h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hmmm . . . I don't know what to suggest other than crushing the pill into some favourite wet food. That's what I've been doing these past couple of months with Sunny - in fact, he now knows when it's 'time for spiked paté' and will start squawking for his 'treat'. But I don't think this would work for Azar.

Is there any food that Rocket finds irresistable? Tuna, sardines? If it's just half a pill he might not notice it.

The other trick I've heard about (but have never tried) is to slather the pill in a bit of soft butter, then when you shove in the cat's mouth it just slides right down.

Anyhow, glad to hear it's just a slight infection.

And speaking of Fun Things To Do With Cats, you have reminded me that I should give the boys their monthly ear cleaning today . . .


az

ps
Last night Sunny was in cat heaven - curled up on Noggin's lap with his face almost-but-not-quite-touching the radiator. Purrrrrrr. . .

http://public.fotki.com/azahar/gatitos/happysunny.html

Eep!

An ex-boyfriend of mine, Pablo, has been calling me for the past week or so, saying it would be great if we could get together for a or a . . . last time I saw him was about three years ago.

So of course my first question to myself was . . . hmmm, I wonder what he wants?

Anyhow, this past week has been totally crazy with biz stuff and so the couple of times I was supposed to meet with Pablo I had to cancel. And so he called me again this morning. Ha! I was right! (as I so often am . . . ).

Turns out that Pablo is going to Argentina for a month and is looking for someone to look after his one-year-old gatita Pitu (photos 173 & 174).

http://public.fotki.com/azahar/gatitos/pitu_baby.html

To be honest, I wouldn't mind looking after her, it's just that I don't know how the boys would react to a new full-grown cat in the flat. I think Azar would be fine, but Sunny is being quite weird enough lately with territory issues. Though perhaps the fact that she is a gatita (and also often in heat, according to Pablo) the boys might not mind her being around at all . . .

Anyhow, not sure what to do. Pablo will make sure she has all her shots, etc and I don't *think* she'd be any trouble. But what if it doesn't work out after a week or so and he is off in Argentina for another three weeks . . .?



az

"wrap the pill in something he loves..."

Turned out not to be that bad, this morning at least. I kept trying to tilt his head back the way the vet showed me, but no go. Rocket is a great little guy, but not *that* cooperative, no matter what the vet said.

Finally, just opened his jaws with his head almost horizontal and tossed it in to the back; I think he was so startled, he just licked his lips and swallowed. As this sudden event was immediately followed by a half can of Salmon Fancy Feast (his favorite, of all time), it's a done deal -- for today. Hope he remembers the food and cooperates tomorrow.

Suspicious of gifts from the gods as I am, I still spent 10 minutes tracking his path from the scene of the crime to his dish with a flashlight, just to make sure!

Wow, cute picture of the two boys, there! My first cat Poubelle, (long story), used to lay in front of my heater until her fur was so hot, I couldn't touch her! What IS it with cats and heaters?

As for Pitu, I hope things work out. Do you have a friend who's also cat-friendly who could take Pitu if the territorial incidents escalate? If you told Pablo that you had a plan like that, you've covered all bases. Or, if the flat next door is empty at the moment...just in case. She's a beautiful girl, and hopefully nowhere near her frou-frou time...

SC

My tried and true method is to take a small piece of bread, knead it until it is again a dough, make a dent in it, embed the pill in it, roll it all up into a ball, wet it, and follow your usual procedure for depositing the pill into the cat, clamp jaws shut and stroke the cat's throat until the pill goes down...

Four lovely photos of novo's Grommitt, otherwise known as The Boss. (175-178)

http://public.fotki.com/azahar/gatitos/novos_cat_the_boss.html





az

I hesitated to post this earlier.... However, it has been nagging at me for nearly two weeks and I needed to share it....

I have mentioned Benjamin's "nemisis", Pippin, on a number of occasions. Pippin came in all the time (or, rather, barged in) to eat catnip. Benjamin was never very pleased about this and I invariably had to give Pippin the bum's rush when he decided to pick a fight with Benjamin.

