Hi, friends. Me again. Raspberry, shelter manager at Cats Haven. I'm gonna write a real short blog here because I have just a couple of things to tell you all. Plus Miranda is making tuna-stuffed chicken for dinner, and I think it's just about done. With all of these kittens here, I don't want to be late for dinner . . . otherwise there'll be nothing left for little Raspberry!!!

First, I've got to tell you all about Bruce. We got a call yesterday about a kitten who had been hit by a car. Barb said that we'd help him, and for the person who found him to take him to The Cat Doctor. When the kitten arrived at the clinic, the staff called Barb to let her know that this little guy had no left ear, and his right eye will need to be removed. Well, The Other Sue was scheduled to pick up Cantaloupe from the clinic, and Barb asked her to take a picture of the new kitten. Sue took her camera to get a shot or two of this injured little guy, but she wasn't prepared for what she saw. There is no way this small black-and-white kitten has been hit by a car. His left ear flap is completely gone . . . and the injury sewed up so it looks like he never had an ear at all. And the right side of his face, well, I can't describe it except to say that it's terribly swollen, completely infected, and the eye is not even recognizable. Drs. Johns and Myra will do surgery on him tomorrow morning. But it appears that the ear was removed a while ago because the stitches are nearly healed. The side of the face looks like it was injured just a few days ago. This is awful. I just can't believe that someone would do something like this to a 12-week-old kitten, but they did. This is the absolute worst. The staff at The Cat Doctor has named our little boy Bruce after tough-guy Bruce Willis. He's obviously a fighter and will hopefully make it through this terrible injury, but at the same time he's a lover and enjoys being held and petted. I'd post his pictures on our website, but I bet many of you wouldn't want to see them. So tomorrow morning, if you all could take a moment out and send good thoughts to Bruce at The Cat Doctor, hopefully all that good cat energy will help him. 

And now, on to the best!!! Friday, Barb and her (our) Gypsy Cat jewelry will be holding a fundraiser at B Java Coffee, 56th and Lafayette Road. Weather permitting, I think Teddy is going to join her, so if you're looking for a great place to have a wonderful iced coffee drink or a light lunch, stop by B Java between 11:30 and 1:30 and visit with Barb. Just next door to B Java is Puerto Valerta, a really good Mexican restaurant, and down the sidewalk is Eh Fromaggio, a great Italian joint! So take a co-worker to lunch tomorrow and buy some one-of-a-kind, hand-made jewelry . . . and help the kitties of Cats Haven!! And don't forget that we'll be at the Speedway Petco on Saturday from 1 til 3:30 with a nice group of adoptable kitties. Even if you can't adopt right now, stop by and spend some time with us. We love to see everyone! 

Miranda just called us for dinner, so I better scoot. Those kittens absolutely inhale food and if I'm gonna get dinner tonight, I gotta hurry! Later, folks. Don't forget about sending out that healing energy to our new friend Bruce!!! - Raspberry 

Hi, friends!! How is everyone on this gorgeous Monday morning? I hope everybody is doing well and is  enjoying this purrrr-fect weather! I'm hoping to take a break later this week and head out to the Indiana State Fair. Miranda and I have a lot to do around the shelter, but we might be able to sneak out for a couple of hours and hit the pork chop and roasted corn tents. Miranda and I also want to visit the chicken and bunny barn . . . it's a cat thing, you know. So I've got lots of news to tell you all. Ready? Here goes.

First, our "organic mousetrap" promotion is going very well. We've found jobs for Gareesh, JoeLee (Miss Squirrel), and a few other top-notch mousers! In this economy, jobs are hard to find, so congrats to our organic mousetrap team for landing gainful employment. We have more organic mousetraps, if you know of anyone who wants to hire professional rodent controllers. You need 'em? We've got 'em!  And they come in several different colors. I'm sure we've got one who will match your interior or exterior decor. Also, congrats to our friend Wobbles who went to his new home a couple of weeks ago. Way to go, Wobbles!! Thank you to Wobbles new mom for giving our special-needs friend a chance to have his very own home and family. And congrats to Maurice! Maurice was kind of like a big white rug at the shelter, and now he graces the floors of his new home. My kitten friend Echo also found his new home with Sonja, one of our stellar volunteers. Echo came from Indianapolis Animal Care and Control as a tiny baby. He's got a great home now, kinky tail and all. Sonja, please make sure Echo (I hear you're calling him Petey) keeps up with his studies. He was doing very well with math and geography, but needed a little help with language skills.  So a big Woo Hoo to everyone who has found their fur-ever homes!

I've got other shelter news, too. Barb (and I, or course) recently applied for and received a $1,000 grant!! Yippee!! Our dream of having a garage and a fence is getting closer to being a reality! Barb and Cindy Cox (and I, of course) are looking into more grants opportunities, and hopefully we'll have more capital improvement funds before too long. And a group called Vision 3 has chosen us to be one of their 'projects' over the next couple of months. This group will take a look at our logo and our website, and see what suggestions and improvements they can make. Thanks, Vision 3 folks! Also, we're in the planning stages now for our October 11th Fall Frolic. Just like we did this spring with our Spring Fling, we'll have vendors, food, free pet food samples . . . all kinds of fun. If you'd like to volunteer for this event, call The Other Sue at 317-329-8219. Stay tuned for more details.

You want more news? Why not. We've had some unhappy things happen recently. Last week, my best friend in the whole world Dzana got mugged while waiting for a bus in Fountain Square. Some mean punk came up to her and stole her purse! He not only scared my friend Dzana, but he stole her money, her medicine, and her bus pass that she'd just purchased for the month. The police were called, but they didn't find this little criminal. If I find him first, I'm planning to neuter him. Thankfully, Dzana is OK and didn't get hurt, but it wasn't a good way for her to start the day. She was just trying to get to the shelter that morning to help. Our friend Amy Van Ostrand with Indiana-PAW lost her dog friend Wyatt last Thursday. She, Derek, and her fuzzy family were just starting to heal from losing their dog friend Melanie when Wyatt was diagnosed with lymphoma. He received chemotherapy for several weeks and it seemed to be working well. But last week, Wyatt crashed. Wyatt joined his dog sister Melanie at the Rainbow Bridge last Thursday evening. Amy, Derek, and family, my heart goes out to you all. And my good friend The Other Sue lost her dog friend, Chloe, too. Chloe was an older Lhasa lady, and seemingly in good health. But she had a debilitating stroke early one morning, and Chloe joined her cat friend Rudy (who had crossed just a couple of weeks before) at the Rainbow Bridge.  Sue referred to Chloe as the "rare and exotic waddling Lotta Lhasa" because she was a stocky gal. Chloe is very much missed by Sue and the rest of her fuzzmates. And one last piece of sad news . . . we lost our old friend Sinclair. Sinclair ended up at Indianapolis Animal Care and Control a while back, his family not wanting to deal with an old cat man with cancer. So Barb took him, had a malignant tumor removed, and he lived for a while with The Other Sue. He spent his final months at the shelter, enjoying the upstairs kitchen with all of his kitty friends. But recently his cancer returned and his old black and white fuzzy body gave up. Rest in peace, my friend Sinclair. You have many friends waiting for you at the Bridge.

