Saturday, January 31, 2009

Made Table & Double-Decker Cat-House

It started out cold, but it turned into a great day, in the 60's with the sun shining. This more like the winters that we are used to.

Jay came up here, as the order for today was to make a new bigger table for my porch, and get the double-decker cat house out of there. We were making it into a night house for Orange Glow on Ray and Shay's back porch/utility room. He will have to be locked up at night now. That is Blackie, the black cat's, night porch, and
she will slap the dickens out of him if he is loose in there.

Several years ago, I had bought a wooden, Formica top table at a yard sale for a $1. The top was butcher block Formica, which matched an RV we were working on, that needed a table, so we used the top for that. The legs and table base had been saved up over the storeroom. Jay and I got them down, and a piece of his
house siding, and made it into a new table for potting plants on the porch. The old table was getting wonky and had slats on the top where dirt would fall through, so it was about time.

While we were at it we vacuumed and mopped the floor with bleach water.

We put a Plexiglas skylight in the top of the cat house, so that it wouldn't feel so dark in there, and hinged the top, and put a clasp on it. We are looking for an RV oven shelf or similar to make a door. Ray can paint it tomorrow

When I picked up Jay, I stopped at
Sam's, and he was there. He had been taken to Houston yesterday, and didn't think that Mikey would go out of the open gate !! He moved his SUV and closed the gate, so I took Mikey to him.


A good working day.

Friday, January 30, 2009

Cold but Sunny. Snack to Vet. Mikey Comes Here.

Yes, another night in the high 20's, but the sun warmed it up to the 60's eventually. When I went to pick up Jay there was frost on the roofs of the houses and cars.

Jay needed to go into our town this morning, so we went to his bank and to Krogers. I picked up a few bargains there. His mother is home now, and not feeling at all well with the two holes in her back from where they did something to her lung, so we couldn't be long.

When I got home I waited to find out when to meet Kenya, my SPCA boss, for Snack's vet appointment. This is a picture of Snack. We got that co-ordinated, and just as I was leaving Mikey, the white miniature poodle that belongs to Sam who had the stroke, was jumping up and down at my gate wanting to come in. I didn't have time to take him back down to Sam's as that would have made me late, so I put him in the big German Shepherd cage in the dog room.

Jay wanted to go to Conroe with me to drop off Snack, and we got a quick couple of things done there. When I took Jay home, I stopped at Sam's place, but there was no answer from knocking on the door. His SUV is parked in such a way that the gate wouldn't close all the way, so that is how Mikey got out and came up here. I left a note on Sam's door that I had Mikey. He can't see very well, so I wrote it big with a black marker. If he can't read it, Sam will take it to a neighbor. This is Mikey.

Later, I met Kenya in my town to pick up Snack, and get the vet's report. They think that Snack is starting that urinary tract thing that a lot of cat's get from eating cheap grocery store corn meal food. That is 5 cats that I know of, that have come down with that, and they were all on that same brand of food most of their lives, until they got sick and the vet told them what caused it. I have to give Snack some pills and 1/4 teaspoon of pumpkin, yes canned pumpkin, and keep on trying to get food down her with the feeder syringe, until she will eat on her own. She is so sweet and doesn't fight or complain about anything that is done to her. She never was crazy about canned food, but she did always eat her dry food well.

I went back down to Sam's, but still no sign of him. His SUV and golf cart were still there, so I am worried about him. I fed Mikey some dinner, and he is comfy and content.

Three trips, so I put a few miles on the truck today!

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Trip to Town Again. Squirrelly Weather

It started out at 27 deg. and only gained 30 deg. during the day, but the sun was out in the afternoon, so Bobcat could go out on the porch for a while. This warm, then cold, weather is enough to make you squirrelly.

First thing, after giving Orange Glow his medicine, I spent some time on the phone, and online, tracking down a feeding syringe for Snack. The ones at Petco looked too small, but the vet had a larger one, so that was the first stop.

Then Jay and I went to the church's thrift shop, but nothing caught our eye. As we had to go near the Unique Thrift Shop, operated by the county for emergency programs, we went in there. I bought a nice long wooden storage thing to screw on the wall of the motor home, and a brand new funny looking kitchen pan. Round the corner to Target to see if they had any small cordless phones that aren't complicated. Also looking for a tiny flat screen battery HD TV. Nothing there. I want to be prepared if we have any more power outages.

After a stop at Petsmart to return some food that the cats didn't like, and buy some more Royal Canin food for Bobcat, a quick stop at Krogers, and home. I had noticed that Bobcat's fur and energy level was so much better when she was eating it, and she kept on asking me to buy Royal Canin again. I had bought her something different and she would pick at it. If I put food in her dish that she doesn't want, she will sit there and look at it, and then me. Smart cat, she has her human trained.

