Cat Portrait

I took this photograph of Sammy The Cat in 2004..He passed away last week so tonight I thought I would do a painterly effect of his photograph.. Here is the original:

The white pad seemed distracting so I added a portion of the top blanket to hide the white pad... It isn't perfect but for a quick fix I am happy with it....Then I opened it in Topaz adjust and Topaz simplify to give it a painterly effect..Here is the Finished Portrait: