Monday, November 30, 2009

Zeppelin Eureka

We're going to be a bit different today and show you something really neat. It made Jan a little airsick, even though she's still on the ground, but even so she enjoyed the photos too. These are photos from a flight on the Zeppelin Eureka, the only Zeppelin in the United States. We think you'll enjoy the pictures. We did.

Just click here.

Please keep Rocky & Bear's mom in your prayers. She's having a full body PET scan this week to find out if the cancer has spread. We hope not!

We hope you will bear with us if we just do short posts and little or no visiting for a while. Jan is struggling with trying to figure out Photoshop Elements on her own so she can open our Zazzle store. She really has to get some green papers coming in or the Funny Farm will no longer exist. We kind of like it here.Two round meals a day, part time computer access, furniture to shed on, a maid and a chauffeur. So if we don't get to visit your blog for a while, we hope you won't forget us or think we're ignoring you.

Percy: We're practically offline again and it's all Jan's fault. Are we going to have that much trouble learning new things when we reach her age?.

Sam: I don't think we can live long enough to be as old as Jan. She's ancient!

Buddy, poking Percy in the ribs: Quick, Jan's coming. We don't want to be totally banned from the computer. Delete that last part. Nooooo, Percy!!!! I said Delete, not Publish!

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Wreaths Across America

Since the Christmas season has officially opened, we decided to post a seasonal video. We have posted on this subject in past years but this is the 2009 updated version of the Wreaths Across America tradition. We think you will enjoy the story.



If the video doesn't play for you, click here.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Furry Random Keywords

Did you notice our new holiday header? No, Jan didn't make it. She's still Photoshop Elements ignorant. Most of you can guess who did. Yes, the very talented Zoolatry Human.

ZH, we are very grateful for such a lovely surprise!

We were checking recent keyword activity for JFF and found some more interesting ones.

passed out gave him a makeover -- Buddy was not passed out, he was sleeping when we gave him a facial..

furry random blogspot -- Well, we're furry, a random mix of cat and dog breeds, and our journal lives at blogspot. But what does furry random blogspot mean to the one who was searching for it?

funny military animals-- We didn't know military animals are funny. Did you?

Mama took those batteries tabs -- Jan just takes aspirin when we get on her nerves. Are these batteries over the counter or by prescription only?

funny family portraits -- Well, we are the Funny Farm. We probably do take funny family portraits. Or we would if Jan could get us to pose together.

old skhrap -- We have no clue!

abuse of a public animal -- We have never abused a public animal. Not in public or in private. By the way, what is a public animal?

Hope you of you in the US had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Jan did finally share some turkey with us before the day ended. Reluctantly. But she refused to let us have the skin. If we caught a turkey, we'd spit out the feathers but we would eat the skin. But would Jan give us any? Nooooo.

Friday, November 27, 2009

Our Very Own Modkat


Percy: Hey, we have a new box.


Cyndi: It doesn't look like cardboard. Wonder what it's for?



Percy: I don't know. It has a shovel. Maybe it's for gardening.

Sam: It has air holes. Maybe it's a jail for Buddy.

Cyndi: What did Buddy do?

Sam: He lost some weight, so the other day while Jan was vacuuming, he squeezed himself around the wooden barrier Jan built to keep us dogs out of the cat boxes.

Cyndi: Oh, I remember that. He got stuck and couldn't get back out. He started whining, so Jan caught him red-pawed.

Sam: And Buddy is still in the doghouse.

Percy: If you two had read the packing slip, you would know this isn't a jail for Buddy. It's a Modkat Litter Box for us cats. Guess Jan thinks we're going to test it.

Sam: A litter box? You mean it's just for you cats?

Percy: Yes, but look at the size of that opening and then look at the size of Rusty. Do you think he can fit through it?

Cyndi: Well, if Buddy could get past that barrier .... But we better make sure. Percy, where's the tape measurer?

Buddy: Hey, if you remember I graduated from medical school when Jan had that splinter under her fingernail. If he's too big to fit through the hole, I can always perform surgery to make him fit. Rusty, I'll just need you to sign a few pre-surgical forms ... Rusty? Hey, where did you all go?

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving 2009



Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope your day will be a day of thankfulness for all your blessings.

We are thankful for each of you. We enjoy your blogs, your comments, your emails and your friendship. We're thankful you overlook our occasional bloopers -- whether mis-steps, mistakes,or mis-spoken.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

GI Joe

We are on a roll here! For those of you who saw this as our post yesterday, well, what can we say -- we forgot we already had a post scheduled and rushed to get one done at the very last minute. The we snoozed. So if you did read this but missed After the Rescue about a few successful rescues and happy endings, we hope you will go read that one as today's post.

