Gracie wanted me to remind y’all that you can vote for her once a day over at the Greenies competition. You know, if you wanted to. Hey, don’t look at me – I’m just passing the message along! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “9/20/11 – Tuesday”
Gracie wanted me to remind y’all that you can vote for her once a day over at the Greenies competition. You know, if you wanted to. Hey, don’t look at me – I’m just passing the message along!
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Reader Chrissy asked:
Our newly adopted cat, Kiero, will only eat his sister’s food. And by “sister” I mean, our dog Leona. We put his kibble in front of him and he will turn up his nose but as soon as we pour Leona’s food into her bowl, Kiero makes a beeline for it. Leona is good about sharing but we’re worried that Kiero isn’t getting what he needs as far as nutrients. He sat for nearly 6 months in a cage at our local animal shelter with two other cats and ate fine according to the employees there. I’m sure he’s just enjoying having the freedom to try something new but we’d like to get him on his own food. Do you have any suggestions?
I don’t have any suggestions myself (except to maybe separate Kiero and Leona at feeding time so he can’t get to her food? Is that an option?), but I know someone out there has a good idea, so y’all feel free to share your tips! (Chrissy, check the comments over at Love & Hisses, too, I’m posting this over there as well.)
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After I mentioned the Flehmen response in my entry for yesterday, Katherine (Nate and Dora’s Mom)(Nate and Dora were formerly River and Inara, Kara’s kittens) sent me this picture:
Here is Tucker with his reaction after drinking water out of an igloo at a horse show. They do this all the time if they smell something odd, stanky, etc. I never figured out why he did it, except another horse had had a drink before him. Back wash? When one of the mares was in heat, she’d turn and spray pee on them. Naturally this was their response to that rude behavior! They ARE gelded, don’tchano. But we still had her fenced off from them.
Tucker’s all “WHY I NEVER!” Hee!
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I swear upon everything holy – ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME SPRING OF 2012 ROBYN?! – that next year I am growing one – ONE, SPRING 2012 ROBYN, NOT TWO, NOT TWO AND A HALF, ONE – row of tomatoes. This nonsense where I plant two and a half rows of friggin’ tomatoes and then hardly ever get any decent tomatoes is FOR THE BIRDS. I’m going to plant one row, twenty four plants, and I will lavish love and attention upon every one of those tomatoes, and if I get a ton of decent tomatoes (NOT holding my breath), then that’s fabulous and if NOT, then I will buy a shitload of tomatoes at the farmer’s market to roast and freeze, and I’ll call it good enough.
BY GOD.
I think I mentioned that I yanked up the jalapenos on Sunday because they were starting to get all drama queeny and wilty and annoying, and I’ve made a ton of sweet pickled jalapenos, so it’s all good. The eggplants never really yielded anything decent, so I’m putting eggplants on the “if you plant any of these, I will rip your face off FRED” list for next year, and I’ve pulled up those plants. The acorn squash plants were doing really well, and then they all of a sudden started dying off, so in the end we got three acorn squash. We got about ten butternut squash, and may get more before all is said and done.
So at the moment, I’ve got about ten cabbages growing in the raised beds, two and a half rows of tomatoes in the big garden, and a half row of okra. Oh, and the Bhut Jolokia and bell peppers and Tabascos are still coming in, but those only require attention from Fred (if he wants something done with them, it’s his job to harvest them, I’m not messing with them), so the garden is pretty undemanding for the time being.
I thought about getting Mums for the front porch like I did last year, but the Begonias and Periwinkles on the front porch are still looking pretty happy, so I think I’ll keep those there ’til they start to die off and skip the Mums this year.
We’ve hit the time of year where I go through twice as much laundry in the course of a week, because I start out the day in jeans and a sweatshirt and switch to shorts and a t-shirt by mid-morning, then switch back to jeans and the sweatshirt for the evening. I’m not complaining (that was one long, hot summer), just reporting!
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Do y’all remember Gail, who had a kitten literally follow her into her car on the first day of school? I posted a request for help for her here.
Well, last week I got an email from her. She’d had the kitten tested, and he came back as a strong positive for feline leukemia. Gail was, of course, heartbroken, and I couldn’t offer her anything but sympathy.
BUT THEN.
I got this email from her:
So after spending yesterday trying not to cry in front of my classes and fratically contacting all of my old contacts from running an exotic shelter, and pulling in every favor for every ferret and iguana I took in, I found a place for Oscar Wylde.
Sunday, we are traveling to upstate new York to a lovely woman who runs a shelter. She is going to quarantine him for 60 days and re-test. At that time, if he is negative, I will take him home (as I should be moved into a place by then) and isolate for another 60 days and retest. Either time, if he is positive (going to use the bone marrow test I think), she will take him into her groups FeLV+ building where he will free roam with 13 other positive cats.
No matter what, he is getting a chance. I did not want to take him to the local FeLV+ shelter as he would be put in with all the other positive cats and would have no chance to see if he can fight it off.
Feel free to share with your group. I am so glad I insist upon isolation when bringing foundlings in. I just wish I had instant tests on hand. And that this kitten wasn’t so damn cute. Thats him sitting on top of max’s lap in the bathroom. Poor thing, it is a really small bathroom.
Raven, my 6 month old tomorrow calico is a star crossed lover. She sits outside the bathroom door and talks to him day and night. He purrs against the door and tries to stick his paws out. She really wants him.
I thought some of y’all might be wondering what had happened with that kitten. Doesn’t he look like the sweetest little character? And the name is so awesome that I’m adding it to my list of potential names for future fosters!
(Keeping my fingers crossed that Oscar Wylde tests negative in 60 days – but SO glad that he’s got a place to end up, whether he retests as positive OR negative!)
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“This little tiny toy duck tastes like chicken. GETIT? TASTES LIKE CHICKEN!”
“You aren’t laughing. Clearly you have no sense of humor.”
Their eyes are such a gorgeous color right now.
Charlie gives me the attitude.
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Letting the Peppers Gang have the run of the upstairs is working out so well that I’m hesitant to give them the run of the house. They seem perfectly happy to hang out upstairs that I don’t see any need to push it. Adding Buster to the permanent resident mix is enough upset for the moment (even though there’s not been much of an upset, really) that I think we’ll stick with things the way they are for the time being.
Harlan’s all “And your mother dresses you funny!” and Sally’s giving me the hairy eyeball, all “That’s right, he said it! You wanna make something of it? I will mess you UP!” and Lucy’s all “Yeah! What they said!”
“Hey, guys! Come see what she’s wearing TODAY! TOTAL class! Why, that t-shirt’s only three sizes too big, and I think the shorts are older than she is!”
I cannot stand how cute Lucy is. When I go upstairs to hang out with them, she flops down on her back next to me and she trills at me until I rub her belly. And woe betide me if I stop petting before she’s ready for me to stop!
Invisible dance partner.
Harlan’s pot belly cracks me up.
Leaning tower of Everett.
She keeps her eyes on the prize.
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Sugarbutt, in Stinkerbelle’s bed atop the kitchen cabinets. It’s odd – that’s been Stinkerbelle’s bed for months and months. Then last week, when Buster decided he’d start hanging out on top of the cabinets, directly across the room from her, Fred put a cat bed where Buster was hanging out. Next thing I knew, Buster was hanging out in Stinkerbelle’s bed, and Stinkerbelle was hanging out in Buster’s bed. Then suddenly Sugarbutt was all “Don’t mind if I do!” and he was in Stinkerbelle’s bed, Stinkerbelle was in Buster’s bed, and Buster was in Jake’s bed on the platform in the corner. Where was Jake? Hanging out in the box on the floor. Jake’s so laid-back, he doesn’t care.
Another odd thing: I happened to catch sight of Buster about two feet from Stinkerbelle one day. She was hanging in her bed, he was hanging out near her. She wasn’t growling or hissing or having hysterics. I do NOT know what that was about, because she’s never taken well to having other cats that close to her, except for her beloved Tommy. If it turns out that she’s developing a crush on Buster, I will be beside myself. THAT HUSSY BETTER NOT STEAL MY BUSTER FROM ME, is all I have to say.
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Previously 2010: Poor ol’ Egg
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry. 2007: “Hmm,” I say to Mister Boogers. “It’s almost 80 outside, but only 74 inside. Imagine that!” 2006: You really don’t want to fuck with the Plumbing Mafia. 2005: “GodDAMN you, Mister Boogers!” I yelled. 2004: “This book makes me want to have a baby!” I said to Fred when I was about halfway through the book. “Let’s have a baby!”
2003: No entry. 2002: Gag city. 2001: I think you know what I’m thinkin’. 2000: I’d like to return to my regularly scheduled life, please.
When I read this post, it made me laugh a lot. Have you ever had someone repeat back something you’ve said and you don’t remember saying it but it SOUNDS like something you’d say, and it makes you laugh and laugh and say “I am one FUNNY motherfucker!”? That happens to me all the damn … Continue reading “9/19/11 – Monday”
When I read this post, it made me laugh a lot. Have you ever had someone repeat back something you’ve said and you don’t remember saying it but it SOUNDS like something you’d say, and it makes you laugh and laugh and say “I am one FUNNY motherfucker!”?
That happens to me all the damn time. Just happened last week, in fact. One day, Fred started laughing and I said “What?” and he said “I’m just thinking about what you said yesterday.”
Before I go on to tell you what HI-larious thing I said that made me laugh and laugh when it was repeated to me, I have to tell you that Buster and Corbie share a certain trait, and that is the trait of if there is another cat’s ass nearby, they will get up and go over to the cat and sniff and sniff and sniff until all the stank is off that cat’s ass, and then they will stand there and demonstrate the Flehmen response, which always makes me laugh because they just look SO brain-dead when they stand there like that, totally lights-on-no-one-home. Like so:
Anyway.
So apparently Corbie went over to sniff Maxi’s back end, and Fred said “He’s up her bunghole to his ears! Look at this!”
I was doing something vitally important at my computer, so I didn’t bother to look (I’ve seen cats sniff each others’ asses, I didn’t need to witness it to understand the nuances of ass-sniffery), just said “Who?”
“Corbie,” Fred said.
