Cats as Living Art: The Innovative Project Frame Your Feline

What happens when you combine a passion for cats, comedy, and creativity? You get Frame Your Feline, an innovative project by our guests, LA-based entrepreneurs, and stand-up comedians, Brian Vermeire and Kristina Hughes. As loving cat parents to seven rescues, they've designed a one-of-a-kind cat shelf featuring a genuine art frame that securely attaches to the wall. Once a cat jumps into the Feline Frame they become a work of living art! Not only are these Feline Frames aesthetically pleasing, but they also offer a safe space for cats to lay and play.

As I chat with Brian and Kristina, we uncover the inspiration behind Frame Your Feline and learn how their backgrounds in comedy and entrepreneurship influenced the creation of these interactive spaces. We also discuss the benefits of having seasonal art for cats, creating a gallery wall for multiple cats, and their mission to support the cat community. But that's not all - Brian and Kristina share their heartwarming stories of rescuing cats and their dedication to local animal rescues such as Pipers Helping Paws.
 
Join us for this inspiring and entertaining conversation with Brian and Kristina as we celebrate the incredible impact pets have on our lives, and explore how their creative venture, Frame Your Feline, is inspiring cat lovers to showcase their feline friends in a whole new light. Don't miss this purr-fect episode!

To learn more about Brian and Kristina, and Frame Your Feline, check out their Website and follow them on Instagram and on their YouTube Channel.

To learn more about Pipers Helping Paws, follow them on Facebook.

Chapters

• 0:00 Frame Your Feline
• 12:19 Innovative Cat Frame Shelves
• 25:28 Frame Your Feline
• 33:31 Animal Rescue and Pet Ownership Responsibility
• 40:44 Life With Pet Animals

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Hello, my friends and fellow animal lovers, welcome to another episode of the story of my pet podcast. I am your host, julie Marty Pearson, as always, and I'm excited to welcome a pair of guests today. Yay, i think this is actually my first duo, wow And my first male guest on the podcast.

Speaker 1: 0:23

Oh wow, yes, oh boy. Welcome Brian Vermeer and Christina Hughes. Thank you both so much, hi Julie, hi Julie, thank you so much for being here. It's so funny. I just thought of all those things as I was getting ready to introduce you, so you can feel very special, brian.

Speaker 2: 0:43

Well, I'm expecting a plaque. You're going to send a plaque to me, right?

Speaker 1: 0:48

Yeah, and you'll hang it right there between the two feline frames.

Speaker 2: 0:51

Oh my gosh. Yes, you got it. It's going right there.

Speaker 1: 0:55

OK, so I'm going to tell my listeners a little more about you before we get into it. Christina and Brian are LA based entrepreneurs, stand up comedians and loving cat parents to seven rescues. I love this living on the edge of Los Angeles County. It makes it sound much more fancier than what it is. It's fancy out here Oh, it's fancy Just as fancy as me and Bakersfield, ok.

Speaker 1: 1:21

They believe that cat parents shouldn't have to suffer with the ugly aesthetic of cat trees and boring cat shelves in order to give their cats vertical space. So true, in an effort to showcase their cats and up level, they decor in their home. They created frame your feline, which allows cat owners to enjoy seeing their cats pose within works of living art. So great, and you can see it in the video I will definitely be posting, and one of their cats is illustrating it for us right now. That's Winnie. That's amazing. So we're going to talk about this amazing art that you guys have created for people and, just overall, seven rescues. I can't wait to hear all about it. So thank you, brian and Christina, again for being here.

Speaker 2: 2:10

And Winnie and Winnie.

Speaker 1: 2:12

Yes, i think I'm going to have to grab my phone to take a picture of that, because I just love it when, like the cats, know He's ready.

Speaker 3: 2:21

He is very ready. Our kittens Holly and Jolly are right underneath our feet playing with a spider plastic one from our son's Halloween collection And somebody under rug.

Speaker 2: 2:33

Yeah, I'll see them.

Speaker 3: 2:33

I'll get them eventually.

Speaker 1: 2:35

OK, so I think we have a lot to talk about. I guess I'm going to let you guys decide where you want to start, but I would say, let's start talking about your love of pets. The fact that you have seven show me that you guys are true cat parents and pet lovers. So let's talk about, for each of you or together as a couple, where your love for animals started.

Speaker 3: 2:57

Where did your love of animals start, Brian?

Speaker 2: 2:59

When I was a tiny young lad, I had a dog.

Speaker 3: 3:03

A huge dog.

Speaker 2: 3:04

It was an old English sheepdog named Maisie And this was the best dog ever. If she dogs, they've got that big fluff of hair And she would actually. She learned how to grab our legs and then tackle us onto the ground. So we would literally be playing football out on our side yard and all the neighbor, kids and everything, and the dog would be there and tackling us. It was so much fun. So I loved my dog and I never had a cat, didn't understand what cats were, didn't think cats were worthy of any special attention. I didn't care, i just didn't care. And then you fast forward and I meet Christina, who had cats, and that's when it all went downhill for me.

Speaker 3: 3:51

Just when I was born, my parents were in a little teeny, tiny one bedroom apartment. They were in college and I guess they had eight cats and then somebody's cat had a litter and they gave my mom cats and they just had tons of cats. So I've always had cats. Those cats were adopted out. I had Misty and Mr Dylan when I was really little. We were in a fire on Christmas Eve. They escaped but we never found them, and so then I had another cat named Misty. I'm often commenting on people's black cats on Instagram under our account going. My first cat was a black cat named Misty And basically I moved to California, didn't have a cat And Brian and I started cohabitating and the cat found us We'll just say on our streets kept following us home, and once you feed someone else's cat, they're going to be yours.

Speaker 3: 4:40

And we found out she was in a bad situation and we were able to adopt her. Julie, let me ask you a question.

Speaker 2: 4:47

Do you remember? there's this movie. I believe it was Steven Spielberg, a famous director. Don't know if you know that is Gremlins You ever?

Speaker 1: 4:53

hear this movie Gremlins Yes.

Speaker 2: 4:57

So one of the rules of Gremlins is don't get them wet, because then they multiply. So So basically, we had one cat and then we must have got it wet, because now all of a sudden, it's like cats coming out of the wazoo. We love cats. I can't get enough of cats. Have you realized I'm a changed man.

Speaker 1: 5:14

Are a changed man. But I totally get your change because I too never had cats growing up. We had dogs. My mom was allergic, turned out she was afraid of cats.

Speaker 3: 5:26

Yes, no comment for the mother-in-law.

Speaker 1: 5:30

And then I got my first cat, which then turned into four cats. So yes, I do understand and they find you. It's like they know they have a homing beacon on us. Cat people go there.

Speaker 2: 5:43

Once the shell is pried open, it's open season.

Speaker 3: 5:46

I have a very strict policy When something sad happens, when a cat passes away, we have to get two kittens or a bonded pair of two or three-year-old cat. I'm not liking that, Matt.

Speaker 2: 5:58

I'm not liking that, Matt.

Speaker 3: 6:00

We lost our Frosty, who's on our blog, who was the first cat to be in our product, has an alpha tester. We lost him in January, and so we adopted two kittens that are now one, and they still have kitten energy up the wazoo.

Speaker 1: 6:15

They are. I like that, matt, that I'm going to tell my husband that it's actually the way it's supposed to be, Because the last two cats that we lost were never replaced, so he technically owes me four cats.

Speaker 2: 6:28

Yes, you will.

Speaker 1: 6:30

But I also agree with you Adopting cats in pairs is really the way to go, whether you don't have any or you have one, because a lot of times, especially as kittens, they're so bonded and that kitten energy, they have someone to take it out on.

Speaker 3: 6:44

And even if they're not technically actual siblings like we rescued Poppy and Mojave in 2019 from the Palmdale Animal Care Center and they are not from the same litter, they're a month apart but they still cuddle and groom each other and, especially when they were first here, brian was like oh, my God, I've never been around kittens before and they're just Oh yeah, so they do get their energy out on each other.

Speaker 1: 7:13

Yeah, there's nothing like kitten energy Goes like to 100 and then down to zero just as fast, like when they're out. Yeah.

Speaker 2: 7:21

Yeah, just like Nothing beats the energy of a cat, after having used the litter box, they get the zoomies.

Speaker 1: 7:27

And spread the little bit of litter all over the house.

Speaker 2: 7:30

Yes.

Speaker 3: 7:31

It happens, i deal with it.

Speaker 1: 7:35

He hates it. So you currently have seven cats. That is Winnie.

Speaker 3: 7:42

Okay, yes, she seems very chill.

Speaker 1: 7:44

I will try to find.

Speaker 3: 7:45

Tutie is a one-eyed cat that we rescued from the streets of Los Angeles. Someone abused him and kicked them out of her apartment. So we have Tutie, winnie, poppy, mojave, holly and Jolly. And then someone dumped a cat in our neighborhood last summer who we trapped, neutered, got all the shots with the intentions of keeping him inside, and this one was like let's just let him out of the indoor patio now that he's talking to the other cats. And we woke up in the morning and he wasn't in our house. We were like that was really quiet. He was outside at the front door waiting for breakfast.

Speaker 2: 8:24

He escaped, he escaped.

Speaker 3: 8:27

Through a screen And he was like not gorgeous, my food.

Speaker 2: 8:30

Yeah.

Speaker 3: 8:31

Yeah, so he has now decided he wants to live in our backyard, which we are thinking of trying to retrap him, but we've tried to retrap him and he really wants to just live in our backyard And we are in a very quiet area.

Speaker 1: 8:42

Yeah, that's good Yeah, Sometimes cats let us know what they want whether we like it or not? Yeah, seven cats. What inspired you guys to start your feline frames, or frame your feline, sorry?

Speaker 2: 10:55

I think one of the first things was we had a cat tree in our apartment in LA when we were first dating And first date Not fair, but it eventually happened Right, we ended up having cats.

Speaker 3: 11:11

We got a cat tree. We rescued Frosty and our hairdresser gave us this brand new cat tree and we were like uh.

Speaker 2: 11:16

And it was ugly. The shag carpeting was getting everywhere. It just looked started getting ratty. Then the smell started to happen and there's just all there's dust mites in it. It's just, it's nasty. Cat trees are gross, they're just gross.

Speaker 3: 11:32

And Frosty would hide in the bottom of it all the time. We're like come on out with your life.

Speaker 2: 11:37

But cats need vertical space. And when we bought our house and we were hanging up pictures and artwork and stuff And then we were like it'd be kind of cool to see our cats in a frame, And then the kind of things started going off in our heads And the other thing was we would always try to dress Frosty and Maggie in costumes for Christmas And we'd have our friend come over from across the street and take pictures and we're like holding them.

Speaker 3: 12:02

They're like I hate this snowman outfit And I hate this dress And we're trying to get a family photo and it was just always impossible.

Speaker 2: 12:11

And getting great pictures of your cat is almost impossible, right?

Speaker 1: 12:16

Because they do the same where they don't pose.

