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A Cat’s Guide to Welcoming Fall

Greetings fellow felines. Snoops and Kommando here. Whether you realized it or not, fall has fallen. Last Thursday was the autumnal equinox, which means that fall has officially arrived in the northern hemisphere. We like this time of year because the days are getting shorter and that means more time for cuddling. We also get to break out our favorite blankets.

We’ve been looking around the Internet to see what other kitties enjoy doing this time of year, and to be honest, we were a little surprised. It seems that a lot of cats enjoy taking in the sights this time of year. We’ve gathered a few of the most popular ideas.

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Visit a Pumpkin Patch

Some patches allow pets, so if you’re the adventurous type, maybe you want to stroll among the pumpkins. They come is all sizes and we’re sure your human could use the help when it comes to picking out the perfect one for your porch. And it will make a great social media post. Just make sure you’re in a stroller or on a harness/leash. You don’t want to be left there.

4 years of kittens on Twitter: "https://t.co/k9j32wIf1o" / Twitter

Play in the Leaves

Once they come down off the trees, leaves are a lot of fun to play in. You can run and jump and hide. Loose leaves blowing in the wind are fun to chase. It’s also a lot of fun to supervise the humans putting them into big piles for us to jump in. If you don’t want to play with them outside, maybe you can talk your human into bringing a few into the house. If they put a couple of small logs in a box with the leaves, you will have a pawsome sensory pit. Your human can also decorate your catio with fall foliage.

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Go Hiking

If you like walking outside, now is the perfect time. It’s not too hot to enjoy wandering around. There should be lots of leaves and other stuff on the ground to explore. If you don’t want to walk; try talking your human into carrying you in a backpack. Or a stroller would be cool too. Make sure you don’t snack on anything you can’t identify.

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Go for a Drive

We’re told that some cats love cars. We are not those cats. But if you are, this is a great time to talk your human into a drive around the neighborhood to look at the fall colors and how things are changing. Maybe they’ll even stop at a cat-friendly shop and get you a spiced pumpkin cream drink.

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Make Pumpkin Treats

Many cats love pumpkin puree. It’s full of fiber and is good for our digestive systems. Pumpkin has lots of vitamins A and C, as well as antioxidants. You can either get it canned or out of one of those pumpkins you found at the pumpkin patch. Some kitties like it mixed with a little chicken or tuna. You can even have your human grind up the seeds and mix them in.

Came down stairs and my cat was just chilling, watching tv like this :  r/funny

Watch a Scary Movie

It’s perfect weather for curling up under a blanket and watching a movie with your favorite human. The best part is that they won’t move for a couple of hours. Maybe you can talk them into getting you some freeze-dried cat treats as a special movie munchie.

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Visit a Fall Festival

This doesn’t really sound like all that much fun to us, but we’re putting it out there for you ultra social types. There are lots of outdoor festivals in the fall, but they usually come with a lot of people and noise. If your human thinks you might enjoy it, insist on a stroller or backpack. A related idea is Oktoberfest which also has activities in a brewery, some of which are pet-friendly. You can enjoy a snack on the patio.

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Go Apple Picking

Some orchards allow pets on the premises. You might want to join your human when they go to pick apples. We recommend a backpack or stroller – those places are huge! Definitely see if you can score a bite or two of apple while you’re there.

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Tour a Corn Maze

We really don’t understand the appeal of a corn maze. Human wander around down rows of corn plants, trying not to get lost. But it sounds like it would be a fun way to get some fresh air. You definitely want a backpack or stroller. Who knows how long your human might be wandering around.

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Do a Photo Shoot

Does your human need more pictures of beautiful you? This is the perfect opportunity. If you like to dress up, you can do a Halloween shoot. Otherwise, just some pictures among the fall foliage would be beautiful.

These are only a few of the things we found to do this time of year. Of course, you can always follow our lead: fall is the time when we both move back onto Mom’s bed for lots of cool weather snuggling.

Pictures courtesy of Google Images.

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En Garde, Pumpkin

Just so no one gets the wrong idea, I love fall. It’s always been my favorite time of year. The heat has finally gone away, the weather is beautiful, and it’s football season. I try to ignore the fact that the reason the leaves turn all those pretty colors is because the tree has to get rid of them to get ready for winter.

However, autumn’s starting to forget its place in the grand scheme of things. Summer is the season before fall. Half of the summer should not be taken over by autumn activities. Let’s face it – fall is the time we get ready for winter (at least those of us who spend many months preparing for snow, driving in snow, and cleaning up from snow).

We have already lost the battle of school supplies. As soon as July 4 is over, we start getting advertisements for school supplies. We just got our first year-round school here, so best-case scenario is that they are starting seven weeks early.

The weird thing about school supplies is that they go on sale in many places as soon as the advertisements start. I guess it might be because no one is going to buy extra pens and pencils a month and a half early unless they are cheap.

The really good stuff (like the expensive calculators) don’t go on sale until a couple of weeks before school actually starts. And if the class has special requirements for supplies, they don’t let you know until a week before classes (if you’re lucky).

So if you want to make sure that your child gets their favorite folder and notebooks, you need to shop by the early part of August (we only had one tiger folder left last week and mega dogs with only a few cats).

On the other hand, with calculators and specialty goods, it’s usually early September. And first-time shoppers are at a huge disadvantage with the specialty goods. Parents with connections (or older children) have already snatched up the good stuff by the time the rest of the parents even hear about what you need,

But the specific trigger for this rant is an advertisement I heard on the radio earlier this week. Tim Horton’s was advertising its new pumpkin latte as a fall drink you can enjoy now. Apparently they are trying to get a jump on Starbuck’s, who is going to start serving their fall drinks next week.

I really don’t understand the appeal of a fall coffee drink in August. It’s been in the 80’s all week with the worst humidity we’ve seen this summer. Shouldn’t people still be drinking frosty mugs of root beer or real beer or something?

If you’re addicted to coffee, isn’t there some sort of summer flavor? I’m not a coffee drinker, but thinking about it, maybe there isn’t. Raspberry and lemon, two favorites with iced tea, just sound revolting when you put them with coffee. Hmmmm, maybe that’s the answer: iced pumpkin coffee. The worst of both worlds.

As you may have guessed, I don’t like pumpkin. It’s a gourd. A nutritious gourd, but a gourd none the less. All squash are gourds. But most of them know their place. The winter varieties show themselves in the fall and get cooked into all kinds of yummy dishes. We won’t talk about summer squash.

But pumpkin needs to be in pies, and coffee creamers, and cream cheeses. They are developing a pumpkin Oreo. It will have some vanilla-type cookies (good thing – chocolate cookies would be a travesty). I’m sure I just haven’t looked hard enough for pumpkin-flavored potato chips.

We’ll know the end has come when they start selling winter coats in August. I remember trying on a winter coat in July one year when I was little. It was going to be a birthday present. I was so miserably hot trying it on, I didn’t care what it looked like. I’m guessing the marketing people discovered that talking about snow storms in August was just pushing things a little too far.

I know it’s a losing battle. Last week I saw a tree down the road changing colors. Today I noticed that my magnolia is blossoming again. How can we keep things straight when Mother Nature is so confused about what season it is?