I washed the little hinged pan with handles on the bottom and lid, that I had bought today, beat an egg, seasoned it, and cooked it in the shallow bottom of the pan. Then I closed the flat lid, and warmed a whole wheat tortilla, with a slice of cheese on it, on the top of the lid. I moved the cheesy tortilla onto a plate temporarily while I turned the egg, and I warmed some thinly sliced 98% fat free ham on the egg. Rolled it all up, and it was good for lunch. I can see lots of uses for that little pan, even though I don't know what it was for originally. As the flat lid is the size of a tortilla, I expect it has something to do with them.

I mixed up some good canned cat food and water, shaken in a baby food jar, warmed for 10 seconds in the micro, and got some down Snack a lot better with the feeder syringe. I had also bought a bag of the cheap brand of food that came with her, and she ate a few bits of it, too. As long as I can get good canned food down her too, it will be alright for now. She has an appointment at the vet tomorrow, if she doesn't improve, and use her box.

No work today.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Cold Day, Colder Night Coming.


It was chilly this morning, so I wrapped up, and put a little doggie sweater on MaeMae when I took her out for her "first call". Bobcat reluctantly watched the world out of my bathroom window, instead of the porch.

I gave Orange Glow his medicine at 6.30 am, so when Ray came over to tend to him at 8.15, he had time to hold him for a while before Orange Glow could eat. He loves to be held and petted. He is such a loving, quiet, well mannered cat. He doesn't mind being locked up at all, but as soon as he can, he will be loose in the dog room. He can't right now, as he mustn't jump up or down off anything.

Ray then came to work. We were out there in coats, hats and gloves, but we checked the air in the truck tires, the water in the motor home batteries, and the water in the truck battery. It is a good thing we looked at the truck battery. Someone had messed with the tie down bracket, and tightened it down so tight that it made a depression in the battery. This had caused battery acid to splash out of the cell near the bracket, as the lid didn't fit tight anymore, and it was covered in corrosion. We took the bracket off, scraped it, wire brushed it, re-painted it, then sprayed some battery terminal spray on it. That should hold it until I can get this new battery replaced.

While we were doing all this, we had the burn pile going, as it had drizzled last night. The forecast was for 6 mph winds, which wasn't right! We had to watch it very closely, as it gusted a lot more than that, so we had to keep on wetting it down.

I am still having trouble getting Snack to eat. The vet checked her and couldn't find anything wrong with her. I got a big syringe, without a needle of course, and got a little pate type cat food down her, but it wasn't really the right tool. The next time I did it with a turkey baster, but that wasn't right either. Today, I also found out that before I got her, her "Dad" and "Mom" had split up and she was the Dad's cat. He couldn't take her with him, as he went to fight in the war. The Mom didn't want her, and she already had a cat and a dog. Snack always looks like she is grieving, and I don't know what to do about it, except give her all the loving I can. If I let her in the house with Bobcat and me she just hides under the bed, and doesn't eat or drink. It is so sad.

As it supposed to go down to 27 deg. tonight, I turned the water off at a cut-off in the workshop that goes to the outside faucets and the porch sink. I covered up a couple of plants out front, too. This has been such an usually long winter for this part of TX. But we are a lot better off that those who are freezing and have no power in the Mid West, I am so sorry for them. At least we were having mild weather when Ike made us lose power for a week.
Just a cold day.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Another Warm Day, So We Got Some Work Done.

It was so nice at 6 this morning that Bobcat could go on the porch before her breakfast.

I had taken Orange Glow's food away from him last night, as with the dog gone, it was an ideal three days to get the Strongid-T wormer down him three mornings in a row. It is so much easier if I can put an animal on the grooming table to do that. It doesn't take a second, when you have them on a firm base at the right height. I knew he would be more relaxed without Debo in the big cage in there. But when I turned on the TV and raised the dog room blinds early this morning, I forgot to give him his medicine. It wasn't until Shay came over at 8.00 to tend to him that I remembered. So he had to wait until 10.00 am to eat. Gee, I felt so bad about that, as he has a good appetite, but he didn't complain.

Ray came over at 9.15 and we got some work done. It was so nice to have the house windows and big workshop doors open and to be able to wear tank tops again. First we got all the stuffing that Debo had torn from his bed out of the big cage. I had been gathering what I could, as it came to the front of the cage, and I had already filled up four grocery sacks, but Ray got down in there, and we got the wooden bed out, got all the loose stuffing cleaned out and vacuumed up. I had a big garbage can and liner to put it all in, and there was a lot. I washed the sheepskin cover, and that's all he gets to sleep on when he gets back. He won't even get the wooden bed, as he has been chewing on it. So it is washed and put up.

We put outlet covers on all the outlets in the workshop. We have to keep on catching up with the things the contractors didn't do, all those years ago. Ray mounted a smoke alarm way up high in the workshop. It had been waiting for years to get installed. It was so old, that when I tested the battery, it was no longer good, but I had a new one, and it beeped it's test call. Later in the day, my bedroom one started beeping a mating call. It needs a new battery, now.

