Bob, the ladies man

Bob is thirteen years old this year.  He's a stunner, part pedigree something. 

He arrived in a cardboard box with his brother Bill, back in 1997, unwanted because they were not pure pedigree!!  Sadly Bill got killed on the road at just three years old.  

Bob is in great shape, and has been a fantastic help to me over the years.  He loves other cats and practically every cat I've rescued who's come to live here while waiting for a home, Bob has taken under his wing, washed and groomed and put a paw around them to assure them all is ok. 

He's a ladys man also, and had his own harem when Katie and Kim were alive but now they're gone, Flora has stepped in and herself and Bob can often be found curled up together having a nap. He's a dote.

Taming going nicely

Having a lovely time taming a young gorgeous black and white female cat I rescued with three others late last year.  Recently she's taken to popping into the igloo bed and sniffing my outstretched finger, then last week she allowed me to pet her on the head which is a breakthrough, though she hissed at me all the while!  Of course I pushed it and began scratching her ear and she decided to put one of her front paws into action.  Up it came and I thought I'm going to get a nasty scratch here, but she just brought it down gently on my hand as if to say: 'That's a warning."  It was so cute.  So now we have a routine. At feeding time, she sniffs my finger and I pet her head and sometimes down her back and her paw touches my hand when she's had enough.  But we're progressing nicely and I look forward to our few minutes together twice a day. And I'm looking forward to the day when I can give her a belly rub and lift her up and give her a big cuddle.  I really enjoy taming cats, it's so satisfying.  Changing them from a hissing, spitting, snarling bundle of fur to a cat who will accept pets, maybe have a tummy rub, maybe purr is the best feeling.  Because it means they have a chance of a home where they can be part of the family, live in a house, sleep on a bed, be a pet for the children, get nice food treats, receive vet care when needed.   The kind of home they all deserve.

Cutest kitten video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bmhjf0rKe8

This must be the cutest kitten video ever, love it, guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Enjoy!

Lady sports a new look

Longhaired Lady returned home on Tuesday after going into the vet on Monday for a makeover (groom).  She was sporting a look that I don't think will catch on in the feline world.  All the hair around her neck is shaved as it was very matted, but apart from that there were surprisingly few other matts, she's keeping herself in good order.  She also got a good brush and a worm/flea treatment, all under sedative as there was no way she could be handled.  So she should be fine for another while.  

I don't think she's too grateful, as since I released her Tuesday afternoon, there hasn't been a sign of her since!  

Chicken crisps for the cats

One of my favourite dinners is chicken thigh supper ( http://www.thegoodmoodfoodblog.com/2009/11/chicken-thigh-supper.html ) and the cats love it too because I remove the skins from the chicken thighs before cooking, roast them in the oven til firm and crispy, wait til cool, cut up and then serve to an appreciative audience! I call them chicken crisps. 

Daphne is free again

Daphne, who had a large abscess on her face, is all well again and free from the dogpen, she's a happier cat.  The anti-biotics did a great job, all swelling gone and both her cheeks look the same size now.  It was a blessing in disguise because we became great friends while she was in the pen. For some reason when she had free rein, she'd run in the opposite direction when I approached her but in the pen she had no choice and decided the TLC was quite nice and enjoyable! In fact, even though she's no longer confined in the pen, she now freely chooses to go in herself most evenings at feeding time where she just so happens to get more TLC!  Clever girl!  She'd be a lovely pet for someone and I'm going to find her that someone special.

I'm worried about Tramp

I'm a bit worried about Tramp.  She's not inclined to eat the last couple of days but happy to drink milk morning, noon and night.  So in consultation with the vet, she is now on Metacam, a liquid painkiller for cats.  Hasn't had much affect so this evening I mixed some tinned tuna into the catfood and she ate it! Which is interesting because I assumed she wasn't eating because it was too painful after the operation she had to remove a tumour from under her tongue.  

Still, she's not doing as well as I would expect a week after the operation.  She seems to be in good form and goes outside to the bathroom and potters around if it's sunny and not too cold. But she needs to eat more.  I tried syringe feeding her this evening and she wasn't too impressed with that.  I guess all we can do is wait and see and hope for the best. 

Stevie showing signs of improvement

Stevie, who has auto immune disease which affects his skin, is showing signs of improvement from taking maritime pine bark (pycnogenol).  Certainly his eyes are much improved, still not perfect but a lot better.  His next steroid top up is due the first week in March so it will be interesting to see how his skin is at that point.  He's been on the maritime pine bark about a month now and it can take natural remedies a while to kick in and begin to work but I'm delighted with the results so far.

