36. Celebrating National Cat Day

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00:00:00:04 - 00:00:14:10
Voice Over
Pets add life. Your guide to the latest in pet trends, products and the joy of the human animal bond with Christian Levine and Chris Bowen, a fan powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog TV.

00:00:14:12 - 00:00:24:02
Chris
All right, everybody, we got a really awesome episode because today is National Cat day. Can you believe it? It's like they made a whole holiday for me.

00:00:24:04 - 00:00:41:21
Kristen
The cat. The cat is out of the bag. We're bringing you your cat filled show today in celebration of National Cat day. We've got cat related guests. We've got cat related products. We've got cat related questions. And how about stories? Is your story cat related today?

00:00:42:00 - 00:00:43:19
Chris
It can be.

00:00:43:21 - 00:01:05:08
Chris
Okay. You can make it. I guess you're just gonna have to sit around and and, find out and, the other super cool thing is dog TV will be launching a whole bunch of cat content today. So all of you dog TV subscribers out there, be sure to check out your channel, see what's going on over there so we could celebrate all of our feline friends.

00:01:05:10 - 00:01:22:14
Chris
But for those of you who are new, this is the Pal podcast for Pets Add Life. I'm Chris Bonifati, and I'm joined, as always, by the adamant and ardent Kristin Levine. Kristin I we're recording this at 4 a.m. in a warehouse. How's your energy?

00:01:22:14 - 00:01:24:23
Speaker 3
Still so great in there?

00:01:25:01 - 00:01:27:07
Kristen
I'm hanging in there. I'm doing great for Am.

00:01:27:07 - 00:01:45:16
Chris
Ryan has locked me in this this warehouse with my cardboard cutouts, and he said, I cannot go home until we celebrate our cat. So that's what I'm. That's what we're in for. And I've actually it's it's great because last night we we had a, you know, a little anecdote here about my cat celebrate the day. Kick us off.

00:01:45:21 - 00:02:13:15
Chris
Yeah. We had I'm not, you know, no free no free. Advertisement. So we had an undisclosed, Mexican food counter service place, open up. And we decided to go get some meals. And it was fine, but my wife is always eats half of her food and then goes, takes it from the kitchen, table, which is where the cat, sort of purchased herself to see what the table scraps, and moved it over to the counter where the cat normally can't get access to things.

00:02:13:17 - 00:02:24:22
Chris
And we're sitting on the couch watching TV. We hear a couple of things fall over, and I get up. I'm like, what the heck was that? Tiger somehow managed to get up on the counter, I don't know. Tigers.

00:02:25:00 - 00:02:26:06
Kristen
21 year old Tiger.

00:02:26:07 - 00:02:39:20
Chris
21 year old Tiger. Somehow, I'm not sure if she figured out like a puzzle. Way to jump up there. She just gave it a big umph and got up. But whatever was in that chicken, she was going nuts.

00:02:39:20 - 00:02:43:20
Kristen
Absolutely insane. That's awesome.

00:02:43:20 - 00:02:57:17
Chris
Though. Maybe I should have let her have a little bit more than I did for National Cat day. But she's got a she's got a bit of a sensitive belly when it comes to people food and, a little teaser. I've got a product recommendation for some of the cats out there who may, have some sensitive bellies coming on.

00:02:57:17 - 00:03:15:14
Chris
Later on in the show, we're going to interview two awesome cat related guests. We're going to bring you some stories. We're going to we're going to do some products. We're going to answer two cat questions from our listeners at home. So I hope you all stick around and enjoy this cat Tacular episode of Pets Add Life.

00:03:15:16 - 00:03:19:19
Voice Over
Kristen and Chris present story time.

00:03:19:21 - 00:03:45:02
Kristen
All right. It is story time, Chris. And it is I. I have a story that might help you out because I know that you have cat allergies. Yeah. As a cat dad. And we've talked about some of the things that you do, to minimize the dander and allergens. And I came across this story. I was talking about how nutritional approaches, can really be helpful in reducing pet allergens in cats.

00:03:45:07 - 00:03:59:13
Kristen
So they say that if you modify your cat's diet to keep their skin and their their coat as healthy as possible, this could reduce and pet allergens. Since you know when the skin is inflamed or irritated, it tends to shed more cells.

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Chris
Yes.

00:04:00:03 - 00:04:27:03
Kristen
And as we we know that, when you're allergic to cats, you're actually allergic to the dander or the skin and their saliva, not the fur. So they say that omega omega three fatty acids are a natural inflammatory, I'm sorry, anti-inflammatory. And it helps to keep the skin barrier healthy, healthier, and reduces irritation so that your cat is going to kind of shed less of that dander.

00:04:27:05 - 00:04:36:22
Kristen
And then there's one other thing you can do. Now, this is I was not sure if I should mention this because this kind of falls under product of the week, but it's not product for the week because people make.

00:04:36:22 - 00:04:37:20
Chris
An exception for Cat.

00:04:37:20 - 00:04:57:14
Kristen
Okay, okay, it's National Cat day. So I think I think I should get a pass on this one. But another nutritional approach is there's a new well, it's not brand new, but it's only been around for a couple of years. It's by Purina and it's a pro plan diet called Live Clear Air. It is cat food. It's actually the first and only cat food that helps to manage pet allergens.

00:04:57:16 - 00:05:23:21
Kristen
So when, when cats eat, live clear. A specific protein that's sourced from eggs binds to this feline DL, whatever that is, and, and neutralizes it. So it's neutralizing some of those allergens. So for the folks out there who have cat allergies but love kitties and either have a cat or would love to have a cat, there are many tools out there to help you manage your allergies.

00:05:24:01 - 00:05:43:12
Chris
I think one thing people do all the time is they talk to their people, doctor, about their allergies. But when you go to the vet, you can say, listen, like the the cat's really been bothering me. Like I'm sneezing all the time. This they're nothing. Yeah, because it could actually be a signifier for a larger issue.

00:05:43:12 - 00:05:58:20
Chris
And they may have some, clever products or, some supplements or things like that that you could give the cat that's going to help alleviate some of those things. So it's always good to be open and honest about how sneezy your kitty makes you. And for me, it's very sneezy.

00:05:58:22 - 00:06:02:13
Kristen
It's very sneezy. Okay. So what is your story today, Chris?

00:06:02:18 - 00:06:22:16
Chris
Yeah, I've got I've got an interesting one here. This is something that I learned by, sort of doing my research. It it's sort of like a dig, you know? Did you know that both cats and dogs need blood donations to, And it's something that as soon as I say, you probably go. Yeah, I knew that.

00:06:22:16 - 00:06:44:13
Chris
Well, you'd be lying. You probably did like him for that. But didn't know that it was a thing. So, the veterinary care and specialty group out of Chattanooga sort of, championed this article. And one of their vets was just sort of talking about how there's so much awareness, for people to go and donate blood, and pretty much anybody can go do it.

00:06:44:17 - 00:07:11:23
Chris
And it's easy for people to do it. But there's a, high demand for, dog and cat blood as well. And it's much more difficult because not every dog or cat is a good donor. So, like, a good donor doesn't necessarily mean the blood that's in them. It's how they behave. Right? Right. Because not every dog or cat, is going to be a good candidate in the sense that the juice is worth the squeeze.

00:07:11:23 - 00:07:35:21
Chris
Like, we're not totally stressing this animal out. The vet went on to say the procedure takes about 20 minutes has no adverse effect. They need a lot less blood. Then then we take out of at a table even as a percentage. And they will not. They say, and I quote, we will not put an animal, through this process.

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Chris
Who would be uncomfortable? So if you have a particularly com cat or dog out there, consider talking to your vet about having that animal make a blood donation, because there are plenty of animals out there who need it for their care and aren't necessarily able to get it. So, it could be a good conversation to have with your vet if you have a particularly.

00:07:59:03 - 00:08:18:00
Chris
Com and, relaxed animal who may be a good candidate for that kind of process. And it's something that you could do when you feel like the time is right. You don't have to do it all all the time. Right? But yeah. Yeah. Something to consider. It's something that you think you would know, but until somebody calls it out, you're like, oh, wow.

