Tag: #petmomma

June already?

Everything seems so crazy in the world right now. While I’m certainly concerned about all that is going on, I’m also happy to focus on the good for a few moments, so let’s talk pets!

The Dragon

The Dragon is cranky. It’s Spring shedding time and although much of her as already shed, she’s still got a lot of shedding to do, her head especially, and that seems to drive her crazy. I did discover some new greens that she is REALLY excited about. It used to be that the only green she really ate consistently was Arugula. I’ve tried so many different types of greens and she wouldn’t touch them. When I grocery shopped a few days ago, the store was totally out of Arugula. I thought I would try something different and I bought some pea shoots and broccoli sprouts. She is devouring them! This morning she ate a big bowl of them, and I just brought her another handful of the pea sprouts and she is gobbling them all up. I may have to bring her another helping.

I’m happy to find greens that she will eat so well!

Cali is doing fine, but she’s itchy. Spring is not the best season for her, and I’ve had to spot treat her skin, and also give her extra baths. I made need to bring her to the vet for an extra allergy shot, but so far she is hanging in there with the baths and spot treatments as well as her regular Apoquel.

I did clip her recently, and the short haircut also seems to help with the allergies. I can give her a really good scrub when I bathe her, and it is easier to get the topical sprays on her skin.

Hector is getting so brave! She’s still walking all around the house, and chewing and cardboard that crosses her path. The last few days, she has also been attempting short flights! I did clip Hector’s wings not long after we got her. I had taken her to the vet for a check up, and the vet suggested I clip her as she adjusted to her new home. I haven’t clipped her wings since. I’d prefer not to clip her, but if she starts flying and crashing I may have to clip her again so that she doesn’t hurt herself.

Hector has started a new little routine. After dinner and clean up, the family usually heads into the living room to watch a movie. Hector follows us to the living room now. I sit on the floor, play fetch with Cali, and Hector struts around checking everything out. Occasionally she will push a cat toy around or nibble on a dog toy. When she’s had enough, she makes this awful whistle/scream sound and we know it is time to give her a ride back to her cage.

Logan

Last but not least are all the kitties. All are doing well. Puck and Bean have been venturing outside on leashes a little bit. I’m starting to think it isn’t a good idea as Puck has been sitting at the door meowing like he is asking to go out. I don’t want outdoor cats, or even indoor/outdoor cats. I know everyone has different feelings on it, but it just isn’t my thing. The only time I’ve had an outdoor cat was when I had a barn in Texas and I had a barn cat. I used to worry every time I went out that I wouldn’t find him. I know I wouldn’t sleep if I had an outdoor cat and it didn’t come home one night.

Since I’ve given up on trying to get the cats to use new kitty litter, I’ve gotten a couple of mats to try and help contain the spread of the litter at least. I’ll post a review of the new mats tomorrow.

I’m also giving Primal cat food a try. I’ll get a review of that posted soon as well.

Stay well everyone!

 

Cat Stuff

Puck Checking Outside

The weather has been crazy, sunny and spring-like one day, cold, windy, rainy the next. We’ve been taking advantage of any and all sunny days to open up the house and get some fresh air in. The kitties love to hang out near the screens, sniff the fresh air, and occasionally keep an eye on a chipmunk or two.

Cali and Bean

On the colder days, they all like to find a cozy spot to snuggle up.

I’m still experimenting with litter boxes, and now with cat litter as well. The Breeze Box is working out well for me as my extra/upstairs box. the litter doesn’t track, and it doesn’t smell. The two most important things to me. I still don’t think that box would work out for me if I only used Breeze boxes, but maybe it would. If I see them on sale again, I might buy another to try downstairs with my other boxes.

I keep three boxes downstairs, and all three were traditional tray boxes with clumping litter. As Bean is getting bigger, I was finding litter everywhere. Not only in the large trays I keep under the boxes, but spread into the carpet in the hall, up the stairs, just everywhere. If I didn’t vacuum every day, the hall was turning into a sandbox. My first experiment was to try a paper pellet litter. The litter I chose is: Purina Yesterday’s News Non Clumping Paper Cat Litter, Unscented Low Tracking Cat Litter.

The key to me was the “low tracking” part. It has been ages since I’ve used a non-clumping litter, but it was worth a try. I’m using the paper litter in just one of the three boxes. I didn’t want to overwhelm the cats. They started using it right away, but like the upstairs box, they are only using the new litter to urinate.

