Pet(s): Photos & Discussion

[supposebly]

9 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Pollen?

It started in the winter and it's been better since she's been able to go outside on the balcony. So, that's unlikely. Thanks for the input!

Maybe I should add, that there are no skin issues. She's always been a bit sneezy and teary but I put that down to her rather flat face and assumed her sinuses are just somewhat clogged up due to that. Some flat-faced cat breed in her ancestry I assume.

Edited June 12, 2022 by supposebly

[isalicat]

On 6/9/2022 at 6:52 PM, luv2lurk said:

The problem is, she has no name. I call her Little One, or TK (Tortie Kitty). But neither of those are permanent names.

SO, I am hoping the creative minds here (and/or their daughter - looking at you @JTMacc99) can make some suggestions    

I think TK is great. My calico girl was named Kali, after the Hindu goddess, and my main internet handle is still Kalimom in her honor. She lived until she was 23! (Her mom was a feral Siamese who dropped off two weaned kittens at my back door - her brother was an entirely black long hair whom we named Krishna, but unfortunately he disappeared when they were about 2 years old.) Your little one is absolutely adorable so enjoy!

[Scarlett45]

On 6/9/2022 at 8:52 PM, luv2lurk said:

Hello everyone - I have a new kitten in my life:

She is 8 weeks old and looks remarkably like my former cat of 20.5 years, except no orange diamond on her forehead. She is very playful - any hockey team could use her skills on handling pucks, err crinkle balls.

The problem is, she has no name. I call her Little One, or TK (Tortie Kitty). But neither of those are permanent names.

SO, I am hoping the creative minds here (and/or their daughter - looking at you @JTMacc99) can make some suggestions                 

Ummmm how about Tikka (like Tortie Kitty) she’s so cute. She also looks like a Raina, Angela or Davina to me.

We had a storm last night, I got back from my evening walk (without Cosmo, just after the tornado sirens started), and it seems Lady Reese spent the night in the coat closet. (I knew she was in the house but I thought she was hiding from the storm, when she didn’t appear at breakfast I went searching- she was ready to come out of the closet then)

But here are the boys. 
 

Cosmo was brave, then a little less brave- Cavendish just wanted attention. 

[SoMuchTV]

I'm not sure if I should post this here, or in Health & Wellness, or maybe in Pet Peeves... but could somebody please tell Mr. Fuzz that the CDC says he should not be snuggling with me after a positive Covid test, even if it would make me feel better.

[Scarlett45]

52 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

I'm not sure if I should post this here, or in Health & Wellness, or maybe in Pet Peeves... but could somebody please tell Mr. Fuzz that the CDC says he should not be snuggling with me after a positive Covid test, even if it would make me feel better.

Awww I’m sorry. Feel better. 

[SoMuchTV]

4 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Awww I’m sorry. Feel better. 

Thanks. I really just feel like I have a “regular” cold, but but the advice I’m seeing says to stay away from pets. Hard to do in this case!

[Scarlett45]

1 minute ago, SoMuchTV said:

Thanks. I really just feel like I have a “regular” cold, but but the advice I’m seeing says to stay away from pets. Hard to do in this case!

I know it’s so sweet they want to comfort you!

[Annber03]

We had a hard time with that, too, when we were sick with COVID. Hope you feel better soon, @SoMuchTV!

Also sorry your pets got freaked out by the storm last night, @Scarlette45. Especially with tornado sirens going, that is scary. Hope the weather's much better and calmer where you are today :). 

Edited June 14, 2022 by Annber03

[Scarlett45]

1 hour ago, Annber03 said:

We had a hard time with that, too, when we were sick with COVID. Hope you feel better soon, @SoMuchTV!

Also sorry your pets got freaked out by the storm last night, @Scarlette45. Especially with tornado sirens going, that is scary. Hope the weather's much better and calmer where you are today :). 

Today it is BOILING in Chicago today, 100 degrees! Cosmo went for a short walk this afternoon (I was in the office), and I put ice cubes in his water when we got in from our evening jaunt. 