“Yeah,” I said. “He’s a real asshole connoisseur.”
I didn’t even remember saying it when Fred repeated it to me, but I fell over and laughed and laughed and laaaaaaaughed.
Oh, how Fred disapproves of it when I laugh like that at something I’ve said because he thinks it’s the height of tacky to laugh at your own self. Myself, I say if you can’t laugh at your own wit, what’s the point of living?
(God, I crack myself up. ASSHOLE CONNOISSEUR!)
PS: LOOK what I found on my hard drive. The asshole connoisseur in action!
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On Sunday, I did some work in the garden. I picked the last of the jalapenos and pulled up the plants. I picked tomatoes. I picked okra. I thought about pulling up the weed fabric from around the watermelon plants, but the ground was so dry that it was near impossible to pull up the staples holding down the weed fabric, so I’ll have to wait and do that after we get some rain to soften the dirt to make the pulling up of the staples easier.
Then I went into my raised bed garden area (which is located behind the back yard) and picked the last of the watermelons and stirred up the dirt in the small raised beds in preparation for transplanting cabbage plants later that day. I happened to glance up and saw that the guy next door was standing near their shed, and I nodded at him, then went back to what I was doing.
As I walked back to the house, I glanced over at the shed and saw that the truck belonging to the other guy who lives there sometimes (a woman owns the house; her two sons move in and out pretty regularly. Well. Now there’s a trailer on the other side of the house where one (possibly both) of them live. I don’t know exactly how it works over there, and I’m not that curious.) was parked by the shed, and that a cinder block was basically on the property line. I went into the house and said “I don’t know what they’re doing over there, but they’re pretty close to if not over the property line.”
Fred and I Kravitzed around, staring out the kitchen window to see what they were doing, and then going out onto the front porch to see if we could see any better. Back to the kitchen window, where we saw that while we’d been on the front porch, they’d put another cinder block down and atop the cinder blocks was a truck cover.
“That’s way over on our property line,” I said. “You need to go make them move it.”
Fred dithered for a while, but ultimately went over to talk to them, and they did move it (he reported that one of the men seemed annoyed, but the other one was all “Yeah, okay, no problem.”)
And we spent the rest of the day feeling like nit-picking assholes who couldn’t STAND to be neighborly and let the neighbors’ shit use up a few feet of our property. But damn, it’s not like they’re using their entire property and have run out of space or anything. It turned out that they’d put it behind the shed because they didn’t want it to be visible from the street ’cause it would look crappy (I think?) but there were OTHER places ON their property they could have put it to accomplish the same goal. Ultimately what they did was move it to the other side of the shed.
“We are such assholes,” Fred said. “We’re like those people who lived next door to us in Madison.”
When we lived in Madison, for an entire fucking solid YEAR, the lady who lived next door would come out and walk up and down the property line and up and down and up and down and I’d call Fred and say “She’s doing it again. What the motherfucking FUCK?” Well, as it turned out after she’d passive-aggressively walked and walked and walked the property line for that year, she finally came over and asked Fred not to cut over the property line when he mowed because it looked funny and the yard guy wouldn’t treat their entire front yard with fertilizer because he assumed it was our property not theirs. Which was FINE with Fred, I guess he hadn’t realized he was doing it, but she certainly could have saved her energy by mentioning it way back when he first did it instead of walking and walking and walking and probably talking at length to her husband about what an asshole Fred was.
Wow. I really don’t miss those neighbors.
It’s my contention that Fred needed to nip the property trespassing in the bud immediately rather than letting it go, because YOU GIVES ‘EM AN INCH THEY TAKES A MILE, amiright?
(We still kind of feel like assholes, though.)
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Charlie and Patty Peppers are doing better and better every day. Charlie will meow at me when I go into the room, and if I sit on the floor, he comes right over to be petted, will sit in my lap, and purrs constantly. Patty’s still a little shy. She’ll eventually come over to be petted, but if I make any sudden movements, she scurries away to hide. They’re both playing a lot, and Saturday night Patty knocked Charlie over onto the floor on his back, pinned him down, and bit his neck. She’s no shy, retiring violet when it comes to kicking her brother’s butt!
In the two weeks we’ve had them, Charlie’s gained about eight ounces, and Patty has exactly doubled her body weight. She’s only four ounces smaller than Charlie now. They still get a bit of canned food in the morning and again in the evening, and they finish every last bite.
::thlurrrrp::
“Why you not pettin’ me, lady?”
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She ain’t too proud to beg.
::glare::
Chillin’.
Sleepy Harlan.
Shower Inspector inspects again. He’s very thorough!
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Loony Jake in the sun, looking not so loony.
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Previously
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry. 2008: Confession: It wasn’t ’til I watched the video that I realized he was saying “Children of Thalidomide” (I thought it was “Children of the Little Mai”, figured it was a Vietnam reference), and I thought “Bay of Pigs Invasion” was “Bay of Pigs and Beijing.” Duh. 2007: I have not yet attained the level of dorkitude that would allow me to answer “yes.” 2006: “It doesn’t matter,” she said. “That’s the monkey (ex-boyfriend) gave me. She can crap all over it if she wants.” 2005: We meet Sugarbutt, Tommy, and their siblings!
2004: No entry. 2003: Since he’s a year older than me, that’ll give me two years to theatrically take to my bed and waste away. Sounds about right. 2002: Obviously whoever lives at 308 belongs to the Bitchypoo “If I don’t know you, I ain’t answerin’ the door” school of thought. 2001: I hate you, Mr. Mailman. 2000: Only US Magazine would consider it newsworthy that Michael Douglas is changing diapers he hasn’t been wearing.
Attention, Michiganders! PAAW is having a low-cost vaccination and microchip event this weekend in Madison Heights. $10 vaccs, $20 microchips, dogs and cats – DEFINITELY worth the price. You can find out more at their web page, here, or friend them on Facebook! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “9/16/11 – Friday”
Attention, Michiganders! PAAW is having a low-cost vaccination and microchip event this weekend in Madison Heights. $10 vaccs, $20 microchips, dogs and cats – DEFINITELY worth the price. You can find out more at their web page, here, or friend them on Facebook!
Is Buster a burbler too?? Maybe it’s more common than I’d thought – I never heard that particular type of purr until I got Packer, but now I’ve heard it from two of your cats in the space of, what, two weeks? Buster Burbles might be a good band name. Burblin’ Buster? Buster Burbler. I’ll work on it and get back to you.
Who was the little black Pepper in the “Wild Things” video towards the end who was trying to stay clear of the shenanigans and got pounced on anyway? I LOL’d at that almost as hard as at the head-bonk and total wipeout in the “Yellow Stool” video. Yellow Stool would probably not be a good band name, but WOULD be a pretty good reason to see the gastroenterologist, and I am going to bed now with my tired-ass self.
I think Buster Burbles would be a GREAT name, and when I find my musical talent, I will totally name my ’80s cover band Buster Burbles. Hmm. Buster and the Burbles?
That was Sally Peppers toward the end of the shenanigans. I’d say she’s a lover not a fighter, but she’s been witnessed starting plenty of fights. They can all BRING IT when they want to!
(Also, I would have used a term other than “Yellow Stool” for that video, but (1) I couldn’t think of a better way to describe that piece of furniture and (2) It made me LOL to type it that way. I amuse myself far too much.)
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re The Pond–I know several people around here who’ve had ponds dug, and they started out by having them filled with water from the nearest town–I think the fire dept. actually sells the water & does the filling? And I think it was fairly cheap to get done…
At this point, I don’t know when the guy is going to get out here to dig the pond, since we had rain the other night and he was already behind in the work he was doing, due to the rain we’d gotten last week. If the damn pond is ever put in, we’ll see if the local fire department does that sort of thing, it would be kind of neat to not have to wait for the winter rains to fill the pond!
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So now do we get weekly reminders how pretty Buster is too?
Of COURSE. If y’all forgot how pretty Buster is, I’d never forgive myself.
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I’ve been lurking since the day the McMaos were born – the post came up on my mom’s Google Reader, she sent it out to my sisters and me, and I’ve read every post since. While I love them ALL, I think Miz Poo is my favorite of your cats – my Quinn is a tortie, too, so I’m probably biased. I just wanted to let you know that during Hurricane Irene, when we lost power (I’m in NJ), I started reading Fred’s book on my Kindle. I finished it this past weekend, and I really enjoyed it! Tell Fred to keep writing!
Thank you! I’ve told Fred that you enjoyed it (and conveniently included a link up there to Fred’s book for those of you who haven’t read it and might be interested – it’s available on the Nook as well).
Fred’s about 25% finished with his next one, and you can read a rough draft of the first chapter, here. I’ve read most of what he’s written so far and I really think it’s the best thing he’s written.
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Will you be able to put the black Peppers kittens up for adoption around Halloween? I’ve heard (but never confirmed) that shelters around me do not adopt out black cats in October in fear that they will be abused or used in satanic rituals or something. But maybe that’s just a local rumor? (I do live in the Salem MA area…)
Challenger’s House doesn’t usually put a hold on adoptions of black cats around Halloween, but the adoption counselors are aware of the whole issue and are always (around Halloween and at all times!) careful who adopts Challenger’s House cats.
God bless the CH adoption counselors, because sometimes people get maaaaaad when they’re turned down. I know that one man said “Geez, lady, it’s just a CAT!” to the shelter manager once (which strangely did not convince her to adopt to him!). They have a Do Not Adopt (DNA) list that they keep current.
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99.999% of the time, the household goods sold at flea markets are hot. Random assortment of “new” items, usually in smallish quantities…people professionally shoplift all of it! It’s crazy, there is at least one documentary out about it. 48 hours? One of the new corps. had a big thing on it a while back. (p.s. not trying to make you feel bad for your purchase! I once bought a bunch of Nivea moisurizer overly cheap from a flea market in TN once!)
I should have added that the entire reason I bought hair stuff at the flea market table is because the Sunsilk styling spray (I can’t even remember the name of it, but I’d recognize the bottle – it was a leave-in spray conditioner in a yellow bottle and had UV protection in it) is no longer made. I saw the familiar bottle on the table and HAD to have them. Otherwise, I don’t generally buy that stuff because I figured it probably sits in a hot truck with the sun beating down on it. The idea of people buying food from those tables just gives me the willies.
