The post Would You Mind Keeping It Down? Cyril’s Strange Reaction to Sounds by Dr. Karyn Kanowski BVSc MRCVS (Veterinarian) appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren't considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com. Hi, I’m Dr. Karyn! Read my introduction to learn more about me and meet my five hilarious cats: Clutch, Cyril, Alex, Zelda, and Zazzles. Have you met Cyril? If you haven’t, you are missing out! He’s the squishiest, most chilled-out, laid-back cat I’ve ever known, and he often gives me lifestyle envy. He’s also living the plus-sized life, which is something we’re going to be tackling in a future post. For now, I’d like to tell you about another of his unique characteristics – his reaction to certain sounds. Cyril is a cat with very few cares in the world. Back in 2021, I picked up a little virus; you may have heard of it. Covid something? Anyway, I had a wee bit of a cough, which apparently did not please He who shall not miss breakfast. Every time I had the audacity to clear my throat or attempt to bring up a lung whilst in Cyril’s general vicinity, I would get an angry little chatter in return. How do I know it was angry? Well, the truth is, I don’t; it was just the vibe he was giving. There was no hissing or snarling, no swishing of tail or gnashing of teeth, just that chattering sound cats unleash when they’ve spotted a bird, rodent, or in my ginger cat Alex’s case, a hot dog. And there was an attitude. If you live with cats, you’ll know what I’m talking about. That air of superiority that lets you know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you are, and always will be, inferior to the feline species. And that’s fine, I know my place in the household hierarchy, but Cyril is not usually one to be so haughty. I’m perfectly comfortable being judged by a cat, but being judged by Cyril is like being judged by a sweet, kindly old man, like Morgan Freeman or Tim Walz. The look in his eyes seemed to say “I’m not angry, I’m just disappointed.” Don’t you want to know what I’m thinking? Coughing Paranoia It was difficult enough dealing with wary looks and suspicious glares when allergies or an inhaled drink set off a coughing fit during Covid, but now I was also dealing with cough-barrassment at home. Was nowhere safe?! What’s even more worrying is that Cyril only cackles when I cough, never when my husband or anyone else does. It’s pretty hard not to take it personally. I almost had myself convinced that it was all down to Cyril’s love and concern for my health when he started to chatter at other noises as well. First, it was the sneeze, but now the crinkling of an empty soda can has joined the clandestine cough on the list of sounds to be made only once I have established that I am in a Cyril-free zone. I cannot bear the idea of disrupting his snooze time; the poor cat is only managing 18, maybe 20 hours of sleep a day. Cyril is not a fan of the can. Why The Strange Reaction to Sounds? Being an indoor kitty, one might theorize that Cyril’s chatter is nothing more than misplaced hunting sounds, but he will also make these vocalizations to birds spied on nearby rooftops. I needed more information. When researching the topic of cat chatter, I have found a number of different explanations for the sound, none of which were particularly surprising: mimicking prey excitement anticipation of biting prey and one that confirmed my worst fears: expressing frustration with their humans. Much like the quintessential meow, cats are rarely seen to chatter with other cats, meaning it is a sound reserved for specific occasions: hunting and telling people to shut up. Cyril seems to mostly enjoy my company. The Cat’s Meow Feline-to-feline communication generally consists of chirps, hisses, growls, or yowls. The meow appears to have been developed as a way of trying to mimic the nonsensical sounds they hear coming from our mouths. Given that during my extensive history of meowing at cats, I don’t seem to have caused any offense, my assumption is that a cat’s meow is as decipherable a language to them as it is to us, in that, it isn’t. We think we’re being cute when we return their meow, when in fact, it is the cats that are humoring us by parroting our sounds. So is Cyril annoyed at my coughing, or just confused by it? Is it a sign of his love and devotion to me that he persists in trying to communicate, even when my language has changed from coherent patterns to the strangled cry of a crushed Coke can? Are we doomed to stay locked in a cycle of indecipherable vocalizations until one of us gets bored and walks away (or in Cyril’s case, falls asleep)? I think the answer is yes. Unless I manage to teach Cyril (and myself) morse code… This article is a part of Dr. Karyn's series with her five hilarious cats. Read her previous article: Zazzles and Her Multiple Personalities The post Would You Mind Keeping It Down? Cyril’s Strange Reaction to Sounds by Dr. Karyn Kanowski BVSc MRCVS (Veterinarian) appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren't considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com.