Wow, I almost forgot to say a big THANK YOU to WalMart for all the donated litter and food!! And THANK YOU to the original Sue for making the trek down to Seymour every week to pick up all of these donations. Because of WalMart and Sue, we've been able to keep our Pet Food Pantry stocked and help Indianapolis Animal Care and Control as well as other rescue groups and shelters in the Indianapolis area. If any of you would like to help with our weekly WalMart runs, you can always donate a gift card to help defray gas costs. It costs us $30 to make the trip down and back, but it's worth every cent. IACC doesn't have a food budget and they rely on donated food to feed all of the animals in their shelter. So these WalMart donations not only help Cats Haven, but they help many other animals, too.  

Well, friends, it's coming up on 1 in the afternoon, and I hear Miranda upstairs, setting up the chalkboard for the afternoon kitten classes. It's such a gorgeous day outside that we're all going to sit in the windows and learn to identify the different types of birds. And then later this afternoon, Miranda is teaching a cooking class! What a wonderful Monday! Here's hoping your week is starting out as well as ours here at the shelter. I'll blog again soon . . . Raspberry

Hi, guys! I just realized that it's been about a month since I last wrote in my blog. I can't believe the summer is zipping by so quickly, but taking care of all these kittens certainly helps pass the time. So how have you all been? I hope everyone is enjoying the sunshine and warm weather . . . and hopefully we're done with all that miserable rain! 

I've got lots of shelter news to tell you about. First, we had a great time over July 4th weekend at InConJunction, the annual sci-fi/fantasy event. Barb and Teddy spent three great days promoting the shelter and selling a lot of our gorgeous Gypsy Cat jewelry. 'Wish I could have gone this year, but I had to stay home and tend to all the kittens. We've had a record crop of kittens this year, with 20 more coming into the shelter this past Friday. We've got black one, orange ones, calicos, striped kittens, spotted kittens . . . I'm not sure, but I think we might even have a purple one in the mix somewhere! So Miranda and I have been super busy taking care of all these little guys. Sparkle, the ultimate mom-cat, has been helping out a lot, too. And so has Dzana. She loves the babies. 

We had another Kitten Kaboodle at Pet Supplies Plus on Rockville Road a few weeks ago. No one got adopted, but we all had a great time. I hear that Pet Supplies Plus has moved a little further west, and we'll be doing adoptions out there next Saturday. 'Can't wait to see the new store! Foster Mom Chris had two adoptions this past weekend, tho, and Lela keeps getting kitties adopted out, too. My good friend Maurice went to a new home last Sunday, and I hear that someone is interested in three new Organic Mousetraps. Animae seems to have found a new home, too. Congratulations to everyone who has found their familes!

We've got one gal who really needs a home, tho. Her name is Juno, and she's currently hanging out at The Cat Doctor at 56th and Georgetown. Juno is black and white, and very very nice. But she doesn't like other cats, and she really doesn't like dogs. Juno needs a home where she can be an only child, so if you know of anyone who is looking for a single kitty, let us know. Thank you to Dr. Johns for helping Juno find her home!

We had some nice folks from Pet Angels at our last Cat-a-holics meeting. They brought a wonderful pizza dinner for everyone, and did a very nice presentation about their services. Thanks to Pet Angels for coming by. You three gorgeous women are welcome here anytime. Merrrrr-owwwww! :) 

Hey, I almost forgot! My friend Alex (Barb's grandson) spent a few days with us. Alex is such a cool guy. He and I played video games, and he tried to teach me to play the violin. That didn't work out too well, tho. It's hard to play that thing with no opposable thumbs. Alex is doing GREAT with his violin, tho. I hope he gets to come back and visit again soon.  

We're still looking into grants to help get things done around the shelter. And we're even gonna try to get a new van with grant money! Keep your paws and toes crossed for us. We really need to get the fence put up this year, and we'd still love to have the garage in place before cold weather sets in. Cindy Cox has been slaving away, trying to get these grant proposals written for us so we can continue to fix the shelter house as well as secure the property. Thanks, Cindy!!

I want to extend my personal sympathies to Rebecca Furnish, whose mom passed away a couple of days ago. Rebecca, I'm very sorry for your loss. If you need to talk or come by and hug a kitten or two, we're always here for you. Just let us know what we can do. And to the Other Sue, I am sorry to hear that you lost your friend, Rudy. He was a wonderful guy, and I know you miss him very much. We also lost Willa recently. Willa was a great little black and white gal who lost her life to cancer. We all miss Willa very much, and Barb is still very sad.

I better get back to the kittens. I just can't believe how many we've got! Everyone is more than welcome to come by and play with these guys. They'd love to meet each and every one of you! So I'm off now to help serve Sunday dinner to a gazillion kittens. Wow, just look at all these guys! Later, friends. - Raspberry 

Hi, friends! This is just a quick blog about a mistake that I made on our website. At least, Barb and The Other Sue are telling me that I made an error. A-hem. I begged to differ. I thought I had made a mistake once, but I was wrong. HOWEVER, on the Calendar page, *someone* had the date of our Kitten Kaboodle this weekend listed as June 21. Well, it's not. It's June 22 . . . Sunday. Just to be purrrrr-fectly clear, our Kitten Kaboodle at Pet Supplies Plus on Rockville Road is this Sunday (the day after Saturday), June 22 (the day after June 21) from noon until 4. 

While I'm here, I want to let you all know that we're still finding kittens. The Original Sue found several babycats in a carrier on someone's porch, left there with no momma. And at the shelter, we have a few more than we had last week. It's like a kitten blizzard in June! Miranda and I are going to be busy for the rest of the year taking care of all these little guys and getting them to sit still in our kitten classes. We had one class this morning that included the tiny babies as well as the slightly older ones . . . the class was Chase the Round Thing Across the Floor 101. Everyone did super!  After class, they all had lunch, I read them a story while Miranda gave them their juice boxes, and then everyone took a nap. Right now, they're all in their afternoon class, which is Face, Ear, and Paw Hygiene. It'll be over soon, so I better start setting the table for dinner.

