No comments about Wild Kittens.

No comments about Small Animal Nutrition.

No comments about Best Cat Stories.

No comments about I Purr, Therefore I Am: Never Before Collected Observations on All Things Cat.

5 comments about Good Cats, Bad Habits: The Complete A To Z Guide For When Your Cat Misbehaves.

1. I feel that although Alice Rhea presents alot of good, common-sense ideas from her long association with cats (hers included) and their owners, she falls short in some parts of this book when it comes to judging the cause or the solution to some of the behaviors mentioned.
   
   Her "if-all-else-fails" attitude of locking a cat inside a carrier for the night (and placing the carrier in another room) is, in my opinion, downright ABUSIVE, CRUEL, and traumatic for the cat. Even if the carrier were big enough for a litterbox, and at least a dish of water (which kitty could tip over in his frantic efforts to get out), it would still be cruel. When getting out of bed in the middle of the night, what are the odds that the cat owner will GENTLY place the cat in the carrier???? And once kitty is locked up in this jail cell of a carrier, suppose there was a fire, or an equally urgent emergency that would cause the residents to leave the home abruptly -- what would happen to kitty, locked up in a carrier in a remote part of the house or garage??? Whether remembered and or forgotten, kitty stands to lose its life!!!!
   
   And although she makes a good point about "Bad Breath" (may be a sign of serious dental disease), she doesn't pick up this thread in the "Messy Eater" section -- messy eating could also be a sign of diseased gums or teeth.
   
   "Bed Lying on" does not even mention the SIMPLEST approach to keeping or getting cat hairs off the bed (in addition to locking the cat out of the bedroom buit NOT in a carrier) -- 1) Daily Brushing and 2) daily use of lint rollers, available in any drug store or pet store. My 3 cats, two of whom are longhaired (and who love being brushed every day) are welcome on my bed -- and so is the lint roller.
   
   I was disappointed with those specific parts of the book -- with all those years of contact with cats and cat owners (and being, herself a multi-pet owner), Ms. Rhea did her readers (many of them not familiar with cat behavior) a disservice in those specific areas of her book, by not pursuing a less abusive way of dealing with these problems.



2. This book brought a lot of smiles and laughs of recognition. As the "pets" of 2 homebound felines, we gained a world of understanding about how our companions viewed us and our shared home. The startle-can trick works wonders for keeping cats off furniture, even when we "alpha-cats" are not around. Handy habit-troubleshooting guide and clear explanations of what underlies the behavior. Have already shared the book with other cat-companions and they are getting their own copies for continued future reference.



3. All in all, a fantastic book! I have recommended this book to tens of people already ... if you want clear, common sensical and effective ways of (re)training your kitty or want to understand why your cat is peeing in your bed/lounge/laundry ... then this is the book for you. Yes, it is written in a simple, good natured way, but if you are actually willing to put to work the advice given, it is a god-send. This is not a book for people who want a quick-fix, sell me a pill type solutions!! All the recommendations in here work - I have two living examples - but they all take some effort and time ...



4. I wanted so much more from this book. I felt that the information contained was mainly common sense, and the writing seemed to be aimed toward a small child. Not only that, but the quality of this print is pretty bad - cheap paper and binding. There are so many better books out there, with creative and innovative techniques described that WORK. My kitties required that I try another title: "Is Your Cat Crazy?: Solutions from the Casebook of a Cat Therapist" by John C. Wright. I found this title to be much more helpful.

   I gave this book two stars because a child might benefit from it, or even just someone who simply has not spent much time around cats.




5. Being the "protector and slave" of 8 cats, I thought I had a fair amount of knowledge on how to deal with feline behavior! I had also read a large number of books over the years on the subject. However, I was really surprised at how useful Alice Rhea's book is and how much more I have learned about cats from it. A huge variety of problems are answered in the book in a clear and simple style which outlines the problem, explains why it happens, suggests ways of stopping it, and details how to stop it from ever happening in your household. Ms. Rhea writes in a most entertaining way and obviously is a great cat lover. I have recommended this book to many friends, including to experienced cat breeders. It is a most comprehensive book at a bargain price. Highly recommended.

No comments about Happy Cat Day: A Manifesto for an Official Cat Holiday.

1 comments about Cats Rule!: The Rules, Wisdom, and Witticisms that go Along with Being a Cat.

