Here we have Messi the Russian pet cougar getting BAFFTIME! He got himself all muddy, and thus has to go into the shower with one of his staff. The YouTube notes:
Sasha cleaned the terrace near the pool, and Messi decided that now was the time to crawl on his belly under it and pick up all the dirt! No persuasion could stop him and we had to give the cat a bath. He asked for it, the little hooligan)) #puma #messi #pumames
Messi doesn’t seem to mind too much. I think that loud thundering noise is Messi purring, but I can’t be sure. Even his tail gets washed, and he gets dried off with nice clean towels.
***************
Sadly, I can’t show the film of the famous trick-performing rescue cat Pudgie Wudgie (you can pay to see it) but I can show a bit of video and some of his story from the Pittsburgh Tribune (click on screenshot below to read):
The ashes, in an engraved metal urn, rest on a bed in a home in the East Oakmont neighborhood in Plum.
They are a constant reminder to 84-year-old Frank Furko of his late, loyal companion Pudgie-Wudgie.
Pudgie-Wudgie was a trained house cat, bedecked in countless custom-made costumes. He made numerous television appearances and performed in live shows in the late 1980s and 1990s.
The 23-pound cat and Furko traveled with across the country wowing audiences and bringing smiles to the faces of anyone who met the dynamic duo.
Pudgie-Wudgie was 14 years old when he crossed the rainbow bridge in 2001, but his memory lives on in the documentary “Frank & The Wondercat.” It’s an amusing tale that follows the Pittsburgh native as he reminisces about his beloved cat. The film was created in 2015 by Pablo Alvarez-Mesa and Tony Massil.
For all things about Pudgie, go to pudgiewudgie.com:
Pudgie-Wudgie did tricks. His act went viral and was featured on the Maury Povich and David Letterman shows, as well as on the cover of magazines and newspapers. He entertained children in schools, senior citizens in nursing homes and patients in hospitals. There is a photo of him in a Steelers outfit from an exhibit at the Senator John Heinz History Center in the Strip District. There is a picture of the cat sitting on one of the boats at the former Kennywood Log Jammer amusement ride.
“He did whatever I asked him to do, to please me,” says Furko, who continues to preserve the cat’s bedroom. Yes, Pudgie had his own room to sleep in with everything a human has from a bed to dresser and a mirror. “I saved him, and he knew that. He would ride in a car and even a helicopter. As long as I was with him, he was good.”
Drivers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike can see a mural entitled Frank and the Wondercat at mile marker 49 westbound and those who drive past Furko’s house know which one it is by the World Famous Cat Crossing sign outside.
“When I die, he goes with me,” Furko says. “I will be holding the box of ashes in my hand.”
Here’s a trailer of the film from Vimeo. Note that Pudgie and his staff seem to be Republicans. . .
And some photos from the Trib article about Furko and his tribute to the late departed moggie (captions from paper):
Let’s face it: the guy was obdsessed:
Furko died in 2019, but it’s not clear whether he was buried holding Pudgie Wudgie’s ashes.
Here’s a news report on the 23-pound moggie and his staff:
***************
This NYT story is about cats who wear Go-Pro or other video cameras on their collars. The story gives links to the videos. Here are some excerpts and I’ve embedded some videos
In one video, the athlete pauses, assesses the height and leaps. He tries to free-climb up the side of a building, before jumping back to the ground. In another, he leaps across a roof, his shadow stretching out long in front of him.
This gymnast, though, is a cat. Specifically, he’s Gonzo of @gonzoisacat. He has more than 607,000 followers on TikTok and 178,000 on Instagram.
Gonzo is the star — and the director — of his own shorts. Rather than his owners filming his stunts, Gonzo can capture them himself with the help of a tiny camera that attaches to his collar. The result is an extreme sports cinéma vérité-style documentary from a cat’s perspective. And it’s catching on online.
In Norway, a GoPro-wearing cat roams across snowy meadows or climbs on a roof. One in China also recorded under-the-chin videos. Another catfluencer named Mr. Kitters has 1.5 million followers on TikTok and nearly one million on Instagram, where viewers can watch him meow at a bird or chase a squirrel.
Here’s a ten-minute video of the Norwegian Go-Pro wearing cat, showing a typical day in the life:
. . .The rise of wearable camera technology, though more often used by surfers or snowboarders than pets, has led to another niche style of cat content. Like viewers of extreme sports videos, cat video fans regularly note the thrill they feel when their feline stars leap or scamper.
“A lot of the comments are: ‘I kind of wish I were a cat,’” said Scott Irwin, Mr. Kitters’s human. “It’s a way for them to escape for 15 seconds at a time.”
Mr. Kitters, who lives in Indiana, does more sponsored content, posting videos about a pet-grooming vacuum or the camera itself. He started the account in August, and has gotten some free cat-related products, too.
The vacuum:
The drink:
***************
Lagniappe: a fridge from the FB page Because it Made Me Laugh and Ponder:
h/t: Merilee
Notice how the puma purrs while breathing only one way. I read once that small cats purr breathing in and out, whereas big cats purr breathing only in or out; I forget which. I do not know how general this is.
“Never go full [cat lady]”
Goodness, that refrigerator is an abomination!
Was hard to tell if Puma Messi was purring of complaining, but he sure was cooperative. Every day, I am reminded how my two 10 and 14 pounders can easily stop me from doing, well, almost anything they truly dislike.
I have driven by the pudgie sign so many times and never had any idea that is what it represented. That is such a sweet story and an amazing cat.
Thanks for another great Caturday trifecta!