Hope to see a bunch of you at the Kitten Kaboodle this weekend . . . Sunday . . . June 22! Raspberry, over and out! - Raspberry

Oh, boy. You guys just wouldn't believe it. We have even MORE kittens at the shelter. Like over 20 more kittens tonight than we had this morning. How did this happen? Well, Barb and the Other Sue took off this afternoon to go to the Indianapolis Animal Care and Control board meeting, just like they do every month. A couple of hours later, Barb and the Other Sue came back and started moving crates and cages around, filling up litter pans, and preparing food and water dishes. I had a feeling something was up . . . and I was right! A little while later, the Original Sue and my buddy Dzana came in with carrier after carrier of KITTENS! When Barb, the Other Sue, and the Original Sue were at Animal Care and Control, they found all of these babycats in the intake room, and because these guys were so little and didn't have any mommies, they were going to be put down. They're so tiny, like maybe three weeks old. And very dirty and hungry . . . so we spent the rest of the evening getting these guys cleaned up and fed, and they're all in their kitten beds now, clean and full of food and safe. Barb said that we need to let the rest for tonight, and then Miranda and I will start getting them registered tomorrow morning for Kitten Classes, but here's the deal. WE NEED HELP!!!! Folks, I don't ask for help very often. But with all the kittens we have here now, there are some things that we need. Things like

• Jars of baby food . . . chicken, turkey, ham, and veal; not junior foods, but the little jars of moooooshy baby food
• Baby wipes
• Paper towels
• Kitten food in the next couple of weeks
• Vinegar and bleach
• Clay litter
• Gift cards for Petsmart, Petco, Pet Supplies Plus, WalMart, Target, and other places where we can get the supplies we need

I would personally appreciate any supplies that you guys can donate. Without Barb and our volunteers, these little innocent lives would be lost by now. These kittens were literally minutes away from being killed, gone forever. We just couldn't let that happen. Please help us if you can. If you could just see these little faces . . . Hey, you can! C'mon by the shelter and meet all of our residents! I guarantee that you'll fall in love. :)

I've also got other shelter news! This past Monday, Cats Haven in cooperation with IndyFeral had 35 free-roaming cats from Fountain Square spayed and neutered at the Hamilton County Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Clinic. Most of these kitties were females, so just think of how many kittens they could have had . . . and how many kittens those kitten could have had . . . and so on and so on. AND we're doing it again this coming Monday. IndyFeral's spay/neuter schedule is so booked up, so we decided to jump in and just 'get 'er done,' as the Other Sue says. There is a big need in the Fountain Square area to get these free-roamers fixed, and as the summer goes on and finances allow, we'll continue to meet that need. 

More shelter news? Well, of course! Barb and our, er I mean, HER fan-tabulous Gypsy Cat jewelry will be at the Noblesville Garden Tour this Saturday from 10 til 4. Check out our Calendar page for the location, but this sounds like a really cool event! You can tour all kinds of gardens (I wonder if anyone has a catnip garden?), see antique bicycles and tractors . . . and find that purr-fect necklace, bracelet, or earrings just in time to look gorgeous for Father's Day. Barb and I have been working really hard to whip up some new designs in all kinds of bright summer colors just for this event. She'll also have some of our world-famous, hand-made catnip toys, too. I know my dad would have loved a new catnip toy for Father's Day! I bet yours would, too!   

I hear a couple of the new babies crying, so I guess it's time to curl up with them and purrrrrrr them back to sleep. I want to thank you all in advance for your donations, help, and support. I've said this before, but I'll say it again. Cats Haven has the very bestest volunteers and supporters ever in the whole world. Without you guys, we wouldn't be able to help the ones we do. From the bottom of my orange striped heart, thank you all. - Raspberry

Hi, everyone!! It looks like summer is *finally* here, but I can do without all the stormy weather. Wow, that thunder sure is loud! The kittens were afraid of all the noise until I told them that thunder is just the sound of angel kitties bowling in heaven. Now when they hear thunder, they giggle. Of course, we all know that thunder is actually the big cat god Leo rolling potatoes downhill, but the kittens like the bowling story better.

So it's been quite a week around the shelter here. Aside from the storms, we've got another mom and her new-born kittens staying with us for a while. That means Miranda and I will be teaching Kitten Classes all summer. Woo hoo!!! I love to teach kitten classes. We've found that they're never too young to learn about purring, head-butting, and the all-important selective hearing. So aside from the new babies, we're gearing up for Scales and Tails at the Indiana State Museum this coming Saturday. I have to stay at the shelter, but I think Miranda will get to go. And Barb is talking to a couple of others about going, too. So we're getting kitties , toys, and jewelry ready to go on Saturday, putting in all the air conditioners, getting momma cats spayed now that their babies are big enough, and getting some of the babies spayed and neutered, too, so they're ready to go when their new families find them. We're planning a Kitten Kaboodle at Pet Supplies Plus on June 21st, and next Saturday Barb will be at a Garden Tour in Noblesville. More info on that early next week. Oh, and we're already planning for the annual IVEC Pet Carnival in July, so we've got a lot of fun stuff coming up.

Barb and the Other Sue have been feverishly working on a new Volunteer Manual and Foster Manual that we'll be rolling out in a few weeks. We've gotten so many folks who want to help us that we're actually going to have a volunteer orientation class! How cool is that!? If you or someone you know might want to volunteer at the shelter or at some of our events, just have them contact the shelter. There is always so much to do around here. Hey, maybe I should put my own Kitten Class Manual together, and you guys could help teach the kittens! You'd need to be experienced with sleeping in the sun, rolling around in catnip, and throwing up hairballs when company comes to visit. 

Oh, the other BIG news is that I've put together another YouTube video!! Check it out at  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPHamFfshek I think you'll like this one!

That's all for now, friends. I hope everyone is having a wonderful week, and Miranda says that she's looking forward to seeing many of you at the Scales and Tails event this Saturday! Stay cool, everyone. Cool just like the RazMan!! Hahahaha! - Raspberry

Good morning, friends! Boy, it sure is quiet around the shelter house this morning. Miranda took  several of the kittens on a field trip to the track, so they'll be gone most of the day. (Yes, I remembered to pack sunscreen for them as well as their juice boxes.) 'Wish I could have gone with them, but I'm taking care of the tiny babies while the older ones are out having a really fun day.

My main reason for blogging this morning is to let you all know that Cats Haven will not be at the Rally's Flea and Farmers market on west 86th Street today. We were there Friday and Saturday, and our tent kept falling over because of the wind. Barb and I made the executive decision to not go today, so if you're planning to come by and sit a spell with Barb, please know that she won't be there. We've got all kinds of other events planned in the coming week, however.

Our good friend Amy Van Ostrand of  IndyPAW needs a lot of good, positive energy sent her way right now. Her dog friend Melanie is very sick, and while the vets are doing all they can do for her, all of our prayers and good thoughts need to be directed towards Melanie and her family. Hang in there, Amy. We see miracles here at the shelter every single day. All the cats and kittens here are putting out lots and lots of powerful healing energy to Melanie. Most of us here at the shelter aren't sure what a dog actually is, but if you love her, that's all we need to know. Please keep us posted, Amy, and let us know how she's doing . . . and how YOU are doing as well. Big kitty hugs to you.

Wow, with Miranda and the kittens gone for another few hours, I can actually take a nap! Have a good day everyone! - Raspberry

Hi, friends!!! Wow, is it a gorgeous day today or what? Kinda chilly, but it's so nice to see the sun! Today at the shelter, our morning kitten class was all about lounging in the sun, getting warm, and ignoring anyone who asks us to move. Everyone did great, too! Some of the kittens already have that tail flick down without a lot of instruction. We truly have a crop of exceptional kittens this season!!

Did you guys know that we've got an event going on this weekend? We do!! We've got a booth at the Rally's Flea and Farmer's Market at 86th and Michigan Road! This is such a cool event because there are all kinds of booths and they've got specials on burger, hot dogs, fries, and drinks. They also have a DJ playing dance music . . . maybe we can get Barb dancing again like we did last weekend, hmmm? More on that in a minute. Hahaha! But if you're out and about over the weekend and feel like grabbing a burger and some tasty fries, stop by and have lunch with Barb. She's got catnip toys for sale as well as some of her PURRR-FECT Gypsy Cat beaded jewelry. Y'never know, maybe I'll be there, too!!