When we discovered we had published this on the wrong day, we unpublished it. (Is unpublished a word?) We corrected it. But dang-nab it, we forgot to auto post it! So yesterday we were early and today we're late. But we are finally publishing it on the correct day.

Jan likes the Oak Ridge Boys and we've learned to tolerate them. Okay, we like them too. So we stole -- um, borrowed this link from Jan's email.

This is an older song, but when you watch this once, you'll likely want to listen again. It's a good song and has special meaning.



If the video doesn't play for you, click here.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

After the Rescue

Cynthia Smoot wrote, Sometimes it seems as though we have a constant stream of stories in the news about animals being abused or neglected.

But after the puppy mill bust or dog-rescued-from-a-hot-car story airs, where do the animals end up?

I tracked down a few dogs from some of the worst stories of abuse and neglect we told you about over the past year and a half
.

Here are a few of those successful ending stories. We wish there were many more happy stories than sad ones.



If the video doesn't play, you can view it here.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Annual PurrBarkformance Review


Performance Review form by Zoolatry.

We are new to this annual purrbarkformance review so please forgive us if we digress, rant or otherwise trip over ourselves trying to be fair, honest and impartial..

Quantity of Output. Well, we can't fault Jan for not transcribing our posts fast enough. We (usually Percy) type our own. But we can fault her for our not having enough access to the computer. She claims it isn't her fault the computer has been down several times, sometimes for several weeks, this past year. How does she expect us to post without a computer? Or when the machine should be in intensive care instead of online?

We will give her points for her brother finally scrubbing the hard drive and loading everything from scratch. And she has hinted we should ask Santa for a faster, photo-friendly computer. But she has also hinted we might someday get an allowance and we have yet to see a penny. So to be fair -- just in case Santa really can drop a computer down a chimney without breaking it -- we'll change her score from a minus 4 paws to a plus 1 paw.


(Doesn't Cotton have pretty tortie feet?)

Quality of Output. We do our own output, so again we can't fault her if our friends don't like what we post. But we could have better quality output if she would download the camera so we could post our photos before we have forgotten about them. For example, she hasn't downloaded the photos recently for at least elevently-seven-nine days. Every cat and dog will forget what we look like. Since we do need her help with the photos and we don't want to discourage her from helping us, we won't give her a minus 1 paws. She does take good quality pictures -- well, usually -- so we'll give her a plus 2 paws.



Client Pawticipation: Jan is doing a better job in this category. We have our own email address, a twitter and a facebook account. So there should be no problem contacting us. However, the question is, does anyone want to? We give Jan plus 4 paws here.



Client Pawticipation (Part II): Jan used to be overprotective and would hardly let us participate in anything, except a couple of CCSI productions. (She called it being busy.) But, despite all the offline time we've had this year, Jan has allowed, even encouraged us to participate in contests and fun times. Merci ran for Cutest Dog, she won Baby Patches' Next Dog Model Contest, Crystal went on The Meezer's Hams of the World Tour with a host of dogs and cats, we did Ariel's Valentine post, Ludo's Doing Nothing (we forget what it's actually called) photo contest, Romeo's Favorite Furball contest, Monty's Doing the Q, Cyndi modeled on Catwalk Caturday, Cameron attended Sweet Praline's birthday coed sleepover, and ..... We did a lot of posts to help Carrol Crocker's dogs and the Lakemore Cats.

Okay, guess our year isn't quite as bad as we remember it. We did more than we thought this year. But a lot less than many other cats & dogs. We're going to give Jan plus 4 paws on this one anyway.


On second thought, Jan needs to have something to motivate her to improve for next year, so we're going to take back 1 paw in each Client Pawticipation category and only give her plus 3 paws. (You thought we couldn't count, didn't you!)

Client Satisfaction: We have mixed feelings on this as the vote is rocking back and forth. We aren't really sure if our friends are content with what they read in our journal.
a. Buddy thinks some are content with what they read but doesn't know what Jan has to do with it.
b.Cameron is trying to count our 2009 posts on two paws to see if we gave readers enough content.
c. Merci says we should take a poll.
d. Rusty believes we need to do better next year.
e. Crystal says we should give our readers more Ham Tours. We agree. The ham he brought back was delicious!
f. Cotton questions whether we do enough reviews.
g. Sam says we should do more taste testing reviews.
h. Cyndi thinks we are doing okay, but isn't positive, so she's undecided.
i. And I, Percy, would like to see Jan volunteer to take the blame for any reader dissatisfaction.

