Quilt Care
Straight Talk About Quilt Care Book
Chapter 5
Pet Considerations
by Patricia Cummings
photos by James Cummings, et.al.
No
Fleas in my Bed, Please
I know that you love your animals and that I may be encroaching upon sacred ground to even mention that they should not be allowed to sleep in your bed. Pets are so cute and they love to cuddle, both on top of the covers and snuggled underneath them. However, when you invite them into your bed, your bed becomes their bed, a comfortable place where they are used to being, tracking in their kitty litter, ticks, and fleas. As pets grow aged, they will have more and more “accidents.” Don't ask me how I know!
If you do not designate your bedroom as an “off limits” area, cats will make pulls on quilts as they “knead” the surface of them. Experience dictates that it is a good idea to train your pet to sleep in another area, not with you. From one whose animals destroyed two quilts, I would say that the last sentence is great advice, if only you will heed it.
Last, but not least, allergy sufferers will have a strong reaction if a cat has slept on their pillow. Medical research has uncovered why people are sensitive to cats and efforts are being made to genetically alter the enzyme that makes cat saliva so toxic to humans.
Safeguard
your Pet's Health, Too!
Just a word of wisdom that must be shared. If you are a quilter, please be aware of where your pins and hand sewing needles are, at all times. Recently, there was an unfortunate incident that happened to someone in my family. A needle that was being used to repair a curtain was left on a table, for just a couple of minutes. In fact, the shiny steel surface evidently attracted the attention ofa cat who proceeded to knock it off, onto the floor.
As it pinged off the floor, it was swallowed by a German Shepherd dog who assumes ownership of anything that falls from on high. After a rush trip to the veterinarian, one surgery that cost $2,000. and several X-rays later, the needle still has not shown up. The veterinarian said that the needle may be embedded in the intestine, or it may “pass,” eventually.
"Emma" considers how to bother the swans at Goddard Park, Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. Dogs are like childresn. They need our constant protection and care to keep them from harming themselves. Eating a needle is not a good thing--just ask Emma. photo by James Cummings
When stepped on, needles and quilting “betweens”
that have fallen to the floor can be dangerous to humans, too. Make
it a practice to check the floor before leaving your work area. A
friend had a terrible time after stepping barefooted, onto a needle.
If you have a dedicated sewing room, it is a really good idea to keep
the door closed. Cats are attracted to pins and needles and may
inadvertently knock some to the floor.
Thread: A Danger for Felines
Cats are curious creatures. They like to be where we are and often, that is usually fine. However, it is not a good idea to have your cat near your sewing thread. For some unknown reason, they enjoy eating thread. They will consume a whole spool of it. This becomes tangles up in their intestines. This creates a severe medical emergency. So, if you love your cats, please keep them safely away from the temptation of thread.
"Oliver, the Cat,” a stray who made his home with use for a number of years, is shown enjoying a “Spider Web” quilt in my son's room in 1991. Whenever pets occupy “people spaces” such as bedrooms, there is a chance that they will soil quilts or damage them. Eventually, Oliver went to cat heaven, my son grew up and moved away, and the quilt ended up in the landfill somewhere. Life is fluid and ever-changing. Carpe diem!
Above you see a black and white
cat named, “Karma.” She has found a space to just "hang out”
amid the threads and needles, scissors and sewing machine.
Below are “Jinx,” a tiger cat, and “Voodoo,” an all-black kitty
Cats are wonderful companions and of course, they want to be wherever we are. In a studio setting, please make sure that they do not get into thread, the preeminent danger to them there. Some cats have a preference for nylon thread which is even a worse danger. Responsible pet owners, such as quilt artist, Deb Lacativa, knows where her kitties are at all times. To see Deb's wonderful art quilts and more kitty photos, visit her website: http://www.lacativa.com Photos courtesy of Deborah Lacativa.
Snippet
At old-fashioned quilting bees, after the ladies had finished hand-quilting a quilt, they would throw a cat into the middle of the quilt. The belief was that when the cat jumped off, whomever was standing closest to the animal would be the next to be married.
Copyright 2005/2007. Patricia and James Cummings, Quilter's Muse Publications. Comments? Questions? Please write to: pat@quiltersmuse.com