thoughts on her perfect match made in heaven.
After a short wait, she was contacted by Intergalactic Matchmaking Mogul worker Kevin.
"Miss Andromeda," Kevin did say,
"I believe we have found for you a match perfect in every way.
He is searching for love, and Orion is his name.
There is just but one little catch.
All the way over in Venus is where you will find your match."

A few more details were discussed,
After which Andromeda gushed,
"I'll travel anywhere to meet this match made in heaven.
Thank you for this wonderful news, Kevin!"

And so Andromeda set out on a lengthy trip.
Through colonies of androids, planets, and stars she did zip.
Finally, across the galaxy Venus was in sight,
And that was where Andromeda ended her flight.

The Intergalactic Matchmaking Mogul had class-act customer service,

For on Venus, Andromeda was promptly met by a rep named Jervis.

He greeted her, shook her hand, and did inform,
"Your match made in heaven is waiting for you at a place called Grub Galore."
"Well, then," Andromeda exclaimed, "to there we shall go!"

Jervis escorted Andromeda to the rendezvous spot,
Where servers carried around dishes steaming hot.
Jervis pointed to a table tucked way back in the corner,
Which was currently a table of one, covered in hors d'oeuvres.

"There he is," Jervis said. "That's Orion.
He really, truly is a downright riot.
He's also ready for a home,
A home he can call his very own."

Andromeda watched her Orion as he sat waiting at a table.
Well, more like on the table, which was, thankfully, stable.
Orion was, simply put, a ginger,
With the added touch of fine white whiskers.

Orion's eyes were an electric green,
And on top of the table he began to preen.
He wiped his nose,
Rearranged his purple bow,
And then began to clean his toes.

When he was thoroughly kempt,
Orion dipped into an appetizer of shrimp.
After observing every bit of this,
Andromeda clapped her hands said these words from her lips:
"Orion, you're perfect, and how!"
To that, her match made in heaven looked up and did reply, "Meow."

***

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

1. If it wasn't for _________, I _________.

2. _________ before _________.

3. _________ is my preferred method of communication.

4. You can't buy _________.

We'll see you tomorrow, friends!

***

Our Tip of the Day:

As a continuation of our National Cat Health Month tips, and also related to our tips from the past two days, we have a bit more (more like a lot more) to say on food and weight management for those kitties in your life. We've already discussed selecting a proper diet for weight management, as well as initiating activity and playtime to aid in any needed weight loss. Today, to add on to that, we're going to give a couple of tips that could potentially help keep certain feline food fiends healthy and fit.

The following tips will most relate to those cats who scarf down their food. Eating fast can, to put it simply, lead a cat to immediately desiring more food, even after just eating, and can thereby lead to weight gain if they indeed attain that second or even third serving. Another negative side to rapid eating is that a cat can also regurgitate or vomit food that they gobbled up too quickly, and excess vomiting is of course less than ideal. To help reduce these issues related to rapid eating, there are a couple of tricks you could try.

To begin, you could of course try one of those famous treat-dispensing toys. Making your cat work for their food in this way can help them to eat slower, as they will not be able to scarf down a serving so quickly. It will also prompt activity on their part, which will keep their little body moving and burning extra calories even while eating.

Another trick to help slow down those quick eaters is to simply use a plate rather than a bowl. Food served on a plate is not as easily scarfed, since they will not have the sides of a bowl to help keep the food in place and easily inhaled into their mouth. Another similar method would simply involve feeding your cat their food directly on the floor, from which they will again have to be careful and diligent about picking up and eating the morsels. In this same line of thought, you could try putting something such as a ping pong ball or golf ball in your cat's bowl or plate with their food. The kitty will then have to eat around the ball, and that will thereby help slow their eating. There are also bowls on the market that serve this same purpose, such as bowls that have partitions around which a cat has to more carefully eat their food.

The above are all just some simple tricks that could potentially help slow a cat's eating. Helping a food-focused cat eat in a slower, more controlled, less manic way can help them realize that they are full after eating, so that they can perhaps refrain from immediately begging for more food after inhaling their meal. Of course, that being said, do be aware and mindful of your cat's response to these methods. If they are unable to figure out how to reach their meal in a food dispenser, or if they seem unable or unwilling to eat from a certain bowl or plate, then reassess the methods you could use to slow their eating, or discuss other options with a veterinarian.