Hi, friends!!! It's been a couple of weeks since I blogged, so I figured it's time to get you all caught up on what's happening down here at the shelter! We've been busy as usual, but thankfully things have quieted down some after the Flower and Patio Show! We did really great this year, far exceeding what we did last year in sales and donations. A good portion of our sales came from Barb's totally exquisite jewelry. Wow, has she ever gotten good at making necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. I'm so glad she took my advise on how to make these things. We'll just let her keep thinking that all those good ideas are hers, hmmm?  

We've got some fun events coming up. This Sunday, we'll be at Pet Supplies Plus on Rockville Road, doing another one of our really entertaining Kitten Kaboodles! We'll have big cats, little cats, cats who climb on rocks; short cats, skinny cats, even cats with chicken pox . . . um wait a minute. Aren't those the words to a hot dog commercial? Anyway, we'll have lots and lots of cats and kittens who will be interviewing potential owners. C'mon out to PSP and let our kitties ask you questions! You never know . . . one of our cats might just choose YOU as their new best friend! I'm working on a questionnaire to send with them all. "Do you pet your kitty at least ten hours a day?" "Do you give your kitty treats whenever they want?" "Do you let your kitty drive after having catnip?" All very important questions to ask!

And then on Tuesday, April 1, we're having our Silent Auction and fundraiser at Arni's restaurant in Carmel. Arni's is donating 20% of each dinner to Cats Haven, and we'll have lots of really cool silent auction items that you can bid on. All the proceeds from the auction benefit Cats Haven. We've got a Beatles stamp collection, some gift certificates, even a couple of dog-related baskets for you dog lovers out there. Be sure to print out the coupon on this website (look at the menu to the left and you'll see the Arni's Invitation link) and bring it with you. Thank you, Arni's, for helping us this year. You guys ROCK!

April 19th, the Cats Haven's Kitties for Ti**ies team will be walking in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure!! I'm so excited about this! We've got really really cool Kitties for Ti**ies t-shirts that you can buy on our Cafe Press store. My good friend April Tchiguka designed these shirts, and everyone needs one! When April gets more famous than she already is, these shirts will be selling for gazillions of dollars, so buy one now while they're cheap! And you know that you can also buy RazMan shirts and calendars and stuff too, right? When you're done reading my blog, go buy something! All profits go to the shelter, so you can help all of us and never have to leave your home. Very cool! 

I want to say something to my good friend, KJ. I am really sorry to hear about the passing of your dad. You've been in my thoughts for the past couple of weeks, and I've been meaning to call you, but being a cat it's kinda hard for me to dial and hold the phone. And Barb isn't good about letting me write emails, so let me say here that you've been on my mind, and I hope you're doing alright. Hugs and purrs from me to you, KJ.  We love you a lot.

Okay, guys. I need to get upstairs and try to explain to Wobbles how to get off the bed after he gets on it. He's been having a little trouble with gravity recently, so it's time for a lesson in defying it as only a cat can do. 'Hope to see a lot of you guys at PSP on Sunday, and even more at Arni's on the 1st! Take care, everyone . . . - Raspberry 

Hi, friends!! It's me . . . Raspberry, the shelter manager at Cats Haven! I just got home from the Flower and Patio Show, and boy oh boy did we ever have a good time out there this year!! Thank you to everyone who stopped by the booth, visited with Barb and the kitties, and donated to our shelter. You have no idea how much we appreciate every donation. Thanks so much . . . you guys ROCK! And not only did we raise money for the shelter, but four kitties also found their forever homes!! Woo Hoo!!!! Many of Barb's necklaces found their forever homes, too!! Even with The Other Sue and Lela being sick during most of the show, it was a banner year this year!! Thank you Sue, Krista, Elizabeth, KJ, Brian, Rebecca, Kay, Barbara, Donna, Dave, Zoe, Sandy, and everyone else who helped this year. You guys are absolutely the very best!!

