I was wondering if maybe you or your readers had any insight into a problem I’m having with my big cat? I’m going to start this by saying that my vet is mystified, and he’s undergone a whole bunch of tests, all of them negative. Before I start paying for more tests, I’m hoping to have something to try to look for, instead of, “Well we could try x, y and z…”
Big cat is 9 years old and weighs 22 pounds. He’s half maine coon and at his slimmest weighs around 19, so he is slightly overweight, but not as bad as 22 pounds actually sounds.
He has a nearly white mouth interior. Pink gums, but the roof and bottom of his mouth is chalk white. This is very recent. He also has started having his front legs shake uncontrollably in the evenings. This can be when he’s walking or sitting. He’s not very active – never has been; he has a blanket, and he enjoys laying on it. Lately, however, I can’t get him even to attempt to play with something. He still jumps up on things and can run up the stairs pretty quickly when the dog looks at him funny.
Again, all tests have been negative. Any ideas at all, since I’m worried whatever is causing the shaking may be causing him pain, would be appreciated. Thanks!
I have no suggestions here, but I wanted to post this because surely someone out there has an idea of what to look for? Anyone? Please chime in in the comments!
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Tell us more about your first cat Suzy…. please. You both look SO SO SO cute in that photo!!!
Suzy was a black cat (with a little white – I don’t think she was actually a Tuxie, I think she just had a few small bits of white on her, but to be honest I don’t remember and there aren’t any more pictures of her that I’m aware of – this was almost 40 years ago, when digital cameras didn’t exist. And if they did, they would have been the size of a Mack truck.) She was my (I think) 6th birthday gift, and ended up having a litter of kittens. One of those kittens was an orange tabby named Charlie, who kicked off my life-long love for orange tabbies. Suzy went to live elsewhere after her babies were weaned. We found homes for the rest of the litter and kept Charlie. Charlie eventually ran away – again, almost 40 years ago. I don’t think there was such a thing as indoor cats back then, and we lived on Guam (my father was in the Air Force).
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I was wondering if you could tell me a bit more about the straws your cats love. Are they milkshake straws? My little boy loves to chew on straws but I won’t let him have regular drinking straws because he chews through them so fast but I thought maybe the harder plastic ones would work. I’d really appreciate your help! Thanks!
and
The BOINKS! OMG! Cat toy heaven when the boinks are pulled out from under the couch, the chairs and wherever they might have boinked off too. Thank you for mentioning them last month!
and
For folks in the greater Cincinnati area, you can get Kitty Boinks at Confetti Cats, on Madison in Oakley.
If you hold the end against your thumb, and pull the tube back with your fingers, then let go, they will launch across the room (with kitties chasing after them). Awesomeness!
The Kitty Boinks, which are not straws, but are shorter, straw-shaped toys, hold up better than plastic straws against sharp kitty teeth, but will eventually shred. Even when they shred, though, they stay together so that there’s not a fear of the cats swallowing little pieces. This is one we’ve had for a long time, that they’ve slowly been shredding. You can see even though it’s shredded, it’s holding together pretty well (but just to be safe, I did throw it away after I snapped this picture.)
We do also have regular drinking straws around here, too, but I try to keep an eye on them and toss them when they’re starting to fall apart. (Side note: kittens have got REALLY sharp and destructive little teeth, don’t they?) I think McDonald’s and Wendy’s have the best straws, and probably most fast food straws are pretty decent.
You can get Kitty Bonks at Nip and Bones, Amazon, and the Boinks page – and if you’re in Cincinnati, get ’em at Confetti Cats. (Also, of course, it never hurts to Google and see if you can find them cheaper elsewhere!)
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Is it just me or has the face of the Corbs chubbed up some?
His daily catnip shakes have NOT caught up with him. It’s the angle. The angle, I tells ya!
Corbie is a really large-framed cat, but he carries all his weight from the “waist” up, so he might look a bit chubby. He’s certainly not the skinny kitten he was two years ago, that’s for sure.
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Question for the crowd: I’m thinking about building kitty shelves for climbing purposes and sort of a catwalk around the top of my office so that the cats can get to and sit on the top of my bookshelf. I’m looking at a 20 pound tom (yes, he’s overweight, think Garfield and you’ve got the idea) and a pair of young girls with much more agility.
