A friend recently sent me a link to the yoga cats calendar.

Now, though we question whether those cats are really doing those poses, that calendar seems like a lovely, innocent object. But when I tried to find out more about kitty yoga, I came upon this truly terrifying video:

Cats are not exercise equipment and should not be used as such! Nor should any cat have to hang out with that guy.

This just in: the first reported case of a feline with swine flu!

(Note: this isn’t him. But it’s the photo that was used, so let’s pretend it is.)

Important facts you need to know about this outbreak:
1. The cat is 13 years old and from Iowa.
2. He has recovered.
3. He probably caught it from his humans, but no one can be sure. (damn humans!)
4. Two ferrets have also had swine flu, but they died. (cats rule, ferrets drool.)

Special thanks to the lovely Rachel Shukert, who alerted me of this disturbing trend in flu news.

My friend Heather sent me this video in an email entitled “Your future, Erica.” But I’d like you all to know that I would never have hundreds of cats. How would I manage to give each one the special love he or she would deserve?

Though there are some cute fluffy tuxedo ones in there.

I can’t understand why anyone on earth would want to make (or eat!) this kitty litter cake:

The recipe can be found here, with the following preamble:

“I love the idea of this Halloween cake that makes it look as if you are eating straight out of a cat litter tray. It is a really easy effect to pull off just make sure that you have a NEW and totally unused cat litter tray and scraper to serve in.”

Yes, please do make sure you have a new and totally unused litter tray and scraper. PLEASE.

What do you get when you combine heavy metal with making fun of cat ladies? AWESOME.

And note, I think making fun of cat ladies is awesome because I am one. I would wear a Garfield sweatshirt! Mine would fit better, though.

If you’ve ever been to a cat show, you’ve probably seen that some show cats have rather amazing portraits of themselves. And many of these iconic portraits were done by Jim Child.

As I have learned living with a photographer (and a cat), taking cat photos is not easy. And the cats on Jim’s site are, in my humble opinion, way more attractive than some of the people. Good job, Jim!

I am truly and completely fascinated by Respect Your Pet, a site that takes hilarious photos of animals very seriously. For example, about this lovely photo:

they said this:

“This kitten actually is very happy and sleeping comfortably. However, I don’t approve of what could be a whore taking care of kittens. That cat could get punctured by a syringe hidden in her shirt.”

They also critcize photos of dogs using computers (causes bad posture!), dogs praying (don’t force your religious beliefs on your dog!), and cats licking medicine bottles (okay, that one really is sort of dangerous.)

Seen at the Javits Center last weekend:

This is Sita.

Her owner, Rob Smoke, is running for Boulder City Council. He spent $14 of the $236 he’s raised for his campaign on food for her, naming her a campaign volunteer. He says he did it to protest misuse of campaign funds, but I enjoy imagining Sita stuffing envelopes with her paws and meowing into the phone on calls for donations.

Have you ever thought to yourself that the one thing cat literature is missing is space cats?

Pilot, navigator, engineer, doctor, scientist—ship’s cat? All are essential to the well-staffed space vessel. Since the early days of interstellar travel, when Tuxedo Thomas, a Maine coon cat, showed what a cat could do for a ship and its crew, the so-called Barque Cats have become highly prized crew members. Thomas’s carefully bred progeny, ably assisted by humans—Cat Persons—with whom they share a deep and loving bond, now travel the galaxy, responsible for keeping spacecraft free of vermin, for alerting human crews to potential environmental hazards, and for acting as morale officers.

Even among Barque Cats, Chessie is something special. Her pedigree, skills, and intelligence, as well as the close rapport she has with her human, Janina, make her the most valuable crew member aboard the Molly Daise. And the litter of kittens in her belly only adds to her value.

Then the unthinkable happens. Chessie is kidnapped—er, catnapped—from Dr. Jared Vlast’s vet clinic at Hood Station by a grizzled spacer named Carl Poindexter. But Chessie’s newborn kittens turn out to be even more extraordinary than their mother. For while Chessie’s connection to Janina is close and intuitive, the bond that the kitten Chester forms with Carl’s son, Jubal, is downright telepathic. And when Chester is sent into space to learn his trade, neither he nor Jubal will rest until they’re reunited.

But the announcement of a widespread epidemic affecting livestock on numerous planets throws their future into doubt. Suddenly the galactic government announces a plan to impound and possibly destroy all exposed animals. Not even the Barque Cats will be spared.

With the clock racing against them, Janina, Jubal, Dr. Vlast, and a handful of very special kittens will join forces with the mysterious Pshaw-Ra—an alien-looking cat with a hidden agenda—to save the Barque Cats, other animals, and quite possibly the universe as they know it from total destruction.