Pet(s): Photos & Discussion

[Mindthinkr]

2 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

 

I haven't landed on a middle name for Little Mama yet. Little Girl's middle name is Luna.

How about Celeste for celestial? 

[KnoxForPres]

Thank you so much everyone for your kind words. I truly appreciate them- so much. 

Just got the call that she’s out of surgery and doing well and they got all of the mass. I get to pick her up after 4. I will take her to my parents house. I’ll let everyone know what the pathology says but I’m just glad to hear she did well and is alive!

it was a tech who called so I didn’t get tons of detail- maybe I’ll learn more when I pick her up  

thanks again to everyone. Internet is an amazing invention 

[CoderLady]

@KnoxForPres That's wonderful! I hope everything continues to be good.

[Mindthinkr]

@KnoxForPres Wishing her a speedy recovery and good pathology report. 

[bilgistic]

46 minutes ago, Mindthinkr said:

How about Celeste for celestial? 

I love it!

46 minutes ago, KnoxForPres said:

Thank you so much everyone for your kind words. I truly appreciate them- so much. 

Just got the call that she’s out of surgery and doing well and they got all of the mass. I get to pick her up after 4. I will take her to my parents house. I’ll let everyone know what the pathology says but I’m just glad to hear she did well and is alive!

it was a tech who called so I didn’t get tons of detail- maybe I’ll learn more when I pick her up  

thanks again to everyone. Internet is an amazing invention 

Yay, Knox! She's a fighter!

[isalicat]

When my 20 year old cat, Mister Oh, went over the Rainbow Bridge two years ago next month we knew immediately we would be adopted again but waited a bit (wanted to get through the holiday season before bringing a new cat in). So in January of 2017 we went off the shelter and were immediately spotted by our lovely senior orange tom, whom the shelter had named Morris (what a cliche!). I had been having dreams that my next cat would be named Lewis but when we met him it was clear that he deserved something more regal and therefore: Louis. So nice to see that the new Windsor prince is also a Louis! When the vet calls to confirm appointments etc. we go through a ritual of them saying "Lewis" and me saying "no, Louis" and they laugh and say sorry....In any case I haven't a clue if Louis really knows his name - I call him "baby" a lot (which my husband has turned into "l'enfant") but I don't think he cares much. The sound of one of those little cans opening is really all he wants to hear!

[tiftgirl]

@KnoxForPres so glad to hear that they got all the mass and she is doing well.  I know you were so glad to pick her up and take her home, or to your parents.  Good vibes for the path results!

I love learning everyone's names for their furbabies!

When Shana showed up at my door and I realized no one would claim her, I asked my best friend how to say Pretty Girl in Yiddish, so Shana Madel she is.

When the babies were born he said, Let's give them all Yiddish names.  Their middles names came after their little personality/quirks developed.  As @MargeGunderson said it's hard to admonish without a middle name and they are just fun.  :)

I have:

Shana Madel Diva (because she is)

Shlamey Imelda Bowie (she has thing for shoes and bi-colored eyes)

The boys were:

Shmuel Jethro Oedipus (Beverly Hillbillies, not Tull, he would eat anything and he looooovvveeedd his Momma)

Shlomo Michael Felix (the Archangel - after I came home from surgery he never left my side and he was extremely finicky like in the Odd Couple.)

Of course they have various nicknames too.

[Bastet]

50 minutes ago, tiftgirl said:

As @MargeGunderson said it's hard to admonish without a middle name

Exactly!  "Baxter Adam, get off your sister!" was a common refrain around here for his 13 years.  Maddie hardly ever got full named, but she still knew that when "Madeleine Alice" came out, it was time to do whatever Mommy was saying.

Riley is Riley Alexandra.  I purposely gave Maddie and Baxter middle names starting with the same letter, and, while I wasn't deliberately thinking of A names, when I liked the sound of Alexandra with Riley, I decided to continue the tradition.

So far, so good on Knox - yay!  I hope the pathology report continues the good news.

