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Category Archives: Cats
5.16.12 Catdogs Need To Stay Safe
I can not seem to get out the door these days without my 3rd dog, Nine the kitten, trying to come along. I know that I told you in the past that I do not allow any of the cats outside. That is just the way it is. But it seems that I am going to have to get him a harness and walk him along with Louise and Sofie because he is just not taking ‘No’ for an answer. The trouble with that is we usually walk in the morning with Lulu’s boyfriend, Mojo, and he would eat Nine in one bite. One day Mo saw the cats through the glass and almost broke down my door. Not sure I want to test that out.
“Oh well, I guess you will just have to stay inside, Lil’ Mr. Nine. Leave the outside world for the big dogs. Little Catdogs need to stay where it is safe.”
Just another CatDogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
5.14.12 Don’t Piss Off Kitty
Miss Constance Kitty is angry. Nine, the trouble making kitten, has taken to pushing everyone around, and he is pouncing on the older cats and no one likes it. Miss Kitty is pissed…. literally. The other morning Sofie, who steals my shoes remember, stole one of my favorite slippers and brought it upstairs. She always carries around my pink slippers like they are her babies. Well, I forgot to bring the slipper into the bedroom when I went to sleep and the next morning I found it soaking wet! Not the carpet underneath the slipper mind you, just the slipper. Kitty peed only in my slipper! Then she peed on my daughter’s sandals. I do not like this behavior at all. I understand that she is very angry but why take it out on shoes. It is very hard in a multi-animal household when someone starts to do this type of negative behavior. I am kind of at wits end with her. Unlike dogs, I find it much more difficult to change unwanted behavior in cats. Kitty has had moments over the last several years of this antisocial behavior. When she is upset, she makes it known. I have tried pheromone sprays and all the different (and sometimes expensive stuff), but this is not plain marking behavior, I think she is just ‘pissed.’ We have been spraying Nine with the water bottle when we catch him being aggressive, but I figure animals are animals and they have to find their balance in the pack which is not something you can, or even want to, change in them. When they respond in this way however, it is very frustrating. I am always open to ideas of what to do if any of you have similar situations. Seems to me to only be Kitty, but I am worried that something like this could start a bad cycle in the zoo.
I really did like those slippers.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
5.11.12 “Who Me?”
Nine has decided that since the dogs get to go in the back yard out the sliding door, he should be able to follow. So he hides behind the TV that is next to the slider and waits for the moment when someone opens the door and maybe does not see him escape. When he gets caught trying to sneak out he gives me that “Who me?” look. You know the one; when your animal has done something but they think the stupid human would never catch on to the game that they are trying to play on you. “I’m so cute, I would never try something like that Mom.” Poor Nine, life is just so hard when you have to follow the rules.
Just another CATDogDaz morning at the Zoo ❤
5.9.12 Be Kind To Your Office Staff
Noel spends a significant part of her life on my desk, in her pink bed under the window. She is almost always with me (except now for some strange reason). She and Muffin used to both sleep on the desk, but he has taken to sleeping in the living room on the couch ever since the winter (I assume because it is warmer). Noel likes to help me type (you have seen many of her blogs if you follow the zoo). Today, Muffy actually walked on my laptop and shut it down in the middle of a business meeting where I was instant messaging with someone. “Oh excuse me Mr. Big Business person, my cat just walked on my computer and that is why I told you to asdjfhajksdfhdfkashdfkasjdkfa and then I disappeared.” I am sure that will go over well at Head Quarters. Speaking of that however, there does not seem to be a conference call or business meeting that I attend, anywhere in the world, that there is not a dog barking, or a baby crying. I used to think my dog Nikki’s bark was connected to the mute button of my phone. Really! I would take it off mute, she would bark, on mute, she was quiet. I am not lying, I tested it. When I tell people I work from home and have 7 animals they look at me like I am crazy, but I just tell people I have the most loving and cuddly office staff, and I would not trade them for anything in the world. Believe me, I never eat lunch alone.
