HAPPY BIRTHDAY USA!
We love you!

Summer's just started and I'm ready for fall! Well, I'm the one who wanted to get away from the snow and ice... Hope you have a wonderful summer (northern hemisphere) and a safe and sane 4th of July!

We all have pets, but some of us are blessed with companion animals - a deeper relationship, I think, requiring the right animal and the right human. The late Davey Jones was such a cat and Maryellen  shares a remembrance of her beloved companion with us this month.

Our little Lady Mischief has had a rocky start. After her three weeks of diarrhea, we've been battling a nasty cold complete with lots of sneezing and congestion - and goopy eyes. Poor baby. Our vet gave her an antibiotic shot, mixed some eye solution for us to take home and recommened Afrin nasal spray. She said to use a Q-tip and put a drop in each kitty nostril once a day. Works great! Lady Mischief feels much better now and is happily terrorizing Rascal. Even Princess Fluffybutt has finally accepted her and they play together. Life is good.

I still have a large amount of catnip, FREE to anyone who sends a self addressed stamped envelope to:
M. Pyle, P O Box 1704, Marion, IL 62959
To those who requested before, don’t be bashful, you may have more to share with other cat lovers. It is best fresh, after a year it loses something.

Adopting an adult cat is a great idea - truly a life-saver. Like kittens, they offer joys and challenges all their own, especially when they are victims of abuse. Our writer-friend Lynn Perrier shares the story of her new friend Amelia on her own website. You'll want to enjoy it at: http://www.tributememorial.net/HowDoYouSolveAProblemLikeAmelia.html

If you take pictures using a flash and the animal/person is looking at the camera, your shot will likely have the dreaded "red-eye" syndrome. Mine usually do. I have three - count'em - three photo programs and none can consistently fix red-eye, as you'll see below. AARGH!

Our friends at the ASPCA always offer a wealth of valuable information. We've tapped into their treasure three times this month, to (hopefully) assure you get the information you need - even if you don't yet know you need it. 8>)

Thanks to our wonderful contributing writers, colorful photography, and other great cat sites, we have another big issue for you. Good thing it's not in print, it'd be big as a Sears catalog! Well... almost. We'd sure appeciate you recommending us to other cat people - the more we serve, the better!

One last thing: You may know we're in South Carolina. I concur with this comment on Gov. Mark Sanford:
“People are calling him a hypocrite, because he’s another family values politician having an affair, but I don’t see it in political terms. I’m just embarrassed for my gender. Ladies, if you want to know what it’s like being a guy, think about the fact that there’s a man, the governor of a good-sized state, who asked himself, ‘Hmm, can I sneak off to Argentina for a week with my lover without anybody finding out?’ And somehow came up with the answer ‘yes.’ I hope that gives you a sense of what we’re up against.” – Jimmy Kimmel
And it was at tax-payer expense...

We hope you have a wonderful July, filled with good health, job security, love, laughter, and CATS!

Pax Felinus,