Edited May 25, 2018 by Bastet

[bilgistic]

Bilgisticat's middle name was Alexander. :)

[Bastet]

Well, great minds do think alike.  :-)

[KnoxForPres]

When I adopted Knox she was still very young but the shelter had named her Oregano. I actually think that’s kind of a cute name (and Lord knows I like food) but it felt a hair long and not conducive to nickname and I tend to like “real” names for pets. 

Ive never done a middle name and you guys are making me rethink all my past pets!

I live in Tennessee so people probably assume she’s named after Knoxville as that’s the big football town. She’s actually named after Knox Overstreet who was a character in Dead Poets Society. I loved that name when I heard it years ago and it stuck with me. Damn Angie and Brad for using it first :)

And yes she’s a girl but somehow Knox is perfect for her. I’ll also call her Knoxie and randomly Grisabella (yes there is no rationale for this but I do). 

So her sutures looks great and thus far is in a spot she can’t get to by mouth (yay!).  Yesterday she was out of it it enough she just snoozed and today I see a few times she’s tried to itch it with legs. Mind you she’s not as strong as she was once since the disc surgery but still I’m like “please don’t reach there!”  If anyone has words of wisdom from your own trials I would love to hear how you handled it. Itching isn’t anything a collar of shame (which she is Houdini with anyway) would help with.

When I was in kindergarten living in Baltimore we had a cat wander up to our house and my sister and I wanted it.  Parents relented.  We named her Colors.  In hindsight and pictures she was a black cat with some gray and tan yet my sister and I must have seen so many colors, haha.  Through the years on my own I’ve given my animals names derived from novels (or movies) but I have such a soft spot for Colors.  She was independent as hell but wore that name proudly and I have zero regrets.

[emma675]

Bonnie came home from a stay at the kennel while I was out of town and less than 24 hours later she had explosive diarrhea and vomiting. She spent the day at the vet and now is on an anti nausea medicine, a probiotic, an antibiotic and special food. She had an IV because she was dehydrated. We don't know if she caught a bug, ate something she shouldnt have, or if it's bad anxiety. She still has a little diarrhea this evening but she did drink some water and ate some of the food. My poor doggy.

[CoderLady]

@emma675 Hugs (and lots of fluids) to Bonnie. If it's going away already it might just be like those 24-hour bugs kids pick up at daycare. Poor doggy, indeed.

[bilgistic]

Every time I scoop the catbox, Little Girl has to explore the floor of the linen closet in the bathroom where all the supplies are stored. Something exciting might have changed in there since the last time she was in there.

Last night, she managed to climb into the bag of pooper scooper bags and get turned around and decide to sit there and watch me work. I didn't notice her for a few minutes, since she always roots around in there. I swear she did this by herself, though I did have to get her attention for the picture. She jumped right out when I was done. She's so relentlessly silly.

I had to dial up the brightness so you can see her little nose. The light's reflecting off her lip; it's not a white spot.

[deemac]

Lost my oldest bunny Lucky yesterday.  In six weeks I would of had him 11 years.  He out lived 3 'wives'

[KnoxForPres]

16 hours ago, emma675 said:

Bonnie came home from a stay at the kennel while I was out of town and less than 24 hours later she had explosive diarrhea and vomiting. She spent the day at the vet and now is on an anti nausea medicine, a probiotic, an antibiotic and special food. She had an IV because she was dehydrated. We don't know if she caught a bug, ate something she shouldnt have, or if it's bad anxiety. She still has a little diarrhea this evening but she did drink some water and ate some of the food. My poor doggy.

How is Bonnie?  Poor little angel- that sounds miserable (for you too).

[Mindthinkr]

@deemac I’m very sorry to hear that you lost your bunny Lucky yesterday. He sure was handsome. My condolences. 

[emma675]

Thanks for the kind thoughts, everyone. Bonnie is a little better today, she had one more bit of diarrhea this morning but nothing since and she hasn't thrown up again since Thursday. She loves the bland wet food but she's not drinking as much as I'd like. She's not normally a big water drinker as it is, but I don't want her to get dehydrated again. She can only have water, she has to be on a low fat, very bland diet for a while so her guts can heal. I did trick her into drinking some water by letting her drink out of a glass; she's fascinated with plates and glasses for some reason.