00:08:18:04 - 00:08:24:08
Kristen
Yeah, it makes it makes sense. We know when you hear about it, but it's not something we think about every day as pet parents.

00:08:24:08 - 00:08:42:10
Chris
Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, the last thing I want to see is some poor cat out there who needs, a blood transfusion, especially with cats. You know, they have their kidneys fail, they go into renal failure and often will need to have some fresh blood, pumped into them, because, you know, that's what the kidneys do. The kidneys clean your blood right.

00:08:42:12 - 00:09:00:07
Chris
And so cats in renal failure or temporary renal failure, are going to need these, these, types of procedures. So again, if you're out there, you're listening and you're like, yeah, my cat can, sleep through an earthquake. Might might be worth considering it. And helping out a fellow cat

00:09:00:09 - 00:09:04:17
Voice Over
beyond the leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professionals.

00:09:04:17 - 00:09:30:22
Kristen
All right. Joining us now is the kitten lady, Hannah Shaw and her husband, Andrew. She is an award winning kitten rescuer, humane educator, and New York Times bestselling author dedicated to revolutionizing kitten care and advocating for the most vulnerable felines known globally. For her project Kitten Lady, Hannah provides educational resources, training and workshops aimed at improving kitten welfare with sick.

00:09:30:23 - 00:09:57:02
Kristen
With a significant social media following, she shares her knowledge and passion with millions, inspiring and educating on the intricacies of neonatal kitten care. Alongside her hubby, professional cat photographer Andrew Marcela. Hannah has traveled. Hannah and Andrew have traveled to over 30 countries, capturing the essence of feline culture worldwide. In their latest book launching today, Our National Cat day, Cats of the world.

00:09:57:07 - 00:10:00:05
Kristen
Welcome, Hannah and Andrew.

00:10:00:07 - 00:10:01:13
Andrew
Thank you

00:10:01:15 - 00:10:02:18
Hannah
Thank you for having us.

00:10:02:20 - 00:10:05:19
Kristen
Yes. And who is your little friend joining us?

00:10:05:21 - 00:10:22:01
Hannah
Oh, this is our, dog shaped cat, birdie. She is, six and a half pound Chihuahua who is our newest member of our family. And she just. I don't know, she just wanted to be here to be on TV.

00:10:22:03 - 00:10:34:18
Kristen
That's awesome. That's awesome. Well, we are super excited to have you on the show and to talk to you about the book. Let me just start out by asking you what inspired you and Andrew to embark on this journey exploring feline culture around the globe?

00:10:34:19 - 00:11:03:11
Hannah
Sure. So we love to travel. We? I feel like we do so much work with animals here that the only way we can kind of stop working with animals is to leave. So we would leave and travel and, you know, when we would, we would inevitably find ourselves like, hey, it would be cool to find out about cat rescue in Peru or in Japan or these places that we would visit, and we would end up like making connections with other cat advocates and rescuers.

00:11:03:11 - 00:11:39:18
Hannah
We would end up, inevitably, like on a Japanese Cat island or, you know, rescuing, kitten in Machu Picchu. Like we just were always finding ourselves working with cats. And so, we had about six countries worth of beautiful photos that Andrew had captured. He always has his camera with him. And we had all these connections, and we started to think, wouldn't it be powerful to tell some of these stories and to show some of these incredible places that cats live and, really center the people who are helping them?

00:11:39:20 - 00:12:00:11
Hannah
I think that it is very cool to be able to show a global lens of kind of the shared compassion that we all have around the world, but also kind of the unique things that cap space in different countries and how advocates help them. So, that's kind of how it came to be. And it, is beautiful.

00:12:00:11 - 00:12:21:14
Hannah
We're so proud of it. Andrew's photos are incredible. Thank you. And we ended up, yeah. Talking with our publisher and getting to go to 30 different countries around the world to, explore cat welfare, visit cats in some of the most iconic settings in the world. And then also just, you know, document everyday life with cats, in some of these communities.

00:12:21:14 - 00:12:27:06
Hannah
And, we learned a lot. And the photos are just, wow. Chef's kiss.

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Kristen
Yeah.

00:12:28:06 - 00:12:55:07
Chris
Phenomenal. You had me sold at Japanese Cat Island, so I'm I'm I'm locked in. That is totally. That is right up my alley. But obviously, for me, Japanese Cat Island is is, you know, what I'm looking at. But in your travels, you've been to so many different places. Is there a particular country or cultures? Approach to cat rescue and or feline welfare that, stuck out to you?

00:12:55:09 - 00:13:20:20
Hannah
Oh my gosh. I mean, there's so many. I think that what I love about traveling is kind of seeing how other countries, you know, they have other they have differences in how their, their culture, their politics, their access to resources, even their climate impact, the issues that cap space. And so, you know, I think that, like, there's not a one size fits all solution for caring for cats.

00:13:20:20 - 00:13:43:05
Hannah
What works in Finland is very different than what works in Dominican Republic. And that's very different than what works here. So, it's hard to say. There's like one place with a perfect approach because I think there are many people taking perfect approaches in their own communities. There are definitely some communities that stand out to me where I was just like, wow, this is so great.

00:13:43:07 - 00:14:10:18
Hannah
I mean, one that comes to mind immediately for me is Mumbai. Like, the care of community animals there is really beautiful. They have a huge emphasis on kind of community sterilization of dogs and cats and really empowering people in their own neighborhoods to take care of the animals rather than kind of seeing them as, you know, like even if they can't be a pet cat or a pet dog, they still have dignity.

00:14:10:18 - 00:14:31:17
Hannah
They still deserve that access. And so, that's one community that just blew me away. There's an organization there called Feline Foundation that does all this kind of like, community clinic work, helping give veterinary access to those community cats and dogs. And, you know, ultimately letting, like, empowering the people in the community to help.

00:14:31:23 - 00:14:36:05
Andrew
And they're so effective. Oh my gosh, it's amazing floating around. Yeah.

00:14:36:05 - 00:14:59:16
Hannah
Yeah. That's the other thing too, is like, I think sometimes in America it's like we have so many shelters, we have so many resources, we have so many supplies that just like literally are not accessible in other parts of the world. And I think it can almost be like an embarrassment of riches, where it's like I go out to try to trap community cats and I'm like, oh, it's hard, and we need to get this supply and that supply.

00:14:59:16 - 00:15:21:07
Hannah
And they're they're just like going, grab the cat, take them to the place, make it happen. It's very like it was actually really, really empowering to see and kind of like, you know, there's really no excuse not to be like, you know, doing that kind of thing here. Right. I could go on and on. The stories are really incredible, and I definitely took a lot away.

00:15:21:07 - 00:15:24:02
Hannah
That informs how I think about caps here.

00:15:24:04 - 00:15:35:22
Kristen
Yeah. And along those lines, you obviously have this really unique global perspective. Now, how has that influenced your work with Kitten Lady and the Orphan Kitten Club back here in the US?

00:15:36:00 - 00:15:56:17
Hannah
Sure. I mean, there are so many interesting things happening with kittens around the world. You know, we're very lucky to live in a place where, here in Southern California, we do have a lot of kittens being born, but we also have an abundance of adopters in our culture. And not every not every culture does have that.

00:15:56:19 - 00:16:17:05
Hannah
I one that comes to mind is like Zanzibar, Tanzania. There's really, like, very, very, low amount of people seeking to like, adopt a cat to have as, like a companion in the way that we have here. But people care for the kittens in their community. And so kitten rescue there operates so differently than it does here.

00:16:17:07 - 00:16:40:22
Hannah
It operates almost in the same way that, that wildlife rehabilitation does here. So, you know, here in we rehabilitate a kitten and bring them back to their site. And in Zanzibar they rehabilitate a kitten and return them to their community in the way that we would a squirrel or a raccoon. Where here in America, we rehabilitate a kitten and then find them a home.

00:16:41:03 - 00:17:15:02
Hannah
And I think just having having the knowledge that there are other ways of doing things, like makes me feel a little bit more creative in some of the approaches that I might take or some of the, I don't know, like understanding that I would bring to to working within a community, obviously, America, it's a melting pot. We have people here from all around the world, and I think it's important to understand, especially if there are people living in America who come from other cultures, and are used to working with cats in a different way that like if we're doing community work, having that context is helpful.

