Merge - City Life/Cultural
New White Sox Mascot? Meet The Stray Sox Park Cat Adopted By Team Photographer
SOX PARK — Beef, an orange tabby cat, might like ballpark food more than he likes baseball.
For days, the scruffy feline prowled the outfield and slept in the crevices of Sox Park, swiping scraps off fan's plates during games — and biting at least one of them. Sox staffers learned of the cat "when some meows were heard near the photo well," said team photographer Darren Georgia.
Security finally caught the tabby a night after the South Side team's first home series against the San Francisco Giants, Georgia said.
"When the place was empty, he was roaming and exploring, finding places to hide and making the rounds," Georgia said. "He jumped right up onto a security golf cart and was super friendly."
Georgia had been looking to adopt a cat for a year — and he has now taken Beef home. The cat likes to curl up next to his Sox cap.
Credit: Darren Georgia Darren Georgia, a White Sox photographer, took Beef home from work. Alexis Lopez and her cousin, Antonia Denofrio, had spotted Beef hanging out with the cameramen and photographers in center field as the Sox played the Giants.
"He was just super chill and very comfortable roaming the park, like it's his territoriy," Lopez said. "You don't expect to see a cat playing center field."
Fans held Beef and fed him shredded chicken off the top of their ballpark nachos.
"He was a little scruffy and thin," Lopez said.
But Beef "thought [Denofrio's] finger was part of the food" and took an accidental chomp, drawing blood, Lopez said. Sox staff rushed them over to medical services to run the wound under water and apply a Band-Aid.
Credit: Alexis LopezSox fan Antonia Denofrio hung out with Beef for a full inning before he bit her by accident. Georgia let fans know on Twitter that the saga of Beef had a happy ending. He got the tabby cleaned up and fixed at a local animal rescue. Vets told him the cat was a stray, about 1 year old.
"He's pretty small but has big paws like a baseball player," Georgia said. "Keeping it true to Chicago, I named him after the original Italian beef."
Nobody knows for sure where Beef came from, but Georgia suspects "ballpark food brought him in, and now he's a lifelong Sox fan."
"He's outgoing, loves to play and snuggle," Georgia said. "Just everything you'd hope for in a cat."
Credit: Darren GeorgiaBeef, who is "super chill," has a Sox cap at home. Lopez wants Beef to be the team's "rally cat" and make trips back to the ballpark.
The Sox are hosting Dog Day for their May 2 home game against the Minnesota Twins, with fans invited to bring their dogs to the park. There will be a Sox-themed dog naming contest, presided over by pitcher Lucas Giolito to raise awareness for adoptable pets at local rescue group One Tail at a Time.
Georgia isn't sure yet if he'll bring his new cat back for it.
"I'm just not sure if it's the best idea," he said.
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Laughter As Cat Slaps Sister Trying To Drink His Catnip Tea
A video of a catnip-obsessed feline slapping his sister in the face has the internet in hysterics.
In the clip shared to TikTok by @winstonandspooky, tabby cat Winston can be seen enjoying catnip tea (the herb mixed with boiling water and left to stew for 10 minutes).
The cat begins by sniffing the concoction, before giving it a tentative lick. He then puts his paws in the liquid, which the TikTok poster describes as "testing the temp."
"Using paws as a spoon lol," @winstonandspooky wrote in the video's captions, as the tabby slurps the catnip off his feet.
Winston then starts to "go to town" on the beverage, refusing to share with his sister—a black cat named Spooky. When his sister tries to sniff the catnip, Winston immediately smacks her out of the way before continuing to drink up.
The video then cuts to two hours later, where a stoned Winston appears to be seeing through time and space. "He was unable to close his mouth the rest of the night," said @winstonandspooky.
TikTok users found Winston's first drug experience hilarious, with the footage receiving received almost 19 million views.
If you've owned a cat at some point, you'll know what catnip is. Scientifically known as "Nepeta cataria," it is a herb that's closely related to mint.
Cats have an additional scent organ in the roof of their mouth called the vomeronasal gland, which allows smells to be carried directly to the brain.
The leaves of the Nepeta cataria plant contain the oil nepetalactone, which mimics feline sex hormones. This is why animals "high" on catnip become affectionate, relaxed and generally merrier.
Catnip is easy to grow, with dried leaves regularly found in cat toys. The herb can also soothe an anxious feline, and in some cases, relieve pain.
© Lightspruch/iStock/Getty Images Plus A stock photo of a ginger and white cat sniffing a spilled jar of catnip. Lightspruch/iStock/Getty Images Plus 'That Slap Was Personal' Winston certainly seemed to enjoy his first experience with the herb, although the experience appeared to be less pleasant for Spooky.
"Dang he really did not wanna share," agreed Kaylie. "That slap was personal," joked ventis_bardussy.
"Please tell me you gave spooky some after that," posted Hayley.
Others couldn't get enough of Winston's face at the end of the clip, with Nissan_GTR dubbing him "catnip drunk."
"Cat in a whole other dimension," wrote ANT_CRASHES_thangs.
"'I CAN HEAR COLORS!'" posted Lisa Vee, while Sonic.EXE commented: "Bro seeing his 9 lives at the same time."
Newsweek reached out to @winstonandspooky for comment via TikTok. We could not verify the details of the case.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@newsweek.Com and they could appear on our site.
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CBS News Miami Exclusive: Miami Lakes Woman Says Same 2 Dogs Return To Kill Her Cats
MIAMI LAKES - A beleaguered Miami Lakes homeowner says the same two dogs returned to her home last month to kill one of her precious cats.
Silvia says it was hard enough losing her precious cat Rosy on October 22nd of last year. She says the same two dogs were captured on her Ring cam video on March 12th, less than 5 months later, returning to her home at N.W. 87th Ave. And 139th St. And taking the life of her brown tabby named Junior and then going to her daughter Jessica's home nearby and killing her black and white cat named Lucy.
Silvia and Jessica, who did not want to use their last names, shared the video exclusively with CBS News Miami's Peter D'Oench.
Silvia said, "These two malicious dogs entered my backyard and killed my handicapped cat. I screamed 'no' at the dogs. Let go of the cat and they broke her neck and paralyzed her completely. She could not move. I called 911."
Silvia wept as she said, "I was in shock and terrified. It was in my private backyard and this dog looked like a mix of a wolf. I will never forget his mouth. I will never forget his teeth and face. It was so traumatizing."
She said, "The cops came by and picked up the dogs and I believe they were taken to Animal Control and euthanized and I felt relief that they would never come back again."
"Then," she said, "on March 12th of 2023, they came back again and killed my cat Junior. That was my emotional cat and they were viciously tearing him apart. And then they went 2 houses down and killed Lucy. Lucy gave a heck of a fight but it was 2 dogs against one cat."
Lucy was owned by her daughter Jessica who said, "Lucy was found dead when I went outside to throw out trash with my son and I saw Lucy lying dead in the driveway. The same dog that killed Rosy came back and killed my cat. I was horrified. Now, I am really concerned because next time the dogs could come back to the park and kill a child or harm a child. I just want the dogs taken away, taken away for sure."
Silvia said, "I feel violated because this never should have happened. I would like to see the owners face criminal charges because this is animal cruelty. They let them loose and they knew they were out and they didn't stop it."
CBS News Miami was not able to make contact with the owners of the dogs.
Silvia says she has hired an attorney.
A spokeswoman said MIami-Dade Animal Services was looking into this case.
Peter D'Oench
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