So far, I really like this litter. It is definitely not tracking. Once every couple of days I find a pellet or two on the carpet, but other than that these pellets mostly stay in the box. I bought a new litter scoop: and it is working out well. I’m finding the non-clumping litter to be much easier to deal with than I had imagined. Every day I run the scoop through it, pick up any chunks, and that’s it. About every ten days, I dump the entire box, wipe it out, and refill it, super easy. The new scoop is also working really well for my clumping litter. It has bigger holes, so I don’t have to scoop and shake, shake, shake. I just scoop, wait a second, and the clumps are ready to be dumped.

My only hesitation with this new litter is that the cats aren’t using it to poop. I’m trying to decide if I should switch another box to this paper litter, or maybe try another kind of litter in one of the other boxes, maybe a pine litter.

I definitely think that the pelleted litters are less tracking for us, and although I’m kind of shocked about it, I also think I want to move to a non-clumping litter. The way my boxes are set up, it is super easy to dump them every ten days or so, and it makes daily cleaning easier. I guess I’ll have to see how my litter costs are and if it is much more expensive to dump the whole box so often.

Please sir, may I have another?

I definitely don’t love it when the pets beg, but when we eat in front of TV and Puck gets up on his hind legs like this, it is just too cute!

My other cat issue is that one of them has been throwing up hairballs pretty regularly. I think it’s Bean, but I’m not 100% sure. I’ve tried home remedies, like coconut oil, but haven’t had any luck. Last week, I tried a commercial product  and it seems to be helping. Funny thing is that Bean is the only one who will eat it. I’m trying to brush him more, and using the hair ball remedy as well. Hopefully that will fix that problem.

Hector is quiet this morning, the Dragon is sunning herself. I should take advantage of the quiet house and get some work done. I’m putting together info on pet water fountains, and will have that posted soon. I seem to always be experimenting with new pet products to solve different problems. What are you experimenting with these days?

Sanity

There are days when I get super busy and feel bad for my pets that maybe they haven’t had enough attention that day, or a long enough walk, etc. For the most part, I think my pets are pretty spoiled, but there can be a day here and there when I’m busy. Right now, I’m thankful to have a houseful of pets!  I have to say with all the crazy going on in the world, I’m so super thankful for each and every one of them.

Taking care of all my pets brings me joy. I don’t see it as work or a chore, I love cleaning their cages, brushing and feeding them, making them comfortable. Having the routine of animal care has been super helpful to me in this time of no routines.

The pets are also amazing for stress relief. When I find something is getting to me, I take a deep breath and snuggle a kitty, or take the dog for a walk.

There have been so many stories in the news lately about shelters emptying as people are stepping up to foster and adopt. Not only am I happy for the animals that get to start a new chapter in their lives, but I’m happy for the humans that are adding animal companions, living stress relievers to their lives.

 

Cali

Cali is probably the least stress relieving pet these days, but we love her like crazy. She’s always been a bit anxious and nervous, and she knows our routine is off. While she is enjoying more walks and extra snuggles, she’s also barking more and being a bit extra nervous and jealous of the other pets. She had a nice bath yesterday, and within the next day or two, she’ll be getting a home hair cut! I miss seeing her eyes! I’ll post another picture of her once I get her all clipped.

I’m happy to report that Puck seems to be doing much better! He seems comfortable again and isn’t spending all his time in the litter box. I’ve got him on the prescription diet, and I’m trying to get as much water into him as possible. I’m feeding him canned food twice a day, and even adding some water to the canned food. I don’t want to take away his dry food totally, because I feel that will cause him more stress, but I’m definitely encouraging him to eat more canned. I also added another water bowl next to the dry food dish. I’m not sure it will help or not, but it can’t hurt.

While I was writing, Cali was curled up on the floor next to me, but she got nervous when someone pulled into the driveway and she started barking and pacing. Puck came over and snuggled up near her and she calmed right down. There’s something pretty special about that little cat.

Bean is Bean. He keeps growing like crazy. I’m curious, and slightly nervous about how big he might get. I’m pretty sure he weighs about the same as the dog now, probably 11+ pounds. He’s 7.5 months old!

