If you read Summer’s blog, you’ll notice that it’s written by Summer herself.
Her human merely assists her in her blogging endevours.
But I’m sure you wonder: does Summer really do all her own blogging?
Well, I’m here to tell you that yes. Yes, she does indeed.
(The phone screen is blacked out to prevent spoilers.)
This week’s Photo Hunt subject is “Red.”
This is an easy one! Angel is a red Aby!
But it’s not at simple as that, because Angel isn’t really red. Her colour, genetically, is cinnamon, a dilute of the brown gene. True, sex-linked red in cats is a completely different gene.
You see, in non-Abyssinians, the red gene in cats is sex-linked, and only carried on the X chromosome. Females are XX, and males are XY, of course, so the Y doesn’t contribute to a cat’s colour. Red is also dominant, so if it’s present, no other colour can manifest…unless it’s on the other X in a female. So, a female can either be red-red, red-not red, or not red-not red. Males can only be either red or not-red. Red females, contrary to popular belief, aren’t “rare,” they’re just statistically less likely, since the chances to have a red female are shared with the chances to have a red-not red, or tortoiseshell, female. It’s a bit confusing, I know. Maybe that’s why the “red” in red Abyssinians isn’t really red. It’s definitely easier that way.
True sex-linked red does exist in Abys, but it’s not recognised by all registries; the CFA does not recognise it all. The true sex-linked red Abyssinian is bright orange with a red tail tip. It is important for breeders to know whether they have sex-linked red or non-sex-linked red as this will affect the breeding program. Where there is sex-linked red, there can also be tortoiseshells. Tortie Abyssinians do occur, but since the breed does not permit white, these are always brindled rather than “calico.” The combination of brindling and ticking can make it almost impossible to determine whether a female is tortie or not just from a visual inspection. Sometimes a female Abyssinian is only known to be a genetic tortie when she produces a mix of red and ruddy kittens!
Okay, Coco isn’t an Aby…but she is a fashion icon!
At BlogPaws, I had the pleasure of meeting Coco the Couture Cat and her human!
Isn’t her gold pillbox hat just gorgeous?
Coco had several wardrobe changes throughout the day. This is her pink Hello Kitty Rockabilly dress.
Coco is a torbie Cornish Rex. I’ve petted Devon and Selkirk Rexes, but I’ve never got to pet a Cornish Rex before.
Coco’s human took her out of her stroller to show off her dress, but she jumped right back into her stroller the first chance she got.
That made me miss Jacoby all the more! He does the same thing! I would have brought his small stroller with us had he been able to join me, and I would have brought a collection of his outfits, too.
Just like Jake, Coco sees her stroller as her “safe space,” her mobile territory, and she’s perfectly happy in it no matter what is going on around her.
Of course, Jake’s outfits aren’t nearly as fancy as Coco’s…but then, she’s a girl.
I know a lady doesn’t tell her age, but Coco will be 10 years old in September!
So much for the school of thought that believes that as cats age, they stop wanting to go out and do things, eh?
I mean, Coco’s almost 10 and she’s still dressing like a Vegas showgirl!
I so wish Jake could have met her. They would have made quite the well-dressed couple
Speaking of my Jakeman, here is his flat self sporting the fancy glasses I made at the Hauspanther DIY craft table last night! You know he would have been at the table helping me design them…and he’d have worn them, too!
Guess who I met today?
None other than our friend Summer and her human!
It seems like we’ve known each other for years – and we have, online – but this was the first time we’ve met in person.
Summer is every bit as wonderful as she seems to be from her blog. She really reminds me of Jacoby. Look at her smile!
Her feet are really floofy, though, compared to Jake.
So is her tail!
She was so happy to be here with her human and all her adoring fans.
We had some fun with a feather at the Hauspanther craft table tonight.
I really wished I had been able to brink Jake. I wish they could have met. The best I was able to do was this.
Which of course is nothing like the same thing thing at all.
The shadow on this? Is something that people would say was fake, made up, a fiction…
But it really happened. Truth is stranger than fiction, because fiction has to make sense.
(Click cartoon to embiggen, or you can view all cartoons in Slideshow mode on Flickr.)
Today on a very special edition of The Daily Abyssinian…My custom, hand-made, cold porcelain ball-jointed Jacoby doll, which she has been working on since February 2014, arrived on Friday!
It was funny, because I had just tracked the package and the website didn’t show any shipment progress since the 12th.
The Jake doll was very well packaged for his trip from Brazil to Boston.
In fact, Ana even made a video about how she packaged him.
In amongst the packing peanuts and bubble plastic, there was a little bag of candies and tea. Aww!
The doll himself was in another box, well-wrapped in more bubble plastic.
