Pet(s): Photos & Discussion

[Mindthinkr]

6 minutes ago, AgentRXS said:

If you like fat cat belleh's and cannot lie, there is a FB group called this THIS CAT IS C H O N K Y.  Nothing but fat cat pics.It really is the best thing on social media that I've seen in a long time.

It's a closed group, but you just answer 3 silly questions and you can join. Been struggling with depression lately and having my timeline feed filled with big ole cat belleh's puts a smile on my face.  I recommend joining for anyone needed a little pick me up throughout the day.

There are also a lot of cats and kittens on Twitter. Nothing but cute cat stuff. I enjoy them and PM me if you want suggestions for specific ones to follow. They give me smiles and laughs. Also for different animal lovers there is about any kind of critter to follow. Dogs, wolves, chickens, hamsters etc. 

[slf]

Does anyone have experience with dealing with bad dog owners? Several of my neighbors have gotten dogs, all pitbull mixes with about the same coloring so I'm thinking they got their dogs from the same litter, that I see being walked by their teenaged kids in the afternoon. But these dogs aren't trained and the kids clearly don't know how to take care of them; they're very verbally aggressive with the dogs. And unfortunately, every single one of the dogs is wearing a choke chain.

I realize there may not be much I can do. People can get really defensive if you approach them about how the treat their pets. But I'm hoping that if I say something helpful, gently, to the kids it might have a positive effect? Anyone dealt with soemthing like this?

[bilgistic]

Speaking of shitty pet owners, a woman came into the store yesterday to tell us that someone had left their dog inside a locked car with the windows rolled up. It was 80°-82° yesterday. Our Customer Service Assistant Manager called the woman (by car description) over the PA system and she came to the CS desk. She asserted that the dog was "fine", that she parked in "the shade", and was only going to be in the store for a few minutes.

She came through my lane (I didn't know it was her) and I chit-chatted, as one does to customers, about how rattled I was about the situation, and she said, "That's my dog. It's FINE. I parked in the shade. I'm a great pet owner and parent! I didn't want to leave the windows down to let the cool air out. I was only running in for a few things." She had about 10 items. She told me I shouldn't talk about customers. She's not wrong about that, and I felt like shit about it and learned my lesson, but I don't feel bad about wanting to call the police on her. What she did was not only animal cruelty, but is also illegal in NC. What I'm finding online is that a car can heat to over 100° in 80° weather within the 15 minutes she was in the store.

I guarantee she wouldn't leave a kid in the car like that. I hope her dog runs away to someone who will take proper care of it.

[AgentRXS]

@slfI am an animal control officer so definitely have experience dealing with bad pet owners. Yes, most people will get defensive if their pet care is called out by someone else.

Most people will be more receptive if solutions were offered. I would probably offer to purchase harnesses and to sponsor a pet obedience class for the family to attend to. Yes, it would be nice if the family already did that, but it sounds like they should be educated about choke chains and pet care.
Not much you can do if they aren't receptive. Unless the animal is in physical distress, animal control will not get involved.

Edited June 16, 2019 by AgentRXS

[MargeGunderson]

8 hours ago, AgentRXS said:

If you like fat cat belleh's and cannot lie, there is a FB group called this THIS CAT IS C H O N K Y.  Nothing but fat cat pics.It really is the best thing on social media that I've seen in a long time.

It's a closed group, but you just answer 3 silly questions and you can join. Been struggling with depression lately and having my timeline feed filled with big ole cat belleh's puts a smile on my face.  I recommend joining for anyone needed a little pick me up throughout the day.

During the late Kitty Gunderson the Elder’s heyday, she was a bit on the pleasantly plump side. I used to sing Baby Got Back and Brick House to her. 

[Sandman87]

We are currently in the midst of a kitten crisis at my house. Well, at least my cats think it's a crisis. A pair of grey kittens set up housekeeping under the kitchen deck a few days ago, and one of them looks something like this:

(For size reference, the thing sticking up behind the pink gas can is one of my boots.) The other one is slightly smaller and more shy, but they both have made mad dashes through the kitchen door to swipe a mouthful of cat food and then run back out.

Catsby isn't sure what to make of them. He manages a half-hearted hiss from time to time, but mostly seems perplexed. Calypso, on the other hand, is thoroughly intimidated by these tiny terrors, despite the fact that she outweighs both of them combined.

I'll call the local animal control and humane society tomorrow, but I suspect they'll tell me that I'll have to catch the kittens myself to bring them in. For now they're getting fed and watered so my cats can eat in peace.

