Pet(s): Photos & Discussion

[Moose135]

At least you didn't do this with Alli:

[isalicat]

Well, Louis is already out from under the couch, eating a mouthful of dry food and then moving on to check out another part of the room, and then circling back around for a pet or two. He loves laps and chin scratches - what a great loud purr! I think he will be just fine...I'll leave the door open and he can explore the house at his own rate. Thanks for your input!

[FlyingEgret]

Congrats @isalicat and Louis; and good luck!

[bosawks]

20 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

At least you didn't do this with Alli:

I'm not gonna lie, I thought about it....

[JTMacc99]

Yes, I vote for open door and let him explore on his schedule. 

And @Moose135, you can do anything to a golden and they just go along with it. 

[Maharincess]

Yay for adopting an older cat!!!!  Congratulations @isalicat!!!  I adore orange cats.  I'm so happy for you and I sincerely thank you for adopting an older boy. 

Any time I've brought a cat home I just open the carrier and let them decide what they want to do. 

[Sandman87]

You guys have given me inspiration for a Halloween costume. Other than making a cone for myself, I'd need to come up with a non-exhibitionist costume that communicates "I have had groin surgery."

[Maharincess]

A well placed ice pack might do the trick. 

[isalicat]

Well, Louis spent the night exploring his new home (including opening my lower bathroom cabinet doors quite artfully at 4 AM, getting inside and knocking over various shampoos and things) and then jumped up on the bed and snuggled in for the rest of the night. When I got up this morning he decided to retreat under the bed where he is at the present time and I assume he will come out when he is ready to be sociable.

[Bastet]

Congratulations on the adoption of Louis!  I'm so happy you chose an older cat, and that he is making himself right at home.

[isalicat]

Last update of the day (I promise!): Louis came out from under the bed, spent some time purring on my lap and is now under the futon bed in the office again. That cat retreat to a "cave" is definitely how he is coping sporadically with the stress of an entirely new house but he doesn't seem upset, just cautious. Did manage to get a good picture of his adorable face though. Called the lady with the five kittens and told her so sorry but we have been adopted already!

[Sandman87]

With the outstretched paw, it looks like Louis is holding the camera and taking a selfie.

 

Mom's cat decided to help me read last night. She laid down with her cheek against the bottom corner of one page while reaching across and patting the other bottom corner with one paw.

 

5 hours ago, isalicat said:

Well, Louis spent the night exploring his new home (including opening my lower bathroom cabinet doors quite artfully at 4 AM, getting inside and knocking over various shampoos and things) and then jumped up on the bed and snuggled in for the rest of the night.

My Big Guy figured out how to open the spring-loaded cabinets in our house fairly quickly. He liked to flip them partway open with his paw, let them thump shut, then flip them open again, over and over and over. He taught Mom's cat to do the same after we adopted her. Thump...thump...thump...

[harrie]

5 hours ago, isalicat said:

Last update of the day (I promise!): Louis came out from under the bed, spent some time purring on my lap and is now under the futon bed in the office again. That cat retreat to a "cave" is definitely how he is coping sporadically with the stress of an entirely new house but he doesn't seem upset, just cautious. Did manage to get a good picture of his adorable face though. Called the lady with the five kittens and told her so sorry but we have been adopted already!

 

Louis is stunning! Congratulations on your adoption.

Edited December 30, 2016 by harrie

[riley702]

2 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

My Big Guy figured out how to open the spring-loaded cabinets in our house fairly quickly. He liked to flip them partway open with his paw, let them thump shut, then flip them open again, over and over and over. He taught Mom's cat to do the same after we adopted her. Thump...thump...thump...

Oy! My big guy, Imp (RIP) used to do the same. damned. thing. Just because he could and knew it drove me nuts. His sister, Birdie (also gone) figured out how to jump up and turn on the lightswitch in the hallway - at 2 am!

[Maharincess]

@isalicat, Louis is beautiful!  I adore orange cats.  I'm so happy to hear he's adjusting so well and so quickly.  He must know he now has a happy, loving forever home.  

[DeLurker]

@isalicat - I concur with everyone's "he's beautiful" comments.  How much does he weigh?  He doesn't look that big in the picture on the bed, but the one where he is being held he looks substantial!  At least to me.

It sounds like he is settling in to his new digs pretty quickly.  I hope the two, well three if we include your husband, enjoy getting to know each other.

