Thursday, 24 January 2013
Monday, 21 January 2013
Ask the Expert.. Jan Feb 2013
Q: My three-year-old cat Tom is having a lot of hair fall, especially in certain area patches. Is this some allergy? What should we do?
- Ashish Shukla, Ghaziabad
Dr K G Umesh: Hair loss/shedding is a common complaint with skin disorders and results from number of
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causes. Cats may shed excessive hair because of stress, worms, harsh climate and general illness. Therefore, my approach would be to find underlying cause(s) like fleas, ticks, mange or allergy, hormonal imbalance, bacterial or yeast infection, etc and then your vet will be able to recommend suitable medications that will eliminate the cause and therefore hair fall. Balanced and complete nutrition is most important for healthy skin and hair coat.
Sunday, 20 January 2013
Meows in movies

Tabby cat in Breakfast at Tiffany (1961)
A small town girl named Holly Golightly arrives in New York City to earn fame, fortune and money. She develops a circle of wealthy and intellectual friends, among them her feline friend, a tabby cat is her true companion. Holly unfortunately gets trapped into a ring of drug and narcotic abused people and gets arrested. All tragedies come to an end when Holly comes out of jail and is reunited with the man she loves and above all, the tabby cat whom she vulnerably left in the rain.
Jake in The Cat from Outer Space (1978)
An unidentified flying saucer from the outer space lands on earth under an emergency situation and the occupant was a cat named Jack who was taken into custody by the US government. With the help of Frank, a space scientist, Jack attempts to repair his spacecraft. In the end, Jack helps Frank accomplish a rescue mission to save some colleagues from a helicopter crash. Jack receives a big applause for his heroic act and happily applies for US citizenship with Frank as his sponsor.
Milo in The Adventures of Milo and Otis (1989)
Adapted from the original Japanese version titled Koneko Monogatari, story of this film opens in a barn with a mother cat who has given birth to kittens, among them is Milo the orange tabby cat, quite curious and known to everyone around for getting himself into trouble. He befriends Otis (a fawn pug) who is tired of running from a young chick who thinks he is his mother. One day, when Milo plays inside a floating box in a river, he accidentally drifts downstream. This is where the adventures begin in The Adventures of Milo and Otis!
Sassie in Homeward Bound (1993)
A group of doggies with a Himalayan cat named Sassie assumes that they are being abandoned by their pet parents who are out on a trip to San Francisco, leaving all the pets at a ranch. All of them head to wilderness. When all the doggies swim across a river, Sassie reaches a path of wood which breaks halfway across. While the dogs manage to swim across the river, Sassie falls into midstream and straight into the waterfall. And the crescendo of the movie is the moment when all the companions are united after a long struggle and are homeward bound.
Snowbell in Stuart Little (1999)
Desired by their son George Little, Eleanor Little and Frederick Little adopt an observant and thoughtful mouse from an orphanage. They name him Stuart Little and introduce to Snowbell, their family tabby cat. Snowbell is extremely jealous of the way Mr and Mrs Little treat Stuart as though their own biological son. But Snowbell has changed heart and become a true friend to Stuart whom he saves from the attack of a local clowder led by mafia don-like Russian Blue in the concluding part of the movie.
Mr Jinx in Meet the Parents (2000)
Greg and Pam visit the latter’s house to meet her parents. Fun and comedy happen at the introduction of Mr Jinx, a Himalayan cat to Greg by Pam’s father as they discuss about kitty care and other topics over a dinner. Though Mr Jinx appears in cameo role in the movie, his short appearance leaves a lasting impression to everyone who enjoys this comedy flick.
The stories continue…
Apart from the real life actors, animated feline characters successfully rule both the worlds of big and small screens. Right from Thomas, known popularly as Tom, in MGM’s Tom & Jerry Show upto Till Davis’ Garfield, animation world has big room for our feline protagonists.
Picture purrfect!
Chausies don’t lie on the sofa…they drape themselves over it. They don’t run…they lope. They don’t sit…they pose. For many people, one Chausie is the beginning of a love affair with the breed. Which breed of cat looks like an Egyptian cat statue, but is too tall, too long, and far too deep-chested to be an Abyssinian? He doesn’t have long fur, but he has ear tufts and a unique tabby pattern. Some of them like water and might even eat frogs if given a chance. Yes, we are talking about the Chausie.
The wild heritage…
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Pronounced CHOW-SEE, Chausie is a breed derived from breeding non-domestic species Felis chaus (also called jungle cats) to domestic cats. Today’s Chausies usually have much more domestic blood than non-domestic blood, but they retain many of the best traits of their wild ancestors.
The wild looks…
The Chausie is a domestic breed which preserves the type of the jungle cat as well as his colours and patterns like the brown (black) ticked tabby, solid black, and black grizzled ticked tabby. The grizzled pattern is unique to the jungle cat and thus to the Chausie breed.
The recognition…
The first cats were registered in TICA 1995. The breed was accepted to begin showing in TICA (The International Cat Association) in 2000. On May 1, 2013 the Chausie will begin competing in the Championship Class.
Living with Chausie…
The Chausie tends to be a long, tall, lanky cat. He’s not as heavy as he looks, but can be quite an armful to pick up. This is a cat who likes to have room to spread out, to run, leap, and jump. The Chausie is active, social with humans and other cats, and quite intelligent. This is not a breed who likes to be left alone all the time or in a boring environment. Chausies from the third generation onward are quite domesticated. They have no litter box issues and are not more challenging than any other active domestic breed. They are comparable to Siameses and Abyssinians in energy and activities. They probably won’t eat your shoes, but certainly will learn how to open all the doors, cupboards, and drawers.
(Bobbie Tullo was breeding Persians, British Shorthairs and Pixiebobs for many years, until she fell in love with Chausie in 1997. Since 1998, she has been exclusively breeding Chausies.)