For the moment, I've got to get back to the kittens. Miranda is handing out their pre-nap juice boxes and we've got so many babies that she needs help. But I'll blog more over the weekend and tell you all about our Spring Fling! Wow, did we ever have a good time! I got to spend the day out in the yard, meeting and greeting guests . . . I'll tell you all about it later. For now, have a good weekend! - Raspberry 

Hello again, friends! Raspberry, shelter manager for Cats Haven, here blogging on a Monday night. I sure hope everyone had a good weekend. The weather was good and we were all enjoying the smells and sounds of Spring as we sat in the windows this weekend and today. I love Spring. It's my favorite time of year . . . next to Summer, and Thanksgiving, and Christmas, and . . . 

I have some good news and bad news tonight. Let's get the bad news out of the way first. My good friend Sue (the original Sue, not the Other Sue) had a very bad day today. Her old friend Sailor the dog started failing last night, and he crossed over late this morning. Sue had found Sailor along the side of Interstate 65 back in February, cold, hungry, thirsty, and dying. So she stopped and picked him up and took him to her house. He was a mess, and the vet said he was very very old. But over the last few months, he's had a home with a soft bed, lots of good food, plenty of water, and people to love him. Last night, tho, his old body just couldn't take any more. And by this morning, he was in pretty bad shape. So Sailor was given permission to cross the Rainbow Bridge, and that's where he'll wait for Sue and Mil to join him later down the road. Sue, I'm really sorry you lost your friend, but you did a wonderful thing by caring for an old dog that someone had just left to die along the side of the road. All of us kitties at the shelter send big fuzzy hugs your way, and we're planning a ceremony later tonight to wish your friend Sailor safe passage. 

We have also lost a few kittens, too. Kittens are such fragile things, especially when they are very very young. We've had to say goodbye to Waldo and his brother, a couple of the feral kittens, and a couple more. It's not unusual to lose so many, considering the number that we've got in the shelter right now, but it's still hard to see them go. Barb and I both think that they'll come back in healthy bodies, tho. At least they were loved and cared for while they were here. 

But NOW for some good news! Barb, Sue, and the Other Sue spent the weekend in a no-kill advocacy seminar. Wow, did they ever learn a lot! They all went home tired, but filled with new ideas and a renewed commitment to helping make Indianapolis a no-kill community. They saw lots of their friends there, and made new friends who share common goals. Thanks, Barb, Sue, and the Other Sue, for taking your time this past weekend to go to this workshop.  And now I have good news about our kittens. Most of them are doing just great, very few are still needing to be hand fed, and a few of them are ready to be spayed and neutered! That means they'll be ready really soon to find their fur-ever homes! And speaking of finding fur-ever homes, big congratulations go out to Benjamin and Princess Peaches for WOWing their new families. They both have gone to new homes in the past week. 

And even MORE good news . . . we're putting the finishing touches on our Spring Fling this Saturday, and I expect to see you all at our super-fun event! Check out the special page that I've created for this to see who all and what all we'll have for everyone. Bring the kids and c'mon by! All proceeds go to the shelter, so you can have tons of fun *and* help all of us at the same time.

Well, guys, it's getting late and I need to get to bed. I've got a very early morning tomorrow. Dzana will be here to help with Kitten Classes, and Miranda will want to go over the days menu with me first things. These kittens are so picky. Some want cherry yogurt and some want Teddy Grahams. And some want Fred Flintstone vitamins and others want Dino Flintstone vitamins. So have a good week, everybody, and plan to be at our Spring Fling this coming Saturday! Later, friends - Raspberry 

Hi again everybody!! It's me . . . The RazMan!! Wow, is the weather great or what? I've been taking a break by sitting in a window and enjoying the smells of Spring. The sun is out and there's a nice breeze. It's just a purrrr-fect day, isn't it? I love sniffing fresh-cut grass and feeling the warm sun on my whiskers. Ahhhhh. But I can't take too much time out because we've got kittens! Lots and lots . . . and LOTS of kittens! More on them in a minute, but right now I want to tell you all about the Race for the Cure.

Despite the cold rain, our Cats Haven "Kitties for Ti**ies" team  participated in last Saturday's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure!! And we did great! We had over 25 team members who registered, and a few folks who couldn't walk but donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation in our name. Vicki Colonna, David Molloy, and a couple of others got to the race site early enough to watch the Survivor's Parade, and the rest of the walkers joined up later. Just as we left the start line, the cold rain started to pour down. But that didn't keep us from walking the whole 5K! And after we crossed the finish line, Barb and a wonderful group of volunteers had a huge brunch spread for us! Jane Heine, Teresa Eversole, my good friend Elizabeth, Sue Hildebrandt, my best buddy Dzana, Sandy Haney, and a few others set out a brunch table like I've never seen before. And then Vicki and David stopped at Church's Chicken and brought even MORE food. It was great. We all had a wonderful day and got to help raise funds for the Komen Foundation. We're already planning for next year, so mark your calendars and get ready to walk!

Now, I need to tell you all about my kittens. I've got a ton of kittens!! And I couldn't be happier! I love kittens, as you all know, and I've got big kittens, medium-sized kittens, and little teeny tiny kittens . . . in all different colors, too! Some have moms with them, but some don't. Some are close to being ready for adoption, and some need to hang out a while to get a little bit bigger. But all of them will complete the Raspberry Kitten Classes before I let them go to their new homes. In my classes, they learn how to be good kitten citizens, and so far everyone is doing great. This is truly a special crop of kittens. Some of these guys have come from Indianapolis Animal Care and Control. We took them so they'd have the chance to grow up and find homes. Others have come from IndyFeral (I love those guys . . . Lisa, you're such a babe . . . we should have lunch soon). No matter where they came from, they're safe with us.  But we need your help. We need litter, human baby food, kitten food, cleaning supplies like paper towels and bleach, and donations so that we can get these guys spayed and neutered as well as tested and vaccinated. If you can help out, just call the shelter and either Barb or I will tell you how to get stuff to us. I'll get some pictures of my kittens on the website soon . . . they're all so cute with their little kitten faces and little whiskers. I love kittens!

Oh, I almost forgot! Our good friend Sandy Haney had a flat tire while going home last Friday. Some really nice people stopped and helped her out, and I want to personally thank the Jones family for making sure my friend Sandy got the spare tire on her car. You guys rock! Really! I had just gotten  into the van and was trying to adjust the seat when she called back and said that you guys had changed her tire.  So please accept a big heartfelt THANK YOU from me.