[walnutqueen]

I am so sorry for you loss, @deemac.

[bilgistic]

7 hours ago, deemac said:

Lost my oldest bunny Lucky yesterday.  In six weeks I would of had him 11 years.  He out lived 3 'wives'

I'm sorry, @deemac. He's a pretty little guy.

[DeLurker]

Pet names - when I was 4 we got a new cat.  He was light brown and white about 1/2 each.

I wanted to name him Snowy (I was 4!) and one of my brother's wanted to name him Browney (he was 10).  

Our brilliant compromise resulted in a cat named Snowbrown.

[bilgistic]

1 hour ago, DeLurker said:

Pet names - when I was 4 we got a new cat.  He was light brown and white about 1/2 each.

I wanted to name him Snowy (I was 4!) and one of my brother's wanted to name him Browney (he was 10).  

Our brilliant compromise resulted in a cat named Snowbrown.

Better than Brownsnow. Don't eat it or Yellowsnow.

[bosawks]

Here’s Alli ready to jump into the holiday!

 

[KnoxForPres]

On 5/26/2018 at 1:45 PM, deemac said:

Lost my oldest bunny Lucky yesterday.  In six weeks I would of had him 11 years.  He out lived 3 'wives'

Losing a pet is so hard- I’m so sorry. I’m not sure why but I’ve been down recently and knowing lovely Lucky was loved for (almost) eleven years has brought me a lot of joy.  Thank you for being an amazing pet owner.  I also think he looks very wise and all knowing. Sending you comforting thoughts and what a lucky little bunny that was. 

[DeLurker]

Does anyone have any experience with the Bissell Bark Bath?

I saw it in a Bed Bath and Beyond this weekend and, theoretically, it would shorten the amount of time it takes to give Kook a bath - his least favorite activity ever.  It claims you can use it in the house, but I am not silly enough to believe that is a solid idea.

Last week I was giving the pets their nightly scritches and cuddles before I go to bed.  Kook tried to purr like Sir Robin does, but because he's a dog it come out as a low growl.  It may have been the funniest thing ever.

Edited May 29, 2018 by DeLurker

[KnoxForPres]

The doctor (yes the vet not a tech) just called with pathology and Knoxie is 100% benign with no markings! And not a type to recur!  So happy I can’t tell you.

I have not heard of Bissell Bark Bath but a cursory Google search yields very meh to bad reviews.  Maybe others here who have experience can chime in on positive.

[Bastet]

2 minutes ago, KnoxForPres said:

The doctor (yes the vet not a tech) just called with pathology and Knoxie is 100% benign with no markings! And not a type to recur!  So happy I can’t tell you.

FANTASTIC!  What great relief for you - I'm happy to hear it.

[isalicat]

Cat advice needed! I just picked up Louis from three days boarding at the vet during which he had his teeth cleaned and they needed to pull two teeth (one upper canine and one lower molar). He had his teeth cleaned there about 1-1/2 years ago and they did not need to do any extractions then. I have had a lot of kitties over my lifetime and never had one with dental issues before. The vet said that because he is a senior tom and doesn't digest dry food well that an entirely wet food diet is good for him overall but unfortunately contributes to the dental problems as the tartar on his teeth is not being scraped off by the crunchy dry food. So he recommended 1/4 dry food/3/4 wet food diet from now on. Do any of you know the best dry food that is particularly good for cat's teeth? We were going to go back and get the dry food we used to give my previous tom but then I thought I better ask you all as this forum is so rich in cat knowledge! (By the way - the bill for three days boarding, two vaccines and the dental work was $890.00 Yikes!)

