You Are Seriously Infringing Upon My Nap Time

Madam, will you please cease your  squirming and go back to the rhythmic typing, please?  I am trying to nap here. NO!  Stop it, I tell you!  You do not need to guzzle soda while typing, that squashes me. Put it to the right already.  No, your other right!  NO!!! You do not need to plug your phone...Ummph!  Cut that out!!!  Very well then, it is clear you are unworthy of being graced with my firm, yet soft, warm body cuddled in your arms and I shall go elsewhere.  Ingrate! Try to show a Bean a little kindness and see where it gets you.

Sophie!  Stop that paper rustling!  Is there nowhere a mancat can go for peace and quiet? Fuzzbutt, get out!  I was here first!

Lady, he's hogging the papers again!  Lady! When am I going to get a turn?  And, lady?  When are you going to open up the box inside the box? What did you buy if for anyway?  Us!!!  You said so!  Now open it please? Tomorrow?  That's what you said yesterday.  Harrrumph! 

*sigh*  Lisa here.  Clearly the residents don't think their bean can do much right.  Yes, that's Buddy's favorite position.  As soon as I'm on the computer, he's up and settling in for a nap, with me typing around him (can you say arms numb from the elbow down?), and he HATES his nap time being interrupted by any motions other than typing. (if my soda is to the right, he's OK with me taking a quick swig and depriving his butt of warmth.) If I don't cease and desist with other movements, he'll go off in a huff, vocally letting me know he is NOT pleased!  :-D

Oh, and that dot on his nose is courtesy of Peggy Sue when he attempted to take over the papers yesterday.  He did not succeed.  Poor Buddy, he just can't win lately.

New Cat at the Casa

It just showed up one day.  It's grey and follows Bitty all around.

Ha!  Happy April Fools Day!

(OK, so it was a pretty sorry effort, but at least we tried!)
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On Our Friends-in-Need page:  

  

Ginger Lover Needs a Home ASAP.  Check the F.I.N. page for details. Hey, how many of your cats would be this good at bath time?  Bailey will make a great addition to the right loving home!

And please don't forget Red and Scuse.  

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Regarding yesterday's post about Buddy's new habit of sitting in the bathroom litter pan, co-worker Kelly wondered if the pan was near a heat source.  I think she may have hit it!  That wasn't the pan's original position, I moved it out from under the sink (after I bonked my head scooping) and never even thought about it being directly in front of a heat vent.  I'll be moving it tonight and see if that solves the mystery.  Sure would rather that be the reason than the big guy feeling insecure in his own home!

What the...???

Seriously, dude?  Would you care to explain to me exactly why sitting in used litter holds any appeal whatsoever?  I buy kitteh beds and scatter them throughout the house for your reclining pleasure.  We have perfectly good upholstered furniture upon which you may lay and, if I'm not in the room, scratch. A perfectly good bed, even.  TWO perfectly good beds.  And one of them is king size.

*sigh*  New behavior for Buddy.  Is this pecking order stuff? Is he feeling insecure for some reason? (Come to think of it, this may have started after his first encounter with Jerry, the only other male at the Casa.) He seems to do it when he joins me in the bathroom for my morning ministrations or when I go in to use the facilities in the evening - but then he stays there.  *sigh*  I've never come home, for example, and found him lounging.  And he only does it in the bathroom pan (there are 7 pans in the Casa).

*big sigh*

PS - Why did Rubbermaid stop making their wonderful pans?  They were perfect for smaller spaces, dang it!  It is high sided. It has handles for easy gripping.  Its entrance is the perfect step-in height.  It has a convenient pour spout at the entrance that also serves as insurance if kitteh decides to go facing the back of the pan.  The points at which the bottom and sides meet are gently rounded so no gook gets stuck in sharp corners. It even came in more attractive colors than grey.  Perfect.  So, of course, they've been discontinued.  Dang it!

Trudy, Buddy and a Bag

A little something to brighten your weekend. The title says it all... just wait for it.

Forgive the thick voice. Allergies. *sigh*

Can You Get Through to Her?

First though, an important PSA from Brian...

Go on over to Brian's and read the whole story. Then, you know the drill folks... post, tweet, email and otherwise work intertube magic for these ladies, OK?

And now to my dilemma... The bean has been on vacation and, clearly, she's been too busy to LISTEN to me. So maybe you can help.

Well, you know I came here with a bunch of war wounds... it's a jungle out there!... and some of 'em aren't healing up as fast as the doc would like. So what does she do? Puts me in ridiculous outfits! It's unseemly for a manly mancat, I tell you!

No matter how irritated I look, she just doesn't get it.

I mean, people can SEE me in these stupid getups from the window and I'm NOT giving up my favorite lounge area.