Speaker 2: 12:19

So we came up with this concept of a frame connected with shelves that you install on your wall, and we initially had this first version. We worked with my father. He's an engineer.

Speaker 3: 12:36

An engineer. I'm retired.

Speaker 2: 12:38

Super brilliant genius man I don't know what happened to me, so he's. So he. We started talking about the idea and he's really good with his hands and woodworking and problem solving and everything, and so we started getting to designing it. See, how would it look? And our first iteration was more of like a square and it looked like you were looking through a window rather than like a picture. So we had to change this. It had to get bigger, i had to get taller, i had to get wider.

Speaker 3: 13:17

And we have that now in our kitchen and we have plants that hang in it. Yeah, so we can look and go. There was the alpha version. Nothing goes to waste here.

Speaker 2: 13:25

So then we got to getting bigger and then we had to do some rigorous testing. We had to make sure that it could handle the torque, and how would we connect it to the wall so that it would have a floating feature and be able to take the pouncing of a cat jumping up and down and on it?

Speaker 1: 13:42

And also Brian's parents came up with the idea Just being illustrated perfectly right now by your cat. Yeah, she moved from.

Speaker 3: 13:47

I'll get something else. But their idea also was like beyond, just putting them in a frame, like what about switching of this art concept, right?

Speaker 2: 13:55

So we were like that's a smart idea, but then it brought us back to dressing your cats, and so holiday backdrops are the best way for that to happen A holiday section on our site, But we get back to that.

Speaker 2: 14:09

So we installed the first one. That was the size you see now, which is 23 inches wide by 18 inches high by nine inches deep. So it's nice and big, Good wide space. And one of the things that we had to really think about too was the frames. So we originally Christine and I were like oh, it'd be great if we got reclaimed wood From a thrift store. And my dad is yeah, good luck with scaling that Like it's going to fall apart. There's no integrity.

Speaker 3: 14:47

You can get a hundred year old piece of wood from a church or a barn And people will be mad when it splinters, and yeah, so smart, we ended up going with actual, real framing materials that professional framers use, and that's what they look outstanding, so yeah, they look just like any other frame you would have.

Speaker 1: 15:09

They right is meant to be on the wall.

Speaker 2: 15:12

They are meant that this is not cheap plastic or anything like that. It's the real deal And that's why we're really proud of the product that we have come up with, Because it just looks so good on the wall even when a cat's not in there at the moment.

Speaker 1: 15:27

That's important because, like you said, cat trees or even just you guys have some that are just plain shelves that they're sitting on When they're not there. It's like why do you just have a shelf on your wall with the art? Then it's still nice to look at whether there's a cat in there or not, And so it's a great way to think about it.

Speaker 2: 15:46

So when we installed the first one, we didn't know, because we didn't know how our cats would react to it, so we just put up and it was instant. They just you don't have to train them, they just instinctively don't, don't, don't, and then, but what they? what was a happy surprise for us was that they loved sitting in there for long periods of time because they feel like they're in closed box. It's because there's a ceiling and there's a floor and then the frame gives it this sense of security. So that's been the cool happy accident, because the feedback we're getting from our users, or what we call them, not user clients- Our customers, customers.

Speaker 2: 16:37

Our community, our family. I call them the family. The response is the same It's all off the hook because their cats are constantly wanting to be in there, and what's super special is that we have this really cool carpeting on the lower shelf. They're in there and it's got this like groove texture and the cats just love digging at it.

Speaker 3: 17:05

Oh, i'm sure, And just what Kind of keeps them warm.

Speaker 2: 17:08

Yeah, and, and the carpeting is replaceable. So that's what's cool. Everything we've built it out So, like the pet owner doesn't get frustrated because they have something and it looks ratty on their wall. The frames are interchangeable And the artwork is interchangeable, so once you install one of them, you could change the frame out at any point in time. You can change the artwork out at any time. There goes Christina.

Speaker 1: 17:34

I was watching some of your videos on YouTube and it's really cool because even like you said, when you're talking about holiday seasonal art, you find really cute things, but I'm only going to have that up for a month or two months or whatever it may be. So that's another great aspect, because then you don't get bored with it.

Speaker 2: 17:52

You don't get bored. You could take great pictures of your cat with different backdrops, and so we call them artwork panels. And then this is a very popular.

Speaker 3: 18:01

we can really say happy birthday to meow, a favorite of every cat, So you can put their little food in there, their treats, and then take a picture.

Speaker 1: 18:12

That's great. I love it because it is so true. It goes back to why you guys thought about doing it. It is so true Like I only have cats currently and they're just not about posing in a cute costume or even on your lap, or it's just not having a dog. That's okay. I'll sit here for five minutes with the scarf on, so it is a great way to get them in a place where it has some kind of setting that you can get their picture.

Speaker 2: 18:43

And you don't even need to. you don't have to coax them in there And I hope they just will sit and look at you and they'll be like what happened? What happened to you? Why are you looking at me? We realize that cats are smarter than dogs.

Speaker 3: 18:57

They don't just want to have a costume on them, They're like nah.

Speaker 1: 19:03

Yeah, mine don't go for cats, mine don't go for that. My first one did, but that was because he was a little bit of a show. He liked to show off his full detail and stuff. But yeah, usually not. And I do also agree with you in terms of cats. They love that feeling of being inside and being hidden. It's a safety for them, and so giving them that, i'm sure, is why they like it so much And then like where Winnie is right now.

Speaker 3: 19:29

That's her favorite frame. We have our fireplace over here, So she'll sit in that frame and just stare at the fireplace all winter long.

Speaker 1: 19:38

And that's fun.

