Conference misery::feline

    Mine go wild for the "kitty tease".....I think that's what you
    mean by the sparkler thing.  However, they don't like the ones
    with a wood stick handle, tho'...but they go nuts over the one 
    with the flexable plastic handle.
    B.K. even brings it to us now while we are in bed, or the 
    bathroom....(:    

    I have some friends here in California that have their own cat toy
    business.  It started out as them making toys for their cats and
    friend's cats, and pretty soon everyone at the shows wanted to buy
    their toys.  They now have a full line of cat toys, and all are
    terrific.
    
    One of my cats favorites is called The Rabbit Racer.  It is a dowel
    with a long strip of leather attached to the end, and on the end of the
    leather string is a 4 inch piece of rabit fur.  The cats go nuts over
    this toy!  
    
    Debbie and Terry have created their dowel toys to have inter-changeable
    toys on the end of the strings.  Once you get the dowel part, you can
    just buy replacement toys for the end of the strings if you wish.  They
    have many different models. They also have one that has feathers and
    spins when you twirl it around.  Theirs also have the addition of two
    strips of mylar ribbon with the feather, and the mylar ribbons make a
    whistling sort of noise that really gets the cats attention.
    
    Debbie has now quit her day job and is managing the cat toy business
    full time.  I have some brochures at home that have descriptions of all
    the toys, prices, and an order form.  I will bring them in and send
    them to whoever wants one.
    
    Jo

    To get a 25 pound Tiki II to exercise we got him...
    
    a little "brother"...Rico!  ;^)
    
    K.C.

    KC, my husband would strangle you if he knew you suggested a "friend". 
    Chubs is not getting any more playmates!  
    
    Bill is having a hard time with his allergies and contact lenses.  He
    said that maybe one of the cats would have to go.  I've already decided
    that he's the one to go.  He doesn't agree. :^)

    Jo,
    I would like one of those catalogs.  
    
    Karen

      me too!  I want one of those catalogs!
    
      thanks   Denise Provencher
               TWO/D19
            

Yes Jo, I'd love to have one too.  MSO2-2/A9.  Thanks!

When we got the three old ladies about a year ago, they were all major porkers!
They've trimmed down quite a bit and now the weigh in at 10 lbs for Honey and
Marni and 11 pounds for Lila.  Much better than they were!

The way we did it was play with them with a kitty teaser every night.  There
are many different kinds, and some cats will only play with certain kinds.
You can get these things at cat shows or at some pet stores.  best place is
Haddleigh house.  This place is mentioned in the "Cat products on sale" note.
If I gave you directions, you'd be lost for sure, so I'll let someone else
do that.

Also, how much food is he getting?  You may want to cut down on his amount
of wet food as well.  My guys between six of them get one large can of food
in the morning and one at night.  the other three (the old ladies) only get
Showbound ground meat for cats.  Also purchased at Haddleigh house.

Goodluck!

Holly

      Me too! Me too! Hamilton's birthday is coming up and I'm running out of
    ideas for presents. Are you sending the brochure through interplant
    mail? If so, Bunni Rivard, SPO BLD102/3.
    
    Thanx,
    b.r., Hamilton & Abby
     

    Rather than cluttering up this note with "I want one!" replies, why not
    just send Jo a quick mail message?  That way there, we can get back to
    the topic.  
    
    Chubs and Zelda split a small can of cat food each morning, so they are
    not getting a lot of canned food.  They make attempts at trying to get
    us to give them more canned food at night, however, we have found that
    too much was giving them the runs.  
    
    We've been successful in getting Chubs to chase pingpong balls around
    on the hardwood floor.  It figures, the only hardwood floor we have is
    in the dining room - the room we are trying to keep them out of.  :^)
    He and Zelda have been very energetic lately.  They've even mastered
    how to corner Lea and also with chasing her from one room to another. 
    If anyone saw the David Letterman special the other night with the dogs
    that herded the sheep into the taxi, they'll know exactly what I'm
    talking about!  :^)
    
    The Haddll...whatever House in Sudbury is over an hour from home.  If
    anyone knows of a similar shop in southern or central New Hampshire,
    please let me know.  Thanks, Cheryl

	re: .0

	I love your description of trying to get Chubs to play.  Bandit
	is exactly like that!!  Lazy as anything.  Rarely plays with
	T.K. anymore either.  

	I have no solutions.  No toy is interesting enough to Bandit
	to get him to move!

	Karen

    If I want to have my rather-elderly cats get a bunch of exercise, I
    leave out either a grocery bag or the laundry basket!  This is
    especially effective at night when I am trying to sleep - I lazily
    didn't bother to take the empty gorcery bags down to the storeroom in
    the (FREEZING) basement before I went to bed last night, and the
    kitties were in noise-making heaven until I got up and hid them!
    
    /Charlotte

    The best exercise I found for Mittens (other than Peaches, our
    latest edition) is the fly toys (a.k.a. sparklers, feathers, etc)
    The problem is they get so addicted to them though.  We really
    can't let Peaches play with it too long or she looks as though
    she's having little kitty heart attacks.  But Mittens just loves
    them - in fact he sits outside the pantry crying (that's where we
    had to hide it now) until you pull it out for him.  It became his
    nightly ritual!  I'm writing for a catalog!
    
