Life Is Good

I Hate Mondays

About Cigarette Cards

One of the newest suppliers we have on OldMaidCatLady.com sells groups of reproduction cigarette cards depicting cats! You can get the cards in various groupings, depending on the amount of wall space and your décor. But what’s the story behind these little miniature pieces of art? Picture cards are actually interesting glimpses of history.

In today’s American society, it’s hard to believe that smoking was once so popular, but there was a time when virtually all men smoked, and plenty of women did so in private, as well. British and American tobacco companies began placing collectible cards in packages of cigarettes in the late 1800s. The practice was an effective marketing tactic that became popular worldwide.

The tiny cards were similar to the baseball cards kids collect from packages of bubble gum, but the subjects went way beyond sports stars. They featured military generals, thoroughbred horses, fish, songbirds, fruits, automobiles, flags, movie stars, ships, gangsters, historic homes...you name it, there was probably a series of cards depicting it! Posters in tobacco stores promoted the various series to shoppers. Collectors’ albums tying in with each theme, into which the cards could be glued, could also be ordered from the companies.

Some of the originals of the reproductions we feature were made for British company John Player & Sons, more commonly known as simply “Player’s”. This company was one of the first to offer pre-packaged tobacco. Before that time, people bought dried tobacco leaves loose from tobacconists and rolled their own cigarettes. Player’s was also one of the first companies to offer picture cards in their packs of cigarettes, generally in sets of 50 that smokers would collect one at a time.

While some cigarette cards were photographs, some were lithographs; others added a special type of ink that would give the subjects particular qualities -- for example, silver ink might be used to depict scales on fish. The cat collections are some of the rarest around, so you’re not likely to find originals for sale very often. The cat head portrait collection dated from 1936. Two other collections we feature depict full-bodied portraits of cats, some portrait style (taller than wide), and some landscape (wider than tall).

Companies stopped producing cigarette cards in the 1940s, to conserve paper during World War II. Collectible cards remained in only non-tobacco products like baking soda and chewing gum until R.J. Reynolds re-introduced some for their Doral brand of cigarettes in 2000.

Many of the original cards are traded on sites like eBay. They’ve become quite popular collectibles, and are graded for value by several collectors’ organizations. While a lot of them are very affordable, rare cards sell for much more. The most expensive cigarette card (so far) sold for $2.8 million in 2007! Many collectors keep them in specially made plastic sheets that fit into three-ring binders or individually in semi-rigid plastic savers. There are even magazines called The Wrapper and Non-Sport Update where collectors can read all about their cards and network with other collectors to buy and sell.

The cards we’re featuring are reproductions of these old collectibles, but are every bit as beautiful. They’ll also hold up better than the originals, and are mounted in acid-free mattes to help preserve them. They arrive ready for you to frame to your taste. You’ll love to add them to the walls of your home’s den, library or living room!

See our collections of cats on reproduction cigarette cards here. The cards come in sets of 6, 9, 12, and 20, mounted, matted & ready for framing.

O You Found Me!

Your turn to hide!!!

funny cats

Bearded Cat

Looks like he could use another cat on top...

The Horror of Rabies

Most of us remember seeing horror movies with rabid dogs chasing frightened villagers, or perhaps the heartbreaking scene in Old Yeller when the family dog must be shot after contracting rabies. But dogs aren't the only pets who can get rabies; your cats, and even you, can get it! Here's what you need to know to stay safe.

What is Rabies?
Rabies is caused by a virus in the Lyssavirus genus that can attack all mammals. It's most often transmitted by the bite of an animal who has contracted it. Wild mammals like raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes represent the vast majority of cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control each year, mainly because these animals haven't been vaccinated against it. Interestingly, small rodents, including squirrels, rats and mice, almost never contract rabies.

This disease has been with us for a long time, too. Instructions for rabies prevention, along with fines imposed for the owners of rabid dogs who bit other humans, are found in the Codex of Eshnunna in Mesopotamia around 1930 BC. Rabies was a particular problem in 1800s Europe, where more people were living closely with dogs. Primitive attempts at inoculation were made by "branding" dogs with a special object after cauterizing a bite wound with it proved effective in preventing the disease in one dog.

After an animal has been bitten by another with rabies, the virus travels to the brain through the peripheral nerves. Mild flu-like symptoms may occur. After a short incubation period, the central nervous system becomes infected. The virus rapidly replicates itself in the brain, where the blood-brain barrier prevents anti-viral immune cells from entering to stop it. The brain and spinal cord swell with the disease (encephalitis) and the animal will die from it, usually within a few days.

Symptoms of rabies, once it has incubated, include cerebral dysfunction, growing anxiety, confusion, abnormal behavior and fear. These behavioral changes take place over a one- to three-day period known as the prodromal stage.

In the second "excitative" stage, the animal will become more aggressive, hallucinating and overreacting to any stimuli. This is when the danger of biting is most severe. From the central nervous system, the virus travels into all the other organs, and can be found in high concentrations in the salivary glands. This leads to the foaming of the mouth so associated with rabies, and is one of the reasons for transmission through bites. The virus also causes the tear ducts in the eyes to overproduce tears.

By the third, paralytic, stage, partial paralysis sets in as the motor neurons of the body become damaged by the virus. Rear leg paralysis will cause the animal to stagger and stumble. Drooling and difficulty swallowing result from paralysis of muscles in the face and throat. Unless euthanized first, the animal will die when the respiratory muscles become paralyzed and it can no longer breathe.

Rabies Prevention
Luckily, this horrible disease is completely preventable. The vaccine for it was invented in 1885 by Louis Pasteur and Emile Roux. Most cities require that pets be vaccinated annually for rabies, and some are even using a recombinant vaccine successfully to inoculate wildlife by putting it in baits. And yet, there are still one or two people every year who die from rabies in the United States. Most deaths from rabies worldwide occur in Asia and Africa.

Some veterinarians are encouraging their patients to get a newer rabies vaccine that lasts for three years instead of the traditional one year. However, this vaccine has been linked to an increased incidence of cancerous tumors at the injection site, and is no longer recommended by veterinary experts.

If you or your cat are bitten or scratched by an animal suspected to have rabies, it is critical that the wound be thoroughly washed as quickly as possible with a solution of water, soap, and povidone iodine to kill as much of the virus as possible. The suspected animal should be safely captured and held for rabies testing. If you are the one bitten, you should seek immediate vaccination or administration of rabies immunoglobulin to kill any of the virus in your system. The incubation period for a human can be up to a year, so you're not necessarily safe if you don't develop symptoms within a few days. Better safe than sorry!

To protect your cats from exposure to rabies, don't let them roam outdoors, where they will encounter other animals (domestic or wild). Get them vaccinated for rabies annually, whether or not your city requires it. And if they do get outside, get any wounds cleansed as soon as you find them to minimize all types of infection, not just rabies.

With rabies so well controlled for more than a generation, it's easy to forget that it was once a serious threat to public health, as well as animal welfare, in our country. But the virus still exists. All it takes is getting too comfortable and neglecting proper precautionary measures to allow it to regain a foothold. Don't let your cat become a rabies statistic!