Speaker 3: 19:39

We have one in our kitchen The cats like the morning light. We put one in our bedroom where we shot a video that Brian's going to upload of a nice time lapse of how quick and easy it is, and we were going to put one in our home office pretty soon.

Speaker 2: 19:52

I think that's the next one.

Speaker 3: 19:53

That's the afternoon light, so the cats kind of follow the light.

Speaker 1: 19:58

Yeah, no, absolutely, and I and it's also seasonal, I know my cats like to lay at certain places certain times of year, as our listeners may not. We both live in parts of California that are very hot in summer.

Speaker 3: 20:14

We have the AC cranked right now Still in.

Speaker 1: 20:18

October. I know it's what I don't even know 88 today, or something like that.

Speaker 2: 20:23

Yeah, it's ridiculous.

Speaker 1: 20:24

But it affects the cats in terms of where they want to lay, Like I have a window in my bedroom that they love to lay in, but only to a certain point of the day where it's okay. now it's just too hot to be there. So that's great that you can put these in different places, different parts of the day that they can enjoy them.

Speaker 2: 20:41

Yeah, this is yeah, So the other rooms have one, but this is our super wall where we have two in the series of step shelves for them to climb in and out of.

Speaker 1: 20:52

Yeah, that's great.

Speaker 2: 20:53

Yeah.

Speaker 3: 20:53

So we have the cat super highway. We have a super highway and we have left this wall blank on purpose, so that when people see this they can imagine how they would style it in their own place. But we have a user in Salem Massachusetts and she has put plants that she knows are fine for her cats all around it and Madonna pictures and can like faith candles and stuff. So she's created a whole gallery wall which is just stunning. No, that's.

Speaker 1: 21:23

I love that because one of the things I've been thinking about do is shifting the way my office is so I can have the wall behind me and all my different animal art. So, yeah, you could totally add that into it and it just goes with it. but then it can become interactive for the cats. Oh yeah, I can see how she just doesn't even care that you're changing them out. She just no she'll.

Speaker 2: 21:45

She'll sit in there as she's swapping out the art, because the cat again feels so secure in there that you know why leave.

Speaker 1: 21:54

So do you ever have the cats fight over a particular spot?

Speaker 2: 21:59

Like they don't fight. Last night in the kitchen, two of our cats were laying inside the frame together And they're big cats. Wow, just to show you look. I wish I, christina, did take a picture. We'll have to send it to you.

Speaker 1: 22:14

Okay.

Speaker 2: 22:15

But it's pretty amazing, they all want to be in it. That's why we say if you have more than on our website, we have suggested layouts of if you're going to put in our shelves or if they have their own shelves, like the way you may want to have it set up if you have more than one cat, so that way there's an entry and exit point on both sides, so that way if one wants to get in the other, one can leave. Otherwise you end up with a traffic jam, and that's something we learned very early on, because the cats all wanted to get in it and one's waiting, right?

Speaker 1: 22:50

No, that's yeah. You want that flow through so they can go in and out whichever way they want to. No, that's great In our. I just love watching your cats go in and out of them. Honestly.

Speaker 3: 23:00

That is poppy. She is three and she's from Palmdale Animal Care Center. She's the largest cat in the house, don't tell anybody, yeah, so she was in the frame with Mahavi Mahavi, and they're both big.

Speaker 2: 23:16

And they're both big and they were just all like love any other in the frame.

Speaker 1: 23:19

Then you can see that there's plenty of space for them, even her, And it's okay, as big girls want our art space too. I had a Cosmo and he was quite thick. We called him chunky monkey. So I told but there's nothing wrong And it's. I just have to say that cats are like people. We come in all different shapes and sizes.

Speaker 3: 23:41

Yes, and so we try to post all over our social media our cats and everybody else's cats. So we have a Maine Coon, we have a Bengal, we have these beautiful Persian cats, egyptian cats, some Siamese cats, we have our little forever kitten Holly, who's maybe seven pounds And that's, i guess, all she's ever going to be. We try to show a variety and also just coloring, so people can figure out which colors they like, what fits your aesthetic, but also maybe what makes your cat pop, and that's why I put out this purple gradient one. Our black and white cat, jolly, looks amazing on that one. So we have, if you just if you want color, if you want nature, if you want signs.

Speaker 2: 24:25

We have a solid green backdrop artwork panel that you could get, So you can Chrome a key anything you want behind your cat.

Speaker 1: 24:33

Oh my God, that's amazing.

Speaker 2: 24:35

I might be having to get that one.

Speaker 1: 24:37

I'm always trying to figure out new ways of doing videos with my cats, but it's like they're always in the same spot, like on the bed or laying in a cat bed, and it's like boring. So I love that.

Speaker 2: 24:48

Yeah, so if you do the green, you're golden You had mentioned the YouTube videos.

Speaker 3: 24:54

So some people are like how does this work?

Speaker 1: 24:58

Like how do I? Yeah, cause I first found you guys on Instagram And so in still pictures you see it, but it doesn't make all the sense to you. So that's great that you guys have the video showing how to use it, showing the cats going in and out of them. It really helps people understand it, and I also appreciate the architecture aspect of it, because my husband is a carpenter, so I totally understood everything when you guys were talking about the different kinds of wood and he'll tell me never buy anything from this company again, cause it's not good quality. Quality matters, especially when you're dealing with something like this for cats. We bought one that was supposed to attach to the window. Yeah, it didn't.

Speaker 1: 25:37

I couldn't even put my hand on it, let alone our cat jump on it, do you?

