T-Shirt Schedule!

August 10, 2022 by Mr. Academy in Merch

Greetings, Kitten Merchandicians!

Image of Kitten Seeking Merchandise — Hey Buddy, You Got any Merch?

Art Coordinator Jay has a plan for re-releasing our most popular merchandise designs from now through the end of the year! Here’s the schedule - links to the products will be updated as they become available.

Also please note, the schedule does not include several new designs we expect to be publishing during this time! You can click here to view the Kitten Academy store, but we recommend just using the individual links below.

STORE RE-RELEASE SCHEDULE

Phase 1: Kitten Academy - Legacy

These are the top 5 products produced for us through the years. A chance to buy (or re-buy!) the favourites from the past few years - Once they're gone, they're gone! These will be released every Monday throughout August, then will stay up until October 1st

August 2022

Phase 2: Old but Gold!

Some of these shirts were released all the way back in 2019! Here is another chance to pick up some of your favourite classics to add to the collection. These will be released on a bi-weekly basis every Monday and Friday. Be quick! These will be going at the end of the month - Get 'em while they're hot!

September 2022

2nd - Bad Hal
5th - BC Chai
9th - Maggie Love
12th - Catterns
16th - Bready Bunch
19th - Toof
23rd - HRH Paisley

Phase 2.5: But Wait, There's More!

We've still got more to bring from the oldies and the goldies. It's another month of bi-weekly re-releases, so keep an eye out for any favourites. As before, they'll be gone at the end of the month so be quick!

October 2022

3rd - Spooky Faculty
7th - Tomout
10th - DONT PANIC
14th - Snackaru
17th - Buttons
21st - Truffy
24th - Myth

Phase 3: Are We Nearly There Yet?

Nearly! Here are the shirts that didn't get enough attention before the store closure or the attention they deserved first time around. Don't forget to stock up on your Ugly Sweaters for the winter season - Colour not guaranteed and 100% ugly certified! [editor: I own one and you never see me wear it, it’s THAT ugly] Releases are every Friday this month, and will be available 'till the end of the year.

November 2022

4th - River
11th - Bespoke Tinypants
18th - My 4 Moods
25th - KA Ugly Sweater

New Designs!

Get ‘em while they’re hot!

Catching Up Part One: Buttons and Bumble (And Splotch)

January 31, 2022 by Mr. Academy in Photos, Merch

Greetings, Kitten Academicians!

We are, in the words of the great Douglas Adams, “…late, but moving fast!” Today’s blog post is entirely about Buttons and Bumble, with a side of Splotch. We have the best intentions to return quickly with posts about the other new residents of the Academy… soon! Until then, catch them on the Live Stream!

In what may be a first, Buttons arrived from Georgia as a presumptive momcat, was found to be a non-pregnant kitten, had her graduation, and has gone to live with her adopter (back to Georgia, coincidentally), all before we managed to post anything about her on our blog. That doesn’t say a lot for us, but it sure says a lot for Buttons, and her adopter (and all of you)! Our favorite fact about Buttons — she was allowed to roam the Academy freely for most of the weeks she was here, and in all that time, only went downstairs once; just long enough to decide it wasn’t for her. Here’s a few photos from the photoshoots she managed to participate in.

Next, DAWS had the lovely tuxie Bumble arrive as a presumptive momcat. But she turned out to be a slightly chonky cat, not pregnant at all. She, too, has had her graduation surgery, but is still awaiting adoption applicants. Her favorite things to do are eating and sleeping, and she would make an excellent couch companion. She’s young, perhaps a year or so, and so does also require a certain amount of play and zooming — more on that in a moment. She does not start trouble with other cats, but she does let them know to keep a distance by growling. If pushed further, she’ll run away and hide. She only fights if cornered. She can get along with other cats just fine, and if they’re reasonably polite and will respect her boundaries they can even become friends over time.