With such diversity of opinion, we have had a time coming up with a number here. But we have finally arrived at a solution. We give her a plus 1 paw. Next year, if she offers us some good content ideas, maybe we'll give her 2.



Overall rating, comments & suggestions for improvement: Her overall score is a 10. We have no idea of what that means. Oh, it means she has 10 out of a possible 20 paws up. Guess she's a medium.

Buddy: Medium? She looks like an XLarge to me.

Please ignore Buddy. The rest of us would call Jan a petite if it would get us an allowance! But the subject is Jan's annual PurrBarkformance Review. Jan is a medium, or average.

As to suggestions, we would like to see Jan pay us for our creative posts, give us more treats, send us first class on a cruise ship, and ... Oh, we're just supposed to make suggestions about the blog? Well, we definitely need more computer time!

But, overall, it looks like we won't be advertising for another human to replace Jan. At least not for the moment.

(s) Crystal, Cotton, Merci, Cyndi, Percy, Cameron, Buddy, Rusty & Sam

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Cleaning Cat

Now we wouldn't mind a lift around the house once in a while, but cleaning???? No, siree, Jim Bob! We don't do floors. Or windows. Or any cleaning that isn't automatically accomplished with the accidental swish of a tail. Someone should explain to this cat he's breaking one of the cardinal rules of cathood. He's cleaning! Cats do not work! They are waited upon as royalty.

Max-Arthur (that's the kitty's name), your doing paw labor is demeaning to all cats around the world Quit the job while you can still retain a trace of dignity. We'll help you start Feline Workaholics Anonymous, in case there are any other cats out there being exploited as slave labor by wicked humans.

The horror and disgrace of this video. See for yourself. If you dare.



If the video doesn't play for you, click here.

PS -- This is an iRobot Roomba 560 Robotic Vacuum Cleaner.

Uh, by the way, you do know this is a joke post, don't you!

Saturday, November 21, 2009

The Fun Theory

We thought we would post something a little different today. Another video but this one is the fun theory-- elevator vs stairs.

We furries don't need a doctor's RX to take the stairs. We like to exercise. Now, if only we could find some stairs on the route we take to walk Jan. She could use the extra exercise.



If the video doesn't play, click here.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Buddy is 5

We can't believe Buddy is 5 already. We still think of him as a young pup/clown, the life of the party, even when there's no party going on.. Life would just not be the same without him.


Happy Birthday, Buddy!

You were not only the inspiration for this journal, you have been its heart, as well as our alpha sibling. We hope we have many more years together.

However ...

Could you please stop hogging all the blankets! It's cold!

Love, hugs, purrs and tail wags,
Crystal, Cotton, Merci, Cyndi, Percy, Cameron, Sam & Rusty
Oh, and Jan too.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Marnie's New Bunny

Our friend Evelyn sends us some nice links and we really loved this one. Marnie the parrot meets his new bunny.



It the video doesn't play, click here.

We thought you might like an update on Houdini. She was the last of the 101 Lakemore Cats Eric rescued from the foreclosed home and she almost died with pneumonia. You can read her story here.

We heard from Eric Wednesday. Houdini not only survived, but she has found a great home. As Eric writes, "A lady with a small dog and lonely male cat took her she and the cats are playing already."

He only has 4 cats left to place in a forever home. If you live anywhere in the Akron, Ohio, perhaps you would like to adopt a Lakemore Cat.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

7 Things About Us

We received an award from Freckles and Deb. If you haven't met them yet, Freckles is an adventurous rabbit and Deb is her human.



Thank you, Freckles and Deb.

Now, we are supposed to tell 7 things about ourselves and then share the award with 7 of our friends.

1. We are not really related. Not by blood. Bet you never would have guessed..

2. We live in a mansion in Beverly Hills. Well, in our dreams. Actually, we live in a small mill house.

3. On Twitter we're (surprise!) @jansfunnyfarm from Georgia. Recently we met @gafunnyfarm. They have a cat outdoor enclosure for exercise and fresh air. Jan said we cats will have to get a job if we want an outdoor enclosure. Nobody will hire us. Anyone interested in a slightly -- okay, well-used cat pan? We don't mind parting with one. We'll even throw in a free shredded cat stuffie. (We didn't shred it. The dogs did.)

4. We dogs are learning quite a bit about photography. On our morning walks lately Jan has been taking photographs of a mill building being torn down. We snoopervise. You know -- Stand on the cement block to get a better view. Stick your camera lens through the chain link fence for an unobstructed view. Put a longer leash on little Merci before you strangle her when you hold the camera up.