    Cindy
    

    Chubs really took me for all I'm worth last night.  I was trying to
    comb Zelda and Chubs was watching.  (He knows he's safe cause he still
    doesn't have much fur)  Zelda was squirming so I brought out the Pounce
    treats and gave her one.  She inhaled the treat and then casually
    rolled over to let me continue the combing.  

    Little to my knowledge, Mr. Pigly Wigly Chubs himself had taken off
    with the can of Pounce.  Suddenly we heard this strange noise coming
    from down the hall.  There in the library was Chubs with the Pounce
    can, hiding inside an empty box.  The little *(@&#, he scoffed the can
    right out from under my nose!  He only had it for maybe two minutes
    tops, yet he had punctured it in so many places that the treats were
    almost coming out the holes.  :^)  

    Well, we now know a way to exercise Chubs.  Take all the Pounce treats
    out of the can except one and roll the can across the living room.  He
    goes *nuts* chasing this thing around.  Is chewing on a box bad for a
    cat?  I don't want him to ingest something he shouldn't.

    For those of you who have sent me mail about the cat toy brochures, I
    just want you to know that I had to call Debbie and ask her to send me
    a few more (like 2 dozen!) brochures so I can give them out.  It will
    be several days before you see them.  As soon as she gets them to me I
    will send them out.
    
    Thanks for your interest in these toys!  Our kitties love them.  Hope
    yours will too.
    
    Jo

    re: 180.15
    
    Oh, would you please send me one?  (Mail Stop SHR1-3/O1)
    
    Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou
    
        ............ from Junietunes (person), Harry (the Rat) and Wumpkin

    Okay guys, new plan.  There has been an overwhelming response to this
    note for the Kitty Company brochure.  From today forward, anyone else
    who wishes a brochure, please send me a self-addressed, stamped
    envelope and I will mail you back the brochure.  
    
    Jo Ann Cordes Brown
    P.O. Box 1528
    Morgan Hill, CA 95038
    
    If you had requested a brochure prior to today, you need not send this
    SASE as your brochure has already been mailed out.
    
    Thanks for your understanding.
    
    Jo                   

    Jo,
    
    Do you happen to know if out of state orders have to pay a sales tax or
    is the 7 1/4% tax only for California residents?
    
    The "whimsical wands" look like a lot of fun.  :^)

    Not sure Cheryl.  7 1/4% is the rate in Terry and Debbie's area.  I
    would call them and ask them.
    
    Jo

    I got mine!  Thank you Jo.  I've got an order ready to buy 2 of them. 
    They look great!  :-)
    
    Karen

    Hi,
    
     I just sent out an order on Monday to get a couple of the toys from
    Kiddy Kompany. I added the 7.24% sales tax, and I also added in a
    couple of dollars extra for shipping and handling. It didn't state
    whether shipping was included in the price, but they are priced so
    reasonably to start with, I decided it didn't and added in a couple of
    extra bucks.
    
     I'll let you know how the girls like them when I get them. I can't
    wait!
    
    Y

    I saw Debbie at a show last weekend and she was telling me that they
    are now offering a "sampler" of one of everything at a reduced price. 
    If any of you are interested, give her a call and ask.  I don't want to
    quote the price since I may have remembered it wrong.
    
    Jo

Jo,

please tell me I can get peacock feathers at the show this weekend...Hana
will actually play with them, so I plan on stocking up.

				D

    As Nippa loses weight, she is getting peppier and more active....so
    we have started a new game.   I can't get her to stop begging me to 
    play it now....
    
    She has a small stuffed bunny, which she playes with all the time.  I
    tied a string around it's neck....and start running all over the house
    with her chasing the bunny....the faster I go, the faster she goes.
    Now every time I come home she races to the bunny and sits there with
    this look which says, come on mom...let's play!
    
    I think I've created a monster........

    Re. .23:  Peacock feathers.
    
         Is there anything special about these Peacock feathers, or are
    they just regular pluck-the-peacock-and-give-to-the-cat tail-feathers?
    If the latter is true, I have a few ... plus I can get some from my
    breeder, who houses our turkeys, pheasants and (yes) peacock for the
    winter ...
    
    					- Andrea

    They are just plain old peacock feathers.  And yes, with 44 vendors at
    the show this weekend, I am fairly certain someone will have peacock
    feathers. :')
    
    Jo

         What I meant was, if any in the Marlboro area wants a peacock
    feather, I have a few.  Just send me mail!
    
    					- Andrea

re: .26  

oh good!  Missy Hana has been very unhappy with me...I have not been able
to find her feathers...and she cannot play "kitty monster behind the door"
without her feathers.  And only prime peacock feathers will do.  Sigh.
it is difficult keeping everyone in this family supplied with necessities.

			D-who-doesn't-spoil-her-felines-much

    Hi,
    
     I got my order from Kiddy Kompany Monday! I think it was one week from
    when I mailed my order! Real nice turn around time. ;-)
    
     My girls absolutely love these toys! I got the Spinning Sparrow, with
    one refill, and the Rabbit Racer. They love them both!
    