Oh, it gets worse... when I figured out how to get out of this stretch muscle shirt, she had to audacity to sew me into a baby onesie. Ha! I was out of that one in a day. Her next effort was even more offensive. SHE PUT ME IN A GOOGIE SHIRT! That's right. The raiment of my mortal enemies. That one was off in under an hour.

I guess she's not a very bright bean. Mad or not, I won't take away her TLC... beans need that, you know. If you don't give 'em regular lovin' they get right cranky. This one loves having her hair groomed every night - I can tell be the squeals and delighted squirming she does when I really get into it. It's quite convenient actually, since I sleep on her head.

So anyhow, if you could please tell her to lay off the lame clothing, I'd sure appreciate it.

Thanks!

Buddy

PS- Parts of me are healing really well, did you notice my nose isn't red anymore!

Buddy's in Better Shape & Kittens Choose Incarceration

First up: Buddy. Well, our beaten-up boy is doing fairly well according to Doc Andrew. The wounds are granulating nicely and he didn't find anything else obviously wrong. Unfortunately somebody over at the Pet ER didn't send the blood work, so Doc will call me when that gets in. He says if there are internal parasites, one of the meds he gave our boy should take care of the problem. Doc guesses he's between 4 and 7. I had guessed 5, so we're going with that on his records.

We'll go back in a couple of weeks for a progress check. The ear mites aren't just ear mites - he's got an ear infection as well, but the antibiotics and meds should stand him in good stead there. Fortunately, nothing is "contagious" so I just have to wash hands before playing with the kittens. Yay for no more "strip downs" after Buddy lovin'! Buddy got all his shots and took it the exam like a stoic mancat... except the ears, he did growl a little on that. It went kinda like this:

Home early, aren't ya? What's up? Why are you talking to me in that sing-song-y voice? (And, yeah, the basement bathroom is circa 1950 - pink with maroon trim.)

Uhhuh... I knew it the minute you put me in the car. We're at one of those places where they poke and prod me, aren't we? I can tell by the smell. I'm not sure I like you anymore, woman.

Who is that? If he tries anything with my bum, like the other guy, it's all over - you know that don't you?

OK, not so bad. We'll give this guy a pass. Mostly. What? Stop purring so you can hear my heart, you say, mister? I don't think so. You're gonna have to work for it bud.

You are definitely on my s**t list, lady. Didn't you hear the man? I'm healing up fine. I shouldn't be expected to endure this twice in one week.

OK, back to being a model patient.

The kittens go in for their shots Thursday and, I hope, to the Institute for a Meet'n'Greet next Tuesday. Promise to take the camera down this week for some good shots. Yesterday they decided the kennel was fun and spent most of the night cavorting in and on it.

Miska: Halp! We iz prizners!!!

Oh. There iz teh door. Nebermind.

Mama Lucy is Thawing

Told you I had great news!!!

Yes, Mom had been coming out to eat and has let me get quite close to her for weeks now, but Thursday we had a breakthrough. I knew from various signs that she was out and about with her kittens when I wasn't there. But as soon as I'd come down she'd scoot under the bed. Yeah, she'd come out again and start rubbing around for food, but would always go back to her retreat when finished.

Thursday I came down the steps and stopped cold on the third from the bottom. There was lovely Lucy, in the middle of the floor, just looking up at me as if to say, "Well, are you coming down or what?" I moved slowly and quietly and walked right past her to the "kitchen" area and proceeded to fix their meal.

Friday, she did the same thing. And then, after dinner...

She quietly came around the back of the kennel and crouched and watched her kittens play on me. (I love that they use me as a living jungle gym!)

(Sorry again, these are all cell pics... I have a perfectly good camera - do I bring it down... of course not!)

After a bit, she relaxed enough to settle down into a more comfy position.

And then shocked the ever livin' crud out of me by coming over!!

Now, in truth, this didn't last too long, but she walked right by me, no more than a foot away, to go back under the bed. I was dancing on air!!

And it wasn't a fluke! Saturday night she was once again in the middle of the room when I came down. I fixed the meal and when I did my usual, petting the kittens while they ate and putting a hand out close to her, she rubbed up against me!! Oh, happy day! She then repeated her lounging behavior, getting even more comfy this time:

And today was the same, so now this is "normal" behavior... yay!

And the really big news - Lucy has let me initiate contact and I've stroked her twice without her pulling away (or growling or hissing!). I have waited for her come close, so contact will be sort of natural, but prior to her rubbing up against me on Saturday, any "brushes" were met with pulling away or a hiss. I am just thrilled she's allowing me to touch her but am trying to keep a rein on my enthusiasm and let it come slowly and easily.