5. Buddy is our official telephone call announcer. When the phone rings, he howls. And just in case Jan can't hear Buddy, Merci chimes in with her soprano rendition of "Hurry up, answer the phone and shut Buddy up!"

6. It's chilly and rainy today. Buddy hates the rain and the cold. We've tried to convince him to let Jan put a sweater on him but he won't wear one. He just likes to complain. Buddy would make a good human. The rest of us never complain. Well, rarely. Okay, frequently. Are you happy now, Buddy?

7. We have a live-in chauffeur, maid, cook named Jan. We are all going to be writing her annual performance review this month. She said she's not sure she wants to read it but the suspense is actually getting to her.

We would like to pass this award on to these blogs. They all make us smile, sometimes downright roll over with laughter.

1. Khyra
2. Zoolatry Be sure to pick up a performance review to fill out on your human this month. And let Zoolatry know when you've posted it.
3. Army of Four
4. Charlie & Molly Daniels
5. Martha & Bailey Bassett
6. Marvin the Hollow Hound
7. Sammy, Miles & Billy

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

More World's Best

Rusty: Shortly after we wrote our last post on the regular World's Best Cat Litter, we received a 7 lb. bag of WBCL for multiple cats. Thanks, Drew.

Percy: Their packaging is new, but the the litter is still made from natural corn. Jan (as if she has anything to say about a product she doesn't use!) claims she likes that the litter is natural and although it is a clumping product, it doesn't cause her breathing problems when she dumps it in a litter box. It doesn't stick to the box and make her scrub to get it loose when she changes the litter either.



Cotton: We, on the other hand, actually use the litter. And we like the litter as much as any cat can like something we pee and poop in. It is finer and doesn't get stuck between our pads when we leave the potty chamber like our usual brand does. Jan likes that too because sweeping up after us is another one of her chores.

Cyndi, wrinkling her nose: We cats can be fastidious, so we don't like a smelly litter box. The multiple cat formula for 2 or more cats -- we certainly qualify there -- has an added all-natural plant material for enhanced odor control. So Jan liked the multiple formula better than the regular one.

Cameron: If we don't care what Jan thinks of this litter, why does her name keep coming up? Can we delete all references to her preferences and just give our own opinion?

Crystal: Sure we can. But if we don't at least mention her, she'll make us start cleaning our own litter boxes. And I for one don't want to have to scratch in used cat litter. That's one reason we allow Jan to live here -- to scoop our poop. It just smells better in World's Best Cat Litter.

PS, from all of us at JFF: Brian -- who has made it his mission to help others find a happy home -- reminded us about Marty. This young kitten needs lifesaving surgery. With it, he could have a normal life in his forever home.

It won't help Marty to be angry with the heartless idiot ... sorry, we're not supposed to say that .... with Marty's original owner because he is in this condition, but you can help Marty if you can donate a dollar or two to his fund. Visit Brian's page on Marty at foreverhomewanted.com and be sure to follow the link to read Marty's story at HandiPets.com.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Farmers Market Cats Get Reprieve

We received this from the Humane Assoc. of Georgia. It requests cross posting, so we're going to post it. It scared us for a moment, but the cats will not be trapped and euthanized. Whew, a collective deep breath!


Georgia Alert: Paul Crawley of 11 Alive reports on cats spared at the Atlanta Farmers Market in Forest Park and Spay/Neuter License Plate on 11/13/09

http://www.11alive.com/rss/rss_story.aspx?storyid=137479#comments FOREST PARK, GA - If you want to find out what it's like to herd cats, just come to the Atlanta State Farmers Market in Forest Park.

You have to look closely to find them because they're wild and don't appreciate too much attention. "There are a lot of cats out here," says market vendor Jeni Waller, "They roam around. They've lived out here for many years."

The dozens of wild cats are often a nuisance for many produce vendors, sometimes breaking into their stalls through the ceiling looking for things like dog food.

Last April a handful of Fayette County Humane Society volunteers, like Maureen Olvey, began trapping the wild cats, raising money to have them neutered and vaccinated and then returning them to the Farmers Market so they won't reproduce...all for free.

But this week they contacted us saying the market's manager was threatening to get rid of the cats altogether. "He did confirm that they are going to remove the cats from the market," Olvey told 11 Alive News. "They have traps and they're going to trap them and euthanize them," she added. Olvey says she was told the cats would be taken to the Clayton County Animal Shelter. If wild cats are taken to such shelters they're usually put to death quickly since they're not fit for adoption. After we called them Thursday, the Georgia Department of Agriculture, which runs the State Farmers Market, told us the plan to eliminate the cats has been scrapped.

