SUSAN LOESCH

As our fall semester gets underway I thought it might be fun to tell you how our Library Cat Program got its start. To do that you have to meet Piper, a bobtail orange tabby who has just had his 10th birthday.

Piper came into my life in September, 2000, when he was just 5 weeks old. He had been
found in a drainpipe at a big grocery store; someone heard him crying. He was rescued by Care for Animals, and they asked me to foster him.

Oh, my goodness, did I fall in love with him! The first thing this little ball of fluff did was cuddle up under my chin and nurse on my neck. To this day he still does that, especially when he is nervous. (more…)

SUSAN LOESCH

CATS IN THE STACKS

Sometimes it is good to sit back and just listen to what my students have to say. Markissha was one of my sixth graders this year, but she and I go back a long way, to when she was a little kindergartner. She is often quiet, but when she speaks she has a lot to say.

It is Markissha who designed the Accelerated Reader t-shirt last year, the one with the caption “Big Footsie says, ‘AR is Purrr-fect!’” And it was Markissha who reminded us all many times this year, when we had one of the new library cats here, “But, remember, we can’t ever replace Big Footsie.”

It is Markissha who is providing our Cats in the Stacks today. Her class created a Middle School Newspaper, and this was her article. (more…)

SUSAN LOESCH

CATS IN THE STACKS

What a great Library Cat Christmas we had here yesterday! Our first Christmas party with Alex doing the hosting was a big success. Alex, SnuggleBunny and Piper all arrived at school early and put on a holiday collar. They had a tasty crunchy breakfast of Fancy Feast Filet Mignon With Real Seafood and Shrimp and settled down to wait for their company to arrive.

Soon we had most of the elementary students here and some of the older kids. Alex and SnuggleBunny visited with the crowd and seemed to be having a good time. Some of our youngest students came along and were quite taken with Alex’s ears and tail and whiskers. He was so patient letting them explore these things that make a kitty a kitty. (more…)