00:17:15:03 - 00:17:53:11
Hannah
And to be honest with you, the way we do things in America is not always right. We have a a huge amount of, I know, shocking, shocked. I mean, we have such a, trend towards, towards institutionalization of animals here where, a lot of, a lot of countries maybe don't have that, like, you know, huge municipal shelter structure, but they have a lot more empowerment within their community to resolve these issues without needing to rely on, you know, a county shelter and needing to rely on adopters, but really like having that community based approach.

00:17:53:11 - 00:17:58:09
Hannah
So I find that really interesting. I think there's a lot to take away from that. Even here.

00:17:58:11 - 00:18:19:15
Chris
And and to switch gears a little bit, you know, obviously we have Andrew here, a very talented photographer. I fashion myself as a bit of a cat photographer myself, as I'm sure everybody who owns a cat is, my question is, how the heck do you get such great picture when I it's like my cat could be doing something cute or posing in a cute way.

00:18:19:15 - 00:18:25:20
Andrew
And it's like, she knows I've taken the camera out and will immediately stop what she's doing as soon as I get the picture.

00:18:25:20 - 00:18:30:17
Chris
Absolutely. What types of challenges do you have trying to capture some of these moments?

00:18:30:19 - 00:18:48:16
Andrew
Yeah, I think traveling the world with all of my gear on my back really did challenge me. And I don't know, probably like a hundred different scenarios, different lighting, you know, different, elevations.

00:18:48:18 - 00:18:49:23
Hannah
Different weather.

00:18:50:00 - 00:18:50:08
Andrew
Yeah.

00:18:50:08 - 00:18:51:13
Hannah
Different, different different.

00:18:51:14 - 00:18:52:14
Andrew
With different ways.

00:18:52:14 - 00:18:56:00
Hannah
I think. Pictures of cats in the desert. 100, 100.

00:18:56:05 - 00:18:57:06
Andrew
Yeah. Yeah, exactly.

00:18:57:08 - 00:18:58:10
Hannah
I mean, I feel.

00:18:58:12 - 00:19:22:19
Andrew
It, really. It made me a much better photographer. I think I, I faced the same challenges at home as soon as I pull up my camera. My cats know, one of the unique things that we were doing is we would always travel with an abundance of treats, and I would have things like cat toys, one toys, things that made sounds, probably sounds that these cats had never heard before.

00:19:22:21 - 00:19:25:12
Hannah
So sometimes, because you're making a very strange.

00:19:25:12 - 00:20:04:22
Andrew
Yeah, I do that whatever it takes to get the job right. But I, I relied a lot on Hanna to help me set up the shop. Typically when I would approach, a scene is I would just try to get a shot. Any shot that could potentially be usable. So, I was not very ambitious initially until the cats sort of warmed up to to us being there and didn't see us as a threat and actually saw us as kind of a boon, would get the treats out sometimes, lure them a little bit away from where they were to a more scenic overlook per se.

00:20:05:00 - 00:20:27:02
Andrew
And then, I don't know, when I go through this book, I am amazed by what I was able to achieve because it's it definitely is not easy. But I took literally hundreds of thousands of photos, so. Wow, I didn't have 800 good photos out of that. Hundreds of thousands. I would be a pretty bad day.

00:20:27:04 - 00:20:30:13
Kristen
Well, do you have a do you have a favorite photograph, Andrew in the book?

00:20:30:15 - 00:20:36:08
Andrew
Oh, gosh. Oh, that's so hard. I think.

00:20:36:10 - 00:20:37:14
Hannah
I have oh, I love.

00:20:37:18 - 00:20:38:15
Andrew
I know, you know.

00:20:38:15 - 00:20:41:09
Hannah
If we start going through this we're going to be stopping every.

00:20:41:09 - 00:20:43:07
Chris
Other. Yeah, we'll be here. Yeah. Forever.

00:20:43:07 - 00:20:43:22
Andrew
Any club.

00:20:43:23 - 00:20:47:17
Chris
They don't want to. You know what way all the secrets. You gotta buy.

00:20:47:17 - 00:20:49:14
Andrew
The book if you want to see the.

00:20:49:16 - 00:20:51:03
Hannah
Rest is one of my favorite.

00:20:51:04 - 00:21:01:08
Andrew
We can talk about this photo in Nepal. So we went on a very specific day, the only day of the year where they celebrate this tradition.

00:21:01:08 - 00:21:02:04
Kristen
To go.

00:21:02:06 - 00:21:32:04
Andrew
Over to where they. It's traditionally to celebrate the dogs. But some households now celebrate their cats. This young woman many years ago started following us on Instagram. We went to her page and saw this iconic, scene from her rooftop and thought, we have to go there and take this picture. And so, yeah, and.

00:21:32:04 - 00:21:54:10
Hannah
I wanted to know, like, what's happening here? Like what? Because it's so beautiful. Like, it's very visually beautiful. The cat has, you know, this marigold Garland called Amala, and she has the red, on her head. And so coming from, like, America, where I don't have a lot of exposure to Hindu culture, I was like, what is what is this?

00:21:54:12 - 00:22:18:03
Hannah
And we started talking with her and learned about, you know, they call cougar Tihar, or they'll call Fiorillo. Tihar is like cat Tihar, and people celebrate and worship the cats and dogs, not just, you know, their pets, but also their, community animals and even like, cats and shelters. These pictures are from an animal shelter in, Pokhara, Nepal.

00:22:18:03 - 00:22:47:01
Hannah
And they on this day, they celebrate these cats and give them special treats. And, so this photo in particular, the reason I love it, I mean, it's so beautiful. You've got the Annapurna mountain range behind the, you know, the Himalayan tier. And then you've got this beautiful cat, Oreo, being worshiped. And just like this gorgeous setting, but what I love about it was just how much planning went into getting to go and do that.

00:22:47:01 - 00:22:48:02
Hannah
You know, we were like.

00:22:48:02 - 00:22:50:11
Andrew
Pretty tired of Nepal. Yeah.

00:22:50:12 - 00:23:05:13
Hannah
I want to go and learn about that. And it was it was beautiful. I mean, the, the, culture there are so inviting. People are so warm and, that warmth is also extended to, to the animals.

00:23:05:15 - 00:23:23:17
Kristen
But you you mentioned a minute ago Instagram. You have a very large social media following. So how do you balance, the content that you're doing for the channel for, you know, with educational content plus the need to keep your audience, you know, entertained and inspired and engaged?

00:23:23:19 - 00:23:54:17
Hannah
You know, I if people ask me about social media strategy and the truth is, I have no strategy. I don't care what I am thinking about on any given day. What's your medium? Why it works? I don't know, I think people maybe it's better that way. I think people like connecting with, like, a real person. And honestly, what happens for me is like, if I wake up in the morning and I'm happy about something, or I'm upset about something, or I'm thinking about something, I'll just sit and write a caption or be like, I need to do a video about this.

00:23:54:19 - 00:23:56:05
Hannah


00:23:56:07 - 00:23:59:06
Andrew
There's no social media account. No.

00:23:59:07 - 00:23:59:23
Hannah
Yeah.

00:24:00:01 - 00:24:00:15
Andrew
So we're going to be.

00:24:00:15 - 00:24:11:08
Hannah
Posting about my guy. No, not at all. No, no, it's very I mean, I'm so much of what we do because we're animal rescuers. So like it's in the moment, you know. Right. Right. Caring for something comes.

00:24:11:08 - 00:24:16:20
Kristen
Well and I'm sure that's one of the many reasons, you know, we've got such an incredible following. It's so authentic and organic.

00:24:16:22 - 00:24:41:11
Chris
Yeah. And I think in today's day, day and age, you know we've got all this like AI stuff and algorithms and this, that or another. I feel like the consumers out there, just the regular old people, are starting to be able to recognize stuff that's, authentic and just comes from like the human soul instead of just whatever the algorithm decides will get a million hits or whatever.