Miranda is telling me that the kittens are waking up from their naps and we're ready for our afternoon classes, so I better go. The older kittens are learning Zoom Around the Room techniques today, and the younger kittens are making log cabins out of popsicle sticks. So have a good day, everyone. I'll blog again next week to let you know more about the kittens *AND* tell you more about our upcoming Spring Fling! It's gonna be soooooo cool!! Bye, friends! - Raspberry

Hi, everyone!! I sure hope you're all having a grrrrr-eat Monday afternoon. I know I am! I just got BIG NEWS!!!! I just heard from the Cat Doctor that we raised just a little over $2500 at our Silent Auction fund raiser at Arni's last week!! Wow-wee!!! That's, like, close to a gazillion bucks!!! A HUGE thank you goes out to the Cat Doctor for once again planning this wonderful evening for us. And thank you all so very much for coming out to eat dinner and bid on our really cool silent auction items. You guys never ever let us down. You are all absolutely the very best, and everyone here at the shelter really appreciates your support. We'll do it again next year . . . Arni's has already said they'd like to have us back! And to Barb Dunn and husband and Tim and Teresa Eversole, a special thanks goes out to you guys. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to see everyone at the fund raiser, but Smiley and I were pretty busy behind the bar mixing up drinks. Hey, Smiley . . . let's get together again soon and have a Guy's Night Out! You know . . . drink a couple of beers, chat up some babes. Guy stuff. Call me.

Not only has the fund raiser put me in a good mood, I'm really happy because we already have kittens in the house again. Yup, we've got regular-sized kittens, medium-sized kittens, and itty-bitty baby kittens. They are all so cute. I just love to pinch their little cheeks. But this is a good time to remind everyone that Kitten Season is already underway. If you know of a female kitty who has not been spayed, or a male who has not been neutered, there are all kinds of places where you can get low-cost or free neutering. Call or email the shelter, and we can tell you where you can get your pets fixed. This is really important, guys. There are so many cats out there, but there just aren't enough homes. So if you've got house cats or even feral cats, let's get 'em fixed! We can help . . . just contact us.

Hey, did you know that we're having a really cool event on May 10th? Well, we are. We're having a Spring Fling . . . a Spring Bazaar . . . a Spring something or another . . . and it's gonna be just super. We're gonna have all kinds of booths set up, from free food samples to even a fortune teller. Lots of us will be packed and ready to go when you adopt us, too!! And we'll have human food for sale . . . and a bake sale . . . and an ice cream sundae tent . . . this is gonna be BIG! Keep an eye on the website for more information, but mark your calendars for Saturday, May 10th. We're working on the latest edition of the Mewsletter, and all the details will be in there. I hope we can get the Mewsletter out in the next week or so!
 
I hear Miranda wrapping up the kitten yoga class, so I better go now. We've got the "Curl Up and Be Cute" class next, and then it'll be dinner time again. I think Barb is leading the Curl Up class today, but I better supervise because she has a habit of curling up, being cute, and falling asleep. More news later, friends! - Raspberry

Hi, friends!!! It's been a couple of weeks since I blogged, so I figured it's time to get you all caught up on what's happening down here at the shelter! We've been busy as usual, but thankfully things have quieted down some after the Flower and Patio Show! We did really great this year, far exceeding what we did last year in sales and donations. A good portion of our sales came from Barb's totally exquisite jewelry. Wow, has she ever gotten good at making necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. I'm so glad she took my advise on how to make these things. We'll just let her keep thinking that all those good ideas are hers, hmmm?  

We've got some fun events coming up. This Sunday, we'll be at Pet Supplies Plus on Rockville Road, doing another one of our really entertaining Kitten Kaboodles! We'll have big cats, little cats, cats who climb on rocks; short cats, skinny cats, even cats with chicken pox . . . um wait a minute. Aren't those the words to a hot dog commercial? Anyway, we'll have lots and lots of cats and kittens who will be interviewing potential owners. C'mon out to PSP and let our kitties ask you questions! You never know . . . one of our cats might just choose YOU as their new best friend! I'm working on a questionnaire to send with them all. "Do you pet your kitty at least ten hours a day?" "Do you give your kitty treats whenever they want?" "Do you let your kitty drive after having catnip?" All very important questions to ask!

And then on Tuesday, April 1, we're having our Silent Auction and fundraiser at Arni's restaurant in Carmel. Arni's is donating 20% of each dinner to Cats Haven, and we'll have lots of really cool silent auction items that you can bid on. All the proceeds from the auction benefit Cats Haven. We've got a Beatles stamp collection, some gift certificates, even a couple of dog-related baskets for you dog lovers out there. Be sure to print out the coupon on this website (look at the menu to the left and you'll see the Arni's Invitation link) and bring it with you. Thank you, Arni's, for helping us this year. You guys ROCK!

April 19th, the Cats Haven's Kitties for Ti**ies team will be walking in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure!! I'm so excited about this! We've got really really cool Kitties for Ti**ies t-shirts that you can buy on our Cafe Press store. My good friend April Tchiguka designed these shirts, and everyone needs one! When April gets more famous than she already is, these shirts will be selling for gazillions of dollars, so buy one now while they're cheap! And you know that you can also buy RazMan shirts and calendars and stuff too, right? When you're done reading my blog, go buy something! All profits go to the shelter, so you can help all of us and never have to leave your home. Very cool! 

I want to say something to my good friend, KJ. I am really sorry to hear about the passing of your dad. You've been in my thoughts for the past couple of weeks, and I've been meaning to call you, but being a cat it's kinda hard for me to dial and hold the phone. And Barb isn't good about letting me write emails, so let me say here that you've been on my mind, and I hope you're doing alright. Hugs and purrs from me to you, KJ.  We love you a lot.

Okay, guys. I need to get upstairs and try to explain to Wobbles how to get off the bed after he gets on it. He's been having a little trouble with gravity recently, so it's time for a lesson in defying it as only a cat can do. 'Hope to see a lot of you guys at PSP on Sunday, and even more at Arni's on the 1st! Take care, everyone . . . - Raspberry 

Hi, friends!! It's me . . . Raspberry, the shelter manager at Cats Haven! I just got home from the Flower and Patio Show, and boy oh boy did we ever have a good time out there this year!! Thank you to everyone who stopped by the booth, visited with Barb and the kitties, and donated to our shelter. You have no idea how much we appreciate every donation. Thanks so much . . . you guys ROCK! And not only did we raise money for the shelter, but four kitties also found their forever homes!! Woo Hoo!!!! Many of Barb's necklaces found their forever homes, too!! Even with The Other Sue and Lela being sick during most of the show, it was a banner year this year!! Thank you Sue, Krista, Elizabeth, KJ, Brian, Rebecca, Kay, Barbara, Donna, Dave, Zoe, Sandy, and everyone else who helped this year. You guys are absolutely the very best!!

