Saturday, May 19, 2007 , terribly early in the morning

You’d think the recalls would be finished by now… but no

I thought I should post about the latest “large” recall of dry pet foods manufactured by Chenango Valley.  The big brands on the list are Drs. Foster & Smith, 8-in-1 Ferret (is this the first non-dog or cat food to be recalled?), and Evolve Kitten.  You can see the entire list here:  Chenango Valley Pet Foods press release.  The foods are being recalled because of the possibility of cross-contamination, not because they themselves contain any recalled ingredients.  I especially wanted to mention this because I know Evolve is a popular brand with our friends in Singapore, but I don’t know if the food they buy is manufactured in the US.  Something to watch out for, anyway.

On the subject of cross-contamination, I had a dog biscuit “incident” recently which made me laugh (because crying took too much energy).  I bought a one pound, $4 bag of “VitaLife All Natural Dog Biscuits” in chicken and barley flavour.  The biscuits only have nine, nice-sounding ingredients, and no preservatives or artificial colours.  I opened the bag to dump it into the “cookie jar”, and out came a bunch of chicken and barley biscuits, plus one stowaway.  Here’s a photo (click to see a larger version):

bad_cookie

The boring brown biscuit on the left is what is supposed to be in the bag.  That glowing green biscuit on the right, the faux-Milkbone, is a “cheapest of the cheap” generic dog biscuit, the kind which are sold ten pounds for five dollars.  This tells me something.  It tells me that expensive VitaLife biscuits, which are supposedly “Made with Love.  Naturally.” are actually “Made at the same time as cheap stuff.  Naturally.” At the very least, the equipment used to make my nine-ingredient premium biscuits is also touching the non-premium biscuits.  In this instance, I don’t necessarily care, but what if I had a dog with severe food allergies to something in the stowaway biscuit?  Given the current ripple running through the pet food industry because of cross-contamination issues, this just wasn’t a good time for this sort of screw up to happen.  The company name on the biscuits is Normerica (Product of Canada).  Their website says they own five manufacturing plants in Canada, the US, and China, so I’m not sure where these biscuits would have been made.  The way the pet food industry works, they could have been made in China but listed as “Product of Canada” because a Canadian company owns the plant.  The company supplies a lot of something to Kroger, because they link to a “Best Supplier” award they received from the grocery store chain.

I thought it was an interesting story, especially because it was an extreme contrast between “high end” and “low end”.  The VitaLife biscuits certainly aren’t the “highest of the high-end”, but they definitely cost a lot more than their little green buddies.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/19 at 04:27 AM
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Friday, May 18, 2007 , the wee hours

Adventures in animal rescue

Last autumn I registered a nonprofit animal sanctuary with the state of Nevada.  I was caring for an increasing number of foster kittens, and if nothing else, having a nonprofit would allow me to buy supplies at a discount.  My intention was to eventually register with the federal government, be a 501(c)3 corporation, and then I’d be allowed to donate to the charity myself, and deduct my fostering costs completely.  I haven’t done the federal application yet, but just being registered with the state has garnered me some good discounts on pet supplies, a Petfinder account, and even four donations.  That’s all great, except I didn’t realize how much attention the Petfinder account would bring to me.  I’m now running a part-time animal rescue business, if only on paper, because I spend hours each week answering emails and phone calls, trying to convince people to not give up their pets.  When the situation is desperate, I then spend more hours trying to help the caller place their pet somewhere, usually by listing it under my Petfinder account while they continue to “foster” it. 

