Zonk Juice

All during the work week I hear story after story of zonk juice and how the cats seem to zonk out for hours on end. Sunday mornings are my big opportunity to witness the power of ZONK JUICE.

This morning, the cats did their usual cuddling into a spot they wanted, while another cat may inhabit it, and then eventually duking it out for the spot. They did their usual fighting for the prime sun patch and carrying on about who got to sleep where. Finally, the zonk juice starts to settle in and they begin to get truly sleepy. Here is Felix and Lulu genuinely cuddled up together sleeping. They slept like that for about an hour. Then Felix went up into the cat tree for a snoozer.

I found Lulu curled up in the same large green dog bed that she and Felix had been in and then went searching for Simone. She was in her usual zonk zone, The Lofts. Take a look at these cute pictures of the gatolinos taking a siesta!

For Jimmy's birthday the Hoefs gave him a donation to the Greyhound Pets of America. The GPA is the organization that took Maxine from the track and fixed her broken leg. You really can't even tell she ever had a broken leg they did such a good job! The website to the GPA is:
http://www.gpahouston.org/.

This picture is of Maxine and Simone hanging out on our Mexican blanket. Simone is not the least bit intimidated by Maxines size or person. In fact, if the two wanted the same spot Simone would definitely win!

One Giant Step for Catkind

This morning Lulu made one small leap that was a giant step for CatKind! The bigger and older cats have one last place they can go to and get away from Lulu's crazy antics. We call it The Loft or Loft Living. It is the space above the cupboards in the kitchen. We keep it well dusted and wash their clams regularly. Cats really do like to be in the highest spot available and this space really fits the bill. If we had designed the house to be the perfect scenario for cats, we couldn't have designed it better!

Until t his morning, Simone and Felix could go there to "just get away from it all."

But that all changed when I went into the kitchen this morning. There was Lulu up in the loft all on her own. She has been up there before but only with assistance from Jimmy. Now she is up there all on her own!

Fish TV

Yesterday we looked at a favorite Black Radish past time, Bird TV. Today we would like to take a look at the infamous Fish TV. An all time Balck Radish favorite. A classic if you will. The primo set up is the fishtank set up on Jimmy's desk, with two "clams" (aka cat beds) resting on either side of the tank. Take a look: L


Today Felix took this fish gazing to a new level as he lounged right on top of the fish tank! He is the biggest cat yet he somehow layed himself out on the skinny little crest of the fish tank in order to fish gaze from the top!!!

Why do cats love boxes?

Simone in a box















Lulu in a box














Felix in a box

Bird TV

There are many favorite spots the black radishes treasure throughout the house. One of them is Bird TV. This is the window that looks out onto our bird feeder, they sit transfixed watching the birds come and go. We get a lot of birds here, too. Not just your ordinary pigeons and doves, we get a lot of blue jays, little finches and bright red cardinals! Can you see the red cardinal in this picture? It is blending in with the red egg bird feeder we have!

Have you ever seen cats when they see something they want to hunt? They instinctively get a high pitched squeak that comes out in stacatto as their jaw opens and closes slightly. That is what happens here around Bird TV almost every day.
Sometimes the gatos get tired of the same old birds and have to change the channel to Squirrel TV. As you can see, it doesn't take much effort! If there is bird seed around, there will definitely be squirrels! The cats go crazy about the squirrels! They come up so close to the window that the cats think they should be able to POUNCE! But alas there is glass covering the window and they realize they are indoors cats, left only to dream about chasing squirrels and birds.

Sometimes on a sleepy afternoon you will see a cat perched on the edge of the desk, curled up in a little cat bed, staring sleepily out at the birds, with their eyes slowly closing as they lazily fall into a deep sleep!

Farewell Nino

This is a great picture of Nino! I didn't take it yesterday when he was here, but it is still a fine photo. It is from the last time he spent the night with us.

Today is his big moving day! The packers are there today and his world is in chaos. Greyhounds don't really like change, they prefer a set schedule and for things to be exactly where they are supposed to be. Poor Nino! But he will be happy once he gets settled into his new place. Austin will be good for him!

The movers come tomorrow and down the road they go to settle into their new life in the state capital of Texas.

WE WILL MISS YOU NINO! HAPPY TRAILS!

