Catscapades

It has been a bit of a feline circus around here these past two weeks. Eight-week old Lily is a pure delight. We have so enjoyed having a kitten around again. That is, all of us except Max. We don’t know if she is the cause or not, but our 11-year old formerly feral kitty has been sick. And, from all that I read, it could be stress-related.

Lily came to us two weeks ago—she was supposed to be 8-weeks old. But the vet tells us that she was only 6-weeks and, before she would administer her inoculations, she wanted the kitten to grow and age a little more. Well, I thought she was awfully small, but it has been a while since I’ve been around a very young kitten. Why didn’t the owner know how old her kittens were? I guess because she had so many. She thought she had 13 kittens (from 3 mother cats), but actually found 2 more this week. She thought they were all born around mid March. But Lily’s litter, it seems didn’t arrive until around April 1.

Okay, so a few days after we brought Lily home, Max started vomiting and gagging. He went off his food and he began to drool and hang his tongue out. Of course, we took him to the vet. He spent a week getting examined, observed, poked, ex rayed and force-fed. Initially, the vet (and I) thought he had a hairball lodged somewhere. Ex rays proved us wrong. What the vet did find, however, was that Max had a very red throat and that he has an enlarged heart and some sort of kink in his esophagus. She wasn’t too concerned about his heart because she could not hear anything irregular through the stethoscope.

When Max didn’t seem to perk up, however, and when he still wasn’t eating on his own after almost a week, I went online. I discovered that stress can cause a cat with an enlarged heart to have symptoms such as Max had—even the red throat, from stomach acids coming up into the throat. And I found this tidbit—“sometimes it can be uncomfortable for a cat with an enlarged heart to lean down to eat, so they go off their food.”

That’s when we got the idea to elevate his food and water. We set his bowls up on a little stool, kept Max isolated (that meant he got to sleep on my bed all day and night) and the very next evening, he started eating and he has been eating his usual amount every day since—about 7 days.

He’s still not crazy about the kitten, but, as you can see in the photo, they have established their pecking order. She’s a bit of a tease and he’s a grumpy old man without much tolerance—they’re similar to Dennis the Menace and Mr. Wilson.

There is another cat in the household—the middle child. Sophie, 4, still has a lot of kitten in her and she and Lily romp and play like crazy around here. It is so much fun to watch them.

Is there anyone out there who has a cat with an enlarged heart? I guess it is rare that you would discover this unless there is an irregular heartbeat or an ex ray is called for. I’d like to hear your stories and your remedies. I’m a little concerned this morning as Max, who has been doing beautifully, lost his breakfast all over the carpet. I hope we aren’t back to square one with him.

This quote is attributed to Jacquelyn Mitchard.

Does your cat sit on your lap at every opportunity throughout the year or does she just curl up with you during cooler weather, at certain times throughout the day or not at all?

Some cats are not cuddlers. Some cats cuddle only with certain of their people. And then there are those who will sit next to you, at your feet, on your keyboard, but never, NEVER on your lap.

Our formerly feral tortie, Sophie, will curl up on my lap anytime I am sitting down. That is in any weather situation, anytime, with or without invitation. But I’m the only one whose lap she’ll use.

Max, our formerly feral pretty boy, sits on my lap in the living room only when it is very cold (and when Sophie isn’t already there). But he cuddles with me every single morning in my office while I am trying to start my work day. Again, I’m the only one who has the honor of supporting his 16 pounds on my lap.

I used to have a cat who never ever sat on my lap, but she loved to sit next to me—close—with one paw on my leg. She was always touching me. The calico in the photo this morning, as you can see, was a lap sitter. She didn’t care whose lap it was or even if it was a warm lap. Neither did she care who else was in the lap. When she wanted lap time, she would just scooch right in and join whatever cat was already there. This is a photo of Dinah enjoying the lap of a dummy we made for a local production of “Arsenic and Old Lace.”

What are your cats’ lap habits? Are they starting to stretch out on the cool floor in front of a fan, on these warmer days, or do they still hunt down laps?

