The song was written to celebrate her cat Penrod's fifteenth birthday on April 7, 2002. Cheryl was working in Eugene, Oregon, and called home to tell Cathleen about Penrod's birthday. Cathleen replied something like: "So that explains the party in the backyard." That got Cheryl's mind going. 
Susan Krauss, a member of Cheryl's e-mail list, heard the song and transcribed as much of the lyrics as she could. Cheryl said it was pretty close, and so she touched up what Susan had written.
Penrod died before the album was released. Cathleen, Cheryl's spouse, has a custom of cremating their pets. Cheryl decided to use Penrod's ashes as a percussion instrument during the recording of this song on her album Pointing At the Sun. If you look at the liner notes, the drummer is credited with playing the "catash".
There is a cute animated video of the song by the same person who did the video for Potato, which got over half a million hits on YouTube.
- My Cat's Birthday
- Words And Music By
- Cheryl Wheeler
- On my cat's birthday the mice did sway
- And the squirrels did dance around
- The dogs went nuts when they heard such fuss
- Hustled out to party down
- The little birds tap danced all around the ants
- Movin' in a cunga line
- Weasel band played, lady bugs made
- Crocus & azalea wine
- Sittin' at the tables in their pirate blouses
- Guess they got the furniture from outta their houses
- Out back at the volleyball
- Toads had to argue every call
- Crows showed up in the cop outfits
- Holsters slidin' off their hips
- Deer hung back by the garden shed
- Turkeys scratched in the flower bed
- On my cat's birthday the birthday cake
- Was several stories high
- Cats ate down along the ground
- Birds ate in the sky
- Oh and the squirrels ate too from the edge of the roof
- Until they finally jumped right in
- But the band played on till the cake was gone
- We'll never see another again
- Catnip came and it all went south
- Where did that goldfinch get that mouth?
- Dogs growlin' over bones they'd buried
- A rabbit & a robin got married
- Band started singing 'bout a love so deep
- Guest of honor drifted off to sleep
- Curled around another old cat dream
- And that's how Penrod turned fifteen
- (P) July 9, 2004
- Penrod And Higgins Music / Amachrist Music
- ACF Music Group
- International Copyright Reserved