…Which brings us to Splotch. You may recall that Splotch had an adopter lined up, but the adoption was delayed a short while so that we could focus on helping her get over a bit of a snort that she had had since birth. Good news: the snorting has been completely resolved thanks to the ceaseless efforts of Dr. Katz! However, due to a change in circumstances, Splotch’s adopter has had to withdraw, and so Splotch will need a new adopter.

Splotch is a strong, healthy polydactyl kitten who loves play and zooming more than anything else, napping and eating when necessary. Splotch likes to be near her people, but tends to be independent and prefers cuddling and purring when it happens on her schedule. We expect that over time, she’ll build a very strong bond with her adopter and come to enjoy affection more freely. She would make an excellent companion for someone who wants a more active and curious cat — if her mom is any indication she’ll continue to be that way well past kittenhood. She’s good with other cats, and will respectfully give them distance if they respectfully request it. She’s polite with humans and cats, takes corrections well, and seldom uses her claws or teeth without provocation. When other cats are too forward, she tends to correct them with quick smacks rather than a growl, so an adopter who already has cats should consider whether they’ll respond favorably to that. So far, everyone here — including River — gets along with her just fine.

Our recommendation would be to adopt Splotch along with another cat or kitten — one that she will get along with and that may help her find an outlet for some of her energy as well. So far, it seems like Bumble would make a fair choice for this, although it’s possible that Bumble would be overwhelmed if she were solely responsible for keeping Splotch entertained. It may well be the case that Splotch ends up best friends with one of the tiny Townies or even eventually one of Scottie’s kittens. It also seems likely that Splotch would be just fine without other cats around, if her adopter is committed to keeping her busy!

So, applications for Splotch and Bumble (together or separately) are open!

Here’s a couple “bonus” images including previews of the upcoming blogpost photoshoots that we’re behind on editing and posting:

…one more thing!

In what’s definitely a first, there’s also beautiful Buttons merch on the store — merch announced after Buttons had already come and gone, but it’s so pretty we can’t wait for ours anyhow!

Two Households, both Alike in Dignity!

September 09, 2021 by Mr. Academy in Cheatsheet, Introduction, Photos, Merch

Greetings, Kitten Academicians!

Mural has finally had her six precious kittens after the second-longest pregnancy ever* at Kitten Academy! But before that — literally the day before — we brought in Rue and her sixlets. So today’s mewspaper post is going to introduce two families!

(* Mural gets second place with 34 days spent pregnant at the Academy. The record continues to be held by Tempest who lasted 37 days!)

Rue’s Ruse

Rue was discovered in the Bronx where she was rescued and brought to Hoboken, NJ and given the name “Rutabaga.” Reportedly very sweet and playful, she was a joy but soon concern mounted over her growing belly and a trip to the vet was in order. The vet quickly determined that she was pregnant with six little kittens, so her rescuers called the one person they knew could help — Mom! (Their mom, not ours or Rue’s.) Mom brought Rutabaga to Dr. Katz in Fairfield, CT where the kittens were delivered, and spent their first two weeks. Now that they’ve reached an age appropriate to more mobility, we’ve brought them in to the Kitten Academy to give them a little space to stretch out and zoom around! They are currently living in the “Second Annex” next door to Mural, with hopes that eventually the two families can come together.

“Mom” will be adopting Rue (so actually Rue’s mom after all) after she’s done raising her last litter of kittens (Rue, not Mom), and the kittens will go through the usual adoption process here at Kitten Academy when they are about three months old.

A Note on Applications

Speaking of which, DAWS — the shelter we work with and who process applications for Kitten Academy kittens — have asked that anyone who wants to apply for any of Rue or Mural’s kids use the Kitten Academy application here on this website. They ask that you don’t use the regular DAWS application. The Kitten Academy application will open after the kittens are a few weeks older and we’ve had a chance to get to know them a little better. We’ll be sure to put the word out here and on our Twitter when that day arrives.