Also, Lisa sent me this link yesterday – Meth lab found in flea market. That’s the flea market we went to over Labor Day weekend and that we occasionally visit! I had no idea that sort of thing was going on – but I probably shouldn’t have been so surprised, either.
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Wasn’t Sheila (from the Rescuees) a silver tabby? Or was she just grey?
I was thinking she was just gray, but went and looked, and I think I’d call her a silver tabby. It’s hard for me to tell – she was darker than Molly is, but the light parts of her coat were pretty light, so… I think she’s a silver tabby (but I could be wrong)!
PS: Look! It’s Sheila and a much younger Buster!
Awww, and Sheila and Reacher! I’m going to say, comparing the two, that if Reacher’s a silver tabby, then Sheila definitely is, too!
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I’ve thought about getting into fostering and was wondering if it was hard at first. I do have an extra room that I could strip down and remove the carpet. Can you remember what you went through when you first got started in fostering and how long have you been doing it ? Love your journal and hope you never stop. Especially love the pictures with the cute sayings. Also enjoy the photos from around the yard.
I would highly recommend taking the carpet out of the room if you can – otherwise it’s going to get seriously stained (at least, my carpet in our previous house certainly did!)
It’s hard to say whether fostering is hard – there are hard times, especially when you’ve got one or more of a litter who are sick for no discernible reason and you don’t know what to do for them. But the joys of fostering far outweigh the hard times and it is so, so worth it.
I think really all you need to start with is a room where they can be segregated from the rest of the house’s animal residents, litter boxes, cat beds to sleep in (though even old towels and old blankets can serve that purpose) and some toys (and when I say “toys”, I mean anything cats will play with. You don’t have to go out and buy toys; my cats love to play with straws and crumpled up balls of foil and the rings off a milk jug. I do buy a lot of cat toys, but that’s not because they’re demanding them, it’s because I’m clearly a cat toy hoarder.) Anything else you need, you’ll figure out along the way.
We’ve been fostering since May of 2005 – Mia and her babies were my very first set of fosters – and Charlie and Patty Peppers are fosters numbers 164 and 165. The number would be higher, but in the Fall of 2005 when Fred agreed that we could adopt Sugarbutt and Tommy, he made me promise to wait until they’d been with us for six months before I started fostering again. It turned out to be almost a year before the fostering bug bit me again, I took Maddy as my very first bottle baby, and we’ve been doing it ever since!
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Myself, I’m wondering if the lady didn’t just make up the “my doctor said” thing. Seems like the most logical explanation – that she didn’t want to keep the cat for whatever reason/s but was (rightfully) ashamed about saying so, and thus added “my doctor says” to her excuse for extra credibility and blame-dodging.
Curious, though – everyone I’ve known who’s had to take a pet to a shelter or rescue agency says they give you the third degree about your reasons for relinquishing. A former friend had an unrehab-able sprayer and her landlord said it was her or the cat; when she tried to take the cat to the rescue agency they told her they needed a letter from her vet saying that the cat had been checked for UTIs and attesting that the owner had done, in the vet’s opinion, everything possible to properly box-train the cat and that relinquishing was the only option. And a friend of my mom’s wasn’t going to be able to care for her dogs after a major surgery, and got the same type of response from a different shelter – they were willing to take the animals (with a suitable donation) but they really grilled her long and hard about other options… friends, family, boarding until she was recovered (which was expected to be up to 18 months, so not feasible) – they even suggested that one of their volunteers could come over a few times a week to help with big stuff (grooming, yard cleanup, walks) in exchange for the same “donation” they would require for her to relinquish the dogs. They really ran her through the wringer; she didn’t want to have to give them up and it seemed like they made it as hard as possible for her, even though she was expected to be bedridden for 3-4 months and then minimally mobile for at least a year after that. (One of her grandchildren eventually moved in with her to help out, and they were able to re-adopt the dogs back. Yay!)
So I’m curious now whether the people at Challenger House challenged (ha) the lady’s story of “ammonia fumes,” or if they just decided it was better to take him back than to risk her dumping him off in a field somewhere.
I’ve honestly wondered whether she used the “my doctor said” excuse to return Buster because there was some other reason that she felt didn’t have as much strength to it. Was she overwhelmed with the idea of having her third kid and having to care for Buster, too? Let’s be honest here, Buster’s a drama queen. Was she worried that he wouldn’t be good around the baby? I can say that he talks a good game, with the complaining and growling (we say he’s “blustering” when he starts up), but even when he grabs my hand because I’m doing something that displeases him, he never uses his claws on me.
Because Buster was a Challenger’s House cat to start with, her story wasn’t challenged because any Challenger’s House cat will be accepted back at any time, whether that’s two days, two years, or a decade after the initial adoption (though you won’t get your adoption fee back if it’s been longer than, I think, 30 days).
Had she called the shelter and said “Look, this cat’s smudgy face bugs me. I don’t want him any more.”, he would have been accepted back. There was a time when she would have tried to convince someone who wanted to return a cat that they should try this or that, but she’s been doing this long enough that she can tell whether someone wants advice on what to try or just wants to bring the cat back for whatever reason. If they’re intent on bringing the cat back and she tries giving them advice, it’s entirely possible that they’ll just opt to, I don’t know, dump the cat on the side of the road or turn it into a kill shelter instead. Better not to question them and get the cat back, you know?
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I saw this page on my local online newspaper and thought I would share, it is such a cute idea:
Charlie’s protectiveness of Patty is one of the sweetest things I’ve heard of in a long time. Does Challenger’s House even do that – insist on kittens being adopted together?
They do strongly suggest kittens being adopted together; I’m not sure if they insist on it, though. And actually, I’m starting to wonder if Charlie and Patty were so on top of each other all the time just because they were in such a small space. Now that they’re in the guest bedroom, they’re almost never in the same space – he likes to sleep on the cat tree, she curls up on the bed. They do play together, but I’m not sure they’re as closely bonded as I initially thought. Though even if they aren’t, I’d still love to see them go to the same home, of course!
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I need some help for a co-worker of my husband’s. He and his wife have had a kitten (5 to 6 months old,not spayed yet) for a couple of months and she is very active and has a fantastic personality.The problem is that she likes to put her teeth on your hands when she plays. She won’t break the skin and to be honest it wouldn’t be a problem if his wife wasn’t watching kids all day in their house. They have tried the can of air (which worked perfect to keep the kitty off the counter) but it doesn’t seem to phase her when she’s nibbling. I talked to them yesterday and they are willing to keep her if they can break her of this nibblyness deal. Otherwise she is going to have to find a new home :-(.
I don’t have any suggestions here, but I’m hoping maybe someone out there has some helpful hints!
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Just love Charlie and Patty, no matter how crusty or raggedy they are! And am I the only one who is thinking Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty?
You are not – and for good reason! Sally and Lucy’s names were stolen from Connie – Sally here, Lucy here – and when I needed names and decided to keep “Peppers” as the surname for these two rather than go with a whole new naming theme, I ultimately opted for Charlie and Patty. Though I kind of think that Linus would have been a really good name for him, too!
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I’m still worried about the junior Peppers’ mother. Has there been any talk of trapping the poor girl?
There hasn’t, because she seems to have disappeared. The woman who handed Patty over to us said she’d call if the mother cat showed up again, and as of yet we haven’t heard anything. I am REALLY hoping that she doesn’t show up to drop another litter under that trailer.
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5-hour drive to IKEA? I personally do not see a problem with that.
I know! Does anything sound like more fun than renting a little U-Haul van and driving to Ikea, loading up the van, and maybe spending the night before heading home? Because I don’t think so. Fred, however, is a big party pooper who has no idea how to have fun. 🙂
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Did the chickens react to the ducklings suddenly in their midst?
The chickens don’t seem to have noticed that there’s anything different at all. The ducks are smart enough to keep out of the chickens’ way, and the chickens just ignore the ducks.
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Is there a difference between a gray tabby and a silver one?
I’m thinking a gray tabby would be darker, but I just went and looked at some pictures and, uh, I dunno. I’m thinking they’re pretty much the same thing!
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Piggies are so adorable. How can you eat them?? I am vegetarian and one of the things that made me give up meat was the intelligence and cuteness of pigs!
We’re not vegetarians and have no plans to change that, and since we have the time, room, and inclination to raise our own food, I think it would be irresponsible for us not to. Our pigs (and chickens) are spoiled rotten from the day we bring them home until the day they leave, and we’d much rather our food come from happy animals than from those who live their lives in CAFOs.
(For the record, I’m pretty sure they’d have no objections to eating you.)
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Question about the piggies — how old are they and how much bigger will they get?
They’re about five months old currently and weigh about 125 – 150 pounds. One of them will be leaving us around 10th of October (the man who’s buying that pig prefers to go through a different processor (camp counselor?) than we prefer) and she’ll be 200 – 225 pounds. The other two will be going around the end of October (a little over six months old), and should weigh 225 – 250 pounds at that point.
Love that Buster is back where he belongs — how is he doing with Corbie?
There’s really not been a lot of interaction between Buster and Corbie. The occasional head-butt, the occasional sniffing of each others’ back ends, other than that, nada. As far as they’re concerned, it’s no big deal.
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The pig farms I’ve ever driven by have a, shall we say, distinctive aroma. (OK, it smells like pig shit from miles away.) Do you have a problem with piggy smells, or is it not a problem because they have room to roam and are treated more humanely than a farm?
I’m going to guess that the pig farms you drive by have wayyyyy more than three pigs, am I right? If you go out by the pig yard here, the worst smell is that of the pig feed they’ve knocked onto the ground, which has gotten wet and is kind of fermenting. The pigs themselves don’t really stink. The grass that grows in their yard, which is well fertilized by them, is the prettiest, greenest grass I’ve ever seen!