Mom and I were remarking on the fact that Pippin hadn't been around in something like a wekk. That wasn't entirely unusual. Sometimes we just didn't see him but wouldsee his paw-prints. We hadn't een seen those.

I ran into Pippin's "Daddy" the other day and commented that we hadn't seen Pippin....

He looked uncomfortable and then told me "Yes.... Well. We had to have him put to sleep...."

It turns out that someone either kicked Pippin or he was hit by a car. We think the former, rather than the latter, since the speed-limit is very low in our co-op, the roads are too windy to go any speed at all, anyway, and he never wandered off the co-op onto the major streets.

He was kicked so hard that his liver was completely outside his abdominal cavity.

I am so angry! Pippin was the sweetest cat... He only came into our house and his own. Just wanted to be petted while out in the neighbourhood.

I decided to find a copy of "Cat Heaven" for the family, after I had a dream where I looked out my patio door and saw Pippin looking in....

Pippin, doing what Pippin did best: http://public.fotki.com/Mudhooks/family_friends_pets/benjamins_nemesis/

Lovely photos of Pippin, Mudhooks. Wow - what big paws!

It's sickening what some people do to animals. I mean, look at Azar. Someone tried to kill him and *only* succeeded in half-ripping his front leg off.

for Pippin.


az

I cannot comprehend the lack of humanity in such cases.

I have just looked at the photos Mudhooks....Pippin was so beautiful. How could anybody hurt such a wonderful creature? I hope their death when it comes is a slow painful one. It is no more than they deserve.

RIP sweetheart.

How could anyone hurt such a lovable little goof???

Even if someone hates cats/animals, the idea that they could go to such forceful lengths to harm something which does no harm to them is incomprehensible.

I hope Pippin has all the catnip he wants to roll in, in Cat Heaven.

SC

Pippin's photos kind of remind me of Herman.

What a horrible thing for someone to do. RIP, Pippin.

Thanks, folks...

Morning all,

Az invited me to join this thread with an entry in My Space.

I thought I 'd start by saying that we are aware that Grommitt is misnamed ( from the film animations of Wallace and Grommitt ) because Grommitt is a dog!

However he was misnamed by my partner Julia's daughter when he was found living under our fir trees ,a pitifully thin stray and about 6 months old. Unknown to J and I, Gemma (J's daughter now married and gone ) was enticing him into the kitchen with tinned Tuna ,......it didn't take him long to decide to stay!

He's been with us for 9 years now, and naturally thinks the entire place is run for his benefit. He makes a beeline for anyone who visits, and cuddles up alongside fora tickle... a habit picked up from my mum's 'spoiling' of him during a 2 week visit she made 3 years back.

My own daughter lives 2 doors away and has her own black female called Trinnie, who has been visiting us this weekend for 'sleep-overs' because they are redecorating 'her place' , and it is more peaceful with us!

Novo

Nice to have you with us, novo!

I didn't realise that Grommit was a version of a 'rescue cat', though it seems he was totally in charge of his own 'rescue'. Making himself a part of the family before any of you even realised what what happening.

Cats, eh?

Noggin and I often accuse Azar of taking 'cute lessons' and then using them against us. I swear that cat does *CUTE* more than any other cat I've ever known in my life (and I've known more than a few . . .).

But we can't help but totally melt everytime he goes all CUTE on us . . .


az

I know what you mean about the cute lessons az! Charlie seems to have been taking them recently - perhaps in a bid to "out-cute" Tasha!

He lies on his back in the middle of the floor with his paws curled up and chirrups at us to make us look - then when we do look he yawn-miaows and stretches to the world's longest cat before pulling himself along the carpet using his front claws to get to one of us for a cuddle!

Tasha was born cute. She'll never lose it.

Oh gawd . . . the yawn-mieows! Don't those just slay you? And the curled up paws! And stretching and flopping this way and that . . .

