Autumnal Clean Out

Mama's House, as I sweep it out

Snoopervisor, Patty O'Malley

Mama's House, filled with new straw

Old straw in The Cat Hotel, showing
'cat nests'

Kinda made a mess...

Everything cleaned up and ship shape again!

She ain't pretty, but I'm hoping
we've created a cat paradise!

Happy Halloween, everyone!  This is the time of year that we winterize the 'O' Cats's shelters.  I clean out the straw that was fresh in Spring, add a warming mat to the bottom level of The Cat Hotel, and make sure all seams are tight and weather-proof.  This year, I purchased a package of straw that came sealed in wrap, in the hopes that there would be no added critters, such as fleas.  This straw was chopped up, instead of long pieces.  I put in a TON of straw, just in case the chopped up stuff is somehow lacking in nesting power.  I worry every clean out time, feeling that I'm going to chase the cats away, but within a couple of hours I witnessed Sweetie going into The Cat Hotel, and that put paid to it! The Hubby also added a layer of hard styrofoam inside one of the new cardboard boxes, on the advice from his brother who said it reflects body warmth.  We'll see how the cats like that.

Of course, I will continue try enticing them both up the Stairway To Heaven and inside, but for now I know that they are as buttoned up for the cold as I can make them.  The warming pad will be plugged in once the overnight lows get below freezing, and it has a gentle warmth.

Happy Halloween!

Fierce Friday

Sweetie, showing off her toofs...very scary!

Chucky, looking mysterious and dangerous

Much attention is given to black cats at this time of year.  Personally, I've never met a cat that I didn't like, no matter what their fur color!  People who adopt according to color are WRONG; personality should always be the first consideration.  Let the cat choose you!

Have a terrific weekend, everyone!

Lil BUB Store!

Am just in love with Lil Bub!  Have you seen her on the interwebs?  Check out her website here.

Isn't she sweet?

But here's news!  BUB has her own physical STORE, in Bloomington, Indiana.  Of course, one can order all kinds of BUB stuff online, but I gonna have to figure out a way to get to Indiana.  Check it out here!

I want to meet Lil BUB in person...er, um...in the fur.  I watch her site and Facebook to see if she and her dude (Mike Bridavsky) are visiting any place nearer to home.  Gonna make it happen!

Wordless Wednesday

Sweetie Selfie

Okay, forget about wordless!  In the past few weeks, Sweetie has allowed me pet her with both hands, let me pick her up slightly, and withstood smooching without twisting away in horror,  Hearing her purrs shoots a dart of love straight through my heart.  The Hubby says he's been able to touch Sweetie too.  Yippee!

My Man Magoo

Magoo was a stray kitten who wandered into the yard of my sister and her family.  My niece cared for him, took him to the veterinarian, and brought him home.  My Bro-in-law put his foot down: NO CATS!  Then, he'd find the kitten in his daughter's room.  BIL said, 'I don't want any stinky litter boxes around', and my sweet niece purchased a covered one!  Before long, that kitten was snuggling on BIL's lap, and the two are quite devoted to each other.  "Ma-GUUUU, Ma-GUUUU!" he calls, and Magoo comes a-runnin'. Together, they roll and tumble, play fetch with a ping pong ball, and chase wand toys, (Magoo does that, not BIL!)

Except when I showed up, and Magoo slept with me!  Well, for one night at least...

I returned home from the weekend trip, covered in white cat hair, and very happy to have finally met Magoo in the fur.

Here are some additional highlights of my trip:

People dressed up their pooches for Halloween

 

A box turtle discovered on a walk in the woods

Fungus on a dead tree

Moss growing on roots

Lichen

Must NOT forget Sandy, who ran around the woods with us like a puppy.  She is very sweet, and I loved when she sat on my feet.

Love ya, Sandy girl!

"Wasn't me!"

This morning, the household arose as usual; the meals for humans and cats were prepared and distributed as usual, the litter boxes were scooped and cared for as usual.  As I turned the corner to walk upstairs to don my work clothes, I spied a small hairball output on the wood floor.  I spun back around, grabbed the cleaning items, and made short work of it.  While depositing the trash, I told The Hubby that 'someone' had coughed up a hairball.  He said, "Well, it wasn't me!"  Made me laugh out loud, and suddenly getting ready for Monday's work did not seem as daunting.

Interrogating the usual suspects garnered little information...

"You have no evidence that it was me!", Angel says

"What?!" exclaims Chucky

Patty O'Malley: "Hey, I don't even go in the house...!