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Have you ever had anycat bit you or bunnykick you in your (and their) sleep? We’ve only got 5 cats, and only one sleeps curled up in my side, usually with my arm around her. One night I woke up to a searing pain in my finger. She had bunnykicked me really hard. I had a gash from the top of my finger to the bottom. Last night I woke up to a searing pain in my thumb. She’d apparently BITTEN me pretty badly. I’m certain she did it in her sleep, as, even if I’d been smothering her or otherwise annoying her, if she’d been awake when she did this, she’d have run away, because no matter what, they are not allowed to hurt us. Even if they accidentally catch a claw on us during play, they run away, because they know hurting a human is not allowed. So, since both times, she was still laying where she was after doing this I’m certain she did it in her sleep. Must be some really bad dreams. 🙁 Has anything like this happened to you?
I have to say that that’s never happened to me! That could be due to the fact that Miz Poo is the only cat who sleeps right up against me (I usually get Tommy at the end of the bed and Elwood next to me, but not touching me). That’s certainly not a pleasant way for you to wake up, is it! I’d offer some advice on what to do, but I really cannot think of a thing.
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have you seen this? cute overload
I had not seen that. How frickin’ CUTE. The way kittens sleep on their backs with their mouths open just kills me DEAD.
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has Molly officially assumed Ciara’s “I’m a cut you” mantle, or is she still trying out for the role?
She’s still trying to decide if the role fits her. I think she’s got the glare down, but she tends to go from the “I cut you” glare to the “I love you” eyes too quickly. She’s got to learn to hold the glare for longer!
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Aw look at that buster man — he’s so happy! I cant recall were he and Elwood close before? Or is he just that lovey?
I’m trying to remember – I think they were pretty close. Elwood’s pretty good with the little ones, once they’re past a certain size (the little little ones kind of freak him out, but Jake loves them) and by the time Buster left, he was about seven or eight months old and thus just the right size to tussle with Elwood and then snuggle with him.
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About those automatic litter boxes, I know of two types, the ones that rake it when they leave and the one that tumbles so the stuff goes into a little holding area. The rake ones can freak them out because of the noise if they havent left the area when it starts, making them afraid to use it. (One of my cats stands outside the box for about five minutes when she’s done, scratching walls and floors like she’s still trying to cover even though she’s not actually IN the box any more…) The tumble ones coat all the sides until it’s like being in a tunnel of poo which most cats can’t deal with, so they’ll tend to hang out the side. I used to think one of those would be great, but now I don’t think it’s worth trying.
A few years ago, back when our permanent residents number was in the single digits (sigh), we had a Litter Robot. It worked well enough, and some of the cats would use it, but some of the other cats were freaked out by it, so we also had to have regular litter boxes. But between emptying the drawer at the bottom of the Litter Robot and then wiping out the inside of the thing once a day so it didn’t get gross, I was spending more time dealing with it than I would have spent scooping the litter box. When the globe cracked less than a year after I got it, I wasn’t sorry to toss the whole thing in the garage.
Peppers v2.0 are too cute! I hope they get adopted together too. Just curious, why the same last name instead of a new one?
It was mostly because I just like the last name “Peppers” for kittens, I think it’s awfully cute. I was originally thinking of naming Charlie “Buster Peppers” because he looks like Buster (and Buster’s “official” Challenger’s House name is Bolitar), but then I thought that might be confusing – and that was before I knew Buster was coming back to us! Charlie and Patty will likely be the last Peppers we have, though.
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Charlie’s definitely the more curious (and less scared) of the two. He’s always the first to approach, but once he’s determined that things are safe, Patty comes along behind him.
“What doin’, lady?”
She’s a petite little thing.
Charlie shows off his scratching-post prowess.
He’s a climber (this is how he gets on the bed – he climbs to the top, then steps onto the bed!)
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Everett Peppers has two white whiskers, on his left side.
“What you want, lady?”
::glare::
Harlan’s not quite sure what’s going on.
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CROOKED ACRES
PRESENTS
THE BEAUTIFUL BOOKWORM BROTHERS
(so you won’t forget how beautiful they are)
Buster monkey-walks across the walkway.
…thinks about it…
and smugly lands on the platform where Loony Jake likes to hang out. Awfully proud of himself, no?
Corbie prefers to sit pretty whilst keeping an eye on the bird in the yard.
A VERY close eye.
(And yes, it’s my goal to get a picture of the two of them together! I hope that much beauty doesn’t break the camera.)
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Previously 2010: Sights from around Crooked Acres. 2009: (Thank god – being unable to understand someone with a thick accent always makes me feel incredibly stupid.) 2008: I’m certainly enjoying all the naked male behinds that pop across the screen pretty regularly, too.
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry. 2005: Just call us the three bears. 2004: small things that will remind me of my grandmother. 2003: Man, this whole running-a-business thing is strictly FOR THE FUCKING BIRDS. 2002: Fred (as if narrating a book): “She was a bitter-butted woman….”
2001: No entry.
2000: No entry.
Attention, Michiganders! PAAW is having a low-cost vaccination and microchip event this weekend in Madison Heights. $10 vaccs, $20 microchips, dogs and cats – DEFINITELY worth the price. You can find out more at their web page, here, or friend them on Facebook! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “9/15/11 – Crooked Acres Thursday”
Attention, Michiganders! PAAW is having a low-cost vaccination and microchip event this weekend in Madison Heights. $10 vaccs, $20 microchips, dogs and cats – DEFINITELY worth the price. You can find out more at their web page, here, or friend them on Facebook!
The watermelon plants keep putting out flowers, but I think we’ve gotten all the watermelons we’re going to get.
The Bhut Jolokia (Ghost) peppers are really coming in now. I think the jalapenos are just about played out, though.
Annnnd the Tabascos are starting to come in, finally.
“Me? Just sitting on these here eggs. You?”
Taking a short break from sitting on the nest.
Mama hen and her babies. There are five of them, because the one thing we need around here is more chickens.
The ducks are doing well. They’re starting to feather in (see the speckled brown feathers around their wings?)
I love how they always look like they’re smiling.
All four ducks in a row. Notice that two of them have white rings on the backs of their necks and two don’t? I’m hoping that means we have two males and two females.
Such pretty little things, no?
“Hallo.”
Giving me the side eyes.
Always alert to the possibility that I might have cookies.
Hangin’ in the wallow.
Sitting down for a bite to eat.
“Know what would hit the spot? A cookie. Be a dear and rustle one up for me, would you?”
“You has a cookie for me?”
“…or perhaps TWO?”
Perhaps you’ve learned that pigs like cookies?
They also like to play and be sprayed with the hose.
The chickens’ maternity yard appears to have a mascot. (I’m assuming it’s the same frog in both pictures. They LOOK the same to me, anyway.)
Happy George.
Watching the ducks.
Gracie (front) and George keep an eye on the chickens.
George loves the smell of acorns in the morning.
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We put Charlie and Patty Peppers in the guest bedroom yesterday, and they were up on the cat tree in no time flat.
Patty watched Charlie fling himself off the cat tree to the floor, and she was amazed.
Charlie tried out the scratching post.
And they played for a while before curling up and napping – Charlie on the cat tree, Patty in a cat bed on the bed.
I think they’re going to be okay. They’re starting to act like real kittens!
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Four of the Peppers were sleeping in that cat bed at the end of my bed. Harlan decided to be different and sleep in the cat bed on the chair. (That yellow thing on the bed is a back scratcher I had been waving around in the air in a vain attempt to get them to look at me.)
Sally and Lucy like to hang out in the Ham-mick and bunny kick each other.
Everett’s checking the cleanliness of my bathtub.
Harlan and Lucy snuggle up for a nap.
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Buster and Elwood in the back yard.
Buster Brown gets around.
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Previously 2010: So high he resorted to toe-sniffing. 2009: I wanted to file for divorce. 2008: It took me ’til dinner time to get the house cleaned, and I swear to god the house doesn’t look any different at ALL.
2007: No entry. 2006: He shifted position and eyed Fred with bright-eye malevolence. 2005: Maybe I just like to bitch, y’think? 2004: Waiting for Ivan. 2003: No more Benifer. How sad.
2002: No entry.
2001: No entry. 2000: Speaking of N Sync – that Lance Bass is a cutie, but I get the distinct feeling that although the lights are on, no one’s home.
Hey, go vote for Gracie over here, wouldya? I just love that picture of her so much I had to enter it! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ First, a couple of videos. The Peppers learn that getting … Continue reading “9/14/11 – Kitteh Wednesday”
The Peppers learn that getting up on that stool can be dangerous to their well-being (well, the boy Peppers learn it, anyway).
And The Peppers run around like the wild things they are.
And as a bonus, here’s a video of Buster from 11 months ago. He still does that thing where he rubs up against one leg and then the other when you’re trying to go somewhere.
Here he is in November, helping Starsky keep clean:
I need to get some updated footage of Buster, obviously!
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The big Peppers are still enjoying having their room to roam. They spend more time in my room than in the foster room now, and when I go upstairs to hang out with them, I lay down on the bed and they climb around on me and flop down in front of me for a belly rub. I sure do love them at this age!
“I have had enough of your picture-taking shenanigans, lady. PET ME.”
Sally likes to hang out between the two stacks of pillows, with her toy.
Molly gives me the eyes of “If you take one more picture, I’ma cut you.”
This picture does a pretty good job of showing the gorgeous orangey-brown shade of Everett’s eyes.
Lucy and Harlan, snuggling in the dog bed. That’s where Tommy sleeps at night!
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The little Peppers are continuing to do well. I imagine in the next few days we’ll be moving them to the guest bedroom so they really have room to run.
Charlie actually meowed at me last night, for the first time! They both purr as soon as I touch them, but I’d sure like to hear a meow or a chirrup from Patty, too.
Patty Peppers keeps an eye on her brudder.
Isn’t he a pretty little thing? Now when I go to hang out with them, he climbs right into my lap.
More Patty. I love the green-blue of her eyes. Too bad they won’t stay that color.
Snugglin’.
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Because I know you’re dying for more Buster!
All the Bookworms have the most beautiful green eyes.
Sweet boy.
Checkin’ out the toys.
Did I mention pretty? I’d say Corbie has some competition, but they can be tied for the most beautiful cat at Crooked Acres, I’m okay with that!
He’s certainly not long and lanky like he was when he left us. He and Corbie are like the brown tabby versions of Jake and Elwood!
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Previously 2010: “Are you having a stroke?” I said. 2009: Kanye: Douchebag.