00:24:41:13 - 00:25:04:13
Hannah
Sure. I'm really grateful that both of us kind of came into the, like, social media space during a time that was like before it was so strategic as it is. Yeah, because I think we both just love what we do. We love sharing about it. We have a really cool community of people who also care about rescue and advocacy and kittens and cats.

00:25:04:15 - 00:25:44:02
Hannah
And that, you know, has always been and will always be just like something that is organic. I mean, it's it should grow as large as, the interest is and no larger. We're not trying to shove any of this down anyone's throat, but I definitely think that it's very interesting. And on the subject of cats of the world, honestly, a huge reason that we wanted to do a longer form project like this is because when we would travel, we would get social media comments of people kind of, I don't know, maybe being a little bit judgmental about other cold negative or saying like, oh, I would never travel to X part of the

00:25:44:02 - 00:26:04:10
Hannah
world or Y part of the world because I'd be so sad about the animals, and meanwhile we'd be there interacting with amazing advocates and seeing these fantastic, places. And the truth is, you could say that any part of the world, including America, has its challenges for animals. Like, absolutely like. Yep. That goes without saying. It's very true.

00:26:04:10 - 00:26:42:15
Hannah
But the other side of that is that there are kind hearted people. Literally, you can't find an island on Earth, a corner of any remote population where there's not somebody showing kindness to animals. And so that's, what we that was sort of like the side quest of this book is to hopefully help people be a little kinder and more understanding that, like, maybe you haven't been to a place or maybe you don't come from that community, but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't be open to like, learning, listening, and assuming the best of others because there truly are.

00:26:42:17 - 00:26:49:05
Hannah
I mean, every single place we went, we were astounded by how like minded. Yeah, like.

00:26:49:05 - 00:26:52:04
Andrew
It might look a little different. Yeah, but the compassion is still there.

00:26:52:04 - 00:26:52:19
Hannah
Yeah.

00:26:52:21 - 00:27:10:03
Kristen
Sure, sure. Well, you've you've inspired so many with your, with with the book and you will inspire more as people pick it up because it's out today. National Cat day, October 29th. And I assume, people can get it just about anywhere. You get your your books. Sure.

00:27:10:03 - 00:27:32:07
Hannah
Yeah. If you want to pick it up at your local bookstore, online, whatever retailer you prefer. There's also an audiobook, and an e-book. So however you prefer to read. But I recommend the good Old Fashioned. Oh, yeah. It is a gorgeous coffee table book. It's really I mean, the pictures inside are like huge, gorgeous. They're beautiful.

00:27:32:07 - 00:27:53:20
Hannah
We got Hodge in the cathedral just randomly open to that page. But very beautiful story. It feels great. And it feels really nice in hand. The, the quality of it is gorgeous, and I think it's a really nice kind of like thing to put on your coffee table. Great holiday gifts, I think. Yeah. Cat lovers in your life, lovers of travel in your life.

00:27:53:22 - 00:28:07:00
Hannah
Great for the holidays. But yeah, we hope that people will be drawn to it for the gorgeous photos of cats, but hopefully they'll also learn something along the way and find, you know, themselves feeling connected to all of the wonderful compassion around the world.

00:28:07:00 - 00:28:10:07
Kristen
Yeah, I, I bet you'll inspire people to travel too.

00:28:10:09 - 00:28:23:19
Hannah
Yeah, I hope so. Traveling is I mean, it's it's an amazing it's amazing how much you bring home like, you know, in terms of the memories and also just the knowledge that you gain and how that informs your entire worldview.

00:28:23:21 - 00:28:52:12
Chris
Yeah. Well, that's great stuff. We're we're coming up on our time here. So I wanted to first say thank you so much for joining us. I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy of cats of the world. The culmination of what was at 30 different countries. Yeah, 30 different countries of travel. I mean, that is an amazing opportunity to see, the world through the perspective of our feline friends a little bit.

00:28:52:12 - 00:29:04:22
Chris
So be sure to check it out. Hannah and Andrew, thank you so much for taking the time out of your busy day on this exceptional holiday, National Cat day. Thank. There we.

00:29:04:22 - 00:29:06:05
Andrew
Go. Yeah. Hello.

00:29:06:05 - 00:29:13:07
Chris
Hello, hello. What a little cutie. And it. Hey, listen, folks, if you're not watching this on YouTube, you're missing out on some great. Oh, you.

00:29:13:09 - 00:29:14:21
Kristen
Missed out big time.

00:29:14:23 - 00:29:15:22
Andrew
The video.

00:29:16:00 - 00:29:21:00
Chris
So to, But thank you so much for taking the time today and hopping on the show.

00:29:21:02 - 00:29:24:00
Hannah
For thank you guys for having us. Really appreciate it.

00:29:24:00 - 00:29:24:12
Kristen
Yeah, right.

00:29:24:14 - 00:29:27:23
Voice Over
Pets Add Life.

00:29:28:00 - 00:29:44:00
Chris
Well, listen, I'm going to start a GoFundMe right now. And it's not going to be for anything serious. It's going to send Chris, to the island in Japan where there's cats. I want to go to, Japanese Cat Island. I want to go there now. You're not like they.

00:29:44:02 - 00:29:45:17
Kristen
Think you're going to have a hard time raising money for that.

00:29:45:22 - 00:29:52:14
Chris
No no no no no. All we are listening is open up your your heart and your wallet.

00:29:52:16 - 00:29:53:14
Speaker 3
Your wallet.

00:29:53:16 - 00:30:04:04
Chris
And and I promise I'll take pictures, too. They won't be as good as Andrew's, but I'll take some pictures as well. And that's how I can pay everybody back right now.

00:30:04:06 - 00:30:05:18
Kristen
So it's not going to work. It's not going to work.

00:30:05:20 - 00:30:06:20
Chris
Okay. Well, you got I.

00:30:06:20 - 00:30:09:06
Kristen
Guess what we're going to talk to her friend.

00:30:09:06 - 00:30:14:07
Chris
Next. Yes. Isn't that awesome?

00:30:14:09 - 00:30:40:07
Chris
Joining us now is Doctor Michael Maria Delgado, who is a renowned cat behavior expert, just in time for National Cat day and a pioneer in the field of feline psychology. Coming out of Sacramento, California, Doctor Delgado's journey into animal behavior began in the Cat behavior department of the San Francisco SPCA, where her passion for understanding feline behavior blossomed.

00:30:40:09 - 00:31:13:19
Chris
She co-founded Feline Minds, a consulting business dedicated to helping cat guardians and organizations with feline behavior challenges. After earning her PhD in psychology with an emphasis on animal behavior and cognition from UC Berkeley, Doctor Delgado continued her groundbreaking research at UC Davis, focusing on the social behavior of domestic cats and the development of orphaned neonatal kittens. She has coauthored total Cat Mojo with Jackson Galaxy and authored the upcoming book play with Your Cat.

00:31:14:00 - 00:31:19:12
Chris
It is an honor to have Doctor Delgado on the podcast. Thank you so much for joining us today.

00:31:19:14 - 00:31:21:11
Dr. Delgado
Thank you for having me.

00:31:21:13 - 00:31:22:19
Kristen
Welcome.

00:31:22:21 - 00:31:47:01
Chris
Thank you so let's, you know, you went you went to school for a long time. And most people most people don't have that level of commitment. Right. There's got to be some, type of passion or inspiration that drove you to get so educated, to have this impact. So can you talk about that motivation and where that passion stems from?

00:31:47:03 - 00:32:14:01
Dr. Delgado
Yeah. And, you know, I will say first that I was a college dropout. So the first time around, I did not do so well with the education thing. So it wasn't really until later in life that I had identified my passion was cats. And I also identified that the best path for me personally to help more cats, and be more of an expert, was to go back to school, complete my bachelor's degree, and then go on to get a PhD and do research.

00:32:14:01 - 00:32:27:08
Dr. Delgado
So it was a very long and winding path. It was not a straight forward. I wasn't that person who as a kid thought I was going to be a PhD and studying cats. It really took me a while to get there, but it did take a long time.

00:32:27:10 - 00:32:39:10
Kristen
So Doctor Dog Gato, can you tell us share some of the most surprising findings from your research, specifically on the social, behavior of domestic cats and neonatal kittens?

