The really cool thing you’ll learn is what compares to chocolate for a baby sloth. Plus, you can hear those cute wee-one sloth sounds.

Sloths, weighing up to 19 pounds, live in Central to South America. Their conservation status is vulnerable.

Even if you really like lions already, you’ll have a new respect after watching the true story shown in “The Last Lions” from National Geographic.

Watch the trailer below, and learn more about big cat conservation at Cause An Uproar.

Parents with young children may wish to view “The Last Lions” before showing to children. The movie presents lions as they are, complete with love and violence.

ASPCA has teamed up with WebThriftStore to offer an online thrift store where you can shop or donate to your heart’s desire.

When a donated item is sold at the ASPCA WebThriftStore, the animals served by ASPCA reap the rewards. ASPCA’s mission is to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States.

How it Works

After the item is listed online and sold, the donor ships to the buyer using a prepaid label available online. Shipping supplies are available free of charge. Plus, the sales price is tax-deductible for the donor.

Buyers pay the shipping costs, but they also have 30 days to return the item to WebThriftStore if it’s not as described or is defective. It’s called the 30-Day Buyer Assurance Guarantee.

Check out this FAQ to answer pretty much any question you may have about the process.

Are you going to shop or donate at the ASPCA WebThriftStore?

(Image via Kevin Dooley flickr)

Xanadu Gallery, located on 140 Maiden Lane, is housed in the beautiful building that Frank Lloyd Wright designed. If you’re walking by (it’s just off Union Square), be sure to also check out Wright’s signature in red just to the left of the entry. And, yes you should visit this art gallery to see the lovely stairs inside.

This kitty nook, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is currently being used for storage. I suppose the current occupants of the building aren’t really set up for cat keeping. After all, a roaming kitty can really mess with expensive art!

Why aren’t we designing houses with built-in spaces for pets?

It would save space and cash that’s spent on cat houses or condos that only last a few years. A nicely built, permanent kitty nook would be greener than stuff offered at most pet stores.

What do you think of designing houses with pets in mind?

Imperial Cat offers 100 percent post-consumer recycled cardboard scratchers in many unique designs, including some festive ones to help you celebrate the holidays.

Scratch ‘n Shapes holiday patternsinclude snowflakes, Christmas treesand several red and green seasonal designs.

More Eco Features

Scratch ‘n Shapes are made in the U.S., and come with certified organic catnip! You can also recycle them when the time comes. My cat Choco (not pictured here) loves his Imperial Cat scratcher.

Visit Baltimore Sun to see an image of Mittens with her kittens.

Not only did Mittens escape, she put out the fire and returned to care for her kittens. The brave cat, who lost her ears, continued to care for her kittens even while recovering from third and fourth-degree burns covering 70 percent of her body. She was also friendly with the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter staff, her caregivers until being placed in a loving home.

Mittens has touched many animals. She helped inspire the 2011 Maryland Congressional Session to pass new laws to protect animals in her home state. Plus, the main tormenter of Mittens pled guilty to felony animal cruelty.

Also honored by ASPCA:

• Dog of the Year, a Golden Retriever named Ricochet who has raised more than $125,000 for many causes by surfing (in water, not the web)!
• “Tommy P. Monahan” Kid of the Year, Stevie Nelson, who raised more than $28,000 for the Northeast Nebraska Humane Society after losing his two black Labs.

Mittens, Ricochet, Stevie and other animal advocates will be honored at the ASPCA Humane Awards luncheon on November 17 in New York City.

Purr & Simple Kwik Klump formula is an odor-controlling clumping litter made from a blend of fibrous material from tree-nut crops. It’s 100 percent natural, so it’s also biodegradable and compostable.

In June I reviewed the Purr & Simple pellets, which were nice, but many of us with kitty companions dig on clumping litter. (Disclosure: I received a free sample of Purr & Simple litter for review.)

Purr & Simple’s clumping litter is safe for cats. It’s low dust! But how is it to use?

I found that Purr & Simple Kwik Klump is as easy to use as similar litter like World’s Best. The big benefit with Purr & Simple is that it’s better for odor control, but you may or may not like the dark color of this litter.