Peas in a Pod - AKA Kung Fu Fighting

Today Jimmy caught the oldest cat, Felix, and the youngest cat, Lulu, lounging together in the large dog bed. Although the bed was bought from a boutique dog store online, the cats are the only ones who enjoy its comforts. In fact, I believe they think we purchased it specifically for them!

Cats have a lot of different ways of expressing themselves. In some ways very different than human beings. If two humans were biting, scratching, thumping and jumping on each other, it would pretty much mean they were having a fight. But for cats, that's all part of the fun. They often start out cuddling up in a sweet position like this, begin licking each other in a very friendly manner and then all of a sudden RRRRRAENGGGG and then FWWWWWOPPPP and let the games begin!

They each have their own fighting and cuddling style as well. Believe it or not this second picture was taken months earlier!

Felix: BOP ON THE HEAD - His favorite move is to use his size and weight to intimidate with his body fully postured upward, puffing out of the chest and a series of hard quick right jabs to the top of the smaller ones head. He also is at a disadvantage because he has not claws in the front. So he uses his size to leverage his body against the other and then does some heavy foot thumping.

Simone: KUNG FOO KITTEN - Simone is very zen about the way she fights. She is constantly using the art of vocal intimidation to engage the other. She is also very good at the cuddle/lick jump start for a play fight. You think she is snuggling up and then BAM she lets out a big "WHO-AAAAAH" and then Bruce Lee starts taking notes. She is also fearless. And Jimmy says, "She is a lover not a fighter." But don't you see that look in her eye?


Lulu: JUST KEEP AT IT - Being the smallest and least experienced Lulu rests on what she does have: youthful endurance. She just keeps coming at them and coming at them until she can slowly wears them down and her sheer energy and speed overcomes the size and skill of the other cats. As she gets older, she will have to gain some new skills because as we all know - you don't stay young forever! She is much faster than the other cats, maybe its from hanging out with the greyhound in the family?

A Greyt Day

Today we went to the Houston Dog Show with Maxine. Normally they don't let outside dogs into the show but they let Maxine in because we were there to support the Greyhound Pets of America booth. The Greyhound Pets of America are the group that helped Maxine get her broken leg fixed and then helped her find us. The dog
show is in a huge stadium, all full of dogs trying to be the best in their class, performing agility or
competing in flyball. They also have all kinds of booths about different dog food, dog toys and all
different breed specific groups. So there were fat dogs, big dogs, little dogs, tall dogs, black dogs . . .
you get the picture!

Maxine was there to show people how great Greyhounds are as pets and try to raise money for the GPA. They had her wear this little apron with pockets for money! Maxine felt like a dork in the apron, but people stopped and asked questions and told us she was so beautiful, so it was all worth it in the end. Jimmy kept calling her a "working girl." We answered lots of questions about Greyhounds and Maxine tried to enjoy it as much as possible.

She was relieved when we headed back to the car and bought her some chicken nuggets for all her hard work!

This picture is of a big saint bernard who works as a Rescue Dog here in Houston! Isn't it great that there are dogs who use their sniffing skills to help save people!

Simone Makes Sugar Cookies

Tonight I was making sugar cookies for Jimmy and of course my little helpers just had to get involved. They truly think any time anyone enters the kitchen and starts doing anything it means they will get snacks. This picture is too cute - Chef Simone. You may need to click on this picture to enlarge and see the big patch of flour on her nose. (For the record, she was never into the actual dough, just some flour!).

Help with the Laundry

Remember how I told you the cats always help with the laundry? This week was no exception. This first picture is of lulu and simone IN the stripped bedding as the laundry is being done. Simone has managed to form a little cave out of the blankets.



This second picture is of Lulu who ended up in the nice warm dryer. Jimmy almost threw a load of wet laundry into the dryer when he caught Lulu taking in the warmth.

Maxine Gets A Bath

Do you like bath time? Maxine HATES IT. She would rather be a stinky, dirty dog than get a bath. But every week she gets a bath because she gets muddy and dirty at the Bark Park. Today was no exception. We get her in the bath, soap her up, rinse and then dry her off with a towel. Then she shakes all the rest of the water off with one final SHAKE.

After she is done she always gets a treat, so maybe someday she will like bath time!

