Thoroughly Poetic Thankful Thimble Thursday

As has become the common (and fun!) practice around here, we're starting this terrific Thursday with the Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge, hosted by Angel Sammy and Teddy.

Can you guess who we're going to poetically introduce to you today? No? Well, here you go:

Newton the Novelist

The pen is mightier than the sword,

For it is words that will win the reward.

Newton the Novelist knows this well,

For the stories his pen creates are quite swell.

Newton can spin a tale with great finesse.

A way with words he truly does possess.
 

His tales of humor are second to none,

And they will have you in stitches by Chapter 1.

And then there are his tales of woe,

Which can make the tears in your eyes begin to flow.

But it’s tales of mystery that are Newton’s true passion,

And he can write a crime novel in the highest of fashion.
 

Newton the Novelist’s storytelling skills do not end there, though.

Oh, most certainly not, no.

He can keep your attention with any story.

Newton can spin laudable tales of adventure and glory.

And don’t forget his works in fantasy and science fiction,

Which will have you craving them like an addiction.

You won’t want to miss a single of Newton the Novelist’s tales,

For he will surely keep you entertained without fail.

As always, this poem was of course inspired by a real-life Newton. To visit him, just click on his name there! And to see a little doodle of Newton the Novelist, just scroll down a little more.

Now, Thimble says it is well past her turn to star in this post. As many of you know, Thimble is model material and loves to pose for the camera. As is the case for any model, Thimble enjoys experimenting during her photo shoots. For today, she experimented with her furrowed-brow pose.

You want to know why Thimble is off-center in this furrowed brow shot? Because this is another photo in which Toby was trying to photobomb her. So, Thimble insisted on lining it up so that Toby wouldn't invade her space. Perhaps Toby is also the reason for her furrowed brow?

Though Toby and his photobombs sure can be frustrating, Thimble still has a great deal of thankfuls to enter into Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

Thimble and all of us here are thankful for each other, for our family, and for our friends like all of you. We are also thankful to know that our friends affected by Hurricane Irma are safe. Still, our purrs, barks, and prayers are being sent to all those affected.

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Our Tip of the Day:

Yesterday we mentioned diet and its potential effect on a kitty or pup’s immune system and risk of diseases such as cancer. Along this same line of thought, also keep in mind that obesity also puts kitties and pups at risk of a variety of diseases, potentially including certain forms of cancer. For this reason, not only be aware of what types of food your furbaby consumes, but also how much. Of course, an active lifestyle is also important to ward off obesity and to help fight diseases. And, as we always say, never hesitate to discuss your furbaby’s health, including their diet and risk of cancer, with your veterinarian.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

The local pet store is all ready for autumn, just like us!

Pup Atrid gobbled her pumpkin cookie right on up. (Pardon her blinding angelic glow here. She actually wore her halo today.)

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Our Doodle of the Day:

(Fun fact: Our doodles of this small shape and style are ones we've created on some spare address label stickers we stumbled upon. Sticker paper and markers aren't necessarily a great combo, in case you were wondering, but we sure do love making stickers!)

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Our Tip of the Day:

Quality food is important for our furbabies for a variety of reasons, one being a healthy immune system and to help ward away any and all diseases possible, including cancer. Foods of a poorer quality not only put a kitty or pup at risk of an unhealthy immune and other systems, but can also potentially contain ingredients that are less than beneficial. For both our furbabies and ourselves, some artificial ingredients and preservatives in foods have even been found to be potentially carcinogenic. For this reason and others, if possible, please do consider a high-quality diet for your furbaby. Foods with natural ingredients are most ideal, as these will of course provide natural nutrients that can keep your furbaby healthy and happy all around. As you all certainly know, diet is very important!

Tabby Tuesday

It's Tuesday, and today we're all about the tabbies!

Thimble, the model that she is, wanted to show off her tabby stripes. On both sides of her cute little face, of course.

Did you know that the term classic tabby refers to those with very bold, swirled markings that are more like large blotches than stripes? Tabbies like Thimble, with the distinctive stripes up and down the body, are actually called mackerel tabbies. Spotted tabbies have markings that are, indeed, more so in the shape of spots rather than stripes. There are also ticked tabbies, who do not have distinctive stripes or spots except for on the face and legs. (For those who might remember seeing full-body shots of Eddy, she is almost a ticked tabby, but perhaps has just enough vague stripes on her body to barely be considered a mackerel tabby.) And we can't forget the patched tabbies, most easily described as tortoiseshell or calico cats with tabby patches.