2008: No entry. 2007: By the way, I still want a pet hummingbird. 2006: Maddy sadly contemplates the vast expanse of my thigh. How will she ever cross it and reach freedom?! 2005: For the record, there’s a big fucking difference between pranking someone and just being an asshole. 2004: Like, so world-weary, like “I can’t be bothered to sign ‘love’, because it sounds so warm, I need something COLDER, so I’ll just scrawl ‘as ever’”.
2003: No entry.
2002: No entry.
2001: No entry.
2000: No entry.
Kate emailed and has a request: I recently started a blog called “From Alone to Home: Stories of Adopted Pets“, and my hope is to collect adoption stories (and photos) from around the country and encourage other people to adopt. I work at a shelter in upstate NY, so it’s a really important issue to … Continue reading “9/13/11 – Tuesday”
Kate emailed and has a request:
I recently started a blog called “From Alone to Home: Stories of Adopted Pets“, and my hope is to collect adoption stories (and photos) from around the country and encourage other people to adopt. I work at a shelter in upstate NY, so it’s a really important issue to me. I’m really excited about collecting and sharing people’s experiences with pet adoption, and I’m sure you have a lot of readers who have adopted.
Go check out Kate’s awesome blog and submit your stories and pictures, y’all!
(Note: I know the link wasn’t working for those of you who read my post first thing yesterday, but it’s fixed now. Sorry about that; perhaps one day I’ll learn to proofread!)
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Texas is having horribly wild fires right now, and Bastrop (outside of Austin) is getting hit hard. Many people have had to evacuate without their animals and some animal shelters have also had to evacuate.
Austin Pets Alive (APA) has been instrumental in stepping up and managing/coordinating a response to help the animals. They have recently been allowed into the evacuation zones to help search for animals that had to be left behind.
They really need donations to help foot the bill of this very large rescue, rehome (existing fosters), and reunite mission. They have a chipin page (listed below) to help defray the expenses.
Austin has worked very hard to become very close to a 100% no kill city and dedicated groups like APA helped make it happen.
Please, if anyone can help, I know it would be much appreciated.
The pictures on that ChipIn page are just heartbreaking.
Remember, y’all – every little bit helps!
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First things first about the whole Buster being returned because the woman who adopted him is pregnant:
1. She has two kids already, an elementary school aged one, and a middle-schooler. She actually contacted Challenger’s House about a month ago saying that she wanted to return him, and the day she was supposed to bring him back, she called and said she wanted to “work” with Buster a little more. She bought an automatic litter box, but apparently he was peeing over the side of it, and that’s when she brought him back last week. So about a month ago I was like “YES! I get my Buster back!” and then “Awww! Okay, well, good for her for being willing to work with him. ::poutyface:: ” and then “YES! GIVE ME BUSTER!”, so it’s been a bit of a roller coaster. And she did say that the doctor said she shouldn’t be breathing in the ammonia fumes or poop from the litter box, but I honestly don’t know if that’s truly what the doctor said, or her interpretation or even an excuse.
2. Yes, toxoplasmosis is dangerous for pregnant women; it can cause miscarriage or birth defects. But it’s not easy to contract, and if you take precautions such as using gloves and washing your hands after scooping the litter box (or even just one or the other), the chances that you’ll contract it – especially from an indoor-only cat – are just about nil. I don’t know this woman or her kids, but I would suggest that they’re both old enough to scoop the litter box. (I don’t know if she’s married/ in a relationship where the other adult could/ would scoop.) You can read more about toxoplasmosis here.
3. KarmaCat pointed out – and is correct – that Buster is #14, not #13. Clearly, I cannot count at ALL. Perhaps when you don’t know how many cats you have, you have too many?
4. If you’re newish, you can read about Buster’s litter, The Bookworms, here. Long story still long but shortened a bit, they were a litter of four kittens (Buster was then known as Bolitar, then there was Corbie, Reacher, and Rhyme) who were found near where Fred used to work. Fred being a known cat lover around there, they called and alerted him to the fact. He brought them home, and we fostered them for Challenger’s House. They initially tested positive for FIV, but that was because their mother was FIV positive, and in time the kittens converted to FIV negative (which has been rechecked several times, and they’re all definitely negative). Once they were determined to be truly negative, they were neutered and started going to Petsmart, two at a time. Reacher and Corbie were absolutely terrified at being in the cage at Petsmart, so we switched out Buster and Rhyme and brought them home, and then I don’t remember why we ended up bringing Buster and Rhyme home, but at this time last year I was pretty sure we were going to end up with all four Bookworms as permanent residents. Only, one day a woman saw Buster’s picture in the book at Petsmart (which has all the Challenger’s House cats who are available for adoption) and wanted to meet him. I did NOT want to give Buster up, so I took Rhyme with me in hopes that she’d fall in love with him instead. She didn’t look twice at Rhyme, but wanted Buster, and that’s how Buster ended up leaving me. (Corbie’s a permanent resident here, of course. Reacher went to live with Kathy in Birmingham and is happy as can be. Rhyme was adopted from Petsmart; I’ve not heard any updates on him, but I hope he’s happy wherever he is!)
I mentioned that we let Buster out to explore the house on Friday. He ventured upstairs, and I think that he was getting overwhelmed, because he was getting hissy and growly. I called up to him to come downstairs, and he ignored me. Then I went upstairs and did the “KittyKittyKitty!” call, and he ignored me. I thought, now how am I going to get him back into the guest bedroom to calm him down?!, then I had an idea…
I stood in the guest bedroom and I called/ sang “Little bitty kitties, little bitty, little bitty!”, which was the song I sang at snack time when the Bookworms were little. I used to give the big cats their snack in the kitchen and the Bookworms theirs in the guest bedroom so that the big cats wouldn’t muscle the Bookworms away from their snacks. I always called the Bookworms to the guest bedroom with that song.
On Friday, the instant I started singing that song, Buster FLEW down the stairs and into the guest bedroom. (And then of course I had to go get him a small snack!) He remembers. It might not be a conscious memory, but somewhere in his mind is etched that song, and for the rest of his life, even if he doesn’t hear that song for months and months, when he does hear it, it will call him to me.
You guys all want to know, of course, does he remember us? I think he does. When he was with us before, if he got all whiny and drama queen-y, I would mock him by saying, in a babytalking voice, “I’m da BAY-bee!”, and he’d respond by meowing some more, and it would go on and on. He remembers that – or he responds as though he does, anyway.
Does he remember Corbie? I think he does, and I think he remembers all the other cats, too. Because when Fred let Jake in to visit with Buster, they sniffed each other intently… and then they rubbed up against each other. When Fred let Buster out of the guest bedroom on Saturday and Buster ran out into the back yard with the other cats, what was amazing was that the reaction was a complete nonreaction. None of the cats except for Alice (who, let me remind you, wasn’t here when Buster left in December) reacted to him at all.
They were all just like ::shrug:: “yeah, it’s Buster. So?”
I witnessed Corbie and Buster sniffing each other, and rubbing against each other, but there hasn’t really been any snuggling. I expect there will be, and I just hope I have the camera close at hand when it does!
He was long and lanky when he left us – and now he is very much NOT!
In the past day Buster has been pretty quiet and low-key. I think he might be sad. I think he probably misses his other family – there were two kids, and I’m sure they gave him lots of attention. She sent a big box of toys and a nice cat bed with him, and there are toys in there that it seems like a kid made – a toy with a piece of string around it to use like a teaser – and I’m sure he has no idea what happened. I’m sure he was happy in his other home, and I’m sure he misses his kids and his routine. He’s eating just fine and using the litter box, and even exploring the house, but he’s just quiet and sleeping a lot and I feel sad for him. I know he’ll adjust and I know it’ll take time and he’ll never have to go through this upset again, but I sure wish I could explain to him that everything will be okay.
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The little Peppers (or Peppers v2.0, as I’m calling them, heh) are doing well. They are so much more bright-eyed than they were a week ago. I know that Charlie’s actually been playing, and I suspect that Patty might be playing a bit, too. I saw her bat at Charlie’s tail yesterday. He’ll actually run after a toy – he’s acting more and more like a real kitten – but she’s less active than he is. She’s more of an observer at this point, at least when I’m in the room with them. They both purr if you pet them, and Charlie especially loves a good belly rub, but neither of them meows or chirps or makes any noise. I’d really like to hear their voices!
On Saturday I let them out of the cage and set the bathroom up (pile of fleece blankets and cat bed in one corner, litter box in another) so they could be free instead of staying in the cage. I can occasionally hear him batting toys around, and every now and then one of the toys makes it under the door out of the bathroom, and I kick it back in.
We had moved them out of the guest bedroom into the bathroom so that we could put Buster in the guest bedroom; now that Buster’s out in the house 24/7, we’ll probably move the little ones back into the guest bedroom in a few more days, so they really have room to run around.
He is so protective of her – they sleep curled up together most of the time, and he’s always curled around her with one leg over her, or his chin hooked over her. I told Fred, she’s his body pillow! Even when he’s on the other side of the bathroom playing, he stops every now and then to look over at her and make sure she’s okay. Such a sweet little man.
Howdy there, Patty Peppers.
She seems to be growing into her big round belly; it’s not quite as big as it was.
Tandem giggles.
“Who, us? What?”
She’s still quite a bit smaller than he is – but they’ve both gained a substantial amount of weight in the last week!
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The big Peppers have been given more room to roam, also. I put the gate across the end of the hallway (this is a half-door that Fred made so that we can see over it, but the kittens can’t get over it), and opened the door to the foster room. This gives them most of the hallway, the upstairs bathroom, and my bedroom to run around in. As always seems to happen on the first day when kittens get more room, they came out of the foster room to explore a little, but went back to the foster room to sleep. The second day, they napped on my bed for a while, then went back to the foster room. Day three, they spent more time in my room than in the foster room, and this morning they were waiting at the door to be let out so they could run around.
(They go back into the foster room at night, of course.)
I’ll give them ’til this weekend, and then Saturday morning I’ll open the gate and give them the run of the house. I expect they’ll deal well with that after a few days (they always do), and then it’ll just be a matter of them spending the night in the foster room and their days hanging out in various spots through the house. (I’m sure they’ll end up in the cat beds on my desk. That’s what usually happens!)