"That was discussed," Agriculture Department spokesman Arty Schronce told 11 Alive News, "but we decided to continue with the trap, neuter, release program because in looking at all the options, we really felt like this was the best thing for us. It was the best thing for the cats and, I think, the best thing for the taxpayers as well."

Agriculture officials and the animal rights activists agree that leaving a neutered cat population at the Farmers Market helps prevent more cats from invading their territory and that removing them would simply open a vacuum for new strays to move in.

So for now, anyway, the clowder of cats at the State Farmers Market still have their nine lives.

The Georgia Agriculture Department promotes a special state license tag that contributes more than $22 of the fee to spay and neuter dogs and cats.

Information about the tag may be found on their website. A private group called Lifeline Animal Project also provides low cost neutering through its website.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

A-choo Panda Size

Just a quick video post you might enjoy. Jan's barely been able to turn her neck or use one arm for over a week, and you know how Percy is. When Jan hurts, Percy has sympathy pain and it interferes with his ability to type for us. (Remember the splinter under Jan's fingernail?) But he's our best typist.. So our posts might be short or sporadic for a while.

Enjoy the video. And watch mom's reaction.



If the video doesn't play, click here.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Buddy's Makeover

Merci: We hope you have noticed our sidebar has sported a beauty tip widget for a couple of months now. We think it's really neat.

Cotton: We figured Buddy could use a make-over. He's a hound and hounds have deep worry wrinkles in the face, so we decided to try our favorite beauty tip on him to see if it really works.


Buddy, before his beauty treatment by the Funny Farm.

Cyndi: We wanted to try Pond's cold cream as a facial because it supposedly gives deep moisturization. (We don't think that's actually a word, but we're furries, so we don't care.) Now Buddy sleeps very heavily, so he was an easy mark. Cotton volunteered. She quietly and gently applied a mask of cold cream to his face. Avoiding the eyes, of course. And his nose -- he has to breathe. We all watched the clock -- one minute. .... eight minutes..... finally, the ten minutes were up. Then came the hard part.

Cotton: One of us had to either use a warm washcloth or a paper towel to wipe off the cold cream.

Cyndi: Cotton, you mean tissue. A tissue, not a paper towel.

Merci: And none of us girls wanted to volunteer. Sam gulped and offered to try. His sigh of relief when we all said no nearly blew Cotton off the bed.

Cotton: None of the other guys would offer. They said it would take a gentle touch and they're man cats and dogs, so their touch, although gentler than Sam's paw of the cement block, wouldn't cut it.

Cyndi: That left only one solution. We volunteered Cotton to finish the beauty tip.

Cotton: Yeah, wimps and cowards, all of my siblings. But I'm a tortie and I've got tortitude, so I very, very gently ran a tissue over Buddy's face, hardly daring to ...

Merci: Breathe, Cotton, before you pass out.

Cotton, breathing deeply: Ahhhhhh.

Buddy, leaping to his feet: What happened? Who just poked me in the eye?

Cotton: Sorry, Buddy, it was an accident. But we have a surprise for you.

Cyndi: Yes, Buddy, go look in the mirror. We gave you a .. Ouch! Cotton you stepped on my foot.

Cotton, very quietly: I did? Fancy that. Probably because you were about to tell a guy we gave him a beauty treatment before he's even seen the results.

Merci: It's amazing, Buddy. Notice how your lines and wrinkles have softened.


Buddy after the Pond's cold cream mask.

Buddy, posing before the mirror: Yes, I can see that. I look ten years younger and ...

Cyndi: But, Buddy, you're only going to be 5 this month. How can you look ... Uh, never mind I don't think I want to go there.

Cotton: You do look handsome, Buddy. Are you pleased with what we've done?

Buddy: Pleased? I love it. What did you do? Whatever it was, we need to try it on Jan before she wakes up.

Cyndi: I don't know. Do you think one jar is enough to smooth out Jan's wrinkles so she looks as good as Buddy does?

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Brody & Ethel

We planned to post some photos from yesterday's Veteran's Day Observance but they are still in the camera. Jan better get on the catnip ball or she's going to be embarrassed by the performance review we're planning to post before the end of the month.

Instead, we're going to share one of those stories that help tissue sales. A story of love.and friendship that will put a smile on your face and a tear in your eye. It's about 92-year old Ethel and Brody, a 12-year old black Lab.

From the Portland Press Herald
A community's caring tempers painful loss of a companion
by Bill Nemitz.