Now, as most of you know, I teach kitten classes at the shelter. And during every holiday, I explain to the kittens how that holiday *really* came to be. Most of the time, humans have kinda distorted the history of the various holidays. For example, take St. Patrick's Day. Most humans will tell you that it came about because of a man named Patrick who drove the snakes out of Ireland. Not quite true. The REAL story of St. Patrick's Day is this . . . Many years ago,  there was a retired Irish nun named Sister Babs who ran a small cat shelter in Dublin. Sister Babs was assisted at the shelter by a striking red tabby cat named Rick (who, by the way, was my great-great-great-great-great grandfather, twice removed). Babs and Rick took care of hundreds of cats from all over Ireland, feeding them, bringing the sick ones back to health, and finding homes and/or jobs for them. Times were hard, however, and despite lots of donations from the people of Dublin, Rick had to get a job to help support the shelter. Rick was a really good mouser, so Sister Babs would hire him out for a few cents a day to help rid homes and businesses of those pesky mice that would get into grains and other foods for the humans. At the end of each day as Rick was paid, he'd always lower his head as he put his coins in his vest and get a pat on the top of the head for the hard work he'd done. This went on for years, Rick going to work each day and helping to rid Ireland of all their pesky mice. One day while Rick was working in a local pub, he heard a loud CRASH outside. He ran out to see what had happened, and he found a wheel had come off of a beautiful carriage. Inside the carriage, Rick was very surprised to find Pope Felinus the First!! No kidding! Pope Felinus was shaken up, so Rick helped him out of the carriage and got him inside of the pub. Poured him a Guinness, too, while Rick went outside to fix the wheel on the carriage. After he got the wheel repaired and put back on, Rick went into the pub to tell the Pope that he could continue on his way. The Pope was so pleased with this humble servant-cat, he said "I should make you a saint! What is your name, son?" Rick replied, "Oh, no, sir . . . just pat Rick on the head. That's all I want." Well, apparently Pope Felinus had poured himself another Guinness or two while Rick had been out working on the carriage, and all he heard was "Patrick." The Pope then announced, "Today and every March 17th from here on, we will call this St. Patrick Day! And we will all drink Guinness and chase mice! Woo HOO!!!!!" Everyone in the pub raised a glass and said "Woo HOO!!!," and that's how St. Patrick's Day really came into being. That's the true story. Really.

So, here's hoping you all have a wonderful St. Pat-Rick's Day!! Be sure to pat your favorite kitty, and if you feel so inclined, treat yourself to a little Guinness. More later, friends . . . Raspberry

Hello, friends! It's been nearly a month since my last blog. How time flies, huh? I've been so busy with the cats and kittens here at the shelter that I didn't even realize February was gone. So it's March now, and my question is, "Where is Spring?!" I'm looking out the front window, and all I see is rain, wind, and sleet. Will Spring ever get here? My good friend The Other Sue keeps saying that the Indiana Flower and Patio Show is a sure sign that Spring is just around the corner. I don't think she's looked outside recently. I'm just sayin' . . .

But Cats Haven is going to be at the Indiana Flower and Patio Show again this year. I'm really excited about it, too. I'm going to help Barb set up this week, and I might take a little break, slip away for a few minutes, and dig in some of the mulch around the gardens. Hehehe. Our booth is gonna be beautiful with new table covers and all kinds of toys and beds and jewelry for sale. And all sales benefit the kitties. How cool is that? We even have a few volunteer spots left if you want to come out and help. Contact Sue at susan@pjfuzzypaws.com if you have a couple of hours you'd like to spend at the Fairgrounds with Barb!

Hey, we've also got a super cool fundraiser coming up on April 1st . . . April Fool's Day. But this is no April Fool. Arni's, this restaurant in Carmel that has really yummy pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and stuff, is hosting our annual Silent Auction, sponsored by The Cat Doctor. And if you print the flyer/invitation from our website here and take it with you, Arni's will donate 20% of the cost of your meal to Cats Haven! Wow, huh? KJ and Smiley from WZPL will be there, so make a date with Cats Haven between 5 and 8 p.m. on April 1st and join us for dinner. The Silent Auction items are amazing this year, too. I know you'll find stuff you  just can't live without!

While there's lots going on outside the shelter, there's been lots going on inside, too. Barb and I are planning to move our office into what's called The Queen's Room, and we're looking at getting the floor fixed and all kinds of neat home-improvement things so we can get moved. And there's a company in Fishers that is hoping to help us with some electrical and HVAC work, so we might have a kitchen much sooner than we'd anticipated! We're still looking at grants, and my friend Cindy Cox is working on grant stuff right now. AND we've got lots of people signed up for the Race for the Cure walk!! As you know, Cats Haven is sponsoring a team called Kitties for Ti**ies. You can sign up anytime before March 12th and be part of our team. It's gonna be so much fun. I wish I could walk with you guys, but I have to be at the shelter that morning. It's not that I can't walk 5K. Really, I could. But Barb said she needs me here. Darn.

That's it for now, guys. I hope to see many of you at the Fairgrounds for the Flower and Patio Show, and even more of you at Arni's on the 1st! Spring will get here eventually, won't it? Later, friends - Raspberry 

Hi again, friend. Raspberry here. We've had a few fun things going on over the past couple of weeks, and this is my first chance to sit and write. Despite the lousy first night at the Home Show, what with our stuff getting stolen from the porch, we had a super weekend! Lots of folks stopped by our booth and we handed out a ton of flyers and Mewsletters. Barb sold several pieces of our . . .er, I mean her Gypsy Cat jewelry, and we got to visit with some of our wonderful volunteers. Thanks, everyone, who came out and helped! You guys are the best ever!!! And I gotta thank

Stacey Cassell for making a donation to us. After someone stole our money, our good friend KJ mentioned this on WZPL. Stacey was listening that morning, and she got on our website and make a very nice donation through our PayPal link. Stacey, thank you so much. It's humans like you that keep us doing what we do.

Last weekend, Rebecca Furnish surprised Barb for her birthday! LOL!! Boy, was that ever fun! Rebecca and her husband, Sue Hobbs, Sue Hildebrandt, Dzana, and Dave and Zoe Molloy (and ME, of course) had been planning this surprise dinner for a few weeks, and they really caught Barb off guard. She thought she was going to Golden Corral for a steak dinner, but instead the Furnishes grilled steak and salmon and had all the trimming for a deeee-lish birthday dinner! Barb had a chance to put her feet up and be waited on hand and foot for a few hours. Of course, I had to stay at the shelter and babysit, but next year, I'm gonna go and someone else can take care of the little ones! Thank you, Furnish Family, for giving Barb such a wonderful evening. The next day, Vicki brought over a cat cake so we could celebrate Barb's actual birthday during our grant writing meeting. It was a spectacular cake in the shape of a cat . . . complete with cupcake kittens! Vicki, you and I need to talk about spaying and neutering, okay?

This coming weekend, Barb will be at B Java Coffee at 56h and Lafayette Road with some of her gorgeous jewelry . . . just in time for Valentine's Day! Come by between 11 and 2, sit a spell, have a coffee, and check out all the really cool things she's doing these days. I've taught her a lot in the past year, and it really shows. This stuff is soooooOOOOoooooo cool! And Sunday, we'll be at Pet Supplies Plus on Rockville Road from 12:30 til 4 doing another Kitten Kaboodle adoption event. We'll have kittens as well as adults available for adoption, and each adopted kitty will get its own special gift bag filled with fun things! Oh, and thanks to Liz Morken with Eagle Pack foods, each adopted cat will get a free bag of Eagle Pack! We gotta start these guys out on good food, y'know? So c'mon over to Pet Supplies Plus and visit with the kitties as well as the volunteers.