Now, as most of you know, I teach kitten classes at the shelter. And during every holiday, I explain to the kittens how that holiday *really* came to be. Most of the time, humans have kinda distorted the history of the various holidays. For example, take St. Patrick's Day. Most humans will tell you that it came about because of a man named Patrick who drove the snakes out of Ireland. Not quite true. The REAL story of St. Patrick's Day is this . . . Many years ago,  there was a retired Irish nun named Sister Babs who ran a small cat shelter in Dublin. Sister Babs was assisted at the shelter by a striking red tabby cat named Rick (who, by the way, was my great-great-great-great-great grandfather, twice removed). Babs and Rick took care of hundreds of cats from all over Ireland, feeding them, bringing the sick ones back to health, and finding homes and/or jobs for them. Times were hard, however, and despite lots of donations from the people of Dublin, Rick had to get a job to help support the shelter. Rick was a really good mouser, so Sister Babs would hire him out for a few cents a day to help rid homes and businesses of those pesky mice that would get into grains and other foods for the humans. At the end of each day as Rick was paid, he'd always lower his head as he put his coins in his vest and get a pat on the top of the head for the hard work he'd done. This went on for years, Rick going to work each day and helping to rid Ireland of all their pesky mice. One day while Rick was working in a local pub, he heard a loud CRASH outside. He ran out to see what had happened, and he found a wheel had come off of a beautiful carriage. Inside the carriage, Rick was very surprised to find Pope Felinus the First!! No kidding! Pope Felinus was shaken up, so Rick helped him out of the carriage and got him inside of the pub. Poured him a Guinness, too, while Rick went outside to fix the wheel on the carriage. After he got the wheel repaired and put back on, Rick went into the pub to tell the Pope that he could continue on his way. The Pope was so pleased with this humble servant-cat, he said "I should make you a saint! What is your name, son?" Rick replied, "Oh, no, sir . . . just pat Rick on the head. That's all I want." Well, apparently Pope Felinus had poured himself another Guinness or two while Rick had been out working on the carriage, and all he heard was "Patrick." The Pope then announced, "Today and every March 17th from here on, we will call this St. Patrick Day! And we will all drink Guinness and chase mice! Woo HOO!!!!!" Everyone in the pub raised a glass and said "Woo HOO!!!," and that's how St. Patrick's Day really came into being. That's the true story. Really.

So, here's hoping you all have a wonderful St. Pat-Rick's Day!! Be sure to pat your favorite kitty, and if you feel so inclined, treat yourself to a little Guinness. More later, friends . . . Raspberry

Hello, friends! It's been nearly a month since my last blog. How time flies, huh? I've been so busy with the cats and kittens here at the shelter that I didn't even realize February was gone. So it's March now, and my question is, "Where is Spring?!" I'm looking out the front window, and all I see is rain, wind, and sleet. Will Spring ever get here? My good friend The Other Sue keeps saying that the Indiana Flower and Patio Show is a sure sign that Spring is just around the corner. I don't think she's looked outside recently. I'm just sayin' . . .

But Cats Haven is going to be at the Indiana Flower and Patio Show again this year. I'm really excited about it, too. I'm going to help Barb set up this week, and I might take a little break, slip away for a few minutes, and dig in some of the mulch around the gardens. Hehehe. Our booth is gonna be beautiful with new table covers and all kinds of toys and beds and jewelry for sale. And all sales benefit the kitties. How cool is that? We even have a few volunteer spots left if you want to come out and help. Contact Sue at susan@pjfuzzypaws.com if you have a couple of hours you'd like to spend at the Fairgrounds with Barb!

Hey, we've also got a super cool fundraiser coming up on April 1st . . . April Fool's Day. But this is no April Fool. Arni's, this restaurant in Carmel that has really yummy pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and stuff, is hosting our annual Silent Auction, sponsored by The Cat Doctor. And if you print the flyer/invitation from our website here and take it with you, Arni's will donate 20% of the cost of your meal to Cats Haven! Wow, huh? KJ and Smiley from WZPL will be there, so make a date with Cats Haven between 5 and 8 p.m. on April 1st and join us for dinner. The Silent Auction items are amazing this year, too. I know you'll find stuff you  just can't live without!

While there's lots going on outside the shelter, there's been lots going on inside, too. Barb and I are planning to move our office into what's called The Queen's Room, and we're looking at getting the floor fixed and all kinds of neat home-improvement things so we can get moved. And there's a company in Fishers that is hoping to help us with some electrical and HVAC work, so we might have a kitchen much sooner than we'd anticipated! We're still looking at grants, and my friend Cindy Cox is working on grant stuff right now. AND we've got lots of people signed up for the Race for the Cure walk!! As you know, Cats Haven is sponsoring a team called Kitties for Ti**ies. You can sign up anytime before March 12th and be part of our team. It's gonna be so much fun. I wish I could walk with you guys, but I have to be at the shelter that morning. It's not that I can't walk 5K. Really, I could. But Barb said she needs me here. Darn.

That's it for now, guys. I hope to see many of you at the Fairgrounds for the Flower and Patio Show, and even more of you at Arni's on the 1st! Spring will get here eventually, won't it? Later, friends - Raspberry