[Bastet]

Dry food isn't a particularly effective teeth cleanser.  Yes, they chew, but so do we.  And we brush.  But we still have to go in for professional cleanings because there's still tartar/plaque despite the brushing, and the real problems are under the gums anyway.  Plus, despite the crunching we hear while they eat, cats swallow some of their dry food whole (look at it when it comes right back up - it looks pretty much like it did going down, right? - and even cats with no teeth at all can eat dry food).  It's better to just feed a healthy canned or raw diet, with dry food a treat at most, and brush the cat's teeth if you can (I can't do Riley's), understanding that - like us - some cats just have worse teeth than others, and will thus need more regular cleanings (and, even with that, may need the occasional extraction).

So, there is no dry food particularly good for teeth.  But if you do want to feed dry food, the healthiest options are the few on the market that are not far higher in carbohydrate content than is ideal for cats (they're still higher than idea, but not as bad as the majority) and use fairly good ingredients -- EVO, Nature's Variety, or Wellness Core. 

I'm glad Louis is back home, and hope he isn't too sore from the extraction.  And I hope your bank account isn't too sore from that bill.  Ouch.  Completely in line with what it would cost here, so I'm not disparaging your vet, just commiserating - Ouch.

[isalicat]

Thanks, Bastet! I am definitely not going to be able to brush Louis' teeth so I guess we will just go with annual cleanings and hope for the best, poor boy. He is purring like crazy now that he is home! I was feeling so bad while we were gone because he came from the shelter and I kept imagining him thinking that we had sent him away for some reason he could not fathom. As to the bank account: I think that when you take on a pet you sign up for whatever...its part of the deal but the money spent never equals the great joy they bring to your life. I am blessed to be able to afford to care for Louis and its a privilege to do so. (I know many people are not so fortunate...)

[CoderLady]

2 hours ago, KnoxForPres said:

The doctor (yes the vet not a tech) just called with pathology and Knoxie is 100% benign with no markings! And not a type to recur!  So happy I can’t tell you.

Whoo! I'm so glad you don't have to worry anymore and that Knoxie is going to be ok! Yes!

[riley702]

4 hours ago, DeLurker said:

Kook tried to purr like Sir Robin does, but because he's a dog it come out as a low growl.  It may have been the funniest thing ever.

My brother and SIL's Golden, Daisy, does this low-rumble when she's feeling playful. The first time I heard it, I wondered if she was growling, but it's pretty funny now. If my brother rumbles back at her, he can get her so excited she starts bouncing on her front legs.

[DeLurker]

@isalicat - My cat eats mostly dry food and one is a prescription brand (Hills Prescription Diet t/d for dental care) and NUTRO High Protein Adult Cat Chicken & Whole Brown Rice Recipe.  He likes both of them very well and we don't go through the issues of him suddenly deciding that he won't eat X any longer (my Mom's cat does this every couple of weeks to her).  I'm sure that is more a reflection on my cat being agreeable than the food.  He's about 4 1/2 - 5 yo and his teeth were in good shape when I adopted him 2 years ago.

I haven't been consistent about giving him some dehydrated cat food - either The Honest Kitchen Grain Free Turkey or Only Natural Pet Easy Raw Cat Food - but I sometimes use this once a day for him too.

A couple of times a week I use a wash cloth slightly dampened and with some pet toothpaste* on it and give his teeth a sorta brush.  He's not thrilled about it and I can really only access the front side of the teeth, but since the dog gets his teeth brushed every day he suffers through (partially because they both have extremely jealous hearts and he can't stand that the dog gets a few minutes of my exclusive attention).

Usually I use Virbac CET Enzymatic toothpaste which is for dogs and cats.

@KnoxForPres - a collective sigh of relief from all of us!  Yeah!

[deemac]

3 hours ago, isalicat said:

Cat advice needed! I just picked up Louis from three days boarding at the vet during which he had his teeth cleaned and they needed to pull two teeth (one upper canine and one lower molar). He had his teeth cleaned there about 1-1/2 years ago and they did not need to do any extractions then. I have had a lot of kitties over my lifetime and never had one with dental issues before. The vet said that because he is a senior tom and doesn't digest dry food well that an entirely wet food diet is good for him overall but unfortunately contributes to the dental problems as the tartar on his teeth is not being scraped off by the crunchy dry food. So he recommended 1/4 dry food/3/4 wet food diet from now on. Do any of you know the best dry food that is particularly good for cat's teeth? We were going to go back and get the dry food we used to give my previous tom but then I thought I better ask you all as this forum is so rich in cat knowledge! (By the way - the bill for three days boarding, two vaccines and the dental work was $890.00 Yikes!)

