Pets

[Mary Ann]

A Meowy Christmas back to you MarsGal and your cat family.  Kendrick has been wandering around and I gave him some sprinkles of catnip which he liked. 

And a Merry Christmas to any humans who come into this space.

Mary Ann

[angelface555]

How to choose the best cat food for your cat's needs

" Cheaper Brands are False Economy

Many first-time cat owners, in an attempt to hold down expenses, buy the cheapest foods they can find for their cats. This is a false economy for a couple of reasons. First, studies have shown that cats eat as much as they need to get the nutrients they require. Therefore, they might eat twice as much of that generously-carbohydrate-filled store brand to get the nutrients they need in a normal feeding of premium food. Second, the continued feeding of substandard foods over a period of years will heavily contribute to, or even cause, serious medical conditions that will require expensive veterinary care.

For these reasons, the old maxim, "You get what you pay for," is particularly true where it comes to cat food."

https://www.thesprucepets.com/choosing-cat-food-551958?utm_campaign=petsl&utm_medium=email&utm_source=cn_nl&utm_content=15539280&utm_term=list_gl_ot_spruce-default

[Mary Ann]

Patricia, I've usually purchased Purina cat food, not always the same variety.  The one Kendrick is eating now has no grain, but it has chicken.  In the past, he has turned up his nose at canned 'wet' food.  He gets no "people food".

Mary Ann

[angelface555]

MaryAnn,a few years back during the "Made in China" pet food scare when a number of cats and dogs were killed, a side effect was learning that many good, better or even  best animal food had the exact same ingredients and from the same manufacturers with different prices and labeling.

According to the article, this is what to look for;  " What to look for on the label

    Compliance with AAFCO's requirements for "Complete and Balanced," as evidenced by that wording on the label.
    Named protein source - look for "chicken, turkey, lamb, or beef," rather than "meat."
    On canned food particularly, the protein source should be the first listed ingredient
    Check the expiration date for freshness

What to avoid

    Words such as "By-products," "meat and bone meal," "animal digest," most other descriptions including "digest" or added sugars.
    Chemical preservatives, including BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin, and propyl gallate
    Cornmeal as a filler
    Excess of carbohydrate "fillers" (Dry food can contain as much as 50 percent grain)

Cats are obligate carnivores, and cannot thrive on vegetarian diets, although most vegetables can be added to cats' diets, either by the manufacturer or the consumer.
Pet food manufacturers cannot print "complete and balanced" on their labels unless one of the following criteria is met:

    The food must pass feeding tests for the life stage recommended on the label
    The composition of the food must meet or exceed nutrient levels established by AAFCO
    Preservatives, at the level included in commercial pet foods, have never been scientifically demonstrated to cause any problems in pets (or people) at less than 100 times the levels found in such foods. On the other hand, the current policy for many cat food manufacturers is toward using natural preservatives, such as vitamins C and E."

Farrah is not interested in people food nor does she care for tuna or wet cat food. Her problem and mine was a dependence on treats over her kibble which necessitated her diet and banning treats. I use Iams indoor cat hairball and diet food. She gets 1/2 cup daily which usually lasts until morning.

[Marilyne]

I've been watching the Critter Cam today, and also on Facebook. I notice the difference in Mamma cat, Sweetie Pie, and Mama cat Seraphina. (From the last rescue litter). Very different personalities.  Sweetie Pie keeps to herself, and doesn't join in with the play.  Seems she is usually sitting up high, and observing.  Seraphina, was more involved in the "action", and seemed to like to play. 
Patricia, I keep meaning to ask, if this new litter is finished with nursing?  It has been over two months since they were born, so I suppose so?

[angelface555]

"Normally, the kitten weaning process begins at about four weeks of age. 'With mom, they'll start to try to eat her food, and she'll push them away from her,' says author Benson. But if you're weaning a kitten that has been orphaned, you can start a little earlier, between three and four weeks."

Marilyne, in the wild, these kittens would have long ago left to begin their own lives. Sweetie Pie and her kittens are ferals who were being fed by a man who eventually called the rescue who trapped them and brought them in for fostering and socialization. Three, Sweetie Pie, Peach, and Apple are still wary of humans but are beginning to trust.

This is why besides the URI, that they are not already neutered and adopted as Seraphina,(They think she was originally someone's pet); and her litter was. The snips date is tentatively set for January 15th and adoption depends on socialization.

Sweetie Pie if still outside may have already had another litter by this time and have driven this one away. Also, young males usually leave around five weeks while females may stay within the group but not close to Mama.