1. All cat owners will agree that their feline pets think that the world revolves around them. They can come and go as they please and they have no reason to ever "call dibs" on any location before they occupy it. The cat in my house is called "Sassy" and she is playful according to her rules, most of which match those in this book. When she wants attention she wants it now and when she no longer wants it, she will nip your hand to tell you to get lost. The water in her dish is beneath her, there are three higher quality water sources in the house. Of course, humans refer to them as the toilets.
   Lovable, yet frustrating, cats will always remain the most mysterious of pets. Unless you read this book and know what they really believe is the relationship between humans the domesticated felines.

5 comments about Snow.

1. In the dead of winter, her marrige over, a young woman leaves the city with her two cats and drives north with little more than a few cans of Spam and the vague hope of reinventing herself from ground zero. Outside all is white, but inside, her live begins to unfold before her in vivid color. Wishes can come true in the cabin - but will Vinny the cat's one special wish finally help the woman find her way to a true sense of peace? A very surreal book, sometimes confusing, but never dull. The two cats - clever, talkative Vinny, who claims to have had thousands of past lives; the innocent, quiet dancer Sophie - and a dull witted yet loyal polar bear named Simon provided the humor, and the woman was a powerful, inspiring character. Unusual, but worth reading.



2. I'm usually a good judge of which books I'll love, but not this time. My friend warned me that Snow quickly disolves into psychobabble, but was worth reading for the cat antics. Right she was! Perhaps I didn't feel well the day I began reading this annoying book, but within the first 20 pages, I hated it. It was hard to finish, but I was intrigued with the unusual talents the cats displayed, and I kept hoping the story would become less uncomfortable to read. It just had no flow. The subject matter did not bother me, but the way it was written did. I hardly ever read a book I don't want to finish, but this one was a struggle. To the author's credit, I found Vinny and Sophie the cats very charming. Perhaps Ms. Howie's next book will be easier on the nerves.



3. Vivid imagery in this book places the reader alongside the author, to understand the probing questions, to feel the painful discoveries, and to applaud the healing insights she discovers in her struggle to find her true self. While the story line is fairly "heavy", the development of the "plot" is imaginative and delightful, making this a very enjoyable reading experience. One can almost believe in the actual existence of talking and dancing cats as well as Spam-loving bears - they come to life as observers of the world around them, offering support and insight when they are most needed. If read straight through in one sitting, the reader could overlook some of the profound truths as they are revealed. Betsy Howie demonstrates extraordinary insight into woman's truggle with the true meaning of life, love, and happiness in this ever-changing world. I could easily identify with the woman in the story, and thus found answers to some of my own questions and struggles. I await in eager anticipation for further books by Betsy Howie!



4. Lots of people beat stress by turning to large bodies of water. They swim, they fish, they daydream on these waters. The Atlantic, the Pacific, the Gulf--they each have calming properties. But our heroine hasn't heard of the healing properties of blue water, so she turns to an isolated cabin practically buried in the snow. Her healing starts when physical pain from the cold snow intrudes on the life of her mind. Each of her split personalities pulls together as she first succombs to her inner pain then triumphs over it. Survival in a snow bound cabin becomes her first priority. The reader is asked to make a tremendous suspension of disbelief in order to accept the heroine's cat with split personalities too. But if you can accept that she talks to herself as one of several personnas, then why not her cat?



5. Betsy Howie's Snow took me a few pages to get into -- she starts without providing the context upon which we readers tend to depend. I also feared that the book would be an angst-filled and self-absorbed ramble...it starts out feeling that way. After 20 pages, I was hooked. With creativity, humor, and heart, Howie takes us through a woman's self-discovery and her meeting of herself. There were moments when I felt I had lost the storyline, but that was due to my concrete thinking rather than any fault of the author. She asks the reader to stretch reality, break out of the dictates of linear time and one-dimensional experience, and imagine an inner world as real and tangible as the one we usually think of as "reality." I loved the cat, Vinny, who gently encourages the narrator on her journey of self-discovery. I loved that Vinny, himself, ended up learning about self-acceptance, truth, and happiness. I recommend this book highly!

1 comments about Clinical Syndromes in Veterinary Neurology.

1. This is a great book for veterinary students and clinicians! It is very thorough in listing the neurologic syndromes seen in our small animal patients and describing the pathology and clinical signs. You must know the disease that the animal has, as the book lists the diseases in alphabetical order, rather than grouping them by clinical signs and/or neuro-anatomic localization.

1 comments about Pre-Raphaelite Cats.

1. This was a nice edition, and I knew it would make a nice addition to my friend's "cat library." The artist and subject were pre-sold from earlier publications, such as Shakespeare Cats, and this particular production did not let me down -- I knew when I saw it she'd be delighted with her late Christmas present. I hope there are more like it and that Amazon has them available, and ships them as quickly and in such good condition as this one.