Hello everybody my name is Zac. The committee is kept very busy helping needy cats in South Wirral so I thought I would volunteer my services as Features Editor. There are not too many cats who can boast such a thing or as computer literate as I am!
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Be my Valentine
The Valentine card of today will often feature the nation’s number one pet, but did you know that the cat appeared on cards of yesteryear? David Watkins reveals more, including an unexpected phenomenon
Does your heart miss a beat when the postman calls on the most romantic day of the year? 14th February rarely passes without even the most sensible person wondering whether a Valentines card might land on the doormat. However, few people today will realise that yet another type of Valentine card was also popular in those days of long ago and which is being seen more and more on Valentines cards of today. This was the Valentine card which feature a colourful and much loved pet and undoubtedly it was the cat which was the favourite pet illustration on these cards
Treasured keepsake
Traditional cat Valentine cards of yesteryear feature winsome and winning cats with many of them being humorous ones which were always eagerly received by the public on Valentine’s Day. Humour was encouraged by the manufacturers of these cards and they welcomed cat artists to use such originality in their work to satisfy the demand of customers in such a rapidly growing seasonal market. These humorous and jocular cat Valentine cards were usually sent by doting relatives to the younger members of the family who would then treasure them by putting them into scrap-books to be shown to friends at a later date
However, other cards had a more bygone appeal and were beautifully drawn and finely printed and these were massively popular with the more middle-class recipients of society of the time
Artists who were capable of illustrating such cats in charming and romantic poses were always in high demand and were paid huge salaries for their talent in depicting these cat portraits. A few of their names are known to us today, such as Louis Wain and Tom Brown but the names of others who have been lost to us were certainly renowned in their day
Famous recipients
Some famous people who delighted in receiving such cat Valentines cards were former Prime Minister, Sir Harold Wilson, who lovingly owned a Siamese cat, and Beverly Nichols, who doted on his own cat and French novelist, Colette, and her precious cat La Chatte. The distinguished actor, James Mason, who was a collector of these Valentine cards, declared that his many cats gave him such affection when he was the leading film actor of the British screen
Indeed, making a collection of these cat Valentines can give great pleasure to those who are enamoured of cats. The most pleasurable way to acquire such a collection is to attend the many postcard fairs and exhibitions held regularly all over the country. The cards are becoming quite a rare find nowadays and are no longer inexpensive. However, there are no limits to the enjoyment they give in their timeless beauty of yesteryear
Modern day cats still appear on Valentine cards today
Unexpected discovery
It’s a fact that increasing numbers of people today are not only sending Valentine cards to loved ones but to their pets too! A recent survey revealed that cats are in fact those pets who win most hearts, as they outnumber other traditional pets with the public such as dogs and horse
Staff who interviewed customers in their shops in order to discover buying patterns were amazed to hear that customers were buying cards for their pets – and the staff erroneously believed that they were using such an affectionate term for their partners!
Indeed, this is not surprising at all when we remember that cats give unconditional love to their owners and they get plenty in return. In addition to buying Christmas presents, many cats are even given birthday presents and some will receive gifts on a regular basis simply “for being good friends”
The human-animal bond, and joys of interspecies love
The human-animal bond refers to the strong positive interaction that exists between humans and animals, a bond that enhances our quality of life. Animals have much to offer us. We spend a significant part of our lives with our animal companions given the life expectancy of certain species. It is not uncommon for cats to reach seventeen and over. And so animals can be true companions, accompanying us through life stages and changes
Susan Chernak Noble in her book animals as Teachers and Healers affirms the profound significance of the role animals play in our lives. Most of the stories are heartfelt tributes to the lives of much loved animals which lived with their human companions for many years, accompanying them through failed marriages, lost jobs, death of loves ones, debilitating illness and countless other major life passages
Of course we do not have to be needy in any way to benefit from sharing life with an animal. Companion animals can enhance our lives just with their presence, and can only add to our happiness and contribute to our good health. We take from the human animal relationship what we need, and this can vary as we go through childhood, adulthood and old age. We also give back, because the human animal relationship at its best is a two way thing, and in the giving back we also benefit. The more we give and receive the stronger the human animal bond
The following stories by four of our volunteers describe the things that made an animal special to the owner Dorothy wrote about how her companion animal brings joy to her life. “Tillybob is a little ray of sunshine that brightens up my home. My ginger and white boy. He has brought a playful energy into the home, keeping me amused and entertained with his antics. When he has tired himself out and snoozing he reminds me that I too should take time out to relax. When I arrive home there he is on the windowsill and when his orange eyes meet mine I feel welcomed home”
Here, the wonderment of interspecies communication and love of sharing life with a being who happens not to be human . "Although the animals in my life have long been providing me with insight and inspiration, one particular cat has led me to acknowledge the impact of animals in my life. Tawali is my special animal. Her name means from the wild because she is not domesticated. Born under a shed to a feral mother, Tawali appeared in my life when she was four months old, past the critical period of socialisation to humans. She made me feel special too, because I am the only human she trusts, and who has ever touched her. Now three years old, she walks between the worlds, spending some time with her wild family, the rest of the day with her domesticated family of cats, taking cues from them, watching how they interact with me. The bond here is between human and wild born animal. This too makes her special and I feel privileged to have her in my life. As I write, she is curled up on he sofa beside me, if I reach out gently to stroke her, she will respond with a long slow stretch and a purr. But if I suddenly get up, she will panic and disappear. So I have to be careful when she is around not to betray her trust, always conscious of her wild origins”
Karen's cat’s legacy to her was the ability to see life from a cat’s point of view. To be able to get, and give, the best you can to a feline relationship. “I have been very fortunate and have been helped through life by feline or canine friends for most of it so far. To be able to communicate with and animal, cat or dog, adds ease to the relationship, which can only help to enrich the bond between human and animal. My first Siamese cat, Tadalinka, is the one who tried her hardest to teach me how to cater for her every whim. It was a big learning curve when she first arrived! As a kitten she demanded everything as loudly as she could with any delay being met with utter disapproval. Once you’ve been jumped on from a great height and yowled at often enough you soon learn to pay attention. I started to learn to read the movements and signs of what she wanted. The rewards were endless when you got it right. The head pushed into your hand to stroke her, the half closed eyes to greet you and a purr that somehow felt like it was shaking your bones. As she grew we became more and more in tune with each other, even to the point that if she was out on an adventure I could bring her back by thinking really strongly of her and picturing her in my mind. Taddy was in my life over thirty years ago. She has helped me more that she will ever know and for that I am eternally grateful to her”
Jean sent a story about a cat whose character was such that she has never been forgotten. “My Burmese cat Chinty was very special to me. If I had been out, as soon as I open the door, she would come running up to me meowing and chirping as much as to say “where you have been you know I don’t like you being out”. One morning I was sitting having coffee before going to work when she came running in from the next room, meowing then running back. She did this several times in quick succession as much as to say come and see this. I followed her into the room. She jumped up onto the back of the chair looking out of the window. I looked thinking I would see another cat or a bird, and was surprised to see the paperboy lying unconscious in my driveway. He had come off his bike on the ice and was just lying there. Clever Chinty knew something was wrong and made sure I saw him. I had Chinty until she was eighteen and then she had to be put to sleep due to kidney failure”
These tributes reveal just a glimpse of the rich relationship that forms the human animal bond in modern times. So it is not surprising that we remember the love that we receive from our animal companions and include them on Valentine's day