The phone calls and emails involve a lot of behavioural counselling when folks are honest—I dealt with a woman who had three female cats who sprayed, but who really didn’t want to give them up.  I gave her some suggestions and haven’t heard from her, so I hope that’s a good thing.  Other people aren’t so honest, and it still ends up coming down to a behavioural problem.  One woman wrote a sad email about how she didn’t have time for her beloved cat, who was home alone all day, bored and lonely.  When I suggested the woman get her cat a companion, or just some toys, the woman blurted out that she had a second cat, but the second cat was nice and liked to be petted, while the cat she wanted to get rid of was surly.  Uh-huh.  She eventually broke off contact with me, but I’ve no doubt she was planning to dump the grumpy cat off on someone and then get herself a cute new kitten.  Cuz yeah, the world has a huge demand for middle-aged, surly cats—they always find new homes instantly.  I recently had another sad story from someone who claimed to be disabled and who could no longer afford to care for her cat, which may or may not be true, but it was eventually revealed that the cat she wants to get rid of isn’t neutered, and sprays in the house.  That cat will be another prize at an animal shelter.  I offered to put a Petfinder listing up for the woman with the surly cat, but I said I would have to describe the cat as potentially having a difficult temperament, and that was where the discussion ended.  I wasn’t going to lie to to a potential adopter.  The same with the woman with the unneutered, spraying cat—I’m offering to help her get the cat fixed, but I’m not immediately listing it for adoption.  Neutering may or may not fix the spraying problem, and who wants to adopt a cat with that issue?  I’ll work with the current owner to help remedy the problem, if possible, but I’m not going to be a party to passing the problem along to someone else.

One situation which nagged at me all this week was the case of a paralyzed kitten (it had no use of its legs).  The person who had it didn’t want it, and the vet didn’t know if it would regain use of its legs as it got older, but thought there was a chance.  I really wanted to take that kitten in to try working with it with physical therapy, massage, etc., and yesterday I was told that the kitten had a seizure and died.  Just like that.  It was a load off my mind, but it was still sad.

What surprises me most is how incessant the calls are, even though I don’t do any advertising.  This week I’ve had two phone calls, one to place a cat and one to place a kitten.  Last month I had a guy leave a phone message saying, “I need to get rid of two dogs… where do I bring them?” I didn’t return his call.  I had someone call me and ask if I had room for a Bloodhound, despite the fact my Petfinder page says I can’t take in dogs.  It also says, No phone calls, but some people just love the phone. 

My current “big case” is a sad one.  A family has to get rid of two cats (brothers) because the young daughter in the family has developed severe asthma.  I truly believe this family has tried everything to enable them to keep the cats, and they just can’t afford to keep running the cats to the vet (to give their daughter a break), and/or the daughter to the doctor.  The cats are friendly and young and handsome and good with kids and dogs, but to complicate matters, one of the cats is blind.  So, I want to make sure the cats are adopted together, as I’m sure they have a special relationship.  I’ve had one hit on my Petfinder site—someone who was terribly enthused about the cats until she found out the case was “urgent”, and then it turned out she was “just looking” to adopt some time down the road.  Now Best Friends is going to send out an alert to their newsletter subscribers in the Las Vegas area, and maybe we’ll get a hit.  The family would like me to take the cats in and foster them until they’re adopted, but I’m very afraid of the delicate “male cat testosterone balance” in our house right now.  We’ve got six male cats under one roof right now, and only one of them sprays, and he sprays in the litterbox.  I can’t get much luckier than that, and I don’t want to tempt fate by inviting more boys to stay with us.  I couldn’t afford it, either… good cat food is very expensive, and two more mouths to feed, even for a short period of time, is too many.

So, cross your fingers that some kind soul will fall in love with Greg and Spiderman (no, really!) and want to adopt them.  I think they’re great cats.  And cross your fingers that we figure out what to do about Bunny and Carlo.  Bunny could be adopted now, but Carlo can’t go anywhere until we figure out what’s wrong with him, and I don’t want to separate them yet.  The vet says to wait four more weeks until blood work can be done on Carlo.  If his liver seems fine, and he’s just “runty”, I may have someone who wants to adopt him and his sister.  If he has a liver problem, no one is jumping at the bit to adopt a fragile kitten who will need expensive surgery within a year.  For a number of reasons, this may be the end of my kitten fostering for a while.  I’m tired, and I think Bunny and Carlo will be residing in the “kitten quarters” for a while to come. 

On a related note, I was accepted as an affiliate member of the IAABC (International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants).  I believe I’m qualified right now to be an Associate member, which is a step below being fully-certified, but I’m feeling my way around the organization and getting to know people before I apply for the next step up.  My main area of interest is cat behaviour, not just because I have a house full of them, but because I’m realizing that most people give up their pets for behavioural reasons.  I’ve learned so much over the past few years through reading and observing, so joining the IAABC gives me a chance to organize those experiences, and to learn from others.  I hate to admit that I didn’t even know IAABC existed, but I was taking that class in “Feline House Soiling” on VSPN, and I was excited because author Pam Johnson-Bennet was in my class.  She had a reference to IAABC in her sig, and so it began.