From Doodle Bean: One of my favorite sources for ideas is IKEA Hackers. Just click on “Pet Furniture” and you can see all sorts of things people have come up with on the cheap!
If there was an Ikea closer to us than Atlanta, I would be there ALL the time, buying things to make life more exciting for the cats.
You guys, if you have suggestions, feel free to chime in (Fred loves it when I tell him we need something cool that you guys have suggested)! I know that Fred thinks the easiest way to go is to buy wood at the store, cut it to length, and then use brackets (like such) to hold up the shelf. That’s what he did in the foster room, to get the “steps” leading up to the wall basket the kittens (and Emmy, last Spring) like to sleep in. If he had it to do over again, he’d probably use brackets under the shelves in the front room (and kitchen) since they’re so simple.
However, I should add that we live in a house where the walls in most of the rooms are wood and we don’t have to search for studs before drilling holes (hush up, you people with your dirty, dirty minds. Oh. Was it just me?) to hang the brackets.
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Also, I have a Drama Queen who likes to be held but only on her terms thank you very much and a mellow guy who doesn’t like to be held at all and practices passive resistance better than Ghandi! What has worked for both is to periodically scoop them up, turn them on their back and gently push their head back so their throat is exposed. When they relax, give them a treat. It may seem mean, but it isn’t. It does work well to establish dominance in a way they can understand… and rewards them for putting up with it. If you do it every day or so, they’ll be more relaxed when you have to clean their ears, clip their claws or, gasp, give them medication!
Fred did this last night, and it actually worked out okay. Well, in that Baby Beans allowed it, even if he wasn’t crazy about it. Fred did it a total of three times, and then Baby Beans was WIRED, racing around the room looking crazy-eyed. I guess we need to just do it once or twice at a time, because three times seemed to overload him a bit!
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Jakey is a kitten magnet! Such a good boy. I wonder if he misses his brudder? Have you seen him acting any differently? I guess with that many kittens to keep him company, and all the other perms around, he probably doesn’t ever get a chance to feel lonely, does he? Which is a good thing!
The only difference I’ve noticed in Jake’s behavior is that in the evenings he’s a little more vocal. He’s always occasionally brought toys to us to throw for him (and then he brings them back, but drops them just out of reach. Hasn’t really got the hang of “fetch”, I guess), but now he’s doing it just about every evening. Not for long, just two or three throws, but he wasn’t doing it every night before. Otherwise, he’s acting the same as he ever did. I really think that he – and the rest of the cats – probably knew that Elwood was sick before we did. I could be wrong, though – I know that cats grieve in their own way on their own timeline, so maybe they’re grieving in ways that we don’t realize.
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I don’t know if anyone else has mentioned this, but do you know Alice Morgan from the show “Luther”? She has pretty, pretty green eyes, and, oh, is a psychopathic killer. And not without her charms.
Is it wrong that when I see the green-eyed Alice Mo, I think of her?
I haven’t actually watched Luther – it’s on our to-watch list – but I did see a short teaser with her. Alice Mo might have a bit of the psychopathic killer in her personality. 🙂
Also, how weird is it to see Stringer Bell as a cop, and with a British accent? I know he’s British, but he was American in The Wire, and that’s how I’m used to hearing him sound.
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If I can poll your collective wisdom here – my cat Jack has become increasingly aggressive. We moved from Texas to Rhode Island in July. He’s 8 years old and he’s moved around the country with me. From a small studio in Boston to the great big open of Texas. He’s always been an indoor cat and always been a bit of a grump. The grumpiness lately has turned to more aggressive behavior. Jack’s not spraying and he’s using the litter box fine, but he is hissing at just about every person that crosses his path, including me on several occasions. I’ve tried spending more time with him, I’ve tried Feliway, I’ve tried more play time. None of it is making a difference. Medically he’s fine. He just saw the vet and he’s recently had a full blood/cardio work up and there’s nothing medically wrong with him that we can determine. Ideas?
Random Felines suggested: He may be freaked out by the new space – there could be something you can’t smell or even cats outside. Try confining him to a smaller room and let him calm down and then SLOWLY reintroduce him to the rest of the house.
This sounds like a really good reason – and suggestion – to me. If anyone has more advice, feel free to share!
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Please post a link to your game cam…as which one you bought.
It’s the Bushnell 8MP Trophy Cam with night vision.
I did get it off Amazon, but I think if you looked around on eBay, you’d probably be able to find a better deal.
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Hey LH community! wanted to give you an update on the Jack situation: I took him to the vet today and had him checked for an infection. It came back negative for infection, but he is a little inflamed. she said that can be caused by him holding it (which he apparently did for most of the day there) and stress. She offered to give me anti-inflammatory medication and Prozac, but I declined them for now. Over the weekend I purchased two new litter boxes and mixed in some cat attract litter in with the old (That stuff is EXPENSIVE BTW!!!), and I’m going to limit his access to just my bedroom and bathroom, and keep the kids away from him. We’ll try this for a couple of weeks (in addition to the Feliway plugin and keeping the litter box cleaned out nightly) and see how he does. My vet did say she can tell he’s a little bit of an anxious kitty and that a move and the holidays combined was enough to push a sane cat over the edge, so it sounded like I was doing all the right things and that the behaviour should hopefully stop in the next month or so. Thank you ever so much everyone for all the advice you left here though! I’ve read everything about mine and the comments left for the other Jack (who’s marking the dog beds) and appreciate all the input and support. Made an impression on my vet that I was a good kitty mama too! 🙂
Thanks for letting us know how it’s going, Sherry! (For those of you who don’t remember, you can read Sherry’s original question in this post – scroll down to the third section.)
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I wanted to let you and Kelly and all the other fosters out there know about this other thing I saw on FB over the weekend: Tax breaks for pet foster parents…make sure you claim yours. It’s not “new” news, but it may be new to some of you, as it was to me. I know most of your rescue groups cover the fostering costs, but there may be some stuff that isn’t covered that you could claim.
Thanks for the link!
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As a practical person, I know that I am going to need to start watermarking my photos before long. Any recommendations for an inexpensive program that’s easy to use?
I use Alamoon (alamoon.com), but I do have gripes about it. For one, I wish that it would change the color of the font depending on the background, as lots of watermarking programs do, and for another, every time I reboot my computer I have to go and paste in the registration number so I can use the program to do a bunch of pictures at once. Also, I have to change the size of the font (Alamoon apparently wants me to take up half the picture with the watermark, which I do not want to do) every single time I want to change anything (ie, the font color) on a single watermark. ANNOYING. But I do like that it’s simple to use, and I can set the position of the watermark manually if I want to.
As of 1/23/13, I use (and like a lot!) UMark 3.
Trudy said: I use the Batch Watermarks. Very easy to use and only $27.00. I tried Alamoon, and could not get it to work properly, tried contacting the company and never received a reply. Finally gave up and got my money back from paypal. I do really like the Batch watermarks. Easy to use and can watermark in batches. It also chooses white or gray text according to the background of the picture…..
Are there other watermarking suggestions out there? Chime in in the comments, please!
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On Xmas Eve, I got Cystitis diagnosis on my 6yr female (ER Vet@ $675, OMG!) & I was given antibots. I can’t pill this little monster to save her or my life, so the pills are sitting on the shelf. 2 weeks later, poor thing is still in/out of the box every 10 minutes. We are struggling to hydrate her; adding water to her wet food, Drinkwell fountain is on its way, along with Feliway. We are running out ideas to get h2o in her. Any other suggestion out there? Would love to hear
As for getting water into her, I think that fountains are your best bet. Regarding the antibiotics – maybe you could get liquid antibiotics or the shot from your vet? Or – and I’m sure you’re aware of these, but I’ve got to mention them anyway – Pill Pockets might work?
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I make self-heating mats – very easy. Go to an auto parts store and buy a windshield sun shade, the kind with a silvery reflective surface on a thin foam backing. Cut to desired size. Then make a “pillow case” – fleece from a fabric store is nice, a couple of (old) dish towels work too.
Place silvery side up, slide into fabric cover. When cats lay on it their own body heat will be reflected back up to them. My elderly arthritic old lady especially likes it but so do the two 2-year-old boys.
