Derby Winner

 

"Hey, it’s Derby here. I’m a 5-year-old ginger with classic tabby markings that I like to show off by sprawling out in the garden, usually right in the middle of foot traffic on a path or near the closest wild catnip plant. I was adopted from Happily Ever After Animal Sanctuary and hit the garden cat jackpot."

"I live indoors (bor-ing, although handy during those Wisconsin winters), but I spend nearly as much time in the backyard during the growing season as my human gardener buddy. My preferred garden activities are chewing on ornamental grasses ('Toffee Twist' is a personal favorite), rolling around in the dirt, catching a catnap in the shade gardens, keeping an eye out for rascally chipmunks and, just for fun, occasionally squeezing through the pickets of the fence, which is frowned upon. Oh, and water! Did I mention water?  Love the stuff. There’s nothing better than wading into a freshly filled birdbath for a drink. Cheers and happy gardening!"

Derby lives with Zone 5a gardener and entertainment/feature writer Kendra Meinert and an easygoing brother, Wyler, in Green Bay. You can follow their gardening adventures on Instagram @KendraMeinert.

A Cat in the Christmas Tree

 

Garden writer and speaker Denise Schreiber aka MrsKnowItAll shared this photo with us. Denise is the author "Eat Your Roses, Pansies and Lavender and 49 Other Delicious Flowers." She wrote, "Here is the picture of Isis in the Christmas tree. She thinks it is her new cat tree. I adopted her after my beloved Bella died. We wanted a companion for Sasha, but Isis is an absolute sweetheart. She was found wandering the streets until she was taken to the rescue. This one is a hunter, because she has shredded most of her toy mice and a few other toys."

Your cat may also be fascinated by your Christmas tree. Some cats and holiday trees get along just fine, but often times curious kitties can create havoc and damage your display. If you want to keep the cat and tree both safe and separated, check out this article that Davey Trees put together on how to cat-proof your holiday decor. Their tips include:

• Keep your tree away from furniture like sofas or tables. 
• Put a scented deterrent near the tree (like orange peels).
• Cover the trunk of your live Christmas tree with aluminum foil.

This Time, Fur-Real

Cris Blackstone, a master gardener and education coordinator with the NH Landscape Association, wrote, "Our cat has been integral to our household for a year and a half, I got her on Valentine’s Day! She’s originally from Puerto Rico, rescued and traveled to Virginia, then to the New Hampshire SPCA, where she chose me when I was on a visit there to see if it would be my lucky day to come home w/a cat. It brings tears to my eyes to remember the look on her face when the vet tech put out my cat carrier to have her climb in. She looked over her shoulder at me with the most endearing face. Earlier in the day, we met and I couldn’t take her at that time, because I had to go home and get the kitty carrier, plus buy litter and food to be ready for her arrival. Since I left without her that time, I think she had her little kitty heart disappointed and wanted to ensure this time, it was For Real. 

"Her name is Zwartje. (Swaaart-cha) which is from the Dutch word for black, and built on the way it’s made diminutive in Dutch, to equate with 'cozy little black fluffy thing.' Interestingly enough, she has some super power which comes to me in the best way. I had a knee replacement, and she’ll sit across my legs when my knee is flaring up and painful, and her warmth plus her weight on my knee is almost like a reiki treatment. 

"I’m happy to know she’s joining the ranks of the cats and plants you share through the site! She’d thank you, too, were it not for the fact she’s busy right now, batting on the door to our cellar which we have converted to our “Plant Lab” where we are sorting and stacking many 72-cell plant trays and she’s eager to go knock those piles over!"

See more photos of Zwartje on Cris' Instagram account at @makescents_nh

A Spoonful of Sugar

Sugar is the resident garden cat at Trinidad Greenhouses & Floral in Trinidad, Colorado, USA. Sugar's photo was shared by store owner and florist Carol Bazanele.

Carol posted, "This is Sugar, our newest feline employee. I wasn’t going to get a cat after Chaos died, but I went to Noah’s Ark just looking. I’ve never had kitten will power, so I adopted this one. She’s very sweet and super friendly, and eats more than any cat I’ve ever had.
    I wasn’t going to wax poetic about this stupid cat- but, I love her. She’s so sweet, however she’s a thief. She steals keys, pens, anything small. She stole my credit card yesterday. I left it on the table, and found it in her bed. She helps herself to the stuffed animals in front, so she can destroy them in mock battles. She’s a joy! Adopt a shelter pet!! You need some unconditional love in your life! "

Garden Patch

Patch is a very purr-suasive garden center cat. Who could resist buying some of his personally curated hydrangrea selections?

Patch Adams was adopted by GreenStreet Gardens in Lothian, MD, from the SPCA of Anne Arundel County. You can read his full adoption story here.

Stacy Greenstreet, Lothian, MD, shared that, "Patch is AWESOME! And he's also huge! We are hoping he'll slim down at least a little bit while cavorting with our customers. He's also super friendly.  

   "We've also learned that Patches likes to sit ON the plants we have growing, and it didn't take him long to find the catnip.  Whoops!"

A Community Cat Garden

Video via ABC 7 news

The Humane Society of Silicon Valley (HSSV) in California has the "Garden Cat Adoption Program At The Marilyn & Fred Anderson Community Cat Garden" for placing feral, outdoor-loving cats into homes that will allow the cats to roam. Above is a news clip about the innovative program.

They note that: "Cats available for adoption in the Garden Cat program are looking for a home in settings such as a barn, warehouse, corporate campus, or plant nursery. In exchange for room and board, these cats help their owners by keeping rodents away."

This unique program has led to more than 260 adoptions.

"A feral cat coming into a shelter is actually a death sentence because there aren't alternatives in some cases for those animals," said Carol Novello, president of the Humane Society of Silicon Valley. "So we wanted to come up with an alternative so that those animals were given the second chance that they deserve."

