Kittens 'n Things

That’s Mikey…after his “horrible” trip to the Vet yesterday.

Since we discovered last week that Billy had a stone in his bladder, we decided we’d better get Mikey to the Vet to be checked out, too, for good measure.

Well, it happened yesterday.

And I don’t know who it was harder on him or me…I’m saying me! From the minute I put Mikey into the car (after I scooped him up and coaxed him into the carrier), Mikey howled!

And he howled and he howled! (I don’t mean “meow” either!) You’d have thought I was being cruel to him or something. As I drove, I’d look into the carrier. He had stuffed himself into the back of the carrier, was curled into a ball and was peeking at me out of one eye. (The other eye was covered by his tail.)

I’d talk to him to reassure him he was all right, and he’d howl some more. I was just about ready to turn around and go home but realized if I did he’d have manipulated me once again. (He’s a cat!)

So I kept driving!

As soon as I go to the Vet, Mikey got real silent. And throughout the whole examination, the taking of blood and giving him his rabies shot, he did not “say” anything.

In fact, for the whole trip home I got the “silent treatment”.

We did get real good results on the blood work, and except for his heart murmur, he’s a soon to be 14 (July 1l) year old kitty in really good health.

Yours in no more trips to the vet,

and “The Boys”

P.S. Chantal Williams has put together a little book, Cat Health Secrets that might be of help to us…and there might be something in there to benefit you, as well!

Photo: Mikey

An incredible story of kitty survival….

Yours in happy endings,

and “The Boys”

P.S. See more Lolcats and funny pictures

Night before last, when Chuck and I were talking, he was also looking out the south window at the neighbor’s yard.

“There’s a cat,” he said.

“Where,” I said.

“There, on Frank’s deck–you can see the tops of the kitty’s ears!”

“Sorry, Chuck. But I don’t see any kitty’s ears.”

So, we traipse outside and look up the slight hill to the neighbor’s yard and deck.

A cat, maybe 6 or 8 months old, sat in the grass.

And pretty soon, a little ginger-color kitty (maybe about 3 months old) bops out from under the deck. And other ginger and another ginger and then finally a multi-color-tiger-ginger shows up.

Where has this “little family” been that we’ve not seen them before now? Do Frank and Judy, his wife, even know the kitties are there?

We didn’t approach the kitties; actually, they scampered off when they heard us, even in our stealth-mode, walking on our driveway. So we went back into the house.

When we looked out again, shortly after that, the mother was nursing the four little ones.

Not long after that we saw them take off again and get under the deck.

Yours in new beginnings,

and “The Boys”

P.S. I see my Google widget that gathers my followers isn’t working today so I’ll be trying to figure that out. Just know that I didn’t delete you.

Ever have one of those nights when you go to get into bed and there is no room for you?

As in, for me, Mikey had already dug his “little hole” in the blankets at the foot of the bed.

Billy was planted in the middle of the bed, taking a bath, and Bowie was taking up space sprawled on the pillow!

Which is usually Billy’s!

And Jonny was on the window seat right beside the bed, eye-ing me trying to figure out how I was going to get into bed!

Without moving all that fur.

Or maybe he was wondering who he could move out so he could pile onto the bed, too?

Yours in taking back your bed,
and “The Boys”

P.S. Of course, I am the human and I know I am in control and can set the rules as to who sleeps where.

P.P.S. What kind of night-time takeover happens with your kitty?

Photo: The photo is Jonny, in a “sprawled moment” on the bed, before the others came along in the “great take over”!

After a recent incident of accidentally leaving Mikey on the front porch for about two hours, I’m reminded that as a general rule we need to be really mindful of our kitties’ whereabouts at all times.

In some ways, our four are worse than kids; one or the other of them gets something in his mouth that you have to grab before he swallows it; or one will get on the desk where you have your computer keyboard and leave all kinds of strange “messages” (i.e., xkjg;aleir0) to you.

And years ago, Snowflake had a habit or two for wanting to check out the wastebasket on more than one occasion! ^^^ (more…)

After waking up this past Friday morning to an air temperature of 22 degrees Fahrenheit BELOW zero, I was more than a little thankful that our “Boys” stay inside!

The closest they get to “going outside” is a romp on the closed-in front porch–in the spring, summer, and fall.

Although at times Mikey will be somewhat adventurous in the winter, and stick a toe onto the porch; and maybe he’ll sit for a second or two to catch a glimpse of the squirrels, if the door to the house is open. Like when we pick up the paper from the porch, or if we’re bringing in groceries.