We cleaned off the top of the dryer and the draining board to the utility sink, as May had slopped paint on it some time ago. We put away some things, as that draining board and my dryer tend to become catch-alls. As the Commercial Hoover Upright is out of commission right now, Ray got my old Bissell Upright out of the storeroom, and we used that to vacuum the rugs in the workshop. Now that area looks nice again. That dark red carpet by the dryer sure does get linty looking.

By 4.30 pm a cold front had started to come through, so I had to close all the windows, and now we have a freezing rain advisory!

A changeable day.

Monday, January 26, 2009

A Much Nicer Day. Debo goes to Vet.

It was a much nicer day today, but my truck was acting up, so I couldn't go anywhere until the afternoon.

Jim, the mechanic had me take it down there so that he could check it out. I was supposed to pick up Jay and MaeMae, so Jim took me in his truck. Jim found out what was wrong, and I am back on the road again. Jim was told that it would be six months before he could use his new shoulder, but he was getting stir crazy, and has been doing everything to get it back in working condition.
Good, I was ready to crank up the motor home to use for a daily driver!

Today, I was waiting to find out what time to meet my SPCA boss Kenya, to take Debo, the black dog, for him to go for his neutering tomorrow. We finally met at Petco in the next town, at 4.00PM and handed him over. She brought me some cat food that she feeds cats that don't want to eat, too.

Then a trip to WalMart and Petsmart to get some more things off
the list. Back here, Jay decided to walk home. He is like everyone
around here, the cold weather stops a lot of activities, and we don't get the right amount of exercise. MaeMae stayed here.

Snack licked a little bit of the food that Kenya gave me, so that is some progress. Now that Debo isn't here for a few days, I think she will do better. I just cuddle her, comfort her, and give her Nutri-Cal, and she will come around. She just doesn't like change. Orange Glow is still just lazing around in the lap of luxury, enjoying himself.

A lovely, warmer day

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Not Much Going On Here, Too Chilly.

It is still chilly, and in the 40's and 50's. Not very conducive to getting much done outside.

I picked up Jay as his mother, my friend, is still in the hospital. He went up on the roof over the guest house and store room, to re-attached some panels that had come loose. It looks like we might have to do some work to that area when the weather gets better.

Jay's mother should be home tomorrow, so as he was acting right, I let him take MaeMae home with him for the night. He commented how she always smells better when she is here. I showed him articles about how corn in their diet makes them smell more 'doggy'. I wish they would feed her different food. They pay a lot for her food, thinking they are doing the right thing, but don't look at the ingredients. Most of the time it is the advertising to promote the food that drives up the price, just like a lot of things.

Snack still isn't eating right, so I crawled under my bed to get her and put her back in the middle room. I have tried to tempt her with so many foods, but she just won't touch them. When Debo leaves here tomorrow for his check-up and surgery, she will eat better. She just doesn't like him around, and even though Pepper aggravated her, I think she misses him. In the mean time I am going to get some Nutri-Cal down her.

Just a quiet Sunday.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Darn! Cold, Windy Again. Shopping.

Darn it! It turned cold again, overcast, and in the 50's today.

As Jay's mother is still in the hospital, Mae Mae is still here. Jay and I went down to lake with left-overs to feed the fish and ducks, but the seagulls came and got most of it, as usual. MaeMae and Debo enjoyed running around down there.

Today we went into the next town. I had a list, but we didn't even get to WalMart. We browsed some thrift ships, bought a few things, then we went to Petco as I wanted to find some good canned food that Snack would eat. I was trying to find some that didn't have 'by-products' in it, as I know what they are are! I have done my homework on pet diets. Jay looks at the fish while I am in the cat dept. We both have had aquariums.

I don't have to worry about what to feed Debo, the dog. He eats what my SPCA boss brought him: Nutro Choice Dry Food, and Nutro Choice canned food, no 'by-products' in those. He is alert, intelligent, lively, outgoing and his coat is shiny black. Very different from the bedraggled, morose, skinny, scared, little doggie that was left tied to a tree in the rain and cold. Kenya had brought some Nutro Choice cat food in pouches, but Snack doesn't seem to like any 'wet' food. In fact she doesn't like to eat as long as the dog is here, so I have let her come in the house with Bobcat and me. Snack, MaeMae and Bobcat all ignore each other.

It was a little windy, there is a jacket in the truck, but I was glad I had worn the button down cardigan made out of a sweat shirt. They seen to stop the wind. In fact I bought another one at a thrift shop today.

Please don't forget to click, everyday, to help breast cancer and the other organizations that interest you, at the top left of this page. If you wish, they will send you an email every day to remind you.