This is awesome and brilliant, and I am going to try it ASAP! Thanks for the idea, Judy!
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hey, did you see this? (cat rescue in NC, w/slideshow)
I just saw that yesterday when someone shared it on my Facebook page. I’d heard of Goathouse Refuge, but hadn’t seen pictures of her house. I’ve looked at the pictures 6 or 7 times now, and I want to go live there!
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Those game cam video’s are too adorable! Did you ever find the rogue pee-er?
No, I never did – as soon as the game cam was set up, the spraying stopped. OF COURSE. (I’m just glad it stopped, because it was driving me CRAZY.)
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Barney’s wondering if my finger might be a good snack (he discovered that it was not.)
Barney, having Deep Thoughts.
Barney, playing with a Kitty Boink.
“Look at it roll!”
Baby Beans, keeping an eye on the goings-on.
Barney picked up the Kitty Boink for more chomping.
And then watched it roll again.
Baby Beans couldn’t stand it, so had to come closer. He knows there’s something different about the Kitty Boink, but isn’t quite sure what (I pushed the ends in so it would roll more easily).
He had to go flop down in the sun and think about it.
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“Am trying to sleep, lady.” Sungold, with attitude.
‘Maters Boys (Sungold on the left, Mr. Stripey on the right), settling down for a mid-afternoon snooze.
Mr. Stripey.
And Sungold.
Mr. Stripey and Sungold are going home tomorrow morning! Lynn has promised that she’ll let us know how they’re doing, and of course I’ll pass any info along to y’all.
It’s been fun having them here these past few weeks, they’re such sweet, friendly, snuggly boys that the house is going to seem empty without them. I’m so glad they’re finally going to their forever home – together!
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Last month, Connie pointed out that Fab had Pei Pods for $52. I convinced Fred that the cats needed one (I promised him that if the cats didn’t use it, I’d sell it on eBay, and he gave in so I’d stop talking about it) and I ordered one. Then I fretted because that’s a lot of money to spend on something the cats didn’t really NEED, and I just knew they weren’t going to use it.
It came, I set it up, and it’s been in use ever since.
Sugarbutt gives the egg two thumbs up. If he had thumbs, that is. Also, nanoo, nanoo.
If Sugarbutt’s not in it, Alice is, or Jake, or Spanky, or Miz Poo. They love it!
So, Connie, the cats (and I) thank you for letting us know that it was on sale. 🙂
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Today’s game cam video (the last of them! Though I’m sure there’ll be more in the future.) is Corbie, Jake, and Miz Poo. The best part is either Corbie in the beginning or Jake at the end (his crazy little face cracks me up!)
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Previously
2012: He likes to run around with it in his mouth and growl at his brothers.
2011: (But I’m sure Anderson Litter Lung will still get me in the end. I’ve been inhaling that dust for years now.)
2010: Hydrox blew them out of the water at a hefty 5 pounds!
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry.
2007: Poor Cosette – she runs from us now because almost every time we go into the kitten room, we grab her up and shoot stuff down her throat.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
So, at last a problem comes up which I haven’t had with Fuzz! Are the big cat’s white gums coated with a white coating or white from lack of circulation? White coating could be a yeast infection…
At any rate, I hope Big cat’s owner finds out what is ailing him soon!
The Beans’ photos are adorable! I hope Sungold and Stripey an easy transition to their new home and I am also torn between the Corbie roll or the Jake stare as the best part of the video… but why do we have to choose?
I’ll choose ’em both! Have a happy Friday, everyone!
White from lack of circulation – no coating. (And I did just grab him to double check. He’s very offended now and will likely go poop on the floor to let me know. Sigh.)
lack of circulation? did they check his blood pressure?
I’m not a vet, just a former polymer scientist who has worked in a research lab investigating chronic heart failure in humans (well, and I took a semester of human cardiology at the world’s snootiest medical school as part of that job). If your cat has white gums from a lack of circulation, that probably indicates cardiac problems. You mentioned he didn’t play that much before he got sick, which would be consistent with cardiac problems (ailing hearts can’t speed up to supply oxygen to active muscles, so the cat gets tired very quickly. The cat can still move quickly when alarmed, but doesn’t move that much without that slug of adrenalin). Cardiac problems can also cause muscle spasms when the muscles aren’t getting enough oxygen and many cardiac problems get worse with age.
