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Archive for November, 2008

Medication frustration, part two

Posted in Chi-Town Fur Gang, Feline nutrition and health, tagged , , , on November 30, 2008|

I wrote earlier about my current medication frustrations.

They continue.

It’s become even more difficult to pill Studley. I took him to the vet yesterday (where he got a depomedrol steroid shot for suspected asthma). If the shot works, we’ll begin inhaled meds. In the meantime, his still on some pills for another (behavioral) issue. When I voiced my concerns at the vet yesterday, as I’m not sure the pills are even helping or necessary and incredibly difficult to give him, the vet needed to see for himself by prying Studley’s mouth open and popping down a piece of a treat. Well, sure, looked easy enough for him. In my defense, the vet didn’t have to CATCH him. I’d already chased him around the house to get him and put him in a carrier and transport him to the vet, and was holding him, docile, on the exam table.
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All washed up

Posted in Life of the Lintee Bean on November 29, 2008| 4 Comments »

I HATE my washing machine. HATE IT. DETEST IT.

I bought it in October of 2006. I was not happy that the old one was broken (it came with the house and who knows how old it was) but I was excited at the prospect of getting a front-loading machine. The washer/dryer are up on a bit of a concrete platform, and it was annoying to have to stand on my tiptoes on the edge of the platform to reach into the old top-loading machine.

Since the doorway is not particularly wide, I could only purchase a pretty small “compact” model – but it’s only me and the cats, so I thought it would suit my purposes fine.

I hate this washing machine. If I’d been smart, I’d have just returned it after the first time I used it, seeing how horrible it was. Tonight was fairly typical.
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Fat cat, skinny cat – what ya gonna do?

Posted in Feline nutrition and health, tagged , , , , on November 28, 2008| 5 Comments »

Obesity seems a rather fitting post-Thanksgiving subject, doesn’t it? However, in this case I’m talking about feline obesity.

Not coincidentally, recent research shows the most effective method of “normalizing” a cat’s weight is feeding a low-carbohydrate WET diet (canned or raw). Normalizing a cat’s weight means inducing weight loss or weight gain in order to achieve an ideal weight. So, this diet not only works best for those chubby kitties that need to lose weight – but also those skinny kitties that need to put on some weight (particularly muscle)!

I witnessed this myself first-hand with my cats, Omaha and Afer. When I adopted Omaha in 2003, he was morbidly obese at over 20 pounds (estimated ideal weight of 8 pounds).

Omaha at the shelter - over 20 pounds

Omaha at the shelter - over 20 pounds

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Plays well with others – or not

Posted in Chi-Town Fur Gang, tagged , , , , , , on November 27, 2008| 1 Comment »

Most frequently asked question I get, absolutely, is “How many cats do you HAVE?”

One of the other frequent questions: “Do they all get along?”

Answer – no, not really. My three girls (Jellybean, Rumpelmintz, and Kitty.com) do NOT like other cats. They have a tendency to whine/growl/scream/cry in other cats’ presence. In particular, Jellybean and Rumpelmintz fear Studley greatly and aren’t keen on Louie. Ralph is Mr. Agreeable and loves everyone and everything. The girls still bop him on the head on occasion – but even for them, it’s hard to not like that sweet little face of Ralph’s.

My boys are pretty good friends, on the other hand. I LOVE it when my cats get along, and groom each other, and cuddle together, and play together…. if there’s anything cuter than my adorable cats, it’s my adorable cats appreciating each other as sweet loving furry beings.

Louie and Ralph snuggling

Louie and Ralph snuggling

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Eye spy

Posted in Life of the Lintee Bean on November 26, 2008|

I’ve wanted permanent eyeliner for some time. I’ve been thinking about it seriously (seriously enough to research local artists, etc.) for months – and considering it much longer than that. I’m the type that, without eyeliner, has a face that appears to be a nose, mouth – and nothing else. No eyelashes to speak of, and small eyes. If my eyes are the windows to my soul – I don’t have much of a soul.