Either Ray or Shay have been coming over twice a day to hold and
pet Orange Glow. He loves their attention, but then gets back into his cage, lays on his pillow, watches Animal Planet, and enjoys being an inside cat. I don't think he wants to go home and be an outside cat anymore!

I hope tomorrow is a warmer day.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Groomed Muffie

Another lovely, warm, tank-top day.
I took this picture of Orange Glow watching the TV last night.
He is really enjoying being inside, and sometimes just lolls with his feet in the air, wanting his tummy rubbed. Shay comes over twice a day to let him loose in the middle room, and he just sits on her knee just lovin' on her.

As he doesn't have a scratching post to get the ends off his nails, I clipped them tonight. That is why cats scratch on furniture when their nails get too long. Keep them trimmed, and they won't do it. When Bobcat scratches on her sisal post, I know it is time to clip off the ends of her nails. If I don't do it, she doesn't walk as well, and there will be the little ends of her nails on the carpet at the bottom of her scratching post.

I groomed my worst little terror today, Muffie. She is so good about most of her clipping, but will bite when I get to her feet and back legs. I have her Dad's permission to muzzle her, but I found out that talking to her gently helps. Some groomer must have really terrified her.

I had Debo, the dog, out in the back yard while I was grooming her, as I didn't need her to have any distractions that would make her wiggle even more. He was so quiet most of the time that I had to call him a couple of times through the open window so that I would know he was still there. Most of the time I could see him enjoying being outside and laying in the sun.

Ray got some more of the pine needles raked up, and we are waiting for a no breeze day to get rid of the burn pile.

Apart from looking up things like Cat Scratch Fever and cat diets, that was my day.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Cleaning Windows is a Bear! Snack & Orange Glow Home.

Today it is a beautiful day in the mid 70's. A tank-top day. The sun is shining and a great day to be working outside. Bobcat is basking in the sun on the porch.

Ray came over so we carried the big carrier and big cage to a table outside the work shop, and bleached and hosed them down. I washed all the bedding and dishes, put all new beds and covers in each cage, so everything is as clean as new pin for Orange Glow, and Snack. Snack is coming back here today, as the guy who is getting Missy wants to get used to her first, and then will consider Snack. The 'twofer' deal is good for a month.
Missy and Snack were already spayed when I got them, so they didn't have surgery. Just rabies shots, checked for Feline Leukemia, as all the SPCA cats are, and check-ups.

We also had to measure, saw and screw another piece of lattice up in a place that Debo found he could jump over, in the front. I had him locked up in the back yard while we were working. As long as he can hear our voices he is quiet.

While I was waiting for Kenya to bring the cats, I cleaned a few glass doors. People who live in glass houses, have to clean windows! I can't do too many at a time as I have a bad right wrist. That is a bear of a job with as much glass as there is here!

When she arrived we got Orange Glow and Snack in their houses, then Kenya brought Missy and Pepper in their crates, into the grooming room, for me to help her give them their shots. They go to their new 'forever' homes tonight.
Then Ray got Blackie, and Kenya helped me give her a Feline Leukemia shot. I kept her crated in the grooming room for a while as they can, though rarely, have a reaction to that shot. If her breathing got difficult, I would have to rush her to the vet, as Ray had to leave.

A busy, warm, 'windows open' day.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

2 C's. Cleaning and Computers.

It is a sunny, but cool day in the low 60's. As soon the sun came round to the porch, Bobcat was out there. Tomorrow is supposed to be in the mid 70's, that will be nice.

I spent a while cleaning the cat cages in the middle room, and getting ready for Orange Glow to come home. Missy and Pepper won't be coming back here, as Missy is now adopted too, by the guy that put in an application last Saturday. He had orginally said he wanted two cats, so we are waiting for him to meet Snack, and see if he wants her too. I hope so. They have a special rate for folks who want two. Missy is an outgoing cat and wants attention, but not overly so, while Snack is really laid back, so they wouldn't be competing for his attention. We think that it would be an ideal match.

I finally had a moment to hook up my old Sony computer so that I could attach an external hard drive to it, and suck the info out to put in the Dell. Just as soon as I got it all hooked up, the cable goes out, of course. We had taken the "telephone hole" out of the Sony to put in the Dell, so I couldn't even get it going on dial-up. I just busied myself cleaning the bathroom, and doing laundry until the cable came back on.

The external drive just sits there with its red light on, and the instructions don't tell me what to do, so that is as far as I have got. It is supposed to have a blue light that goes around and around when it is gathering information, but I don't know how to make it do that. I even looked up all sorts of places, and they don't tell me anything either. I guess the young folks have that knowledge programmed in them when they are born, so the sites don't give you any more instructions other than how to plug it in. StarWars was on when I was younger, but they didn't have external hard drives then!

Orange Glow will probably have to come back here, as he has to be caged for another week to ten days to let him heal from his surgery. He is supposed to be kept warm, and Shay's utility room is not heated. He must not jump up or down on anything. Also, as his 'copy-cat hormones' will still be working for a while, he mustn't go off carousing.