Puttin' on the Mitz

Mary-Denise Smith, a copyeditor/proofreader to food & garden bloggers, shared this story about Mitz:

"When I first bought my house in Old Greenbelt, MD, I’d scoured the shelter web sites, looking for a kitty. I saw this lovely orange tabby named 'Sheila' who would be available for adoption in early February. The very day she was up for adoption, I put my application in, only to be told she’d already been spoken for! No!


"Then a couple weeks later, my colleague asked me if I wanted a cat. Without thinking, I said 'Sure!'. So a few nights later, she and her mom turned up at my house, dropped 'Miss Mittens' off and left in such a hurry I didn’t even have time to open the carrier!

"This little squeaky voice comes out, and I opened the door and there’s this orange tabby, all scared and upset and lonely looking. She didn’t rush into my arms, but she was quite ready for pats and cuddles and treats. I had trouble saying 'Miss Mittens', so shortened the name to Mz Mitz. Some folks called her 'Mitzy', which is appropriate, I guess, because she does this cute little side step dance when she comes in the door, like Mitzy Gaynor making an entrance.

"A few days later, I was putting her carrier away and noticed the envelope full of her records, opened it and POW! This was 'Sheila' from the shelter! My colleague’s mom had adopted her, discovered she liked the idea of kitties more than she liked kitties themselves, but didn’t want to give her back to the shelter because she was afraid she’d be euthanized! (She’d been dumped, and a couple neighbors fed her til she got pregnant, when they turned her in to the local shelter.)

"So we were meant to be.  

"Mitz was about two years old when I got her, and once we settled in together, it was like we’d been buds forever. So that means she’s almost nine now.

"Then, in 2017, I lost my home. I sold it and all the contents. Mitz went to live at Pam Stegall’s farm up in Rising Sun, MD - Calvert Farm, otherwise referred to as Kamp Kalvert for Kitties. Mitz and Pam’s husband Paul became fast friends, and Mitz now rules the garage, forklift and pickup truck. The school kids who come to the farm every day (it’s the local school bus stop and afternoon hang out) just adore her and she basks in all the cooing and patting.

"Mitz likes water. She’d play in a light rain, and sat on the side of the tub when I was in the shower, batting at the stray drops. Snow, however, is the work of demons. 

"She learned that daffodil greenery tastes foul, and that licking toads is a bad idea. She used to sit on the top of the compost bin and gossip with the neighborhood deer, but had nothing good to say with/about the local raccoons. She’s a mighty mouser, and even though shrews are not tasty, she’ll catch them just to prove whose yard it is. She mostly left birds alone, but not always. I had to keep her in the house with the robin, dove and wren nestlings fledged! I don’t think she ever bothered the woodpecker chicks.

"She was a great supervisor when the Greenbelt Woodlands Committee would do invasives removal in the area behind my house. She and a local poodle would sit on the log pile and watch the proceedings, and Mitz would 'comment' as folks walked by.

"M has a thick, thick undercoat, so in Spring shedding season, it looked like a Husky or Golden Retriever lived at my house with big tufts of creamy fur hanging off all the low branches and chair bottoms!"

Adopt a Garden Cat

 :

I recently stumbled across the Island Cat Resources andAdoption (ICRA) garden cat adoption page.  If you know someone in the Alameda, CA, area who has room to adopt some garden cats. Please share the following information:

Do you have a protected garden or yard area that would be a safe home for a cat or cats in need?

ICRA has rescued a number of cats that, despite our volunteers’ concerted efforts, are not comfortable enough with people to become house cats. Although these cats are called ferals, they are not wild or aggressive, just extremely shy. They need safe outdoor spaces in which to live out their natural lives. Some of these cats, in time, will allow petting from a trusted caregiver; others will keep a safe distance but enjoy playing or sleeping in the garden while you are nearby. Most are curious about people, and will interact with you (to a greater or lesser degree) at feeding time.

We’d love to relocate one or more of these cats to your garden where they can live in safety under your caring and watchful eye. Your main job would be to provide daily food and water, and some shelter from the winter weather. We will guide you through the process of acclimating the cat/s to their new home, and support you if you encounter problems.

What Garden Cats are looking for:

• A safe yard, free of pesticides and free of other pets that may not want them in their area.
• Shelter from the rain with warm bedding – a cat or dog house, a porch or even a child’s play house
• A regular feeder. It is best to feed daily and not leave too much food out that will attract unwanted critters (wildlife) – which means if you are heading out of town for a few days, best to have a petsitter or a neighbor take over the feeding.
• Places to hide – under decks, behind established bushes or logs
• A bowl of fresh water – best to change out the water every couple of days to keep the mosquitoes away
• A home that will love them like pets and treat them like pets and take the cats with them when/if they move or find another safe yard to move them to. (We have great advice on how to do either.)

Garden cat caretakers attest to the wonder and enjoyment of having these beautiful animals in their lives:

“Bruce and Tortie Girl are often curled up like Ying and Yang on their feral cat heating pad on my back porch when I open the door to feed them each morning. They jump up from their slumber and greet me; Tortie Girl rubbing gently against my leg and Bruce keeping an arm’s length but meowing the whole time as though to say, ”Hello, but please hurry up with breakfast!” –Merry, Oakland

“Mama is doing so well, she looks so healthy and lolls around on the deck acting like Leona Helmsley at the Palace Hotel.” –Cindy, Alameda

You can make a huge difference in the lives of these cats, with only a small amount of effort. We know you will find it rewarding.

Please contact us for more information on becoming a garden cat guardian. Email us at gardencat@icraeastbay.org or leave us a voicemail at 510-869-2584.

If you can’t host a garden cat but know someone who can, please share this information.