The first bit of news comes Iowa. A 13-year-old tabby cat tested positive for the H1N1 virus, having contracted it from human members of the house who were sick with the swine flu. This is the first time the virus has been shown to move between the human and feline species. Scientists are now saying that the most common spread of the disease is from humans to other animals. So we can’t blame the animals!

To read the complete story, visit: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/swine-flu-confirmed-in-cat.html

The second tidbit comes from Cat Fancy magazine, which I have to admit is a secret indulgence. In an article by Sandy Robins, titled “For the Cat Who Has Everything,” Ms. Robins recommends the EmeryCat for those well off kitties in your household. The EmeryCat is a patented scratching post that has a gritty surface similar to an emery board or nail file. When the cat scratches on the board, the nails gets a feline manicure and pedicure. It is marketed for those cat parents who hate chasing their cats down to trim nails. But I also think it would do well for those people considering declawing. If you could keep the nails filed back with little or no work on your part, and the cat could not destroy furniture with their nubbin nails, there would be no need to declaw.

And the price is pretty good, too–only $19.95, plus shipping and handling. Right now the web site offers a buy one, get one free deal.

To find out more and order your own EmeryCat for your spoiled kitty, visit: www.emerycat.com

And finally, two things about the passage of Issue 2.

A lady wrote a Letter to the Editor in the Sunday, November 8 edition of The Columbus Dispatch titled, “State Issue 2 was portrayed differently.” In the letter, the woman responded to a Dispatch article from Wednesday, November 4 in which the reporter said that voters, by passing Issue 2, voted “to protect the state’s $93 billion-a-year agribusiness industry.” The woman complained that “the majority of supporters voted to ensure ‘safe, local food,’ which is how Issue 2 was sold to Ohio residents. Big difference!”

That is exactly right. If most voters had known that Issue 2 was being set in place to protect large agribusiness, namely factory farms, I don’t believe they would have voted for the issue.

And finally, on another blog, I found a comment supporting the passage of Issue 2 that made me uncomfortable. In essence the person said that there were “too many ‘fur babies’ and not enough real babies.” This person was lamenting the fact that many people in our society today have opted to not have human children and instead “humanize” their pets and call them their fur babies, treating them like the human children they do not have. This person felt that those who were against Issue 2 tried to place human traits on all animals, not just pets.

As someone who does not have children, and cannot have children, my cats do get treated like my kids. But my husband and I have thought about adopting. There are so many needy children in the United States and other countries who need homes. I just can’t understand why someone would say there are too few human children. I think there are too many who do not get the care and love they deserve! I do agree with the fact that there are too many “fur babies.” My response to that–get on board and spay and neuter!!

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