Lady is getting a make over

Lady, the elusive longhaired feral who I only see on rare occasions, is tonight in a dog pen awaiting a trip to the vet for a makeover.  She is a magnificent cat, but her coat is long overdue a brush.  I'm hoping they will sedate her and cut off the matts, give her a good brush, treat her for worms and give her a health check to make sure she is doing ok.  She seems to be fine, eyes are clear, she's a good weight, no sniffles or sounds of a chesty chest.  

I've been thinking about doing this for months and waiting for an opportunity to present itself and when I went into the blue shed this evening, there she was and up into the loft with her so I closed off the catflap, grabbed a cat carrier and, without any difficulty at all really which surprised me, herded her into it and then put her in the dogpen. There was no hissing, no spitting, she remained very calm.  So I'm thrilled.

Let's hope all goes according to plan at the vets.  

Inappropriate elimination in cats

Last November a lady phoned me about her cat, JJ.  He was causing major problems in the house, piddling and poohing on the floor, in the bathtub, scratching the doors, etc.  She was at her wits end and wanted him rehomed.  I asked her had she any idea why he was doing this and she didn't. She mentioned they had a dog, and I asked did the two get on alright and she said they were the best of friends.  So I agreed to take JJ and arranged to meet them at the vets where JJ was to be vaccinated.

A big black neutered cat, he was in good health except for a bowel infection which would quickly be fixed with a course of anti-biotics.  Having met the owner I could see she was extremely fond of him and found it hard to give him up but his behaviour was unacceptable.  

I kept him in a dog pen for the first few days to see if he would actually use a litter tray and he did, from the get go.  He was very well behaved, so I let him out and no problem, he continued using the litter tray.  So this was not a physical problem, it was psychological. But what was causing it?  After a week, the owner decided to give JJ another chance and off he went back home.  They had fitted a catflap to allow him come and go as he pleased and hoped that would make a difference.  All was fine for a couple of weeks and then a wee on the floor, it was the last straw. As it was before Christmas, I suggested we wait til the New Year before looking for a home for him. During that time, he behaved impeccably and they decided to keep him.

The owner phoned last week to give me an update.  All is going well with JJ. She has been keeping an eye on him and the dog and has noticed that the dog has a habit, as dogs do, of pushing JJ away from his food and eating it!  So now they've put JJ's food dish on a shelf so the dog can't reach it.  She also noticed that when she's in bed, the dog tends to lie on the bed and push JJ off, so the other day, she lifted JJ up on the bed and the dog had to make do with the floor.  So it appears that JJ was feeling put upon by the dog and causing him to "act up".  By making small adjustments JJ is a happier cat and the owner gets to keep him, a happy ending!

Cats who eliminate outside the litter box have either a physical or psychological problem and are trying to tell you. First thing to do is bring the cat to a vet for a thorough check up to ensure there is nothing physically wrong. If not, look up the internet, google "inappropriate elimination cats psychological" and go from there. 

Finding lost cats

http://www.catsinthebag.org/

A man phoned this morning to report his cat missing.  By the time I returned his call, the cat had been found in a neighbours shed.  It had been locked in since Monday but was none the worse for wear. He had asked the neighbour to look around the garden but later thought of the shed. Just as well!  It's always a good idea to ask people to check any locked buildings as it's so easy for cats to be locked in without anyone realising.

The above website has a lot of fantastic advice for people who have lost a cat. The basics are always the same.  Start searching immediately.  Alert neighbours and ask them to check all buildings on their property (in case the cat is locked in).  Put up flyers with a photo of the cat in all the vets clinics in your area as well as pet shops, supermarkets, community centres, etc.  Leave word with all the rescues in your area in case someone brings the cat in. Contact local and community radio and newspapers. 

Ask the children in your neighbourhood to keep a look out, they will often notice an animal quicker than an adult.  Inform them there's a reward for however finds the cat.

The website below has good info on how NOT to lose your cat!

http://www.catsaid.org/information_leaflets/Images/How_not_to_lose_leaflet_for_website_ 04.09.pdf

Tramp is home

Tramp is home and is in good form.  She's doing some serious drooling from the mouth but it's to be expected I guess!  She's on anti-biotics as her mouth is inflamed but is eating ok, not as much as I'd like, but I imagine her tongue is still sore after the operation.  I'm feeding her Royal Canin recovery food as it's very soft and very tasty and also lactose free milk which is going down a treat. Most cats can't tolerate lactose in cows milk and can suffer terrible diarrhoea but hurray for lactose free milk now available for humans (some humans have the same problem) in the supermarket.  Look for it beside the ordinary milk.

I had the option of having her tumour analysed but as the vet said time will tell and the €60 can be spent elsewhere.  Either it will return or it won't.  Fingers crossed it's the latter as Tramp is only about five/six years old. For the moment she's being spoilt which she deserves.

