Gatsbi

Gatsbi had lost almost 3 lbs during her D-I-E-T when all of the regular food bowls were up on the counters and on the dining room table. Only her D-I-E-T food was left down on the floor where she could reach it. Gatsbi can't jump onto tables or counters because of her neurological condition. Well, Bow ended up not being able to jump onto tables or counters earlier this year so the regular foods came down and were left on the floor level so that Bow could reach them again. Well, now Gatsbi has regained her weight and is once more fairly immobile. Such is regular life in a household with 10 cats...

Luf, Us

Varyeeous Items ov Inchrest

First off, we are SO HAPPY that Mao has gone home to his fambly. And, we are also happy that Annie has been spotted twice by her beans! This is SUCH GOOD NOOS!

Ok, last week, we wanted to show you the weird chair diapers that Maw put on the dining ruum chairs. But NO, she had to show you the Al Qaeda kitty. So, here are the chair diapers. See, Maw had the dining ruum chairs re-upholstered back in November because the old seats had gotten a bit kitty-clawed if you know what we mean. So she picked out this loverly fabric that she thought went with the drapes and the wall color in the dining ruum and kitchen, etc. And she looked up a re-upholstererererer dude on Angie's List. So this dude did a great job and put the welts on and efurrryting was fantastic. So Maw brought the seats home and started screwing them back on the chairs. Gatsbi immediately jumped on the first one and proceeded to claw the holy crap out of it. Maw is like, "ACK!" Obviously, the fabric she so carefully chose was not as kitty proof as the original fabric!!! So, Maw took the seat off and thought about it for a long time. She considered just throwing towels over the chairs, but she already does that with the kitchen chairs, and we pull those off all the time. So, she went out and bought this butt-ugly corduroy fabric, and wrapped it around the chair cushions and staple gunned it in place. So when company comes over, she is gonna take the diapers off temporarily. Good thing for her that company doesn't come over very often....

In udder noos, yestday was clippy claws day here at da Forty Paws. Datz also da day dat Bow & Gatsbi git wayyed on da baby scales. Well, as you know, Gatsbi has bin on a D-I-E-T for about a yeer. When she was on the prescription R/D, Maw & Paw called it the bulimia D-I-E-T because when she would eat too much, she would yak it back out. Well, it was an effective D-I-E-T because she lost 3 lbs. But Maw & Paw got tired of cleaning up yak, because all of us yakked R/D when we ate too much of it. It sorta expands in the belly with water intake. So, Maw switched to W/D. And now Gatsbi isn't yakking it all the time, but she has gained back 1 lb. So, Maw has to talk to da V-E-T today when she takes Bow in for his ol' geezur check-up. Bow will be 18 in March and he needs to have some blood taken and see how he's doing.

Ok, we've talked enuf fur now.

Luf, Us

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!!!!