Every morning at exactly 10 o'clock, Brody would take up his position by the front door to wait for the Meals on Wheels volunteers – Steve on Monday, David on Tuesday, Dot on Wednesday, Bud on Thursday and Ray on Friday. Upon hearing a car door close outside, he'd hop up on the nearby window sill, tail wagging, for a look-see.
"The minute they came to the door, he was the welcoming committee," Ethel said.
He had good reason. First, Dot Cleveland started bringing a doggy biscuit on Wednesdays. Then Ray Gross, a dog lover if ever there was one, started showing up with soup bones on Fridays. Before long, all five volunteers were bringing treats for Brody along with meals for Ethel.
You can read the rest of the story here.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Veteran's Day 2009

We wanted something appropriate as a tribute to our military, past and present, for Veteran's Day. We think this song, "America My Home," performed by Ricky David Tripp one month after 9-11 fits the bill.

We stand behind our military. And we salute them. (A little hard for dogs and cats, but, hey, if Percy can type, we can salute.)

We are especially pleased as we read of those serving overseas whose hearts reach out to help rescue unwanted dogs and cats.



If the video will not play for you, click here.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Chief, Pit Bull Hero

We just read an article where a woman basically drips venom about how she detests animals in the house and just dislikes pets in general. Some readers found her article to be clever and cute, but we found it sad. She is entitled to her opinion, but it's too bad,as she's missing out on a lot of fun. She doesn't need to worry, though, we won't invite her to our house.

On the other hand, many of you have undoubtedly read about the pit bull that saved 2 women from a cobra that got into the house and was poised to strike. Those women are alive because they had a pet dog inside the house and that "stinky, noisy" animal sacrificed his life for them.

You can read about Chief, an American Pit Bull Terrier, here.

Monday, November 09, 2009

85 and Still Dancing

Jan says she is feeling very old and tired, so we decided to cheer her up. We found this wonderful video to show her what she could be doing if she really wanted to. Or if her joints would bend without creaking. Wait, she has two left feet. Forget this idea for her. She'd probably break something and we'd be orphans.

But for the rest of you whose humans are feeling old, perhaps this will perk them up. And thanks, Evelyn.

We know it isn't furry related but since we all have to deal with grumpy, dragging, complaining, I-don't-have-the-energy-to-fill-the-water-bowl humans, we felt this is appropriate to post on JFF.

Meet Dorothy Dale Kloss, the oldest showgirl in the world. She's 85 years young.



If the video doesn't play, click here.

Sunday, November 08, 2009

Chenoa Manor

Chenoa Manor Animal Sanctuary rescues animals, but it takes in farm animals instead of cats or dogs. Situated in Chester County, Pennsylvania -- or Pawsylvania, as Khyra calls it -- those with no other place to go are taken in.

"For the past six years, Teti has been offering shelter to all sorts of troubled individuals at this last-resort sanctuary tucked behind a development of staid McMansions in Avondale, just west of Kennett Square. Here, on 25 acres of Andrew Wyeth-worthy pastures, streams and split-rail fences, an unlikely combination of visitors reaps the benefits of a safe space: rescued farm and exotic animals get room and board, and disadvantaged teens learn compassion and care during visits spent working with and studying the animals. Teti sees each as a group that's too often overlooked." You can read the rest of the article here.

And you can get acquainted with some of the animals at the sanctuary by visiting Chenoa Manor Animal Sanctuary's website.

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Family Portrait

We know Halloween is over but when we received a link to this video, we just had to post it. It reminded Jan of when she had 6 kittens (not us 6) in the house and she was trying to get all 6 on the couch at one time so she could get a "family portrait." It wore her out. And she was much younger then.

Actually, we bet you thought we meant our family portrait. Fat chance! Jan can't even get us 3 dogs lined up for a group shot.

Enjoy the video.



If the video doesn't play for you, click here.

Friday, November 06, 2009

Microchips and Veterans

No, we are not advocating microchipping veterans. Those two words just describe our two separate subjects of the day.



Animals get lost for a variety of reasons and many folks whose pet is microchipped assume that if the animal is lost or stolen it will be returned. Well, some are, sometimes even years after they disappeared. But many aren't. And as Jan keeps telling local folks, the chip is worthless if the shelter doesn't scan or doesn't scan properly. It's also worthless if the owner does not register the chip or does not keep the information updated. Many a microchipped pet has been euthanized because either the owner or the shelter was derelict in protecting the animal.

In the interest of time, we stole ... er, borrowed this from Jan's September Paws column for the local Humane Society (not the shelter). It's posted on UpsonPets.com. We don't think she'll mind and if she does, you'll all protect us, won't you? Anyway ....