00:32:39:12 - 00:33:04:05
Dr. Delgado
Yeah. So while I was at UC Davis, I did do a lot of work on neonatal kitten development and looking really at their health and well-being. This is a special population of kittens who are orphaned. So they've been separated from their mother prematurely before they've been weaned. And of course, when you're a young animal, regardless of what species you are, there are a lot of important things that happen early in your life, and you really depend on your caretaker.

00:33:04:06 - 00:33:31:09
Dr. Delgado
You know, in cats happens to just be their mom. And when kittens are separated early from their moms, I was really interested in knowing what the potential impact of that was. And we did a few studies, some that have been published, one looking at, stress signs in kittens. So we did find that kittens who had been separated from their mothers prematurely showed more signs of stress in the form of vocalizations and activity compared to mother reared kittens.

00:33:31:09 - 00:33:51:16
Dr. Delgado
So this was that 1 in 3 weeks of age. And in fact, another university, research group did a study that extended that time period into when the kittens were older and found similar results like those the impacts of the stress can continue until the kittens are older. So that doesn't you know, that doesn't mean we shouldn't rescue kittens, if they're orphaned from their moms.

00:33:51:16 - 00:34:08:09
Dr. Delgado
In fact, that's very important work. And lots of kittens are being saved. But it does mean that we have to kind of have a different perspective on what those kittens might need, and probably study them further out in life and see if there are any long term repercussions, and also what we can do to offset the effects of that stress.

00:34:08:09 - 00:34:26:04
Dr. Delgado
So can we provide them better care when they're kittens? Like more gentle handling that would mimic their mom? Should we be trying harder to place them with a mom cat who can care for them, in addition to maybe her own kittens? Are there certain types of handling that would benefit those kittens? So that was one study I did.

00:34:26:06 - 00:34:52:02
Dr. Delgado
As far as adult cats, I did a study looking at cats interactions with food puzzles. And, basically there's a phenomenon called contra freeloading, where most captive animals prefer to work for food rather than get it for free. So these are animals in zoos or sanctuaries. You'll see if you go to the zoo, like they'll give zoo animals like a pumpkin with you know, different treats inside and the cats and dogs and bears and all the big animals.

00:34:52:04 - 00:35:20:15
Dr. Delgado
And in fact, most species that have been studied prefer to put effort into getting food rather than just having a free plate or bowl of food out there. But in fact, cats are the exception to that rule and seem to prefer freely available food over working for food. So some might frame that as cats are lazy. Some of us might say they're just good at conserving energy and being efficient, but those are probably two of the most interesting studies I did during my postdoc at UC Davis.

00:35:20:15 - 00:35:39:20
Dr. Delgado
And in fact, recently just published, a study looking at fetching behavior in cats and dogs. And we found that 40% of cats fetch. So, much higher prevalence of fetching behavior in cats than previously believed. So, so, yeah, research is a great opportunity to learn more about cats and find out some really interesting things.

00:35:39:20 - 00:35:43:14
Chris
Yeah, it turns out cats do believe in a free lunch. How about that?

00:35:43:18 - 00:35:47:09
Speaker 3


00:35:47:11 - 00:36:05:02
Chris
So, you know, you've taken a lot of that research and you've kind of, you know, put on your consulting hat. You're helping a lot of people out there understand some of these findings, because I've personally, even for this show, looked through, scientific journals and published studies. And I'm like, all right, I understand maybe every other word here.

00:36:05:02 - 00:36:15:23
Chris
So there's folks like myself make it more digestible. But what are some of the common misconceptions that you see frequently when you step into that, consulting role to help folks out?

00:36:16:01 - 00:36:39:11
Dr. Delgado
I think the biggest one that harms cats is that cats are a low maintenance pet. And in so much of society, I think people want to compare cats and dogs and make some kind of distinction between them, instead of recognizing that they're just very different species with different needs, but just because they're different doesn't mean that, oh, well, dogs need, you know, to go out, you know, on a walk every day and you need to take them out to go to the bathroom.

00:36:39:13 - 00:37:03:03
Dr. Delgado
Cats use a litter box. Therefore cats don't really need anything. And that could not be further from the truth, because cats really do need mental stimulation. They need positive social interactions with people. They can get very attached to people and experience separation anxiety if they're left alone. They need daily care. You shouldn't just leave them for days at a time alone when you go out of town for the weekend.

00:37:03:05 - 00:37:24:20
Dr. Delgado
And, and more importantly, they really do need to be able to express natural cat behaviors, like being able to scratch on a scratching post, being able to play, which for them is, you know, a substitute for hunting behavior. So really thinking about trying to change that image of cats is like, oh, you just tossed down some food and, you know, a litter box.

00:37:24:20 - 00:37:35:05
Dr. Delgado
And they're fine. Because a lot of people do think that cats are low maintenance and therefore are independent and don't need us or don't need a lot to be happy.

00:37:35:07 - 00:37:56:16
Chris
I think one of the most heartbreaking realizations I had as a cat owner, we we got a new camera for the condo, and I was just at I was at work, you know, you could leave a cat home while you go to work. Sure. I'm just at work. Normal day. I check on the camera and the cat is on the kitchen table meowing as loud as she can.

00:37:56:18 - 00:37:59:03
Chris
Which is? She's deaf, so she meows to.

00:37:59:03 - 00:37:59:13
Dr. Delgado
Try and.

00:37:59:17 - 00:38:10:06
Chris
Say, like, hey, someone can find me and help me with this thing. And I was just completely heartbroken. I'm like, oh my goodness, she misses us. Like, she actually authentically misses us.

00:38:10:06 - 00:38:34:12
Dr. Delgado
Yes. And I think since the pandemic, when so many people worked from home and some people have not returned to the office, we're really seeing that the change because of course, before Covid hit, many of us worked out of the home and cats somehow survived being home eight, ten, 12 hours a day. But since being used to having constant human companionship, we can see the effects of people's routine changing.

00:38:34:12 - 00:38:41:06
Dr. Delgado
And we do know that for cats, routine is really important. They like things to be pretty consistent in their day. They like to know when to predict things.

00:38:41:08 - 00:38:49:20
Kristen
That's true. Now, doctor Chuck Otto, I want to talk about your book play with Your Cat. Tell us about like what inspired the book and what's it about?

00:38:49:22 - 00:38:59:09
Dr. Delgado
Yeah. So the book is, you know, it's a, it's a mandate or a, you know, call to action play with your cat. Because that's really something I believe is very important for our cats.

00:38:59:09 - 00:39:02:16
Kristen
You were going to call it play with your cat, damn it. But we just want to play with you.

00:39:02:16 - 00:39:06:18
Speaker 3
Go. Hey, maybe the sequel. Maybe the sequel. Yeah.

00:39:06:20 - 00:39:30:20
Dr. Delgado
The. You know, I'd probably be like, you know, a not suitable for work title if, if it was really about that. But, you know, part of it was through my own work as a consultant, seeing many board cats, cattle, behavior issues that were partly due to boredom and lack of mental stimulation and exercise and also, you know, I think that play is a really great thing for all of us.

00:39:30:20 - 00:39:51:23
Dr. Delgado
And if you look across the animal behavior science, every species that's been studied will play from bees to cows to cats and dogs and humans. So play does serve an important function for all of us. And some of that is just being able to practice behaviors that you might need in other contexts. Right. So for cats, play is really hunting behavior.

00:39:52:02 - 00:40:28:04
Dr. Delgado
It looks the same. It's triggered by the same things. So it's just directed towards a toy instead of a mouse or a bird. To that end, you know, we want to provide our cats with a play experience that mimics hunting to the fullest extent, which is why I very strongly advocate what I call interactive play. I don't just call that as what people call it, meaning that you have, you know, a one toy with something dangling off the end and you're moving that one toy for your cat in a way that resembles prey movement, and you're really eliciting that hunting behavior from your cat and giving them that full experience of pouncing, stalking, capturing all

00:40:28:04 - 00:40:48:21
Dr. Delgado
the fun stuff. So I decided to write a book about play, because I really wanted to engage people in playing with their cat, hopefully in a fun, you know, enjoyable way. I really tried hard to bring the science to people in a very accessible way so that it wasn't too dry, but really contained. You know, this is what we know from research.

