1-9-15

Posted on by Robyn

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Susan F., please report to me so that I can properly thank you for the toy mice you sent. The kittens are loving them!

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Chrystal is trying to raise the funds for an addition to her cathouse. You can read more about that on her blog, here.

If you can spare it, please donate to her Winnie’s Wish Building fund.

You can also buy her book, here.

And of course, you can also buy pretty, warm, cozy cat beds, made by the wonderful Andrea!

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Is Lizzy young enough that her eyes are still going to change or are they done? Because they are gorgeous!

I think they’re about done, although it’s entirely possible they’ll change some more.

Or maybe I’m completely wrong, maybe they’ll keep changing. Because suddenly I’m remembering Kennebec, who left us with eyes like this when he was about the same age Lizzy is now:

When he was returned about a year and a half later, he had these stunners:

So I guess what I’m saying is that I’d like to think they’re done changing (because I agree, they’re gorgeous), but probably they’re not.

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I need some help. I recently adopted a lovely big 4 yo boy who just happens to have a heart defect. He should get a pill every day. However, he is just the hardest cat to pill I have ever dealt with. None of my tricks work effectively. Baby food – nope, tuna – nope, dairy – nope, pill pockets – nope. The old standby, pop the pill in the back of the throat and hold and massage, he just sits there, doesn’t swallow and 50% of the time gets the pill back out. Any suggestions?

Sara, have you ever tried a pill popper/pill gun? We have this one and this one. They both work well, but Fred (who is the medicator of cats, because I’m so bad at it) prefers the second one because it’s shorter and easier to handle (I think.) The only bad thing is that occasionally the pill (especially if it’s a small one) will get stuck in the end of the pill gun, and he doesn’t realize it ’til after the cat has scampered off. It gets the pill far enough back in their mouth that most of the time they swallow reflexively. I feel like I’ve read somewhere that if you get the pill past a certain point, they can’t spit it out, because of the barbs on their tongues.

I also wonder if you’ve tried shooting a little water into his mouth after you’ve gotten the pill in, to convince him to swallow (and help the pill go down.)

I always send people to Connie’s post about pilling a cat, it’s really helpful and easy to understand.

Also, several people suggested the idea of checking with your vet to see if the medication comes in liquid or transdermal form. And Debbie had great suggestions!

Anyone else out there with hints or suggestions? Please feel free to chime in!

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Robyn, have you ever considered having the foster room on Livestream like Shelly Roche from TinyKittens?

I have, but fear that I’d forget to turn the camera off when I go into the room, and have no desire to be on-camera (and Fred would kill me if he inadvertently realized he’d been seen on-camera). I did figure that next time I get itty bitties, I might give it a try and see how it goes, though.

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CAT SELFIE APP??? WHUT WHUT????? Must have.

They really really enjoy playing with it (I have the one by Accelerato, which I downloaded from iTunes), though Pat did take 300 pictures of her belly the other night.

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Do they play with the Friskies fishing app too? One of my cats is just crazy for that and will play as long as you let her. She has front claws too but is very good about not scratching the ipad.

I actually haven’t tried turning that one on for them! They’re so crazy about the selfie app, that I never got any further than that.

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Stevie illustrates how best to take pictures of your belly with the Cat Selfie app.


Since she doesn’t have a full tail of her own, Lizzy likes to play with the other kittens’ tails.


Lizzy shows off her pretty eyes.


More cat selfie-ing.


“I take excellent pictures of my belly!” Indeed you do, Pat. Indeed you do.


All five girlies – and they’re even all looking my way! That’s Lizzy in the very back, Lita (l) and Stevie (r) sitting side by side, Molly in the basket, and Pat reclining in the front.


“Hallo, lady. You has pettins for me?”


“I might let you kiss me, too.”


Gorgeous, gorgeous girl.


Box full o’ Molly.

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When it’s too cold outside for Kara, you know it’s COLD. She’s been inside for the past two days – in fact, we made the executive decision Wednesday afternoon to shut the back door (with the cat door in it) because no one was outside. Every now and then someone will hover outside the door, so we open it. He (usually it’s Sugarbutt) sticks his face out the cat door, realizes that it’s COLD, and backs away from the door.