Have I mentioned the kittens are just getting into everything these days? They've discovered the stairs and rip tear up and down. Lessa has turned into the kennel climbing queen. Got this shot... can you spot all four of the rambunctious rascals?

And the top tier of the cat tree is no longer good enough for anything but naps now. The window sill is the place to be for our active foursome. They will race up the tree and play "king of the sill."

Sorry I didn't get any pics of Buddy today. He's sticking mostly to his bathroom and the carrier is definitely his preferred place. I can't blame the poor guy. It's only been a little over 24 hours since he was dumped in a strange lady's carrier, taken to a place where repeated indignities were visited on his person, put in a cold, tiled place (don't worry, I put plenty of bedding around but he no longer has his sunbeams) and left alone a lot. And he has got to be hurting physically.

He loves to be petted and purrs up a storm for me, though. He doesn't seem to like the main back basement room. I think it probably still smells of other cats and that makes him uncertain - I can scrub down the tile but I'm sure the chair and boxes and other stuff retain scents from my crew. I play with the kittens first 'cause I have to shed my clothes when I'm done with him... yesterday night he sniffed my pant leg and hissed! I'm sure the kittens would be pleased to know they are so intimidating!

I wish I could spend more time with him. About 2 1/2 hours today, but it's a Sunday. During the week it will probably only be an hour. I liked it much better when the quarantine suite was my den. He goes to see Doc Andrew on Tuesday and I'll have more to report then!

It's Official - The Casa has a bona fied Crazy Cat Lady

And Buddy makes thirteen. With 13, I have officially crossed the line into Crazy Cat Lady status, according to the IBKC's Laurie's reconning... assuming kittens count for the tally (somehow it doesn't feel like they should). And I couldn't say no.

My friend Rosalie is just the kindest lady you'd ever want to meet (I want to be Rosie when I grow up!). She called to say a stray had been hanging in her back yard for a while. Her neighbor had been trying, without success, to bring him in but both ladies had been feeding him. Rosie is highly allergic to cats but her hubby Jerry reported the boy welcomed petting and, sadly, that he was becoming increasingly beat up. So she called to ask if I could help.

Buddy taking his first look at his temporary digs - the back basement bathroom.

I made an appointment with Doc Andrew for Tuesday, fixed up the back basement to accommodate another charge, and arranged to drop off a carrier so Jerry could corral Buddy this weekend. As luck would have it, when I stopped by with the carrier, Buddy was napping under a rose bush. He came out, accepted pets and made no objection to being scruffed and put in the carrier. (We suspect he's finally at the point where he feels bad enough to accept handling, since her neighbor had little luck.) I could see he had a couple of open wounds so off the the emergency vet we went.

Oh boy. Not just a couple of wounds. Our not so young man is all torn up. By the time they got done shaving him to treat his wounds, he was half naked, poor guy! He has no obvious fleas, but has a monster ear mite infection. Buddy tested negative for FeLV but positive for FIV. That will probably impact his adoptability but you all remember how well Grey did here at the Casa, so I'm not too worried. I'm more concerned about the multitude of wounds and that, while he appears to be well fed and muscled (thanks to Rosie and her neighbor), he still tested as anemic. The ER vet sent off blood work and we'll see if it is a parasitic blood infection. Needless to say, our sweet guy will be in quarantine for quite a while.

I counted nine wounds on his body. His ears look like a pugilist's - thickened in some areas and they are leathery, without much fur. His tender little white nose is red with the seven scratches. It just hurts to look at him right now.

Rosalie and Jerry were right - Buddy was just such a good boy at the vet. They did have to lightly sedate him for the shaving - by then his patience had run thin after all the poking and prodding and blood drawing - but up until then he was as sweet as he could be. And, even though he was quite hesitant to leave the carrier when we returned home, he was very loving - wanting to be petted and purring up a storm. I wish I could sleep with him tonight, but I don't think I'd be much good to anyone tomorrow if I did. Maybe at 20 I could have slept on the bathroom floor, but that's not happenin' at 55 unless somebody is in really bad shape!

The next pics are not breakfast reading material so if you have a squeamish tummy, just stop reading here. We'll get more pics of our boy tomorrow and try to avoid the worst of the uglies. I'm leaving some scroll room for the tender hearted...

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There are so many sores on him I counted those grouped together, as though they happened at the same time, as one.

There are more wounds underneath on this side.

He seemed nervous about coming out into the main area of the back basement. For tonight I've closed the door to the bathroom so he'll know he is safe in the small room.

Here's hoping the big guy rests easy tonight.

So tomorrow we have big news from Mama Lucy (yeah, Judy, I just gave up on the Lucia and she's plain old Lucy now) and the babies. I'll leave you with a cheery pic of Miska and the feather thingy to remind you of the up side to fostering...