There's an idiom "let sleeping dogs lie". It intent derives from avoidance of restarting old conflicts (i.e. don't wake a sleeping dog, better off not doing it).

There's no dogs in our households, but four cats, and they love sleeping in my room. Could be because I've outfitted most of the flat surfaces beneath the window with fleecy cat beds and it's warm in my room.

I think only another cat afficionado can appreciate this, but they look so content/adorable and happy when they are all snuggled together and sleeping. We purposefully bought a big cat bed large enough for 3 cats. I've gotten more recent photographs of them asleep together and will upload those to the gallery.

On a sleep related note, I was working at my computer a couple of days ago and my concentration was distracted by this low noise.... it was a cat snore!

Knowing and loving these cats as I do .. each of whom was adopted .. it's hard for me to fathom how, in the name of science, in the name of research, in the name of humanity, that there are others in this world who use cats for food or use cats for experimentation.

We recently added a bunch of our favorite pictures of our beloved cats. You should check them out

Pics pics, and more pics

I just had to share - get your very own 'Cat Vomit' Warning Sign

"Stands up over standard cat vomit or hairballs to prevent in-steppage."

I used a feature of Microsoft Windows to create a screensaver that is a slideshow of my favorite pictures. Of course, I included my photographs of the cats. Since we went digital camera-wise several years ago, we have a huge selection of cat pictures.

It's nice to step back into my office and see pictures of my furry friends rotating on the screen. It's like art imitating life because it includes photographs of them nestled in their cat beds or on the furniture, and they're often doing just that. As my fingers tap on the keyboard, Mite is in the middle bed on my desk, Moo's got the futon chair, and Harry's snagged some real estate on the carpet.

Chris commented that I have more pictures of Jack than anyone else. That's probably true, because I am fascinated by his coloring and he's very photogenic. But when it comes to having a favorite cat, well, I've thought long and hard about this.

When I was growing up, as all siblings know, sometimes everything isn't equal. My parents tried hard and I felt it was pretty balanced. But when it comes to the cats, am I doing as good a job as my parents? I try, but with cats its different.

They each crave different type of affection at different moments. Do I have a favorite? I thought I did. But then I realized that I don't. The cats are the ones that have favorites, and my favorite is simply the one who favors me the most. Anyone who has cats will understand - cats come to humans for affection and attention, not vice versa. Fortunately the odds are in my favor since there are 4 cats and 2 humans.

Just as I started to type this, Harry, the elder cat in the household, asleep on my desk in his fleece donut bed, started to make these noises. As he did, his whiskers twitched slightly, but while his sides continued moving in the rythmic manner of sleep. Is this the result of a dream?

Another of my feline friends, Bonkers, would twitch his legs while sleeping. Was he running wild somewhere in a dream, or tussling with a foe?

The cats spend a large amount of time curled up in the fleece donuts on my desk, or just around in that space, perhaps looking out the window or cleaning themselves.

Since I met Bonkers, the first cat I really knew, I've always wondered what they would say to us if they could speak English, or if I could understand cat language.

Their behaviours and actions show them to be independent, playful, and even a sense of humor. They all know certain rooms in the house are off-limits by the closed doors. Jack, nimble and quick, is always aware of those opportunities and is the first to dart in and take this victory lap around the room and then he'll willingly leave when beckoned.

Like most who live in the urban areas, most of my experience with animals is through these cats. For many others, their closest experience with animals is on their dinner plate, when they eat them. It's a harsh statement, yes, but isn't it totally true?

I've lately been reading this book by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson called
The Pig Who Sang to the Moon. It's not about cats or dogs, but about animals who typically lived on Old McDonald's farm -- cows, chickens, sheep, goats, pigs, ducks, geese... Reading this book, chapter by chapter spanning this past week, has given me a deeper understanding and appreciation for the emotions and feelings of animals.

Masson has compiled and shared interesting stories and observations of these animals of they relate to each other, and ultimately to us. I'd definitely put this book on my recommended reading list.

I always think it's funny when people who have children ask me if I have children, or when I plan too. I don't have kids... I have 4 kits!

And I've got a sign on my car that proves I'm a suburban mom: "My Cat is Smarter Than Your Honor Roll Student"

Of course, it really should be Cats plural but lets not nickpick. As I write this now, Jack, Mite, and Moo are curled in the cat beds atop my desk, while Jack is perched on the ledge looking outside at an overcast gray day.

Sometimes the patter of their small feet thudding on the tile floor is as noisy as a miniature herd of elephants stampeding across the plains.

But mostly they sleep. And they look so adorable when they sleep! Here's a couple pics of Sleeping Jack

Our two "kittens" are turning four in a couple of months. It took me about two years to mentally and verbally stop referring to them as "the kittens".

Around the summer of 2001, we were thinking to adopt a kitten, somone to provide playful companionship for Harry. When we found our special kitty, and he already had a buddy he'd bonded with, we decided to adopt both. Their first day with us was September 10, 2001.

Moo was a special kitty; tiny at 4 lbs, with one eye that is weepy, another that just never developed, and prone to respiratory problems. Since our two cats at the time, Bonkey and Harry, each had one-eye too, Moo seemed to fit right in.

Jack was the "big brother" at 6 lbs; he looked after Moo while the two waited for a home.

Here's a photo of them playing together on the first day in their new home..

Jack & Moo were adopted from a local rescue group, Cats Are Truly Special. You can visit them on the web at http://www.catsaretrulyspecial.org.

In many households, the "baby" of the family invariably attracts the most attention by their behaviour. In our household, that would definitely be Mite. Through no fault of his own, but rather an intrinsic part of who he is, Mite swaggers across a room with confidence and will stare at you unblinking when you're eating something he wants a bite of.

Perhaps it's because he was at the Peninsula Humane Society, bored to tears in a tiny cage with nothing but food to entertain himself with, or something else in his past... but he definitely loves to eat. Because of his wobbly back legs, we're careful not to overfeed him as we want him to remain mobile.

He usually finishes eating first. To let the other cats finish without Mite interrupting, I'll pick him up and hold him upright against me, much like you'd hold a baby after feeding him, stroking his back. And like a baby, Mite gives a little burp. Yup, he's "Mite LB" alright... Mite Little Burper....

Given the cats like being desktop models, we picked up this large fleece donut the other day. First I saw that Moo really liked to stretch out and lay in it by himself. Then I saw Harry (who is the biggest cat) do the same thing ....

Then one morning, I was busy working at my computer, not really paying attention to what they were doing.. then I looked up, and I had this Kodak moment (except I don't own any Kodak)

I left the room as inconspicuously as possible so I could snap this photo with our digital camera to share.

In the left donut (clockwise from top): Harry, Moo, and Mite; with Jack in the right.

It's really nice to know they like the big donut, and they like each other.

With Mite in the household, our concern over his wobbly back legs, Jack's need for a special diet (he's prone to FUS), we keep a close eye on how much and what everyone is eating.

Of course, sometimes if the guys seem really hungry, we'll put out some extra food or maybe one cat (usually Harry) is slower eating than the rest, and the others try to get their face in the food bowl and nudge in.

Mite's not really good at nudging anyone out of the way. He'll usually sit patiently by, waiting to see if there's anything left. Just recently he showed a new trick -- he uses his paw to snag the food bowl and pull it over!

It's definitely not a fluke as he's done it several times.

Mite is definitely mighty!