Cardiac problems are tough to diagnose in cats since a there are usually heart murmurs or sounds of an enlarged heart, but those sounds can be masked by the cat purring… and cats purr when they are stressed (such as when they’re at the vets)!
Again, I’m not a vet, but if he was my cat I would probably take him to another vet and ask the new vet to listen to my cat’s heart again. Vets have tricks for making cats stop purring and I’d ask for that. I’d also ask if there are any other circulation tests he/she knows of (in humans, there are simple test such as pushing down on a fingernail and seeing how quickly it turns pink after the pressure is released). If the vet agrees and I could afford it, I’d take the cat to a cardiac specialist. If he was my cat right now (meaning I can’t afford it), I’d try another fundraiser to raise some funds for a cardiac specialist. There are plenty of heart conditions which can be treated with medication and I’d like to know if that was a option for my beloved kitty.
Again, I’m not a vet nor a doctor. I could be totally off the mark. Please keep that in mind. Circulation problems and muscle spasms can also be caused by a toxicity reaction and maybe other things I don’t know about.
Good luck!
Thanks, we may ask for a circulation test.
We lost a little cat a year ago to a heart condition – diagnosed as a kitten through heart murmur and ultrasound. So my vet is very aware of my concerns about hearts and has checked out both my big cat and my kitten at my request, so we know his heart is fine.
Like I said in my question, he’s been tested six ways from sunday already and everything has checked out normally! My vet says that on paper he’s the healthiest 9 year old cat she’s ever seen, but in person…
Ok, I’m not a vet either, but I do have a PhD in a science (and I have correctly identified problems in my cat to the point where I sent papers to the Vet and offered to do the diagnostic tests in my lab).
I agree with the cardiac problems, but if the EEG comes back without a problem, you may want to look at a poisoning test. Specifically, you’d want to look for some sort of poisoning that would affect the binding of oxygen to the blood. It sounds like the smaller capillaries (the really tiny blood vessels) aren’t getting any oxygen, so the affinity of oxygen could be compromised.
Again, not that type of doctor, but hope you find out what’s wrong with your guy.
The only time we had a white gummed cat she had Leukemia. I would guess that was checked for, though.
If your vet can’t figure it out, I’m not sure I can, either, but he sounds like he is anemic. All my best to you and your Big Cat. Please keep us posted on his progress!
For the hissing cat Jack, I actually went through this with my big guy when I got him 6 years ago. Here’s what worked for us:
We confined him to the bathroom and bought him a really nice cat bed and his own blanket (which he is now super attached to all these years later). We would tent the blanket so he could crawl in and hide and feel safe. Originally food, water and litter were near by.
Gradually, over the course of weeks, I moved his bed further and further from the food/water/litter. He would slink out of bed, hissing at stuff left and right, run for the food, then dash back to bed. Once he stopped hissing at a territory, I moved the bed another 12-inches. This continued until he had to go through the whole house to get the food and he was fine.
Good luck!
My husband and I lost our 2yr old girly cat,Ponchos, a week before our wedding, in September 2012. It was really devastating, as she was hit by a dumbass driver, right outside our house and they just left her there. Luckily a concerned neighbour recognised her and called me at work. I was heartbroken.
But her brother, Stanley, has definitely been hardest hit by her loss. They weren’t the type of brother and sister that cuddled much, but they played together all.the.time, and drove each other up the walls (quite literally). Ponny was a very vocal cat, always griping about this or that, you couldn’t move near her without hearing her say something about it. Stan took over the vocality when his sister passed away. He is also at home a lot more (all our cats are indoor/outdoor). Another thing he now does, is he sleeps in all Ponny’s favorite spots and he eats a lot more now, where before Ponchos would eat all the food, and he wasn’t very much interested.
Dear Juani, I am very sorry about Ponchos. So sad for you and yur husband and Stan. I must say though, I love the name Stan. Maybe when you all are ready you can get a new friend for Stand. I think Robyn might have one or six you could have.
