The Letter E and Evan's Handsome Face

Let's start with today's April A to Z Challenge contribution, shall we?

Like the broken record I am, I'll remind you that for this year's alphabetical challenge, I'm sharing my own fan art versions of covers for some of my favorite books. What's more, every single one of my covers will star a cat, or sometimes a dog. Much of the beginning of the alphabet has been dedicated to my newest favorite series of fantasy books, that being the purely chaotic Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman. In addition to the main character Carl, these books have a built-in kitty character named Princess Donut, who is a talking Persian tortie.

But that's enough rambling. Let's get to the letter E. And for that, we have the wacky cover for The Eye of the Bedlam Bride.

[Reminder/Disclaimer/whatever you want to call it: This is not a real, true cover of this book. My name is also not Matt Dinniman, and so I am admittedly not the author of this book. I'm just someone who likes books and cats and so drew this unofficial feline version of the book's cover.]

That there book above involves a giant spider woman. As an arachnophobe, it gave me the heebie-jeebies to draw said spider woman, but since she is the titular bedlam bride, I made myself include her. I much prefer drawing Princess Donut. There are also some playing cards and heart boxer flags in this book, which is why those weird things are also on my cover. It's a mess of random chaos, which is in part why I enjoy this crazy series so much.

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Now, of course, you get to bask in the glory of Evan on this Mancat Monday. Ready? Are you sure? Okay, here's his handsome face.

Evan and all of us here wish you a magnificent Monday!

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Tip of the Day

We just finished our series of tips on heartworm, in honor of April being Heartworm Awareness Month. Since we're on the topic of pesky parasites, we're going to keep it going. We've given many tips like this in the past, but important topics are worth repeating. Today, we'll be talking about fleas.

When it comes to fleas, it's important to realize that essentially any and all animals are susceptible. Even indoor-only cats and dogs can get fleas, such as if the tiny pests come into the home by hitching a ride on humans, or on other animals who go outdoors. What's more, fleas can be present even when you might think they aren't, such as in the winter. If fleas have already made their way indoors, they can thrive in the warmth of a home any time of year. Even outdoors in the winter, though, they can still potentially be present. Especially if there are warmer days here and there, and if you're starting to see some green grass outside, then there is always the chance that fleas can be present and active. So, this is just one reason to keep your furbabies on flea prevention.

To really drive home this tip, though, we're also going to remind you of just some of the side effects that can come with fleas. First, of course, fleas can cause all sorts of itchiness. In some cases, an animal can even have flea allergy dermatitis, which is of course when a cat or dog is allergic to flea bites and can therefore display significant itching, hair loss, lesions, and so forth. Itchy skin is not the only potential result of fleas, though. Fleas can also lead to a tapeworm infestation in your furbaby, something which we will further discuss tomorrow. In addition, anemia and other bloodborne and potentially dangerous diseases can result from fleas and their bites. The health and safety of your furbaby is of course, therefore, an incredibly good reason to be sure that you keep up with that flea prevention year round.

We will also note here that you should discuss with your veterinarian which flea preventative is likely to be both the safest and most effective for your furbaby. Not all preventatives are created equal. Some cheaper, generic, over-the-counter versions have even been found to cause incredibly dangerous or even life-threatening side effects. This is not something for which it's worth risking your furbaby's life, so discuss preventatives with your veterinarian, and select a quality, safe product. Also, in the event that your entire home needs to be treated for fleas, also be sure that you discuss this with your veterinarian, so that you might get tips from them on safe methods for this extensive type of treatment.