Best Cat Toy Ever for Kittens!

 A few weeks ago, we welcomed two new additions to our family, Kenobi and Yoda, a pair of kittens whom we adopted from a local family.  They are in great health according to the vet, which explains how each one is just a furry ball of energy.  We highly recommend adopting kittens in pairs because they just want to play all day and all night.

After shopping around, I found very few kitten toys that enable the kittens to play independently without the toy getting lost behind the sofa or under the bed after 10 minutes of play.  Then I saw this multi-track cat toy on sale during Prime Day for only around $10.  I remembered how my older cats loved their single track toys in past years, so I took a chance and ordered it.  This item turned out to be my favorite Prime Day purchase!

Our pair of curious kittens immediately started playing with this Tower of Tracks.  It has been so much fun watching them trying to figure out where the balls go when they're out of sight.

This toys seems equally as entertaining whether there is one or two feline players.  Sometimes one kitten sits back like a spectator and is thoroughly entertained just watching his brother play.

This toy is small enough so that can be played with on the floor, on the sofa, or even on an ottoman.  For grown cats, placing the toys on an ottoman or end table works great because they can see the balls more easily without having to crouch or lay down.

Just yesterday, I saw the Petstages Tower of Tracks cat toy at our local pet supply store for about $15.  Personally, I think it's worth that much, but the current price on Amazon is much lower. If you have more than two or three cats, you might consider purchasing more than one.

Do you have any cat toy recommendations?

Share them with us in a comment here.

New Tidy Cats® Lightweight 24/7 Performance® Litter Now Available at Walmart

No compensation was received for sharing this new product and giveaway with 3G2S readers.

Two things I've always told my husband that I wished we could get delivered to the house are large bags of dry cat food and cat litter.  They are both so heavy and take up so much space in the trunk of our car.  This is one of the reasons why it is my husband's job to buy the litter and to change the litter in our extra-large multi-cat litter box.  It's actually been his job for nearly two decades.  Well, he'll be so excited when he finds out that those chores may not be his sole responsibility for much longer.  Tidy Cat's new Lightweight 24/7 Performance Litter offers the same performance as regular scoopable Tidy Cat brand litter, but at half of the weight!

Now, if only someone would develop a cat food that is 50% the normal weight . . .

Enter the giveaway below for your chance to win one of two $25 Walmart gift cards.  That's enough for you to buy some new Tidy Cat Lightweight 24/7 Performance Litter and to pick up a little something extra for yourself!

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Good luck in the drawing!

US only, contest ends on 11/29/13, please whitelist momdot@live.com to ensure contest prize delivery email. This is a multi-blog giveaway. 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires is not the administrator of this giveaway.

How To Keep Aging Cats Happy & Healthy #ShebaCat #shop #cbias

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This SHEBA cat food shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study about happy and healthy cats for Collective Bias and their client.

Two of our three cats are getting on in years.  They are moving more slowly and are no longer jumping up high.  Overall, they are less active than they were during their younger days.  One of them is also starting to not chew his food very much and sometimes it comes back up.  We had been feeding our cats quality dry cat food formulated for improving digestive health, but recently we became open to giving moist cat food a test run.  SHEBA cat food contains no grains or corn, so we decided to see how well our beloved cats would do with quality moist food.

One of the main reasons we did not serve moist cat food to our cats in the past was because we thought it would be too costly.  Then I discovered that, if I stocked up on cans of cat food when there is a coupon available or when they are on sale, then cost is not really an issue.  I found the single SHEBA cat food cans at Walmart for just $.50 each (love when I find rollback prices) plus there is a SHEBA cat food coupon available for a free can when you buy six.  Some stores even carry value packs.

