...kitty update

after the 3rd day of flagyl for her diarrhea...
Mz Fluff is cured, happy & snoozing away peacefully...



the depo shot worked very well for Piglet too...
and so she's, "out & about" again too...

and everyone's enjoying the banquet of cat food...

good times in catland...

...still more cat tales

as a long-time cat-staffer, I've often written of my mis-adventures...
catering to the whims, uhh, demands of my various herd members...
in the life of the Piglet,"Queen of the out-of-doors"...
and Mz Fluff, "absolute Queen of EVERYTHING"...



not all has been, uhhh, well lately...
as neither of them have been well, in the health sense...
thus putting a bigger crimp,[than the one in Pig's tail], in the "normal routine"...
they both require me to follow, here in their kitty kingdom...
[aka, "my" house...my friend Calico has it right...
it IS the cat's house, I just live["staff" the kitties] here...]



when "all is well", Piglet announces her desire...
for face time with her garden...
and if at all possible & beneficial for all concerned...
[or if I've had enough, it's the right time of day & the weather's good...]



she is set free to prowl the garden...
perhaps even check-out UnklePhil's yard...



and ultimately settle in a liar of her choosing to snooze away the day...
coming in only to eat or annoy Fluff...



who would just as soon be left to snooze alone...

but just last month, Fluff was sick...
she had some sort of infection & wasn't eating much...
so I mixed up some Clavamox[veterinary antibiotic]...
which really did the trick, 'cause she improved in just a day or so...



and has been eating double the normal amount & gaining weight !



she has been much more active & interested in things...



and seems to be feeling so much better & is happy again...

Piglet had another bout of the oral lesions...
which kept her from eating, so I took her in for a steroid shot...



it worked well and she started eating again...

but then, a couple of days ago...
after staying out, 'way after dark & worrying me...



Piglet was very quiet... TOO quiet...

and stand-offish...not wanting to cuddle[her default mode...]
just laying on the far corner of the bed...
sleeping, alone...
[a sure sign of trouble 'cause she prefers to sleep on top of Fluff or me...]

so I picked her up and she was way too hot...
a cats' normal temp is above 100...
but compared to Fluff, she was burning up...
so I mixed up some more Clavamox...
[it's a good thing the vet lets me keep it on hand...]

and after only 2 doses, she was much better...
now it's been 3 days and she & Fluff are eating like girls half their age...



and things are, back to normal...

I'd like to write more...
but I have to go get some more cat food for them, NOW...
they are running low & they have unspeakable ways of getting even...

...it's still raining[& I love it...]

it's still raining...



and though the weather forecast says,"showers" for today...
with clouds for tonight & tomorrow...
it's wet out there...
which at my house, is a good thing...

well... maybe not everyone at my house is happy about the wetness...



the last few days, every moment that I've been in my bedroom...
and obviously awake, has been a moment for "lobbying"...
aka b****ing & moaning by a pissed-off Piglet...
so unfairly incarcerated by moi, who, of course, made it rain...
these last couple of weeks, just to annoy & piss-off Herself...
["mean, spiteful & unfeeling wretch" that I am to her...]

whenever I walk into the bedroom,[or awaken/get up]...
she instantly sprints to the window...
making sure she uses my stomach as a springboard if I'm in bed...
insistently voicing her displeasure at my absence/sloth...
and her lack of "facetime" with the out of doors...

sometimes, when I'm trying to sleep...
she'll rattle the mini blinds, making quite a racket...
particularly, if I don't wake up soon enough to suit her or there's a full moon...
[it should be noted that she has NOT been allowed out after dark...
for a couple of years now, but hope still springs eternal...]

we carry on quite the dialogue... so mature, trés sophisticated...

p-o'd P:"I want out, now... NOW... NOW...NOW !!

me:[after each now]"...no ...NO ...NO ...NO !!
[until we get this, sort of, "um-pah" thing going...

as I move around the bed to leave the room...
she flings herself onto the bed, sprinting to the corner nearest the door...
then lays on her side, kicking her back feet & feigning "cuteness"...
playfully batting at me in an attempt to soften my heart of stone...
cajoling & meowing as pitifully as possible...

when that doesn't work, she takes a swipe at me, claws extended...
happy, if she draws blood or snags my sweater...pissed, if she whiffs...
then, narrowing her eyes, she vindictively calls me several ugly names...
and stalks away to take out her pique on poor Fluff...
who is in her nest, trying to nap & ignore the drama...

this situation was inadvertently exacerbated a couple of days ago...
because it was nice & sunny between storm fronts...
& Herself got to be "out" for several hours...
doing, really important cat stuff...
having the satisfaction of coming "in" & going "out", on her own...
which, apparently, despite the extreme joy...
of leaving numerous wet, muddy paw prints on my [fortunately, made] bed...
was all too brief and is now, completely forgotten by her...