Dark Litter: A Pro or Con?

The color of Purr & Simple is very similar to the color of a cat’s brown business. That could mean that you enjoy the camouflage in uncovered boxes, or it could mean that you spend some extra time digging.

Dark litter on the floor is a reminder to sweep or vacuum, which could be a good thing, unless you don’t like to be reminded to clean!

Purr & Simple will track, but not much more than World’s Best or similar clumping litters. A litter mat is in order.

Overall, I believe that Purr & Simple is a good option for environmentally conscious cat lovers. It certainly is worth a trial. After all, it would be like switching your kitty to recycled toilet paper!

If you’ve used Purr & Simple clumping litter, please share your experiences here.

My cats like to play with shoelaces, ponytail holders and boxes.

In this case, all I had to do was remove the window cling from this pasta box, throw in one of Oscar’s beloved ponytail holders, and instant new (and free!) kitty toy.

When kitty gets tired of the box, you can always place it into the recycling bin.

Don’t have a cat?

There are lots of other things you can do with cardboard boxes.

Create an inexpensive light tent for photography.

Make a shadow box for puppet theater.

Go for a Valentine shadow box instead of card. This would work for birthdays too.

Decorate your wall, and display your mementos in a cardboard shadow box.

Do you have a fun reuse idea for cardboard boxes?

Imperial Cat has created a giant bunch of fun shapesfor kitty (and their owners). These modern and eco-friendly scratchers come in more than 80 interesting shapes like orca, turtle or whale.

I received a free scratcher for review from Imperial Cat. See my disclosures page for more info.

How are Scratch ‘n Shapes eco-friendly?

• They’re made with 100 percent recycled paper.

• They include organic catnip, yum.

• They’re printed with soy-based inks.

• They’re made in the United States.

• Plus, you can recycle them when you and kitty deem the time is right.

Choco (black and white kitty below) loves his Scratch ‘n Shapes Cheetah Chaise!

He was interested from the very beginning. My other cat Oscar seen sniffing the scratcher prefers carpet scratchers (sigh).

I’ve purchased other cardboard scratchers made of recycled paper, but Scratch ‘n Shapes is unique since it looks more like a piece of furniture. It doesn’t stick out so much.

Also, it seems to be more sturdy than some other cardboard scratchers we’ve tried. I haven’t noticed excessive cardboard scraps lying around.

Choco doesn’t need catnip on his scratcher to be attracted to it, but he enjoyed the organic catnip very much. In fact, he started eating it! As you can tell, Choco loved not only scratching his chaise and eating some catnip, but also just lounging around.

It’s great that these scratchers come with organic and apparently tasty catnip, but I found that the catnip didn’t stay on the scratcher.

Once I relocated the scratcher, I noticed a pile of catnip that had fallen through the bottom or somehow escaped through a mystery method. I suppose this is one disadvantage not being an ordinary scratcher encased in a cardboard box. If you go with these scratchers, I suggest applying only a very small amount of catnip at a time.

Closing thoughts…

Overall, these durable scratchers are great for kitties who like cardboard and their human companions who want something more decorative. The only disadvantage I could find is that some of the catnip may fall off the scratcher. Scratch ‘n Shapes scratchers have many earth-friendly advantages, and they’re made in the USA by a company that works to help shelter cats.

I noticed this shy lizard searching for a cool drink. At least I think that’s what he was doing by the water hose while the temp reached 100 degrees F with a heat index of 123.

Maybe he was just hunting for a shade. I wanted this lizard to have a cool little pool he could easily climb into. Bird baths are a bit tall.

One quick glance into my recycling bin and I came up with a solution: the metal lid to a jar of peanut butter.

I gave the lid a quick wash before filling with cool water, but maybe I should also remove that white seal later.

The lizard was a little shy at first, but I caught him taking a drink, and I snapped a picture through my glass door. I didn’t want to scare him away from his new water fountain.

I had no idea that moving to my still new-to-me house in a cove in the suburbs would mean that I’d get to see or hear so much wildlife like rabbits, bats, lizards and owls, but I do love it.

How do you reuse metal jar lids?