So it was another frustrating computer day.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Bad News About Orange Glow

It was a sunny , but chilly day. It wasn't until the sun came round to the front that Bobcat could go out on her porch.

Ray came over and put another coat of paint on the outside table, and raked up some of the mess the pine trees had made during all this windy weather. I hadn't been expecting him, as his back was so bad, so I was busy grooming MaeMae. So we couldn't do any of the other jobs.

Jay wanted me to pick him up, as he doesn't like being by himself while his mother is in the hospital. Fortunately she is doing well from her lung surgery and will be home in a few days. He picked up the piles of pine needles and took them to the burn pile, as Ray couldn't bend down to do it. I had to keep Jay busy outside, as MaeMae is too difficult to groom when Jay is in the house. He brought some shrimp for me to cook for him tonight, which I am marinading in butter, sesame oil, garlic, pesto seasoning, and then I will broil them. Then I took Jay home.

Today is the day I decided to give Debo the medicine where he couldn't jump around, and needed to be kept quiet for 24 hours. Fat chance of that! I am trying to keep him as quiet as I can.

I got MaeMae groomed, and then we waited to hear how the cats were after their surgery.

Kenya called and said that Orange Glow tested positive for Feline Leukemia. It is a shame that his previous folks never got him vaccinated, and then chose to keep him as an outside cat. Cats fight, and that is one way they get it, from the saliva of infected cats. Ray and Shay had already said that if he had it, they would still want him fixed, and let him live out his numbered days here. So the vet neutered him, and gave him a rabies shot.

I picked up Jay for dinner, but he had got into something, and was really aggravating to be around. I had broiled the shrimp, made salad, and wheat angel hair, but he didn't eat much, and nor could I, he upset me so much. I took him back home, but kept MaeMae here as she was scared of him.

So another sad day.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Four Cats Ready To Go To SPCA's Vet.

It is a lovely, sunny, warm, day, though windy.

Orange Glow thinks he is in cat-hawg heaven, being inside. He is thoroughly enjoying this, and hasn't given one moment of trouble about being locked up. Shay had been coming to talk to him, and he is eating well.

Debo, on the other hand, doesn't like being locked up, he wants to be loose in the dog room and play with Pepper the energetic little black cat. But he is at the teenager stage and he tears stuff up. I would be worried he would unintentionally hurt Pepper. When he was outside with little old poodle MaeMae, he wanted to play with her, so I keep them separate now. He really needs a playmate when he gets a 'forever' home. He doesn't go to the vet until next week.

Today, Pepper, Snack, Missy and Orange Glow go to my SPCA boss' place, ready to go to the vet tomorrow. Pepper, and possibly Missy and Snack, won't come back here. The man who put in an application for Missy, really wanted two cats, so we are going to see if he will take Snack, too, if he is approved. Snack and Missy have never met, but have been in the same room together, one loose at a time. So we won't know how they get along until they have both been checked out by the vet tomorrow and can 'meet'.

I was dreading having to load up four cats in four carriers in my 2-door truck, so when Kenya called to say that she was now able to come up here to pick them up, I was very relieved. It would be less stress for the cats, too. We got them all situated in her van, in carriers and cages without a hitch. I was surprised that Orange Glow didn't fuss about being put in a carrier. Now I just have Debo the rambunctious dog, MaeMae the older sedate dog, and Bobcat for dinner.

A glad, and sad day.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Getting Ready for Orange Glow.

It is a lovely sunny day today, in the high 70's. Windows open, fresh air coming in. Too nice to be inside, but there were things to do to get ready to house Orange Glow for a day and a half.

As I am letting Missy stay in the house with Bobcat, that freed up the big cage for Snack. So I had to get that ready for her. She didn't like being moved from her big dog carrier, her sanctuary, at all. I covered the cage with some fabric, and that made her feel better. She is loose often in the dog room, but she has another dark place she likes to hide. The couple of times I had her in the house, all she would do is hide under my bed. She is a very 'private' cat.

Orange Glow fancies himself a great stud, so we had to get him contained so he couldn't go carousing, and be missing right when he needed to go to the vet to be neutered.
His 'copy-cat' machine had to be disabled!
Our main concern was that Orange Glow sprays, and so we were going to have to put him in the carrier, as that has solid sides except for the few air slots on the sides. If we had put him in the big open cage he could have ruined my walls, if he clawed the covers off. Ray and I had turned the carrier upside down, for Snack, so that the air slots were at the bottom so she could watch the TV and the window, so now it had to be reversed.
Shay came over and we had to dismantle the carrier again, so that that the slots would be at the top, and the door opened the right way. I had to lock Pepper up, as he was getting into
everything, and put the dog out in the back yard. As long as he could hear our voices through the open window, he was quiet, Debo gets very upset if I don't go out with him.
When Ray and I had messed with the carrier last time, I was out of the good anti-seize bolt lubricant, and we had used a generic. I had made sure I had the real thing on hand this time. It would be a lot easier if this carrier had screwdriver slots, or hex heads on the bolts, but it doesn't. Shay and I finally got it apart with vise-grips and pliers, disinfected it and got it reassembled. We got that silvery anti-seize stuff all over everything, and had to scrub our nails with a brush!