They had their last vaccinations Sunday which means they’re ready to go, so it’s just a matter of time ’til there’s space for them at Petsmart. For now, I intend to enjoy them as much as possible!
Sally Peppers.
Harlan Peppers.
Everett Peppers.
Wild thang.
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Maxi, hanging out in the back yard.
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Previously 2010: Worst feeling in the world: paper cuts.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry. 2007: “You,” I said to Flappy through clenched teeth, “Are the stupidest goddamn animal in the entire world. GET IN THERE!” 2006: Maddy! 2005: let’s just say I am NOT very fond of Robyn v. 2002 right now. 2004: My mother hung up the phone and said “If she wanted closure so bad, maybe she should have shown up at the nursing home to see her!”
2003: No entry. 2002: I think he has a camera hidden somewhere in the bathroom, and when I’m in the shower, an alarm goes off and tells him to call me immediately. 2001: Time to go cold turkey, Deb… 2000: WHEN WILL THE SUFFERING END???
Kate emailed and has a request: I recently started a blog called “From Alone to Home: Stories of Adopted Pets“, and my hope is to collect adoption stories (and photos) from around the country and encourage other people to adopt. I work at a shelter in upstate NY, so it’s a really important issue to … Continue reading “9/12/11 – Monday”
Kate emailed and has a request:
I recently started a blog called “From Alone to Home: Stories of Adopted Pets“, and my hope is to collect adoption stories (and photos) from around the country and encourage other people to adopt. I work at a shelter in upstate NY, so it’s a really important issue to me. I’m really excited about collecting and sharing people’s experiences with pet adoption, and I’m sure you have a lot of readers who have adopted.
Go check out Kate’s awesome blog and submit your stories and pictures, y’all!
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Texas is having horribly wild fires right now, and Bastrop (outside of Austin) is getting hit hard. Many people have had to evacuate without their animals and some animal shelters have also had to evacuate.
Austin Pets Alive (APA) has been instrumental in stepping up and managing/coordinating a response to help the animals. They have recently been allowed into the evacuation zones to help search for animals that had to be left behind.
They really need donations to help foot the bill of this very large rescue, rehome (existing fosters), and reunite mission. They have a chipin page (listed below) to help defray the expenses.
Austin has worked very hard to become very close to a 100% no kill city and dedicated groups like APA helped make it happen.
Please, if anyone can help, I know it would be much appreciated.
The pictures on that ChipIn page are just heartbreaking.
Remember, y’all – every little bit helps!
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Just a quick one today!
So, to recap from last week, last Tuesday Cilantro:
was adopted! That left Clove, Coriander, and Ciara waiting for their forever homes.
And THEN, on Friday I got the word that Clove:
was adopted! She went to a home with a very active older cat and a 10 year-old boy who was very very excited to be bringing her home.
Saturday afternoon, my cell phone rang. It was the shelter manager. “Hey,” she said. “Want 7 more kittens?”
There was dead silence on my end as I (1) tried to figure out where we’d put another 7 kittens, and (2) tried to figure out a nice way to say “Um, NO!”
But before I could respond, she laughed. “I’m just kidding! Ciara and Coriander were just adopted. TOGETHER!”
TOGETHER!!!! Princess Poutyface not only has a forever home, she also has a forever sister!
Ciara and Cori are going to a family with a teenage girl, and Ciara apparently sealed the deal by climbing into the dad’s lap and making herself at home. She’s no dummy!
This has been a great week for my girls. I was starting to get worried that they’d never be adopted and then – boom! – all four in less than a week!
This doesn’t mean that the Peppers Gang will be going soon, though. There are other kittens on the list ahead of them, so they’ve got a little while yet. Unless, of course, adoptions keep up at this rate, in which case they could be going any day now. We’ll just have to see!
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Last week, I got an email from the shelter manager. Someone who had adopted a male kitten – now an adult – from Challenger’s House last year was returning him. She was pregnant, and her doctor had told her that she shouldn’t be breathing in the ammonia fumes from the litter box.
(I have no comment on this ridiculous excuse except to say that ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!)
You know, we rarely ever have adult fosters here, we tend to get the little ones because, well, I do love a baby kitten and that’s just the way it tends to work out. So I called Fred and told him about the return and suggested that since Charlie and Patty were in a cage, we could move them to the bathroom and put the adult in the guest bedroom for a while and give him lots of attention. Fred was amenable to the suggestion, so I told Susan we’d take the returned cat.
Thursday, I went up and had breakfast with the usual Thursday crew, and then I went and picked up the returned cat from the vet’s office. If a cat is returned to Challenger’s House, they get a quick exam and a re-test to be sure they are still FeLV and FIV negative, and their shots are updated if need be. He tested negative, as expected, and I headed home with him. He complained the whole way home in a sad little voice that got louder the closer we got to home. At home, when I walked into the house, he sat in his carrier and growled and hissed at the other cats he saw, all the way to the guest bedroom. I let him out of the carrier, and he walked around the guest bedroom, sniffing all the smells of the other cats who’d been in and out of the room, and he hissed and growled and complained like a little drama queen the entire time. I finally left him alone so he could sniff to his heart’s content and maybe settle down a little.
All through Thursday he was very hissy and growly. Fred let Jake in to visit with him for a brief period of time, and he and Jake sniffed each other and then butted heads. Jake rubbed up against him (honestly, Jake is just the best cat on earth) and then after a few minutes Jake was overwhelmed and asked to go out of the room.
Friday the new guy was a lot calmer, so we let him out into the house to sniff around. There was no reaction at all from our other cats, but eventually the new guy got overwhelmed and started hissing and smacking at the other cats, so we put him back in the guest bedroom for the night.
Fred got up Saturday morning and let the new guy out of the guest bedroom to let him explore a little. He followed Fred to the laundry room, saw the cat door to the back yard, and was out into the back yard in about two seconds. Fred put a collar on him, and he spent all of Saturday either in the back yard hanging out, or in the kitchen on top of the cabinets. If he wasn’t in either of those two places, he was twining around my legs trying to convince me that he was fading away to nothing and needed a bite to eat. (He is not at all a small cat, so I wasn’t convinced.)
Since Saturday morning, he’s been out of the guest bedroom. He’s getting along fine with the other cats (though he and Alice are rather hissy and growly toward each other), and he is one happy boy.
It took very little discussion for Fred and I to make the decision to keep him. He’s so at home here with us, and though adult cats are adopted from Challenger’s House all the time, we just couldn’t bring ourselves to put him through sitting in a cage at Petsmart while all the kittens in the cages around him were adopted and he waited and waited. (Not that that’s necessarily how it would work – Maggie, after all, was adopted in less than two weeks. It’s possible he’d be adopted immediately, he is one gorgeous boy, but we couldn’t stand the thought of it.)
So it’s not official yet – I haven’t filled out the paperwork – but we have a #13 again. We’re not going to keep his “official” name, though, it really doesn’t suit him. We have a much better name in mind for him. We’re going to call him….
BUSTER!!!!
(Yes, it’s really the real Buster aka Bolitar the Bookworm, who went to what we thought was his forever home last December. As you see, that didn’t work out, and he’s back here with us, for good. More details (and pics) tomorrow! Also, no – I did NOT know when I posted the pictures comparing Charlie Peppers to a young Buster that Buster would be coming back here!)
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Previously
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry. 2008: I think that “Cats are bossy and like everything on their own terms” pretty much covers, well, EVERYTHING when it comes to cats! 2007: Human eggs, scrambled, taste just a bit too humany, if you ask me. 2006: I sense I’m being royally fucking screwed over by the goddamn advantage-taking photographer. Who’s probably lighting his cigars with $100 bills as he drives around in his limo. 2005: Ants ain’t fuckin’ welcome here, if you hadn’t guessed.
2004: No entry. 2003: What above the Bumsen is up with that? 2002: It’s the front yard or bust, baby. 2001: That’s pretty much how we all felt. 2000: That’s the price of getting old, my friends.
Note: Pardon any typos, I didn’t proofread before posting this (because I wanted to get it posted), so there are probably 10 zillion typos. Sorry ’bout that. 🙂 Attention, those of you in the Roanoke, VA area! Barbara needs help finding a home (or a rescue) for a dog: The dog is ours, Dodger. He … Continue reading “9/9/11 – Friday”
Note: Pardon any typos, I didn’t proofread before posting this (because I wanted to get it posted), so there are probably 10 zillion typos. Sorry ’bout that. 🙂
Attention, those of you in the Roanoke, VA area! Barbara needs help finding a home (or a rescue) for a dog:
The dog is ours, Dodger. He is an Australian Shepherd/Collie mix. We got him in April as a 6 week puppy. To cut to the chase, he is aggressive towards our youngest, Erin, who is 7, and shook one of our cats so badly, she is at the vets with a spinal cord injury and we are trying to decide what to do…. We have 6 other cats that I have kept inside, because I didn’t feel like putting Dodger in his kennel is fair either. But the cats are in/out cats so that isn’t fair to them. He has collie coloring, but the blue/brown eye combo of a shepherd. He loves to run. He would do well in a house with teenagers and no cats. Our shelter is full, I tried the Australian shepherd rescue group and haven’t heard back, and I tried a local no kill, and haven’t heard back from them either.
Our animals add so much to our lives, but this is the hard part, isn’t it? Finding a safe home for the pet who hurt our beloved Tabby Dabby, and trying to decide if Tabby needs put down.
If you can help or know a person or rescue who can or have any questions, please email me (mizrobyn (at) gmail (dot) com), and I’ll pass your email on to Barbara.
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Attention, those of you in the NYC/ NJ area! Gail’s looking for help:
A kitten literally followed me into my car this morning. Literally. First day of school (I’m a teacher). Sigh. NYC is famous for alley cats. I can’t help them all, but when one runs over to you in a moving car…
And I still have three warehouse kittens. And am moving in 20 days. If you could think of anything to help, I would appreciate it.
BTW, all he does in purr and purr and lick and snuggle. And eat.