  

Tramp has a tumour on her tongue

Well, poor Tramp.  She moved into the utility room during the cold weather spell at Christmas/New Year and I noticed she's been loosing weight.  So took her to the vet on Saturday and it turns out she has a large tumour under her tongue, which would explain the weight loss. I decided it would be a good idea to test her for FIV and FeLV also and she is negative for both, thank goodness. The tumour has been removed and hopefully she will make a complete recovery. She may be able to come home tomorrow.  Poor pet.

13 production lines closed down!

The trapping/neutering/returning went very well this week with 13 cats spayed/neutered.  Five (3 girls and 2 boys) earlier in the week (the sixth cat at that house unfortunately didn't get trapped even though I left the trap with the people for two full days, it was disappointing, I just hope it's a male) and 8 (4 boys and 4 girls) at the housing estate. There is still an adult and two kittens to be done at the housing estate but we are going to wait til the kittens are a bit bigger. It's good to know these 13 cats will be producing zero kittens this coming summer.

All the cats were in good health except for one of the males in the housing estate whose kidneys are failing.  He also has an eye infection which is being treated with anti-biotics.  The lady who feeds him was very open and willing to have him in a dogpen in her kitchen for the week he needs the anti-biotics but what happens after that?  He really needs to be in a home where someone can keep an eye on him and bring him to a vet if he needs help with his kidneys. Releasing him back into the estate again is not the best option but it may be the only option. The chances of someone offering him a home with his condition is, let's face it, slim to nil. He is a gorgeous white cat.  I've no idea if he is anyways tame, the lady will be able to tell me more after the week in her kitchen.

So keeping fingers crossed for a miracle for him.

Caught four cats today

This morning I was out trapping in a housing estate.  A lady is feeding 8 cats at her house and she decided it was time to call a halt on the breeding especially as spring is around the corner and the cats will begin breeding again soon. Caught 4 today including a gorgeous longhaired white cat. Apparently it was in an awful state when it arrived at her house, scrawny and dirty but with plenty of good food and worming, it has blossomed into a truly lovely cat. There are 2 young kittens which were not around today when I was there so not sure if they are old enough to be done, I'll make a decision when I see them. Hopefully we'll get the remaining 2 adults tomorrow.

I'm delighted to be trapping in this estate as I got a call last year from a man in the estate who said there were 20 cats in his garden.  I was away the day he phoned and when I returned the call the next day he said the cats had gone which was a shame as it would have been great to have trapped/neutered/returned them.  There are always people in housing estates willing to feed cats, it's just a matter of keeping the numbers down.  Otherwise when the number of cats rise and there's a lot of tom cats howling, fighting and spraying and sick, starving kittens running around, people tend to take matters into their own hands and start putting poison down or whatever.  And we don't want that!  

Prevention is always the answer.  We need to move away from the Breed, Breed, Breed and then Kill, Kill, Kill mentality.  And embrace prevention in the form of spaying/neutering.  

Bargains at the charity shop

Delighted with my bargains at the charity shops this week and the cats are too! On Monday I bought a lovely blue furry catbed for €3, usual price €15 at local pet shop so well pleased with that. Then today I got a funky almost see-through catloo with cover and a crinkle tunnel bed type thing, both for €5.50!  There was a price on the catloo of €21.  All three items are in very good condition, so delighted.  Washed all when I got home and the catloo is already in use.  I'm hoping Peaches will use the crinkle tunnel, she likes to hide in things and it would be ideal.

Other items I buy a lot of from charity shops are baby blankets and throws, they are ideal for putting in the wicker baskets (also from the charity shops!) for the cats to sleep in.  Also got a gorgeous Moses basket for €8 recently which some of the cats love to sleep in too!  With so many cats it's not possible financially to buy stuff in pet shops, so the charity shops are a godsend.

Trapping, neutering and returning.

This week is all about trap/neuter/return (TNR), probably my favourite part of rescue work. This involves me going out to where there are wild (feral) cats living, whether at a house, workplace, housing estate, etc.  I trap them using automatic traps (the cat is not hurt in any way), bring them to a vet where they are spayed/neutered, wormed, deflead and ear tipped (tip of the left ear removed).  Ear tipping is important as it identifies a cat as already spayed/neutered from a distance, which is handy when dealing with wild cats. A few years ago I arrived at a house with about 17 cats to TNR to discover 10 were eartipped! Turns out I had been to the house next door the previous year.  

There were 6 cats at the house I called to today and I trapped 4.  I've left 2 traps at the house and showed the lady how to set them up for the morning so hopefully the remaining 2 cats will be caught tomorrow.  The cats are in good shape by the looks of them.  It's an elderly lady and she's completely in favour of spaying and neutering which not all of her generation are, so that's great. Her son is grumbling about the cost but wise woman that she is, she says 6 cats is enough and she doesn't want any more this spring. I totally agree!