Cancelled Cat Car Cruise

Making like Sherlock Holmes, I studied the litter boxes after work yesterday. I scooped, I broke up peeballs, and I compared sizes.  All in all, everything looked normal (yay!), so I cancelled Angel's vet appointment.  We've been mixing even more filtered water into her meals lately, so her 'output' seems elevated, but the peeball size is good.  No marbles!

Of course, I know what extra peeing means for a cat, not to mention that she's been eating more also. However, the weather has just begun to turn colder, and I've noticed that ALL of the cats are chowing down. Therefore, we have moved into observation mode for awhile.  My new Cat Car did not go anywhere*!

Angel's body weight is good, if not perfect.  She continues to be skittish at certain times of the day, remembering the week that The Hubby picked her up to administer the liquid antibiotics.  She'll get over that with lots of petting and hugging and such.

*The Hubby has driven The Cat Car a lot; to the auto part store to get a new air cleaner, then to the Honda dealership to actually buy an air cleaner, to the insurance agency, and to the Michigan Secretary of State (DMV). Today, he's driving it around for grocery shopping and I hope to buy a CD/radio and have is installed.  He tells me that I'm not getting The Cat Car at all now; it's his and I can keep driving his car as I have been!  HO NO, that ain't gonna fly, Mister!  I only asked to drive the old car of ONE MORE DAY, so I can finish disc 13 & 14 of a mystery thriller book-on-CD (45 minutes to work, 1 hour lunch, 45 minutes drive home).  And then I go away this weekend, driving my mother's SUV, so The Hubby will have both cars to play with, and hopefully to sell or junk the old mushed-up-and-not-street-legal-anymore tan car.

Battlewagon Wednesday

Cute!

Sporty!

The Hubby will do ANYTHING to avoid calling the plumber, so he decided that I needed a new battlewagon for my work commute (and frequent trips to the veterinarians).  Yesterday, he showed up at my office...SURPRISE!...with this silver cutie car.  Excellent gas mileage, body in good shape, new tires and brakes.  The red car that I am currently driving will revert back to him.  As I am going away for a long weekend with family, The Hubby will give my new cat car a good going-over, and probably a new radio/CD thingy.  Weeee!  Thank you, kind sir!  On Monday, the cat car is MINE.

P.S. Angel and I will visit the veterinarian tonight.  Your comments had some good information, for which I thank you very much, and I'll report on how things go in my next post.

Angel's Woes

Angel, enjoying a warm fall evening

Found little marbles of peeballs this morning...again.  Angel's antibiotics ended on Friday, and now it seems that we are right back to where we were last week.  Just as Chucky's health issues seem to be ironing out, poor Angel is back in the hot seat.  Does anyone have experience with recurring bladder infections or UTI's, so The Hubby and I can get a handle on how best to proceed?  Your comments are very much appreciated, and we know that we will get her as right as rain again.  Thanks!

Snailed It Again, But Then...

Last week, I posted about feeding kibble to the snails on our deck; read it here.

This morning, I found a whole family of snails, and I put out sustenance for them:

"Eat up, little pals!"

 

Another member of the family,
crawling over to join in the feast!

 

"Huh?  Wait a minute...what?"

 

"Sorry, snails...mealtime was abruptly cut short!"

"Oh, Patty!"

The snail family was happily eating their kibble, until a VERY well-fed cat named Patty O'Malley decided that he didn't like the attention that I was bestowing on some critters other than himself, and he ATE THAT KIBBLE!

National Feral Cat Day: October 16, 2016

FERAL

adjective

1.

existing in a natural state, as animals or plants; not domesticated orcultivated; wild.

2.

having reverted to the wild state, as from domestication:

a pack of feral dogs roaming the woods.

3.

of or characteristic of wild animals; ferocious; brutal.

From Dictionary.com

I am a strong proponent of TNR (Trap, Neuter, Return).  If you are going to feed the cats that live in your condo complex, or under the porch, or behind your office, GET THEM FIXED!  If I can trap a community cat, then anyone can.

Visit National Feral Cat Day and Alley Cat Allies to learn how YOU can make a difference in the lives of community cats.

A Wooly Problem

Ick!

Chucky loves to carry my wooly socks around the house.  Now that the temperatures have fallen some, I actually wear them.  Imagine my surprise when I stepped in...something...but the wooly soaked it all up!

Gross, right?

No worries, Chucky...I've got seven more pairs of woolies for your enjoyment, while this pair is in the laundry!

"Don't mess with MY woolies, woman!"

Angel versus Vet!

Waiting...for the doc to come!