Speaker 3: 25:41

want people who install this in their homes or their apartments condors to feel comfortable and safe, knowing that when they follow the instructions that there's not going to be a problem. We want cats to be happy and healthy and enjoy this. We don't want I didn't when we first put up the sliding art, like one time when he was like what is that? And she didn't come by for a day or two and now she doesn't remember it. So at first I was like, oh no, maybe that's a problem, but there is a special lip in the back of the frame, so when you put the artwork in it stays. If you don't put it in and push it in and it'll fall.

Speaker 2: 26:17

So I think that's the big difference between a product like ours and the other products that are for pets is this one is purposely built for quality and lasting forever? essentially, it shouldn't, unless you're like taking a sledgehammer to it, right, but the point of this product is that it's an investment that will carry through for future cats to come, and you can always take it down and put it onto a different wall if you move or wherever. So it's something meant to go with you and it's not meant to just be like oh, we're done with it, throw it away now. This is not a throwaway product, this is yeah.

Speaker 1: 26:58

Which is so important for cats, because they do like to tear things up, whether it's with chewing or scratching or whatever it is, and, like you said, with cat trees, a lot of times their material did absorb the smell and all of that, and there is a length of time you just have to get rid of them.

Speaker 3: 27:18

So I like that this is material that's easily cleaned or replaceable and interchangeable, and we've had this carpet on these shelves for over three years and we have not replaced them yet And we have had seven cats that have been on all of these. So what I do is I just use my little Zoom groom once a month just to get up all the extra fur. And if you give them treats or somebody puts dinner on there once in a while because we have to separate them sometimes when they're having their meals So you just get up all that and vacuum it and it looks great. But if you're somebody that doesn't like one little thing of string, then you can shave it off, trim it or you can replace it, But they really go at it.

Speaker 2: 28:00

And again, like just putting this together was such a project. You think it's like easy, You're like oh we have frame on the shot? Yeah, I got it. No, we have to shoot, install videos, so hand me one of those images, any particular one, something colorful or vibrant, or Sorry, here we go. Okay, this is cool, oh yeah, so this is a sunset backdrop.

Speaker 3: 28:23

From an artist back in Massachusetts.

Speaker 2: 28:25

Yeah, this is a photo. It's just amazing, so Beautiful, getting these images on this. So for those who are just listening, hopefully, you'll watch this episode.

Speaker 2: 28:40

But the artwork backdrops, the artwork panels are a semi-rigid, thick thermoplastic, which means and it's fine for cats They can try to scratch at it, they could throw up a hairball. I always say What? wipe it down with a wet cloth and the colors will not run. It is. This is really built for even outdoor kind of to handle the weather elements right. So we really wanted these pieces to look vibrant And the printing that we have done on these, the colors just pop. I don't know if this can translate, but No, yeah it looks great.

Speaker 2: 29:20

The colors really come through. And that's where we have great people who are coming to us, who are photographers, graphic artists, who are like hey, i wanna get my stuff as back panels for a frame-to-feel-on Oh, that's great. And so we have a creative community. It's in our about area on our website and you can contribute and you can have your artwork featured on our website And people can have that for their cats and take pictures of your work with their cats And we can all have fun.

Speaker 1: 29:55

That's so cool. I love that because then it's a way for artists to share their work too Sure.

Speaker 3: 30:01

And it's been fun for us too, because as a family, we have a six-year-old and we will go places and we'll shoot pictures in Jackson's I wanna take a picture of this for a frame-your-feeline And so we actually drove up to near where you live in 2020 to the Almond Blossoms, oh yeah, and we took a lot of pictures of that.

Speaker 3: 30:22

We've taken pictures at Mountain High, some Wild West places, some aquatic stuff from here in California. So it's fun for us as a family get out of the office and let the cats do their thing and go find some cool things to shoot.

Speaker 2: 30:35

Yep.

Speaker 1: 30:35

No, that's great. I was just thinking when you showed the sunset. I don't know if you guys have ever been on the Central Coast, morro Bay. I have great photos from there of the Morro Rock and thinking I loved having those up and think I could just put it in there with the cat and they could do it, You could yeah 100%. So that's I love that. So it can be something that you really love to look at, whether the cat's sitting there or not. I really like that idea.

Speaker 2: 31:00

Yeah, we do have. So if you, let's say, you have a great photo and you don't wanna be a contributing artist, right?

Speaker 3: 31:07

Yes, you don't want anybody else to have.

Speaker 2: 31:08

Right, I don't want anyone else to have my image.

Speaker 1: 31:12

No.

Speaker 2: 31:12

Then we do have customized our work panels where you just order that you can upload your photo and it will be printed on our huge 18 by 23 inch image And then you could have that as a backdrop, and only you will have that one, which is cool. We have businesses that have done their logo for the backdrop. That's cool.

Speaker 3: 31:35

Some veterinarians, some cat rescues Cause especially like for a rescue. It's great Cause. Boom, the cat's in there and now you can take a nice picture and they're marketable. Because that's the sad thing And that's the reality, especially where we are talking from in California. Unfortunately, all these animal care centers, the pound, are full of animals that don't always make it out And a big problem is you go online and you see these pictures of these cats that are frightened and they look like they're in just a disgusting dirty place. Now imagine if the pictures were elevated and you're like that's a beautiful cat, Not a cat hiding and stuff. We, our goal really is we want to have one frame in every room of every home of anybody that owns a cat, but we would also really love to reach out to the rescues and have the rescues want to have a feline frame up and have their logo behind it. The cats are more exciting to look at and people don't overlook them.