Last month I reminded you to not rely solely on a microchip for the return of a lost pet. If the shelter or vet does not scan animals, the microchip will not be found. If the animal is improperly scanned, the microchip will be missed. Chips can and do migrate to other areas of the body from where implanted and in rare cases are implanted improperly and fall out.

Let’s suppose your lost pet is scanned at the shelter, the microchip is found and read, the shelter checks the database for your information so they can contact you and … Oops. The database is blank. Many either don’t bother to register or forget to. You are not automatically entered into a database. You must register the chip number and your contact information. If your information changes for any reason, it is your responsibility to update it. So be sure to keep the information current. Some pets have been returned many years after they were lost.


You can’t remember if you registered the chip? Or you have lost the paperwork? There are six U. S. databases. To find out which one you are registered with, take your pet to a vet or shelter to have your pet scanned to get the microchip number. Go online to CheckTheChip.com and enter that number. It will search and tell you which database to contact. Go to that website and check your information, making any necessary changes. If it isn’t there, register the microchip number before you forget.

Be sure to print the information and put it in your pet’s file with all his vet information. You will need this if your pet is lost, and a shelter might require you bring paperwork to verify this chip number belongs to your cat or dog.


We read two articles today that reminded us of this subject, so we thought this might be a good time to remind your humans. One was a warning from a shelter. If we remember correctly, something like 40% forget or don't bother to register and a very large percent don't update their information. Many shelters will not or can not invest the time to try to track down an owner who has been negligent or forgotten to register new information.

The other reminder was a positive article from Arizona: New Tool to help Valley sheriff's posse locate lost pets.. Many of you undoubtedly know Phoenix, AZ and the surrounding Valley area have a large number of annual winter "snowbird" visitors and many of them bring their pets.

Hope you all have a good day. Today and tomorrow Jan will spend a few hours outside the local Wal-mart distributing Buddy Poppies for the Veteran's of Foreign Wars. Veteran's Day is the 11th, next Wednesday. So if you happen to see her (or anyone else distributing poppies for a veteran's group), we hope you will take a moment to say hello and donate a green paper or more for a poppy. The VFW poppies are made by disabled veterans and the proceeds are used to help veterans in the local community.

Crystal, Cotton, Merci, Cyndi, Percy, Cameron, Buddy, Rusty & Sam

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Mini Pigs and Toxic Foods

We are not calling mini pigs toxic food. Mini pigs aren't intended for food. We just have two unrelated subjects today and they do make an intriguing title. We hope.

Anyway, the latest pet craze appears to be mini pigs. They are promoted as "micro piglets small enough to fit in a teacup." We wonder whether they will have health issues.like other teacup pets do. We hope not, but time will tell.

If you haven't seen this before, enjoy the video.



If the video doesn't play, you can watch it here.

The Veterinary Technician Schools Online has an article on foods you should not feed your pet.

"Knowing what can harm your pet is the first step in illness and disease prevention. By avoiding harmful substances and foods, your pet will live a longer, healthier life, and your wallet will thank you too for avoiding veterinary bills that could have been prevented with a little caution and care. These 25 common household foods can be lethal to your furry or feathered buddy. Many of these examples are foods that a typical pet owner would never think twice about giving their dog, cat, hamster or bird, but your pets can suffer greatly from things we humans love to eat on a regular basis."

"Read the rest of the article: “25 Common Foods That Can Be Toxic for Your Pet."

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Clean + Green

Buddy: We have finished testing Clean + Green and we're ready to write our review. We had to lock Jan out of the house in order to write it. She thinks SHE tested it, but as we have said before, this is our blog, her opinion doesn't matter.

Percy: We tried two SeaYu products -- Carpet & Upholstery and Litter Box. Obviously, we cats will report on the litter box sample.



Crystal: As you know, or should know, we kitties do not like to use a dirty litter box. We would all prefer to have our own but Jan refuses to move to a house large enough to support 13 litter boxes.

Cameron: Why do we need 13. I thought there are only 6 of us.

Cotton: There are. As Crystal gets older, he wants the convenience of having multiple boxes around the house so he doesn't have far to go. I mean, so he doesn't have far to walk.

Rusty: Crystal's sense of smell has diminished but the rest of us don't want to smell the litter box. So Jan sprayed the litter and the surrounding area occasionally .

Cyndi: Yeah, something about a certain kitty likes to stand up instead of squat down when he pees.

