Modern Cats (A Review)

Like most of us these days, I get a fair amount of notices sent to me by email every day, anything from local discounts from Groupon to British Airways holiday packages that would take a year to save up for.  But one daily-update is a constant source of delight and temptation, and is an absolute must for all indulgent cat lovers.


Moderncat.net is a website which showcases specially selected (sometimes useful and sometimes pure indulgent) luxury cat items, and I thought I would share a few of my favourites with you below.

Quick Note: Rest assured, you have my word, none are links to dodgy chemists or harmful sites of any sort. All links are to Moderncat.net, which is a trustworthy reputable cat fancy website.

Funky Designer Cat Scratchers

Unique Cat-loving Designer Home
I can just see my girls drinking from fine china ...can't you? I think I will be searching local boot-sales for similar little gems this summer ;)

This link showcases a luxury Hotel for cats in Hertfordshire, check it out, you'll want to stay there yourself!




Handy Reminder and Stylish Posters
These are just delightful and I love the messages they have chosen, too. I'd love these all the way up my stairs, so cheerful and they scream 'cats live here', like you wouldn't have guessed two seconds in through the front door anyway lol!

There are two other products that I have discovered through this fabulous website the beautiful pEi-Pod and the amazing hiCat. These two, however, stand out so much from anything else, they deserve their own individual reviews, which I will post soon.


If you have enjoyed these few snippets, sign up for your own moderncat.net email updates, you won't be disappointed and neither will you cats!

Ann Baker (Raggedy Ann) 1918-1997

The UKRBS recently organized a Seminar for Ragdoll Breeders in the UK. Held near Stratford, it was a great success and an altogether enjoyable day. Even so, with petrol at more than £1.30 a litre (sighs loudly), it was inspiring to see others there had braved b-roads and distances to learn more about the trials and tribulations of breeding our beloved Ragdolls.

While serious matters of health and ethics were professionally presented and discussed openly, there was also an opportunity to meet up with fellow breeders. Under the guise of a light-hearted quiz, we also looked at the origins and history of the Ragdoll, and myths surrounding pioneering breeder, Ann Baker.

Having felt awkward and clumsy amongst the more established breeders on so many occasions, I was surprised at how much detail I seem to have picked up. Encouraged by this, I decided to return to the Definitive Guide to Ragdolls by Lorna Wallis, Robin Pickering and David Pollard, put down so many times in the past because of the sheer amount of detail you have to take-in to keep-up in the opening paragraphs alone! With this newfound eagerness, I noticed that this time a clearer picture has begun to form.

To start at the very beginning, my focus this time was Ann Baker herself. I haven't known what to think up to now, people's opinions of her, her theories and practices, vary so considerably.

The Definitive Guide carefully skips over any stong opinions on her character, which is just as well. I think it may have clouded judgements even more, obscuring the wider picture even more. Is it important to dissect her personality in any detail? I think not.

Quite simply, her plan was to breed an adorable docile breed of cat with a specific look. Almost fifty years on, there is no debate that she achieved this on a global scale. I append a snippet of the woman I celebrate, dug from the depths of a roller-coaster 45 minute interview taken at her home.

Ann Baker, achieved what she set out to do and we have inherited this amazing companion thanks to her: for that I celebrate and honour her memory.