Wacky Wednesday

Reno and Dorf upside down.

Tagged Tuesday

Dorf will answer this meme.

A) Four places I have lived:
1. A farm in Kaufman County
2. My furrever home with Maw & Paw

B) Four things I love to watch:
Birds
Bunnies
Squirrels
Geckos

C) Four places I have been outside my home:
My regular V-E-T
North Texas Veterinary Referral Center:
Surgery Center
Radiology Center
My V-E-T dentist

D) Four websites I visit daily:
MSNBC for news
Il Divo to see what the boys are up to
Tons of cat blogs
Anything else that needs researching

E) Four of my favorite foods:
Blueberry low fat Yogurt
Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Science Diet Z/D
IAMs Original

F) Four places I would rather be right now:
Sleeping in the sun
On Paw's lap
Sleeping between Maw's legs on da big bean bed
On a cat bed

G) Four toys I have owned and played with:
G.T.
Cat dancer
Kitty kwicken
Galkie Co. Kitty Toy

H) Four nicknames my staff have tried to assign me:
Fish
Dorfington Fish Stanley
Bucky
Rubber Baby Buggy Bumper

I) Regarding Catnip:
Love it
It's nice
Could take it or leave it
Don't like it or can't have it
Answer: 1

J) Regarding Cat Grass:
Love it
It's nice
Could take it or leave it
Don't like it or can't have it
Answer: 2

K) First four things I'd buy after winning the lottery:
A shelter for all the homeless poodins
A V-E-T hospital to take care of all of them
A huge house with rooms for all ten of us
A huge cage off the back of our new house

L) Four things I do besides eat, sleep, and litterbox:
Scare the pee out of Obi
Scare the poop out of Obi
Traumatize Gatsbi
Follow Maw everywhere she goes

M) Four things I want to do this summer:
Scare the pee out of Obi
Scare the poop out of Obi
Get more of my teeth extracted
Feel better

N) My four most prized possessions that have limited value to anyone else:
My ability to scare the pee out of Obi
My ability to scare the poop out of Obi
My cage
My remaining teeth

O) What I’m going to do before tomorrow is over:
Scare the pee out of Obi
Scare the poop out of Obi
Sleep
Help Maw

P) Which of the following is your favorite place to hide and play?
Paper bags
Plastic bags
Boxes
Other (please describe)
Answer: 3

Q) Four other "pets" your staff have kept with you:
G.T.
Obi
Annie
Bow

R) Four furiends I tag to respond:
Any poodin who hasn't done it yet.

You know the drill. Copy this list and paste it into a new post. Insert your own answers, pass it on, and leave me a comment. I like comments. Yes, it's long. So skip some questions - you're a cat and don't have to do what anyone tells you.

Luf, Dorf

Whirlybird Moves

Here is Obi executing a perfect Triple Salchow-Double
Lutz jump while leaping for the whirlybird. Notice the
landing. He might get a point deducted because you can see where he is just barely coming down on that right leg to balance himself instead of landing on the left leg only. This may cost him with the judges....

LBC & LBK

Kitikati-san posted a comment yesterday to us about their friend finding a Little Black Kitty (LBK) that had either been hit by a car, or had been thrown from a car. This kitty has been cared for by a vet and needs a furrever home. He has been tested and vaccinated and was already neutered prior to being found. He is currently staying with a wonderful person in the Nashville area. So stop by the linkie above and check him out.

This reminded us of our own Little Black Cat (LBC). His story is a bit odd. He started showing up at our house and looking in the windows at our cats and watching them eat. (Windows are very close to the ground in Dallas homes.)

He would hang around for about a week, then he would disappear for about a week. So we sort of figured that maybe his person would stick him outside when they travelled out of town or something. Naturally, we fed him during the week he would come to our house. He was a friendly little guy, so we figured he had a person. Months passed, and he continued to hang around and mature. So I went to the big box retail pet store and made a tag for him that said "If you own this cat, please call xxx-xxx-xxxx." No one called. And since I was in the rescue business at the time, and knew the importance of getting cats fixed before they could reproduce any new cats, I had him fixed, tested, and vaccinated.