Edited June 17, 2019 by Sandman87

[Annber03]

Oh! Sweet little babies! I feel for them being left outdoors to fend for themselves as they are, but I'm glad they've got your place as a safe haven for the time being :). Hopefully animal control and the humane society can further help and they can get permanent homes as soon as possible. I don't doubt there'd be plenty of people who'd be happy to adopt them :D. 

And hopefully your cats and the baby kittens won't bother each other much going forward, either :p. 

[theredhead77]

@Sandman87 that is how you get a cat. You now have two more kittens! 😄

[theredhead77]

23 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Speaking of shitty pet owners, a woman came into the store yesterday to tell us that someone had left their dog inside a locked car with the windows rolled up. It was 80°-82° yesterday. Our Customer Service Assistant Manager called the woman (by car description) over the PA system and she came to the CS desk. She asserted that the dog was "fine", that she parked in "the shade", and was only going to be in the store for a few minutes.

She came through my lane (I didn't know it was her) and I chit-chatted, as one does to customers, about how rattled I was about the situation, and she said, "That's my dog. It's FINE. I parked in the shade. I'm a great pet owner and parent! I didn't want to leave the windows down to let the cool air out. I was only running in for a few things." She had about 10 items. She told me I shouldn't talk about customers. She's not wrong about that, and I felt like shit about it and learned my lesson, but I don't feel bad about wanting to call the police on her. What she did was not only animal cruelty, but is also illegal in NC. What I'm finding online is that a car can heat to over 100° in 80° weather within the 15 minutes she was in the store.

I guarantee she wouldn't leave a kid in the car like that. I hope her dog runs away to someone who will take proper care of it.

Why do you feel like shit? Because a person who is waiving their cruel bitch flag fly publicly was a raging bitch to you for calling her out on abusing her pet?

Call the cops next time then have your manager make the announcement. Or just call the cops and let the owner come out to a broken window and officers. 

[smeds]

On 6/16/2019 at 2:22 PM, AgentRXS said:

If you like fat cat belleh's and cannot lie, there is a FB group called this THIS CAT IS C H O N K Y.  Nothing but fat cat pics.It really is the best thing on social media that I've seen in a long time.

It's a closed group, but you just answer 3 silly questions and you can join. Been struggling with depression lately and having my timeline feed filled with big ole cat belleh's puts a smile on my face.  I recommend joining for anyone needed a little pick me up throughout the day.

I work at an animal shelter and also look at pictures of animals on instragram for a pick-me-up.  My favorite on instagram is iambronsoncat (not sure how to link but you can look it up).  He is an overweight cat that was adopted last year.  He is on a slow journey to weight loss and he has mitts and he likes to use them!  His adopters are pretty funny with the things they post.  His posts always bring a smile to my face.

[Sandman87]

13 hours ago, theredhead77 said:

@Sandman87 that is how you get a cat. You now have two more kittens! 😄

Maybe. We'll see if I can catch them and get them to the animal shelter. In the meantime they're awfully cute, and it's hilarious watching my cats trying to process these tiny grey thunderbolts.

[Sandman87]

Here's a picture of the two little monsters dining. It's the only time that they bunch up and stop moving long enough to get both in one shot:

[CoderLady]

Oooh!

I know there's a narrow window of time during which you can socialize kittens that makes the difference between "openly friendly and affectionate" and "feral but tolerates humans." I hope these two are still in the zone. They're gorgeous, and I'm not just saying that because they look like my own senior cat girl.

[bilgistic]

SO CUTE!!!

[JTMacc99]

Future family member. Name pending. 

[theredhead77]

54 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

Future family member. Name pending. 

ILOVETHEPUPPYANDWANTTOBOOPTHE FLOOFYFLOOFSNOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

I recommend the name fluffyflufferbutterscotch

[Browncoat]

PUUPPPPPPEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  SO CUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[emma675]

JTMacc99, ha! I knew you'd end up with a new puppy sooner rather than later when you mentioned your daughter sending you dog pics. We're gonna need details--girl or boy? age? who gets to pick the name?

[bosawks]

Alli's a really good name.

Just saying........

[JTMacc99]

It’s a boy. 8 weeks. Gotta gear up first and then pick him up Saturday morning. 

The idea of adding a puppy has been in the works for months. I just didn’t want that going on while I was taking care of Danny. 

For as many lives I’m always watching over, the fact is, a puppy is a huge commitment. There’s a little bit of “oof, what did I just sign up for” swimming around my head. 

