Henry the feline fiber artist makes his national debut on Animal Planet

Henry at Work/A. McCormick

Seems there is no end to the creative talents of our beloved feline companions. First there was Nora, the piano-playing cat – named by the ASPCA recently as Cat of the Year. Now here comes Henry, a Tuxedo cat who lives in Bangor, Maine, who is taking the art world by storm with his fiber art designs.

No generic couch-scratcher here, Henry applies his built in set of claw tools to creating interesting textures that a growing fan base adores. His work was initially on display at the Bangor Maine public library and on November 14, Henry makes his national debut on Animal Planet’s Cats 101, airing 9 p.m. EDT.
 

Henry's Designs/A. McCormick

Henry’s human Anita McCormick, a fiber artist herself, initially channeled Henry’s natural scratching talents to a scratching post when he was just a kitten to protect the furniture. However, Henry soon bored of the post and went back to the furniture, in particular a chair he thought perfect for his original designs.

McCormick tried a different approach and bought some old strips of carpet, which she tacked to the wall. This new palette was exactly what Henry had in mind all along. The more he scratched, the more interesting his work became. Big loops of fiber started to show up, he writes in his blog, and the more he scratched, the longer the loops became.

Word got around and pretty soon the local public library asked to display Henry’s work. The Bangor Daily News even wrote about him, helping to expand his fame. In addition to his upcoming TV appearance, Henry has his own Facebook Fan Page and you can connect with him on Twitter.
 

Henry at his Animal Planet Photo Shoot/A.McCormick

You’ll want to make sure your own cats watch this video (below) of Henry to see how some other felines are fulfilling their scratching potential. Also show the video to anyone who thinks that cats don’t need their claws. More and more city councils are moving toward a ban on cat de-clawing.

By the way not, it’s not only cats that are driven to self expression through art. Read about Mozart Dane, a talented pup who creates art with his paws. Painting helps him to overcome the pain of his early days in a puppy mill and to raise about awareness of the issue.