A few months later, someone called and said they saw his tag, but they didn't own him. It seems that LBC would spend his "off" weeks over at their house which was about a mile away. He slept inside their boat in their garage and ate with their other cats. This nice man said he would like to keep LBC and would keep him inside until he got used to staying there. Obviously we were thrilled and transferred LBC's vet records to him. They renamed him, and we never saw LBC again. What a wonderful ending to LBC's tale.

So, please drop by Kitikati-san's and check out this poor little LBK who desperately needs a loving home.

Luf, Us

Silly Saturday

Annie hiding in the magazine basket.

Forgiveness Friday

How can I stay mad when they are so sweet and cuddly? Plus, I remembered reading that cats in free roaming areas have a territory of 150 acres per male and 15 acres per female. Obviously, intact males will overlap several females' areas. But here I am trying to get 10 (fixed) cats to co-exist in a house of 1700 sq. ft. Which is primarily why we have 5 tall cat trees and allow the cats to climb to the top of hutches and entertainment centers. Cats in multi-cat households can stake out varying heights of horizontonal territory.

Who am I to get mad at them when they throw their hissy fits because another poodin is tromping on their little teeny bit of staked out land?

Anyway, I took Dorf outside with me yesterday to help me with raking leaves and weeding. Which only served to make the other cats jealous and they all hissy fitted at Dorf. Then I tried to let Bow into the backyard with Dorf, but Dorf started exhibiting Top Cat tendencies, when in actuality, Bow is the true Top Cat. Bow really misses his inside/outside days which came to an end in August 2000 when Davy was killed. That's when the cage was built and the cat flap was installed which goes "clack, clack" when a cat goes through it.

Oh, the trials and tribulations of living with 10 cats....

Unofficial TT

Ok, so we jist fownd owt dat Thursday Thirteen is retiring az ov tuday. An Maw wuz all set to post a TT tuday cuz ov wat we did las nite. She ist not a happy camper wif uz tuday. So heer ist owr unofficial TT. Thirteen reasons why ist not a gud idear to haf 10 catz in wun howse.

1. Gotta cover all yur furniture wif washable throws.

2. Sum poodin is gonna yak overnite.

3. Sum poodins is gonna growl an hissy fite overnite an wake up Maw.

4. Sum poodins is gonna growl an hissy fite durin da day an make Maw mad.

5. Gotta vakyoom all da time.

6. Gotta sweep up arownd da litter boxes all da time.

7. Gotta haf 11 litter boxes arownd da howse.

8. Gotta buy tons of litter.

9. Gotta buy tons of poodin food an different kinds, too.

10. Gotta gif meds to most of da poodins cuz dey haz medical isshues.

11. Wen dey ketch an infectious illness (like clostridium), den dey all git it.

12. Wen sum of dem haf Herpes, den de udders git it efen ifn dey ist vaccinated.

13. Wen 5 or 6 try to sleep wif da beans, dey hog da covers an pin da beans down.

14. Wen 5 or 6 try to sleep wif da beans, den dey git into a hissy fite.

15. Gotta scoop litter boxes ALL DA TIME.

16. Der ist a fine coverin of litter dust on da furniture.

17. Wen a bean tries to play wif a poodin, den all the poodins want to play.

18. Wen a vishus intruder comes to da winder, den all the poodins spit an scream an hiss.

19. Wen da poodins go thru da cat flap into da cage it goes "clack, clack."

Ok. So dat's 19, not 13, and Maw kin probly think of more cuz she dint sleep much last nite.

Luf, Us

Wordless Wednesday

Tatti Tuesday

Tatti, short for Tattiana, was one of our guinea pigs. Both of our pigs lived past 5 years of age. They both developed ovarian cysts, which is very common in female guinea pigs around 5 or 6 years. Pigs can be spayed/neutered, but it is risky because of the anesthesia and there aren't many practicing exotic vets with lots of experience.