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Previously
2014: When it comes to the cats, Fred is 100% Aurora Greenway.
2013: “LADY YOU GOTTA SIT DOWN. I NEED SOME LAP TIME.”
2012: Also, so you don’t have to go without your kitteh fix, here I am getting my very first kitten for my (I think) sixth birthday, so it was mumblety-mumble years ago.
2011: No entry.
2010: No entry.
2009: She’s all ::sniffsniffsniff:: “HI TOMMY!” and he’s all “Yeah, whatever, runt.”
2008: No entry.
2007: Naturally, Mister Boogers heard us talking to them, and came up to be a jerk.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.

Comments

48 thoughts on “1-9-15”

  1. Happy Friday and a very Happy Birthday, Robyn! Enjoy the ‘day of YOU’! These Rocker Chicks are certainly some lovelies – I’m so glad they’ve come around! They’re certainly beautiful! BTW, I do hold you and your blog responsible for opening my eyes to “all things cats and kittens” on the web! My morning, in order – Love & Hisses, Tinykittens, FosterKittenCam (FDJ), and then, sadly… I must ‘get to work’… but oh, how I could spend my time if I won the lottery! Thank you for all you do – for the kittens, the cats, and for us!!!! I declare this day “Robyn’s Day!” I am calling my boss right now to take this national holiday off!

  2. I laughed when I saw Stevie taking a selfie! Lol, those kittens.

    (Musn’t let my guys see that, otherwise they’ll be all “um, we don’t have a tablet. We is not taking selfies. ALL the other cats have them it’s NOT.FAIR.” *stomp off*)

  4. This is how I pill difficult cats: drop the pill in a syringe and draw in about one cc of water. After it dissolves, approach the recipient non chalantly (I wait until they are positioned in a way that I can briefly restrain the head) and empty the syringe in the mouth. With a little practice you can do it so fast they don’t see it coming.

    1. I’ve never done it that way. I’ll have to try it next time. I usually have to get the meds compounded in a liquid for my cats to even have a chance of getting what they need. 🙂

      1. Be aware that not all meds should be dissolved. Ask your vet first!!! Some are time released…some act in other ways.

  5. I fear Tigger would try to EAT the ipad/tablet and Punki would have one of her “I am an elephant, must stomp” moments and break it!!

  6. I have a big (16 lb) boy who has to take heart medication every day…in the beginning we and the vet agreed it would be better to try the liquid…DON’T DO IT!!! That was a nightmare…the vet scoffed….she couldn’t do it either 😉 So, went to the pill after treating all our wounds….After trying and failing miserably with the pill popper, pill pockets, etc, what I finally found effective is to buy the really small empty gel caps (I think I’m using size 4 (next to smallest). Since he only has to have 1/4 pill, it will fit in the small side of the gel cap…I don’t use the top at all (throw it away). Then I put just a small amount of canned food (the sticker the better–pate for sure)in and around it and roll it into a very tight little ball..the size they would/could take in one bite. I hand feed him that with another little bit of canned food in my hand…he takes it every time with no fuss, no injuries, no further damage to his heart from stress!

  9. Yep, it’s cold in Dixie! My dogs stick their nose out the doggie door, sit there deciding how fast they can make a potty run and either zoom outside and back or wait till later. Hoping it’ll suddenly turn spring, I guess. LOL Personally, I HATE weather this cold, and my arthritis hates it even more!

  10. This talk of pilling cats reminds me that we CANNOT give Terry his eye drops. I am thinking his other family must not have been giving them to him because Terry is just not having it. Mike and I have both tried to do it – separately and together. Terry summons the strength of 1000 cats and we end up with the drops on his cheeks or on my leg. Anyone got tips for eye drops?

    1. Put it at the inner corner of his eye and squeeze. It will roll in. Easier and less shocking to the kitty!

      1. This! Letting it roll it rather than dropping it right on the eye has helped us give 2-3x daily drops to our resistant cat. Still not easy, but if one person holds her, and the other does the drops (with a drop at the ready, no waiting for it to drip out), it goes okayish.

    2. I have no advice – he probably didn’t like it when he was with me, but I was able to (most days!) get them all done – but it looks like GD and Rebecca have it covered. 🙂

  11. Wow we share the same birthday! Happy Birthday to you and many, many more. We also share the day with Kate Middleton…and Richard Nixon *sigh*

    3. Happy happy birthday, Shakatany (Capricorns rule!) 🙂

      I knew we shared the day with Richard Nixon, but had forgotten about Kate Middleton!

  12. Wedgwood Pharmacy makes a transdermal ear gel called twist-a-dose, that you apply inside the ear flap. The medication is then absorbed through the skin without the battle of the pill. Most heart meds can be compounded in this way. I used it for years on a semi-feral cat that was on heart medication with great results. Good luck!