Which, of course, the real Jacoby was more than happy to assist me with.
“Come on, Mom! Open it!
Inside the bubble plastic cocoon, there was a little plastic box wrapped in brown paper and tied with string.
Naturally, once I untied it, I had to put the string on Jake.
Then it was time to open the box.
Ana made him quite the little wardrobe, too.
She made a video showing them off and explaining how she designed and made his little outfits.
Even the clothing was packaged with care. The little jackets were wrapped around little styrofoam balls.
Jake really liked those little balls. There were two of them and they’re still rolling around the apartment.
Although, the starch peanuts were fun, too.
The wardrobe consists of jackets, shirts, collars, scarves and even a little hoodie.
There was also this sweet little souvenir magnet. I was loving every second of this grand unveiling!
With all of her dolls, Ana sends a satin storage bag for the dolls.
Also included in the box were the patterns to make more little outfits…
…instructions on how to care for the doll, and also restring it if need be…
…And a certificate of authenticity.
Finally, I got to the moment of truth – it was time to unwrap the actual doll! All the while I was chatting with Ana via Messenger.
That was fun for both of us!
It was kind of like he was being born.
And at last he was out! Isn’t he adorable? I think his eyes look like the Geico gecko‘s eyes.
Ana also made mini-Jake a little green braided collar and a set of miniature tags that just match his real ones.
They really do look just like the real tags! She said she made them from plastic soda bottles with nail polish and foil tape.
Jake was quite impressed with his little effigy.
“See? He looks just like me!”
After all the excitement was over, Jake and his mini-me went to go sit in the wrapping paper.
Thank you so much, Ana! I love him! And I think Jake likes him, too. You can see more photos of mini-Jake in Ana’s DeviantArt page.
“Iz mah cuzin from Brazil!”
You ever wonder why, sometimes, my posts are delayed?
Often, it’s true. I have no good excuse. I’m just late.
But other times…I have this. Cat butt on my damn keyboard.
“What?”
This week’s Photo Hunt subject is “Tanned.”
I don’t know if cats get tanned from sleeping in the sun.
If they did, Angel would definitely be bowner than she already is.
Because “Jacoby with a Finnish cat toy on his head” didn’t have nearly the same ring…
Ha ha, get it? RING? Because it’s one of the crocheted rings that Sanna sent us…oh, all right.
I put it on Jake’s head because I could, and because it was made of metallic gold thread, it looks like a little crown. Sort of.
Heavy is the head that wears the gold crocheted cat ring toy?
A couple of Abys need homes…first this fine American fellow:
“This is Rocky, he is available for adoption through Northeast Abyssinian Rescue. I am fostering him in the greater Philadelphia area. He is a beautiful boy full of Abytude who loves to give me lots of head bumps and purrs. He is a bit on the high strung side and will do best in an adult only home or one without small children. His thoughts on dogs are unknown. He enjoys visits from my Abys so I believe he will do fine with other cats. He is 7 years old, just had a dental and is in good health. If you’re interested in Rocky please email us at NEAbyRescue@yahoo.com and we will send you an application.”
And then, in England, we have these two elderly gents:
“Two 15 year old neutered males desperately needing a new home.
There are two 15 year old Abys in very urgent need of a new home as their owner is getting remarried and his new partner is allergic to cats. The Abys are currently in a cattery awaiting their new home. One is blue and one is sorrel. One has IBS well controlled with diet, and the other arthritis. The cats are in Gloucestershire, but the owner is prepared to deliver them if necessary.
If you feel you could offer these two a home for their retirement, please contact the Abyssinian Club Welfare Officer, Harriet, by e-mail: welfare@charriet.co.uk or ring her on 0208 669 1655
Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of Tessie flying from Portland, OR to Boston to come live with us.
She still doesn’t like Angel…but lately they’ve been tolerating each other pretty well.
Angel still doesn’t really trust her, though. But in an odd way, Tessie is probably her closest friend. At least, I see her in proximity to Tessie a lot more than I see her with Jacoby or Kylie.
Kylie and Tessie are probably the closest of the lot.
Jake likes all the girls, but he gravitates towards humans (me, specifically). The girls like to be around Jake when he’s sleepy…when he’s in a playful mood, not so much.
Angel tends to be a loner, although she likes other cats and wants to be friends, she’s somewhat socially inept.
This is based in part on this photo from the Abyssinian Cat Club on Facebook.
And it’s partly based on this expression tutorial, brought to you courtesy of the artist who does Lackadaisy. Since it’s Cartoon Tuesday, if you have any interest in cats, the Roaring 20’s, incredible artwork, pig farmers, or old photographs, you really should check it out. Of course, this has little to do with my cartoon, per se…but there are cats who drive in that cartoon, too.