     If anyone has not yet received one of the flyers, send me mail, and
    I'll get one to you. They are very well made, and being able to buy
    refills on some of the toys is very convenient!
    
     Thanks for pointing this company out to us Jo! I'll be a customer for
    a long time! ;-)
    
    Y

HELP!!  I need the number for this place!  I need to place an order to 
be shipped to another country and have to talk to them about it!

FYI, I received my order a long time ago and absolutely love all of the
stuff I got.  I got a rabbit chaser, a kitty flyer (is that what it's called?
the one with the feathers and streamers) and that one with the ball and
streamers.

I've got to say that Kyra likes the rabbit chaser the best.  The funniest
thing happened with it last week!  She got a hold of the "rabbit" and
somehow got the toy out of my hand.  The went running through the house
with the "rabbit" in her mouth and the pole dragging behind her.  She 
couldn't figure out how to get away from the pole!!  But didn't want me
to come near her because she didn't want me to get the "rabbit"!!  hahaha!!

Holly

    
    Jo,
    
    Do your friends have an actual store or is this a mail order business?
    I would love to get my furfaces some new toys... all their goodies just
    seem to disappear ;^)
    
    Becky

    They do mail order, and vend through other stores.  There toys are in
    many stores in the Bay Area, but mostly the north bay.  The toys are
    also available at cat shows in this area.
    
    Jo

I absolutely love these toys.  In fact, so much that I had her send one to
a friend in Australia!  he had sent me some australian chocolates and I decided
to send something to him in return.  He's got four cats and they absolutely 
love these teasers!  I sent him a spinning sparrow and a replacement sparrow.
The woman also sent him two other replacements, free of charge!

The reactions that I heard of were really funny.  My friend said that one
of his cats that is used to being dive bombed by cats actually ducked! (-:
One ignored it, but the other two proceeded to try and "kill" it!

They're GREAT toys!  ALL of my kitties (including the 15 year old!)
will play with it for hours!!!

Holly

    Guess what?  Debbie came up with a new toy.  It is actually an
    attachment that you can hook onto your fishing pole style.  It looks
    like a spider.  It is lots and lots of one inch pieces of the black
    fishing line gathered in the middle (kind of like a bow tie) and then
    attached to the long piece of fishing line.  I know that she hasn't
    started selling them yet, but she gave me two of them and my cats went
    absolutely nuts!!!  Better response to these than we got with the
    feathers!!
    
    Not sure what she will call this one, but I call it the "bug".  Ask her
    about it next time you order.  I am not sure when she will start
    marketing these.
    
    Jo 

    I started this note nearly a year ago and may as well follow up on
    things...  We were recently very successful in getting Chubs to
    exercise.  A mere $1.50 toy was what did it.  

    While was ordering supplies from Cherrybrook in NJ a few weeks ago, I
    inquired what their best selling toy was. and told them to throw one in
    with my order.  Well, this dinky little piece of wire with some brown
    twisted things at the end (a kitty tease I think it's called) came on
    Christmas Eve and it turned out to be the highlight of holidays!  Chubs
    loves to bat this thing around although Zelda is the one that is into
    this toy...  For $1.50, it's the best and cheapest entertainment we've
    had in a while!

    Cheryl, I got that for my kids too (from Cherrybrook) and they tore it
    apart in no time!!
    
    I remember being very disappointed in the toy upon opening it, but the
    cats sure weren't!
    
    -Roberta
    

    It's called a Cat Dancer, and my kids love it.  I've exported quite a
    few to Lisa in UK and her kids love it too.  I took some to NZ when I
    visited some fellow cat lovers and DECies.  
      
    The local pet stores carry it and I've also seen it at cat shows.  It's
    amazing, it's such a nothing looking toy but the cats love it.  And
    that's what matters, right?
    
    Steffi  

    Has anyone seen the toy lately with the 2 feather on the end of a
    string attached to a clear rod?  When you whip the feathers around,
    they turn around in circle, almost looks like a bird flapping its
    wings.
    
    Talk about hysterical.  My pookie has done the highest of high jumps to
    get that little baby.  She runs around in circles chasing.  It's neat
    because it looks like its flying.
    
    My Precious grabbed it the first time, sat on it and growled at all of
    us watching making sure we didn't get near it.  Did she think it was
    alive?   hahahahahahahah

    
    	YES!! I bought one for my kids and they go NUTS over it - if
    	I go to the fridge and reach up to get it, Punkin is right there
    	chattering at me, and he jumps almost 3 feet off the ground to
    	get it, doing backflips! What a hoot... 
    
    	Actually, I just bought the feather part (ie - refill!) and made
    	my own out of a dowel and some string, saved a few bucks...
    
    	Sherry
    

    
    Sounds wonderful, where can I find one? and what is it called?
    
    Shaw

    	I make these all the time for my cats, including the feather parts.
    They love it. Every Thursday is "bird" day. Kai knows when I say,
    "where's the bird!", it's time to play because he heads for the closet.
    	Shaw, if your interested, I have one in my office I brought in to
    show some one. Let me know.
    
    Mike