#library cats

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Sparked international backlash. Glad he can stay.

[awfulhorrid]

Mateo is quite sure he could be a library cat

[lakecountylibrary]

I’m studying to be a librarian, but I’m deathly allergic to cats. Any tips for dealing with library cat allergies? I don’t want any poor library cat to lose their job on account of me!

Hello fellow cat allergy sufferer, I feel your pain. I love cats but I would be completely unable to do my job if I was sharing work space with one!

Our library does not have a cat, so I can't speak directly to this problem, but I would hope that those that do have cats already have a plan to mitigate allergies. For example, I've heard that many libraries that do have a cat keep the cat restricted to certain areas, or else they have a small building that's easy to clean thoroughly to keep ahead of the dander.

If your allergies are anything like mine, that's not that encouraging - cat dander is insidious. However, this may be more helpful: the American Libraries magazine reported back in 2017 that the number of library cats seems to be decreasing. That was a while ago and I couldn't find more current information on number of library cats today, but this may not be a problem you ever encounter!

Maybe some of our readers who work at or frequent libraries that have cats can weigh in? How do those libraries help patrons or staff with allergies?

[benkaden]

Vintage Postcard

IN THE LIBRARY Kittens gather to peruse, Items of the latest news

London: Schwerdtfeger & Co. London E.C. printed in their workshop in Berlin

postmarked 11 OCT (19)11

[intothestacks]

Cat outlasts politician who tried to remove him from library position

[sstardust4ever]

LOVED this library!

[lookingforabook]

Library Art Program: Watercolor Blob Creatures

(program notes for librarians under the cut)

Art programs for adults can be tricky- you have a wide range of skill levels, and finding something that is both easy enough for beginners and interesting for grown ups can be hard!

I love to share when I find one that works, though, and our patrons really liked this one. We started with blob birds based on the work of artist Diane Antone, who has a lovely tutorial on youtube, and then branched out into other animals (Sachiko Umoto's book Illustration School: Let's Draw Cute Animals was an excellent resource).

Starting with something so simple helped the beginners gain confidence, and because we made so many blobs (since it's best to let them dry before you add details or add pen lines), they didn't feel any pressure to make them perfect. Some people started making them into cards, others started figuring out new animals on their own (my favorite was an armadillo, though the hippo and flamingo were close seconds), or giving them little speech bubbles, and everyone had a good time.

The pictures above are examples that I did during the workshop (we have a camera mount and projector set-up that lets everyone see a top-down view of my paper when I'm not up and walking around). Anyway, thought I'd share with my fellow librarians on the site in case you're looking for program ideas. I still have my presentation notes for this and am happy to share.

[scottcamofficial]

Pictures of the street cat in my neighbourhood, his name is Pepe and today he's in the library

He gets around apparently