So, in case you were hoping for a lesson on tabbies today, there you go!

Happy Tuesday to all!

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Our Doodle of the Day:

(Librarian Thimble has a bit of a book hoarding problem. Much like her momma.)

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Our Tip of the Day:

While vaccines can be important for the prevention of various diseases, especially for those furbabies who go outside and are most susceptible, it is still crucial that you be knowledgeable of the potential side effects of some vaccines. In some cases, vaccines can lead to injection-site tumors, such as cancerous sarcomas. To help prevent this, you might keep furbabies, like your kitties, indoors, so that some vaccines may not be necessary since the furbaby is less likely to be exposed to the related diseases. In other cases, such as in the case of a dog or cat who goes outdoors, always do your research. Look into the types of vaccines offered, and ask your veterinary office what types of vaccines they use. Some vaccines do not contain the adjuvant components typically believed to cause injection-site lumps or tumors, so try to check with your veterinarian on the possibility of using potentially safer vaccines. Vaccines are often a highly debated subject in any case, so always be knowledgeable about them, about what kind your veterinary office uses, and which vaccines your furbaby might need.

Remember.

Today, we remember all those who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks that shook the United States on September 11th, 2001.

We purr and pray for peace.

Our thoughts truly are with all those who were affected by the 9/11 attacks.

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Our Doodle of the Day:

 

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Our Tip of the Day:

We previously mentioned how we will try to lump our tips into themes. That being said, the next few tips will be based on a heavy topic, that being the potential of cancer in our furbabies. More particularly, we will be giving tips on ways to hopefully help prevent various forms of cancer.

Spaying and neutering your furbabies is not only important because of population control, but also because, like humans, they can develop cancers of the reproductive tract, such as uterine or prostate cancer. What’s more, the timing of spaying or neutering is crucial. It is important to try to ensure that your kitty or pup is of course old enough for neutering, but also not too old. This is because, for example, there is an increased risk of mammary cancer in spayed female cats and dogs who are allowed to go through one or more cycles prior to being spayed. So, of course be sure to spay and neuter your kitties and pups, and to do so before they can be affected by an increased risk of cancer.

Sunday Selfies Interrupted: The Sequel

Last week, Thimble shared some less-than-ideal selfies in our Sunday Selfies Interrupted post. They were less-than-ideal because her brother and housemate Toby kept photobombing her. And you know what? He did it again.

Do you see what poor Thimble has to put up with?

Seriously, Toby? Boys.

So, yet again, our entry in this week's Sunday Selfies blog hop, hosted by our furiends over at The Cat on My Head, stars Thimble...and Toby.

Happy Sunday to all!

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Our Artsy Fartsy Endeavor of the Day:

 We are ready for pumpkins! (Fun fact? This little doodle has been turned into a refrigerator magnet.)

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Our Tip of the Day:

In the autumn, many animals will shed their summer coat in order to prepare for their winter coat. As you surely know, this means a potential increase in shedding. For this reason, be sure to keep up with helping your kitty or pup groom. Of course this is important year round, but it is especially beneficial at times of the year with increased shedding. Brushing your furbaby can help prevent hairballs and mats, and a kitty or pup without hairballs and mats is a happy and healthy furbaby!

Caturday Bookworm

Lately, I've been doing a lot of experimentation with crafts for upcoming holiday art fairs. Sometimes, when I need a break from these random and messy artsy fartsy experiments, I doodle up one of my most favorite things. And what's that? A bookmark!

That's right, I enjoy doodling up good ol' bookmarks for good ol' books. I'm old-fashioned and still love to read physical books. I just recently started adding some e-books here and there to my collection, but I still stick heavily to the real deal. What about the rest of you peeps? Do you prefer physical books, or e-books?

And how about you furbabies? Do you help your humans read? If so, what kind of books do you like them to read? The furbabies around here are torn on their answer. When this mom of theirs reads real books, they sure do love to steal those bookmarks of hers and run off with them. Then again, though, e-books mean they get to paw at those touch screens and make the pages virtually fly. It's a toss-up.

Happy Caturday, everybuddy!