I hope everyone is finding comfort somewhere, whether with family, pets, etc.  Find something to be thankful for today, whether it is a cup of coffee, food on the table, or extra time with children, and give all your pets an extra pat from me 😉

Snow Day

It has been snowing for well over 40 hours now, and the snow is still coming down. Yesterday and this morning as I work at my desk, all my furry friends are keeping me company. Cali’s open crate is right next to my desk.

When Cali doesn’t have to fight the cats for a spot in the crate, that’s where she will hang out while I’m working.

Logan and Puck often like to snuggle up in or on top of the dog crate. Puck also spends a lot of time on time of the dragon tank as he LOVES her heat lamps. Today, the two cats are hanging out at the extra desk next to mine, just watching everything that is going on.

From this spot, Puck and Logan can watch everything going on around them. They have a view of Hector, Wena the dragon, and me!

Speaking of the Dragon, she’s happily hanging out in her hammock, enjoying her heat lamp, oblivious to the heinous weather going on outside. Smart lizard!

And then there is the one and only Hector D. Byrd. While I’m working, Hector spends her time strutting around, chewing up boxes, and chasing the cats. She also likes to chat at me, especially if I happen to get on the phone.

Unfortunately, Little Bean hasn’t realized that he needs to leave Hector alone yet, so I have to be super careful. I’m working on teaching Hector to “Go Home” which means to go back to her cage. It’s really handy when the cat is being too playful and I can tell Hector to “Go Home” and she heads back out of harms way on her own. Again, I’m always within a couple of feet of them, making sure everyone stays safe.

I keep a folded up towel on one side of my desk, and Bean spends a lot of time there. Yesterday, every time I sat down at my desk, Bean would come over, meow at me, then attempt to climb up my leg. I’d scoop him up and settle him on his towel where he will cuddle up and sleep as long as I’m sitting at my desk. Today, Bean has decided to snuggle up on the chair behind me.

I really love having him snuggle up in the corner of my desk.  It’s nice to be able to reach over and pat him, but it’s also nice to not have him stepping on my keyboard!

Stay warm everyone. Hopefully this snow will end soon!

 

Innovet Multivitamin

A little over a month ago I received an offer from Innovet to try their new multivitamin at a discounted, pre-order price. I think the deal was 30% off the regular retail price. The vitamin has hemp, probiotics, krill oil, glucosamine, and more. I was a bit intrigued since I had already been supplementing my Morkie, Cali, with many of these things.

Cali has been taking this vitamin once a day for a little over a month now. She seems a little less itchy than she normal, which might be the colder weather. Her hair seems softer, and less oily. Besides skin problems, Cali also has some knee problems.  She may eventually need surgery to correct subluxating patellas on both rear legs, but up to now she has been Ok. The only time I see symptoms are when we go on an extra long walk. Occasionally when she is tired, I’ll notice she has a little trouble jumping on the furniture. With the colder weather, we haven’t been doing long walks, but I also haven’t noticed her having trouble getting onto the furniture lately.  I can’t be 100% positive that the results I’m seeing are from the new vitamin, but I feel good enough about it that I plan to continue using them.

Apoquel has been a required medication for Cali for several years now.  Without it, she scratches herself bald, ends up with hot spots, and often skin infections. Lately I’ve been reading that long term use of Apoquel can suppress the immune system and might not be as healthy as previously believed. I’m hoping that maybe with a combination of high quality diet, and this multivitamin, that maybe I can get Cali off the Apoquel. I plan to talk to my vet about this before changing her dosage of course, but I’m interested to see how she does.

The Multivitamin treats are about an inch long as you can see above, and they are soft chews. Cali seems to enjoy the taste and eats them right away. I do break them in half when I feed them to her, because they are thick and a little hard for her small mouth to chew whole. One thing I noticed is that the suggested use is 2 chews per day for up to 35 lbs. Cali only weighs 11 lbs, so I’ve just been giving her one chew per day. Since I seem to be seeing results, I see no reason to go up to two, but as I wean her off the Apoquel, this might be a good option.

According to the label, this vitamin is supposed to help with Skin & Coat, Hip & Joints, Digestion, Immune support, Heart & Circulation, Cognition & Memory. I just ordered another jar of the supplement, so I’ll update in a couple of months and see if I have noticed any other improvements. Innovet currently has the Multivitamin on sale for $29.50 per jar, with 90 chews per jar. Considering I currently pay about $40 per month for Apoquel, this could be a nice financial savings for me as well as it possibly being healthier for Cali.