Ouch.  When Ebony had to have an emergency tooth extraction they went ahead and cleaned all his teeth.  So no boarding, no vaccines, just the one extraction and cleaning it was $220.00, but a lot when you're on social security.  Apache goes  in tomorrow for all the lumps and bumps he has been rapidly growing.  I'm dreading both the results and the expense.  His previous life is unknown but he totally blossomed when I brought the 2 girl pups home for him to boss around so I'd say the last 3+ years of his life have been good and hopefully more.

Edited to add.....my vet also says dry food does not help the teeth.  I always thought it did.

d

Edited May 29, 2018 by deemac
add more

[shanndee]

Hi Everyone. It would appear that I am really bad at this whole being a part of an online community thing.  :(  

It is sad that it took reading breaking news about the Walking Dead to get me back here. I have missed chatting with you guys, so I wanted to pop in to say hello. So...hello! I hope everyone is doing well, and I'll try to stop in more often.

:)

[DeLurker]

Went to meet Toonces today and it went well.  We're doing this on a trial basis first just to make sure things go ok.  I took Kook over with me and he was indifferent to the cats there until he noticed Toonces was getting too much attention.  At that point he presented himself for pets and praise.

Toonces probably won't be the name, but we'll figure out something.

She's quite pretty, not too big - maybe 9-10 lbs, but her body seems very solid!  Sir Robin is 10 lbs too, but very slinky.

This is the picture from the classified.  I think she looks a bit washed out so I guess it was the lighting.

 

[Bastet]

Aww, a grey tabby with a little brown (like Riley, although they look nothing alike other than their general markings and coloring).  Clearly, she is perfect. ;-)

I hope everything works out.

Edited June 1, 2018 by Bastet

[DeLurker]

Thank you!

My nephew and his roommate met me there - they both know a lot about dogs and cats.  The roomie is actually a pet groomer.  That allowed me to interact and hold the cat while one of them held Kook's leash.  I also got to see how the cat did when more strange people were around - as long as we were petting her, she was cool with it.  They drove her back to my house and said after a few meows, she was quiet the entire ride.

Things have gone well for the first night.  I set her up in my son's room so she has some space of her own in this strange new world.  She went under the bed right away, but came out within 10 minutes.  I made sure she had all the important stuff - litter box, water, food, a new scratching pad (Trader Joe's - double sided and Sir Robin loves them), and a new bedding pad that is all her own (but got a new one for Sir Robin too)

My son hung out in there for the first 30 minutes or so,  When I came back to check on them, she was quite comfortably lounging on the bed at his feet.  I went in his room several times in the evening just to let her get more used to me.  I'd hang out for 10 minutes or so each time and she was purring each time within a couple of minutes.  She's flop over on her side to give me more area to rub.

Sir Robin knows there is another cat here, but other than trying to sneak a peek his chi is not disrupted.  Toonces knows there is another cat outside the bedroom, but seems largely indifferent to it too.  Since Sir Robin likes to hang out in the garage sometimes, I'll open the bedroom door and Toonces can explore at will.  I also figured I would swap out their respective scratching pads and bedding so they get a better sniff at each other.

So far so good!

[Mindthinkr]

@DeLurker Not that I’m an expert but it seems to me that you have thought things out and have done everything in a logical caring way. I have a feeling that it’s all going to work out well. Congratulations. Let me know when you have decided on a new name. 