I’m so sorry for your loss, Juani!
I’m no expert on cat illness, but has Big cat (and the house) been checked for mold? I feel like an idiot because my cat and I have been sick for the last half a year or so… Two days ago something clicked, and I started checking out the house. Ding ding ding! Mold under the kitchen sink.
In a lot of cats mold causes lethargy, and I’ve also seen muscle tremors listed as a symptom. From what I’ve seen, it’s not widely known that animals suffer from mold exposure, so vets may not really think to look for it.
Good luck finding big cat the help he needs!
That is very interesting, as I’m convinced there is mold under the carpet in our lower level (slab). I’ve also had a bunch of health problems the last year or so… I may check into this – Thanks!
Definitely keep us updated, Betsy, it sounds like you’ve got some decent leads!
Wow, that is news to me. I had never heard that cats were sensitive to mold . That sounds like a good lead.
Is it just me? At the end of the video I expected Jake to say “this is Kermit the frog here”.
LOL!
Thanks! I do have drywall, so finding studs is a necessity, but butterfly bolts are also a beautiful thing for that other end.
IKEA’s a good call, I’ve got three in driving distance and one within half an hour – I do adore their furniture. Their Lack shelves are pretty good when properly mounted. Thanks!
You are very lucky. closest one to me is three states away
I am SO JEALOUS of all your Ikeas! I keep hoping they’ll put one in around Nashville, because that’s within driving distance for me. I’d be there all the time!
For the issue with getting liquids into a reluctant cat, I will share what I found worked with some very sick fosters. Buy some pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling, just the puree. Cats really like the taste and it’s very high in water content. I was putting out about 4 tablespoons for 3 kittens twice a day. It really got them back on track with fluids and even helped with runny poop.
full fat plain yogurt is often well liked too.
warm water or plain broth mixed in with canned food. meat baby food (with or with out additional water)
removing all dry food (as it is dehydrating simply by its very nature)
For the reader with the cystitis kitty: some how, some way the kitty really needs to get the appropriate medication. Talk to the vet about the options. There is a tool (I have never needed it, don’t know what it is called) similar to a medication syringe in which you put the pill so you don’t have to try and put your fingers down kitty’s mouth. It gets the pill back far enough that it is harder for them to spit out. My cats have always been fairly easy to pill, but after I put in the pill I follow it with a little squirt of water from a medication syringe to make it easier for them to swallow. We take our pills with water, right?
pill popper
http://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=30e07741-7b6a-11d5-a192-00b0d0204ae5&gas=pill%20popper
It is called a pill pusher, and I could not survive without it. It is so easy to get pills in my cats with it. They don’t like it, but it is a snap. Ask your vet.
We always use the piller, and it works amazingly well.
I always follow medication, especially liquids, with a syringe or two of water – I’ve found it helps cut down on the “I can haz rabies?” foam that follows. Plus it helps ensure that they do, in fact, swallow the medicine (in the case of pills), and not just hide it in a cheek pouch or something.
Great. I did not spend the $52 on an egg-shaped cat bed and Ruby will probably never let me hear the end of it. 😉 Perhaps I should check if they are still available…
Does anyone have experience with kittens with chronic upper respiratory? Abby finally got on a medication that seems to work for her (after months, thank goodness). She’s on azithromycin, which is doing wonders for her nose and eyes but she is now a crabby, cranky mess. We also suddenly have issues with finding the litter box (which might be her, might not, but assuming it is because of size and location… sorry that might have been TMI). Does this medication have those sorts of side effects? Hoping it’s the meds and that we’ll be over this in a few days when she’s done her course. I know I once had a preschooler on zyrtec that was all kinds of cranky bananas when he was taking it.
yes, all antibiotics can cause loose stools. the gut is mostly bacteria and disrupting it can cause problems. Since this one is working for her, you might want to supplement with a probiotic.. either a full fat yogurt or a capsule you buy at a health food store (like one you might take – or should take – or do take) adding fiber (in the form of pumpkin) can also help.
What Connie said. 🙂
Where is the beautiful Corbie this morning!?