Speaker 1: 32:37

No, i think that is so important. In general, animals and shelters are difficult to be seen because their life is in a cage. Now, and I know a shelter I work with, they had a photographer start volunteering. They're taking these amazing pictures of the dogs. Now I'm like what about the cats? Cats don't always want to have their picture taken And I volunteered this rescue and when I was there last week cleaning the cages you move the cat from one to the next as you clean and sanitize. You know when you first see them in the cage they seem so sad to themselves but then when you pick them up and they're like, happy and they want to play that it is difficult to show that to people who are interested in adopting that what they look like in that atmosphere is not the cat they're going to be for you most likely.

Speaker 3: 33:24

Yeah. No, I really love that idea And thank you for your volunteer work too, Oh thank you, that's very important.

Speaker 1: 33:31

Yes, and dogs and cats either one. People don't realize when they're in a shelter they don't get that one-on-one interaction. The staff only have so much time in the day and they have to clean and take care of them. They don't get to go on a walk as a dog or they don't get to be taken out and played with as a kitten, and so anything like that you can do is so important, even though then I just want to bring them all home. I know That's the hard part, i know. Speaking of animal shelters and rescues, you guys mentioned to me an organization I don't know if you work with them or have known called Pipers Helping Paws.

Speaker 3: 34:08

Yes, we don't personally know them other than we've interacted with them. On Nextdoor They are. We have two rescues that I know of in our area And unfortunately in the Antelope Valley a lot of animals are neglected, they are dropped in the desert, they are used for dog fighting and other things. And this woman, she is a vet tech and she has right now 32 kittens that she is taking to get transported, because we do have some programs through Karma Rescue or the Karma Project where you can essentially have the neutering done for free, the spay or neuter for free. But she still has to drive an hour and a half And, oddly enough, i'm pretty sure she's taking all her cats to where we took our little cat, scrappy, that resides outside. I wanted to give them a little shout out because I know when you're starting she's not really starting small because she has their over 32 kittens right now and she has a couple of dogs And we hope eventually we bought the domain name years ago, WoundedWhiskerscom, and we hope, down the road to be able to have enough money through Frame, your Feline to offer spay and neuter programs.

Speaker 3: 35:23

And then what's really something for us is people, mostly elderly people, but when people pass on or they have dementia and they can no longer take care of their pets. What happens to that pet? So we wanna really start to inform people Like you have to be a responsible pet parent and if something happens to you, you need to have some money aside So people can take care of your animal and your cat or dog isn't dumped at the pound and forced to live a life in a cage. But we love knowing that pipers has a vet tech behind them. So somebody who is not just passionate about animals but somebody who knows like up, this cat needs immediate care. This cat has some eye problems. These cats have ringworm or whatever to be able to address. That's a nice, responsible thing. So we wanted to give them a shout out.

Speaker 1: 36:12

No, that's great, I will definitely. We will put the contact info in there and so people can learn more about that. Because that is, you know, kittens can come into a shelter, like you said, with an eye infection or something that really is easily treatable, but in a shelter environment it's difficult to treat. They may not have that be able to treat it, and then it gets worse and sometimes eyes have to be removed because of it, and so anything that we can do to help them, especially you know, yes, in California we have huge populations of cats and dogs that are dumped outside or left outside. We have huge feral cat populations. I know it in current county. That's a huge problem And so that's amazing that she's starting something to help with that.

Speaker 1: 36:58

So I will definitely promote that, thank you. Thank you, and also I think that's an important topic that you brought up about thinking about how your pets will be taken care of if something happens to you, especially when we have older people, elderly people, who have pets, and we wanna promote them having pets because pets can be such a huge support to them when you're living alone or whatever it may be, you're isolated. But we also have to think about the pets longevity and if they may outlive their cat, mom or dad or whoever it may be that we really wanna make sure people have it set up for them to be taken care of.

Speaker 3: 37:37

Yes, we on the Nextdoor app, we I connected with a woman who's a caregiver and that person that she's taken care of has dementia and has to be taken care of by the state. And there is a beautiful white cat named Snowflake who looks so much like our cat Frosty, and I was like Brian, it's just one more. The cat had been assessed and they had said the cat had been assessed because prior to this the cat's other owner died, so the cat's owner died and then it was put up for adoption. This woman helped get a cat for the sick person, but they weren't sick at the time And then that moment they were like hmm, the cat really needs to be in a single family home, and or the only cat in a home.

Speaker 1: 38:23

And so.

Speaker 3: 38:24

I reached out to my little community on Nextdoor and I was like is anybody have room? And a woman is. I have other pets, but I have an apartment in my house and my son and daughter-in-law live in there And I wanna do this, And so it took. We had some ups and downs And then, like after three weeks, we have a happy reunion and the cat is there, and the cat is very happy and we'll live out the next eight years of her life in a calm environment. So we're happy.

Speaker 3: 38:50

You have to just ask for your house brown and use social media. You never know what's gonna happen. Look, we connected through social media Exactly.

Speaker 1: 38:57

Yeah, i've found so many amazing new pet parent people through social media who are doing great things, who are starting small businesses, like you are, that are doing something pet oriented, but you wanna be able to use that to give back and help pets in need And that's just. Every little thing counts because every animal's life we can help is a life that would have been lost if they were stuck in a shelter or whatever it may be.

Speaker 2: 39:21

Pets have soul. Pets have soul, you know, and I think a lot of people don't realize that, and we do. So we wanna help animals and help cats.