Speaking of the Feline House Soiling class, it was fantastic!  I learned a lot from some really smart people, and felt really enthused about tackling behavioural problems when it was through.  I’ve got a class on cat body language coming up, which is a self-study class on DVD, and through VSPN this summer I’ll be taking a class in nutrition for cats with FLUTD, a class in triage and first aid, and a class in canine and feline pain management.  Perhaps I have a future as a behaviourist or nutritional consultant, even without Penn Foster’s help.

I apologize for spelling errors.  So, so sleepy… must get up in five hours…

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/18 at 01:32 AM
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Thursday, May 17, 2007 , late at night

Penn Foster: Live classrooms are a pain in the butt

You all know I’m enrolled at Penn Foster in the vet tech program.  I try to write regular blog updates about the experience, because I get a lot of emails from folks who are considering enrolling and want to know what it’s like.  I’ll tell you what it’s like right now… it’s frustrating!  I’m required to attend at least two hours of online “classroom” (chatroom) time for each month I’m enrolled, which seems reasonable.  There are two, two-hour classroom sessions scheduled each week, so it’s theoretically easy to fulfill the two-hour attendance requirement.  Unfortunately for me, the time I’m spending in the classroom isn’t being recorded/credited by the system, so I’m now stuck, unable to progress through more courses.  My records apparently show I haven’t been attending my required online sessions, even though I have.  Flippy has seen me attend these classes.  Flippy has seen me miss watching hockey games because I’m forcing myself to sit in front of the computer, in class.  I record all the days I’ve attended on my desktop calendar, and according to my records, I’ve attended nine hours of class (out of a required eight).  The director of the vet tech program tells me that her records show I’ve attended four hours, and none since March.  It makes no sense—I was in class on May 6th, and can recite the entire lesson taught, yet I’m not being credited for it because “the logs don’t show (me)”.  I’ve asked the program head if I could take screen shots of the classroom, and she told me that “A screen shot is not evidence of attendance at a two hour class”.  I asked if I could have the instructor note my attendance, and she said, “Instructors do not and will not record individual student attendance”.  So gee, what on earth am I supposed to do?  The program head is snotty and condescending—prospective students please note that as I’ve mentioned in other blog entries, Penn Foster is not the school to be attending if you have a problem of any sort.  Your emails will go unanswered, and in the long run you are nothing but a number with a bank account.  The vet tech program head had the nerve to pull on me the old standby, “There are thousands of students enrolled and you’re the only one having problems.” Yes, because I’m a moron who doesn’t know how to use a chatroom or read instructions, obviously.  I’m sure she hasn’t bothered to stop and consider that maybe I’m the only person who’s noticed a problem.  With each month that passes, the problem multiplies—the school refuses to send me more study materials until I’m caught up on classes, and two more hours of required chatroom time are tacked on for each month it takes me to complete the course.  You see the mathematical problem which presents itself.

I don’t know if I’ll ever finish this program now because I’ve been stumped by technology.  The saddest part of the situation is that the online classroom is nothing more than “busywork”—it’s about fifteen minutes of information and an hour and forty-five minutes of the instructor typing.  The last class was about the metric system (not that I’m supposed to know that, as I guess I wasn’t there), and it’s terribly redundant to a Canadian.  A Canadian being forced to skip a hockey game to sit there, and who then didn’t even get credit for it.  I’ll give it another week since stirring up shit and then I suppose I’ll just “unenroll” from the program, because there’s no reason to continue.  I’m quite sure that as soon as I threaten to shut off the money fountain, someone at the school will sit up and pay attention.

In the meantime, I’ve enrolled (and been accepted) at St. Petersburg College in Florida.  They have an acclaimed online vet tech program (and it doesn’t have a chatroom requirement!), and going into that program would make me eligible for financial aid (it’s very expensive, if only because I’m a non-resident), and all my classes would be transferable to other colleges if I ever wanted to try for a higher degree. 