Speaking of fans, our Himalayan, Katy, loved them. She’s the only cat I’ve ever known who liked to go face-to-face with a fan. Her favorite place on a hot day was in the windowsill in front of the swamp cooler. It was hilarious to watch her sit there as contented as could be with her long fur blowing ferociously in the strong wind of the cooler. Sure wish I’d taken a picture of that.

Send me your comments about your lap-sitting or fan-loving cat.

And be sure to order your copy of Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats. http://www.matilijapress.com/catscapades.

Happy Birthday to Max, Happy Birthday to Max.

Yup, he’s 11 years old already and he’s fighting all of the fanfare. Actually, I think he would rather be remembered as a svelte young cat, as is reflected in the photo of him in the last blog post, April 14, 2009, and those accompanying his stories in Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats. Here, he looks more like the grumpy old man cat that he is.

In Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats, you can read how Max used to spend his days, which is a far cry from how he lives his life today—snuggling under the blankets in the bed by day and sleeping on the end of the bed on his cozy afghan by night. He just reminded me that he does help in my office when he feels like it. He’s the chief paperweight—a task that he has perfected. He keeps me alert by hiding my pen when I’m not looking. Usually, I find it in the waste basket. He’s a good shot. He also keeps a close eye on the birds outside the office window, making sure no one gets more than his fair share of the seed. And he makes sure that I get regular breaks during the early morning hours when he’s on duty, by walking or standing in front of my computer screen at regular intervals.

Max and I have been together since we rescued him from the wild life when he was only a wee kitten. I should have known that he would be a bit of a challenge when I saw him use his mother’s food plate as a litterbox one day. Sigh!

But when we commit to a cat, we love him no matter what, right? And we’ve loved Max for 11 years and counting. So Happy Birthday Big Guy.

Learn more about Max and about 40 other cats in Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats. The only place you can get it is through Matilija Press at http://www.matilijapress.com/catscapades.html. Order your ebook or comb bound book today. It will affect you.

My sister-in-law called this week to tell me that reading the book made her want to get another cat and she is currently trying to adopt one through her local humane society. Others comment that the stories are uplifting. Those who don’t have cats say they have a greater appreciation for cats since reading the book.

This is my mom’s cat, Smokey. We think he is at least part Maine coon. He is one of a handful of cats and kittens that have emerged from the barranca behind my parents’ house over the years. My dad used to say that there was a whole village of cats living in the barranca, each just waiting their turn to move in. For years, whenever one of my parents’ beloved cats crossed over the rainbow bridge, another one would show up.

Smokey has been happily with my mom now for about ten years. And they have a pretty good feline-human understanding of their relationship and how each of them fits into it. As any cat person knows, if the cat is happy, everyone is happy and Mama has learned how to keep Smokey happy. He doesn’t have rich tastes or unique demands. As long as he can enjoy chards of sunlight rippling across his back each morning, quiet time on a padded chair in the backyard every warm afternoon, petting on demand and dinner served on time, Smokey is content.

He does rebel a little when his comfort zone is interrupted. He can’t understand why Mama won’t make the rain stop when he wants to go out to chase lizards and butterflies. And he really, really hates it when the wind blows because this always means a bad hair day for Smokey.

On pages 74-75 of Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats, you’ll find a story about Smokey. I call it, “The Tale of Smokey’s Tail.” Smokey has an extraordinary tail—it is very Maine coon cat-like in that it is long, full and quite expressive. But there was a time when Smokey lost the use of his tail and almost the tail itself.

Order your copy of Catscapades, Tales of Ordinary and Extraordinary Cats today and read “The Tale of Smokey’s Tail,” along with stories about traveling cats; working cats; intuitive, spiritual and rowdy cats. Throughout the pages of this book, I feature stories and vignettes of colony cats, strays, adventuring cats and ferals. You’ll meet a cat that changed a heart and two cats whose hearts changed. Learn about communicating cats, orphaned cats and cats who were rescued against serious odds. If you love cats, find them interesting or even fascinating, you will enjoy the true stories in this delightful book.

Place your order here: http://www.matilijapress.com/catscapades.html. Or contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com