We have lots of names in play. I have final say, although I will take all ideas seriously.

Henry/Hank

Wilson

Robert/Bob (my favorite)

Others like those.

Also thinking about Zeus. That one is growing on me.

[emma675]

I love pets that have "normal" human names.

There was a lady once in my vet's waiting room that had a massive orange cat named Steve. Steve was a handful, he would be very quiet in his carrier for a few minutes and then throw a huge fit, yowling, snarling, and throwing himself around, and then he'd quiet down again. This went on for at least 15 minutes. What cracked me up was that the lady was holding the carrier in one hand the whole time, just standing there while this carrier rocked and flailed around, and she never once blinked at the commotion. She told Steve at one point "hey, I don't like this either, but you don't see me causing a scene". I fell in love with Steve and this lady all at once. I have never forgotten them to this day. 

[SVNBob]

45 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

Robert/Bob (my favorite) 

An excellent choice indeed.  But Zeus would work in a pinch.

I know they say you shouldn't name cats after gods, since there's already a streak of megalomania in all felines.  But I don't think it applies to dogs.

[Writing Wrongs]

That is one big puppy. What a cutie!

My yard rabbit was getting some shade under my little tree.

[JTMacc99]

1 hour ago, emma675 said:

I love pets that have "normal" human names.

I do as well. It just makes me smile to think about looking down at a big shaggy dog some day, have him look back at me and say, "You ready to go home Jeff?"

[Annber03]

Puppy and kitty pictures ❤️ :D. 

I kinda like the name Hank for the puppy.

5 minutes ago, Writing Wrongs said:

That is one big puppy. What a cutie!

My yard rabbit was getting some shade under my little tree.

Aw :).

[bilgistic]

Except for my childhood cat that I named after a weather status when I was 11, all of my cats have had "people" names. Pets are a part of my family, so they get a human name. I didn't pick my current cats' names; they came from the foster home already named and were then one and two years old. I didn't want to give them identity crises, so I didn't rename them. I did give them middle names, though.

[EighteenTwelve]

Snip was called Fajita by the MSPCA, but it didn’t suit her at all. They told me she came in on a Mexican-food-themed day (Nacho, Fajita, Margarita, etc.).

[emma675]

Bonnie was named by her foster mom, who had her for 4 months. After being found on the side of the road and moving to her second new home, I didn't want to confuse her anymore with a name change. She has gradually become Boo over the last year or so, which she responds to. I only call her Bonnie when I need her explicit attention or she's in trouble, and she seems to understand that.

[Browncoat]

I always wanted to name a dog Stella, just so I could stand out in the backyard and yell, “Stellllllaaaaaa!” in my best Stanley Kowalski voice.  

[theredhead77]

3 hours ago, bosawks said:

Alli's a really good name.

Just saying........

Butterscotch!

ETA: hahaha! I feel so passionate about Butterscotch I didn't even notice the new page of replies. 

Edited June 18, 2019 by theredhead77

[Moose135]

6 hours ago, emma675 said:

I love pets that have "normal" human names.

Our current Aussie (well, he's GF's dog, but I co-parent) is named Jake - he was a year old when we got him, and he came with the name.  In GF's family, just about everyone has a middle name of Anthony or Ann - including me, so when the pup is being a stubborn, we call him "Jacob Anthony".

[MargeGunderson]

22 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

Our current Aussie (well, he's GF's dog, but I co-parent) is named Jake - he was a year old when we got him, and he came with the name.  In GF's family, just about everyone has a middle name of Anthony or Ann - including me, so when the pup is being a stubborn, we call him "Jacob Anthony".

It is important for pets to have middle names. Otherwise, how would they know you are serious when you yell at them?

[Bastet]

5 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Except for my childhood cat that I named after a weather status when I was 11, all of my cats have had "people" names.

Bandit - my parents' cat, but I named him - is only one of two in our entire family history of cats without a "people" name (well, since I came along; the one before I was born and the one we had when I was born had purely pet names).  And the second, Yeager, falls in between a bit - it's a last name, as he was found at the airport and named after Chuck Yeager - but we didn't pick that; he was found, taken in, named, and then abandoned a year later by neighbors, so when he showed up at our house we knew who he was, and when we found out he'd been dumped, we kept both him and the name.

51 minutes ago, MargeGunderson said:

It is important for pets to have middle names. Otherwise, how would they know you are serious when you yell at them?