All ready with a towel over the slots on the wall side, nice new bed, box, water, food, Shay got Orange Glow, and put him in there. He looks very bewildered, he hasn't been crated or stayed here before. He doesn't know what is coming!

In about three months, after he stops spraying, Shay is going to try to keep him indoors, if the witch-cat Zeeda, will accept him. HaHa!

Jay's mother goes for her surgery tomorrow, so now I have MaeMae, the little black poodle here, too.
She and Missy ignore each other.

Cats have white bowls, dogs have blue.
All eating different food.

One more cat, and one more dog to feed today.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Adoption Day. Missy has an Application!

It was a nice day today, not cold to use the heater, nor hot to use the AC.

My mission for today is to take Pepper the black kitten, Missy the tortoiseshell longhair cat, and Debo the black Belgian Sheepdog to Adoption Day. Snack and Bobcat would be the only ones left here. My SPCA boss wants to get Snack checked out by the vet before she is offered for adoption. Jay wanted to go with me, as he had some errands to run. I took Debo with me to pick up Jay, so that he could run around down there. Their neighbor let Debo into his fenced yard so that he could run around, off leash, with his little dog, Muffie. They played so nicely, Debo will make a lovely pet for some lucky family. Back here, Jay went up to my attic and got carriers down for the cats. Debo would have to ride in the front seat in the truck, as there wouldn't be room for a carrier for him, and Jay, so Debo was in a seat belt harness, and just loved the ride. He sat straight up looking at everything. The cats were in their carriers, seat-belted in the back seat.

We had to leave home early as one of Jay's errands was to be at the Post Office before it closed at noon. The cages at Petco for Adoption Day had been set up the night before, so we got my three animals situated quickly. Debo was quite content being on display, and loved all the attention he got from passers by in Petco. We had to wait for another foster mom to arrive, as we couldn't leave the animals there unattended.

Missy and Bobcat this morning, each side of a radiator.

While we were waiting, a guy absolutely fell in love with Missy, and filled out an application for her. He held her, and she snuggled up to him. He liked her because she is quiet and loving. His application will be reviewed and checked out early next week. She is due to go to the vet on Tuesday for her check-up, so she should have a new home by the end of the week. She is the one that I will miss the most, out of this batch of animals.

As soon as there were a couple of SPCA volunteers there, Jay and I could leave, and do some more errands. Couple of banks, and WalMart, which was packed. I don't usually do WalMart on a Saturday afternoon, now I know why! Jay was getting antsy, and so I brought him home. We did stop at Krogers to get gas and a few things, so I found a few more bargains, like 1/2 gallon of milk for $1.50.

Now I have to drive back to Conroe to pick up my fosters at Petco..

Later at 6.30 PM:
When I got to Petco, I found out that little Pepper is adopted. A lady who is already pre-approved by SPCA to adopt, came to look at a tabby cat, and chose Pepper instead. She will be able to take him home after he is all better from his neutering surgery.
I got them all back in their carriers in the truck, drove back, got them settled in the house, and fed them their dinners. I went next door to tell Ray and Shay, as they found Pepper abandoned at the Kroger's dumpster. I was talking to Ray's witch-cat, Zeeda, I know not to try to pet her, and she suddenly jumped up and gaffed my hand, right on the vein, so I bled all over their floor, until we got it stopped.

A bloody good day.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Run-Around-Day.

It stayed too cold for Bobcat to go on the porch today. It didn't hardy warm up, and was overcast all day.

Today, Jay's mother had to go to the Medical Center for some more tests before her surgery on Monday. No, not the liver transplant yet, this will be on her lung with the spot.

As Jay also had a doctor's appointment today in Conroe, she asked me to take him. I had a list of things to get there, so I didn't mind. I took Debo down there when I picked up Jay, and let him run around on the leash for a while. It is good for him to go to different places. I had to stop back here on the way out, as I had to feed the cats that had been de-wormed two hours before, and to put the dog up.

After I dropped off Jay at the doctors, I went to the only feed store, in this area, that carries Feline Leukemia vaccines, not just the regular shots, as we knew that the two outside cats should have them. I had my insulated bag with dry ice pack with me.


