Cats Learn Holiday Lesson: Not What I Get, But What I Give

Sinead is forgoing another toy to help this puddy.

I'm very proud of my puddies this holiday season. They have finally tapped into their storehouse of compassion, and with a little help from Mommy, have learned to be less self-focused and more open to goodwill and sharing.

Angela is giving up her herring to help this puddy

To achieve this magnanimous selflessness, I only had to show them six hours of videos of lonely shelter and rescue cats, and remind them about three hundred times of the abundance of toys Mommy has bought them over past Christmases, before they came up with a unique idea for Christmas: giving to others less fortunate.

McDuff will donate his shrimp money to help this puddy

All on their own, they've decided to forgo their shrimp and herring dinners for two weeks and keep their Christmas list to one gift....so that we can donate what I usually spend on them to organizations which help cats or cater to puddies who don't have a loving Mommy like they do.

McDuff thinks he and his sisters probably have enough toys

The cats were so excited about their new-found altruism, they insisted I tell everyone to consider doing the same: donating to a favorite animal cause in their pet's name. You probably have your favorites, but here are some of Kitty Literate's favorites. Just go to their websites and click on donations:

ASPCA, Association for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

SPAY, USA, a program of the North Shore Animal League of America, a nationwide network which provides affordable spay/neuter programs and advocacy

The Winn Feline Foundation, founded by the Cat Fanciers' Association, to help fund medical studies to improve the health and welfare of cats.

Pet Animal Welfare Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing homeless animals and placing them in new homes.

Since they can only get ONE new toy, they decided on this big chicken. Yikes!