11-24-17 Friday

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Dewey just gets along with everybody, doesn’t he?

He certainly does! It’s one of the reasons we thought he should become a permanent resident, because he gets along with all the other cats so well.

Speaking of Dewey, he’s been with us for nearly a year. Back then, he was “Dustin,” which I always forget, and when I see the name I think “Who is DUSTIN?”

One of my first pictures of him:

He was such a scared boy, he’s certainly relaxed a lot over the past year.

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I was looking back at the 2014 post wherein Jethro Tull was described as being hissy — that’s so funny now as both he and TC are the least hissy cats around. Our big ‘Bama Boys (over 20 pounds each and still love being carried around draped over their humans’ shoulders!) are laid back lovers and so very loved by all at 5010! Thank you, Robyn and Fred, for giving them such a great start in life.

I love seeing the pictures of them as kittens, knowing how wonderful their lives have turned out! (Y’all can follow Jethro and TC and their tuxie siblings over at Instagram, by the way.)

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Robyn, any tips for weaning other than putting wet food in the kitten’s mouth? My friend is fostering an 8 week old with the mom who still refuses to eat! She’s tried all different kinds of food, but he doesn’t get it.

Wow, 8 weeks old and refusing to eat? That mama kitty is awfully patient! The only thing I can think of other than putting the wet food in the kitten’s mouth (which is the way I’ve always done it) is to also leave a bowl of kibble in the room, if she’s not doing that already – I use Royal Canin Babycat, and have found that some kittens will discover the bowl and start eating kibble on their own even if they’re not interested in wet food.

Anyone else have suggestions? Please share!

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Robyn, this is a weird question – how wide is the baseboard/trim shown in the silly Alice video? I’m planning to replace the bedraggled baseboards in my house and I’m trying to get an idea of how different widths look. Thanks!

The board itself is 6 inches, and the cove at the top adds another inch, so it’s 7 inches from the floor to the top of the trim.

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I keep forgetting to ask, why is Paul Simon back? Did something happen?

You can go here (or click on his picture in the sidebar) to read the whole story, but basically the people who adopted him had a baby and Paul Simon started acting out because he needed more attention than they were able to give him.

Paul Simon is currently at the shelter, in the cat room with the other cats, and is getting along very well with them. He’s such a lovebug, I wish the right people would fall in love with him and take him home!

(You can also read about Paul Simon and his brother Garfunkel here on the blog, starting here.)

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I love the 2013 loonicorn post. Do you still have that thing? I’d live to see it on Stefan! Or on any of your cats for that matter!

I do have the horn, and perhaps one day soon I’ll dig it out and take some pictures. The world needs an Archiecorn, don’t you think?

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Maybe now between fosters you could bring us “newbies” up on the histories of the permanent residents. I didn’t start following Love and Hisses until around 2016 so I’ve seen pictures of all (?) the PR’s but would like to know their stories.

If you click on any of the permanent residents’ pictures in the sidebar, you can go to their separate page and read their backstories. At some point I’ll go through and make those pages more uniform, but I have added links to each page back to the main permanent resident page, and there’s also a link above the PR pictures in the sidebar to the main permanent resident page, which includes those who have left us. (Wow, that was a really long and convoluted sentence, but hopefully you get the gist!)

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I just love me some Joe Bob! *kiss kiss kiss* How much does he weigh? He looks like a big boy (no, you’re not fat, Joe Bob, I’m just saying you look large “framed”).

Joe Bob is very long and lanky and also solid muscle. When he went to the vet for his usual checkup in August, he weighed 12.11 pounds. He actually doesn’t look that heavy (well, to me he doesn’t), so when I pick him up, I’m always surprised by how much he weighs. (He is not the heaviest cat in the house, though – Stefan weighs 13 pounds, and Newt is the heaviest at 15 pounds. I suspect that Khal is even heavier, but I don’t know how much he weighs.)

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If Sheriff Mama straightens out other cats, can she come visit us awhile? My 12 yo male and new-to-us 4 yo female are not getting along. As in FurFlyingNotGettingAlong. Getting some sense slapped into them would be nice.