Well, it's time for me to get to bed. It's late, and I've got a very early morning tomorrow. We've started an 8 in the morning Kitten Yoga class . . . this wasn't MY idea, however. It was Maurice's idea, but he's gotten so chubby that he can't touch his toes anymore. I hate to say it, but he's just not a good yoga instructor. So I've taken over and have to be ready to stretch first thing in the morning. The kittens love it, tho. After class, they get a hearty breakfast and they're then ready for their day of cat studies. So I hope to see you all this weekend at either B Java or at PSP! More later, friends. - Raspberry

Hi, guys! Raspberry here again. I finally got Barb and the kittens put to bed, and thought I'd take a few minutes to write before going to bed myself. I'm not usually up this late, but we've had a busy day around here, and have two more busy days to go before we can relax a bit. For the first time ever, Cats Haven is at the Indianapolis Home Show! Is that too cool or what!? We're gonna be there this weekend only, and we're in the South Pavillion, so c'mon out and visit with us. The show is open Friday and Saturday until 9:30, and Sunday til 6:00. We've got catnip toys and jewelry for sale, the latest copy of our Mewsletter hot off the presses, and of course a foster kitty with us. The Home Show is really fun, too. Lots of great home improvement ideas, and thinking of doing home repairs reminds me that Spring really is just around the corner. I'm really tired of this terribly cold weather, and am just waiting for nice, warm Spring days.  

One really lousy thing happened tonight, however. When Barb and Krista got back from the Fairgrounds at about 10:00, they got Milky Way inside and Barb started to check her email, forgetting that the carrying case with the money box was still on the front porch. When Barb remembered about it just a few minutes later, she opened the front door . . . and it was gone. Someone had come up on our porch and had stolen our money box as well as some of Barb's beautiful jewelry. How sad that someone would do this, but they did. All of our donations from Friday were in the case, and all of our cash from toy and jewelry sales were in there, too. I've told Barb that the important thing is that we're all safe and no one tried to come into the house. But it's really creepy to think that someone just walked up on our front porch and stole our stuff like that. We really need to get a fence around our property . . . something we should get done this year. The thing that makes me the maddest is that someone stole from Barb. She works so hard and was at the Fairgrounds for 12 hours today. Then to have this happen. But again, we're all safe and sound, and that's the most important thing.

Aside from the Home Show, we've been busy around the shelter house as well as doing adoptions. Several of our foster friends have gone to good homes, and that's such great news. We've adopted out adults and kittens both . . .thank you one and all who have adopted our foster friends for giving them such loving homes. I've personally trained each and every one in good cat or kitten etiquette.

As I mentioned, the latest and greatest issue of the Mewsletter was just printed, and was mailed out earlier this week. We've also added it to the website here . . . just click on Mewsletters and choose Winter 2008. Lots of good information in this issue about how to keep your cats happy and healthy during these winter months. If you want a copy sent to you, just let us know and we'll get one in the mail to you.

Wow, it's nearly 3 a.m. and I'm getting very sleepy. Guess I should head off to bed. We've got another long day at the Home Show tomorrow, and I hope to see some of you guys out there! I want to thank Krista Dych, Judy and Monroe, Barb Dunn, Sandy Haney, Vicki Colonna, Scott Williams, Rebecca Furnish, Barbara Burke, Sue Hildebrandt, and Cindy Cox for helping out at this event. You guys are the greatest ever! Oh, and thanks to Sue Nuyda for all the wonderful stuff she donated to us before moving to San Francisco. Safe journey, Sue. And good night, all. - Raspberry

Hi, friends. Just me again . . . Raspberry, shelter manager. I'm taking a break from all the hustle and bustle of the day to post to my blog. I might not have time again this week, what with kitten classes back in session and new events popping up daily. We're gonna get to be a part of the Indiana Home Show this year!! I am so thrilled at this. Do you have any idea how long we've wanted to do this show? So far, we're gonna be there January 25, 26, and 27 for sure. If we add more dates to our schedule, I'll let you know. But because of this, I'm working with some of the older kittens and showing them how to put on a tool belt, how to hammer a nail, and how to do home improvements. So far, however, this isn't going very well. The only ones who seem to be able to even put on a tool belt are the polydactyls, and the kittens just want to chase the nails around the house, but we're working on it. Miranda suggested that any home could be improved by just having a cat in it, so we might just have to go with that.

We had a great adoption day this past Sunday. Five . . . that's right, five . . . of our fosters went to their forever homes!!!! Congratulations to Mick, Taylor, Abner, Olive, and . . . and . . . oh, dear I've forgotten the other kittens' name. I'm so forgetful at times. Well, congrats to everyone who charmed their new families, and thank you to those who adopted our kids. And thank you to Lisa at Midwest Friends of Animals for referring a new family to us. They adopted two!! It was so exciting to have Barb call in every time someone got a new home. The phone at the shelter house was ringing off the hook!! We're having a big meeting this Sunday so we won't be at adoptions, but we'll be back at Pet Supplies Plus on the 20th.

Speaking of being forgetful, I totally forgot to tell you all what happened over New Years weekend. Our furnace went out and we had no heat! And it was pretty chilly in here, believe me! So I went down into the basement (Barb won't go down there, so it's my job to do basement things) and took a look at the furnace. Even tho I'm a guy, I couldn't fix it. So I called my good friend Sue Hildebrandt and told her that we were without heat. She came over immediately and found out what the problem was. We needed a specific part, but it was a holiday weekend. Well, one call to my other good friends Kari and Patrick McGlinn, and the problem was solved. They called a friend of theirs who is in the heating and cooling business and even tho he was tailgating at the Colts game, he got the part to us. And then Barb called James Winkle, and he came over and put the new part in! How cool is that?! Within a couple of hours, we had heat again. So thank you to Sue, Kari, Patrick, their friend, and James for making sure we were warm kitties, rather than cold cats. You guys are the best.

Barb is telling me that she's ready to go upstairs and watch a movie while we make more jewelry, so I better go. The kittens have already had their dinners and Diana the Huntress is reading them stories, so I think I've got a little time before I give everyone a good night treat and tuck them into bed for the night. I also need to finish up my lesson plans for tomorrow. I think we'll work on staring blankly into space to further confuse our humans. G'nite, friends. - Raspberry

Hi, guys! Wow, we're already four days into the new year, but it seems like it was just last night that the kittens and I counted down "three . . . two . . . one . . . HAPPY NEW YEAR!" We had a huge party on new years eve, and everyone got to stay up until after midnight so we could ring in the new year together. Earlier in the evening, I had everyone in shelter write down their new years' resolutions, and thought you might be interested in what some had to say.

OciKits - We promise to not sleep in Barb's hair as much.
Pequita - I promise to not try to get out of my room and run down the hall.
Miranda - I will get a home of my own this year. No Kidding!!!
Maurice - I'll try to stop tripping everyone when going down the stairs.
Cashmere - I want to lie in the sun more often.
MacArthur - I resolve to stop picking on my brothers and sisters.
Cameron - I want a Mr. PotatoHead. (Cameron isn't convinced that Christmas is over . . .)
Luck - I will watch less TV and exercise more.
Sinclair - I'll try to remember to  . . . to . . . what was the question again?
Chomper - I will work harder on my algebra lessons.
Cricket - I will try to sniff less catnip.
Diana - I will not run out the front door as much.
Puma - I will do a better job at chasing dogs.
Barb - I promise to not throw telephones.