[isalicat]

[Annber03]

52 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Today it is BOILING in Chicago today, 100 degrees! Cosmo went for a short walk this afternoon (I was in the office), and I put ice cubes in his water when we got in from our evening jaunt. 

Ugh, I'm sorry :/. It's hot here, too. Not into the 100s, thankfully, but still pretty blech. Perfect day for ice cold water, indeed :D. No doubt he enjoyed that1 

I always feel bad for our cat Lily when it gets hot out, 'cause she's got such thick fur. She likes to lay on the kitchen floor or under the bed on days like this to keep cool. And the air conditioning helps, too, of course. 

[Scarlett45]

1 minute ago, Annber03 said:

Ugh, I'm sorry :/. It's hot here, too. Not into the 100s, thankfully, but still pretty blech. Perfect day for ice cold water, indeed :D. No doubt he enjoyed that1 

I always feel bad for our cat Lily when it gets hot out, 'cause she's got such thick fur. She likes to lay on the kitchen floor or under the bed on days like this to keep cool. And the air conditioning helps, too, of course. 

Lady Reese plops on the floor when it’s hot! They came here in Dec, so this is our first summer together. 

[Leeds]

On 6/9/2022 at 7:24 PM, Mondrianyone said:

Your baby sort of looks like she's wearing a scarf, so I thought maybe Isadora, Izzy for short.

It seems a bit unkind to put a death wish on a kitten, given what happened to Isadora Duncan and her scarf.

[Mondrianyone]

1 hour ago, Leeds said:

It seems a bit unkind to put a death wish on a kitten, given what happened to Isadora Duncan and her scarf.

I hope you're joking. Unless you know for a fact that this kitten has a driver's license.

[luv2lurk]

To quote T.S. Eliot, the naming of cats is a difficult matter. And I want to thank each and every one of you for your suggestions.

I did consider Isadora (hearing it my head as I adore [you], or I is adora[ble]) but that is a long name, and Izzy is reserved for a Grey's Anatomy character. I had no idea who Isadora Duncan was until I googled it. And happily this kitten does not wear a scarf in the car.

Similarly, TK is a male character on 911 Lone Star. I liked the suggestion of Tikka until I googled and found out it is a rifle manufactured in Finland.

Trixie is a cute name, but for some reason I think of a rabbit and cereal.

@Mondrianyone I would love to know how your Tortie got named after a type of cheese.

My first cat (female, long haired grey tabby) was named Oliver, so no to Olive Oil.

And she is too feisty to be a Daisy ;-)

Sorry if I left anyone out, but none of the names worked.

So, I decided on the name Selene who is Greek goddess of the moon. It started with the name Luna who is Roman (latin) goddess of the moon - but that name is SO common. And according to Google I can pronounce it in Greek as Say-LEN!

The kitten is responding to this pronunciation much better than the English one which is similar to a French-Canadian singer ☺️

[Leeds]

17 hours ago, luv2lurk said:

To quote T.S. Eliot, the naming of cats is a difficult matter. And I want to thank each and every one of you for your suggestions.

@Mondrianyone I would love to know how your Tortie got named after a type of cheese.

My first cat (female, long haired grey tabby) was named Oliver, so no to Olive Oil.

In the spirit of T.S. Eliot (anagram of toilets), I do have to wonder how your female cat came to be named Oliver.

Your mention of Eliot compelled me to pull out my ancient copy of Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats - originally my mum's from before she was married.

(On a different matter, this is a photo from the internet because for some reason I can't download a photo I've taken of my own book.  Why not?  Anyone know?)

Edited June 17, 2022 by Leeds

[SuprSuprElevated]

23 minutes ago, Leeds said:

In the spirit of T.S. Eliot (anagram of toilets), I do have to wonder how your female cat came to be named Oliver.

Your mention of Eliot compelled me to pull out my ancient copy of Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats - originally my mum's from before she was married.

(On a different matter, this is a photo from the internet because for some reason I can't download a photo I've taken of my own book.  Why not?  Anyone know?)