I keep saying we should hire her out – not only does she put the smack down when other cats start something, she’s also an EXCELLENT catcher of rodents. Perhaps TOO good and too generous with her catches, if you know what I mean.

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Is she [Kara] like GrumpyCat? She might look annoyed, but the tail flagged high tells me a different tale (tail?)

She always looks SO annoyed, but the tail definitely tells the story – she’s thrilled to see her humans, and will always run right over for a pet and a snuggle.

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Thank you for sharing your fosters with us. I already miss them so much! How do you keep from getting too attached?

I know each time I get a set of fosters that they’re not mine, that they’ll be leaving me, but I fall completely in love with each and every one of them, and am heartbroken when they leave. I know the pain is coming, and I’m braced for the heartbreak. I don’t LIKE the feeling, but I also know that it’ll pass; the first 48 hours are the worst. I go through a bargaining phase with every single litter where I think “What if I just kept them all?” I avoid Petsmart while my fosters are there, because I’m afraid I’ll snatch them all up and bring them home. But it passes, they find wonderful homes, I get a new set of fosters, and we move on.

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In looking into Dr. Elsey’s Precious Cat, I see there is a Classic and an Ultra version…which do you use? They both seem to be clumping litter, but the Ultra is mixed with medium grain clay. I’d love to know which one you prefer.

We use the Ultra Multi-Cat version – this one – and it’s 100% because of the name. Doesn’t “Ultra” sound more like it’ll hold down any litter box smell better than something named “Classic”? But upon reading the descriptions of the two different kinds, I’m actually thinking I’ll give the Classic a try, it sounds like it’ll track less. I’ll try to remember to report back.

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Right now I am on a very strict budget. I have tried the World’s Best Cat Litter as well as other corn and wheat-based alternatives and liked them, but they’re too expensive for me right now. I do like the natural ingredient-based litters though.

For anyone who can use a savings tip, what I use right now are pine pellets exactly like Feline Pine, which is itself not cheap. However, I get my pellets from Tractor Supply Company. There they are called Pelletized Horse Bedding. Since it is meant as an animal litter (just for a slightly different animal) it is of course completely natural and safe. There, a forty pound bag costs only $5.99.

This is a GREAT tip, and one I’ve heard before! (It doesn’t work for me, I tried getting my cats to use World’s Best, and they weren’t having it – but I’ll admit that I didn’t try SUPER hard to make it work, either.)

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I want to know more about the dynamics. Like I was surprised that Frankie could settle the Stefan/Archie feud or how the girls interact or just turn their noses up at each other.

I think this question is from way back in August. Frankie seems to be settling into the role of inside Sheriff, while Kara still covers the outside (and the humans). If any two cats have a kerfuffle, Frankie is RIGHT THERE breaking them up and usually facing up to whoever started it. Both Archie and Stefan are cowed by Frankie, and get nervous if he gets too close. Which I don’t LOVE – I’d really like it if all the brats got along – but there have been way fewer Archie-Stefan facedowns since Frankie joined the clowder.

As for the girl cats – Kara and Alice completely ignore each other, and Maxi hates everyone.

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Debra sent me this utterly adorable picture of a smilin’ Phoenix, and I love it. Obviously that girl needed her turkey and stuffing!

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Khal has claimed that bed as his own. He’s not sure what he thinks about me (I knelt down to take a picture from his level, and he ran off like I was going to hurt him), but I’ve been able to pet him more often lately. And – definite progress – he’s spent almost every night inside in the last week.

Not only is he coming inside – he’s starting to play, too! Here he is, with Dewey snoopervising.

YouTube link

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Previously
2016: Happy Thanksgiving.
2015: “I don’t always lay on this scratcher, but when I do, I bite pieces off of it first and ptui them all over the kitchen floor.”
2014: “The better to slap you with, lady.”
2013: No entry.
2012: No entry.
2011: “Happy. Freakin’. Thanksgiving.”
2010: Have you ever seen a happier cat?
2009: “No! You go away! This are MY lap for snuggling in!”
2008: “Friends, Romans, countrycats, lend me your ears…”
2007: Awesome.
2006: No entry.
2005: THEY ARE HOLDING PAWS!

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