Now, don't forget to visit Athena to see what all our furiends created for the Caturday Art blog hop!

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Our Tip of the Day:

Be sure to take advantage of lovely autumn weather, for the sake of your furbaby as well as yourself. In many regions, autumn is known for its crisp, cool weather. It is neither scorching as in the summer, nor frigid like in the winter. This is why it's such a wonderful time of year to take advantage of the outdoors. So, take your pups (or even kitties, for those who enjoy it) outdoors for extra or longer walks. Since car rides and other travels can be more comfortable in this temperate weather, use this season to go on extra trips for those furbabies who enjoy this. Of course, outdoor excursions are still important for dogs and some kitties even in the summer and winter, but autumn days can be a great time to make up for time and outdoor fun lost during months with less ideal weather. Have fun (but of course stay safe) this autumn!

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday! As always, we will begin this eve of the weekend with the fun Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, hosted by our friends over at 15andmeowing and McGuffy's Reader.

Our hosts are always so creative, and this week was no different.

1. September bucket list: 1. _________ 2. _________.........
2. If I came with a warning label, it would say _________.
3. Truth be told, _________.
4. I would rather _________ than _________.

I stirred up those creative juices in my head for these. Here's where that led me:

1. September bucket list: 1. Master some homemade candy recipes. 2. Complete lots of crafts for upcoming holiday art fairs. 3. Scribble down some of the stories living in my head.
(For more on the first item on this list, see my fill-in #2 below. As for the second item on this list, as always, I'll be having fun at lots of arts and crafts fairs this year, and I  need to get my pieces completed. And I know I've mentioned before my third item on this list. I love writing, and I always have stories playing out up there in my head. One of my dreams, ever since I was young, has been to write stories and books. I'm finally buckling down on this, and one of the projects I'm working on for the next few months is drafting and writing a variety of fun little stories.)

2. If I came with a warning label, it would say: DO NOT STORE NEAR CHOCOLATE.
(I love me some chocolate and sweets, but they don't love me. I've recently developed an intolerance for lactose, as well as gluten and excess amounts of sugar, which leaves me unable to eat a wide variety of said chocolate and sweets. Because I have something like zero self-control around chocolate, though, I simply no longer keep it in the house. At least, until I can master some homemade sweets that I can safely digest.)

3. Truth be told, I'm not a fan of small talk.
(I'm not much of a talker. At least, not in person. When someone strikes up a conversation, whether it be my loquacious neighbor or the cashier at the store, I can usually hold my own and politely chat away. But, truth be told, I'm usually not enjoying it, and I'm probably trying to find a way to escape. I've always been introverted, and I'm simply more of an observer than a talker.)

4. I would rather stay home with my furbabies than go on vacation.
(I've mentioned this before. I am a homebody, and when I have time off work, staycations are my thing.)


I bet most of you know what's up next. Well, do you know? It's Eddy! Blurry, blurry Eddy.

You might remember that Eddy recently had a couple weeks of sharp, focused shots. No more of that, though. Not at all. Her blurry style has returned.

I can't imagine why it wouldn't be obvious, but Eddy is indeed rolling about on her beloved fish aquarium here.

Yep, this girl is still in love with the new aquarium. She sits up there, harassing the fish, for hours and hours every day.

We're wishing everybuddy a fantastic Friday!

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Our Artsy Fartsy Endeavor of the Day:

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Our Tip of the Day:

Disasters can happen. This is something that we've all been seeing in the news, and which many are, sadly, living out. For this reason, please always think ahead. For both your sake and for the sake of your furbabies, always have a disaster plan. Whether you live in a zone with hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires, snow storms, or something else entirely, please always have a plan to help ensure the safety of both your furbaby and yourself. Have first aid and other care kits prepared. Have a destination planned out if a safe place is needed, and know how you will be able to travel there. Have supplies prepared that are easy to pack, including food and water as well as leashes, carriers, and other necessities for your furbabies. Ensure that your furbaby and even yourself has identification, in the event of a worst case scenario. I could continue on here, but I will instead suggest that you read more tips here, where Caren of Cat Chat with Caren and Cody has compiled a fantastic post on disaster preparedness. It is a significant post, and one that could be life-saving. Another beneficial read is this post on hurricane safety, shared by Melissa. There are many resources to help you prepare for disasters, so do consider researching and being ready for worst case scenarios.