I used up all my pictures of him in Wednesday’s post! 🙂
Love Corbie’s demonstration of “stop, drop and roll”. Now we can add “gorgeous safety inspector” to his titles!
That is a great bed. How funny would it be to put it where the chickens could see it? Especially if one of the cats sat on top of it like it was an egg?!
(And the nanoo nanoo cracked me up!) :0
Question: On Xmas Eve, I got Cystitis diagnosis on my 6yr female (ER Vet@ $675, OMG!) & I was given antibots. I can’t pill this little monster to save her or my life, so the pills are sitting on the shelf. 2 weeks later, poor thing is still in/out of the box every 10 minutes. We are struggling to hydrate her; adding water to her wet food, Drinkwell fountain is on its way, along with Feliway. We are running out ideas to get h2o in her. Any other suggestion out there? Would love to hear
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As for getting liquid in the cat, try a dry cat food that increases thirst. Science Diet has a special for cats with urinary problems. I’ve found that Iams special dry food for urinary problems really makes my cats thirsty, and they drink more water. I’ve had several cats through the years with that problem. There’s also a special formula in a tube you can buy that will change urine acid/alkaline to stop certain urinary crystals (google to find online). Male cats are truly a big problem if they have this, since they get urinary blockage (and THAT is even more expensive).
As for getting the pill down, can you check with the vet to see if you can mix it with some food or liquid. If you can mix it with liquid, use a syringe to squirt it deep into the kitty’s mouth. I’ve never been able to “pill” a cat, but I have mixed all kinds of pills with something to get it down.
Hope kitty & you are better soon!
actually ,dry food simply makes the situation worse. http://catinfo.org/?link=urinarytracthealth
You forgot to post my Corbie FAQ!
Which question? “How come you never told us Corbie was so gorgeous, Robyn”?
😉
LOL!! No! I wrote a Corbie FAQ in the style pf pharmaceuticals FAQs, and almost every answer is Corby is gorgeous.
LOL!!
I’m saving it for when I have more pictures of him! 🙂
D’oh! Laney spoiled it then!
I was going to say exactly that, LOL!
LOVE the idea about how to make my own self-heating mats. That is SO much cheaper than buying them – plus if our feral destroys it, no major loss. THANKS!!!
As for pilling, I haven’t tried it, but someone suggested to us a product called Flavor Doh….haven’t looked into it, but a suggestion.
I bought flavor-doh, and the crew didn’t care for it. I gave it to the shelter and they thought it was awesome. They now use semi-moist treats and do something similar with those. The Crew like pill pockets much better. I buy the dog ones and split them up and wrap them over the pills. You need to keep them small or the cats chew through them and find the pills and spit them out.
Sorry for all the probs everyone is having. I have no answers for anyone but I wish you all the best.
Regarding pilling. We are very lucky in our city to have an apothecary that does animal meds as well. I had to give my girl antibiotics and she was a “no pills no way” kinda gal. So the vet sent the script to the apothecary and they created a topical application. It came in a syringe and you would , wearing plastic gloves so you did not get dosed, squirt out the presecribed amount onto a finger and then rub it in the ear of the cat. Easy peasy. No vomiting the pill, no rivers of spit or bites. I have also used the pill plunger thing with great success. I second the following up of a sip of water to help kitty swallow the pill.
I had some medication compounded at my local human pharmacy. I had to bring in the medication since they didn’t carry what my kitty needed, but they were happy to compound it for me in a liver or chicken flavor..
Hey Robyn,
I know people have asked about those croc cat beds in the past. One of the flash sale sites has them on sale right now for $44.99. You have to create an account in order to view the sale i think: http://www.Zulily.com
Ooh, I’m going to go post that on the L&H Facebook page right now! I believe that’s a good price – though I got mine free (it was a Christmas gift for the cats last year), which is an even better price. 🙂
Nanoo Nanoo! Too funny since my Tivo has started recording Mork & Mindy out of the blue. I am sad I didn’t buy one, but apparently not sad enough to go out and try to find one now..I’m glad your kitties are using it..
I love that these Beans are thinkers..
For Pet Meds, I’ve used PetScripts – http://www.pet-scripts.com/. They’re in Yarmouth Maine, but they ship anywhere in the country.