One final word to Penn Foster for this evening:  Getting an education shouldn’t be this difficult.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/17 at 11:02 PM
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 , terribly early in the morning

Thinking Blogger

Oh, so long ago, I was tagged by Bonnie and Victor to do the “thinking blogger” meme.  I’m to list five blogs which “make me think”, which should be sort of easy, but lately I can barely list five blogs I can find time to read.  I miss my life of leisure and animal blog reading, but I can cheat a bit on this meme because one of my paid jobs entails reading blogs every day.  They’re not pet blogs, though—they’re usually about politics— but many of them do provide me the pleasure of thinking!  So, here are five blogs I look forward to reading because they stir up the little grey cells:

  • Dolittler is probably the one blog I’d choose to have on a desert island with me (you know… if I could have a laptop, electricity, and Internet access).  It’s a very well-written blog by a veterinarian in Florida.  One of the things I enjoy most is that she writes often, and she writes a lot, so it’s a blog to visit every day.  She also argues a point very well, so when she tackles a controversial topic, it’s done intelligently and without malice.
  • Pandagon is a very edgy political blog, and the writing is often excellent.  I don’t always agree with everything written on the blog, but that’s what makes it an interesting read.  It’s a good way to keep up with political gossip generated within the blogosphere, too.
  • I can’t even spell Proceedings of the Athanasius Kircher Society without looking it up, so you know it’s got to be edu-ma-ca-shun-al.  The blog is a collection of odd stories from the annals of science, some historical, some current.  Not every entry is interesting, but hey, where else can you visit and read information about “parasitic twins”, and “exploding head syndrome”?
  • The blog Speaking Freely is written by our online friend Digital Ghost.  He’s very smart, and entertaining, and he writes about stuff I have to worry about in my “work life”.  I actually enjoy reading about search engine optimization and social media marketing because there’s always something new to learn, and blogs like this one keep me enthused about my jobs and my websites.  It’s also an interesting read if you’re intrigued by the politics of the Internet, and you might pick up some good tips if you want to improve your blogging skills.
  • It feels a bit like cheating if I list IFAW’s Animal Rescue blog, but I truly do enjoy reading it, even if I help work on it behind the scenes.  It’s a sobering reminder of how many animals are in crisis all over the world, but it also gives you hope to read about the folks who are helping.  The blog covers everything from baby squirrel rehab to orangutan rescue, so there’s always something new to learn.
  • Buzzfeed isn’t a blog.  However, it’s a collection of blogs all talking about the same hot topic, and it can be pretty fascinating to browse.  If you write a good blog entry on one of the hot topics, it’s fairly easy to get your post listed on Buzzfeed, and your traffic will soar.  Like John Ashcroft’s eagles.

In all honesty, I could have listed any blog from my blogroll for this project, because I learn from everyone on the list.  And I learn from lots of folks not on the list, too… I’m adding to it every day as I find great new blogs to read.  I won’t deliberately tag anyone for this, but if you’d like to tackle this meme, please leave a comment so I can go read your choices!

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/15 at 04:48 AM
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Dog news from around the ‘net

Behold, another roundup of odds and ends from my email.  Most of them are dog-related, and I know I don’t give enough attention to dogs, so this is my attempt at averaging out my cat-to-dog content ratio wink