also forgotten, but only by her, was the lovely moment...
'way too early, last Saturday morning...
when upon my return to my bed after an "0-dark:30 AM bathroom visit...
I discovered that unlike previous times...
when Pigs & Fluff would only invade my bed...
[covers thrown back, warm spot infested with heat seeking felines...
which then necessitated a feline "bum's rush"...
before I could return to MY bed for more zzz's...]

this time, someone[black & white]had scarfed too much food, too fast...
and barfed all over my "warm spot"...
apparently as soon as I left, 'cause the flannel sheets were soaked...
and not some dainty little "spit-up" either...

projectile barfing...a-l-l over the turned-down part...

yuk... so when she complains about how "mean" I am...
turning a deaf ear hasn't been as hard as you might think...
oh, & BTW... if I let her out & she gets wet & cold...
she's 'way more vindictive than when she stays in...
so that's why I avoid getting her too wet or cold...

so while Piglet was being Capt'n "Chase Sparrows", Queen of the Back Yard...



I treated my bout of "click-click" fever with a stroll in the sun shine...



with the leaves gone, all the mistletoe really shows up against the bright sky...

a lot of mistletoe has also been blown down by the storms...
and it was all over the ground...



as I turned the corner, the early red leaf plum came into view...
I've seen it bloom as early as late December when it's too warm...
and as late as early February when we've had a prolonged period of cold...
other blooming trees will wait until at least late February in the warm years...



but this one just can't wait to show off its blossoms...
a hint of the warmer, drier days to come...
and the much longed-for days of sunny garden snoozing for Pigs...
with the window open all day for Herself's Royal pleasure...

cats...

...teaching an old cat new tricks

I am, after all, not known as "the Catsinger" for nothing...














so far, this has about been my assessment of the differences...cats hear only what they want to hear...dogs think that they're being lavished with attention...
even when being corrected...




as a cat-staff-purr-son,
"I lead an ignored and fur-filled life"...[very true...]

as a dog-owner... uhh... ummm...
well, I rarely beg for caffeine...if I want it, I go get it...
so that just doesn't fit....

I know the feline mind, inside & out...
[quite an accomplishment, actually...]



and while this cartoon speaks to both canine & feline "job descriptions"...
I would think the feline hobbies actually include...
destroying furniture, barfing in my shoes & hacking-up hairballs...
while the canine hobbies include barking at everything that moves...
cruising the cat box & burying toys in the backyard...

and even though I will always prefer the subtlety of the feline to the canine...
I have come to realize that there are times...
when even a felinista such as moi, has to become more of a,"dog person"...



*sigh* [that time being now...]

I love my dog & wish her nothing but good...
but learning to live with a dog is stretching me...
taking me outside of my comfort zone...
making me learn new tricks...

and while I'll never become the "Dogsinger"...
[Molly sings enough for both of us, thank you very much...]
I am working on a more healthy co-existence for us both...

meanwhile, I thought that I'd pass on these bits of doggy humor I found...




[I have never swatted Molly with anything...
the blog part ? guilty, as charged...]



why I don't care for doggy [or kitty] kisses...



the rest just speak for themselves...




hee, hee...

...meooooow, BRRR !

we had a "hard freeze" last night [25˚ F]...
when I left the house for the church at 10 AM...
the windchill was 30˚ F...even though it was sunny & just breezy...
and there's another "hard freeze" tonight [25˚ F, again...]
...for around here, that's, BBRRRRR !



yesterday, the snow level was 500 ft...
so we [Mudville, elevation 13 ft] had cold rain...
with wind all night & morning...
so when I released Piglet in the afternoon...
she returned, uhh, "promptly"...



with a reaction pretty much like this...



Lucyfur & Murph,[aka smart cats...] found the fire quickly...



were soon joined by Charlie...



while Molly gnawed a bone as she warmed her butt...



the bitter cold seeps into my bedroom...
so yesterday, even Pigs & Fluff were putting up with each other to stay warm...
[though an occasional hissy fit could be heard...]

so you can imagine my surprise this morning...
when Piglet started lobbying to "go out, NOW !"...



she whined, called me bad names and tried to snag my sweater...
all in an attempt to be allowed to go outside...
where the temperature was below freezing...
AND it was wet, with a northwind dropping the temp even lower...

finally, I'd had enough...

I set the captive free... then waited for her to come right back...

and waited... AND WAITED...etc...

finally, I had to leave...
so when I return home...
I expect to find a "Pigsicle"...



kind of like this...

maybe she won't want out tomorrow morning...
[yeah, right...]

cats, go figure...

...STILL waiting, no news yet

this picture says it all...



I could use a stiff drink...



but BC's minions are everywhere...
[especially in my house...]



so I'll call on CC to protect me while I wait...



and with His help, I'll hang on...
hidden safely away from BC & the Gang...

..."kitty games"

"the players"...