My poor cat is being terrorized by the dog.  Since he is supposed to be taking it easy post-surgery, he's only allowed out in the yard if he is on a leash and is having to deal with much shorter walks than normal.  As such, there is a little pent up energy that gets taken out on the cat.  Mostly that means chasing him.  The cat has been good pretty patient with the Kook so far, but if he ends up with a scratch on his pretty face I know it won't be undeserved.

[Bastet]

Before we get too far removed from Christmas to post this photo, here is Bandit (one of my parents' two cats) Christmas morning.  He's "The Shredder" -- while he has greatly calmed down from his early days (estimates are he was about three when he showed up seven years ago), when he'd make confetti out of any paper you left available to him, he still leaves his mark from time to time, and loves to dive into the pile of discarded wrapping paper after we've opened presents.  This year, he played for a while, and then dove under the pile, popping out like he was under bed linens rather than wrapping paper before taking a bath and a nap.  Here he is just before the bath:

 

Edited January 1, 2017 by Bastet

[riley702]

He's very handsome! Playing in a pile of paper and still manages to look dignified. :)

[Maharincess]

My crazy ass cat just shredded a big 8 pack of paper towels I had stored in my laundry room. I went in and it looked like it had been snowing in there.  This cat is almost 5 years old, is she EVER going to calm down?!   I've had a lot of cats in my life and they all started calming down around a year old or so.  Trixie still has her middle of the night freak outs and races through the house for an hour, she still attacks anything that moves.  

She's crazy. 

Pretty kitty @Bastet

Edited January 1, 2017 by Maharincess

[isalicat]

Sounds like Trixie is a huntress that doesn't have anything to hunt! My previous tom, Mister Oh, found us when we were living in the mountains and was clearly self supporting at the time by hunting the local varmints (lots of mice, ground squirrels, rabbits and birds around there for both cats and the local fox to enjoy). Once he moved in with us (and was well fed and sheltered) he still insisted on leaving every day at an hour or so before dawn to get to the prime spots for intercepting whatever creature was in season. For all of you tremendously kindhearted people out there, believe me, this was considered a public service in my neighborhood as we never had to deal with gophers, moles, ground squirrels (they eat into every watering hose or washing machine line invented) or rabbits as long as we lived there to the benefit of everyone's gardens. Not sure what to suggest as to Trixie = maybe one of those robot toys that skitter around that she can chase during the day?

[Maharincess]

She's so spoiled she has all of those toys. She's no hunter, where I live we get critters in the house quite often and she just sits there watching them. My Chihuahua will hunt stuff but not the cat.   She couldn't hunt her butt if she needed to poop.  She's just nuts. 

[DeLurker]

We're having some colder temps (for Houston) in the 30s today.  My dog's energy level works in inverse proportion to the temperature so he is one energetic pup!

He's been on substantially reduced outings since he was neutered and needed to stay calm for at least 7 days, preferably 10 according to the vet.  He got a longer walk and to go to the dog park this morning pretty early because he was hurling all 60 lbs of amped up energy at the cat.  He had a good time playing with a German Shepherd there and is now sleeping happily in the kitchen.  I strongly suspect another long walk will be needed later in the day.

[isalicat]

Louis Update: We went to the vet today for his complimentary post adoption exam (our vet offers a free check up to any animal adopted from the local shelter - is that not cool?) and apparently he is more like 10 or 11 years old (rather than 8 which is what the shelter said - my vet says the shelter tends to do this in order to get the older animals adopted more quickly - frankly I don't care, he is a keeper!). He is very healthy except for long neglected dental issues so now I get to spend a small fortune to have that addressed but I am waiting a few weeks to let him get further settled in his new home. My previous cat was a hunter and thus did not need his teeth brushed but apparently this guy will so that will be a new skill set for me :)  Louis also skitters sideways a bit when he runs and the vet said he has an old injury to his left hip/leg that did not heal properly - its possible he was hit by a car - who knows? - but it is not causing him any pain, just a funny gait. The trip to the vet (including being put in the carrier and the car) was a bit of a setback in terms of his comfort level, so he is back under the bed now hiding out. I assume he will come out when he gets hungry...

[DeLurker]

I'm glad he's healthy because he sounds like he landed in a pretty sweet home.

You might try leaving his carrier out someplace that he is frequently in and set some treats in there for him to find every couple days - he'll start to develop a habit of checking it for goodies.  He'll get more comfortable with it and associate it with good things so hopefully getting in it next time won't be so stressful for either of you.  If it is the type that has a top that you can take off, you might do that to allow him a little reassurance that he won't get boxed in.

