Can Your Cat Predict the Weather?

Well, gee, its raining here again in the midwest.  Wow! it hasn't rained for at least 27 hours! I guess we were overdue! Which got me thinking about my cat, Ms. B, the weather forecaster!

Can your cat predict the weather? Is your cat a feline barometer? Sailors put great stock in cats and weather. Cats on ships not only took care of the rat problem, they amused the crew and were believed to be very good weather predictors. Some went so far as to believe that the cat controlled the weather. If sailors saw a cat chasing its tail or playing with a dangling rope it was said to be stirring up a wind. Some sailors believed that the cat carried a "gale in its tail" and could release it at will. These believers made very sure the ship's cat was never harmed or killed, lest the gale be released.  Scottish lore tell us that when a cat sneezes, it will rain soon. Folks from Britain and Ireland got more specific and said that weather could be predicted by observing the way a cat washed itself. If a cat washed their face it meant rain was soon due, but given how often it rains over there, the odds are in favor that rain is due more than not! On the other hand, an old English proverb goes like this: If a cat washes her face over her ear, 'Tis a sign the weather will be fine and clear.  The folks from Iceland aren't concerned about the cat's grooming habits, but they do attach meaning to how the animal lies down. They used to believe that if a cat lies down with its paws stretched out in front of it that very bad storms were near. Ancient Japan worshiped a wind god who took the form of a cat, who raked open the sky with its claws and brought rain.

Now of all my cats (I still haven't told you all how many I have), Ms. B is my only weather forecaster.  She does summersalts, chases her tail, and meows at me pitieously before and during storms. She is quite my little "weather channel" and seems never to be wrong. Since this has been such a rainy summer in the midwest she has been summersalting alot!  She also seems to be able to predict earthquakes (not all of them mind you, but many of them) by doing the same meowing, summersalting and tail-chasing.  Sometimes I feel so bad for her because when she meows I feel she is saying "Hey Mom, please make it stop!"  She is a cute little gal and has fur as soft as mink. So, you cat moms out there ... any of your little furry companions have metaphysical gifts?

Cats and sewing ... a great life!  I did finish another item tonight that has gone up on eBay. What a chore to list it though because I changed to a new template and had to remember how to set it up!  Well, enough for now.  You all have a sweet night! Talk to you soon.