Here he is pre-bath:
Here are some pics of him cleaned up. They are bad, because he doesn’t know how to be still. He took a bath and didn’t fuss, and allowed me to blow dry him. He is a charmer for sure, just can’t be still.
If anyone can help, or has any ideas or questions for Gail, please email me (mizrobyn (at) gmail (dot) com) and I’ll pass your emails along to her!
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an update to the spay/neuter clinics closing letter campaign:
Just got a thank you letter from one of “my” state senators (who I wouldn’t vote for if my life depended on it) thanking me for writing to him and explaining to me as though I were an idiot, how Alabama was out of his jurisdiction and why he couldn’t do anything about the issue.
So, to answer my original question, yeah you have to be an Alabama voter for your letter to count. If you’re not, it seems your letter will be forwarded to one of your state senators.
Thanks for the update, Maxie! I suppose it makes sense that only votes from Alabama count, doesn’t it? But still. Hmph!
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And I’m glad you DON’T have a time machine, because if you hadn’t handed out your phone number, who knows what would’ve happened to Patty? That poor baby. At least now, whatever happens from here on out, she’ll face it in a warm, dry, safe, well-fed, and well-loved place.
This is very very true – I’m glad I did hand out my phone number! I’d much much rather have her here with me than with that family or even worse, left under the trailer.
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We have a bottle fed kitten right now. Our neighbors found him? her (I can’t tell) under their porch during Hurricane Irene. Mama cat had a whole litter and she moved them but left this little guy behind. They watched for about an hour and Mama never came back and the poor little guy was wet and crying. They brought him over to us and I’ve been caring for him. He’s a feisty little guy and eats like a champ! I thought he was about a week old when we got him because his eyes weren’t open yet. they opened on Saturday. But his teeth are coming in and he weighs about 13 oz. so I think I am off on the age.
This is a good guide to aging kittens by teeth. Using their teeth to determine how old they are is (I believe) a more accurate way than by weight – as an example, there’s a 9 ounce difference between Charlie and Patty! (She’s doing her best to close that gap, though. Girlfriend can EAT.)
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What kind of nail scratcher thingee is that? it’s all curvy and I love it! I’m using the cardboard box kind for Mackie. He just will not use an upright pole type scratcher. Well, other than the end of the sofa, I mean. But that curvy kind of scratcher looks like something he would like and it’s way more estheticallly pleasing than a cardboard box!
That is a Grreat Choice Corrugated Scratcher. I got it back when Maggie was pregnant because the scratcher that was in the foster room – also by Grreat Choice – was so light that it would move across the room when she used it, and it was clearly annoying her. And we canNOT have an annoyed Mama, so I bought something heavier for her to use.
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Joe Bob is a TALKER??? I LOVE chatty cats!!
He is SUCH a talker. I try and try to get him to talk for me on video, but he absolutely refuses. I’ll get him one day, mark my word!
I have! I love that Reacher has acclimated so well after such a rocky beginning. I have to admit that when, for a little while, we thought Reacher might have to come back here, I wasn’t absolutely heartbroken at the thought, because he was pretty good with the Brady Bunch and well – you can always use cats who’ll put up with the shenanigans of little kittens! But I love love love that Reacher is so happy now. It was a long rough road, but he’s in a great home and clearly loves his brudder, so I’m glad I let him go! (Also glad that I get to see pictures of him from time to time!)
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I have only had one gray tabby cat, and wonder if the brown tabbies are more common than gray?
I’d say brown tabbies are definitely more common than gray – we’ve had a ton of them come through here, but not very many silver tabbies. I’m sure that Reacher wasn’t our very first one, but other than Reacher, Rufus, and now Molly, I don’t remember any other silver tabbies.
Reacher and Jan Brady.
Rufus.
Oh, wait! Of course. Maddy’s a silver tabby! How could I forget? Here she is, little and grown up:
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I love me some SOA, but that whole going-to-Ireland thing bored the hell out of me.
Oh god, did that storyline not drag on FOREVER? The worst part is that I could not understand one damn word that came out of Jimmy O’Phelan’s (aka “The man in black” from Lost) mouth. I told Fred at one point that we should turn on the closed-captioning so I’d know what the hell was going on.
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IANAS (I Am Not A Skimmer) but… I just re-read that 2002 post and WHAT DID YOU BUY with all your water bubbler moneys? (Do you call that a water bubbler? Whatever, you will now.) Cats? Chickens? SCOOP HANDS. I must know.
I believe what we did was deposit it all in the bank and spend it on renovating this house back in 2006. In fact, the money I was saving to pay for a trip to Australia (or Scotland or… I don’t think we ever decided where exactly we were going) went to help pay for the renovation, too! Can you believe it’s been 5 years since we bought this house? I’ve been thinking that most rooms need a fresh coat of paint, but it’s going to be a lot more difficult with a million cats running around while I’m trying to paint!
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I swear I’m not a SKIMMER but where did you get the little kitty bed frame? I want a couple for our cats!
That’s an Ikea Duktig doll bed, and if like me you live nowhere near Ikea (there’s one in Atlanta, but I’m having a hard time convincing Fred to make a 5-hour one-way trip to Ikea, go figure), you can occasionally find them on eBay!
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Do you remember how much that license plate rooster was by chance? I would love, love, love to find something like that near me.
I wish I knew – we didn’t ask, and there was no price on it. I’ll keep my eyes peeled next time we get up there (which probably won’t be for a few months) and if it’s still there, I’ll ask (or make Fred ask, heh).
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Duckies! How are you going to keep them from flying off when they get bigger? Trim their feathers? Or are you just going to count on them lovin’ your spoilin’ ways to keep them close by?
and
My grandmother had ducks when I was little (a mallard pair that she named Donald and Daisy). For the life of me I can’t remember how she kept those ducks from flying away. Do you have to do something to prevent that from happening?
The guy we got the ducks from told Fred that Rouen ducks (that’s what these are) don’t fly. I was skeptical, but just now Googled it, and apparently it’s true!
Rouen is another popular domestic breed that closely resembles a mallard duck when fully mature. Unlike its smaller cousin, the mallard, the Rouen is too heavy to fly. They are said to be calm in nature. They originated in France and came to America around 1874. (source)
I’m glad to hear that they’re calm in nature!
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Are you sure that poor little Patty and Charlie are really siblings? Charlie is so much bigger!
I’m pretty sure, given their teeth, their resemblance to each other, and most importantly their reaction to each other – they curled up together almost immediately, and Charlie is pretty protective of her. It’s not unusual to have such a big difference in size in the same litter. When I got the Spice Girls, Clove was about half a pound smaller than Cori, and don’t even get me started on tiny Beulah from The Seven.
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I SWEAR that I read “Only time will tell whether he has the Buster sass” as “BUSTERS ASS”…
I made Fred proofread my post, and he misread that the same way! I half expected that some of y’all would read it that way – I know that every time I say a kitten is “peering around” someone misreads it as “peeing around”, and so when I type “peering”, it always makes me giggle.
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Did you ever find out from the vet how old they probably *really* are?
I didn’t even ask, actually. I set their date of birth at August 1st, which I think is probably pretty close to how old they are.
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And where does one get those mousies with the long tails from, lady?
That is a most excellent question. I get mine at Petsmart, but I can’t find them online anywhere.
Oh, scratch that – I found them (amazingly enough) on the Petsmart web site, here.
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“His little girlfriend”??! Was Alice aware of this?
Fred and Alice practice Polycatamory. She knows he has other girlfriends, and if any men come along who strike her fancy, she’s free to snuggle. (She won’t, though. She’s really a one-man girl. But she’s secure in her felinity enough that she’s willing to share.)
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does he have a touch of loony jake face???
I think maybe Buddy (the former Bobby Brady) does have a touch of the Loon to him!
Must have rubbed off when Buddy was our foster!
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Don Corbione…snork! Is all this going to his head or is he just averagely vain, like all cats?
(Kerry referred to Corbie as “Don Corbione”, which made me laugh out loud!)
Corbie is as un-vain as they come. He has no idea how beautiful he is. You’d think that, as often as I say “Hello, gorgeous!” to him, he might realize that he’s pretty darn pretty. But no, it just hasn’t sunk in yet.
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Question, what do George and Gracie protect the chickens from? Racoons? Rats? Also, do they protect the pigs too?
Hawks! Before we got George and Gracie, we lost several chickens to hawks, unfortunately. Since we got them, we haven’t (to my knowledge) lost a single one. Of course, they protect them against raccoons and rats and snakes, too. They kind of protect the pigs; though they don’t have access to the pig yard, the pig yard borders the back forty on two sides, so if the dogs hear anything big out in the woods, they go to the fence nearest the sound and bark and bark. (At this point, though, the pigs outweigh at least Gracie, if not George, too, so they could probably take care of themselves.)
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And whatever did you do to her when she was little that Sheriff Kara worries so about you being outside?
The Sheriff is just a born worrier, so she worries. It’s just her nature!
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The ducks are very cute. Do they need a permanent sort of lake or something in order to thrive? Do you have something like that? What do the chickens and pigs think of the ducks?
I think they could make do with kiddy pools, but we are actually having a pond put in at the back of the back forty! A big one – I’m calling it a mini-lake – that should be more than big enough for the ducks. Now watch – we’ll probably have the driest Fall and Winter ever, and the stupid thing won’t fill up!
P.S. In the future ideal world, no one will ever again sell animals–only adopt out–and no one will do backyard breeding or puppy or kitten mills. If only that world would come to pass.
That would be truly wonderful!
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You know what, I got such a kick out of the STAIRS (in AND out of pool!) for those little ducklettes!! That’s just so cool I can’t stand it! 🙂
Wasn’t that a great idea? All Fred’s work, of course!
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Charlie and Patty Peppers are doing okay. They got their bath the night before last, which they withstood in silent resignation. They look better than they did, but they’re still kind of a mess. The cuts around Charlie’s mouth are still healing, and Patty’s still got the goopy eyes. They spend most of their time sleeping and eating, but they do seem brighter-eyed and more interested in what’s going on around them than they did.
I’d like to hear their voices – thus far, I’ve only heard Patty meow once (on the way home after we picked her up), and haven’t heard a peep from Charlie. Charlie does like a good belly rub, but Patty’s a bit scareder, poor baby.