I also knew that this particular feed store carried the "Taste Of The Wild" cat food that I had heard about. I looked at the ingredients of it, and another one, but chose the another one, "Exclusive", Made with Real Chicken, as it is "pH Balanced and Magnesium Controlled" and has Omega 3 and 6 in it. I found out years ago, and have the vet bills to prove it, that the proper pH in cat food is very important, or they can get urinary tract troubles, which is very common in cats, and caused by their diet. I wouldn't be looking at dry cat food after all this talk about it being bad for them, but Snack just will not eat canned or pouch cat food.

When Jay finally came out of the doctors, as we were near three thrift shops, we looked in them. I bought a like new Farberware toaster oven. Yes, another one. We went further south to eat at Taco Cabana, and to visit the Goodwill Store down there. I had been looking for one of those automatic deodorizer dispensers for the dog room, but I found a like new air cleaner there.

They also had a shedder, which I have been needing since mine quit. I have had to tear off my name, address and any account numbers off papers for quite a while. Then I would put them in the waste bin with a plastic bag that I use for the used litter, before I put litter in it, of course. I knew no one would dig in there for my info!
That was a safety trick I learned when on the road RVing, and had a dog. If you don't have a pet, put the little torn out pieces of paper with your info into a coffee can, or plastic bag, with your used coffee grounds, tea bags, or vegetable peelings.

We stopped at the Dollar General, Radio Shack, insurance company, picked up Jay's prescriptions, etc. We were trying to hurry, so I didn't get everywhere on the list, as I was worried about getting back to Debo to let him out.

Tomorrow, a warmer one, is another day.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

I Don't Care If It's Good For Me!

This morning it was chilly again. I will be glad when the weather stabilizes to warm, so we can start work on the vintage motor home. I bundled up to take Debo out. The sun warmed everything up to the 60's in the afternoon so Bobcat could go on her porch.

It seemed a good day to start Snack and Missy on their 3-day de-worming. I don't have trouble getting the yellow creamy stuff down them, not like the picture! I just put my hand over their head, get my finger and thumb each side of their mouth, and press their teeth open, and plop it way down their throat with a syringe with no needle. Quickly close their mouth so they can't spit it out, and stroke their throats until they swallow. Just like a dog, except a dog will lick it's lips after it has swallowed medicine.

Ray arrived to work for a while. He has an Upright Hoover Carpet Cleaner just like the used one I just bought, and so he checked it out for me. It didn't leak, and the suction was good as an upright, and with the little tool, so I don't have to take it back. He cleaned it up, and took it upstairs to store in my attic. While we had Pepper locked up, we took a bunch of other stuff up there that I have been wanting out of my way for a while. We cleaned and re-stuffed the air cleaners. He glued a little piece back on my tiny food processor, we will see if it will hold. We Lysol-ed an arch baby toy thing that I got the other day, as it is going to a baby down the street. There are so many little jobs stacked up on the workshop table that it is great to get a few of them done.

I let Missy stay in the house with Bobcat and me last night, and she settled down at the foot of my bed. But I did lock her back up after the de-worming this morning, as she can't have food for 2 hours. Also as we are working, running in and out to the workshop, I didn't want her to get out.
Just an odd job day.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Cold Again. Fixed some things.

It was in the mid 20's when I got up this morning, so I turned on the halogen light on the porch, just to give the plants a little heat. It wasn't freezing in there, I just wanted to give them a little warmth.
I dressed in several layers of clothes and took Debo out. He is getting the message that he better "go", right away, to get petting and praise.

Our breath was visible in the cold.

Once he has attended to business, I have taught him to "run" on command, and he chases backwards and forwards in the back yard with me egging him on. He still has to be locked up in the German Shepherd cage when he is in the dog room, as I never know what he is going to get ahold of, and tear up. So I want him to exercise when he is outside. Today was the last day of his de-worming, so he still had to wait 2 hours to eat. He loves Pepper, the little black kitten, and when I am in there tending the cat's cages, Pepper and Debo are loose, playing and rolling around together. They are so cute, and even though Debo is 5 times the size of the kitten, he is so gentle with him.

Ray arrived to work for a short while. His bad back had really been bothering him, and he has been creeping around all stove up. We cleaned some valances with my little Shark vacuum, then hung the new mini-blinds, and repaired a window shade. I have to have a little cord pulls on the shades, or I can't reach them, and one was broken. I pull them down over the mini-blinds in the dog room to keep the cold out on the winter nights. Even though I have double paned windows, it helps here up on this hill.

Once Ray was gone, I did some laundry and putzed around doing odd jobs. It took a while to order some dust-cups for the Shark. I had to call 2 800 #'s, kept on hold for ages, then got someone with such a thick accent that I could hardly understand them. Another job was to try to help a couple of Jay's mother's airplane plants, (Chlorophytum comosum sp) that Jay had left out in the cold a couple of weeks ago. We had brought them up here to put in my 'greenhouse' porch. It took a while to get all the freeze-burned parts off them, and make them presentable again. One plant lost all it's hanging babies, except two.

