A Good Report Card

So, Skootch got a good report card. His thyroid, kidney and liver levels are great! He's anemic, but not alarmingly so. He has the same heart murmur he has always had.I have actually been coaxing him out for playtime with the youngsters, and THAT is nice.

Back from the V-E-T

So, we are home from the vet and awaiting blood test results. Dr. Jeff poked and prodded and checked out mouth and ears and didn't seem too concerned, but we did a blood + urine test to see if anything is going on. Skootch was a very good kitty. When we got home he was very hungry, so I gave him some extra treats. The kids took one whiff of him and jumped back in disgust. 

Concerns

I am concerned about Skootch. I'm pretty sure he has renal problems - the pee levels in the litter boxes indicate this - and he's been trying to yak up something to no avail. Yesterday his yak was pink, which alarmed me, so we are going to the vet first thing Monday morning (tomorrow). Also, Louie has been snuggling with him all day on the bed, which is very unusual (usually Louie is more likely to pick on him!). Skootch is an elder cat, and has always been somewhat frail. We would appreciate some extra purrs.
Thanks.

I went away ...

I went away on a fairly long vacation. I didn't want to leave the kitties alone all that time, so I had a house sitter stay with them while I was gone. I missed them terribly. As soon as I got home and came in the front door, I called for them. The first cat to appear was Louie. He sat at the top of the stairs and talked and talked and told me what happened. He had a LOT to say!

Fur Mats!!

Skootch got fur mats last summer, and we had a terrible time at the groomer. He had an open wound that required stitches. So this year, I decided to take him straight to the vet, incase there were any complications.

Mom's Funk

We've been putting up with Mom's funk for almost a month now. She's got all sorts of lame excuses. Her knee is a mess, she lost her Cattywumpus notebook that she uses for posts and rhyming, blah, blah, blah. The upshot is that she hasn't been posting! Not our fault! We have given her LOTS of material lately. We are on strike!

Thought for the Day

... and when I don't play with them, they follow me around and do bad things, just to get my attention.

I must apologize for my absence these past couple of weeks - I've had a lot going on. I actually wrote five different entries for the blog, but didn't have time to sit down and draw and calligraph and scan and post.

Lickety Lick

Louie really does keep his flanks at an immaculate high gloss.

The Dinner Time FLOP

This is his routine: first, he struts in front of my computer screen, smearing his furs all over it. Then he flops down and pushes everything he can reach off of the desk. Of course, he knows I can't resist the tummy. It works every time.

Exciting News!!

Well, well, well! We are honored to have been nominated as finalists for TWO Nose-to-Nose awards at the BlogPaws 2014 Petblogging Conference! Yippee skippee! Very exciting! Mom will be there! Representing US!!! She is so excited she forgot to rhyme. We are up against some very worthy nominees, some of whom are friends, so we are doubly honored.

Siren Song

Wilbur is always ready for MY breakfast time. He finds my vitamins irresistible.

Successful surgery!

Big day today. Skootch went for his dental surgery first thing this morning. I got a call midday from Dr. Jeff, telling me that there were no extractions, just lots of scraping and cleaning. Skootchie came through the anesthesia all right. I was so relieved. You just never know. And to top it all off, Dr. Jeff drove Skootch home and delivered him to my door (he lives nearby)! This was a relief, too, because we had a miserable snowstorm today, and the vet is half an hour away from home on a good day - if there's a snowstorm during rush hour it takes HOURS. So Skootch gobbled down his dinner and wanted more. I told him to wait, just to be sure he keeps it down. PHEW.

Dear Friends
Last year I attended the BlogPaws Conference for pet bloggers. I had a wonderful time and met many fellow bloggers and just enjoyed being one of many "crazy cat ladies". I'll be attending again this year. I had the temerity to nominate myself for best cat blog, best humor blog, and best blog post for this year's Nose to Nose BlogPaws Awards. I know there are some formidable entries for those categories this year, but I would totally appreciate nominations from any of you out there who feel so inclined. If you would like to vote, please click here.
Thanks again!

Skootch hasn't totally adjusted to the youngsters. Wilbur (especially) and Louie pick on him. He has always been the low guy on the totem pole, and I feel badly that this has come to pass in his elder years.

Poor Skootch. I've noticed his bad breath for a while. It's WAY worse than regular stinky cat breath. He had one tooth removed a couple of years ago. I took him to the vet a few weeks ago, and he definitely has tooth problems - we won't know how extensive until he's under anesthesia. And speaking of that, we had blood work done, plus an ultrasound (he has a heart murmur), to make sure he could tolerate anesthesia. THEN we had to wait for a couple of weeks, waiting for a surgery slot to open up. I am feeling anxious - he is 16 - plus he's having trouble chewing. I wish we could have had this done sooner. I feel guilty because I had to delay dealing with this on account of my rush job. He may lose teeth.

she's BAAAAACK!!

As I wait to hear back from my client, I just had to post this. The pretty tabby has been absent for months. Suddenly this morning, as I sipped my coffee, Wilbur and Louie started tearing from window to window, tracking something. The ONLY time Wilbur acted like this was when the tabby was around. And, sure enough, there she was, lurking around the deck. I was delighted, but Wilbur most certainly was NOT!!

Busy Mom

Mom got a VERY IMPORTANT BIG RUSH JOB in the middle of last week, so she told us she couldn't do a proper post this time. She may be tied up all next week too. But she DID manage to upload a few more photos on the "cats page". So you can see us as youngsters.

the cats

Against my better judgement, I have inserted a second page with photos of the cats. My camera skills are not great, but a number of people have expressed curiosity about the kittehs. So here they are - click on the link at the top right of this page. I may take it down, because I wanted this to be strictly an illustrated blog.

Louie snores. It's the cutest thing. Often when I'm working I hear this little rhythmical snorty squeaky sound, and it's him. Sometimes he snores sitting up, just as he's nodding off. It's a very cosy, comforting sound.

Well, the kitties had some tough love for me. I haven't been posting on a regular basis, and they're pretty fed up. They were afraid they might lose their fan base. So I PROMISED to do better. It's a new year. I don't normally do resolutions, but in this case, I am setting my intention.