In insuring your pussies insist on having the yellow insurance ticket placed on the hamper in your presence. Sometimes you pay your money and then in the hurry of getting the package to the train the ticket is forgotten.

The theory that human beings can and do contract diseases from cats does not hold water. I have often asked caretakers of cats' homes and hospitals whether any of the complaints of the pussies have been given to the people who attend to them, and the answer has always been in the negative.

I have recently been purchasing cat travelling baskets for friends, and I can highly recommend those made by Spratt's. They are very strong, and have the straps for fasteners, which are vastly preferable to the wicker loops and stick. The latter seems always missing at the critical moment when we are sending off our pussies on a journey. Then, again, the loops break away, and we are at a loss to get them mended. The skeleton lids are a valuable addition.

It is not well, for many reasons, to allow stud cats to have their freedom - that is, if they are of any value. After a male has reached the years of discretion and discernment he will soon begin to stray away, and probably on his return after a day or two he will show signs of having had a sharp contest with some of his tribe. Then he runs the risk of being trapped or shot. The feline society with which he comes in contact during his rambles may have been anything but desirable. Infection may be brought back, and if there are other pussies at home this is a serious matter.

The difference between a good-shaped eye of a pale colour and a small, beady eye of a more correct shade is perhaps hardly appreciated by some judges, who without hesitation give the preference to the latter. Nothing lends such expression to a cat as a large, round, full eye - and, of course, let it be the correct colour if possible.

There is really no reason to regard distemper as a necessary evil in cats. In the case of one pet kept at home and well cared for, the chances are certainly against the occurrence of the disease. Then, I am of opinion that so-called distemper embraces a variety of complaints, from any or all of which a cat may suffer. A simple cold in the head, or an attack of influenza, sometimes is mistaken for distemper, and a gastric attack may be also thus designated.

As regards cross-journeys, do let me impress on all fanciers the importance of sending off their pussies as early as possible in the morning. If you wait till mid-day, and your cat has to cross London and be booked again to some suburb, it is certain she will be left all night in a parcels' office.

Any one who has tried getting kittens to sit for their portraits knows how difficult it is to make the fidgety little creatures be quiet. Try holding up a looking-glass so that the kit can see its own reflection. This experiment often answers splendidly.

A cat lover with a warm heart is often tempted to take in a wandering puss. By all means feed the hungry, but beware of letting a stray mix with your own kittens. Many a fancier has been bitten, and in consequence is shy of letting her sympathy run away with her prudence.

It is most improving for the fur of young kittens to have a good romp. They delight in rolling about those little celluloid balls which rattle. Don't let them play with corks, as I have known them bite pieces off, and they swell in their inside and are most dangerous. I have also heard of string being swallowed, and becoming twisted round the intestines.

The enamel unbreakable ware is decidedly the nicest and most serviceable for our pussies. I recently observed upon the very convenient shape of some of these dishes in use in a very complete cattery. I was told they were frying-pans from which the handle had been removed!

It is curious that as a rule the lighter the coat of the cat the more fragile is the constitution. For instance, amongst Persians, Whites and Silvers are less hardy than Blacks and Tabbies.

If you wish to pick up a dangerous or strange cat be careful to seize it quickly and firmly by the back of its neck and hold it out at arm's length. It will then only be able to use strong language.

I have heard that the best way to part two fighting cats is to pour water upon them. I know from a painful experience that it is dangerous to attempt to separate them.

It is really better to give your puss a name suggestive of his or her sex. I can assure you this is of assistance to the judges and to those who have the arrangement of specials given at a show.

If any one is kind enough to send you a cat on approval and she does not suit you, do not return her the next day, especially if she has travelled far, but keep the poor puss for two nights and a day, and start her off early the following morning, giving the sender due notice of her return.

Beware of tying ribbons round your pussies' necks. They look very smart, but I have known of several sad and fatal accidents caused by these pretty adornments. There is the danger of cats being caught and hung in the bushes. It is also unwise to tether cats in the garden if within reach of any trees.

I don't agree with the use of the bucket for poor little rejected kittens, and consider the most humane way of destroying them is to put them in an air-tight box with a piece of rag or flannel that has been freely sprinkled with chloroform. They will gradually inhale the fumes and pass away in their sleep. For grown cats the same method should be adopted, and no cat fancier should be without a small quantity of chloroform. Accidents will happen in the best regulated catteries, and sometimes it is best to put our pets out of their misery. It requires some strength of mind, but if you feel you cannot summon up the courage, then take your puss to the nearest chemist, and insist on chloroforming, not poisoning.

A very safe and delicious disinfectant is "Eucryl," as used at the Cat Club Shows. The perfume is pleasant, and not the least overpowering. I have found it very efficacious to sprinkle in cat-houses, and a little mixed with water can be used with advantage in cleansing the floors and woodwork.