Think of wild cats, elephants, horses, and walruses similar behavior. So you have the wild or feral tendencies vs. the tame cats. Also, Seraphina's kittens are four to five weeks younger than this litter so Seraphina was just beginning to separate from her already weaned kittens.

[angelface555]

Nine days in and only one day of meds left. 13-week old kittens still trying to nurse which is why Mom stays away. Yesterday she discovered she liked petting and liked FDJ. Now Peach is the only holdout, but she stays close on the perimeter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzr3gZLCwwE

[so_P_bubble]

What is the link for the live cam? I lost it.  Thanks.

[angelface555]

There is both the live cam with four cameras and also BrookIvy who in conjunction does short videos of incidents such as play, meds or fence jumping. The first link is to the live cams and the second for BrookIvy. Usually, I watch BrookIvy's as she has culled the highlights from the live cams.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEmawBJsPLgttggzm4Z45Mw

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJeQLIzkGjX8NdeDa0rZwTA

[angelface555]

Nine signs you're feeding your pet all wrong;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdpXsSjfvFo

And understanding your sleepy cat

https://www.thesprucepets.com/understanding-cat-sleep-553961?utm_campaign=petsl&utm_medium=email&utm_source=cn_nl&utm_content=15580102&utm_term=list_gl_ot_spruce-default

[angelface555]

FDJ and sociailizing the current fosters.

"I've had awesome progress with everyone in socializing them. Mama Sweetie Pie let me hold her and put her on my lap without stopping purring (and she stayed on my lap for a short bit too!) I consider Apple & Meringue 95% socialized. Huckleberry & Rhubarb were already socialized. Peach is still holding out, but she only cringes a wee bit when I pet her, and I've even gotten an Elevator Butt out of her a few times (she thought her hindquarters betrayed her)."

They've had their ten days of meds and no longer show signs of any URIs. Snips day is tentatively set for the fifteenth and adoption will probably follow within a week of snips.

[Marilyne]

Patricia - Sweetie Pie, and the kittens were all sleeping, so I clicked on a video to the right, that said something like "Man rescues raccoon stuck in car cover".  I started watching it, and as upsetting as it was, I had to continue to watch it through to the end.  When it was finally over, I wasn't sure if it was a happy ending or not?  Have you seen it?
https://www.jukinmedia.com/licensing/view/979595

[angelface555]

Marilyne I watched your link and they did help it get loose but why in the world didn't they call Fish and Game or some type of animal rescue group afterward? It looked to me as if it had suffered some neural damage from the incident.

[Marilyne]

I agree . . . I wish the friend who was taking the video would have called The Humane Society or Wildlife Rescue.  No follow up at all that I could find, so we'll never know what the outcome was. I'm afraid the poor raccoon wandered off when it got dark, and probably died. I have to really give that man credit for staying with it until the poor animal was free. That took a lot of resolve and hard work on his part.

[MarsGal]

I think I will pass on seeing the the raccoon.

I took Lucy to the Vet today. Since just before Christmas she lost her "meower" and has been shaking her head again. Turns out she has an ear infection. So now I have drops which are a combo of antibiotic and DMSO (to reduce swelling), to put in her ear twice a day. I am convinced, now, that she lost her hearing in both ears (the infection is only in one). I can come up right to her and she doesn't hear me. She no longer responds to me calling out, "din, din. Time to eat". I have to take the dish out to her for her to see/smell it. She does not always follow me back into the kitchen, so she gets to eat out in the living room. Not ideal, but if it keeps her eating and keeps the guys from pesting her while she is eating, I guess it will do.

[angelface555]

MarsGal, I hope you will let us know how it goes with Lucy?

The following is a YouTube Link to FDJ's elder cats that he is a permanent foster for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttgSxoLPW2A

[MarsGal]

Lucy has an ear infection, so the vet gave me an antibiotic with DSMO mixed in to clear it and reduce any swelling. I don't know how that will help her laryngitis though. I also don't know how just putting the drops in one ear is going to do anything for what appears to be a hearing loss in both. We'll see. She gets four drops in the ear twice a day.

I never saw a crinkle mat before. I wonder if Shan would like it. I doubt Lucy would bother. I have one of those tunnel things on my wish list to buy for the cats. It is 10" in diameter so I think Shan and Lucy can fit in, not sure about Oscar.

[angelface555]

I might be wrong but doesn't the ear canal, and the throat connect between both ears? If her laryngitis is caused by drainage from the ears, it might be temporary.

 I'm guessing here, but I think I read somewhere that they, (throat and both ear canals) are connected. I certainly feel for Lucy and you because we worry so about our furbabies.

I think the crinkle mats would appeal to kittens or cats that like bags, that sort of toy or crinkle balls. Farrah at six doesn't play with toys anymore but does want to make dens out of paper bags and in her crate or under tables. I wish I could get Farrah a playmate, but only one pet is allowed here.