00:40:48:21 - 00:41:02:16
Dr. Delgado
This is what I know from my professional experience. This is what I've done in my own personal experience. Here's how to move a toy. Here's how to choose a toy. Here's when to play with your cat. Here's what to do if you have three cats, here's what to do. If you have a blind cat or a deaf cat.

00:41:02:16 - 00:41:19:09
Dr. Delgado
So I really tried to accommodate, like every possible scenario of, you know, human cat interaction. Let's get everybody playing. And I think the important thing is that it's not like I'm asking you to go to the gym five days a week. It's really about 5 to 10 minutes a day. What, you're.

00:41:19:09 - 00:41:20:00
Chris
Asking me to do.

00:41:20:00 - 00:41:21:16
Speaker 3
That? I mean.

00:41:21:18 - 00:41:40:09
Dr. Delgado
I'm trying to work on that for myself right now, so I guess change is hard, but I am trying to encourage people to think like small but consistent. So five minutes a day can really make a big difference for most cats. Some cats need more for sure. But you know, really, let's let's think about achievable goals. Things that aren't going to.

00:41:40:11 - 00:41:47:07
Dr. Delgado
You can take five minutes away from Instagram scrolling and have a little fun time with your cat for your cats benefit.

00:41:47:09 - 00:42:07:21
Chris
Yeah, and it's for your benefit as well. I mean, there's a lot of there's a lot of research through, the human Animal Bond Research Institute that shows engaging with your pet can lower your blood pressure and ensure your mental health. So, yeah, get away from that Instagram. Okay. All the news is negative nowadays. You know what? You know it's not negative.

00:42:07:23 - 00:42:15:03
Chris
You're silly little cat going over on its belly and poppin at the window. Enjoying that? You happy? It'll it'll fix you up right?

00:42:15:05 - 00:42:33:16
Dr. Delgado
It does. I laugh every day when I play with my caps because they're just so silly and, I enjoy it. So, you know, I think it's, it's trying to bring that sense of creativity and fun to people, like maybe, you know, again, like trying to emphasize like it's for your cat's well-being. But yes, it's also for you to.

00:42:33:18 - 00:42:42:01
Kristen
Do you have any favorite toys or types of toys that you would that you would advise the cat parents to get to play with their cats?

00:42:42:03 - 00:42:58:20
Dr. Delgado
It's a great question, and I do get asked this a lot. And I do try to, you know, encourage people to find out is your cat a generalist or a specialist hunter? So a generalist would be hunter. Anything that moves a specialist would be I really like bugs, I really like birds, or I really like mice or lizards or whatever.

00:42:58:20 - 00:43:16:16
Dr. Delgado
So I do recommend having a variety of toys that meet all of the kind of prey profiles. You know, a bug like toy would be something like a cat dancer, which is that little wire with a piece of cardboard on the end. A bird like toy would be a feather mod or something like the bird, which is a really fantastic one toy that has very realistic feathers on the end.

00:43:16:16 - 00:43:37:12
Dr. Delgado
That flutter, lizard like toy would be something like a shoelace. You know, something it's kind of snake like, or, small. And then of course, the the mouse like toys. So anything that has some kind of little rodent at the end, you know, I think we get very attracted to toys that look like food or like, you know, goofy objects that may or may not appeal to our cats.

00:43:37:12 - 00:44:00:03
Dr. Delgado
And we do want to remember that to elicit hunting behavior, we're more likely to do that with something that looks like prey. So. So yeah, I do recommend having a variety, because we also know from research that cats get bored of the same toy over and over again, so we do need to rotate those toys. I'm also a big proponent of homemade lures, so I have a lot of sticks with the string, and then I just attach different things to the end.

00:44:00:03 - 00:44:16:19
Dr. Delgado
My cats really love green beans. Which I just. Yeah. And it's like when they're done with it, I just compost the green bean and, you know, it's but they like it when it's kind of fresh, but they also like it when it gets kind of dried out. So I can really get a lot of mileage out of one green bean with my cat.

00:44:16:19 - 00:44:20:08
Chris
It's funny. Yeah. Yeah. My cat, she's 21 now.

00:44:20:11 - 00:44:20:23
Speaker 3
Oh wow.

00:44:21:00 - 00:44:40:11
Chris
Doesn't play a lot. But it's very funny. She won't touch toys any toy if it's like a real toy won't touch it. Piece of scrap paper or an empty water bottle on the floor. She goes nuts. Yeah, yeah, I don't know. I don't know what it is. I think. I think she knows that we bought it for her and she just is like, maybe like a communist cat.

00:44:40:11 - 00:44:41:18
Chris
Like down with capitalism.

00:44:41:18 - 00:44:43:05
Speaker 3
Go find.

00:44:43:06 - 00:44:46:02
Chris
You know, or me. I don't know what it is, but she's just.

00:44:46:06 - 00:44:47:04
Dr. Delgado
Got a girl.

00:44:47:06 - 00:44:56:05
Chris
She's just a DIY girl. Exactly. I think there is something to say, though, where it is, you know, you got to find what your cat wants and give them that and not what you want.

00:44:56:07 - 00:45:11:19
Dr. Delgado
Exactly. Yes, sometimes. And it does take you know, I do encourage people trial and error. You know, we've all bought the cat bed that the cat refused to use with all bobcat toy that the cat refused to use. That's why you have friends with cats. So you try it with their cat and then they you trade whatever your cat didn't like and they didn't like.

00:45:11:19 - 00:45:13:02
Dr. Delgado
Maybe your cat.

00:45:13:04 - 00:45:14:18
Speaker 3
Yeah, okay.

00:45:14:18 - 00:45:23:12
Chris
Well, we're coming up at the end of time here. Doctor Delgado. So remember, everybody, the book is called play with your Cat. It's available.

00:45:23:12 - 00:45:25:00
Dr. Delgado
Now. It is available now. Yes.

00:45:25:01 - 00:45:25:15
Speaker 3
It's available.

00:45:25:17 - 00:45:32:18
Dr. Delgado
Yes. Please. Please check it out. If, you can buy it at your favorite book retailer or ask your library to carry it.

00:45:32:20 - 00:45:37:05
Kristen
Oh, and what better day than National Cat day to pick up your book?

00:45:37:07 - 00:45:37:18
Speaker 3
There we go.

00:45:37:22 - 00:45:42:04
Chris
And that's our author on the show to call out the library. Yeah, I'm a.

00:45:42:04 - 00:45:43:08
Dr. Delgado
Big fan of letters.

00:45:43:10 - 00:45:44:08
Chris
Oh, fast.

00:45:44:13 - 00:45:45:02
Dr. Delgado
I love the.

00:45:45:02 - 00:45:45:15
Kristen
Library.

00:45:45:20 - 00:45:59:22
Chris
I love the library, too. It's it's it's great. But thank you so much for your time and expertise today. This was a true joy. I love talking about cats. It's truly. I mean, that's why I do it all the time. So. Thank you.

00:46:00:00 - 00:46:01:18
Dr. Delgado
I feel the same way yesterday.

00:46:01:19 - 00:46:02:16
Speaker 3
Yeah.

00:46:02:18 - 00:46:06:19
Chris
And for all that research you've done, you've really helped move the community forward. So thank you very much.

00:46:06:23 - 00:46:10:18
Dr. Delgado
Thank you so much for having me.

00:46:10:19 - 00:46:12:12
Chris
I love talking cats.

00:46:12:14 - 00:46:14:14
Kristen
I know you do. You just light up when we talk.

00:46:14:14 - 00:46:35:18
Chris
Cats, I do, I just think they're so goofy and fun. And I think it's. I think Doctor Delgado's main point. Play with your cat. That's a mandate. I think it's a mandate. So? So true, though I think, you know, she brought up this point of comparing cats and dogs all the time and wanting to have a strict contrast.

00:46:35:18 - 00:46:44:01
Chris
And I think it's pretty fair. There's major differences between the animals and dogs are more work, but cats are not low maintenance.

00:46:44:03 - 00:46:44:22
Kristen
Not at all.

