December 15th is Celebrated as Cat Herding Day

A dear friend's birthday is next week so I researched about the history of that day. However, I stumbled, stopped, halted, ceased... on December 15^th. Were you aware that this date is known and celebrated as Cat Herding Day? Yes, you read that correctly, cat herding not cat hoarding. It is a day to sympathize with those whom feel as if their lives resemble the impossible task of cat herding. What? Is cat herding so very difficult? Well, yes and no. For medication and/or grooming purposes, cat herding can be a Herculean undertaking. After all, some cats instinctively know if you are going to do something to them- even if it is for their own good. However, one at a time works very well during the nightly medicating and grooming hour. If I want to coerce cats into one room, treats work. Shake up a bag of their favorite treats while walking towards the room and clicking my tongue... the cats come running. They herd themselves. So I do not really get this holiday for the reasons that others do. I do not see impossible tasks correlated to cats.

I do want to take this time to honor those who work with cat herds and cat hoarders. Folks in animal rescue work hard usually as a volunteer or second job to bring a better and safer quality of life to animals. Those who are part of a TNR program... kudos to you! Typically a TNR person goes out at night to areas of town where a colony of cats has formed. Their job is to care for the colony or colonies as some people watch over several area colonies. They trap cats with humane traps using food as an enticement. Then the person will take the cat or cats to a low cost spay/neuter clinic and pay for veterinary care out of his or her own pocket. The cat is ear-tipped (a small notch at the top of the ear) to show this cat has been TNR'd (trap, neutered, and released).

I am involved in cat rescue, being co- director of one, and on the board of another, but I am not involved with TNR, My hat goes off to those who are involved!

Being involved with rescue, I have dealt with several cat hoarding situations. Typically though, the cats are brought to us, or we pick them up from a local animal control or veterinary clinic. Only one time did we enter willingly into a cat hoarding situation... my hat off to those involved with this type of situation on a regular basis. The conditions were beyond deplorable. We simply called it the hell house. The cats were saved.

This holiday is celebrated during this time of the year to offer us the humanity of we are not alone. No one man is an island. Do not try to complete every single task put forth to you. So many of us try and cram so much into this month... we forget to appreciate what is really important. I was simply looking for ideas to celebrate my friend's birthday... and was reminded about the importance of appreciating others. Let's hear it for all the cat herders!