[Bastet]

My local shelter includes a certificate for a free initial wellness exam when you adopt a pet, but my vet's office provides it free on their own. 

In general, once a cat gets past three years of age, there's a lot of guessing when using their teeth, eyes, coat, etc. to estimate how old they are.  On average, a group of signs of aging kick in around seven, so with those who are "middle aged" but not yet seniors (so, approximately 7-14), it's hard to make a firm estimate of where within that range they fall.  So, Louis may be eight but with worse teeth than the average 8-year-old cat.  Or, indeed, he may be in the 10/11 range and the shelter estimated down to increase his chances.  As you said -- it matters not!

I'm glad he got a good bill of health other than the yucky teeth.  Riley needs hers cleaned, too.  Normally, I'd have brought her back in within a month of her exam (so her blood test results would still be valid as pre-anesthesia screening), but since she was such a scaredy cat then, I couldn't justify putting her through a whole day's ordeal; I'd just pay for another round of blood tests when she was ready.  By the six-month mark, I figured she could handle it fine, but that was December and I realized if I just waited until February we'd get a discount since that's dental health month at the vet's office, plus she needs to go in then for her four-month anal gland check anyway.  So, she got a reprieve and will go in next month.  Don't tell her that. ;-)

Edited January 7, 2017 by Bastet

[riley702]

I got the girls' teeth done last February for the first time (they were 5) because there was a sweet February deal. I may not do it every year, but now their annual stuff is in February, so it will always be "on sale" if it needs to be done. And Swiffer is getting her butt checked out in February, too. Hope she's not too ticked at me.

[harrie]

@isalicat, yay for Louis's overall good health!  Our cat Clyde had a terrible diet in his previous life, causing his teeth to be in terrible shape.  There was ulceration involved, but it's been a while and I don't recall the exact term. Anyway, he ended up having all four "fang" teeth extracted, and it made a huge difference - his pain was gone, and having just the little bitty teeth didn't slow him down a bit, food-wise. It really improved his life (and when he yawned it was just so super-cute).

Cats can be hard to age, as @Bastet pointed out, but my vet agrees with your vet. The first dog we adopted was three years old according to the pound, but even I could tell she was older than that. On her first visit to the vet we told him what the pound said and he replied "Every animal at the pound is either three months or three years old."  She was still a most awesome dog, even though we were only blessed with her company for a couple of years. I hope you have many fun, rewarding years with Louis.

Edited January 7, 2017 by harrie

[Maharincess]

@isalicat, I'm so happy that Louis has such a great home for his older years. 

Brushing a cat's teeth is the worst. Every one of my cats has gone crazy when I've tried to brush their teeth. 

I've been poking around the Border Collie rescue today. I'd like to adopt one that has had a rough life like I did with Kaylee but I'm not sure if I'm up to taking on such an extreme case again. I loved turning Kaylee's life around but it took a lot out if me and I just don't know if I have it in me to do it again. 

[ABay]

Let me be the millionth to say "yay, Louis!" My old boy cat and his brother had horrible teeth and now he has none. It doesn't keep him away from the dry food--although he prefers wet--and the only treats he'll eat are hard. He just gums them, I guess.

[ABay]

Let me be the millionth to say "yay, Louis!" My old boy cat and his brother had horrible teeth and now he has none. It doesn't keep him away from the dry food--although he prefers wet--and the only treats he'll eat are hard. He just gums them, I guess.

[bubbls]

My prayer for today: God help me to go another day without murdering my TEENAGED bulldog mix in a fit of rage. Thank you. Amen. 

[bosawks]

Neither rain nor snow nor dark of night shall keep Alli from her appointed rounds.....

[DeLurker]

Alli makes the world a better place.

[Moose135]

If she still had the cone, she could use it as a plow to clear the walkway... ;-)

[bosawks]

3 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

If she still had the cone, she could use it as a plow to clear the walkway... ;-)

I have got to find that cone!

[Maharincess]

I live for the Ali pictures. She always makes my day because she seems so happy. 

[Lantern7]

Coming in from the now-Vaulted Soft Kitty thread. I do not have an animal of my own, but I like seeing them online. Like House Of Bulldogs, featuring unruly Bulldogs from Thailand. Here are the latest bits:

Danny Boy's puppies play/fight.

Logan more or less molests his "dad."

Uncle Fatty deals with the "kids."

Comparing Danny Boy as puppy to one of his kids.