Patty in the front, Charlie in the back (yes, this IS after they had their baths. Like I said, they’re still a mess.)
That looks like a baleful look, but he was actually purring and kneading the air.
Patty and her big ol’ belly.
I think he was keeping an eye on Patty.
“You give me back my brudder, lady.”
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Sally, Everett, and Harlan, hanging out.
Pretty boy Harlan, up close.
Sweet Miss Molly.
Oh, how this thing drives him crazy.
Everett, a blur in mid-air.
::smack::
Wild thing Everett.
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And now for…
A moment of Corbie.
“I go with you to get groceries, Mom. You don’t get the right cereal.”
Snoozin’ Corbs.
Truly, it’s a rough, rough life for the Corbs.
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Previously 2010: “DID SOMEONE SAY ‘COOKIE’?!?!” 2009: Maybe Bill just thought I didn’t have enough to worry about? 2008: “I SEE YOU HAS CORN GIVE TO ME NOM NOM NOM” 2007: Who needs a stinkin’ appendix, anyway?
2006: No entry. 2005: (I shot a man in Texas, just to watch him die.)
2004: No entry. 2003: So basically I paid twice as much for a keyboard as I would have on my own for no good reason, all thanks to that Staples employee, may he rot in hell. 2002: I hope that leaf doesn’t give me a damn yeast infection.
2001: No entry. 2000: I’m not sure what happened next. I believe I blacked out.
Attention, those of you in the Roanoke, VA area! Barbara needs help finding a home (or a rescue) for a dog: The dog is ours, Dodger. He is an Australian Shepherd/Collie mix. We got him in April as a 6 week puppy. To cut to the chase, he is aggressive towards our youngest, Erin, who … Continue reading “9/8/11 – Crooked Acres Thursday”
Attention, those of you in the Roanoke, VA area! Barbara needs help finding a home (or a rescue) for a dog:
The dog is ours, Dodger. He is an Australian Shepherd/Collie mix. We got him in April as a 6 week puppy. To cut to the chase, he is aggressive towards our youngest, Erin, who is 7, and shook one of our cats so badly, she is at the vets with a spinal cord injury and we are trying to decide what to do…. We have 6 other cats that I have kept inside, because I didn’t feel like putting Dodger in his kennel is fair either. But the cats are in/out cats so that isn’t fair to them. He has collie coloring, but the blue/brown eye combo of a shepherd. He loves to run. He would do well in a house with teenagers and no cats. Our shelter is full, I tried the Australian shepherd rescue group and haven’t heard back, and I tried a local no kill, and haven’t heard back from them either.
Our animals add so much to our lives, but this is the hard part, isn’t it? Finding a safe home for the pet who hurt our beloved Tabby Dabby, and trying to decide if Tabby needs put down.
If you can help or know a person or rescue who can or have any questions, please email me (mizrobyn (at) gmail (dot) com), and I’ll pass your email on to Barbara.
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Attention, those of you in the NYC/ NJ area! Gail’s looking for help:
A kitten literally followed me into my car this morning. Literally. First day of school (I’m a teacher). Sigh. NYC is famous for alley cats. I can’t help them all, but when one runs over to you in a moving car…
And I still have three warehouse kittens. And am moving in 20 days. If you could think of anything to help, I would appreciate it.
BTW, all he does in purr and purr and lick and snuggle. And eat.
Here he is pre-bath:
Here are some pics of him cleaned up. They are bad, because he doesn’t know how to be still. He took a bath and didn’t fuss, and allowed me to blow dry him. He is a charmer for sure, just can’t be still.
If anyone can help, or has any ideas or questions for Gail, please email me (mizrobyn (at) gmail (dot) com) and I’ll pass your emails along to her!
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Sights from around Crooked Acres (and elsewhere!)
On Saturday, we went up to Ardmore, Tennessee to go to the Dog Days Flea Market. It’s an outdoor flea market that’s held every Sunday and Monday, except for Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends, when it’s held Friday through Monday. We usually go up there on Sundays when we have nothing to do around the house and Fred is bored and just wants to go out and do something. We got, I think, our second set of pigs there, and when we had turkeys, that’s where they came from. Oh, and we’ve gotten a few chickens there, too.
(Please note that these aren’t the best pictures on earth, because I was taking pictures in a sneaky hold-the-camera-out-and-hope-I-get-the-pic fashion.)
I cannot believe I left without making Fred buy this thing for me. Wouldn’t it look fabulous on the front porch?
I’d love to have some of those old blue Ball ( ::snicker:: )(I am 14 years old) canning jars, but the last time I checked the price on one, it was $8, and I don’t know if that’s a good price or not, but I have plenty of non-old canning jars I’m just as happy to use.
I would not recommend buying your Muscle Milk or batteries at the flea market, but I did buy six bottles of Sunsilk hair gel there once and it worked just fine.
I should have bought this sign for the chicken coop. Who doesn’t want some Funk-y corn?
Most of the people who sell their wares at the flea market have campers or tents to stay in. This person apparently just plopped their cot down in the middle of the grass. Looks kind of comfy, but I don’t know how they handled the nighttime creepy crawlies.
Old tins.
More junk. (Someone needs to get that boy statue to the doctor. He’s GRAY.)
Acupuncture at the flea market! Free demo!
We always have to stop and look through the videos, even though the only VCR we own is out in the garage.
I have informed everyone I’m related to and who might have a say in the matter that if I end up in a cemetery with one of these fake arrangements on my grave, I’ll be coming back to haunt them ALL.
Knockoff purses.
Rifles everywhere at the flea market.
Isn’t this the neatest thing? HOW did I leave without buying that thing? It’s so cool and would have looked perfect on the side of the coop!
This is probably my least favorite part of the flea market, the selling of puppies. Actually, no. My least favorite part is the part where the puppies are hundreds of dollars, but the cages of kittens who occasionally show up are free. (This time around, there were no kittens at all.)
Did you need a fire hydrant? I bet George and Gracie would have loved to have their very own!
Lots of people selling home-canned goods, too.
We didn’t buy any of that stuff – honestly, we rarely buy anything at Dog Days that isn’t living – but we did buy something to make Fred happy. On the drive up there, we were talking about ducks (because we weren’t even pretending that we were going up there for anything OTHER than ducks at this point) and Fred was talking about how many ducks we should get. I told him I’d prefer to have an even number of them, two or four (not that he doesn’t know what an even number is, but I didn’t want him to think I meant twelve or fourteen!), and he thought that was funny. When we found a booth with little ducks, there was a cage of about ten itty bitty ducks, but we didn’t want the tiny ones. In the next cage over? Four ducks who were maybe not teenage ducks, but somewhere between toddlers and teenagers (tweens?). We snatched ’em up and got out of there.
Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Bob. (I’m joking. They all look the same to me. And no, we don’t know what sex they are yet. I’m hoping for three girls and a boy, but four girls would be fine with me. With our luck, though, they’re all boys. I think girl Rouens are prettier than the males.)
Manna from heaven! (Or scratch from Fred. One or the other!)
Underwater duck!
Smilin’ duck.
Bob bobs.
“Hey, guys, what’s THAT? That’s a BIG pool! We can really go swimmin’ in that one!”
Note that Bob’s over there in the Rubbermaid pool.
But then he saw the attraction of a bigger pool.
These ducks will get in any water they see. Katherine was visiting yesterday, and we looked over and there were two ducks in the dogs’ water dish. Fred told me he was out there the other day, and one of the ducks sat down in a tiny little puddle of water. So cute, these ducks. I hope they don’t grow up obnoxious.
(The ducks are not future food, by the way. They’re purely for entertainment purposes. If any of them are girls, and they lay eggs, we’ll use their eggs to bake with, but as far as eating duck? I’m not interested. Not that I’ve had any experience with eating duck, but I also don’t eat goat, and I’m okay with that!)
Randomness:
Morning Glories are so very pretty.
That’s right, Sam’s Club. Lecture me on sensible eating when there was a display of Little Debbie snack cakes behind me when I snapped this picture. (But I DID buy those apple straws and they ARE way too good and I will NEVER buy any more because they’re TOO good!)
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The Peppers Gang have been spayed and neutered! They were very unhappy with me on the ride up to the vet. And then poor Molly actually HISSED at me when I picked up their carriers, so was so scared. But they did well (they hissed at the vet tech, but weren’t mean about it, she told me) and now THAT’s done and over with, and we get to just enjoy having them around ’til it’s time for them to go off to Petsmart. In a few days, we’ll give them more room to roam, and then if that goes well, we’ll see how they do in Gen Pop. Jake’s going to be in hog heaven, because he sure loves watching the little ones run around and play!
Would you look at that bratty teenage attitude?
Lucy in motion.
“What doin’, lady?”
Lucy tellin’ secrets.
Got it!
Everett’s face, though blurry, cracks me UP.
Everett gets a snuggle from Fred.
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No pictures of Charlie and Patty today (it was a busy day yesterday), but they did get baths last night, and definitely look better. They also look a lot more bright-eyed than they did just two days ago, and in fact last night Fred had Charlie rolling around on his back purring and kneading the air. I just wish their big, swollen, worm-filled bellies would go down some (I’m seeing worms in the litter box, so the medication is starting to work!) and if I saw them play just a tiny bit, that would make me happy, too.
I saw Charlie grooming Patty last night, and I pretty much died from the cute.
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Poor Tommy – everyone just loves him so very much, he can’t get a moment to himself. (That’s Loony Jake laying on top of him.)
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Previously 2010: For today, feast your eyes upon the sheer gorgeous stripey perfection of the kitty known as Corby McGee. 2009: It’s like we’ve entered another universe completely. 2008: Yes, more chickens.
2007: No entry. 2006: I think that “Proven to be beneficial to livers” should be Fred’s new tagline. 2005: Give me some of that, Barbara Bush, you ignoramus.
2004: No entry. 2003: Because believe it or not, it never once occurred to me that the Walton family was comprised of hillbillies. 2002: Look, I drink a gallon of water a day. I need to know that I can pee when I need to, so stop rolling your eyes at me.
2001: No entry. 2000: Can I tell you how much I loathe Bret Easton Ellis?