Many pet owners say that cats need variety and others say their cats do not care for change.  Personally, I think it varies from one cat to another.  We decided to buy several different varieties of SHEBA to see which ones our cats liked the most.  The pâté is ground food, while the 'cuts' are whole pieces and chunks.  We knew the pâté would be easier to eat, but we decided to try the Tuna Entrée cuts first.  Needless to say, taste was not an issue.  So far, all 3 cats seem to have taken to the food well, without any stomach issues.  The results were the same when we tried the Salmon Entrée pâté.  With each serving, our cats licked the dish clean.  It was wonderful to see all 3 so happy, but we were also relieved that this food seems easier to keep down for our male cat.  Another plus is that it is easier to control his portions this way, rather than leaving dry food out all the time.  (He is a little on the robust side.)

In addition to giving our cats quality food, we do our best to keep them active.  Even when they do not want to move, they simply cannot resist a laser pointer or their favorite feathers-on-a-stick toy.  When they have had enough, they sit or lay down to let us know, while still keeping one eye on the toy.

Something else I've noticed about our aging cats is that they cannot groom themselves like they used to.  This could be because they are less flexible or because they are rounder than they once were.  Even though they may protest at first, they will always allow us to brush them or use the grooming mitt on them.

Not all our cats like to play with cat toys beyond the laser pointer, but our male cat does.  He loves to hug and rub his face on crinkly pillow toys, especially if there is catnip in them.

One last thing we do to make sure our aging cats are happy is to give them multiple places to retreat to when they want quiet.  This is usually our bedroom. I often find them sleeping on or under our bed.  We also make sure there are several windows around the house, where they can climb up to sit and look outside.  Two of our three cats are a little on the large side, so we make sure there is furniture in front of the windows, since the two larger ones cannot fit on the windowsills comfortably.  Whenever possible, we try to at least crack the windows because our cats seem to enjoy the fresh air.

What do you do to keep your cats happy and healthy?

My Photos: A Snowy Predicament

One of our youngest cat's favorite spots is sitting on the kitchen table to look out the window.  When there aren't any people, birds, or squirrels to watch, she'll just lay there and sun herself.  Well, this weekend we had a major snowstorm that left us with over 2 feet of snow.  Some of that snow piled on top of the bushes outside and clung to our windows.  The snow was so high that our poor cat could not see out the window while laying down or sitting up.  It was quite a predicament in the carefree life of a pampered cat.

Do you ever wonder what goes through your pet's mind?  I imagine her to be thinking something along these lines . . .

(Click any photo to enlarge)

"Who put all this snow here?  It's blocking my favorite lookout spot!"

"I've been sitting here for a long time and nobody has removed the snow.  Nor has anyone brought me something higher to sit on . . . "

"Okay, I'll stand up, but I'm not happy about it.  I just want to see all the silly humans standing outside in the cold trying to clean off their cars."

Click here to view all my past favorite photos.

My Photos: The Best Sandwich Ever!

Our youngest cat will be turning 3 this year.  If I have not said so before, she is one awesome cat.  She actually behaves very much like a dog, which is in part what makes her so great.  How does she behave like a dog?  Firstly, she thinks with her stomach.  She will endure cuddles, squeezes, rubbings, and more if she knows there is a possibility of receiving a cat treat afterwards.

Secondly, she begs like a dog.  She weighs her options in regards to which member of the family will likely give her some of their meal and will give them "the look."  She will also sit on your foot to remind you she's there and is not above putting one paw on you for the same purpose.

Thirdly, she has been known to do tricks if there is a possible cat treat in her future.  One of my favorite tricks that she does is rolling over, just like one of the tigers at the circus.

Lastly, she actually meets me at the door when I come home just like a dog would.


What do you think is going through her head in the photos below?

"A Kitty Sandwich"

"I Better Be Getting Double Treats for This!"

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My Photos: Monday Already?

Last week, our nearly 6 year old son was home sick with a fever for one day.  His twins sister was home sick for 3 days.  I helplessly watched myself fall more and more behind in my work as each day passed.  I was hoping to catch up 100% this weekend, but it didn't happen.  I was dreading the coming of Monday, but not because I didn't want the fun and relaxing weekend to end, but rather I did not want to start off a work week by being behind.

