Declaw Illegal in New York State Soon?

Friends,

Go to your favorite search engine, type in 'New York State' and 'de-claw' and you'll find a wealth of articles about Manhattan Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal's bill to make the practice of de-clawing (technical term: Onychectomy) illegal in the entire state.  

A partial list of countries that have outlawed or condemned this unfortunate practice:

Australia
Brazil
Israel
Finland
Estonia
Netherlands
Germany
Switzerland
Austria
United Kingdom

In the United States, the following cities have made it illegal:

West Hollywood, CA
Los Angeles, CA
San Francisco, CA
Burbank, CA
Santa Monica, CA
Berkeley, CA
Beverly Hills, CA
Culver City, CA

States that prohibit landlords from demanding resident cats be de-clawed as a condition of residency:

California
Rhode Island

If you'd like more information, go to The Paw Project.  There is so much stuff you can find online or in books at the library about living peaceably with cat's nails, such as scratching posts, those little nylon thingies, and routine nail clipping that can make a huge difference!

YOU can make a difference too!  Talk to your friends, family members, folks at church, folks in line with you at the bank, and inform them!  We can do it!  People will tell you that more cats will end up WITHOUT a home, but the amount of de-clawed cats that end up in shelters because of behavior problems contradicts that very argument.

Here You Come Again

Here you come again
Just when I've begun to get myself together
You waltz right in the door
Just like you've done before
And wrap my heart 'round your little finger

Here you come again
Just when I'm about to make it work without you
You look into my eyes
And lie those pretty lies
And pretty soon I'm wonderin', how I came to doubt you

All you have to do is smile that smile
And there go all my defenses
Just leave it up to you and in a little while
You're messin' up my mind
And fillin' up my senses

Here you come again
Lookin' better than a body has a right to
And shakin' me up so that all I really know
Is here you come again
And here I go

All you have to do is smile that smile
And there go all my defenses
Just leave it up to you and in a little while
You're messin' up my mind
And fillin' up my senses

Here you come again
Lookin' better than a body has a right to
And shakin' me up so that all I really know
Is here you come again
And here I go...

Really, Winter!
YOU CAN GO AWAY NOW!!!!

Lyrics by Dolly Parton

P.S. Please visit Colehaus Cats and read the lovely memorial to Maxx, and while there, leave a comment for his grieving humans.  

Stray Whisker

Patty lost a whisker in the outside water bucket.  He's got the coolest whiskers; they start as dark brown or black nearest his face, then turn white on the ends.

Chucky's whiskers are all black, and Angel's are just plain white.  I've carefully saved a few shed whiskers from both cats...dunno why, just have...but Angel does a funny thing with hers.  If I find one of her long white whiskers, I'll often use it as a toy, and Angel will ALWAYS eat the thing!  She grabs it out of my fingers with her teeth, and she'll chew it down.  Weird...and kind of gross.  She also eats cobwebs, popcorn, and licks my sprouted wheat bread toast.  But the face she makes when I hold up a banana would have you rolling on the floor with laughter; it's as close to a Bitter Beer Face as any cat could manage!  I'll have to try to capture that face in a photo someday, as she scrunches up her nose and pulls her head back.