A Utopian Feline Future

I must take a moment and share something wonderful with you all. The other week I was reading Vetted, a daughter publication of the DVM360 empire. The October 2016 issue was devoted in part to veterinarians providing their "predictions" for the future of the vet industry. There were the standard  "new technologies will save the world" and "cure for cancer" hopefuls, but, amidst the well-meaning tropes, I found a gem.

Enter Dr. Elizabeth Colleran, feline specialist, and owner of two feline specific hospitals in Oregon and California. Her entry is provided below (a more extended version is available online):

"As Northern American cities continue to grow and urban migration increases, the conflict between demand for feline companionship and well-meaning efforts to sterilize cats will escalate. Chemical sterilization techniques will improve and fewer colonies of cats will be found. This will create a shortage of cats just when people want to adopt. Recognizing this, veterinarians, geneticists, ethologists and other scientists will start working to build a population of cats that people want. The protection of cats will become a worldwide undertaking with every country working to create a healthy gene pool of cats for whom homes can easily be found. And that's how cats will be responsible for world peace."

I love it. No, I love YOU, Dr. Colleran. You have created the perfect blend of scientific fact with socioeconomic observations combined with a healthy dose of full-hearted, well-intentioned assumptions and voila: the future seems bright.

Thank you, Dr. Colleran, for providing us with a utopian feline future.

Stay tuned for the next post on the first Monday of January. Until then: happy reading, happy writing, happy vetting.

Weekly Wags

Playing a little catch-up with some weekly wagginess. Feast your beady little eyeballs on these pet, vet, or writer-ly features:

1. Knit hats for your cats. I Tweeted an aviator cat knit hat earlier this week and people went crazy. As they should. I think my cat Tuna needs one of each. Seriously. I will fund the brilliant, creative, talented woman who is doing this. Meredith Yarborough, I love you.



















2. Space Coast Half Marathon. Ran this bad boy in Cocoa, FL, on Dec. 1. Enjoyed it thoroughly (it was a flat course), enjoyed the pizza and pancakes even more at the end. And in ecstasy at being able to do my most favorite thing in the world (beach combing) in DECEMBER!

Finisher's medal for half marathon

If only every day could begin with a beach sunrise

3. The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman. Just found out this morning Ms. Hoffman has this new book coming out in Feb 2014. Sounds delightful to me. I've read a few of her other works. I first discovered her by picking up a copy of Turtle Moon at a used book sale in England and I remember reading and enjoying it that summer (I was in high school). Happy memory :)

4. Top 10 Books of 2013, according to the Washington Post. Well, I haven't read any of these. And briefly feel like a degenerate. But then I remember that life is too short to waste time on books I don't want to read. But it's an interesting list, nonetheless.

5. Infrared study in Sweden looks at animal noses. Very cool images. And I love the idea of taking pictures of a Labrador while he slumbers away, totally oblivious of the fact that you are carefully studying and documenting his nose (photo below).

 

For the Love of Cat Videos

Just a quick late-week pop in here to share something I encountered in my swim through the internet ether the other day.  Am I the only one in the world who wasn't aware of the first annual Internet Cat Video Film Festival held last August!?

This contest, hosted by the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN, encouraged people to submit their goofy, funny, zany cat videos for a shot at coveted internet immortality.  The winner was a haut black and white ditty titled, "Henri: Paw de Deux".  Very sophisticated indeed.  I can see how it beat the plethora of videos of kittens riding on top of Roombas.

I'll be sure to mark my calendar for the 2013 deadline.  I have actually directed and produced a little cat video myself a few years back.  This summer, it just may be time to retrieve it from the depths of YouTube home video sludge, dust it off, and bring it out for the world to see.  But perhaps I'll give you guys a sneak preview.

Some background: the star of the video is my cat Scabs.  She's about a million years old with a chronic but maintainable and non-painful skin condition of unknown origin (which is a nice way of saying she's half bald).  One tip: if you abhor the Pussycat Dolls, this may not be the video for you.

Scabs: The Lost Pussycat Doll