Many of my cell photos are too large and have to be reduced (shrinkpictures.com) Beyond that, is it perhaps a file type which isn't accepted?  Needs to be gif, jpeg, jpe, jpg, png, webp.  After that, I got nuttin'.

Edited June 17, 2022 by SuprSuprElevated

[luv2lurk]

19 minutes ago, Leeds said:

In the spirit of T.S. Eliot (anagram of toilets), I do have to wonder how your female cat came to be named Oliver.

In our fourth and final year of university, my friend decided she wanted to give me a kitten as a birthday present. However, my birthday is in mid-January and apparently no kittens were available at that time of the year due to breeding habits of cats (not sure if that is still the case). So it was actually late March when the kitten entered my life (the friend called to make sure I had finished an important paper before dropping the lovely surprise off!)

My birthday had always been associated with the musical Oliver! According to my parents they were listening to the LP record when my Mom went into labour. And every year on my birthday it was played.

So, kitten from the Humane Society - obviously an orphan just made sense.

Funnily, the feeding instructions for this kitten was Pablum cereal - a well know human baby food (I was raised on Pablum) In other words, gruel . . .

[Mindthinkr]

   My old boy BB had to go to the veterinary ophthalmologist this week. It took months to get him seen. His diagnosis is Uveitis and a cataract on his right eye. His left eye is normal. They did test him for glaucoma, but I’m grateful that he is free of that. His treatment is two different drops (one a prednisone) to reduce the inflammation that causes his condition. They normally do an abdominal ultrasound and chest X-ray to rule out any underlying causes but his bloodwork is normal and he is in remarkable shape for a cat who is almost 19. Plus he is an indoor only kitty. 
   He has been cooperating about getting the drops twice a day (he gets 3 treats after) and we go back at the end of the month to get his eye pressure rechecked. Also to see if the drops have slowed the inflammation. I’m hopeful and grateful as it could have been so much worse. 
 

In this photo you can see the red ring around the iris that clued me in that something was wrong. 
I had posted about this before and one of you already pre-called the diagnosis. Well done. 

[Leeds]

2 hours ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

Many of my cell photos are too large and have to be reduced (shrinkpictures.com) Beyond that, is it perhaps a file type which isn't accepted?  Needs to be gif, jpeg, jpe, jpg, png, webp.  After that, I got nuttin'.

Like you, nuttin's about all I still have.

[Mondrianyone]

1 hour ago, Mindthinkr said:

I had posted about this before and one of you already pre-called the diagnosis. Well done. 

Oh, my gosh, that was me! And I just went back and looked at the post, and I see that I called it when your actual vet didn't. If I have any extra time left over from popping people's lipomas, I may set up a veterinary practice on the side.

Seriously, I'm so glad to know he's doing as well as he is and that he's being so cooperative about the eyedrops. They aren't always. Good boy, BB!

[Mindthinkr]

6 minutes ago, Mondrianyone said:

I see that I called it when your actual vet didn't

Yes, and that makes me question the vet who I otherwise like. Was she afraid of some liability issue or afraid to give me the news? She belongs to a practice owned by another vet and maybe that kind of diagnosis is beyond the scope of their parameters of what she’s allowed to do ( I used to see this all the time when I was a RN.) The passing of the buck or the Dr wasn’t allowed to make a diagnosis if it was a condition they couldn’t treat ( I.E make money off of ). Regardless he is getting treatment and taking it like a champ. Thank you 😊 

[Scarlett45]

Screaming in the litter box means Cavendish gets a trip to the VetER!

[Bastet]

Yikes, poor guy.  I hope it's just a UTI, or if it's a blockage, it's a mucus plug rather than crystals/stones (easier to keep from happening again).  Let us know.  The important thing is you're getting him treatment right away, so they should be able to get him cleared out and feeling better in no time.

[peacheslatour]

2 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

Screaming in the litter box means Cavendish gets a trip to the VetER!

If crystals are found in his urine they will give antibiotics but failing that there a simple surgery they can do that will fix him right up.

