Caturday Art with a Rhyme

Today's post is a combo of a late Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge and an appropriately timed Caturday Art Blog Hop.

As I mentioned on Thursday, I failed to complete my poem for Angel Sammy's Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge in time to share it on its intended day. It's all done now, though, and so we're going to share it and its illustration on this day of Caturday Art.

To preface the poem, let's of course share the photo prompt that our poetic host shared.

This image makes me so happy. Not only is it just really, really cute, but it also reminds me of my own childhood. I used to build forts with my childhood kitties and pups, and we'd read and play in there. I also like how that adorable image has some fun and fantastical yet also spooky vibes. I've been working on some spooky doodles lately, as that's simply what I'm in the mood for, and so this cute and spooky image got me really excited.

Now, before we share our actual poem, and before I get to rambling too much more, how about we just go ahead and share our illustration for our poem? After all, it is the day of Athena's Caturday Art Blog Hop.

And now if you'd like to see how our poem goes along with the above photo and doodle, feel free to read on.

How about a Scary One?

Poppy had what you might call a vivid imagination,
And that means a lot more than you might be thinking.
Little Poppy not only just loved to read,
But what she read came to life, you see.

Poppy would sit beside the starlit window of her room every night,
With her two kitties and a pup keeping her company nearby.
They would read by nothing but the light of the night sky and a lantern,
Shadows playing on the walls like little phantom dancers.

That was how they spent their nights, the furry little friends and their child,
Who would sit and read and let the imagination run wild.
When Poppy read of fairies who fluttered their wings high in the sky,
Outside the window those fairies appeared, flitting in the starlit night.
And when she read of a dragon who slept on the moon,
Then the view outside the window magically morphed into that, too.

It was on one moonlit summer night that to her furry friends Poppy said,
"Rather than a tale of fairies, how about a scary one instead?
After all, the season of spooks and thrills is just up ahead."

To that, all of her furry friends nodded their furry little heads.

And so Poppy began reading a tale of a haunted house,
Her furry felines and canine sitting and listening, as quiet as a mouse.
The story itself was really quite spookily fun and fine,
But then came along Poppy's vividly imaginative mind.

Outside the window on that moonlit night,
None other than a haunted house came into sight.
The thing is, no house usually stood there,
And this one looked haunted, and seemingly out of thin air.

From the dim, dark house that now stood outside,
Ghostly and ghastly wails began to arise.
Then, one by one, the house's windows glowed with light,
The whole place flickering to life right in front of their wide eyes.

When the door to this vividly imagined haunted house opened,
And a ghostly voice inside it seemed to have spoken,
Poppy slammed the book and its haunted house shut just like that.
"Shall we return to our fairy tales?" she said to her dog and cats.

Happy Caturday, friends!

***

Tip of the Day

We still have some tips all about taking that kitty to the vet. Today's tip is to, if needed, discuss with your veterinarian medications that might help calm a cat who becomes especially anxious, or even aggressive, when it comes time to visit the vet. Some cats simply become reactive when they see a carrier, when they get into a car, when they visit a veterinary office, or when they meet strangers. If you have tried the usual tricks—which of course include leaving the carrier out at all times, using Feliway, using treats to coax and distract, and so forth—yet your kitty still becomes anxious or difficult to handle, then there are some potential sedating medications that could be given when it comes time to visit the vet. Your veterinarian would be able to determine if or which sedatives might work best for your particular kitty, given said kitty's behavior as well as health. So, be upfront and honest with your veterinarian regarding the ease and safety of getting your cat in a carrier and to the vet, and then the two of you can discuss potential options.