Seriously, though. Awesome webcomic. And I suspect Viktor may be a Somali – there’s a photo where his complexion is described as “Ruddy”…Just sayin’.
(Click cartoon to embiggen, or you can view all cartoons in Slideshow mode on Flickr.)
These are a little blurry, because I took them while I was walking and pushing the cart…but they’re too cute not to share.
Jacoby loves to ride the cart when I take it back downstairs, as you know.
So the last time we took a cart ride, Jake’s mini-me came along too.
Jake didn’t seem to mind sharing.
In fact, he seemed to like the company.
“Okay Mom, let’s go!”
“Vroom, vroom!”
For a brief moment, Jake’s mini-me even rode on Jake’s back.
“Okay buddy, back down you go.”
I think Jake is having as much fun with his mini-me as I am!
One other thing that happened at the Seacoast show was that Baby Love, Meg’s girlkitten, and a little boy started a beautiful relationship.
Neither of them realise it yet, of course. But they will.
But a family with a young boy came to look at Meg’s kitten and decided to add little Baby Love to their family.
The boy was about three or four, and Baby Love is 5 months old, so the two of them will grow up together.
I know everyone talks about the timeless bond that is “a boy and his dog,” but there is nothing quite like the love of a boy and his cat. I have a friend in Sweden who has a 15½ year old cat and a 12 year old son. Pyret, the cat, follows her boy everywhere and watches him when he’s on the computer, and the boy basically sees Pyret as a sort of older feline sister and he uses a photo of Pyret as his online avatar.
This little boy and this kitten have a wonderful friendship ahead of them.
And of course, my friend’s cat was a tiny barn kitten born to a feral mother cat. This little boy will be growing up with a kitten with 160 years of breeding for personality and attachment to humans behind her.
Is it wrong that I’m a little jealous of this little kid?
This week’s Photo Hunt subject is “Mystical.”
Throughout history, cats have been associated with mystical powers.
You see that all the time: Cats are mystical, mysterious, magical.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah they are.
They totally are. They’re absolutely other-worldly.
Russell Webb is one of my favourite judges. Not only is he a lot of fun to watch – especially his finals – but he likes Jacoby.
In fact, I think that Russell has never not used Jake in a final when he was judging – at least not yet (knock on wood). Even before Jake Granded, Russell named him 9th Best Cat in Premiership.
Russell also likes Abys, and it’s not unusual for him to choose Jake and another Aby for a final, like he did in 2012 when he had Jake and his cousin Taz in his final at Seacoast. Judges do have some cats they just like, and when they see them, they tend to use them in their finals. Danny the Siamese is one of these cats that a lot of judges like.
(Of course, him hugging the judge when they come to get him from his cage doesn’t hurt!)
This was the Mansfield show in 2012.
At the Seacoast show in 2013, Russell gave him a Best Allbreed Cat in Premiership rosette.
I was thrilled! Russell has actually placed Jake 1st, 2nd and 3rd at Seacoast shows.
Sometimes I wonder if Jake remembers Russell.
I think he does.
I know he remembers Iris Zinck, and he’s seen Russell so many times I’m sure he knows him.
This was Boxborough, and Russell placed him Second in his ring (which I believe was an Allbreed ring).
At the first Nemo show, Russell again named Jake his Best Cat in Premiership, this time in a Specialty (shorthairs only) ring.
(These photos were taken by Bille Axell – I love them!)
Then, last year at Seacoast, we ran into Russell again.
And, once again, Jake did well in his ring.
He was Second Best Allbreed Cat in Premiership! He was also Second Best Shorthair Cat in Premiership at the second Nemo show, but I seem not to have gotten any photos of that.
Which brings us to the most recent Seacoast show. You can tell Jake and Russell are old pals by now.
Notice Russell’s hands-off presentation.
I just adore watching Russell describe Jake and Abyssinians. I actually love watching him describe all the breeds.
I think they’re both superstars!
The fun thing about cat shows is meeting other Aby people. At the Seacoast show, I met Matt Baker from Diva Abyssinians in Baltimore.
He brought two Abys with him. One was a Ruddy girl, CH Diva’s Next Best Thing.
Isn’t she pretty?
She looks like a kitten, but she’s 2½ years old!
Matt calls her “Cuddles” – look at those grabby Aby hands!
The other Aby he brought was CH Diva’s Ulterior Motive, an 11 month old red.
He is the son of son of GC, BW, RW Shera Len Killian Red.
Now here’s the fun part: We saw his father back when he was a kitten in 2011 at the Groton, CT show where Jacoby Granded!) Like I always like to say, the Aby world is small indeed.
The Daily Abyssinian...and Singapura 