And my big "go-to" Instagram account features Paddington, the off-white Shar-Pei that is my spirit animal. I wound up getting a bare-bones calendar for my mother, who likes the guy as well.

[Cranberry]

I wondered why Crystal was lagging on our walk... then I noticed this, I had to pick her up and carry her home!

 

[Maharincess]

@Cranberry, oh my god, Crystal is adorable!  That face!  Those ears!  She is just too damn cute. Thank you for sharing that picture. It's been a crappy day, I can't sleep and Crystal just made my week. 

[raven]

Hello everyone!  Tai and I had an eventful end to 2016.  In October we were taking a few days off and she broke her leg.  VERY long story short, the bone was not repairable, weakened (though she had not had any symptoms or favored it) due to the fact that she had cancer (as was discovered when a biopsy was done).   A biopsy?  Yes, because her leg was amputated.   What a nightmare.  Tai of course has rallied and is adapting very well (she is awesome).  At the time of the amp, her lungs were checked and she was showing no other signs of cancer - though, of course, it could come back.

So she is nearly 3 months into her 3 legged life - or TriPawd :D  I was lucky to find a site dedicated to those with TriPawds, which has been incredibly supportive as well as having lots of good info.  Tai goes to physical therapy to strengthen her core and remaining hind leg and she has exercises to do at home.  Unfortunately in December I tore a ligament in my knee which has limited what I can do with her, though we still go walking, just not as far.  She is very happy to go to the park - here she is a week ago (we are now buried under a bunch of snow).

Anyway, it can't be said enough, she is awesome :)

[raven]

Yes, before I hurt my knee, Tai was ready to go on her usual park walk and I ended up having to carry her back to the car.  She is 14 and arthritic but still raring to go, which is pretty much what I was told would happen.   She wants to go, go, she gets tired a bit earlier than usual.   She is always ready to play hide and seek with a toy too!

[harrie]

@raven, I'm so glad Tai (and you) adjusted so well to such a challenge. She really is awesome! 

@Cranberry, I remember those infernal ice balls well. I grew up with a cockapoo whose fur/hair did the same thing. He'd leave little puddles around as the ice melted.  Crystal is quite the cutie.

[bosawks]

Joy!

For her, me, I was freezing my butt off.....

[DeLurker]

@bosawks - think of it this way - you do it for the greater good since we love to see pictures of your happy pup.  So thank you.

In other news, the Kook is finally able to go out in the backyard off leash since he is recovered enough from his surgery.  I let him out for the second time this morning right before I sat down at the computer to check my email, etc...after about 20 minutes I hear a door open, but I assume it is my son in the kitchen getting some breakfast.  A minute later the Kook comes strolling in to see me.  Either I did not close the door properly (unlikely, but maybe) or he has figured out how to open the door from outside.  I'd be ok with that as long as he learns to close the door after himself.

[Maharincess]

Hi Alli!!  

@DeLurker, that's hilarious that Kook came in on his own. I net you were shocked!  

I taught my dog Harley how to close doors.  All I had to do was say "Harley, mamas cold" and he would run over and close the door.  He was so smart, even for a Border Collie which is the smartest breed of dog, he was extra smart.  It took me 11 minutes to teach him how to close the doors.  

[JTMacc99]

11 hours ago, DeLurker said:

In other news, the Kook is finally able to go out in the backyard off leash since he is recovered enough from his surgery. 

Good to hear! Luna the kitten took about 6 days from her surgery to be back to normal. Normal for her is tearing around the house, climbing up everything and so on. The phrase curiosity killed the cat applies very closely to Luna. 

[Maharincess]

The surgery didn't phase my psycho cat in the least. She walked out of the carrier, jumped on the couch and never slowed down a bit. I tried my damnedest to keep her calm afterwards but it was futile so I just gave up. Nothing slows this crazy cat down. 

[DeLurker]

My niece has a super submissive dog - forget what type, but not a big dog and probably less than 15 - 20 lbs.  When they have people over, he comes over to meet them (on his own), but then immediately does a submissive pee.

If you guys have any suggestions or can point me to a website that might be helpful in your experience, that would be greatly appreciated.

[Lantern7]

Forgive me if this isn't appropriate for a pet thread. I found a video of animals at the Portland Zoo enjoying the snow, including one that I don't associate with that sort of weather.

[DeLurker]

Thanks...I really needed that today.

 

Ended up sharing that on another site set up by a PTVer.  It'll be appreciated over there.

Edited January 13, 2017 by DeLurker