"Mz Sneaky Pie..."
[felinus troublus causius]



"Mackie cat..."
[Mr. Fluffy-tailus, cuddleius]

[back story:
if you are a regular reader, you have seen MzSPie in action before...
her despoiling of the tp is as epic as it is wanton...
& before the demise of the old bath...
the tub was her arena of choice for a rousing game of "chase my tail"...

Mackie, while he has his moments, (mostly at the expense of his sister, Murphy...)
is a cuddly guy who loves to be held & petted...
generally avoiding conflict...]

"today's episode..."

so after letting Molly out into the backyard this AM...
[she can't start the day without patrolling for interlopers, etc...]
I wandered into the bathroom...

Mackie has learned to vault up onto the basin...
so I won't "forget" to pet him...
and if I'm there a while, he climbs into my arms to be snuggled...

meanwhile, on this morning...

Mackie loped in & hopped up into my arms...
then SPie slithered in & launched herself into a spirited game of "tail chase"...

her new spot for this game, which used to take place in the tub...
is in the corner between the door & the wall...
in her zeal to catch her stripey prey...
she generally pushes the door shut...
eliminating most of the fun of tail chase in a narrow place...

which didn't take her very long today...

having eliminated her arena, she decided to leave...
about the time that Mackie, having heard the door close...
decided to leave before something ugly happened...
like having Advantage or ear medicine applied...
[they learn so quickly...]

since she had shut the door during her game...
SPie couldn't get out & found herself, face to face with Mack...
she must have called him some ugly name...
because in a flash, they were both up on hind legs, boxing...

no yowling or hissing...
no, "one pawed" swatting...
just both of them...
standing up & boxing away at each other...

finally, wanting to save face & make a timely exit...
SPie pawed at the door...
hooking her claw in a crocheted bag that hangs on the doorknob...
and pulled the door open...

she scooted through...
pulling it shut behind her[her claw was still stuck...]
getting the claw loose just moments before the door shut...
[fortunately for her as that would have been painful...]

Mackie, desiring a more satisfying "closure", pawed at the door...

it didn't open...

then he noticed the belt of my bathrobe hanging down...
and made a pest of himself playing with it...
until I came over to open the door for him...
[he knows how to push my buttons...]

as he started out, Mz SPie jumped at him...
[she had been hiding on the other side of the door, waiting...]
taking one more surprise shot...
then galloping away with catly glee...

Mackie pursued her on into the LR...
where she melted into the scenery...
leaving a confused Mackie to butt heads with Lucyfur...
who as usual, had come, to "investigate" all the commotion...
and tried to calm him...

not being able to satisfy himself by whacking SPie...
Mackie found his sister, Murphy,to take his pique out on...

to her credit, Murph whacked him back...

and so, while the dog's outside...
thus go the "cat games"...
they tend to be better behaved in front of Molly...
I could swear that I once heard Lucyfur admonish some miscreants...

"PLEEESE, NOT in front of the D-O-G"...

now if I could get them to feel that way about me...

cats... go figure...

..."dejá-vu", all over again

[this is eerily similar to an experience I had while living in Chicagoland,
almost 40 years ago... I told that story in "gifts of the Meow-guys", my 4th post from 9/21/07...so this is in memory of Max, hunter extraordinaire...]




Piglet LOVES to sleep the day away outside in the garden...
sometimes, however, the mighty huntress decides to enliven my life with her "prey"...

recently, I was gifted with a quite dead bean seedling...
& a dried trumpet vine flower...

the scene is always the same...
Pigs hops inside, singing her,"look what I caught" song...
and then dropping "it" on my bed as a gift...

while she presents herself to be petted and adored for her feats of gallantry...
all the while meowing her,"I am SO brave & clever" song....

today, the entrance was the same...the song, the strut...
the "see how great I am" monologue...
so I praised her for the dried blossom I thought she'd brought in...

but her inattention to the blossom...
and continuing unrest focused me in another direction...

then I saw it...



clutched under her paws, a b-i-g GREEN grasshopper...
that managed to keep eluding her, causing her to pounce...
this went on for a while, then it jumped off the bed...
and she went after it...

as she hopped back up on the bed, sans grasshopper...
I had a moment of wondering if I'd ever see it again...

then I felt something on my foot, climbing up my leg...

I tried to show it to Mz Huntress...
who misunderstood my intentions & fled...
leaving me to steel myself, capture the critter off my leg...
and release it out the window...

presently, Piglet returned, searching for her prey...
and finding it nowhere to be seen...
flopped down on the bed, muttering to herself...
and was soon asleep...

no doubt dreaming of grasshoppers...

I'm just glad she only found one...
[read the 9/21/07 post...]

cats...

...Fluff is sulking,part 2

it all began so peacefully...



the Fluffinator, quietly enjoying her summer nest...



until Piglet invaded her space...



after much hissing & growling didn't work...
she repaired to the winter nest...



a tactic that met with limited success...



and soon she made it clear to all how she felt...



so Piglet decided to take over my bed instead...

cats... go figure...