Speaker 1: 39:35

Yes, but that is a really important topic to think about because I see stories all the time. I follow rescues all over the country Oh, this cat was dumped because the owner passed away and no one in the family wanted it, or we found it in the house when it was literally left behind, when the owner had to be put into a skilled nursing home, or something Happened so often that it is a really important thing to have your pets set up to be taken care of, no matter how old you are, because you never know what could happen, but also to help your family members and your friends who are in situations like that to make sure their pet is taken care of. We want cats to have long, healthy, happy lives.

Speaker 2: 40:19

Yes, and dogs too.

Speaker 1: 40:20

And everybody, and horses, and I have a possum currently and he lives better than I do. Wait, you have a possum? Yes, we have a possum. Yeah, the face, the face, yeah.

Speaker 2: 40:32

Whoa wait a second Frame your possum.

Speaker 3: 40:36

I actually yeah, And he probably would get in it.

Speaker 1: 40:42

He has a pretty fancy penthouse.

Speaker 2: 40:44

Now I'm hoping this is an outdoor possum, or is this an indoor?

Speaker 1: 40:50

I was hoping that too. No, he lives in our dining room.

Speaker 2: 40:54

No, you're kidding I.

Speaker 1: 40:58

Will take a picture and send it to you guys after this. Julie, i know, julie, it's my big, sharp teeth. They, julie, what are you doing? Fun fact possums have 50 teeth. They have the most teeth of any mammal.

Speaker 3: 41:13

Oh, my goodness.

Speaker 1: 41:15

He's very cute, though, julie. It was not my, it was not my choice. We can have a little humor with frame.

Speaker 3: 41:23

Oh my god. So we have an eagle's trooping down, or we have a possum in the railroad tracks.

Speaker 1: 41:31

Oh yeah, Oh no He's gonna have. his house is gonna have to become bigger, So I think this might be an addition that is necessary.

Speaker 2: 41:39

Wow, how do you end up with a possum?

Speaker 1: 41:42

How does that happen? did Is this a trained possum? No, we can pet him when he was little, or we could pick him up, but now you know the teeth. We don't want to take any by your head off.

Speaker 1: 41:56

No, my husband is a carpenter for a school district here And he got a call from a custodian one day saying, hey, i need a big stick. He was like, okay, there's a possum in the cabinet and I got to get it out. It was little, it was a baby and it was there and there were no other possum, so obviously it was alone. There was nowhere to release him. So my husband brought him home and Cut to. Three months later He still lives here and my husband as a carpenter, has created a four-story penthouse on Rollers that is in our dining room. He has littered, trained him.

Speaker 1: 42:33

No way possums are a lot like cats, i'm realizing they. He was able to litter train him. He washes his little face with his creepy little human like hands. Whenever he eats he curls up and ball. There are a lot of very cat-like aspects to him, aside from the scary 50 teeth possums eat besides your fingers.

Speaker 2: 42:57

What do they eat?

Speaker 1: 42:58

William the possum eats better than I do. He gets scrambled eggs made with Greens chopped up so that he doesn't realize he's eating the greens. Yes, seriously You can't he? we have pellet food that's specifically for possums. So that's where we started. But my husband being he just likes yeah. So he eats strawberries and bananas and blueberries, and he gets fresh chicken. On the nights We have chicken made in the crock pot. Yeah, he's most spoiled possum in the entire world. There's no way now we can release him, because he literally has a security board waiting for him every night when he wakes up.

Speaker 2: 43:36

Do they bark? do they howl? What it?

Speaker 1: 43:38

would know they growl and they will like, like that kind of like a cat growl or a dog growl, but now he doesn't growl at us at all.

Speaker 2: 43:51

Growl at you but is this a free range possum?

Speaker 1: 43:55

No, he lives, He's in an enclosed space.

Speaker 2: 43:58

Okay, you don't let him out.

Speaker 1: 43:59

No, because we we wouldn't let him out with our cats or anything and we're not sure what he would do He really wants. He has a little wooden house within his house that he sleeps in, so he's like a cat, he likes to be covered.

Speaker 2: 44:12

Do you take him to the vet?

Speaker 1: 44:14

No, we don't. I mean, i don't know, that may not be a thing at some point, but because he's an only possum, which he will be an only possum. I'm sorry, we don't have to worry about spay and neuter and all of that.

Speaker 2: 44:27

Wait, what is the life expectancy of a possum?

Speaker 1: 44:32

In the wild they tend to live to two or three years old, so it's not as, yeah, they have a short life expectancy. He'll live about eight years probably, yeah, probably, with my luck. I love him. I have to say the animal lover me has really enjoyed watching the process of him growing and how we're learning about him and the way he acts. But it's at a certain point He's gonna get so big at the water We're gonna do with him. I don't know. But wow, yeah, my husband likes also. He has six tarantulas, yeah, and we have two tortoises who live in our backyard.

Speaker 2: 45:08

Oh Yeah, I want to hear.

Speaker 1: 45:11

Yes that well Yeah and he grew up with tortoises, so when we moved into our house, he brought one over here to help reduce the pet population in his parents backyard, because you can't spay and neuter tortoises And they will have babies every year. So oh Yeah, but they're also. California. Tortoises are endangered species, you're not. Yeah, you can't just release them back into the wild, so yeah. So we have Rufus and spike who live in our backyard. We have William the possum who lives in our dining room.

Speaker 2: 45:43

And three tarantulas. Do you name the tarantulas?

Speaker 1: 45:46

He does have some names, but he has a office room that he keeps them all in, so that's his business, they don't bother me. But yes, we've been married for 17 years and So he's always loved animals, but now he's getting back into it again. I'm like, as long as you're taking care of it, i don't care, but then I just want to bring in more cats and that doesn't happen. So Anyway, yeah, it's a very interesting life over here.