The small peeballs at the bottom

Angel had a bladder infection awhile ago, and we thought it was all gone. Last week, The Hubby noticed that she was going in and out of the litter box with greater frequency than usual, and the evidence of little peeballs the size of marbles instead of big peeballs the size of a 1/2 of an apple made it clear: our girl either has a new infection or the old one just never quite went away.

On Friday, October 7, we went to the vet's office, but Angel proved to be a sneak!  She had no urine in her bladder for the doc to test.  The doc did not want to give her a Covenia shot, which is what she received in August. This time, we are giving her Clavamox every 12 hours.  I am not crazy about her recovery; those peeballs are growing in size, but not fast enough for me. The Hubby and I have agreed to give her the seven days of antibiotics, then decide if she needs to make another trip to the vet.  She's also developed diarrhea, poor thing!

Here's the kicker:  we believe that it's TRIPS TO THE VET that are making Angel so nervous to cause her bladder issues!  It was MY idea to take her to the holistic vet, but in my defense I did not know that we needed to go back again every few months for rechecks.  Angel has had at least six vet appointments this year; three (at least) to the holistic vet, once to get a dental, and now twice for her bladder. Poor kitty!  Yep, this was all my idea, and no good deed goes unpunished, as they say.

We will see her through the bladder thing, but no more vet visits for her for at least six months after this.  Angle obviously takes after The Hubby, who dislikes going to the doctor so much, that he hasn't gone in about 40 years. That really is a four and a zero!  

Snailed It!

You think I'm just in love with cats...and crickets!  Oh contraire, mon frere!  I also feed the snails in my yard.  I give them pieces of the 'O' Cats' kibble, and they slowly spin the kibble 'round and 'round as they snack on the edges.  I pick up worms that are laying on the sideway long after a rain, and drop them into the grass too, so they don't shrivel up and perish.  Crickets, snails and worms are living things, so I'll treat them as nicely as I can.

By the way, my office cricket count is now up to five!

Thank You

From Goose's family:

"Thanks everyone for the kind words. 

Goose is missed terribly, but we are glad at least he is no longer in pain. 

We just can't believe he had so little time."

 

From Eastside Cats:

The Cat Blogosphere was amazing with words of sympathy and

empathy for this heart-broken family.

Thank YOU from the bottom of my heart for showing

how much you care.

Wishing a Happy Thanksgiving to all Canadians today

and

Healing and Hope for those who were hit by the storm

Prayers

Farewell, Goose

Poem For Cats

And God asked the feline spirit

Are you ready to come home?

Oh, yes, quite so, replied the precious soul

And, as a cat, you know I am most able

To decide anything for myself.

Are you coming then? asked God.

Soon, replied the whiskered angel

But I must come slowly

For my human friends are troubled

For you see, they need me, quite certainly.

But don't they understand? Asked God

That you'll never leave them?

That your souls are intertwined. For all eternity?

That nothing is created or destroyed?

It just is....forever and ever and ever.

Eventually they will understand,

Replied the glorious cat

For I will whisper into their hearts

That I am always with them

I just am....forever and ever and ever.

Author Unknown

From Pat Brody Shelter for Cats

Goose left us today, and his humans are heartbroken.  His baby kidneys were never going to get better, and he was in pain.  He was only a few months old.  

All for your kind words and thoughts are appreciated; they helped to lift his spirit up to heaven.

While we are praying, let's include the people who are being or will be lashed by Hurricane Matthew. May the rain and wind spare you and yours, and those already digging out, may you find assistance and a brighter future.

By Dawn's Early Light

Chuck's black fur turns rusty in the morning pink light

Angel simply looks like an angel!

Patty O'Malley did not want me to get into the car!

Aries ran to me with head bonks and meows...
one of the most difficult days to leave home for work!

Goose update!  His human just let me know that he has come out of hiding and is talking with her this morning, which he did not do yesterday.  This is good!  However, he's not eating and that has her concerned.  Another veterinarian visit is likely for today, since his human stayed home from work to nurse him. Keep those good purrs and vibes going for this little fighter!

Kitten Parade!

Goose, named after a character in the movie, "Top Gun"

Bobo, because she was rescued from
Beaubien Street in Detroit, Michigan

Mango, 'nuf said!

These three cuties now have homes of their own...yippee!  Their happy humans know to keep me, their cat-crazy friend, loaded with photos.  I am just all SQUEEEEE!!!!

UPDATE:  Oh Noes!  Goose went to the emergency vet last night; something about his baby kidneys. Please send purrs to him and his new family; they are very worried.