Here’s the Rue crew, and see below for Mural!

Caper - Male “Classic” Grey Tabby

Hijinks - Male “Mackerel” Grey Tabby

Hustle - Male “Mackerel” Grey Tabby

Gimmick - Male Black with Ventral White Spots

Sham - Female Black

Gambit - Male Black with Grey-Flecked Prosterior

Rue - Momcat

Mural’s Tinypaints

Mural is another momcat who was brought to Dr. Katz, this time from a sort-of cat colony near her practice in southwestern Connecticut. Mural was brought in with the intent of performing a spay and returning her to her usual place (TNR), but Dr. K discovered she was pregnant (Mural, not Dr. K) and very friendly so offered to have her attend the Academy. We initially suspected she’d deliver kittens within a week of her arrival but it turned out to take over a month! During that time she’s shown that she’s very comfortable around other cats, and spent most of her days just hanging around the Academy with the faculty.

Etch was born with a special talent for reviewing movies and Facebook posts.

Mural is a polydactyl cat, which in her case means she has one extra toe in-between her fourth toe and her dewclaw on her front paws. Four of her kittens are the same, each with one extra toe on each of the front paws, as noted below. This is an unusual, but not rare genetic mutation that is unlikely to have any impact on health or longevity. However, it does allow for an impressive thumbs-up!

Splotch - Female Brown Tabby- Polydactyl

Trace - Female Tortie with Orange Head Stripe - Polydactyl

Etch - Male Orange Tabby - Polydactyl

Doodle - Male Black - Polydactyl

Squiggle - Female Tortie with Half-Pink Nose

Scrawl - Female Grey Tabby

Mural - Mom

One more thing before we go — well, two actually. Two new fantastic merchandise designs on our Teespring shop! See here for previous designs.

A lovely painting of Mural by @alienswearsunglasses titled “Toof”

Technically Etch, but the cryptid version by @tanize!

…and here’s some bonus photos, mostly of Custard’s silly expressions:

Merchandise mArt!

August 02, 2021 by Mr. Academy in Art, Merch

Greetings, Kitten Academicians!

Once again, our very own Banksyl has created a month-long art “challenge” — although how challenging it may be is entirely up to you! All you have to do to participate is anything you want to do! Whether it’s a photoshop, or an oil painting, or a musical composition, poetry, even a batch of KA-inspired artisanal cheeses — anything goes! All you need to do is tweet a photo of your art using the hashtag #KASummerCamp2021 or mail a sampler to “Kitten Academy Official Cheese Taster, PO Box 186, Monroe, CT 06468.”

As in previous months, we’ll be sharing some self-selected entries from the previous art challenge at the end of this mews article. If you’d like to see all the entries, you can check the previous hashtag: #KASpringIntoArt2021 — There’s some amazing stuff there and we feel like maybe we didn’t see all of it ourselves the first time around so we may be due for some retweetings!

But before we get to that, we need to take a minute to tell you about some things that are — and aren’t — on our Teespring store! The first thing that isn’t is the word “Tee” - they are in the process of rebranding as just “Spring” so you may notice the links we’re about to share go to various spring-related domains.

Jay and Syl, who manage the Teespring store, have added several brand-new designs that we’re super excited about! And there’s also several older designs that are being removed from the store, so this is (probably) your last chance to get them if you’ve been waiting.

Good TODAY ONLY (Monday the 2nd) at Teespring/Spring you can use the code “BACKTOSCHOOL” to get 10% off whatever you order! That savings is entirely from the Teespring portion, so it doesn’t cost us a penny.

Two quick notes - some of these designs are showing you the rear view initially and you have to click to see the front. This appears to be a bug on Teespring. Secondly, don’t forget that for each design, you can choose different styles of shirt (or bag or phone cases, etc) and colors in the menus on the right-hand side.

“I’ve Made a Puge Mistake” - Puget Art by “Captain Sokira”

Those are all fantastic and exciting! And here’s a fun fact: the “Don’t Panic” design based on Garbanzo’s paw, who was our last polydactyl, up until the new momcat arrived this weekend who is also polydactyl! Timely option to represent our lovely new mom, “Mural.”

Here are the designs that will be leaving the store on the 7th:

“Loganberry is Importanter” White by Jay

“Loganberry is Importanter” Black by Jay

That concludes the Merchandising portion of this blog post! Here comes some fantastic art from the previous art prompt! We’ll be back soon with a mewspaper post to tell you all about the new mom, Mural, after we get some good photos of her.

Mattie Qute

Megalina

Michelle

Neela Kangal

Pauligirl

Scarlet_Hotshot

Sylhouettes

Waithamai

Emily G.

FrozenTundraCrew

is.a.Momo

Isabelle M

Jay (mlem!)

Jen Pollard

Lagshiga

Loreanne

What Mew, Loom's Catterns?

July 22, 2021 by Mr. Academy in Merch, Photos

Greetings, Kitten Academicians!

We took some photos of Loom and her kids for you to enjoy! Not much else to it. They all got collars but that was after this photoshoot, so the collar colors are noted by their names but you won’t see them — don’t try looking closer!

Brief health updates: The Catterns are all over their Calicivirus as far as we can tell! Herringbone took a spill and we’re still consulting with the vets about whether there’s anything we can or should do - meanwhile he’s kittening perfectly well on three legs! We’ll keep you informed as we know more.

Here’s a cute new design in our Teespring store featuring Puget.

Loom

Paisley - Female - Lavender Collar

Basketweave - Male - Grey Collar

Herringbone - Male - Red Collar

Chevron - Male - Blue Collar

Argyle - Male - Orange Collar

Bonus Photos!

Welcome to the Fancy Feasters!

November 06, 2020 by Mr. Academy in Introduction, Cheatsheet, Merch

Greetings, Kitten Academicians!

New momcat Truffle was discovered hanging around a garage in rural Georgia and DAWS arranged to have her brought to the Academy [* see below] on Halloween day. We could tell it wouldn’t be long before she delivered her kittens! She was an instant lap snuggler and spent all the time she could curled up on our lap in the beanbag chair.

Sure enough, four healthy kittens were born on the morning of November 4th! Truffle appears to be an experienced mom and is handling all of her kittens’ needs just fine - with an occasional time-out for more lap snuggles!

Here’s the photos from the initial photoshoots after and before the birth, and afterwards we’ll share some info about the new merch on Teespring!

Saffron

Macadamia Nut

Champagne

Caviar

We know that our Teespring storefront can be difficult to navigate if you’re looking for something in particular buried under all the different products on which you can have the KA logo printed! So we wanted to take a moment here to post links to the newest items.

Our friend (and the voice of Smokey) Pauline contacted the amazing artist Kat Giannini to commission artwork of the Kitten Academy Faculty to be raffled at the 2020 KA-Con raffle. But events led to the cancellation of the raffle this year, and instead, Kat has allowed us to sell her fantastic portraits of the faculty on our Teespring store as shirts and coffee mugs! It’s super generous of her to allow, considering she has her own Etsy store where she sells some of her best prints. Also thanks to Jay for refactoring the original art to suit the shirts and mugs! Everyone involved really went out of their way to make this possible and we love the art so much that we’ve already ordered the whole set for the Academy.

The good people at Teespring have mentioned that they may be able to provide a discount code for us this weekend or soon thereafter, so if they do, I’ll update this post with the code here. Meanwhile, here’s a bonus design from Jay based on a T-shirt we sometimes wear around the Academy!

[* From Above:
DAWS generously covered the costs for Planned Pethood GA to rescue Truffle and a Georgia Transport Allies transport to bring Truffle to the Academy. Links here, but be warned that these sites do not follow the Kitten Academy No-Sads policy.]