Happy Thursday:

• 🇳🇱 How the Netherlands is protecting cats

• 🤺 Are your cats playing or fighting?

• 😸 The easiest way to stay hydrated

• 🐈 Meet Key West’s Hemingway cats

True or False?

Cats have fewer teeth than dogs.

(scroll to the bottom to find the answer!)

The Netherlands is taking a clever step to keep cats safe. Amsterdam and Amersfoort are installing hundreds of tiny staircases along their canals so cats can climb out if they fall in.

The plan was sparked after reports of frequent feline drownings. Party for the Animals leader Judith Krom proposed using €100,000 from the city’s biodiversity budget to fund the project. In July, Amsterdam’s city council approved the idea, calling it “a simple measure” to prevent animal suffering.

The stairs will be placed in high-risk areas identified by Dierenambulance Amsterdam, an animal welfare group. By the end of the year, Amsterdam alone could have 500 staircases, with Amersfoort planning to add “hundreds” more annually.

Sometimes the smallest steps make the biggest difference, especially for cats.

If your cats sound like a wrestling match is happening in the living room, you’re not alone. It can be hard to know if they’re just having fun or if it’s time to step in.

Play fighting is healthy and normal. It helps cats burn energy, strengthen bonds, and practice hunting skills. Signs of play include forward-facing body language, calm ears, flat fur, and light wrestling or “play bites.” Cats usually take turns chasing and pouncing when it’s all in good fun.

Real fighting looks different. Flattened ears, puffed tails, wide eyes, hissing, growling, or claws out are all red flags. If it escalates, the safest way to intervene is distraction: toss a blanket, use a barrier, or redirect with toys.

Providing enough scratching posts, beds, and hiding spots can also reduce tension in multi-cat homes.

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At Ernest Hemingway’s former home in Key West, dozens of cats roam the gardens and nap in the shade of palm trees. Many are polydactyl, born with six or more toes, a trait passed down from the writer’s very first cat, Snow White. She was a gift from a sea captain in 1934, and her descendants still live in the house today.

About 50 to 60 cats call the Hemingway Home and Museum their territory, and roughly half sport the extra toes. Staff continue Hemingway’s tradition of naming them after famous figures, so you might meet a Marilyn Monroe or a Salvador Dalí while wandering the grounds.

Visitors are welcome to tour the house and gardens, where the cats have full run of the property. You can pet them if they approach you, but picking them up is off limits. It’s a rare chance to see history and feline charm side by side, proof that Hemingway’s love of cats is still alive in Key West.

From perfect pairs to dramatic tails, here’s what’s trending this week:

• 💞 Bonded cats bring their personalities together in one perfect kitten

• 🐾 Lonely cat’s reaction to meeting a foster kitten is priceless

• 😿 Ginger shelter cat attacks his own tail, leading to surgery

Daily Purr is brought to you with love from our cats. We hope they can brighten your day, just like they do ours. ❤️

Love,

Olive, Milo, and Yasmine.

🐱 Bite-Sized Treats

🧐 True or False: True. Cats have 30 teeth, dogs have 42.

😸 COTD: Give your kitty the spotlight by submitting them for Cat of the Day. Reply to this email with your best photos of your cat, their name, and a short description for the chance to be featured in an upcoming newsletter!

💌 Reply for a surprise: If you are reading this reply with your cat’s Halloween costume for a surprise in your inbox!