Speaker 2: 46:16

Yeah, I was gonna say holy cow. There was a moment I was gonna say I'd like to come out and visit you.

Speaker 1: 46:22

No, not anymore. No, just realize. All of our tarantulas and the possum are all in closed, locked cases. They cannot get out. It's the one time I come over to have some tea with it, and then they escape and this is why I don't bring my dog sitting clients to my house, because we're not gonna take any chances. So anyway, enough about William the possum.

Speaker 2: 46:43

Yeah, sorry, hey, we I am.

Speaker 1: 46:45

I'm definitely gonna be showing my husband these. I'm like we need to when we upgrade William the next time we might have to add in, because how else are we gonna get a picture of him for the family Christmas? There you go, and just to let you know, william the possum is actually named after my dad. Oh, that's right you know, That's his middle name. But yeah, never. But I do have two cats, Charlie and Frenchy. So those are my babies and the rest are my husband's hobbies.

Speaker 2: 47:13

But they would love a frame. Yeah, I love a frame.

Speaker 1: 47:17

I definitely think that's gonna be an addition soon to my home office because I have all these amazing Different animal arts from different things. I want to create a whole wall to have is my backdrop when I'm recording so I can start using more video.

Speaker 2: 47:34

Very good idea. Yes, get a backdrop with your podcast logo there.

Speaker 1: 47:40

Yes, hey, okay. So back to the topic of the podcast. So is there anything else you guys want to talk about in terms of your business and what you're hoping to see people do with it, or just in general in terms of helping animals in need?

Speaker 2: 48:01

Well, i think, as Christina said, we want to see everyone enjoy their cats and get more photos of their cats and Share those photos on Instagram have some humor if they like humor. Yes.

Speaker 3: 48:14

Yes, talking with the eagle and the train tracks on the tracks.

Speaker 1: 48:18

No, I love that. And one thing I do want to ask you I do not have any human kids and you guys mentioned that you have a six-year-old. How has it been raising him with cats And does he?

Speaker 3: 48:28

love them, he loves them and they love him.

Speaker 3: 48:33

That's when we brought Jackson home from the hospital Steve and 2d were like what is this? And then they became little babysitters and Jackson is really wonderful. When we moved here we rescued Winnie and From the cats meow and they came to do a home inspection And Jackson's a little on the younger side, a lot of it. A lot of rescues don't want to adopt to families that have eight and under and They walk. The woman from the rescue walked in and Jackson And so they became instant friends. And then with the kittens, with Holly and Jolly, jackson came with me to the Lang Foundation.

Speaker 3: 49:12

We did foster to adopt during COVID, so we never actually met them in person. It was like the strangest internet dating. I like that kid And they were just like keep us posted on how it is. But they knew we already had frosty from them and so he's great with them. He reads to them. We go to the library and he reads to dogs because they have a thing called barks and books and He'll play music for them. So he just loves them. He loves horses. He loves our birds in the backyard.

Speaker 2: 49:43

He's Hi Jackson.

Speaker 1: 49:51

Nice to meet you, jackson. I'm Julie. Hi, do you love all your cats? I Don't just kidding. You can't tell. Your parents are comedians.

Speaker 2: 50:06

Here we were just saying he's amazing with the cats.

Speaker 1: 50:09

I don't like, i don't like them.

Speaker 3: 50:11

I don't like them I.

Speaker 1: 50:14

Oh, do you have a favorite cat? No, i love them all. Yeah, that's great. Yay, i always love to have people who have human and pet kids Talk about how great it is to have them grow up together. So I appreciate you saying hi.

Speaker 3: 50:32

Yeah, Jackson helps out with the cat dishes. That's his chore to bring the dirty ones in, so I haven't asked him to help with the litter box yet but he's getting a life skill.

Speaker 2: 50:43

I never got Having a cat. It's a life skill.

Speaker 1: 50:48

It is because you'll have a cat for your whole life.

Speaker 2: 50:51

Oh for he'll be a cat guy. Yep you know, you're already here cat dudes are great. Cat dudes. Yeah, why, thank you? and, by the way, as the first male on your show, yeah.

Speaker 3: 51:06

Definitely our resident cat butler. He wakes up first thing in the morning, so he's in charge of a certain area of litter boxes. He and all the cats are like. You're up, i'm hungry.

Speaker 1: 51:18

Hey, let's do it. So my husband is the same way He has. He leaves for work at 5 30, so he's the early morning guy and I'm the late night mom They get. Both are very important jobs. Yes, thank you guys, so much for being here. Thank you for agreeing to go video so that I will be. I'm gonna figure out the whole frame.

Speaker 2: 51:39

Your feline is a visual.

Speaker 1: 51:41

Thing, so I'm glad we did that.

Speaker 2: 51:44

Yeah, oh, i just wanted to let people know that the website and where they could see more.

Speaker 1: 51:51

Yeah, all your website and your socials will all be linked in the show notes of this episode, as well as any videos and all of that fun stuff and any posts I make on social twitter, instagram, facebook. I'll link you guys as well.

Speaker 2: 52:05

Then forget it. Forget it You don't need to know.

Speaker 1: 52:10

It is. It is frame your feline calm. So it's a easy one, but they will all be linked.

Speaker 2: 52:17

Thank you, we truly enjoyed This episode. Yes, I think it may be The finest episode yet.

Speaker 1: 52:26

Hey, let's hope so. Bump up those downloads. It was great to meet you guys. Thank you so much, julie, for having thank you for having a great time talking about all of our amazing cats.

Speaker 3: 52:37

You're welcome. Thanks, julie, bye, bye.