[KnoxForPres]

On 5/29/2018 at 3:31 PM, isalicat said:

Thanks, Bastet! I am definitely not going to be able to brush Louis' teeth so I guess we will just go with annual cleanings and hope for the best, poor boy. He is purring like crazy now that he is home! I was feeling so bad while we were gone because he came from the shelter and I kept imagining him thinking that we had sent him away for some reason he could not fathom. As to the bank account: I think that when you take on a pet you sign up for whatever...its part of the deal but the money spent never equals the great joy they bring to your life. I am blessed to be able to afford to care for Louis and its a privilege to do so. (I know many people are not so fortunate...)

This resonates with me a lot. I chose to (and thankfully could afford) have the disc surgery on Knox. But not everyone could do that and I had a cool talk with physical therapist for her (yes I’m insane).

I told her one of the reasons I decided to is Knox is very serious about her bathroom habits and has a sense of pride if that makes sense. The girl never has an accident since I trained her so many years ago. The PT said dogs don’t care at all. She’d be just as happy on a little wheelbarrow type device as walking and shatting and peeing whenever, wherever. 

I had given her human traits and the PT I’m sure was right. Sometimes maybe we can’t afford the best but the animal is like “I’m cool- let’s do this”.  And if that’s the best we can do and keep our companion than game on. 

[KnoxForPres]

And @DeLurker oh yes!

[MargeGunderson]

Warning - end of life issue below.

I’m worried that we may have to put down Kitty Gunderson the Elder. She seems to have lost some control of her bladder. She uses the boxes some times, but other times she just goes wherever she is. Of course I’m taking her to the vet to be checked out, but at almost 22 years, there isn’t much we can do. I’m sure it’s not a UTI; she’s had plenty of those over the last 3 years, and this is very different behavior.  Other than this issue, she’s a pretty happy cat, and frankly peeing outside of the box does not seem to bother her one bit. This is just really hard because it’s not clear cut. I don’t want to feel like I’m making this decision for the wrong reason. 

[Mindthinkr]

13 minutes ago, MargeGunderson said:

Warning - end of life issue below.

I’m worried that we may have to put down Kitty Gunderson the Elder. She seems to have lost some control of her bladder. She uses the boxes some times, but other times she just goes wherever she is. Of course I’m taking her to the vet to be checked out, but at almost 22 years, there isn’t much we can do. I’m sure it’s not a UTI; she’s had plenty of those over the last 3 years, and this is very different behavior.  Other than this issue, she’s a pretty happy cat, and frankly peeing outside of the box does not seem to bother her one bit. This is just really hard because it’s not clear cut. I don’t want to feel like I’m making this decision for the wrong reason. 

I feel for Kitty Gunderson...the elder becoming infirm. It’s hard to know when the right time is. You and your vet have to assess what’s wrong, is she in any pain, and if you keep her going will she have quality of life. You stated she’s pretty happy. You have my heartfelt sympathy going through this with her. Is she losing her senses and hence not knowing or remembering where her box is? The urge may happen for her to pee so suddenly that she just can’t make it in time. I wish you a good resolution with this one. 22 years is a good long life for a cat but here’s nothing wrong with making it 23...health willing. 

[tiftgirl]

Oh @MargeGunderson I do hope you find out what is going on with Kitty Gunderson the Elder and it is something that can be dealt with and not as bad as you fear.

I have no doubt any decision you make will be because it is best for her.  As @Mindthinkr said how will this affect her quality of life.

You didn't say when you appointment is, but the Tift family has all our fingers and paws crossed for the best outcome and the wisdom and clarity to find the right answer.

I know this must be an awful weekend for you and I wish I had words to make it better, but lacking that, I do offer virtual hugs.

[AgentRXS]

Talk about an invasion of personal space. I have no idea how Ella is ok with Diamond sitting on half her body like that.

[bosawks]

Hurry up!

[JTMacc99]

Well, we lost Oreo the Guinea Pig over the Memorial Day weekend. This weekend we welcomed Peanut the Guinea Pig into the fold. She looks so small next to S'mores. 

And she's a climber!

[riley702]

Sorry for your loss of Oreo, and congrats on Peanut the climber!

[AgentRXS]

I'm so sorry about Oreo. Peanut is adorable!

In other news, Ella hates Mondays.

 

[JTMacc99]

Oh my, that’s some look.