[Scarlett45]

1 hour ago, Bastet said:

Yikes, poor guy.  I hope it's just a UTI, or if it's a blockage, it's a mucus plug rather than crystals/stones (easier to keep from happening again).  Let us know.  The important thing is you're getting him treatment right away, so they should be able to get him cleared out and feeling better in no time.

58 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

If crystals are found in his urine they will give antibiotics but failing that there a simple surgery they can do that will fix him right up.

Thanks everyone- he’s gonna be okay. Yup it was crystals- he got meds and I will be changing his diet. But it seems I caught it early and he wasn’t suffering too long most likely. 

[Suzn]

3 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

Screaming in the litter box means Cavendish gets a trip to the VetER!

I hate to see them sick.  I hope his problem is resolved quickly!

[Bastet]

27 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Yup it was crystals- he got meds and I will be changing his diet.

If they're struvite crystals, I suggest you look into the Wysong line of foods for cats with that problem, as they use far better ingredients than the traditional Rx foods.

[Scarlett45]

5 hours ago, Bastet said:

If they're struvite crystals, I suggest you look into the Wysong line of foods for cats with that problem, as they use far better ingredients than the traditional Rx foods.

Thanks. I also heard Weruva was good for cats with these problems. 

[luv2lurk]

1 hour ago, Scarlett45 said:

Thanks. I also heard Weruva was good for cats with these problems. 

I loved Weruva wet food when I bought it for my cat with kidney disease. The can smells so delicious when you open it, you almost want to eat it yourself. Sadly after a few months the cat decided to only lick the sauce no matter how much I chopped up the chunks of chicken. So switched to pate only other brands.

[Scarlett45]

And because I forgot my cats are bag bandits. 

In the night someone ate the entire sample of dry food for Cavendish!
I do hope he got some!

I gave him his pain med by mouth. They said it would make him a bit drowsy. But that means it was easy enough to get him to take it. 

7 hours ago, luv2lurk said:

I loved Weruva wet food when I bought it for my cat with kidney disease. The can smells so delicious when you open it, you almost want to eat it yourself. Sadly after a few months the cat decided to only lick the sauce no matter how much I chopped up the chunks of chicken. So switched to pate only other brands.

Mr Norris did that towards the end of his life. 

[peacheslatour]

5 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

And because I forgot my cats are bag bandits. 

In the night someone ate the entire sample of dry food for Cavendish!
I do hope he got some!

I gave him his pain med by mouth. They said it would make him a bit drowsy. But that means it was easy enough to get him to take it. 

Mr Norris did that towards the end of his life. 

Nathan is doing that now. It takes him about an hour to eat a meal and that's with one of us standing there and fluffing it into a pyramid shape every five minutes. He just turned seventeen.

[Scarlett45]

Cavendish has been really out of it today. He’s basically be moving from one box to another and he didn’t want to eat his dinner! I’m keeping Cosmo away from him so he can get some peace. 
 

He also spit out the last dose of his pain med. I called the clinic back and they said don’t try to give him more, and that it happens given it’s nasty tasting. Just try again in the morning. 
 

Cavendish has only been with me 6months! I just want him to get better. (I know he will but a sick pet is torture). 

[Bastet]

So true - having a sick pet is agonizing.  I remember when I was little and sick or hurt, my mom would say she wished she could wave a magic wand and make me better, but she can't, so we just need to do X and Y and in time this will be behind us.  I didn't understand her torment, only my own, at the time, but now that's how I always feel with my sick kitties (and I can't explain it to them in the same way as my mom could to me).

Did they give him Prazosin, which (among other things) relaxes the urethral muscle and makes it easier to pass the messy urine?  If not, I'd ask about it.

Is Buprenex the pain med?  That's my favorite, but you have to get it between gum and inner cheek, not down the throat, so it's tricky to administer.

I hate that Cavendish is still suffering, but is he at least getting a decent amount of pee (at least the size of a quarter) out at a time as he moves from box to box?