The one thing I don’t like about this product is that it is Grain-free. With all the controversy lately over possible ties between Grain-free diets and heart problems, I don’t feed grain-free, but I don’t feel that a Grain-Free vitamin is really going to cause a problem when her regular diet contains grains.

Does anyone else give supplements or vitamins to their pets? What do you use? What do you like or not like? I find that I can sometimes get carried away with supplements, and I’m hoping that this 6-in1 Multivitamin might be a good way for me to consolidate.

 

 

My Dilemma

The Female

 

A few years ago we adopted two cats from a shelter. My son fell in love with the gorgeous, long-haired male cat, but he was part of a bonded pair and had to be adopted with his female friend.

We had a gut feeling that we shouldn’t add two cats at one time because of Logan, our older female cat., but we thought we would give it a try. The female cat was pretty awful. She hated people, and loved cables. She had a nervous habit of eating cables, and in our technology-filled home, this was a disaster! I lost count of how many phone and watch charging cables we had to replace.

The male cat was gorgeous!

He was a big giant of a cat, and we all loved him, but he was a bully.  He chased our Logan, and also the female cat he was supposed to be bonded with.

For almost a year, we tried to get the three cats to get along. We didn’t need them to be best friends, but we did need them to stop fighting. Eventually, Logan got so nervous that she started urinating all over the house. We worked with a vet, we medicated, we used hormone scent diffusers and special collars. Nothing seemed to help. As much as we hated to admit defeat, we talked to the shelter where we got the cats, and we brought them back. It was awful. I felt better when I called the next day to check on them and they had already been adopted again!

Since then, my son and I have been desperately wanting another long haired cat. We rescued a kitten that we were told was a Maine Coon Mix. Puck is an awesome cat, but he’s short haired and only 7 lbs.  We don’t think there is a whole lot of Maine Coon there.

We love our Puck, but we are still searching for our long haired cat.  I’ve been watching rescues for quite awhile, and I never seem to be able to find a long haired male kitten. We’d really like a Maine Coon with their dog-like personalities, and there are some in rescues, but not kittens. With our cranky older lady, Logan, we are afraid to add any more adult cats to the mix, and she seems to get along best with male cats.

I started looking to breeders. Maine Coon kittens are even hard to find from breeders! Many that I spoke with have all the kittens in a litter reserved before they are even born!

The Dilemma – Eventually, I found a breeder that has two male kittens that will be available in a few weeks.  What to do?!?!? In some ways, I hate the thought of buying a cat from a breeder, but I also don’t think we can find the right fit at a rescue this time. I know there will be more rescue pets in my future, and there have been plenty in the past, maybe we buy a kitten? What would you do?

Rescue Story

The Many Faces of Cali

It’s always more fun to have a post with pictures, so even though this isn’t a post about Cali, I’ve got some older pictures of her from my daughter, that I thought I’d share.

Life has been busy as usual, and I hadn’t had time to catch up with my friend Stacy until a few days ago.  She is an amazingly big-hearted animal lover and I hope she won’t mind if I share a short version of her latest adventure.

Stacy took a trip to New Orleans, and while there she spotted a tiny black kitten alone on the streets. Twenty-four hours later, kitten was still there. Being the animal lover that she is, she took the kitten back to her hotel to get it some food and water. She thought about taking it to a shelter, but realized that a plain looking black kitten might not have very good chances of being adopted.

Next idea, she decides to bring it home with her and take it to a No-Kill shelter at home.  She buys a carrier, pays the airline fees, and brings the tiny kitten home, yes, home. Of course once the kitten made that journey with her, there was no way she was going to bring it to a shelter.  Lucky kitten!  Thank you Stacy for being her hero!

 

What’s Hector D. Byrd Up to Now?

We often call our cat, Puck, Pucky-Boo-Boo, or even just Boo-Boo. I have no idea where it came from, but it stuck. Right at this moment, my beautiful grey parrot is marching around on the floor calling “Hector Boo Boo, Hector Boo Boo” She must be jealous or something, we have never called her “Hector Boo-Boo!”

She’s very proud of herself, when I laughed at her, she started laughing too! Of course soon after she headed back to her box construction, well destuction project.