00:46:45:00 - 00:46:47:12
Chris
They require attention.

00:46:47:14 - 00:47:06:07
Kristen
And so true. And thanks to her work and so many others, you know, we're we're helping to educate people about that. And there's just so many incredible products and form and function and books, and there's just no excuse not to know, not know that, you know, your cat needs more of your time than you. You may realize.

00:47:06:09 - 00:47:07:02
Chris
Absolutely.

00:47:07:06 - 00:47:09:07
Voice Over
The product of the week.

00:47:09:09 - 00:47:30:15
Chris
All right. It's time for the product of the week. And, it's very interesting that you brought up, that pro plan diet, from Purina for people with allergies, because as I teased at the top of the show, I have a product for cats with allergies. Really is also from Purina Pro plan.

00:47:30:15 - 00:48:02:11
Chris
So they make this great line of products for cats with allergies. So that is the cat themselves will not often. But when they have an allergy it's often due to a protein or carbohydrate allergy where they can't have complex carbs or complex proteins. They need a more direct and streamlined diet. And that allergy is often expressed for those of you at home who may be like, oh, my cat have allergies, it's not sneezing, it's not itching.

00:48:02:11 - 00:48:23:04
Chris
It's typically they'll vomit after they eat, even if they haven't eaten quickly, they'll just eat their regular food. And if you've noticed that, you know, up to once a week that your cat vomits after having their meal, they may actually be allergic to some of those proteins. So there's this great line of, that direct Pro plan.

00:48:23:06 - 00:48:45:15
Chris
So this is a food that you need to talk to your vet before, you should be purchasing and giving to your animal. But it's basically they call it the hydrolyzed feline formula. Cat food comes in wet and dry and basically simplifies the diet. It's like, your, vegan friend who's gluten free and could eat, like, I don't know, two foods.

00:48:45:17 - 00:49:05:22
Chris
It's very similar to that where it's a very simple ingredient list. It's streamlined and will keep your, cat nice and healthy, still and well nourished despite their allergies. So if you've noticed that your cat gets a little sick after they eat, might want to. As always, talk to your vet about it. Absolutely a great solution.

00:49:06:03 - 00:49:15:18
Chris
And they make it for all sorts of ages. Different types of allergies wet, dry however you want it. So have that conversation with your vet. It might be time to switch foods.

00:49:15:18 - 00:49:20:00
Kristen
It's right. Very good, very good. All.

00:49:20:00 - 00:49:26:03
Chris
Right, what do you got for us today, Kristen? What do you got for us today? Better be something good product.

00:49:26:03 - 00:49:53:19
Kristen
Is this okay? This just caught my eye because it's so beautifully designed. This is from a company called meow, not meow, but mama, you. And it is called. It just has a name. It's called Namie or Nami. Nami. It is a wall mounted cat shelf. I guess you would call it. Okay. Yeah. It is absolutely stunningly beautiful. So, you know, we all know how important for us kitty lovers.

00:49:53:19 - 00:50:15:04
Kristen
We know it's important that cats have a place to go that's higher up or different. If they have places around in your home that are at different levels and, you know, get them off the floor. And this is just a really beautiful design, beautifully designed shelf that it's actually looks like it would hold two cats or it would just give one cat two options.

00:50:15:06 - 00:50:35:03
Kristen
It's, made of wood, and it looks kind of like. I don't know if you're looking at it, Chris. I'm looking at the picture online. It kind of looks like ocean waves, but, you know, it's obviously vertical and they have sanded it down, so it's super smooth. But it's like a piece of artwork. Yeah, but it's.

00:50:35:08 - 00:50:47:23
Chris
Also looks like modern art to try and do it justice. Like somebody took, beautiful wood and, and it formed like a natural crescent wave over your wall.

00:50:47:23 - 00:50:48:13
Kristen
Yes.

00:50:48:13 - 00:51:06:16
Chris
If there was no cat on this picture, I'd be like, this is just home decor. What exactly? And we're not a home decor show. We are. We're pet. We're pet oriented show. But then they have this nice little cat. There you go. Oh, it's for the cats. Cats enjoy. It really is. I mean, that's really nice. That's something I would consider having in my home regardless.

00:51:06:18 - 00:51:25:12
Kristen
It's beautiful and it's for cats up to 18 pounds. They give you a one year warranty and there's a 48 day, risk free trial. So, you know, if you put it up on the wall and your cat won't go near it for 48 days, I. It sounds like they'll take it back. It is very pricey. Very pricey.

00:51:25:14 - 00:51:26:11
Kristen
I don't want to tell you what.

00:51:26:11 - 00:51:29:20
Chris
It's all things with this sense of genetic loss.

00:51:29:22 - 00:51:34:03
Kristen
That's true. So true. For the.

00:51:34:03 - 00:51:45:08
Chris
I know I'm flipping through some of the images now, and obviously we'll include the link in the show. Yes, it looks like a really high quality product. So, you know, sometimes we we send you the affordable options. Sometimes we want to.

00:51:45:10 - 00:51:46:12
Speaker 3
Blow you away with the.

00:51:46:12 - 00:51:48:03
Chris
Quality that can be offered.

00:51:48:05 - 00:51:50:09
Kristen
For those who wish to splurge.

00:51:50:11 - 00:51:57:14
Chris
For those who wish to splurge, don't we all don't we all wish to splurge. Yeah. And for those who wish and can.

00:51:57:18 - 00:52:01:09
Kristen
But there are those who choose. Yeah. For those who can splurge. And that's what they should say.

00:52:01:09 - 00:52:03:07
Chris
Yeah, that's that's great.

00:52:03:09 - 00:52:05:02
Voice Over
Q and A's.

00:52:05:04 - 00:52:07:03
Chris
All right Kristen you know what time it is.

00:52:07:05 - 00:52:11:11
Kristen
It's our favorite part of the show where we answer two questions.

00:52:11:11 - 00:52:27:07
Chris
It is. Yeah. And hey, I know what you're thinking. How do I get Chris and Christine to pay attention to me and answer one of my questions? Well, I've got some good news for you. You can head on over to pets at Lwf.org slash podcasts. Scroll on down to the bottom of that page. You'll see a place where you can submit your question.

00:52:27:07 - 00:52:55:12
Chris
Or if you are feeling as brave as a cat who has conquered their fear of people coming into your home, you can record a voice memo and you will hear your question played live on the show. So without further ado, I'm going to go ahead and read you a question here. A little cat related question in celebration of National Cat day.

00:52:55:14 - 00:53:11:13
Chris
This question comes from Lisa in Chicago. Thank you Lisa from Chicago. My cat loves to hide in small dark places around the house. Should I be concerned about this behavior and how can I encourage her to be more social?

00:53:11:15 - 00:53:39:14
Kristen
Okay, so thank you, Lisa. So to answer your question about should you be concerned about this behavior, my first instinct is to say, no, cats just like to hide in small, tight, cozy places. The the snuggle, the better sometimes. That's just kind of their way of, you know, being alone, going to sleep, kind of, you know, watching what's going on from a place where they can't be seen, the, weather.

00:53:39:16 - 00:54:06:00
Kristen
And then you and then you went on to ask if you should encourage her to be more social. You know, I guess I would say if she's hiding excessively in those dark places, if it's if it's more out of a fear, like if you have to coax her out to eat or, if you find that she's spending just really inordinate amounts of time in those places, then it there, your cat might be fearful of something or have an anxiety.

00:54:06:00 - 00:54:23:02
Kristen
And in which case you may or may not know what might be causing that anxiety. But I would talk to your vet, but I don't think you really need to be concerned if it's an occasional thing. And I guess if you, really want to coax her out to be more social, you can try to do that.

00:54:23:02 - 00:54:25:08
Kristen
But you can't really force a cat to do that.

00:54:25:10 - 00:54:27:05
Chris
So you can't force her to do anything.

00:54:27:08 - 00:54:46:17
Kristen
No. And and you don't want her to do something that is causing her stress. So, you know, you can certainly coax her out with her favorite treats. I assume you coax her out at mealtime. But I just wouldn't push it too much. I would let her do her hidey hole thing. Unless, like I said, unless you think it's happening too often.