[isalicat]

[Scarlett45]

9 hours ago, Bastet said:

So true - having a sick pet is agonizing.  I remember when I was little and sick or hurt, my mom would say she wished she could wave a magic wand and make me better, but she can't, so we just need to do X and Y and in time this will be behind us.  I didn't understand her torment, only my own, at the time, but now that's how I always feel with my sick kitties (and I can't explain it to them in the same way as my mom could to me).

Did they give him Prazosin, which (among other things) relaxes the urethral muscle and makes it easier to pass the messy urine?  If not, I'd ask about it.

Is Buprenex the pain med?  That's my favorite, but you have to get it between gum and inner cheek, not down the throat, so it's tricky to administer.

I hate that Cavendish is still suffering, but is he at least getting a decent amount of pee (at least the size of a quarter) out at a time as he moves from box to box?

Gabopentine (spelling)- a human pain med. getting it him him this morning- who knew there was so much force in that tiny body. 
 

Yes I know what you mean. I feel awful for my sister too when she is sick (or has menstrual cramps), because we can’t explain to her why or that it’s going to get better, but I did teach her to swallow pills when she was 12 (yes me- my Mom didn’t think she could figure it out so I tried and succeeded), so at least we can give her medicine pretty easily. 
 

“Move from box to box”- I meant empty box to hang out in, not the litter box. When I last checked, no urine, but I don’t think all of it from the last scooping was Lady Reese- it’s hard when it’s a multi-cat household. Cavendish did go to the water fountain. 
 

This is a photo of Lady Reese in a box she gave up for Cavendish. He just puts his head in. (I’m in the office today, hoping he’s feeling better)

[peacheslatour]

Eek! Elizabeth has fleas! I don't know how it happened, she's never been outside since we've had her. What do?

[SoMuchTV]

41 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

Eek! Elizabeth has fleas! I don't know how it happened, she's never been outside since we've had her. What do?

Get a flea comb - they're very fine toothed.  Have a container of water nearby.  Groom her - especially around the neck, belly, tail area.  As you find the fleas in the comb, dunk them in the water and make sure they stay dunked!

As for treatment, I've had good luck with Advantage2.  It's available at pet stores and online (so's the flea comb).  Apply once a month on the back of the kitty's neck.

I think there's also something else (newer) for fleas that my vet has mentioned, but I didn't pay much attention since I've had good results with the Advantage.  I'm sure someone else will chime in.

I've lost track - do you have more than one pet?  If so you'll need to treat them all.  We were able to get by with just treating the cats, no whole-house bombs.  Hope you have the same luck!

[peacheslatour]

Quote

I've lost track - do you have more than one pet?  If so you'll need to treat them all.  We were able to get by with just treating the cats, no whole-house bombs.  Hope you have the same luck!

Yes, we have another cat. I will treat them both. Thank you!

[bilgistic]

Years ago, I unknowingly brought home fleas after visiting a friend whose cat had them. Of course, I'd loved on the cat because hello, it was a cat and I'm me. My friend swore his cat didn't have fleas, but his cat regularly went outside with him, supervised in the backyard.

After a couple of flea-killing treatments between my cats' shoulder blades and washing everything in the apartment and vacuuming and vacuuming, my cats were flea free again.

[Scarlett45]

8 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Eek! Elizabeth has fleas! I don't know how it happened, she's never been outside since we've had her. What do?

Fleas are no fun, but indoor cats can get them every now and again. Question- any raccoons on your property? That’s now Blake and Charlie got fleas in 2005- raccoon was living in the roof, climbed down and was having a pissing contest with them through a screened window. 

7 hours ago, SoMuchTV said:

Get a flea comb - they're very fine toothed.  Have a container of water nearby.  Groom her - especially around the neck, belly, tail area.  As you find the fleas in the comb, dunk them in the water and make sure they stay dunked!

As for treatment, I've had good luck with Advantage2.  It's available at pet stores and online (so's the flea comb).  Apply once a month on the back of the kitty's neck.

I think there's also something else (newer) for fleas that my vet has mentioned, but I didn't pay much attention since I've had good results with the Advantage.  I'm sure someone else will chime in.