  • The movie ”Year of the Dog” was released last Friday.  Have any of you seen it?  It’s received great reviews (at least, all the reviews I’ve seen have been wonderful), and it sounds like something I’d really enjoy.  I’m also encouraged by the fact that the movie has garnered support from groups like Best Friends and PETA.  The premise of the movie is a year in the life of a woman whose dog dies, and it’s a mix of comedy and sadness.  I like that the movie delves into the issue of how the loss of a pet affects the owner, and how people outside the situation don’t know how to deal with the owner’s grief.  If you have seen it, please let me know what you thought of it.  Maybe Flippy and I will treat ourselves to a movie one day this week (our first movie outing in a couple of years).
  • I’ve also received promo information about a lower-budget yet equally important movie called Diva Dog.  It’s a documentary about a disabled “pit bull on wheels”, and is aimed at bringing attention to destructive breed bans.  You can order the movie from the website for a very reasonable $9.99.
  • A new “cute dog video” site has been launched at Worldwide Fido.  Submit your own dog’s video and compete for prizes, and/or vote on your favourite videos.  The site has great design and a lot of money behind it, and I guess the owners are hoping to create a “YouTube for dogs” sort of thing.  I don’t have patience for watching videos, but if it’s your cup of tea, there are plenty of videos to amuse you.
  • Have you all received your free recipes from the BalanceIt.com website?  If not, there’s still time, and I’ve got a new coupon code for you.  Try code “homemade” for a free cat or dog recipe.  I’m not sure when that code expires, so try it sooner rather than later.
  • Keep It Clean has designed a trendy new dental kit for dogs (and cats, but a dog is pictured on the website, and it’s the rare cat who would sit still for a tooth-brushing).  The site claims that only 2% of pet owners regularly brush their pets’ teeth, so this company is either hoping to change that, or is hoping that the 2% of pet owners are very wealthy and shop often.
  • I don’t recall if I’ve written before about how much I enjoy reading Whole Dog Journal.  Lately they’ve had excellent coverage of the pet food recall, and their upcoming June issue is going to feature information about homemade cooked dog food (the May issue had information on raw diets).  It’s well-worth the price and would make a great gift for a dog lover.  Or for yourself.  Go ahead, buy yourself something nice!  If you just want to dip your toes in the pool instead, you can buy single articles from the website for $10 each, but then you’d might as well go ahead and just pay $20 for the entire year.  You know I’m right.
  • Does your small pet have sensitive skin?  A new website has launched at Soft Fleece Pet Products, and they sell cat and dog collars and harnesses which are made out of non-irritating fleece (instead of nylon).  These are only designed for pets up to 20 lbs., so they’re definitely not intended to restrain your out-of-control Great Dane, but they’re a nice alternative if you just want to keep a collar on your small pet for hanging ID tags.  The cat collar is the “break-away” style.
  • I can’t believe it’s taken this long for an enterprising group of realtors to come up with The Pet Realty Network.  I have dreams of turning our house into one big piece of cat furniture, and now I know where I can list the house if we ever decide to move!  I also know that prospective buyers who come from a site like this will understand when I explain that our dog ate the floor.
  • I receive the monthly email from North Shore Animal League, and was fascinated/inspired/saddened by the tale of some Chihuahua puppies with severe physical deformities that the organization rescued.  It’s an excellent example of the perils of backyard breeding, and should be passed along to anyone you know who’s considering “dabbling” in breeding without being fully committed to the responsibilities it entails.
Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/15 at 01:25 AM
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Friday, May 11, 2007 , the wee hours

Quick update on Carlo

We took Carlo to the vet on Wednesday, as we’re still concerned about his small stature.  The vet pointed out that while Carlo was small compared to other kittens his age (like his sister), he’s actually a good weight for his body size, and is well-proportioned.  The vet then got a little smile on his face when he said that Carlo did seem to have a bit of a “sloped forehead”, which may indeed indicate some sort of congenital defect.  A fecal test came out negative, so Carlo is finally on metronidazole (Flagyl) to try to improve his intestinal flora.  The poor little guy just hates the medicine, which is notoriously bitter, even though the vet tried to mix it with tuna flavouring.  I try to shoot the stuff as far back into Carlo’s throat as possible, but he still ends up foaming at the mouth from the taste.  The vet said that we really can’t test for a liver shunt or other problem, like hypthyroidism, for at least another six weeks, so for now Carlo’s job is to get his diarrhea under control and to keep on growing.  If he has a liver shunt, the metronidazole may cause a seizure, but that thankfully hasn’t happened yet.

It’s been a nonstop week of action around here, and eventually I’ll have a lot to post about.  I had a job interview, I’ve had phone calls and emails asking me to place unwanted pets, and it’s kitten season, so kittens seem to be appearing everywhere.  My current priority is to try to find a new home for two adult cats who are brothers, and that’s taking up far more time than I’d like.  It’s actually work I’d enjoy, if only I was paid for it.  All the action has really worn me out, and today was a “collapse from exhaustion” day, so I hope to be feeling more energetic by the weekend.

Oh, thank you to all you kind people who threw votes my way at the blogging awards.  My head is swollen, but not so huge that it doesn’t still fit on my pillow smile

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/11 at 02:54 AM
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Monday, May 07, 2007 , the wee hours

I’m lame, vote for me!