00:54:46:20 - 00:54:50:09
Kristen
And maybe it's. It's because she's fearful of something.

00:54:50:11 - 00:55:07:02
Chris
Yeah, I think there's no lies detected there, Kristen. It's pretty normal for cats to want to want to do that, especially, when there's direct sunlight. If it if it makes them too warm, they're going to seek some shade. Yeah, they're natural predators. So they're going to hide in places and they kind of like to observe. Yeah.

00:55:07:02 - 00:55:26:22
Chris
But great point. If you, if, if it really is a concern could be anxiety. It could be, they could be uncomfortable or they could be hiding an injury is often they will hide as well. So it might be worth talking to your vet about, but I would say that this is nothing to really sweat over.

00:55:27:00 - 00:55:44:19
Kristen
All right, so we have another question. And this one comes this for you, Chris. Okay. This is from Emily in Portland. She says my cat has recently started waking me up early every morning and it's affecting my sleep. How can I adjust her behavior to let me sleep in a bit longer?

00:55:44:21 - 00:56:13:14
Chris
Man, what a question. Well, first of all, welcome to the joys of cat ownership. Second of all, it's important to understand our cats. And a lot of people have this misconception that cats are nocturnal. That is incorrect. Cats are crepuscular animals, which means they are most active between, at dusk and at dawn. Which is why, you see, like the lazy cat basking in the sun at midday, that's it.

00:56:13:15 - 00:56:35:23
Chris
Time they normally spend sleeping. So unfortunately, their natural internal clocks do say, hey, you know, sun's starting to come up. I'm, I'm I'm awake, I'm awake, I'm awake. As far as it affecting your sleep, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. What? I'll just give you some ideas. What I do, Tiger does like to get fed first the as soon break of dawn.

00:56:36:01 - 00:56:53:01
Chris
That is when she wants her breakfast, and she will enter our bedroom and has figured out that the best way to wake us up is to come right up to our heads on our pillows and use her little teeth to start pulling hair out of her head like she was like a sheep going for the root of the grass.

00:56:53:03 - 00:57:24:07
Chris
And it has worked. She has effectively trained us to feed her first thing in the morning. But, some things that you could do is the best thing you could do is ignore the cat. You know, if they. They train us as much as we train them. So if you need to create a barrier to enter your room, such as this beautiful thing called a door, if you need to start locking your door to get more sleep, one of the things we do is we decide when we're willing to let Tiger wake us up.

00:57:24:09 - 00:57:41:19
Chris
So we won't close the door all the way if it's like, oh, you know, we're getting good sleep or, you know, we're willing to do it, but if we have like a big day or we really need our desperate to sleep in, I'll just keep the door closed and, yeah, maybe I'll wake up to her, like, pawing on it and being like, hey, come on, come on, come on.

00:57:41:21 - 00:58:02:22
Chris
But sometimes she'll just do that for about 15 minutes. And she's learned that if she doesn't get us in that time period, she'll just go back to sleep and then we'll feed her at like, eight in the morning. And guess what? She's fine. She's completely fine. They could wait a little bit longer, but unfortunately, it is very difficult to change an animal's instinctual clock.

00:58:03:00 - 00:58:15:05
Chris
So I personally can't recommend any healthy ways to break that behavior. Other than do not allow the animal to train you. Remember, you are you task.

00:58:15:11 - 00:58:27:12
Kristen
That's really difficult to. We know because if she's pawing at the door, you keep the door closed and she's pouring out the door, banging at the door for 15 minutes. You're 15 minutes. Minutes. Seems like an hour when you're trying to sleep, right?

00:58:27:12 - 00:58:28:07
Chris
Yeah. Turn on that.

00:58:28:13 - 00:58:28:19
Kristen
Noise.

00:58:28:19 - 00:58:30:13
Chris
Gain and win.

00:58:30:15 - 00:58:39:11
Kristen
Yeah, because at the minute you open the door, she's one and and she you, she has trained you to open the door when she bangs on it. So just hold out.

00:58:39:13 - 00:59:04:22
Chris
Hold out. You have to win that contest. Or if you're lucky enough and not every cat is capable of this, but some cats are capable of grazing, so Tiger will inhale her wet food. Those are her meals. But we'll leave out a little cup of dry kibble, for in between. And she knows that that's there. So if she's really obviously like, I don't want my cat to be hungry ever.

00:59:04:22 - 00:59:23:19
Chris
She's my little princess and deserves for the world. But I know if she is starving to the point where she's getting hunger pangs, there is food. She just wants the better food. But I know as an owner, if I win, I'm not starving my cat. There's an option there, so maybe explore that. There's also there's also no way to change that behavior.

00:59:23:21 - 00:59:34:08
Chris
You know, if if your cat. Guzzles. Any food you put in front of them, that's just the way that they're going to be. It really depends on the personality. But my recommendation is hold the line. And when.

00:59:34:10 - 00:59:36:13
Kristen
That's right, you can do it.

00:59:36:15 - 00:59:42:03
Chris
You can do it. I believe in you. But thank you for your question, Emily from Portland. Well.

00:59:42:05 - 00:59:42:20
Kristen
Well.

00:59:42:22 - 00:59:46:13
Chris
Kristen, we're at the end of our cat show.

00:59:46:15 - 00:59:48:22
Kristen
Our national. I'm sorry. That was really fun.

00:59:49:00 - 01:00:05:05
Chris
It was fun. It's always great to see the wonderful feline world. We had some awesome, awesome guests. I mean, I can't wait to see some of those, some of those books that are coming out and. Yes. Yeah, these people who have such a level of expertise, I thought I knew a lot about cats. I don't know anything.

01:00:05:07 - 01:00:06:03
Chris
Yeah.

01:00:06:05 - 01:00:08:14
Kristen
Collectively we are. We know a lot.

01:00:08:16 - 01:00:11:04
Chris
Yes. With our powers combined. And.

01:00:11:04 - 01:00:27:16
Kristen
Don't forget, don't forget, dog TV is coming out with a new category cat Aguirre. Oh, cat content on dog TV. So just because it's called dog TV doesn't mean it doesn't have great cat content. So be sure to check that out as well. That's launching today.

01:00:27:18 - 01:00:47:02
Chris
Yeah, absolutely. I mean that's how I'm going to be celebrating the holiday. But hey, if you're out there and you are celebrating National Cat day, we'd love to see your pictures. If you've got your cat special treat, if you've put them in a little birthday hat, if they have a special outfit, we would love to see it. So tag pets add life and dog TV and all of your wonderful National Cat day content.

01:00:47:02 - 01:01:05:11
Chris
We'd love to see it. And as always, get in the comments, engage with the show, write us a nice review, share it with a friend so they could experience the Awesome Power podcast as well. And guess what? We're going to be right back here next Tuesday. We never miss a beat. Despite scheduling conflicts and our crazy lives.

01:01:05:11 - 01:01:11:08
Chris
We're out. We are always here. Every single Tuesday we never miss a show because we're professionals.

01:01:11:11 - 01:01:17:13
Kristen
And you know, because next week we have a special episode. It's election day. No, it's election day.

01:01:17:18 - 01:01:18:15
Chris
Oh, man.

01:01:18:15 - 01:01:23:15
Kristen
I'm going to have a special presidential episode. So you don't want to miss that.

01:01:23:17 - 01:01:30:10
Chris
Oh, what a tease. I can't wait to see what we have in store. Because you know me, I'm woefully underprepared for every episode that we put out.

01:01:30:10 - 01:01:32:06
Kristen
So let's do it.

01:01:32:08 - 01:01:52:14
Chris
We'll see what that. Oh, yeah. I'll go. I'll go show up. Maybe I'll wear, a little star spangled outfit or something. There you go. And something else. Surprise everybody. But until then, share the show with a friend. Give us a nice five star review. Be kind to yourself. Be kind to your pets, and we will see you back here in one week's time.

01:01:52:16 - 01:01:53:18
Kristen
Meow for now.

01:01:53:21 - 01:01:55:20
Chris
Meow for now.

01:01:55:22 - 01:01:56:18
Voice Over
Pets add life.