Something about paper

There is something about paper that the black radishes seem to love. They love to chew and gnaw on it (like they did to the white paper Jimmy just wrote which they promptly destroyed), but even more than that they love to simply sit on it. If the whole floor is empty except for a stack of papers, Simone is perfectly happy to just park herself right on top of that stack of papers. Felix is notorious for this as well. I get home early from work and usually work for an extra hour or so, if I set papers down next to the computer I can promise Felix will soon settle right there on top of those papers. In this picture, he sat right on the grocery list I was working on! Thanks for helping with the chores Felix!

Speaking of helping with the chores, check out this picture of Simone and Lulu helping Jimmy write his Web 2.0 paper!

Maxine's names

Now for Maxine's names . . . .
Maxine:
Max
Dub
Dubby
Dublino
Doobage
Stub
Stinky
Longneck
Blacklip
Greyballs
Tenteats
Maxinator

Tonight we went to a dog group that meets at a pub called the Shady Tavern. They let their dogs run in the backyard as they all drink beer. It wasn't that fun, but here is a cute picture of Maxine. This dog was pretty funny - in an effort to get cool, he jumped right in the tub of water!

What is in a name?

Every cat has a god given name and then a litany of JG given names . . . . take a look. (These pictures are of the cats slurping up olive oil and then a picture of Lulu passed out on a hot Texas day today).

Felix:
Fifi
Fofo
Fafage
Crankpants
Catlip
Feefoo
Fafa
Fafafooee
Felix Unger
Fifolino
Buzzard
Scavanger
Homer Simpson

Simone:
Simon
Sickman
Technically
Cybone
The boneless one
Peewee









Lulu:
King Koofoo
Koof
Koofity kaff koof kaff
Kaff
Kaffee
King Kaff
De-kaff

Gravy

Most dogs are inspired by food - they live for that moment their owner puts the bowl down and they can chow down as fast as possible, savoring the flavor as it races down their gullet. More often than not, the dog chomps and chomps and could eat endlessly if given a chance (reminds me of Felix, our oldest cat!).

Maxine is not that kind of a dog! She is a little more coy, lady-like and picky! We have to urge and coddle her into eating her two basic meals. And its not like we just throw in a bunch of boring, dry kibble for her to gnaw on. She gets excessively good food or gruel as we call it. She gets our tasty left overs as well as homemade beef, veggies and rice. This is not just a treat every now and again but a part of her daily schedule. Still, she has been getting pickier and pickier. She can somehow nudge her nose around the bowl like an ant eater and get every last piece of rice and still not eat the kibble!

Jimmy's latest strategy is doggie gravy. That's what you see here in these jars. It is a bacon base with homemade chicken broth and of course the thickening agent. We will see if this is the key to getting Maxine to eat!

Meerkat Vigilance

Lulu, the youngest and so far smallest of the cats, is more oriented upright than the other cats. In this picture, it is typical Kaffee (aka Lulu), her up on her hind legs looking out at the wide world outside. Perhaps she sees Ribbons resting underneath the truck?

For all you Meerkat Manor fans, doesn't she look like a meerkat, vigilantly looking out for danger?

Nino

Today Maxine had a special visit from her friend Nino. He is a greyhound and lives down the street. He is getting ready to move to Austin, Texas! Do you remember when we went to Austin and stayed at the lake? Well, that's where Nino is moving.

Nino is a lot bigger than Max. She weighs just under 50 pounds and he weighs closer to 80! He is much taller too, and older. But that doesn't keep them from chasing each other all over the yard! I think most of you have seen them in the videos we sent you. They chase and play fast and rough.

Nino comes over for slumber parties a lot. He was over for Maxine's birthday last year and guess what they had as birthday cake? Ground beef!

Here is another picture to show you how big Nino is - look at him falling right out of that bed!

Racing T

Maxine picked up an organic, cruelty free T today in kelly green. At first she didn't think she looked very good but after getting used to it, she began prancing about. What do you think? Is it silly for a dog to wear a t-shirt?

When Maxine was on the race track she had to wear a shirt whenever she raced. The only difference is those shirts had numbers on them so people could watch them race! If you want to read more about Maxine's racing history you can go to this website and read all about her and her family (going back generations to her ancestors in Ireland!). Her racing name was Flying Doodle.

http://www.greyhound-data.com/d?d=Flying+Doodle&sex=f&color=BD&birthyear=200x&birthland=US

Sunday morning paper

As you know by now, Sunday morning reading the paper is always a time for mischief on the part of the Black Radishes. This morning was no exception. Lulu is constantly trying to get to the paper before we do, only she prefers to tear and shred instead of read!