Percy, speaking rapidly: Don't have any idea who that could be. Let's move along. We have decided we like the Clean + Green Litter Box spray for eliminating odors in the litter box and surrounding area.

Sam: Now we get to do the Carpet & Upholstery overview. We haven't had any accidents on the carpet but there are enough of us that vomiting is a normal pastime, especially among the feline persuasion.

Merci: The Clean + Green did a good job of eliminating odor, cleaning and removing stains in the carpet. Wonder if it would have worked on Jan's checkbook? But we don't do clean-up, just throw-up.

JFF: We all agree that Clean + Green is a product we'd like to have around the house. Jan thinks its best feature is that all the ingredients are non-toxic and harmless to pets. We would agree with her but Jan isn't allowed to give an opinion in our review. However, we do feel better knowing Jan isn't poisoning us when she uses it around our home.

You can find information on all the Clean + Green products at Clean + Green by SeaYu. They even have a De-Skunk Coat Cleaner for the dog who can't tell a tuxedo cat from a skunk.

No human was harmed in the writing of this review. But if you'll excuse us, we better go let Jan back in the house. It's our dinnertime.

JFF -- Crystal, Cotton, Merci, Cyndi, Percy, Cameron, Buddy, Rusty & Sam

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Funny Farm Key Words

We decided it is time to check on some key words folks are using to find our blog. We can understand some of them, but others ....???? We can only imagine some of these visitors were lost. And they were undoubtedly wondering how they ended up here as much as we are.

hackles and twick - What in the world are hackles and twick?

101 funny cats -- Sorry, we're about 95 funny cats short.

pet toxic blog -- We are NOT a pet toxic blog. We are pet eco friendly.

painting with all the paintballs -- What, does this mean some painters are a paintball or two short? .

rollin monty loyd georgia -- Was someone actually planning to roll Mona/Monty Loyd to Georgia?

rollin monta loyd -- See above.

fosters funny farm -- No fosters on this funny farm. We're all permanent residents..

columbus dogs shot arrow -- We'd sure like to meet these Columbus dogs. We hear shooting an arrow is hard work.

funny email addresses -- We met one guy who thought jansfunnyfarm to be a hilarious email address.Think maybe he's been a resident at a real funny farm?

cheapest store to buy world's best cat litter -- Where, where? Funny Farmer kitties want to know.

knock knock jokes farm -- There's a farm for knock knock jokes? Wonder what you feed them?

funny farm animal shower curtains -- Hang on and we'll design a funny farm animal shower curtain for you.

farm animal cruelty videos -- We only post videos that are AGAINST farm animal cruelty, in case any of you wonder about this one.

21st Century Pet Nutrition Pet Chews Plus BEST PRICE -- Sorry, we aren't even aware of the worst price. But if they're edible, Buddy and Sam will find them.

In case you've forgotten what we look like, here's a photo of our Cameron to jog your memory..


Hope you all have a good day. We plan to nap most of it.

Monday, November 02, 2009

Canary Fighting

We forgot to post this in July, so even though the article is "old," the subject isn't.

We've heard of dogfighting, cockfighting, hog dog rodeos, canned hunting and other cruel "fun" some humans enjoy inflicting on animals. But birdfighting -- to be specific, canary and finch fighting with folks betting on which bird survives until the next round? That's a new one to us. And just as despicable.

It's too bad we furries can't decide the punishment for the perpetrators.

“I feel so bad, especially with two young boys and to have that going on in that house,” Sega said. “The house is so beautiful, the people seem so nice and a quiet neighborhood, couldn’t believe what I heard.

"Authorities raided a home in Harwinton earlier in the month, confiscating dozens of roosters. Investigators in Shelton said canary and finch fighting may be a new trend about which they are just learning.

"When canaries are bred, they’ll fight to the death and they don’t make the noise that typical roosters make and they don’t smell,” said Sgt. Robert Kozlowski. “They fall under the radar because we wouldn’t think it suspicious if people have a lot of canaries.

Excerpt from "19 Arrested in Canary-Fighting Investigation." You can read the full article here.

Sunday, November 01, 2009

Angelo the Rescued Lamb

Angelo the lamb and a silbling were born this September in the back of a transport truck on the way to the slaughterhouse. The sibling was trampled to death when the sheep were unloaded. A passerby rescued Angelo and he ended up at Farm Sanctuary, an animal refuge.

We thought our friend Evelyn, who sent us Angelo's story, and our readers would like to see him today -- a happy, healthy and very active lamb. So we're going to share a video.



If the video doesn't play, click here.

Angelo's story can be read at the Farm Sanctuary website.

We hope you had a happy Halloween.