I've lost track - do you have more than one pet?  If so you'll need to treat them all.  We were able to get by with just treating the cats, no whole-house bombs.  Hope you have the same luck!

Excellent advice. The vet can also give you something to kill the fleas when they bite your pet (the cat takes it orally), and vacuum/dry on high anything fiberous. 

I’m back at the VetER with Cavendish. When I was trying to give him the gabopentine this evening, as he spit it out I saw him bleeding from his (what I’m assuming) urethra. 
 

So far he has no temp, his gums are pink but tacky. My poor baby! I’ve never gone through this before with a cat.

[Scarlett45]

Cavendish is blocked. They are going to put him under, stick a catheter in him, flush out his bladder, give him IV fluids and observation. The Dr said there is a good chance he will be 100% in the future and ready to go home Friday. 
 

I’ve had cats my entire life basically (and mostly boys) and have never had this happen! I was so scared. He’s only 7 and he’s only been with me 6months. 
 

I just want him to get better and get home. It was so scary. 

[MargeGunderson]

Hugs to you and Cavendish (and Cosmo and Lady Reese, because they are adorable), @Scarlett45. The late Kitty Gunderson the Elder (RIP Best Girl) had UTIs basically every 3 or 4 months for the last few years of her long life. We were frequent guests of our local emergency vet. I’m so sorry both of you are going through this; I remember how scary and upsetting it was. 

[SoMuchTV]

5 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

Cavendish is blocked. They are going to put him under, stick a catheter in him, flush out his bladder, give him IV fluids and observation. The Dr said there is a good chance he will be 100% in the future and ready to go home Friday. 
 

I’ve had cats my entire life basically (and mostly boys) and have never had this happen! I was so scared. He’s only 7 and he’s only been with me 6months. 
 

I just want him to get better and get home. It was so scary. 

I’m not sure about the details but that sounds like what happened to our mr fuzz. He spent a few days in the cat er getting flushed out but he’s good now (with prescription food). Fun fact, his crisis day was 1/6/2021 so I had lots to listen to on the car radio while I waited in the parking lot since I couldn’t go in due to Covid precautions. 

[Scarlett45]

@SoMuchTV yes I got the script for the food Sunday, but I wanted to see what he would eat before I ordered cases. 

[Bastet]

I'm disturbed they sent him home initially without clearing the blockage - did they really not catheterize and flush him the first time?! - but at least it's happening now.  You're obviously well on top of things, so if a diet change doesn't prevent this from happening again, you'll be right on it again.  If that happens, be aware there's a surgical option -- perineal urethrostomy (which removes the narrow, final portion of the urethra in male cats).  Look it up and keep it in mind to discuss just in case.

[Scarlett45]

4 hours ago, Bastet said:

I'm disturbed they sent him home initially without clearing the blockage - did they really not catheterize and flush him the first time?! - but at least it's happening now.  You're obviously well on top of things, so if a diet change doesn't prevent this from happening again, you'll be right on it again.  If that happens, be aware there's a surgical option -- perineal urethrostomy (which removes the narrow, final portion of the urethra in male cats).  Look it up and keep it in mind to discuss just in case.

Thank you so much!
 

They said Sunday that he wasn’t blocked! (They did the ultra sound) Could he have changed that quickly? I don’t know, it’s possible in two days (obviously I’m not a vet). 

[EighteenTwelve]

I just made Lily's euthanasia appointment for Tuesday.  I think her kidneys have finally had enough. 

Tuesday is her 16th birthday.  It was the soonest appointment I could get.

[SuprSuprElevated]

3 minutes ago, EighteenTwelve said:

I just made Lily's euthanasia appointment for Tuesday.  I think her kidneys have finally had enough. 

Tuesday is her 16th birthday.  It was the soonest appointment I could get.

Damn.  So sorry.  Just remember that this is the most loving thing you can do for her, albeit torturous for you.  ~namaste~

Edited June 22, 2022 by SuprSuprElevated

[smittykins]

I’m so sorry, @EighteenTwelve. ((hugs))