FDJ's permanent fosters are all over fifteen years of age and last March he lost three within days due to age-related illnesses. The ones remaining are Trillian, the Siamese mix who's jumpy and Mercury and one other.

 Last summer he adopted two kittens who will soon be a year old, so he has quite a few in and out of the critter room. Except for one older cat, the one whose name I can't remember; the permanent resident cats are never in the critter adoption room.

The one he does bring in once or twice after snips and before the adoption is gentle and nonaggressive. He does this to prepare the current crop of kittens to the idea that there are other cats besides Mama. Since their adoptive homes generally have other adult cats who won't let them get away with what Mama cat does, it's good socialization.

I have the larger blue ring with a ball, but I use it for her food bowl. It gives her some extra exercise in finagling her kibble meal.

[angelface555]

In mid-December, Cole of Cole And Marmalade via Catman Chris Fame ended up at the evening emergency vets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gevjKEUmHQ8

[JaneS]

Does anyone have dogs?  I do!  They're not at all like cats!

[MarsGal]

Thanks for the Cole clip, Patricia. I missed seeing it on my daily YouTube rounds. You are right about the ears and throat being connected. Hopefully the infection clears up with one round of treatment. In the meantime, while I was out this morning, Oscar got a nose bleed. The dry air in the winter, doesn't help. I probably set my humidifier a little higher.

I think I may get one of those crinkle pads and put it in one of the boxes. They really like the boxes with paper in them. I could put it under a layer of kraft paper and see what happens.

JaneS, I am sure you mentioned it before, here on one of the other discussions, but I forgot - what kind of dog is it? My closest dog neighbors are Labs and Golden Retrievers. I haven't seen too many of them walking their dogs lately, but they include a Standard Poodle, a Bull Mastiff, and a pair of Greyhounds. I rarely see plain old mutts anymore; everyone wants a breed of some kind.

[MarsGal]

Patricia, the emergency Cole visit to the vet showed up on my YouTube listing this morning. I am so glad he is okay. It looks like he was hooked up to IV for fluids and such while he was in.

On another note, Lucy gave me a lovely meow this morning when I went downstairs. I noticed yesterday that she was perking up some and her ears were twitching just a hair. Maybe she is getting some of her hearing back. The antibiotic must be working.

[JaneS]

MARS GAl,  My doggies are Scottish Terriers, one white and one black.  They're getting old just like me and need a lot of attention.  I love them dearly and they are part of what keeps me going.  Most of my "granddogs" are bigger...a lab, lab/golden retriever, a pure mutt, a Bernese Mountain Dog.  My two "greatdranddogs" are a German Shepherd and another Yellow lab.  Also an Alaskan Malemute.  Lots of dogs in our family and my son also has 3 cats...one is almost 16 years old. 

Gotta go!  The boinger went off and that means the wait time for the doggies pill is over and they can have breakfast.  Have a good day.

[angelface555]

MarsGal, I'm so glad Lucy's feeling better. Also, I have never heard of a cat having a nosebleed. So I Googled and found this. I'm not saying it's what Oscar had but I like to be aware, especially with Farrah being older. I hope Oscar is fine now.

"It is commonly referred to as a "nosebleed." Epistaxis in cats can be extremely unsettling for the pet owner. Most acute or sudden nosebleeds are caused by simple trauma or by upper respiratory tract infections. Other causes of epistaxis in cats can be more serious and require immediate treatment."

Farrah has periodontal disease and will be going in for a dental exam while asleep. I hope it's a simple procedure with no ill effects. Since she will not eat anything but dry kibble, this is a concern.

[angelface555]

Parrot pals playing basketball;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5-ktRd3kGo&utm_source=CNN+Five+Things&utm_campaign=fdb89947f7-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_01_06_11_12&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6da287d761-fdb89947f7-87090417

[MarsGal]

I am not having any luck posting today. Well, try number 3.

Patricia, Oscar has a sinus problem that was ongoing when I rescued him from the animal shelter. He got a big swelling over his left eye that never completely subsided. The Vet thinks it is a cyst, but at the time didn't want to try and aspirate it. The alternative is to take him to a vet who has an MRI. There is one upriver. Even farther away is an animal clinic that has specialists that do nasal surgery. I can't afford that kind of expense so we just keep an eye on it. He gets a nosebleed maybe two times a year. I can always expect at least one in the winter when the air is dry or when he sneezes too hard.This one cleared up rather quickly.