Anyway, our pigs had PPT everyday. (Piggy play time) when they were put on the floor in an enclosure with lots of fresh fruits and veggies and junk to play with, like boxes and empty sacks. They loved to chew up boxes, paper roll tubes, paper sacks, etc. What went in one end, immediately came out the other end as little green pellets.

Our pigs learned to squeal when we opened the refrigerator door. They knew that inside that door were scrumptious goodies. They can squeal REALLY LOUDLY. And their little ears flap back with each squeal.

At first they had free range of the kitchen, but we had to come up with an enclosure after they started ripping the wallpaper off the walls, chewing on the baseboards, and racing into the great room to hide under the dining room hutch and chew on it's base. Guinea pigs are little chewing machines.

The cats would jump into their enclosure with them to eat the fresh grass we would bring in from the yard. The pigs didn't mind, but if one of the cats started bugging them, Tatti would turn around and spray the cat in the face. That usually stopped the cat from bugging them anymore for that day!

Luf, Us

Mancat Monday

Reno and G.T. "relaxin"

Sgt. Sally's Guard House

Fixin' To: Part Deux

Dorf and Sally

Fixin' To Friday

Obi

L@@KIE!!! It arrived!!!!

Owr copy ov We Are the Kitties haz arifed!!! We ist so ixcited!! Sally is sniffin it, Smokey is waitin hiz tern, an Reno is snoopervizin.

Luf, Us

Valentine's Day

Tummy Toesie Tuesday

G.T. and Dorf (ACK! CORRECTION!! Reno) snuggling.

We had sefral kwesshuns bowt Dorf's poofy cloud. It wuz da stuffin owta da bak ov Maw's kuztum leffer chair. She asted fur soft an it wuz too soft. She wuz tryin to git da lumbar sport rite. She venshully tukked it bak to da plais dat made it an got it in medium. We all tot da stuffin wuz fun stuff!!!

Luf, Us

Dorf Cloud

This is Dorf in a poofy cloud. This is how it feels here today.

It's raining, and dreary. But we desperately need the rain, so we aren't complaining about that. Our main water supply lake is still down 10 feet. We are still under Stage 3 Drought Restrictions and will stay there and maybe go to Stage 4 this year if we don't get more rain.

All toes were trimmed here at the Forty Paws yesterday.

Toe Trimming, Again

Well efurrybody, it's dat time again here at da Forty Paws.

An we ist plum tuckered owt frum Angie an Beau Beau's wunnerful party last night. We ateded toooo much an danced lots an met tons of owr bloggie buddies. Angie an Beau Beau did a fabyoulus yob on da decorashuns an party favors an FOOD, and beverages. It wuz truly loverly. It wuz a blast.

Now we go nap on owr beeyoutiful pink satiny pillows dat we gotted las nite.

Luf, Us

Valentine's Party

Dear Jazper,

You came bearing roses,

We love your picture poses,

We're honored to be your date

We anxiously await.

Love, Jenny, Gatsbi, and Sally

Pee Ess. We argued about who would give you a boutineer, so we're giving you three!!!

Dear Mr. Jinx,

To my Gentleman Cat Mr. Jinx,
I'm sending your way a few winks,
And though we'll be sharing
I'm not into caring
Because you've got a Man Cat Heart of Gold
If I may be so bold
I'm thrilled to be among the many
Of ladies you've got plenty
And we'll be dating double
With Merlin and Daphne that's no trouble
I'm sending kisses your way
We'll meet later today.

Luf, Annie


Dear Meeko and Kiara,

In case you're missing the Lone Star State
We put together a reminder for our dates
Pointy toes, and a big hat
We'll see sister Emmy with Victor Tabbycat

We found a cactus shaped like a heart
We'll serve you punch and a tart
We're hoping you like to dance
Sometimes we even prance

We sure think you both are pretty
And hope you liked this little ditty
It's coming from the heart
And this is only a part

Of the fun we'll have tonight!!!