Simone is always on the prowl for the best sunspot and usually has to put up her dukes with Lulu in order to win the spot. Although she almost always does! This was Simone's spot today "working on her suntan" as Jimmy would say.


Felix prefers to remain in his regular spots
somewhere on the bed, away from Lulu and Simone where he can just plop for the entire morning. Stretching out nearly his whole length and softly cooing in his sleep he lounges all morning as we update ourself on world news.

Ribbons

Ribbons is growing bigger each day. She is more comfortable than ever with Jimmy, me and Maxine. If she is sitting on the chair on the porch and we let Maxine out she doesn't even flinch! It's great.

Anyway, the big news is she doesn't have her ribbon on anymore! This is a recent picture, isn't she cute?

Farmer's Market

Every Saturday we take Maxine to the Farmer's Market and then to the Bark Park. She usually gets a dog treat from the homemade dog treat vendor and a piece of chicken from the fresh, all natural chicken vendor.

She likes to walk around the market and get pets from the local folk. She always gets a lot of attention from everyone and they ask us a million questions about greyhounds. People always ask us if they need a lot of excercise and if they are super high energy. Do you know the answer? Sometimes people say the craziest things. Do you think she looks like a stegosaurus? That's what a little boy told her just a few weeks ago! Can you believe it?

Sometimes, there is an extra treat. Like this week - Maxine got to sniff this box of little baby chicks that the egg vendor brought in. Aren't they cute????

Treat of the Week

If you ever wondered if cats like hominy we now have the answer - YES! The treat of the week this week is hominy, we will use it in Maxine's gruel (we feed her a blend of ground beef, rice and mixed veggies), but Jimmy wanted to see if the gatolinos would like it. Felix, in his characteristic buzzard fashion, stuck his snout right in the can and pulled out a big chunk of hominy. Then he started his obnoxious low, guttural growl he makes when he eats (much like the noise Homer Simpson makes when he eats). Lulu, being the little copycat, sniffed the hominy and tried to look like she was eating it just like the big cats! Maybe next week they will get menudo!

New Jack Snack Attack

Jimmy is always looking for the next big treat for the gatolinos. Well this week on sale at Fiesta Market we found the treat of the week: Jack Mackral. The fish comes in a large can as seen here being slurped by the cats.

After getting a little taste of the mackral water Jimmy put out a plate of Jack Mackral for the gatolinos. It looks a lot like the food they put out to catch sharks, they call that chum.

The cats were not the only ones to get a snack . . . Maxine can see here licking her chops after a bowl of Jack Mackral and even RIBBONS got a bowl of Jack.

Battle of the bed

Every Sunday we open the window to the bedroom and let the sun pour into the room and spill onto the bed. We open the newspaper to read and all of a sudden BLAM! A cat comes pouncing up on the bed and runs smack into the paper! If it's Lulu or Simone they immediately start chewing the edge of the paper and then start eyeing the Sunpatch. The life of a cat is largely about comfort, and location has EVERYTHING to do with comfort. So much of what goes on is fight over space.

The bed is already a prize location, but add a sun patch and it's really the cat's meow. And these cats do more than just meow over the spot - they POUNCE and LEAP and DIVE onto one another in an effort to win the spot. Like this picture, Lulu is the one looking into the camera and she is on the coveted spot. I guarantee you Simone is not just sitting there quietly but probably saying HISSSSSSSS and getting ready to pounce!

Before long everyone has found a patch of comfort and we all settle in for a Sunday morning read. Although Lulu and Simone never tire of kicking each other out of the spot and enjoying it until the other comes and takes it back. Felix, on the other hand, is a true lap cat. He layed here on my lap for most of Sunday morning.

RIBBONS UPDATE: Ribbons has been eating regularly on the porch in the trap. Today she came strolling up to the porch around dinner time and guess what was missing??? HER BLUE RIBBON!

Recycle Cat

This is our most recent recycling purchase and our cats newest mischief. Lulu got into the recycle bin and just hung out for awhile like this. Then Jimmy tipped it upright and she stayed in there for awhile, apparently waiting in ambush. As soon as Felix approached the recycle bin, she JUMPED out and gave him a little playful, but firm, BOP ON THE HEAD!