Sunday, January 11, 2009

Ham Tongue

We adopted a very sweet cat about 10 months ago from the Palm Springs Animal Shelter. I really went to look for a dog, but when I went by the cage where she had spent 6 weeks of her life, she reached her paw out through the bars toward me and I was unable to go any further. She has gained about 3 pounds since she came to live with us, and her fur is shiny and healthy now. She loves to chase a laser light for exercise, and she is very affectionate. She has added immensely to our lives as a source of love, and also of entertainment. Here she is posing with what I call ~ "Ham Tongue". Most of the cats that I have had the pleasure of sharing my home with over the years have had ham tongue on occasion. What makes me laugh so hard is that they have no idea that their tongue has gotten stuck in the "out" position, and has temporarily dried there. They continue to look at you with a haughty expression of mild distain while you are cracking up. Which, of course, makes me laugh even harder!

Does your cat ever get Ham Tongue? If you don't have a cat, please consider adopting one from a local shelter. Or, if you aren't able to adopt one, please consider giving a small donation to help out with expenses at a no-kill shelter. They do wonderful work and can always use a little help :)

13 comments:

ChezChani said...

She is a beautiful cat!! Almost as beautiful as mine :-)
Very often the cat chooses us and that's certainly the case for you and your little ham tongue (funny, I never have noticed that on my kitties.)

Valerie Boersma said...

She has such a sweet little face! Our dog of 9 years, Willow, (a former shelter dog) gets ham tongue every so often, along with a vacant stare. We get a good laugh from it too!

Rareimage Photography said...

Just wanted to say what a gorgeous cat you have!

TheresaJ said...

OMG, what a cutie, and I'm cracking up! Loved the story of her adoption too.

I have a cat (15-years-old) and a dog (avatar - 3-1/2 years old). While I've never seen ham tongue on my kitty, my dog has it all the time when she's playing. It always cracks me up!

Kenna Elizabeth said...

Lovely post, lovely story of her adoption!! Can't have pets just now, but tried to "lobby" a bit this past year for a no-kill shelter a friend of mine works at. With housing changes, shelters have been a bit overrun as of late, so your blog posting was wonderful to see and well timed! Good for you and your good heart!
Warm wishes,
Kenna

Anonymous said...

Haha, yes! I've known cats and a few dogs to do the 'ham tongue' thing - it is funny :D She's a lovely looking cat.

Anonymous said...

She is beautiful!!!!!

mybizzyworld said...

She is a beautiful cat. I don't think I've ever heard of ham tongue.

Unknown said...

I dont have cats but I have 3 shelter dogs! But I think I am missing out on the ham tongue! for sure! great picture!

Leslie Gidden said...

Oh my! I am in love with her! She looks like my kitty I had for 17 years, Frisky! She had ham tounge too! The vet said it was all that fur they had to keep clean makes them too tired at times to put it back in their mouth after washing! haha! Love her!

Warmly,
Leslie

Unknown said...

Love your post and your cute little ham tongue kitty! I have two dogs from Best Friends, the nation's largest no kill sanctuary. Thank you for supporting shelter adoption!

Nick Wood said...

I had my kitten from a shelter too, in Wales England. Very cute, and very comical,loves lieing in wait halfway up the stairs to jump out on you. She has a very funny face with a mustosh, just under her cute nose,just a little of sided. She also plays pool,snooker and, (British) foot ball,and always follows my English Springer Spanial around, even goes walks on her leadwith him.

Deepa and Tanya said...

She is so beautiful! I too have a beautiful cat and her name is "PUPPY"!!! That's because we have always kept dogs and ever since our last one passed on little Puppy moved in to our lives as a stray who took to us and made our home her's!!! We fell in love with her and decided to adopt her. She is now an integral part of our family and sleeps with my husband and myself!