Luf, Bow, Dorf, G.T., Smokey, Reno, Obi

Gatsbi Update, Valentines

Gatsbi's bloodwork was very normal. Nothing is elevated. The V-E-T proclaimed that she is just fat. But Gatsbi isn't as impressed with the diet food as the other 9 cats here. And the V-E-T prescribed daily playtime with Gatsbi, even if it only includes her swinging her arms at a string. Remember, because of her neurological disorder, she can't run and jump at fevvers and such as other cats can. When I put her in a halter and take her outside, she lies down. Mebbe we need a stroller like Daisy has? At least she might get excited about going out. That might burn 10 calories.

Today will be very busy. We have to get all of our Valentines made to post for efurrybody that we are escorting to the Valentine Party. We hope we can keep it all straight since we are having multiple escorts from multiple households. This is kinda like being the homeroom mother and having to bake cupcakes for 10 classrooms. And helping address all those little Valentine cards.

Luf, Maw

Diets Suck

So Maw takes me to da V-E-T yesterday. This was not sumting dat I wuz ikspektin. She tells da V-E-T dat I bin bery le-thar-gik. She sez Eyem dinkin lotza water. She sez Eyem yakkin.

So da V-E-T tries to palpate my tummy and such. She sez I'm "overweight". Excuse me? Dat is not nice to say to a lady. She sez my liver feels funny, but it mite just be da fat. Excuse me? She sez she wanna take dem x-rays and pull blood outta me. An she also sticks a needle in da bump on my lip. Excuse me?????

So den da V-E-T brings dem x-ray visions bac to show Maw an sez dat wun of my kidneys is square, probly cuz da fat is pushin on it, and my stomach is in the wrong spot, probly cuz da fat is pushin on it, and she caint see my liver real gud cuz the fat is in da way, and my body extends bowt 2 inches past my frame. She sez Eyem FAT. Excuse me? Wat do u ekspect wen der is 5 types of fud laid owt banquet style an I kaint run an leap cuz of my disabilities?

Den she tells my Maw dat I shuud way bowt 8-10 lbs. Maw's jaw hitted da floor. Maw sez "But that's what Sally weighs and she is the tiniest cat we have!" Da V-E-T shows dis chart to Maw an sez I must go on a diet immediately. She says dat mebbe I be ok at only 12 lbs. Well, now, that don't sownd az bad. Dat's only 5 1/2 lbs instead of 7 1/2. Excuse ME???

Maw here: A diet for Gatsbi won't be as difficult as it would for any other cat here because we can put everyone's food up on the counters and tables and Gatsbi can't get to it. She can't jump because of her disabilities. So, we've put the prescription diet on the floor for Gatsbi, but come to find out, several of the cats are enjoying it. Well, that's ok because several of the cats here at Forty Paws could be considered "overweight".

Of course, this change to the feeding arrangement has got all of the cats quite upset. You know how they hate change. And you know that weight loss in cats must be done very slowly and carefully because they can easily get Fatty Liver Syndrome or Hepatic Lipidosis. This is a disease where a lack of appetite can trigger fat cells to start accumulating in the liver which can't break them down quickly enough. This can cause irreparable damage to the liver if not caught quickly and treated. Obese cats are particularly susceptible to Fatty Liver Syndrome and it is extremely important for the humans to watch for signs of inappetite and get veterinary help immediately.

So we are awaiting the blood results and also waiting to see if we will need to have a sonogram done on Gatsbi's liver if the liver counts are off.

Gatsbi here: Diet's SUCK!!!!

Toesies Tuesday

Ok, so Maw is tryin to git a pikshur of my toes to make her Avatar or wateffer dat ting is dat the udder poodins hast on der comments when they leeves wun. Git it? A pikshur of a paw fur Forty Paws?

So, Maw ist standin on her hed on Sunday cuz I am relaxin on da top ov the 4 ft. cat tree and I hast wun of my big paws hangin ofer da side. An cuz she ist upside down an tryin to only git my paw an not da ceilin fan an not my hed and not da cat tree and not da ceilin, well, itz kinda blurrrry. So, I tolded her she needs to do it agin.