Flippy was ever so kind as to nominate me for ”Best Animal Blogger” at the Blogger’s Choice Awards (see the button in my sidebar), or click the link I just posted).  I then was very pathetic and voted for myself, because it’s a free country, man, and I can be as shameless as I wanna be.  Won’t you vote for me too?  I don’t have the slightest chance of winning, up against such powerhouses are Cute Overload and I Can Has Cheezburger, but I can still dream.

As an attempt to bribe you, here are cute kitten photos.  You will gaze deep into their eyes and then go vote for me… and cluck like a chicken.

playtime_at_the_ok_corral

The best part about fostering (besides the endless cuteness and love) is watching the kittens learn to play.  These two are heavily into wrestling and ambushes right now.

carlo_dining

Carlo has been the best little eater for the past three weeks, but he’s not much bigger than his food dish.

bunny_at_six_weeks

Little bunny, looking very grown-up, with all her crazy facial and toe markings.  Her blue eyes give her a constant case of red-eye with the camera, so I’ve touched this picture up a bit to try to remove the red-eye.  I’m sorry if it makes it look as if she really is trying to hypnotize you.  Do you feel like clucking like a chicken yet?

carlo_orders_pizza

When we don’t feed the kittens the instant they demand it, Carlo outsmarts us by ordering pizza.  We outsmart him, too, by hiding the credit cards.

cats_love_crocs

All our foster kittens adore Flippy’s Crocs.  We don’t know if it’s the colour they like, or if it’s just the shape of the shoe, but they sit on them, sit in them, chew them, kick them, scratch them, and the shoes never look any the worse for wear.

I weighed the kittens two days ago.  Carlo weighs 15.6 oz, and Bunny weighs 1 lb, 8 oz.  I’m hoping to finally get Carlo to the vet this week for some bloodwork, and maybe we’ll be able to track down what’s wrong with him.  Someone on the VSPN boards suggested to me that he could be hypothyroid.  That’s very rare in cats, but not impossible, and would definitely explain Carlo’s small stature.  What he lacks in size he makes up for with personality… he’s unbelievably cuddly and sweet.  Unfortunately, he and his sister are about ready to go to their new homes, so I don’t think we’ll have them for much longer.  Bring on the tears!

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/07 at 02:39 AM
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Sunday, May 06, 2007 , early evening

Be Kind to Animals Week

The American Humane Association is sponsoring “Be Kind to Animals” week, May 6 though 12, 2007.  Visit the AHA website for more information.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/06 at 07:58 PM
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Wednesday, May 02, 2007 , late evening

We’ve got drama

TJ ate two feet of string, Derek was bitten by another cat, and then last night, well, I hardly know how to explain what happened last night.  It was almost comical and freakish, and it had to be seen to be believed (and I didn’t stop to take photos).  We have a toy mouse which affixes to the top of the guest bedroom door, and hangs down on a long length of string.  The mouse has a chip inside which makes it squeak, and the squeak combined with the grey fur make this toy the most-beloved in our entire house.

Last night a few of the cats were in the guest bedroom with the door closed, swatting at the squeaky mouse.  I tried to open the door to get into the bedroom, but it would only open a few inches.  I thought maybe a toy (or a cat) was behind the door and blocking my way, and I noticed Tie sitting next to the door, under a small table.  I gave the door another push and it didn’t budge, but Tie made a whimpering sound.  It was then I realized (I hope I can describe this properly), that the mouse-on-string toy was stretched all the way across the back of the door, past the door opening, under the small table made from petrified tree branches, and around one of the branches.  At the end of the string was the grey mouse, and one of Tie’s claws was embedded in it.  His entire arm was stretched out and sort of hyperextended around a couple of the branches, so every time I’d tried to push on the door to open it, I’d inadvertently used the laws of physics to yank on the poor little guy’s leg.  I ran and grabbed some scissors to cut the string, and as soon as I did that, Tie hobbled off down the hallway with the mouse still hanging from his foot.  I caught up with him, surprised that the mouse was still hooked on his nail, and on closer inspection I found that the string from the toy was tied around one of Tie’s toes, in a knot.  I had to hold him still and carefully cut the string again, making sure not to cut skin, so he could finally be free of that cursed grey mouse.  How he managed to tie the string around his toe after he’d already stretched his paw out through the table legs is a mystery.

