“May I Have The Envelope, Please. . .”

Awards season is upon us! While there’s no category for cats and their star worthy performances (even though we at KCZD believe there should be), there are cats throughout history who have left their mark and become famous.

Tabby and Dixie were President Abraham Lincoln’s much adored tabby cats. the first cats to live in the White House! President Lincoln reportedly fed them with gold forks at White house dinners, and claimed that Dixie was smarter than his entire cabinet. Hard to be surprised by that.

The historic Algonquin Hotel in Manhattan has a tradition of having a house cat that has had run of the place since the 1930s. All the females are named Matilda and all the males are named Hamlet. Starting in 2018 the Algonquin holds a feline fashion show every summer that benefits the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals. I guess that makes the Algonquin officially “pet friendly.”

The author Ernest Hemingway was given a polydactyl cat (a cat with extra toes) in the 1930’s. He was so taken with the lovely cat, whom he named “Snowball”, that his estate became home to over 50 polydactyl cats. Although for those of us who know cats, the real truth is Mr. Hemingway was fortunate that the cats chose him as their slave, and that they allowed him to live there alongside them all those years.

Not to be outdone, we at KCZD have had our share of unforgettable cats. Unfortunately, we can’t chose just one winner, but we do have our favorite CATegories!

THE AWARD FOR THE SPICIEST CATS GOES TO. . .

Well, we love those “spicy” cats, with their strong personalities and their likes and dislikes. Cats that won’t easily give respect, and certainly would never be caught showing too much affection.

Aloof, stand offish, and sometimes a bit swatty, they make us laugh with their antics and airs. We all remember fondly our spice kitties – Moonpie, Lillian, Boo, and Maisy (to name just a few).

THE AWARD FOR THE MEDICAL MIRACLE CATS GOES TO. . .

We’ve had so many kitties who had illnesses and injuries. They require extra love and attention from a very special group of volunteers, and hold special places in our hearts and memories.

Among those were Sunset, The Count, and a group of kittens, one of whom is Hudson, who were born with an eyelid abnormality that affected the formation of their upper eyelids. They all got reconstructive surgery and are now living comfortably spoiled lives.

Kitties who require surgeries or long term medical care can cost a lot! Please consider donating to help us take in more kitties like these.

THE AWARD FOR THE MOST SOCIALLY IMPROVED CAT GOES TO. . .

We have a huge cadre of truly dedicated and loving volunteers who come in and socialize with our cats. “Why?” you may ask? Well, sometimes kitties come to us traumatized, worn out, overwhelmed, or scared. They sit there, frozen with fear, or come at people defending themselves from any further harm.

We’ve had some cats like that – Logan, Dodge and Durango, Harlow and Starr, just to name a few. It takes so much love and patience, but eventually our amazing volunteers turn these tigers into pussycats. There’s nothing like seeing a cat go from hissing to purring and then off to the loving forever home they should have had all along.

THE AWARD FOR THE MOST “FLUFFIEST” CATS GOES TO. . .

Look, we all have our issues, right? Frizzy hair, big feet, fear of spiders, etc. So when we get a kitty who is “fluffy,” it seems to pull our heart strings all the more.

Of course, we do have some fun with their names – like Big Mac, Whopper, and Hunk. Yup, we got ya buddy. We find them the best homes, where their family loves that they have twice the cat for half the price!!!

THE AWARD FOR THE BEST CAT IN THE WHOLE WORLD GOES TO. . .

Whatever cat happens to curl up in your lap, waiting for ear scratches and kisses!!! And, if you don’t have one of those yet, we at KCZD have PLENTY just waiting for you. Come on down and check out our adorable kitties, just waiting to claim you as their award winning human!

Should your cat win an award? Share their story with us!