She always tells me "My, what big feet you have Obi." I dunt tink they is big. Dey luk fine to me. She also sez she tinks I haf some 'Coon in me. I mean, she alredy sed my maw "got around", but I dunt think there was any interspecies cominglin if u know wat I means.

Luf, Obi

Calling All Available Man Cats

Owr brudders haf a Valentine luf wid the beeyoutiful Kaze. Us gurl poodins here at da Forty Paws dunt have Man Cat furriends. We posted a few comments arownd the cat blogosphere yestday, but we hadn't no takers as of yet. Beau Beau and Angie's Party is just arownd the corner and we ist bery worried.

Der ist just wun liddle probem. Uhhhh, (blush) we dunt like any touchy/feely type Man Cats. So, if yur lookin fur a gurlfurriend whoze is gonna snuggle wid u, we ain't da ones. Udderwize, we wood be furry prowd to akompny u to da party, or we wood be furry happy wid just a comment.

Luf, Jenny, Annie, Gatsbi, an Sally

Update: Mr. Jinx from Manx MNews will be escorting Annie to the Valentine Party!!!!

Update: Jazper from Purrchance to Dream will be escorting Jenny, Gatsbi and Sally to the Valentine Party!!!

Yeah!!!!

Owr Luf to Kaze

Kaze posted a wunnerful Valentine to us (Bow, G.T., Dorf, Reno, Smokey, and Obi) today. We want to xpres owr luf and undyin divoshun to her. We realie Luf her Frootbat ears an her most fotful xpreshuns an r so furry glad dat she akseps us az we is.

Video Watching

Here's Obi and Reno watching a little Catnip Video. We have to be very careful when they watch their movies because they attack the TV.

Luf, Us

Smokey's Title

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: His Grace Lord Smokey the Chimerical of Yockenthwait Walden Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

Smokey and Siblings

So here is Smokey, the last of the Forty Paws, and the sibling of Reno, Obi, and Sally. There were actually 7 kittens born to the feral mom cat with Herpes 1, but 3 kittens died in the crazy cat lady's garage.

Looking at their pictures side by side, you can see why the V-E-T said their cat momma "got around" and had "some explaining to do".










All 4 siblings have right eye scarring and are susceptible to a Feline Herpes 1 outbreak. They all have L-lysine mixed in with their stinky goodness on a daily basis.

Smokey's right eye scarred so that he looks a bit cross-eyed. His brown protein doesn't glop up and get crusty, it just constantly leaks. It drips in the food bowls, it drips on the floor while he's eating or drinking. It splatters the wall when he shakes his head after a drink. When there get to be too many brown spots on the floor and walls, I know it's time to do a thorough floor/wall scrubbing. I usually add bleach to help prevent the spread of FHV 1. Although vaccinated, most of the other cats here have ended up catching a mild form of FHV 1 and have cat colds occasionally.

Bow is the most susceptible since he is on steroids for his IBS. His colds ended up eroding his nasal passages and he had an endoscopy done of his nose and has been on heavy duty antibiotics several times to clear up his sinuses.

When Smokey came here with the horrid diarrhea from the crazy cat lady's garage, his fur was so coarse and wiry, we had never felt fur like it. After months of getting him over his diarrhea and getting good food into him and lots of brushing and petting, his fur became softer. Now, 3 years later, it is very silky. It's funny when we brush him because he loses almost none of his guard hairs which are the black ones, but the brush fills up with the silver awn hairs so it looks like we are brushing a white cat instead of a black cat!

Smokey loves to rub his weepy eye against anyone and everything. He is constantly rubbing his eye against the other cats, circling round them, and rubs it against our arms, our legs, the furniture, etc.

He is a huge cat, twice the size of Reno or Sally. He doesn't like to be picked up, but will lay on a lap occasionally. He likes to pick on Jenny and make her scream, and he rolls all of his siblings daily.