Love is in the air. It is Valentine's morning as I write this. I went down to the basement to dig through decorations to set out today and I ran across a silly thing I once bought at a yard sale. It is a cat feeding dish that is red and shaped with double hearts etched with the words Tender Vittles. Does Purina still make that stuff? I pulled it out and my dear kitty is having her Valentine's breakfast in style.

So, let's discuss stylish cats. If you've never been to a cat show and don't know what one is, you've been missing a lot of fun! On March 6th & 7th at the fairgrounds you can see the Cat Show held by the Cat Fanciers' Association, a non-profit organization founded in 1906. The first cat shows licensed by CFA were held during 1906 - one in Buffalo and one in Detroit.

The Cat Show is a competition between short and long haired purebred and family pet cats and kittens. I have been to a few in my life. The last one I attended was in October when I took my granddaughter Sydney. We had a ball. It is a great place to people watch, let alone cat watch. Some of the owners take on the look of their cats. Such was the case of the lady with the white Persian. This cat's cage was draped in pink fabric (so was the lady) and looked like a cabana complete with elegant cushions. The cat had rhinestones galore as did the lady. She was as white-haired as the cat. We watched her as she primped and powdered the feline until it was perfect to go to the ring. She stretched out her arm and balanced the cat so it was draped across it with all four legs dangling and walked across to the ring where other long-haired beauties were being escorted in the same manner-draped and balanced so that not a hair got out of place. Sometimes they are carried with the handler's arms extended with the left hand grasping the two front ankles and the right hand grasping the two back ankles. You can't just put them on a lead and walk them to the ring, you know. These are cats, after all. When they arrive at the ring they are placed in cages and await the judge's evaluation. Sydney and I marveled at all the breeds. The show featured 40 different kinds and had a limit of 450 entries. We talked to the breeders and learned so much. Every kitty arrived in style. There were so many elegant cages decked out with curtains and pillows. Potty privacy seems to be important. Our real fun was shopping with the vendors.

The picture below is of Sydney with the most amazing cat furniture I have ever seen from a company called Great Lakes Pet Furniture. These were cat trees with names like The Big Oak, Jack-n-Beanstalk, Purple Passion and Tropical Flower. This one pictured was huge and reminded me of the crazy flesh-eating tropical plant named Audrey in the movie "Little Shop of Horrors". We bought a small one. You can see some of their really fabulous pieces at www.greatlakespetfurniture.com . (I can tell you how to get a discount.) Sydney was excited to bring home a play spider for her cat. It is a fun thing to attend with your kids. It only takes an hour or two to take it in. If you go here's what you should know: Cat breeders and owners take their cats to compete with other cats that are the same color and breed. Cats can compete in four classes: (1.) Kitten Class - for cats between 4 and 8 months of age (2.) Championship Class - for CFA registered adult cats over 8 months of age (3.) Premiership Class - for CFA registered altered cats over 8 months of age (4.) Household Pet - for unregistered cats over 4 months of age. The cats are judged and lots of ribbons of different colors are presented. . . .too many for me to understand. Suffice it to say that the most coveted ribbon is a rosette as this is awarded to the top cats of the show. People who want to be judges must have at least ten years of breeding experience before they can apply to the judging program. Once accepted into the program, trainees must pass examinations on breed standards and show ring mechanics, and they must do training sessions with experienced judges. Kids serve as stewards in the ring, some with 4H and others working on scout badges. It's fun. Pets make you smile.