Exactly.  Maddie was incredibly well behaved, so she hardly ever got middle named, but when she had her moments and I said "Madeleine Alice," she knew Mommy meant business.  Baxter heard "Baxter Adam" a lot.  Usually in the context of "Baxter Adam, get off your sister."  They loved each other, but he was the quintessential pesky little brother.

And that's one of the problems with non-people names (at least for me) - it's harder to attach a middle name.  Bandit doesn't have one, nor did Yeager.  Chester (my parents' other cat, whose name came with him - he was an owner surrender at the shelter, and 8 years old, so they kept it) doesn't have one, either (what goes with Chester other than Cheetah, at least to this Cheetos Puffs lover, and he looks nothing like one), but all the other family cats with "real" names had one, and all of mine had/have a middle name.  (Riley is Riley Alexandra; I kept up the A theme.)

[JTMacc99]

[isalicat]

What did that poor plant do to piss off the cat? LOL

As to pet names - when we went to the shelter to be adopted by a new (to us) cat, we found our current overlord in cage with "Morris" as his name (given by the shelter people - how unimaginative can you get with an orange tabby?). That clearly needed to go and I had a dream that my next cat would be named Lewis. When this guy decided he was going home with us he was so regal and imperious I changed it to Louis (as in Loo-ee, like a French king). The vet he sees has this on his file - its Louis, say "loo-ee", and Louis definitely approves as he comes quite quickly if I call him by name (as opposed to kitty, kitty, kitty). I was so pleased when the Cambridges named their new son after my cat 🙂

[JTMacc99]

3 hours ago, isalicat said:

What did that poor plant do to piss off the cat? LOL

As they so perfectly portrayed in the Pixar movie Inside Out, sometimes there's nobody running the command center inside of cats.

In this case, she just launched herself onto my dining room table at 100 MPH, slid wildly across it, and then finished the move by crashing into the piece of furniture with the plants on it.

[Annber03]

8 minutes ago, JTMacc99 said:

In this case, she just launched herself onto my dining room table at 100 MPH, slid wildly across it, and then finished the move by crashing into the piece of furniture with the plants on it.

Dramatic little creatures sometimes, aren't they :p? 

[JTMacc99]

2 hours ago, Annber03 said:

Dramatic little creatures sometimes, aren't they :p? 

Yep. And while I did not see her actually do it (forensic evidence helped me solve the crime) it is reasonable to assume she walked away with a “I meant to do that” look on her face. 

She and Neo are in for some shock when that new puppy gets up to speed. Heh. 

Latest news is that the name Jake is winning the popular vote for the new guy. I kind of like it. I was also tossing around Norman today. He looks like a Norman. And he could also grow into a Norm! as well. 

[theredhead77]

1 hour ago, JTMacc99 said:

Latest news is that the name Jake is winning the popular vote for the new guy. I kind of like it. I was also tossing around Norman today. He looks like a Norman. And he could also grow into a Norm! as well

Butterscotch!😜

Though with Norm you can get a whole Cheers vibe going. Or get him a crossbow, never bathe him and he could be Darryl Dixon.

[Moose135]

On 6/18/2019 at 5:56 PM, Browncoat said:

I always wanted to name a dog Stella, just so I could stand out in the backyard and yell, “Stellllllaaaaaa!” in my best Stanley Kowalski voice.  

Tonight we took Jake to obedience training class (we've taken a couple and have a couple more to go) and a woman came with her dog, a Yorkie mix, for her first class.  The dog was named Stella, and I so wanted to holler "Stellllllaaaaaa!" when they came into the room.

Edited June 20, 2019 by Moose135

[JTMacc99]

8 hours ago, theredhead77 said:

and he could be Darryl Dixon.

Ooh. Darryl is also a good name. And then when I bring in Neo’s replacement someday I also can name that dog Darryl. 

“This is my dog Darryl, and this is my other dog Darryl.”

[Mindthinkr]

13 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

Yep. And while I did not see her actually do it (forensic evidence helped me solve the crime) it is reasonable to assume she walked away with a “I meant to do that” look on her face. 

She and Neo are in for some shock when that new puppy gets up to speed. Heh. 

Latest news is that the name Jake is winning the popular vote for the new guy. I kind of like it. I was also tossing around Norman today. He looks like a Norman. And he could also grow into a Norm! as well. 

If you name him Norman, when he his bounding about you can call him Storm’n Norman. (My family has very good memories of the real Storm’n Norman...will explain if anyone is interested). 