Those are just a few. So far, everyone seems to be doing a good job at sticking to their resolutions, especially Barb. What? You want to know *MY* new years resolutions? Resolutions are for those with faults, so I have no resolutions this year. Hahahaha! If you have any New Years resolutions, write to me and tell me about them. To my good friend Helen, please make a resolution to stay healthy this year. We don't want you in the hospital again!!!!

As for recent shelter news, several residents have gone to their fur-ever homes! Woo Hoo!!! Ava Halftail found her family a couple of weeks ago. Dear Joey got a home with a wonderful family, too!! Cedar and Sparky are on their way to a new home in Michigan. Some of Lela's kittens have also gone to their new homes, so congratulation to everyone who made it home for Christmas!! Way to go, guys!!! I'm very proud of all of you, and very happy for you, too! We're gonna be at Pet Supplies Plus on Rockville Road this Sunday from 2 til 4 with lots of kitties ready for adoption, so maybe another one or two will find their families. And we're already planning another Kitten Kaboodle for February . . . just in time for Valentine's Day. Nothing says lovin' like a cat or a kitten, you know.

I also want to thank Petco in Speedway for a HUGE donation of food!!! And a big THANK YOU goes out to everyone who thought of the shelter over the holiday season. We received some very nice donations that will go a long way in helping to keep us healthy, warm, and fed.

Back to work for me. I think Miranda is getting ready to serve dinner, so I better make sure all the kittens have their bibs on and remember to use their napkins. More later, friends. Happy New Year!!! - Raspberry

Merry Christmas to all of my friends! The shelter is bustling today because all the kittens are so excited about Santa Claws coming tonight. Do you all know about Santa Claws? No? Well let me tell you the story, just like I tell the kittens every year.

Santa Claws is a giant, fat red and white cat who lives at the North Pole and makes wishes come true for as many kitties in the world as he can. Every Christmas Eve, he hitches up his reindogs (he has nine of them . . . Fido, Spot, Rover, Lassie, Abercrombie, Fifi, Junior, Brownie, and Rufus who has a bright red nose and lights the way) to a HUGE sleigh, and he flies around the world leaving gifts and treats for all the good cats, and grants wishes to many others. But there are so many cats in the world that he can't make wishes come true for all of them. There just isn't time, and some of them are kinda hard to find. So what he does then is give humans the power to make a difference for all the cats in the world. He helps the kitties he can, and then makes it so that people can care. But humans have gotta believe in Santa Claws for this to work, and it seems as tho a lot of people just don't believe in him. We all here at the shelter believe, tho. You know why? We believe because we have a warm place to sleep, all the food we can eat, and lots of nice humans who care about us. Most importantly, we have Barb. She was a gift from Santa Claws!! Hundreds of years ago, as the story goes, Santa Claws visited Barb personally one Christmas Eve and told her that she needed to make a place for us and call it Cats Haven. She looked at this giant red and white cat and said, "HUH?!" So he explained to her that he had chosen her to be one of his helpers . . . an elf, if you will . . . and that her mission was to spread the word about Santa Claws and help as many kitties as she could for the rest of her life. She didn't believe him, so he sent three ghost cats to visit her that night. The Ghost of Kitties Past, The Ghost of Kitties Present, and The Ghost of Kitties Yet To Come all showed Barb what the world would be if she didn't do what Santa Claws said. These three ghost kitties made her cry because thousands of kitties would not have homes, but they also made her see that Santa Claws was giving her the gift of caring. When she woke up on Christmas morning, she ran out into the street and announced "I believe in you, Santa Claws! I will create a safe place for all the kitties that I can, and I'll get as many humans to care as much as I do!" Then the neighbors came out on their porches said "Go back inside, you crazy woman, and stop yelling in the street! And for God's sake, put on some clothes!!!" Stephanie had to go and get her out of the street, apologize to the neighbors, and explain to the police that her mom was just overcome by the Christmas spirit, but that's another story. But that's how Cats Haven got started and how we all got blessed by having Barb.

So here it is, another Christmas Eve. And Santa Claws has already begun his journey around the world. We know that he will visit many cats and kittens tonight and will bring them toys and treats. And lots of humans like you guys will help the ones he can't because you all believe in him, and you believe in us. And we believe in you, too. While we have Santa Claws once a year, you're all we've got for the other 364 days. You all  must be Santa Claws' helpers, too, because you haven't let us down. Thank you all so very much for all you do for us. Here at the shelter at midnight, we'll all gather 'round and feel the presence of Santa Claws as he gives us another year of everything we want . . . our shelter home, our food and water, our wonderful vets who take care of us, our good friends who come by to see us, and the chance to find families of our very own.  So Merry Christmas Everyone!!! Time for me to get some presents under the tree, and help Miranda make snacks for tonight. Peace be with you all - Raspberry

Hi, guys! I've just put the kittens down for their afternoon nap (thank you, Dzana, for getting their juice boxes for them), and thought I'd take a minute to post to my blog. We're gearing up for a big party on Friday this week! We're going to have our last open house of the year .  .  . AND we kitties will all be celebrating the Winter Solstice! Yes, we also celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanza, but our big cat celebration will be this weekend.

Celebrations of the Winter Solstice are some of the oldest winter festivals in the world. Long, long ago, cats and humans both lived outdoors more than they do now. Because of that, cats and humans became more acutely aware of the changes in season, and the diminishing daylight at this time of year. Did you guys know that the Norse people believed the sun was a wheel that changed the seasons, and their word "houl" is probably where our word "yule" came from. For the ancient Celts, the midwinter sun was believed to stand still for 12 days (which is where "the 12 days of Christmas" originally came from), and a log (a yule log) was lit to conquer the darkness. Cats still honor these ancient Celtic rituals, and Friday night after everyone is gone from our open house, we'll be dancing and singing to chase away the darkness, just as our ancestors did. You gotta admit that it works because each year after all the cats in the world do this, we have more daylight each day! But the kitties here at the shelter have been working very hard on a wreath. In true Celtic tradition, our wreath is made from evergreen branches, which symbolize strength and endurance during the harsh winter months. On Friday night, we will light candles, hang our wreath, and let it grace our shelter home for 12 days. At that time, we will take it outside and return it to nature. And then we can sit back and watch the days grow longer and the nights shorter. No need to thank us . . . it's just what we cats all over the world do.

So come by the shelter on Friday between 5 and 8, have a glass of cider, do a little shopping at our Holiday Bazaar, and join us in celebrating the Winter Solstice! Even tho it's a "cat thing," we'd love for you to be a part of our holiday! Whooops, it sounds like the kittens are getting up from their naps. I hear one of them blowing bubbles in their juice box. So I better go. I hope you guys can stop in Friday night. We always love to have company, and we've still got lots of nice items you can purchase for last-minute Christmas gifts! We will also be accepting donations of canned and dry food, litter, cleaning supplies, and retail gift cards for the shelter. Bye, guys. Til later - Raspberry