Missy, the tortoiseshell long-haired cat, who has to be kept away from Pepper and Snack, was wanting to be in the house with Bobcat and me. As Bobcat is vaccinated against the diseases that Missy might have got while she was living outside, I let her in here. It is not often that Bobcat allows another cat in her house, but she doesn't seem to mind Missy.

This afternoon the sun warmed it up to the 60's, and Bobcat could go on her porch today.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Winter Poem. Blackie-Marie & Orange Glow.


I found this beautiful winter poem and thought it might be a comfort to you. It was sent to me and it's very well written and I hope that you enjoy it too.
' WINTER ' by Abigail Elizabeth McIntyre
""Sh.. It's Cold ""
Now isn't that well written?

It was 27 deg. this morning when I got up, so I waited a while to take the dog out, but we ventured out about 6.40AM. Today is his second day of de-worming, and as he can't eat for two hours afterwards, I wanted to get him out, back in, and medicated as early as possible. I wish he would hurry up and do what he has to do when he is outside. I don't pet him until he has, as I want him to attend to business first. This is part of his training. As soon as he 'goes', then he gets lots of petting and attention. The spoonful of green beans mixed in his food have stopped him from eating grass.

This is Blackie-Marie, Shay's cat, who is outside during the day, and in their utility room at night, as Ray's cat, Zeeda, won't let another animal in my guest house, next door, that they rent from me.
The other one is Orange Glow, who has been living here for a while, and considers this his home. He is Shay's favorite. He was so skittish and afraid, when he first came here, but now he is a gentle loving cat. Unfortunately, he doesn't get neutered until the end of the month, so he still spends a couple of days away from home, and worries us all to bits, until his return.

Other than taking care of the critters, grocery shopping, and cleaning house, nothing of import went on today. I hadn't felt well yesterday afternoon, and went to bed early, but I feel better today.

A sunny, but chilly day.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Research on Law for Kid's Items & Cat Food.

When I looked on the porch this morning at around 6.00AM, the thermometer said just below 40 deg. It hasn't read that low for a while. Then I looked and it was 27 deg. outside. I am so glad I wrapped the whole porch in vinyl for the plants. I don't remember us having this many freezing nights before, and it would only take one night of forgetting to cover them all. But when the sun came up it warmed everything up into the 50's. Later, it was 60 on the porch so Bobcat was out there for a couple of hours.

I tended to the cats as soon as I had been out with Debo the dog. As he hadn't had his breakfast yet, it seemed the best day to start him on his first day of Strongid-T Wormer. I knew he would not understand why he couldn't get fed for two more hours, so I kept him busy by bathing him. At first he fought a little, but then relaxed and enjoyed it. When I did take him out again, there was sunshine in the backyard, so it didn't feel that cold. Of course he had to roll in the dirt to get the 'clean' off!

Kenya told me about this new law that is taking effect next month. Anything to be sold, new or used, for children under 12 years, has to be tested for lead. This will put most sellers and resellers of kid's clothes and toys out of business. http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09086.html She knew that I had some kid's clothes and a lot of stuffed toys in my Yard Sale Storage Dept. in the attic over the storeroom. So I have to sell them before 9th. February, or they go to a landfill, with everyone else's. But what I can't fathom is, if all these clothes and toys are going to be thrown in the dumps, what is to stop the landfills from being contaminated with lead !? I think the government has bitten off more than it can chew again.


On a blog yesterday I saw where they had searched for "Taste Of The Wild" cat food for their katts. So I thought that I would look into it for mine. I did find out that it is made by the Diamond Pet Food Co. whose foods were in that recall, where a lot of pets died.
One link lead to another, and I came across an article, by a vet, which said that dry cat food is bad for them, as they don't drink enough water to compensate, especially if it has grains in it, so they get kidney and urinary problems. This is very common in cats.
http://www.catinfo.org/index.htm#My_Cat_is_Doing_Just_Fine_on_Dry_Food
We all know that pet foods where the main ingredient is corn meal is bad for them, as in grocery store brands. But now this vet is stating that cats are carnivores and should not eat dry cat food of any kind, as in tigers and lions. The vet said this is the main reason for sickness in cats. It is again "You Are What You Eat". I know that one certain dry cat food was responsible for a lot of vet bills in two of my cats, so I had changed to a better, non-cornmeal brand. But here was even more information about not feeding them dry, at all.
So I am weaning Bobcat, and the others off it, and feeding more canned and pouches, as I already have lots of that, while I search for something better. I know that if fed a vegetarian diet, a cat will go blind and thin. Also they MUST have taurine, which is in muscle meats. If I have to, I will buy beef, turkey, chicken and cook it for Bobcat, but the fosters wouldn't get that in their new homes, so there is no use in spoiling them. I would have to cook it separately from my food, as I cook with onions, and cats can't have them. http://cats.about.com/cs/catfood/a/humanfood.htm

A learning day.