At this point, I thought the excitement for the evening was over, but it was just beginning.  I don’t know exactly what sort of damage Tie’s toe incurred, but he was in pain.  He hobbled, he cried, he yowled, and in his most incredible performance to date, he threw himself into a litterbox and rolled back and forth on his back while screaming.  I’m mocking him now, because in retrospect I realize he was acting like a little kid who’s been injured, but not injured all that badly.  I’m sure Tie probably had pain like I might have when I strain/sprain my ankle, and I know the pain is horrendous.  I try to be a grown-up about it, however, and Tie was having none of that.  He let me examine his leg and everything moved properly, and I didn’t even see any swelling, but the theatrics were so extreme that we were considering taking him to the emergency clinic.  He was panting heavily, but his gums were pink, and he was willing to eat snacks I offered him, so I decided to just give him a half-dose of torbugesic (based on his weight), and to sit him down in a quiet spot to rest.  After about five minutes he was very calm and quiet, and dozed off.  The other cats were very concerned about Tie, so Scampi cuddled with him for a couple of hours, and Frank came by and offered a relaxing head lick.  After a few hours he was barely limping, and today he seems perfectly fine—no limp, and he’s running, kneading, etc.  The only thing I’ve seen him hesitate to do is use a scratching post, so I think his toe might be a bit sore.  If that continues we’ll take him into the vet, but as far as I can tell there’s still no swelling, and he’s not fussing over the injury.

I know I’m a horrible person for laughing at my cat’s pain, but Tie is the biggest drama queen about everything.  If we pick him up and remove him from a place we don’t want him to be (for example, the kitchen table), he literally kicks and whines and has a little kitty tantrum over it.  I know he was definitely hurting last night, but he certainly didn’t follow the rule about animals hiding their injuries or sneaking off to find solitude when they’re sick.  I’m sure if I’d offered him a spotlight and a microphone he would have limped to center stage and performed his entire act to wild applause.

So, TJ seems fine, Derek’s bite wound never became infected, and Tie seems none the worse for wear today.  Enough!

I’ve been pretty lousy about posting stories and photos of Carlo and Bunny.  All the other pets have been demanding, work has been demanding, and the pet food recall has taken up huge chunks of space here.  Both little kittens are doing very well, although Carlo is still tiny and Bunny refuses to eat solid food.  I could cry about the slow weaning… it takes Bunny literally 25 minutes+ (I’ve timed it) to drink enough bottle formula to feel satisfied, and all she’s eating from the bottle is canned cat food run through a blender with some water added!  She certainly likes the taste of what I’m feeding, she’s just too much of a delicate flower to feed herself.  Carlo still eats from the bottle a little bit, but he can also feed himself a bit as well.  They’re both really cute.  Here’s one photo that Flippy took a couple of days ago, and I’ll try to have others really soon.

bunny_carlo_shoe

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/02 at 10:36 PM
The Litterbox • (15) Comments • Permalink

Here a recall, there a recall, everywhere a recall

More pet food recalls!  Menu Foods expanded their recall to include more brands of cat and dog food, and the reason they’re giving is “cross-contamination”.  It’s swell to know that the can of “premium” food you pay over $1.50 for is being made in the same giant production vat as the 25 cent food, and the vats aren’t being cleaned between batches.  No wonder we had a lot of trouble keeping Phoenix’s allergies in-check when were were feeding mainstream brands of pet food… there was probably a good chance her “soy, wheat, and corn-free” food still had remnants of those ingredients in it.  You can see the complete lists of recalled items here” Menu Foods Recall list.  Note there are separate lists for the US and Canada, although items from Canada seem to be on the US list as well.  Also, here’s a blog entry from Pet Food Tracker where just the changes to the recall list are outlined.  The biggest surprise food addition for me was Feline Natural Ultramix, made by Castor and Pollux.  This brand is considered to be very high-end and reputable, and this will be a big blow to them.  No matter how much they protest that their products don’t contain fillers and additives, they’re going to suffer damage to their reputation just because they’ve been hanging out in bad company.  This brings to mind the saying, “When you lie down with dogs, you wake up with fleas"… no offense intended to any dogs.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/02 at 10:21 PM
The Litterbox • (2) Comments • Permalink
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