Auntie Pawsworth's Feline Advice Column: Letting the domestic cat out of the bag -- the good, the bad, and the ugly

Think an upbeat, energetic Dear Abby with fur, sardonic wit, and literary flourishes. Interested in cat psychology? Would you like to know what your cat really thinks about you? Are you curious about all those odd behaviors your cat exhibits? Auntie Pawsworth explains all.

Cats Daily, a newspaper written by cats for cats and for people who are interested in cats, has released a new book, Auntie Pawsworth's Feline Advice Column, a collection of letters submitted to its advice columnist, Philomena Pawsworth, along with her responses to each. A Bengal cat of mixed heritage who was adopted into a large human family, Philomena has spent over a decade studying human beings in a dynamic urban environment requiring novel adaptive behaviors. She mastered the myriad challenges confronting cats in modern America and has built a unique bridge of understanding between the often baffling worlds of the human and the cat. When asked about just a few of the qualities required to successfully navigate these two domains, Philomena suggests curious intelligence, extroversion, determination, mental and physical agility, persistence, a sense of playfulness, and getting a minimum of fifteen hours of sleep each day. Although Philomena credits distinguished Abyssinians in her maternal lineage for gifting her with these traits, she believes all of us can work on cultivating them to various degrees.

The earliest known advice column appeared in the year 1690 in a London periodical, The Athenian Mercury, published twice weekly by The Athenian Society. It is reportedly the first periodical that catered specifically to women and the columns covered questions regarding the natural sciences, religion, literature, and politics. In the United States advice columns began to appear in newspapers starting in the 1880s. They dealt primarily with domestic work, such as answering questions related to sewing and recipes. Contemporary life-advice columns mostly respond to questions on relationships and social interactions-the challenges of heart, home, and culture. Dear Abby, a popular syndicated column written by Abigail Van Buren, is a notable example. Although a plethora of online sites treat topics dealing with animals, including cats, Auntie Pawsworth's Feline Advice Column presents a rare opportunity for a cosmopolitan cat, continuing the tradition of columnists recorded in the journals and newspapers of yore, to lend her voice to some of the most pressing issues affecting cats and cat caretakers today. We are also treated to the work of our resident philosopher, Catatonka ("Buffalo Cat"), who offers subsequent commentary--Catatonka Says--to each of the columns. A Native American Shorthair, Catatonka provides restrained counterpoint to Auntie Pawsworth's spirited replies.