Just another dogdaz morning at the zoo ❤
5.6.12 A Cat For All Seasons
I have read that cats sleep an average of 18 hours a day. Now that is a good job if you can get it. The Muffin Man, aka Muffy, sleeps a great deal these days. We think he is about 18 or 19 years old at this point (so how old does that make him in cat years (is it 5X1 human year?), 90?). Here is a monthly slideshow of Muffin (pictures are actually pulled from different years). Hope you enjoy that adorable face as much as we do.
Just another dogdaz morning at the zoo ❤
5.2.12 Noel’s Story: Near Death to Alpha in 5 Years
Baby Noel rescued Dec 2007
Noel near death when rescued
We rescued Noel and Constance from Last Chance Cat Rescue at PetSmart during Christmas 2007. I started the adoption process in November, but they put us through a tremendously long wait (which I think was crazy). We had to wait almost a month. By the time we got them home, both kittens were sick and Noel was critically ill. Noel had an extreme case of feline Herbes. She required a tremendous amout of medicine and attention. She was about 9 months old and had never been held or played with that we could tell. When you rescue, you just really don’t know their stories.
Feline Herbes attacks the respiratory system and the eyes. We were not sure if she would be blind. So, for almost 2 months, I held her and gave her medicine, and we taught her how to play with cat toys. It was a long process, but slowly, month after month, she grew stronger and larger and more playful. Now Noel is the biggest cat in the herd and has become the leader. I still pick her up and hold her like a baby (even though she protests for a moment). She rarely lets anyone else near her, but even that, after 5 years, is getting better.
I have been told that Herpes infection is extremely common in young kittens, especially if they are stressed from fleas, poor nutrition, environmental cold, etc. Young kittens can produce so much ocular discharge that their eyes gum closed sealing the infected secretions around the eye. In severe cases, the eye could rupture and become permanently blinded. Treatment is crucial. That is the situation we had with Noel.
Herpes virus as a group are highly dependent on the presence of an amino acid called arginine. WIthout arginine, Herpes cannot reproduce. So I immediately put Noel on Lysine, which is also an amino acid, that is taken up by the virus in favor of arginine. You can take advantage of this situation and saturate the virus with lysine and thus suppress the virus’ ability to replicate. I bought lysine at the health food store in a capsule I opened and put in her food; just make sure that the formula is free of the preservative ‘propylene glycol,’ as cats can have blood reactions against that compound (wow, what we learn when our animals are sick). She also was on Clavomox and Vibramycin. Please seek a Vet’s knowledge on this!
Noel 2008 (1 yr later)
Noel in the window 2011
Look at Noel today! Other than being a nose breather (just like me) and having a scratch on her left cornea, she has no long term side effects that we are aware of. 75% of the rescues that come to us seem to be sick when we get them home. We know that it is a lot of work but Noel, and also Mr. Moto (a guinea pig story for another day) would never had made it, if not for them finding us and telling us they wanted to come home forever and be our special pets.
Just another CatDogDay morning at the zoo ❤
4.29.12 Sofie’s Saga
“How come the cats get to sleep on the bed with you but Lulu and I have to stay on the floor?” “No fair!” “We want to come up on the bed and snuggle with you, the heck with those silly cats!” “I promise I won’t take up the whole bed like Muffin does, I know you told me he becomes a ‘St. Bernard’ (whatever that is) when he sleep with you.” “I promise I will be a good girl if you just let me come up with you and the cats, really I will.” ” Pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaassssssssssssssseeeeee!”
Just another dogdaz morning at the zoo ❤
4.27.12 Stella: Adore Her
Stella is turning out to be one beautiful little kitty cat. She, unlike her adopted brother Nine, is quiet and demure. I rarely see her except when she is raiding the fountain at the top of the stairs for rocks, and then throwing them down to Nine at the bottom of the steps. Maybe, since she is only about 9 months old, she has not come into her major mischief stage yet, or maybe, she is so over shadowed by Nine’s crazy antics that she seems mild in comparison. I adore Stella! She is not a real cuddle cat yet, but I try to hold her a little every day in the hopes that she may find it enjoyable someday. I have noted that she likes certain people though. Last weekend when my sister visited, I noticed Stella sitting next to Aunt B and actually holding her arm with her paws (she never does that to me :-(… but I do usually have 2 crazy dogs and at least 1 cat on me at all times… I wonder if that has anything to do with it?).
Just another CATDogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
DogDaz Zoo 