Are you have any felines in the family? If so, did you know that September is “Happy Cat Month?” I just found that out recently.
Sadly, our furry family members has dwindled in size this year. We lost two cats recently – one in June and the other just a couple of weeks ago. Both of them had to be put to sleep due to health issues. One was 17 years old and lead a good, long life. The other one was only 11 years old and had many years ahead of him.
We used to have five cats – two males and three females. Now only the girls are left.
As a cat mom, it’s my job to make sure that our cats are happy and healthy, the same way I make sure my human children are happy and healthy as well.
Our cats are spoiled. They are living in the lap of luxury with their endless supply of hugs and belly rubs, scratch pads, toys and plenty of soft places to lie their heads.
A new book was just released that would be a fun read for “Happy Cat Month.” It’s called Engineering for Cats: Better the Life of Your Pet with 10 Cat-Approved Projects. It’s written by Mac Delany. Mac is an aerospace engineer at United Technologies in San Diego, CA. His two cats, Pepe and Nellie, were the inspiration for this book.
Engineering for Cats addresses the oddities of cat behavior through the view of an aerospace engineer—with ten cat-tested projects that solve the most common sources of friction affecting the relationship between folks and felines.
Let’s face it, cats can be very peculiar beings. Some of the things they do make no sense to us, but make perfect sense to them. Take for example our cat Bella. For some odd reason she loves to sleep on the coffee table with her head dangling off the side of it. It looks so uncomfortable, yet she doesn’t mind sleeping that way. Weird!
Inspired by his cats’ behavior oddities, Mac, an aerospace engineer, cat enthusiast, and most recently a presenter at CatCon 2018, combined his knowledge of cat nature and engineering to design projects to alleviate the most common stressors of domesticated kitties.
While this book is meant to help calm down kitties, it also serves to stimulate the minds of its human audience. Readers will explore the basics of engineering through a variety of projects, from bunk beds to treat slot machines, each complete with easy step-by-step illustrated instructions. Projects can be worked on individually or constructed in a group as a fun project to bond with both human and cat family members and friends. Cats and people alike will love the way these projects engineer a healthier and happier relationship with each other.
I was sent the book to review. Unfortunately I just had surgery and I’m physically not able to do any of the projects described in the book. Some of the projects look really cool and would be great things to work on during the winter months when it’s too cold to go out and do anything.
Most of the projects seem easy enough. I’m sure between my husband and I can we accomplish them. There is a simple cat shelf I know we can make and a “cat cave” that I know our cats would love to have.
Look for Engineering for Cats by Mac Delany where ever books are sold (I did find it on Amazon).
Kimberly
*I received a free copy to review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
Cami Valenzuela says
Did not know it was National cat month. My youngest wants one so bad! Thinking we should adopt! Thanks for the info!
Trisha McKee says
Thank you for the book recommendation. We had a few losses this year also. Including our 18 year old Siamese. It is not easy. But this book- it is something we can do for our cats that we do have.