Books short fiction Nine Short Stories About Living With Magical Creatures Life is more interesting with dragons, and unicorns, and cryptids, and a talking pig. By Ratika Deshpande | Published on October 25, 2024 Comment 0 Share New Share What would it be like if pigs could give helpful advice? If dragons could provide emotional support? If snakes could cure all ailments? Humans have a fondness for sharing space with different species, but what would our world would look like if our non-human companions had magic? Here are some intriguing scenarios to consider… “Four Pieces of Advice on the Selection of a Familiar” by Kelly M. Sandoval It’s time for Lena to choose a familiar, and everyone has advice to offer. Her mistress advises her to choose something beautiful, while her father suggests getting something practical and useful. They all offer logical approaches, but, when the time comes, Lena might have to think differently. Can she make a good choice? “The Long View” by Susan Palwick As the director of the Office of Animal Affairs, dealing with unusual requests regarding students’ emotional support animals is Elliott’s daily job. There’s one student, however, that Elliott would rather not deal with. Tatiana Prentiss can sue her way out of every situation she doesn’t like, so he’s not very excited when she shows up with a dragon, asking Elliott—and pretty much everyone else at the university—to make space for the creature. A simple no won’t work here. But what’s the best solution to this tricky situation? “My Custom Monster” by Jo Miles Our narrator gifted her niece a Custom Monster and little Gemma loved it very much indeed. But turns out they’re not just toys for kids—everyone is raving about how happy their monster makes them. Our narrator is skeptical, but gives in eventually—depression isn’t always easy to deal with, after all, and maybe everyone is right about the Custom Monsters, after all… “Six Fictions About Unicorns” by Rachael K. Jones When you tried to run away from home, you mostly failed. What you did find was not adventure, but a unicorn, which you brought home with you. Soon, having the unicorn means people don’t notice the little things you used to be insecure about. They are jealous, mean, sometimes unbelieving. But you know better—you know unicorns. So the two of you remain together, growing up, until you find that the unicorn keeps getting in the way, until you try to get rid of it because you’ve always known that you weren’t worthy enough to have one in the first place. But it doesn’t work like that. How can you navigate together a world that doesn’t really have the space for both of you? “The Magical Sow” by Wen Wen Yang Zhu, the family sow, can talk, but she does so only with the Middle Sister, our narrator. They notice that Biyu, the Little Sister, is hiding the fact that her husband abuses her. Something needs to be done, but it won’t be easy—Biyu’s husband is a constable and our narrator is a farmer, not a fighter. Fortunately, Zhu is there to help.  “From the Archives of the Museum of Eerie Skins: An Account” by C.S.E. Cooney While witches can perform magic, wolfcasters like Firi Kanaphar cannot. Their powers are stored in their pelts and they cannot be killed when they’re wearing them. In order to kill a wolfcaster, their pelt needs to be destroyed. In this transcript, Firi recounts how a rich student stalked her using all the means he had at his disposal, found her pelt, and cut it up into a hundred pieces. There were no laws at the time that would help her get justice. Then an opportunity arrived in the form of an invitation to contribute to an event on the past and present of wolfcasters at the Museum of Eerie Skins. Joined by her mother and friends, Firi’s actions ended up creating an impact that mere retaliatory violence—suggested several times—would never have had. “A Brief Catalog of Humans, as Observed by the Cryptids of Encante” by Ruth Joffre Unlike the other stories on this list, this catalog looks at the human/magical creature relationship from the other side, detailing the observations of humans made by the Cryptids of Encante. They’ve identified and categorised humans into types based on the humans’ beliefs and the harm they might cause—for example, the Myopic Cryptozoologist and the Ardent Disbeliever. Going a step further, the catalog also offer a warning and poses a final question—one which challenges readers to rethink their own assumptions. “The Science and Artistry of Snake Oil Salesmanship” by Timothy Mudie Aloysius P. McNutt and Snake travel across the frontier. First goes Snake, terrorising the residents, and then arrives Al, ready to save them. A mock fight ensues, followed by the extraction of the creature’s elixir, a potion that cures all illnesses. It should sell for a fortune, but it also sounds too good to be true, so Al is forced to pretend to be a hack and perform his act, over and over. Sometimes, that’s the only way of doing good in the world. “The Zee” by Tim Lees Kurt Carter, host of a show on urban cryptozoology, is obsessed with “tracking down the creatures science won’t admit exist.” In his short-lived career, he takes viewers around cities, documenting the supposed habitats of these beings that live among us. But there’s one creature he keeps mentioning, an obsession that overrides all others—the Zee, a creature that cannot be defined, a creature that resists specifics, a creature that Kurt believes destroyed his family and which he’s determined to track down, no matter how long it takes and no matter what happens to the show. His curiosity keeps him going, but audiences can’t wait forever. What will this star do to make his case now? [end-mark] The post Nine Short Stories About Living With Magical Creatures appeared first on Reactor.

Episode 4 of The Retro Resurgence Podcast has dropped! Ken and Chad welcome special guest Wyatt to the show. Ken gets us into the Halloween spirit by bringing up his Favorite Monster Cereals. Then, it’s CONTINUE READING... The post The Retro Resurgence Podcast – Episode 4 | Favorite Board Games appeared first on The Retro Network.

Ken and Chad are joined by special guest Wyatt Bloom to remember his brother Jason Gross, a fixture in the Retro Community for many years, on the 1 year anniversary of his untimely passing. Listen CONTINUE READING... The post The Retro Resurgence Podcast – SPECIAL TRIBUTE EPISODE | Remembering Jason Gross appeared first on The Retro Network.

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