[walnutqueen]

On 6/20/2019 at 6:23 AM, Mindthinkr said:

If you name him Norman, when he his bounding about you can call him Storm’n Norman. (My family has very good memories of the real Storm’n Norman...will explain if anyone is interested). 

I, on the other hand, have not so good memories of my own Stormin' Norman.  So I'm good with Jake, who evokes no memories at all.

So, the other evening, long before dusk, I spotted a teeny baby possum, tasting each bit of food from fruit to cat food to milk dregs, and scurrying off into the bushes before I could worry about raising an orphan.  Showed up later, with Mum, to feed again - so crisis averted.

Meanwhile, Mama Raccoon has allowed her two little roly-poly babes to show their faces briefly.  Until the other night/early a.m.  I heard loud chittering, and then sounds of splish-splashy chittering, which quickly reached shrieking distress call decibels.  One of the baby raccoons had fallen into the pool swamp, and was in distress.  I could not see the poor wee bairn (tree branches dipping into both sides of the pool obscured everything), and had no means of rescue.  Just as I was resigned to jumping into cold green swampwater, contracting algae-Ebola or some other nastiness,  and probably getting bitten and scratched for my efforts, Mama Raccoon came charging around the pool, climbed down an overhanging tree branch, and snatched that squealing baby out of the water like a champ.  Then she carried it (by the tail!!!) back around to the other side of the pool where the scared sibling was crying in terror.  She must've licked that baby clean, because later, when they all came back for a last morning feed, that baby didn't have any green slime on it!

Oh, and those goddamned starlings are STILL eating catfood all day long.  Bold little grifters.

I fucking LURVE my critters!

Edited June 21, 2019 by walnutqueen

[Annber03]

2 minutes ago, walnutqueen said:

Meanwhile, Mama Raccoon has allowed her two little roly-poly babes to show their faces briefly.  Until the other night/early a.m.  I heard loud chittering, and then sounds of splish-splashy chittering, which quickly reached shrieking distress call decibels.  One of the baby raccoons had fallen into the pool swamp, and was in distress.  I could not see the poor wee bairn (tree branches dipping into both sides of the pool obscured everything), and had no means of rescue.  Just as I was resigned to jumping into cold green swampwater, contracting algae-Ebola or some other nastiness,  and probably getting bitten and scratched for my efforts, Mama Raccoon came charging around the pool, climbed down an overhanging tree branch, and snatched that squealing baby out of the water like a champ.  Then she carried it (by the tail!!!) back around to the other side of the pool where the scared sibling was crying in terror.  She must've licked that baby clean, because later, when they all came back for a last morning feed, that baby didn't have any green slime on it!

Mama Raccoon to the rescue :D! That's great-glad the baby's doing okay now. I love stories about mother animals being all protective of their babies. 

[walnutqueen]

Just now, Annber03 said:

Mama Raccoon to the rescue :D! That's great-glad the baby's doing okay now. I love stories about mother animals being all protective of their babies. 

Better her than me!!!  ;~)

[KnoxForPres]

On 6/18/2019 at 1:22 PM, JTMacc99 said:

Future family member. Name pending. 

For some reason I saw this dog and felt if he were mine I’d name him Banks.  

[smittykins]

Shadow’s original name was (Baby)Elvira.  On the spay/shot records I was given by the shelter, there’s a lady’s name and a residential address in Rochester(it’s blacked out with marker, but visible if you stare long enough), so she apparently had a previous hoomin.  I don’t judge her at all for surrendering her—I know she made the right choice for her—but I admit that I wonder why.

[MargeGunderson]

Now everything makes sense:

[ABay]

Hidden Brain's most recent episode is Pets, Pests And Food: Our Complex, Contradictory Attitudes Toward Animals.

But maybe stop when they get to the cockfighting and life of chickens.

Edited June 21, 2019 by ABay

[bilgistic]

I very foolishly bought the girls some cat food with rabbit as the sole protein source, in the hopes that I could at least supplement their horrifically expensive venison food. Well, that backfired spectacularly, as Little Girl had

Spoiler

loose poop with a tiny bit of bloody mucous in it and it was of course on the carpet outside of the bathroom.

I guess she did the butt scoot.

She's on a very tiny dose of a steroid to control her allergies/inflammation, and has responded extremely well to the venison food.

Fortunately, Chewy is refunding me the money and not making me return the food. So I will just have to continue to feed my girls the food that works very well but is so pricy. Their monthly food budget is higher than mine.

I feel like a bad mom.

Edited June 22, 2019 by bilgistic