I took the plunge Saturday – made the appointment last week with a reputable artist and got permanent eyeliner – upper and lower eyelids. For those unfamiliar with permanent cosmetics, effectively, it’s a tattoo. So, I got a tattoo of eyeliner on my eyelids. I used an artist that only does permanent cosmetics, but I’m in a room across the hall from a burly bald biker dude getting who-knows-what big intimidating tattoo.

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Why yes, I eat

Posted in Human nutrition and health, Life of the Lintee Bean, tagged on November 26, 2008|

I do NOT understand why people ask me what I eat when they discover or remember I am a vegetarian. 

Just because I don’t eat meat doesn’t mean there is nothing for me to eat…. I’m not forced to eat twigs and small rocks and dirt and grass.  If you can see me, it is QUITE obvious I am not lacking food to consume – in fact, it’s quite obvious I overeat.
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Fully outfitted

Posted in Chi-Town Fur Gang, tagged , , on November 25, 2008| 1 Comment »

I’d written previously about how Louie ruptured an anal sac on September 29. He was isolated in the den, wearing a cone and using paper pellet litter, until October 31 while he healed. (His healing took longer than typical due to his FIV+ status.)

As you can see below, wearing a cone was incredibly TRAUMATIC for Louie.

Louie in extreme discomfort in his cone

Louie in extreme discomfort in his cone

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Camping s’more

Posted in Chi-Town Fur Gang, tagged , , , , , , on November 25, 2008| 2 Comments »

The cats’ “Aunt Terry” gave them a new pet tent for camping in the kitchen. It’s an adorable pop-up tent – I think she got it at Big Lots.

Jellybean was first to fall in love with it. (At least until what must have been some “blitz attack” because one day I discovered poop in the tent as well as lots of fur tufts nearby – and Jellybean hasn’t really used the tent since.)

Jellybean comfy in the tent

Jellybean comfy in the tent

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Catnip wake

Posted in Chi-Town Fur Gang, tagged , , , , , , on November 24, 2008| 2 Comments »

My friend Adrienne suggested perhaps what my blog needs is more pictures of my cute cats.  My cats ARE very very cute, in my opinion.  Oh, they’re a little rough around the edges, most of them, and they’re not babies (the youngest is about ten years old) but I think they are pretty much adorable most of the time – when they’re not fighting amongst each other or acting as destructive forces of other sorts, or just annoying the crud out of me… they’re VERY cute.

Anyway, a few weeks ago we held a “catnip wake” in honor of Afer, Omaha, and several of our friends’ cats that passed away recently (including Rumpelmintz’s cyber-boyfriend and Studley’s cyber-girlfriend/wife).

The wake started with an assortment of catnip toys. Jellybean did not participate. Catnip toys are not sufficient lure for her to leave her perch on top of the kitchen cat tree and chance proximity to the other cats.

Catnip wake

Catnip wake

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Medication frustration

Posted in Chi-Town Fur Gang, Feline nutrition and health, tagged , , , on November 23, 2008| 3 Comments »

I’m not the world’s best “piller”, but I consider myself fairly adept at medicating cats. Not only have I had (and have) several cats with medical needs, but I also volunteered for a few years in a cat shelter’s clinic. I can pop a pill down an average cat’s throat. For your “more difficult” cat, I’ve learned most of the “tricks” – using a pill gun, “hiding” the pill in food, a bit of cheese, a bit of cream cheese, a bit of real mayonnaise, a soft treat…

You can get many, if not most, medications compounded into flavored liquids or even treats, which can make medicating the difficult cat a lot easier. Some medications can be compounded into transdermel gels you rub on the ear.

Pill Pockets are a handy little trick in the medicating bag. The ingredients make me cringe (corn syrup? pregelantized corn? wheat flour? wheat gluten? starch? soy protean?) However, they are relatively inexpensive, readily available, and easy to use. So, when I found out I’d be medicating my formerly-feral one-eyed wonder cat, Studley, I decided to go with Pill Pockets when cheese failed me. (Cheese “breaded” in freeze-dried turkey treat crumbs did work nicely, but I’m admittedly too lazy to prepare elaborate appetizers for my cat twice a day.)
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