Friday morning’s coldness reminded me of a time many years ago (although the “occasion” could still be something that happens in any time or on any cold, winter day) so I’m mentioning it now to help us all be aware that such things do happen.

Maybe with our awareness, we can help somehow somewhere. (more…)

No, it’s not what it sounds like!

“The Boys” have gotten into the habit of sleeping with us.

In fact, they’ve done it for years. And many’s the night that if at least one of us doesn’t go to bed at the “usual” time, “The Boys” will go just ahead and get into their beds before we do.

Or, they may follow one or the other of us upstairs when we go to get ready for bed.

Monday night, though, I left Mikey on the back of the couch and Jonny was doing his sleeping thing on the foot-feet part of the recliner couch.

When I got up and went downstairs the next morning, Mikey had moved to the window hammock, and Jonny was just waking up…still on the couch-recliner foot-feet.

Which was a shock! As they had spent the night “away from us”! After 13 years, they are finally growing up!

Yours in your kitty finding his way,

and “The Boys”

P.S. Believe it or not, there are “four” kitties in that photo; as it is, they look more like a circle of fur that does not end. You can barely tell where one starts and another ends!

I’m talking about Mikey!

Actually, I think he’s being left “home alone” too long…or something. Chuck and I have been gone a lot during the day for the last couple of weeks so Mikey (and his brothers) are left alone to “fend for themselves.”

When I get home late, Mikey, in particular, is full of so much energy it takes him quite a while to get settled down. He runs and jumps from the floor to the back of the couch, no landing on the couch seat–but straight to the back of the couch from the floor.

From there, he runs along the top of the couch to the window ledge nearby and jumps up into the windowsill hammock so he can look outside from that angle.

After a bit, he jumps back down to the back of the couch and, missing the couch cushions, lands on the floor, taking off at a run into the living room and up the stairs to the bedroom.

Sometimes he’ll maybe even swat at Billy (or anyone else), who gets in the way. At some point he’ll also manage to crowd Billy off my lap, so he can sit down and watch the cursor on my computer screen.

Eventually, thankfully, though, he will plop on my lap and conk out!

This 13 year old kitty is supposed to have a heart murmur…but no one told him!

Oh, and don’t believe the “innocent” look above ^^^!

Yours in debating that hand laying,

and “The Boys”

I’m in luck!

Karen left the computer on with the screen on at this page. So it’s my turn to stick in my “paw” to wave hi! I saw Mikey do it a couple weeks ago, and it looked so cool.

I have something to say.

This is “Jonny” … but did you ever wonder about my middle name? It’s “Cat”. You know, like “John Boy” but I’m “Jonny Cat”! Actually “they” named me after “cat litter”. Can you believe it?

The idea!

Here’s the meow…when I first came to live with Karen and Chuck, I was so happy and nervous and excited that I used the litter box quite a lot…well, okay, more than a lot! At that time, they were using cat litter called “Jonny Cat”. So….

Nevertheless, I’ve been so glad they are my people purrents. And I’m “gladder still” that I finally got to get control of this here mouse so I could talk to you.

I just knew you’d want to know this!

Yours in my meows,

Jonny (Cat)

P.S. We call Jonny’s little piece of territory in the photo above a “hammock”; he’s had it for some time. Since we got that one, we found a heated version your kitty might like.

I wrote a few words about “Snowflake’ in Saturday’s issue of the “Cat’s Meow.” In case you didn’t get to see that story, I decided to repeat it today…what with it being the Holiday weekend and all!

Before Chuck and I had “The Boys,” our “second family,” we had four other kitties. (And not counting the “woofies” we also had in our early years!)

Our original four were a mix of breeds; Muffy was Persian, Snowflake was a “barnyard cat,” Scooter was a gray tiger shorthair house cat, and Jonny Cat I was a “stray” Persian.

Throughout her 19 years, Snowflake had two very special past-times; one was walking on my bookshelves (which I used for my “too many plants”–instead of for books) and the other was watching TV!

Well, Bowie (in our “this generation” family) seems to have picked up Snowflake’s passion for TV, and I say thank God!

I’d rather he watch TV than do like Snowflake often did if she got bored watching TV — when she would walk on the bookshelves that held my plants, she’d knock every one of them off–if it “got in her way!”

And thus, after a futile exercise (mine) of often cleaning up the plants, the dirt, and sometimes the broken planters, I eventually decided it was better to not have house plants.

Yours in watching your kitty take care of the plants,

and “The Boys.”

P.S. So what havoc, if any, has your kitty managed to cause at your home.