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Before the Cat Internet Video Festival, before Grumpy Cat, even before Keyboard Cat, there was the Saintly City Cat Show -- a pageant tied in with the St. Paul Winter Carnival that features hundreds of cats, a half-dozen judges and just one king and one queen, draped in luxurious capes and crowns. "We kind of use it as a climax of the show, the outfits. It adds a bit of excitement," show manager Linda Mae Baker said. The capes and crowns have been around as long as the show, since the early 1970s. And while they are a highlight of...

A cat that was shot 17 times in the head in Sarnia, Ont., is now recovering after surgery. The cat named Joe had several hours of surgery on Thursday to remove the pellets, according to Donna Pyette, a manager with the Sarnia and District Humane Society. "The surgery lasted a few hours," said Pyette in an email to CBC Windsor. "He did lose the eye we had suspected he would lose. However, he is now resting comfortably and [is] expected to continue to improve over the next few days."

You've heard of The Cat in the Hat but the latest fashion craze for animal owners is to turn their pets into something more predatory. Cats and dogs are now sporting new designs in their fur to make them more king of the jungle rather than domesticated house pet. However, one poor ginger feline looks genuinely embarrassed by her new look after its owner rouged-up its cheeks with make-up. We've all had a haircut we didn't ask for but would you subject your pet to some of these styles?

'Biggest cat I've ever seen,' as one animal control worker puts it, is now living at an Arizona animal shelter. Meatball is affectionate, but needs placement at an overweight animal facility and isn't eligible for adoption. He arrived at the Arizona animal shelter after being shuffled from home to home, according to KTVK-TV in Phoenix.

Generally speaking, dogs are usually the animals that have the most trouble with mail man. But dogs aren't the only ones with adverse feelings...now cats have joined the game. The mail carrier in the video seems to be having way too much fun with the feline felon.

A camera trap snapped the first-ever pictures of the elusive snow leopard in Uzbekistan. Even better, it caught not one, but two of the endangered cats on camera. The new images of the cats released by conservation groups Panthera and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) confirm that there are at least two individual snow leopards in the Gissar Nature Reserve, a protected part of the Pamir Mountains that can be visited only for scientific research. Uzbekistan, which is about the size of California, is one of 12 countries in Asia where snow leopards still roam through rugged mountainous terrain. It's estimated...

Adorable video of a one-year-old girl from California being given a bath by her favorite family cat has caused the Internet to let out a collective 'ahhh'. Little Hazel was caught snuggling up to Hoover the cat in her crib by mom and dad, Dennis and Jen Wijnker and they couldn't help but film the tender treatment the cat gave to his favorite human. Originally sent to Hazel's grandparents, the video was uploaded to YouTube where it has quickly racked up almost 50,000 views since it was posted on Monday.

Items made of cat fur have been found in two leading German high street chains, it emerged on Monday. Berlin doggy deli sparks howls of 'decadence' (03 Jan 14) Rare white stag shot and beheaded (02 Jan 14) Zoo gives apes choice of action or romance films (25 Nov 13) Animal protection group Animals' Liberty found clothes shop Tom Tailor was selling cat fur hats and drugstore chain Müller cat fur pompoms. Experts confirmed to the group that the fur was indeed cat in reports which can be seen on the Animals' Liberty Facebook page. The fur likely came from...

The rule of law is a matter of much concern lately, thanks to President Obama’s extraordinary use, and often flagrant abuse, of executive power. Congress held hearings on the subject in December, with some of the most damning testimony coming from leading liberal intellectuals. For the past five years, no one has worked more diligently to hold this Administration accountable than Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), who represents northern San Diego County, and chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. After serving in the Army and reaching the rank of captain, Issa built an impressive private-sector business resume, founding Directed...

Two professional engineers update an earlier video tutorial about cats. This is a sequel to the original video "An Engineer's Guide to Cats" released in 2008:

Italian politicians are set to debate the case of an Italian army officer, who is facing at least one year in jail after being prosecuted for saving the life of a pregnant cat while on duty in Kosovo. Lieutenant Barbara Balanzoni, a medical officer who served at the Nato base in Kosovo, is accused of "gross insubordination" after violating a written order not to "approach or be approached by wild, stray or unaccompanied animals". Lt Balanzoni, who has since returned to her home in Tuscany, rushed to the rescue of the stray cat in May 2012 after army staff raised...

Most dog owners come into the veterinary office with their canine companions devotedly following them. Tails wagging, the dogs look up at their people with adoring eyes. Most cat owners, on the other hand, wrestle a cardboard box into the exam room, reach in like a magician and pull out not a rabbit, but an angry feline. For their efforts they get covered with furry shrapnel and sometimes raked with claws until their face and arms look like so many tic-tac-toe games. (It doesn't have to be like that, by the way.) As a lifetime pet lover and practicing veterinarian...

“Our data suggest that cats were attracted to ancient farming villages by small animals, such as rodents that were living on the grain that the farmers grew, ate and stored. “Results of this study show that the village of Quanhucun was a source of food for the cats 5,300 years ago, and the relationship between humans and cats was commensal, or advantageous for the cats. “Even if these cats were not yet domesticated, our evidence confirms that they lived in close proximity to farmers, and that the relationship had mutual benefits.” Cats have lived alongside humans for a very long...

Grumpy Cat, Colonel Meow, Oskar the Blind Cat, Nala Cat, and Hamilton the Hipster Cat have come together in an unprecedented celebrity cat supergroup this holiday season to lend their voices to a very important cause close to all of their hearts -- and their bellies -- the cause of wet food for all cats. YOU can help by sharing this video. For every view (up to 500,000 views), Friskies will donate one can of wet cat food to shelter and rescue organizations across the country. Share with all your friends and help make a cat's holiday wish come true....

[H]ere are the stories of how 15 delightful breeds started meowing.

Circa 1911: Cat drinking from a bottle and looking through a telescope

circa 1915: Cat on a cannon The mascot cat of HMS Queen Elizabeth on a 15-inch barrel

... a group of cat rescuers staked out a Baldwinsville apartment complex, trying to rescue a group of kittens and their mother from a drainage pipe before the snow storm hit. After two long and stressful days, the rescuers were able to trap four kittens and the mother cat. But right now is the most stressful time for Daugard and other cat rescue groups in CNY. "There is no room for more cats," she said. "Everyone is booked to capacity, there is no more room to take in more rescues and there is no more money." Donations can be made...

It's a sad day in Tennessee as Buddha, the obese cat who became an internet sensation thanks to his workout sessions on a underwater treadmill, has died. The six-year-old cat, who weighed 31.4lb when he was rescued at the start of August, had made good progress with his diet and exercise plan. But when a congestive heart defect was diagnosed last month, the cat was forced to stop exercising and instead moved to a foster home with a strict eating plan. He died last night.

Ire of the tiger! Stunning pictures capture bloodied beasts slashing each other with their claws in dramatic battle over territory • Dramatic battle caught on camera in the Londolozi private game reserve in Pretoria, South Africa • The clash erupted after one of the tigers delivered a vicious blow to the neck of its rival • After 45 minutes of bloody battle the larger tiger was deemed the winner This is the incredible moment a pair of bloodied tigers slashed each other with their claws in a dramatic fight over territory. The dramatic battle was caught on camera at the...