We had to dose our kitties for something or other, the meds were suspended in a fish-flavored liquid. Lenny and Squiggy LOVED it. They treated the meds like a treat.
Since I live so close I was able to drive to their office to pick up the script. But, as I said, they can mail anywhere in the country.
OMG – I love the names of your kitties… 🙂
For Hissing Jack: You said you moved to “great big open” of Texas. Does that mean just lots of room or are you actually in a rural area? We live in the foothills of a huge mountain range and, although our neighborhood looks “civilized,” we have bear, mountain lions, bob cats, coyotes, rattlesnakes, and who knows what else prowling around. Our cats have always known when one of those predators was out there and we would know just by their actions.
It just meant lots of room. Apartments in the Boston metro are a lot smaller than the ones in the Dallas metro. We’ve downsized basically from 1100 sq feet to about 600 sq feet. They aren’t outdoor cats at all.
for Eve and the cystitis…..smash those pills and put them in a little bit of wet food. Once that is eaten, then give her the rest of her normal serving of wet food.
Thanks, Robyn, for the “final” fabulous photo of “my boys.” I am very excited about bringing them home and have been running around all day making last minute preprations for their temp room and arrival. Remind me NOT to foget to bring cat carriers!!!!! Tomorrow is also mine and David’s lst year anniversary and we’re going out in the evening and he’s concerned about the boys being ok while we’re gone. They will be fine in their room; Tiki and Tabby will be in their room, the dogs outside and God in His Heaven. So all is well here. I will be home most of the week-end to spend time with them, also. I’m soooo glad all the doors here are glass so everyone (neighbors excepting!) can see each other. My aquarium guy was just here with new fish; he says I now need birds and a reptile – no thanks!!! So, we’re at the countdown and T-minus counting. Thanks soooo much for being such a wonderful foster “mom” to ensure that my boys will feel loved and unafraid to face a new adventure. See you tomorrow.
I got lost in IEKA Hackers! Cool site. Thank you to everyone for your advice on my Cystitis cat. Meds in fish, chicken or liver oil; pill poppers; pumpkin puree! Wow, just a few of some really great ideas! I love the Egg! But I gotta go get that pill-popper thing. It’s really helpful to hear so many suggestions. At least one of ’em has got to work. Thanks again for your help. Now, I’m off to the Vet to pick up 2 ferals we got TNR’d. Such a great feeling; helping the lives of the wild ones.
Enjoy your new boys, Lynn! I’m so happy for you. They look like wonderful stripey gingers. I’m sure with Robyn and Fred raising them, they’ll be lovebugs for you.
Also, YAY! Corbie did a trick! Awwww, last year’s post has pictures of Elwood and Tommy snuggling. Too sweet! I’m glad that Jakey doesn’t show too many signs of missing his brudder too much.
I hope everyone can see this. Maybe since I am on FB now I will figure out how to “like” you Robyn and reshare their as well. For those who don’t click links, it’s from Pawnation and is a classified ad asking for a kitty sitter. Someone who will work 8-12 and be available for the cat to cuddle with and be petted so the owner can get some work done.
Here is the link: http://www.pawnation.com/2013/01/11/cat-lady-dream-job-feline-lap-surrogate
and how many of us were raising our hands saying “me me pick me” and looking for the address and phone #?
I need one of these. I have to go to a coffee shop or something to get any work done because my three are all over me whenever I’m home.
Also, breakfast and lunch provided!!!!
Am I the only one who wonders when the “Serial Killer Used Cat As Bait” headlines will start rolling in…?
Sungold is so gorgeous. I am going to miss him and Stripey, such a sweetheart. I hope that Lynn sends updates.
I’m going to add to the “getting a cat to drink more” info: chicken broth, home made. Literally water that you’ve boiled chicken in. Both of my kitties go crazy for it, but turn up their noses at store-bought broth. Skim the fat off the top if you need to watch calories and fat.
I use Picasa to resize my pictures and put a watermark on them. Its free, and can do both in one operation. It can even upload to some services, though I don’t use that for blogging.
Picasa! I KNEW there was a program you’d mentioned, but for the life of me couldn’t remember the name of it. All I could think of was GIMP, and I didn’t think that was right.