Want to know how behind I am?  I usually publish the "My Photos" post by Sunday morning.

Anyways, this photo makes me forget my Monday woes briefly . . .

"If I Don't Open My Eyes, Then It Will Still Be Sunday!"

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My Photos: Caption This Cat Photo

This is our cat Zorro.  For those of you who have never met him, he is rather portly, loves to sleep with the top of his head squished up against something, and is afraid of almost everything.  For example, I have had a cough for over four weeks now.  If Zorro is next to me when I cough, his eyes get really wide and he quickly gets up (well, as quickly as his robust self can get up) and moves to what he feels is a safe distance away.

Below is a recent photo I took of our beloved Zorro.  I couldn't decide on a caption for this photo, so I thought I would enlist your help.  How would you caption this pose?

(Click photo to enlarge)

Click here to view all my past favorite photos.

My Photos: Two Quirky Cats

How does the saying go?  Cats are creatures of habit?  Or is that people? . . . Anyways, one of our cats (the brown one) has developed a habit of sleeping on top of my DayRunner.  I always have it opened on the bed during the day because I don't have enough room on my desk.  I can't imagine that it is comfortable.  Yet, still day after day, all day long, she sleeps on it.

One of our tuxedo cats has always loved to sleep with the top of his head against something.  It is not unusual to look over to see him with his head against another cat's back or hind quarters.  If I am in bed, he will sometimes nuzzle the top of his head against the palm of my hand and sleep that way.  Recently, I was a little surprised to see him sleeping with his head against our other cat's belly.  I'm pretty sure all of our cats do not like their bellies to be touched, so I was rather shocked that his nap buddy didn't get up and reposition herself.  I suppose that's just how strong their bond is . . .

Click here to view all my past favorite photos.

My Photos: W/E 6-23-12

I actually took quite an enormous amount of photos last week (Surprising, huh?), but I just have not had time to sort through them all yet.  You can look for my photos from the A Day Out With Thomas event later on this week.  We really lucked out because, although it was pouring rain during our hour-long drive, the rain started to clear up right when we pulled into our parking space.  Both my camera and I were so happy!

Luckily, I had this photo set aside that my husband took of one of our cats.  He had the bright idea that it would be fun to put our daughter's Princess Merida Wig on our poor cat.  This particular cat is usually very compliant.  Although she did not have a huge reaction to my husband's antics, I don't think she looks very amused, do you?

(Click photo to enlarge)

"Sassy Red Head"

Click here to view all my past favorite photos.

My Photos: W/E 6-2-12

Last week was a busy one!  We had Memorial Day weekend, a playdate, dress rehearsal for dance, soccer practice, a speech session, a soccer game, and a dance recital.  Need I go on?  I think I need a nap just thinking about all we had scheduled last week.  Actually, forget about the nap!  I want to sleep for 2 or 3 days a week straight.

This week I have to get together our end-of-the-year teachers' gifts.  Be sure to look for a fun free printable I made especially for that occasion!  I also will be attending a Bug Parade (if I can confirm that younger siblings are welcome), where all the children will be wearing homemade insect costumes, at my second grader's school.  Hopefully I will have some fun photos to share of that.

Speaking of naps . . .

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"This One's a Snorer"

"It's a Bird!  It's a Plane!  It's . . . Spiderman?"

And here are some photos of our daughter before her dress rehearsal.  She was a little nervous about getting up on the stage for the first time ever, but ended up doing great at both the rehearsal and the recital.

Click here to view all my past favorite photos.

My Photos: Easter Egg Hunt and More

I realize that a whole week has passed since Easter, but I just got around to editing my photos.  Below you will find a few of my favorites, but you can see more on my personal Facebook page.  The children had so much fun hunting Easter eggs, as they do every year.  This year, it was a little chilly outside (it even snowed for about 10 seconds), so the hunt took place indoors.

(There's also a token cat photo at the bottom too.)

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"You May Pet Me Now"

Click here to view all my past favorite photos.