I think there is a cat colony growing below me. Behind the bar there is a backyard sized thicket of scrub trees and weeds and a couple of very old wood sheds that they may use for shelter. I counted five the other day. They all look well fed. A big ginger, two blonds (but not with hair as long as Shan's), a black, and a mottled dark grey and tan. I haven't seen any of Shan's long-haired brothers since last spring. If the big ginger is his Mum, she sure got big.

Lucy continues to improve. Her ear does not look red anymore and she is more active. She gives me no problems when I give her the ear drops.


I love the parrots playing basketball. My next door neighbor has two parrots. Her husband has a lot of allergies, but none to birds, hence the parrots. Last summer when I was out on that side of the house, I kept hearing a knocking, but didn't see anything. It finally dawned on me that one of the parrots saw me and was knocking on the window to get my attention.

Jane, that is quite a dog family. I can't think of anyone in my family with dogs. George has a Saint Bernard before I met him. After years without any pets and claiming he was a dog person, he switched to cats. Go, figure. One of my niece's is fond of rabbits, and has had several, but not at the moment.

[RAMMEL]

Enjoy -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eStXV_TYFFw

[angelface555]

I know what you mean. Farrah's dental surgery if all goes well, will be $485.00. Any complications and I'll be robbing Peter to pay Paul. I had a cat, large polydactyl ginger Tom, I named him Thomas, (because well that was so him); who was very allergic to ear mites and both ears had plum sized cysts back in 2010

Luckily I was able to make payments because he had surgery to drain the cysts, medication, tubes in his ears and of course the cone. There were three vet visits besides the surgery and there was no way I could have handled that bill. It took me 15 months to pay.

As it is, I need to look into pet insurance. As a permanent foster, Pet Pride will pay for any large bills, (Large to their opinion); but all other costs are mine.

Thanks for explaining about Oscar. Since I've had sinus issues my entire life, I sympathize with him. And I'm glad that Lucy's rebounding. With our winters' 20 to forty below temperatures, plus many predators, we don't have feral cat colonies for very long.

A friend of mine has a five by five-foot aviary in her living room between a large window and a picture window. She has several multicolored parakeets and while lovely to watch, it must be horrible to clean! If you've ever had parakeets then you understand why fanciers call them the "Hell's Angels" of birds.

Thank you, Rick! I watched the original video and then the one a year later and was happy to see they were doing well.

[Marilyne]

MarsGal - Glad that both Lucy and Oscar continue to improve.  Oscar's problem does sound like a cyst, but I can imagine how expensive it would be to have something like that taken care of.  You most likely don't have Pet Health Insurance?  We never had it over the years, with any of our dogs and cats.  It's outrageously expensive here, and never seemed worth the price to me.  Whenever my pets got sick or had a problem, I took them to the vet and had it taken care of promptly, and fortunately, that worked well for us. I didn't feel like insurance would be worth the cost, considering how seldom we went to the vet.

I never realized that rabbits were such a popular pets, until I spent a lot of time at the Rainbow Bridge Grief Support Center.  Last year after Winnie died, I found this site, and spent lots of time posting there, writing about my own feelings of sadness, and responding to other people who were grieving the loss of a pet. The message board consists overwhelmingly of dog and cat owners, but it was surprising to me how many people posted there about the loss of their pet bunnies.  I didn't know that bunnies had such sweet and loving personalities and that they could have the freedom to hop around the house, and would sit beside you to be petted and cuddled. People also mourn the loss of pet birds - especially parrots, because they live such a long life, and have such unique personalities. 

I made some very nice friends on the site, and I'm still in contact with a couple of them.  I now go into the forum about once a week or so, to  help support  people who have just lost a pet.  It is so helpful to have someone respond to your message of grief, who understands how you're suffering.

Those of you who have pets, will be grateful for this site, when the time comes.
https://www.rainbowsbridge.com/Grief_Support_Center/Grief_Support_Home.htm

[angelface555]

Today's Critter Room report by FDJ;

"Peach continues to enjoy being petted so the belly flop the other day wasn't a fluke. She's not totally sold on it yet though and currently only allows pets from the neck down but it's huge progress from just last weekend. If I pet her while she's walking around, she'll stand tall showing off her long legs instead of hunkering down. She flopped for me this morning and had an "OMG, why'd I do that" reaction so she's working though learned behaviors.

Meringue & Apple are socialized. They have been joining Huckleberry & Rhubarb & Mom rushing the door when I come in and not shying away from me petting them though they don't like sudden noises or unexpected movements.

They all have an instinct to basically shut down in stressful or scary situations so you should go slow and let them adjust at their own pace if you adopt but they all are showing a sweet & playful side and it is my belief that they all will be cuddle bugs and lovers of belly rubs.