This will be the last Caturday felid for a while as I’m off traveling this Friday. Enjoy the moggies!
The Guardian has a selection of the 2023 comedy pet awards. Unfortunately, many of them are about d*gs, but we’ll ignore those. Click below to see the cats:
Captions and photographers from the Guardian:
Albert Einstein; Photograph: Masayoshi Yamamoto/Comedy Pets
A life-changing experience. Photograph: Michel Zoghzoghi/Comedy Pets
Free kick. Photograph: Kenichi Morinaga/Comedy Pets
The big boss. Photograph: Kenichi Morinaga/Comedy Pets
Pop up. Photograph: Kazutoshi Ono/Comedy Pets
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From the BBC we have the story of Zebby, a “hearing ear cat” for a deaf owner, and a cat who just won an award for his services. Click to read, or see the story below:
A cat who helps his deaf owner by alerting her to sounds around the house has won a national award.
Zebby, a two-year-old black and white cat from Chesterfield, in Derbyshire, was named Cats Protection’s National Cat of the Year.
He supports his owner Genevieve Moss, 66, by tapping her to alert her to noises like the phone or doorbell ringing.
Ms Moss said she “can’t imagine life without Zebby” and is “over the moon”.
Zebby, who has not had any special training, has been chosen from thousands of other pets as overall winner of the National Cat Awards.
The event, organised by the feline welfare charity, was held at Wilton’s Music Hall, in London, on Monday.
Heeeere’s Zebby:
Zebby was one of four finalists in the Family Fur-ever category and won after a public vote.
He was then crowned overall winner by a panel of celebrities and experts, including former footballer David Seaman MBE and veterinarian and TV personality Dr Scott Miller.
His owner said: “I am so proud of Zebby for showing the world how intuitive and caring cats can be, and what a positive effect they can have on people’s lives.
“Without my hearing aid, I can’t hear anything, but now I have Zebby to help me.
“He’ll come and tap me when the phone is ringing, and then I can pop my hearing aid and speaker on and take the call.
“In the night, if there’s an unusual noise he will bat me on my head to wake me up and let me know.”
Zebby even helps Ms Moss by picking up the mail from the doormat and carrying it to her room in his mouth, or bringing in her slippers.
Now THAT is a helpful (and unusual) cat!
“Zebby is very special, I’ve never known a cat quite like him,” she added.
“He loves to be around me, wherever I am, he’s not far behind.
“We’ve got a very close bond and I wouldn’t want to cope without him.
“Living on my own and being deaf means life could be lonely, but not with Zebby around, he’s my hero.”
The cat won a trophy and prize package, which included a £200 pet store voucher.
And here are al; the 2023 awards from Cats Protection (I’ve added links):
Cats Protection’s National Cat Awards organiser Ashley Fryer said: “From the moment we read his entry form, we knew Zebby was something special. Zebby is clearly devoted to Genevieve, and their story highlights the powerful bond that exists between people and their cats. He’s a shining example of the joy and comfort a cat can bring.”
Other category winners were:
- Eric – Winner of the Social Star category, whose rags to riches story has seen him go from death’s door as a poorly stray kitten to one of Twitter and Instagram’s rising stars.
- Henry IX – Winner of the Cat Colleagues category, who spends his days providing companionship and humour to the gardening team at Hampton Court Palace.
- Willow – Winner of the Moggy Marvels category, who raised the alarm when her diabetic owner became unconscious.
Here’s a video of Willow:
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Finally, The Kiffness, who specializes in turning caterwaulings into songs, presents a sad ballad from a lonely cat, “Sometimes I’m alone”. (I may have posted this before.) Get your hankies ready!
h/t: Ginger K., Jez, Matthew
The hearing aid cat is very interesting but one wonders, how does the person who does not hear well enough to get the phone, then use the phone. Special phone i guess.
The owner puts in her hearing aid before answering the phone, according to the article.
Wonderful cats!
Fun post!
Zebby is a very unusual cat indeed!
Love the Kiffness and the cats-in-need.
O noes! A gap in Caturday Felids! Thanks for all the wonderful kittehs. Travel safely, and we look forward to moar Felids when you return.