Sunny (being a 'dog') is very adorable and sweet. But Azar (pure ) does CUTE without even trying. Even when he's just asleep sometimes I go all to pieces thinking - 'oh man, he's just so cute when he does that!' - even though he's not actually doing anything. Goodness but I love my cats!


az

I just love Benjamin's little pink toes, especially when he stretches and sperads his toes all out...

He likes to sleep for part of the day on his "tree" in the living room, up on one of he shelves, all curled up with his feet all tumbled about in one spot. All thoes kitty toes all in one place. I cannot resist it.

I don't get to smell them very often but I love the smell of his feet. It sounds weird, but cats have scent glands on their feet and so their feet smell have their own distinctive smell.

I had a friend who once said that she liked the scent of her cat's pee... I thought... "Okay, whatever turns your crank" (I may even have said it). We happened to have this metallic ink which, as it ages goes very definitely "cat pee-ish" so I said "Well, if you like that, you'll LOVE this, opened a jar and she took a big sniff....

Apparently I had misheard her and what she actually said was "I like the smell of my cat's FEET"!

She was not pleased about smelling the ink.... especially, since the odor hangs in the air for hours after the jar is opened, if only for a second.

Hi Novo, welcome to the Sacred Order of Servants of the Holy Fuzzballs...

Hmmmm, that cute thing. The other morning as I lay in bed (trying to sleep for just a few more minutes before feeding my masters), I tried to put my finger on what it is about the little devils that *makes* them so darn cute.

I think one aspect is the wide-eyed, wide-pupiled look that Rocket gives me. We are hard-wired to respond to creatures which have large eyes in proportion to their faces, such as babies of our species and others (as has been mentioned elsewhere, if we weren't born to react to babies, the species would've died out long ago, considering how unpleasant babies can be at times). When a cat dilates their pupils like that, I think it triggers human maternal/nuturing/protective circuits. The flexing/stretching/pawing behaviour could do a decent stand-in for babies at play, which also relates to nurturing instincts.

Not to mention that it explains how Bill Keane sold so many of those huge-eyed kid/kitten/puppy/guppy/whatever paintings of his...

SC

Morning all cat people,

I know what you mean Space Cadette, "The Boss" has taken to sitting near me frequently during the afternoon, ( I work mornings ) and looking at me intently for ages , with large black pupils. I get the impression he is trying to communicate something, and it is uncanny that sometimes I 'know' what it is!, and it isn't necessarily food - sometimes I have been 'aware' that he is communicating that there is something odd going on outside. If I get up from the chair he will 'lead' me to an appropriate window..... wierd or not?

He has just started a new habit. If I am at the keyboard, he will sit near to my right shoulder, and if am too intent on what I am doing, a left foreleg is placed gently on my shoulder - and left there until I tickle his ears.....

I only wish he was bright enough to know that when the alarm doesn't go off at weekends I don't want to be woken by him sitting on my pillow and patting my nose!

Novo

Benjamin does that same sort of thing.

When I am in bed, he comes and stands on me. If I don't pay attention to him... scratch his head, pet him... he reaches out and, with two claws, gently touched my shoulder or arm. He sort of pulls my hand to him to pet hi,.

Chum-Chum, out beloved cat when I was a teen, used to sit on the edge of the chest-freezer which was behind my father's chair in the dining room. Dad would be sitting there and reading or doing homework and Chum-Chum would reach across and gently "tick-tick" his shoulder with two claws until he petted her. She also did that at dinner-time when she wanted a little scrap from his plate.

I was just telling PC on another thread how last night I couldn't sleep and at 1am found Azar lying on my pillow.

He then leaned over and licked me on the lips!

And just when I was recovering from that he totally sneezed in my face.

I mean, honestly.

Azar is truly a licky-monster, he gets quite compulsive about it. But it's the first time he's ever got me on the lips. Tried not to think of where he'd been licking previously . . .


az