    1. Maxi’s spending most of her time either on Fred’s desk or in the garage. She likes her space, that one – but yes, I need to get some stalker pics. 🙂

  16. Happy birthday Robyn! Thank you so much for this fabulous community you have created. I always feel like we are all friends, who just haven’t all met in person yet.

  19. I forgot to wish you a Happy Birthday in my haste to post about Terry’s lack of eye drop getting! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Terry also sends his birthday wishes! 😉

  20. Happy birthday, Robyn, hope you have a fun day.
    and also happy birthday to Shakatany!
    Our Mabel, tortie, had eyes the color of Lizzy’s. We adopted her in late adulthood, so they were already that color, of course. Her eyes perfectly matched a recliner she loved to sleep in.
    The whole nation shivers! (well, except maybe for south Florida!) so glad the cats are wise enough to stay inside today.

  21. Now you know we want to see some of the selfies the girls have taken!!

    My late sweet Baal was an indoor cat, but if you opened the door when it was cold he would start out, but then stop and shake his front paw vigorously, like “Whoa – it’s COLD out there!” and turn back around! 😀

    Happy birthday Robyn – may you get kisses instead of hisses from the kittehs today!!

  22. Happy happy birthday!

    I second the use of a pill popper like the 2nd one — adding water really makes a difference. We are able to pill one of the cats, but got tired of the hassle and started using the popper (we use Buster Pet Piller With Soft Tip Syringe).

    We also use gelatin capsules, size #4, and they are small enough for the pill popper and big enough to fit several pills (or quarters/halves of pills). I don’t like dry pilling the cats since the meds may get stuck in their mouth or throat, and that sensation drives me nuts (if it happens to me). Plus, pills taste awful.

    So for one cat, it’s capsules plus popper. For the other, who is harder to pill, we have an annoying system that I learned about from the Feline CRF page:
    -break up a pill pocket into 2 to 4 pieces, depending on size of pill. Squish pill into one of the pieces. Coat pieces in Fortiflora. Serve.
    -Breaking up the pill pockets means that she’ll chew the treat without losing the pill. Also, you get to have a few “no pill” pieces in case she ever finds the pill (keep her guessing!). Finally, and this is most vital, the Fortiflora contains “animal digest” — a flavorful additive used in dry foods. She LOVES this crap. Fortiflora’s expensive, but since you aren’t using a packet/day (one lasts me about 3-5 days), it’s not too bad. I pour one packet into a baggie and roll each day’s pill pockets around in there, then seal it for later.

  23. I have a kitteh with HBP and has to have a itty bitty piece of pill and has frequent antibiotics. Thankfully he is so used to being pilled now he just takes it when I throw it in but when we started I got a couple pairs of the long Playtex Living Gloves and used those to help hold him under my arm like a football and use my left hand (holding him) to grip side of his face and pry open and shove with finger down the throat with my right hand. The gloves help grip and protect against the claws and teeth. Good Luck!

  25. Happy Birthday Robyn !!!!! Happy Birthday Skatatany !!

    Teughcats you said it right ! We are all friends who haven’t met yet !!! This is a wonderful community !!!

    PS It is -22 F with the wind chill where I am in Northern Canada !!!

  26. Happy Birthday Robyn! I keep getting your anniversary and birthday mixed up in my head. Because I’m apparently going senile.

    Hope you have a wonderful day and stay warm, I think it’s even colder today than yesterday down south.

  28. Happy Birthday, Robyn!

    Neither of my cats are interested in apps made for cats, but Harley LOVES to help me play Candy Crush!

  30. Happy Birthday Robyn.

    Blessings rain you sweetheart for bringing so much joy to your loyal readers.

  31. Thank you, everyone, for the wonderful birthday wishes! It was a lovely, sunny, relaxing day. I got lots of kitten snuggles, and will have birthday cake tomorrow. All around, a good birthday! 🙂

  32. Thanks for all the tips and tricks to try for getting pills into Picasso. I will get some more flavors of pill pockets and a pill syringe in the morning. In the meantime, I thank my stars that he is a chill cat and doesn’t hold all of this against me.

  34. Happy Birthday Robyn!

    Thank you for sharing your world with us – you bring happiness and kitteh joy into our lives every day.

    Your birthday sounds perfect. Sun and kitten snuggles, plus cake tomorrow!

    xxx

    P.S. And Happy Birthday to Skatatany too! Capricorns ROCK. x

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