Have you met Shorty and Kodi?

Nope, they aren't ours.  We're still stable here with our 7.  Everyone is well and, honestly, we haven't done much interesting in a while.  Or so I thought-this may have me looking out our guys activities in a new light.  This week I discovered a cat dad who has made 96 (yep, 96) short, adorable clips of his two cats.

I saw the "How to walk your human" video and discovered their channel.  Just hysterical!  Here's a short series (about 6-7 min total) to get you started:











Doesn't it just warm the cockles of your heart?  I plan to work my way back through their Dad's archive!

And, don't forget the IBKC fundraiser!  Day 3 and over $11 squillion!!!!  But we can't get cocky!  If they are going to meet their goal to help kittehs whose beans have fallen on hard times, we'll have to keep the steam going!  Operators are standing by!

As Aunty would say (errr... did say), LET'S ROCK THIS, FOLKS!

If you've never experienced an IBKC fundraiser, now is the time. The kittens will keep you in stitches for the whole 31 days. And to think, this started out with Laurie hoping to raise a measly $3 squillion dollars for her local shelter. Last year, they netted $66 squillion!! Rock on to $75 squillion and infinity...!

I know I've been a scummy blogger, of late, but folks, but don't let that stop you!  This year IBKC raising money for folks, especially old folks, who are having a hard time keeping their furbabes in kibble.  Now, that's worth supporting!  Please, please, lend a hand if you can!

Munchkin Crossed to the Bridge

Aunty and Gordy lost their beloved Munchkin on Wednesday - the first furbabe of their married lives.  Sending them warm purrs, hugs and headbutts.


It’s all right you see, don’t cry my friends,
I know you were there to the very end.
I felt your hands, your gentle touch,
I know you loved me very much.
Enough to take the pain away,
So please, please, don’t dwell on this day.
Remember instead the day that we met.
When I decided I should be your pet.

No stone stands over where she lies. It is on our hearts that her life is engraved. ~ John Galsworthy

I can't believe it's a month since I last posted!!!

*Sigh*  If I'm not the world's worst critter adoption blogger, I'm close.  Sorry, folks, life just keeps getting too busy.  Lots going on here at the Casa.  Not a lot of time tonight, either, but I wanted to get something up and tell you all that I've missed you!

This is one of the bright spots in the last month.  Our little feral, Mama Lucy, has made a friend.  Not that I'm surprised.  Sophie may be my dim sweetie, but her loving nature is just balm for the critters who pass through our doors.

Lucy now lets me pick her up and hold her.  In my arms.  Yep, in my arms.  Who would have thought it a year ago?  Whoever said, "Your patience will be rewarded," was certainly right!

Blessing of the Pets

Sunday was Earth Day and that signals my congregation's annual Blessing of the Pets.  We hold the service outside in the courtyard or in our social hall, if it looks like rain (for easy clean up - just in case).  And guess who went?  Trudy and Lawrence!

From their perch on the stage, they got a bird's eye view of communion distribution and, of course, all the other pets at the service.  That's their new mom, Sarah, serving as communion assistant, behind Pastor Margaret. (It cracks me up - no one ever sits in the first row in church, whether service is in the sanctuary or in the social hall!! Even me - I was in the second row.)

I wasn't really thinking about pics during service and only got a few.  Here are some of the four-legged friends who came:

                                    

 

This is Buddy and Deacon Lynn, after the service.  Buddy has spent time with us at the Casa when Lynn has had to be away from home. (While the residents of the Casa tend to be feline, we love us some googies, too!)

Music ministers Uriah, Luke, Paul and Josef can really get the joint jumping and I was kind of surprised that all the critters seemed quite cool with it!

In the past, Grey, Bitty, Annie and Peggy Sue have come to the Blessing of the Pets.  I knew Trudy and Lawrence would be there, so I figured the Casa was well represented!  :-D  The blessing is a lovely way to celebrate Earth Day, I think!

Cats in Space

Ok, we're Space Paws.  I had to do this.



Sorry, Aunty, I had to boost it!

A Bit'O'Fun & a Visit

Well, the taxes were done and then I saw the bear - missing a 1099. Crud! Extension filed. And I am getting a refund, too.  :-(  And then the monitor died. At least it died after I got 'em done. My old eyes would have shriveled in their sockets if I'd had to do the dang 1040 using only the laptop monitor!!

So then it was monitor shopping, yesterday was visiting with Sarah, Trudy and Lawrie and, finally, today I installed the new monitor.  Only enough time tonight for a quickie and I'll get back to visiting tomorrow!

Bilo (formerly Bitty's baby, Victor) has his inbred cat moment, no doubt courtesy of niece, Shelly!

Sarah served up an amazing supper and I got to visit with Trudy and Lawrence yesterday! That's our church (Sarah's and mine) in the background.  Yep, Sarah lives next door and she gets comments about the pretty kittehs in her windows!  :-D

Trudy wondering why no one is paying attention to her.

Mom, Sarah, assuring her she's the most regal kitteh in the kitchen!

Bitty Says I Can't Come Out to Play

SHE says I must do my taxes so we continue to have kibble in the house. SHE says is a sad, sad thing that an accountant waits until the last possible minute to do her taxes. SHE says you'll see me again on Tuesday, if I'm a good girl.

She is not someone to mess with.

Wendy has LOLed Us!

Wendy, at the LOL Spot, has snagged a few Space Paws pics and made them her own. How she knew Sophie was the *poot* queen is a true mystery! Go enjoy more of her Half Baked or Well Done? installment!

 

Thanks, Wendy!

An update on Buddy and his mysterious litterbox sitting:  Kelly asked where the box was situated.  Brilliant question!  I had moved the litterbox from its normal place under the sink (after bonking my head during scooping) to right in front of a heat vent. Sure enough, once I moved it away from the vent, he stopped camping out in it!  Thanks, Kelly!

You've Come A Long Way, Budball!

After 10 months of trying, we finally hit on a new medicine which licked Buddy's skin monster allergies. You may remember when he came to the Casa, he had multiple wounds - so many that I couldn't pick him up without contacting an open sore (you can see here and here but be warned, it's not for the squeemish and these pics don't even show all of his wounds - his tummy was full of them).

Poor boy also had an hellacious ear mite infection and anemia. Doc immediately identified that most of the wounds were likely self inflicted and began treating him for allergies.  Prednisone helped initially, but when we tried to wean him off, we found he still needed a hefty dose to maintain progress. Even then he worried two spots with fair frequency. And poor Buddy was grumpy - really grumpy.  I guess I would be, too, if I itched all the time and we knew the prednisone wasn't helping with the grumpiness. We tried other things but the only med that seemed to work was the pred... Buddy was at the point where he shouldn't keep taking it and Doc was running out of ideas for alternate treatments.

Fortunately, a new med recently hit the market and Doc stood in line for it (OK, not literally!).  Within the first week on Atopica, our Budball was visibly more relaxed and the remaining wounds. Now, at a month, he's totally healed.

So here's what Buddy looks like today (with my lovely niece, Shelly!):

One drawback is that he hates the taste of the Atopica.   I mean hates.  With the heat of a thousand suns, he hates it.  It's a real challenge to dose him but so worth it.  (We will start weaning him off after his upcoming vet visit. Yay!) The other is that taking the Atopica can increase his risk of infection because he's FIV+.  Doc and I agreed that because Buddy was so miserable, and needed to come off of the prednisone, the slight risk was worth it for his quality of life.

It's so nice to have our boy decidedly less grumpy (happy, even!), healthy and itch free.  Doc Andrew and Atopica, I thank you and, let me tell you, the residents of the Casa thank you even more!!