There's a point in every true friendship, where friends stop being friends and become sisters. - Unknown

Mr. Creme had a blood glucose and fructosamine test on the 13th.  His blood glucose was very good.  We received those results right away.  The next day we received the fructosamine results and it was also good.  It was 262 which was within the safe range for cats.  The vet told us that we could stop giving MC his insulin.  He had had his 2 units that morning and the test was at 4:00 p.m.

We are going to take him back in three weeks and test him again.  If the BG and fructosamine are still good, we will keep him off of insulin.  Then we will test again in 2 months unless there is a problem, i.e. he starts losing weight, doesn’t eat properly, etc. 

It’s been nice to not have to give MC an insulin shot each morning.  Of course, I think he misses that extra attention he was getting.  We had to make sure he ate enough food each morning before we could give him his injection.  Sometimes he just wasn’t interested in what I was serving, so I’d wait awhile and bring something else to him.  Usually he’d eat that and we could get on with our day.

I still make sure I spend lots of time with him though and he really likes it.  I see that he eats his breakfast and when he goes into the yard, he has food to eat while he’s there. 

Lexi is also in the yard during the day.  Since she has a hyper thyroid condition, she needs food also.  We’re running a nursing home for our elderly (12+ year) cats, but we will do whatever we need to do to keep them comfortable in their old age. 

Mr. Creme’s legs are doing so well too.  I have to thank those B12 pills I’ve been giving him.  He is walking normally.  We’ve caught him a couple of times, sitting on the retaining wall, looking up at the top of the gate.  We tell him no, he can’t leave the yard and we bring him back to the patio.  He is usually distracted by then.  As far as we know, he hasn’t actually tried to jump to the top of the gate...yet.  We don’t want him in the front yard where he will usually walk down the street or up the hill.  Those days that he had free reign are over.

So much for that....Charlie just came and told me that Mr. Creme was in the front yard.  Apparently he has discovered that he can jump to the top of the fence and go over.  The B12 pills are working too well.

Kiki stayed out in the house last night for the first time.  We have been allowing her to come out of her kennel during the day, but usually we put her back in to sleep at night.  She did well last night so we will gradually give her more freedom.  When she is settled somewhere, she allows us to pet her.

Willie is usually loose in the house during the day too.  But, she hisses at the other cats, so I take her back to her room to give her some alone time.  We’ve kept her before and during those times, she blended in well with our cats so she was just one of them.  This time, the other cats seem to get on her nerves, although none of them are trying to chase her or hurt her.  She doesn’t have front claws and neither do they, so there’s no danger of clawing the faces.  She will probably be with us until September sometime.

Kiki’s kittens, Kodi and Dash, are still kind of wild.  Dash, the white one, allows herself to be petted if she is asleep in her favorite rocker or if it’s time to eat.  Otherwise, if she walks by me when I’m sitting in a chair, she gives me a wide berth.  There’s no such thing as her coming to me or Charlie for attention or to sit on our laps.

Kodi, the little tabby, is a little friendlier, she sometimes comes up to Charlie and gets on his lap.  She likes to be petted, but she can’t stand still for long.  I think her love for attention will overcome her wildness one day.

I went to get a pedicure the other day.  When I was done, I stood up and reached to get my purse, which had been on the stool next to me.  You can imagine my shock to see that my purse was gone.  Yes, that same purse that gets left in shopping carts and now I think it has taken on a life of its’ own.....I told “Linda” that my purse had been on the stool and was gone.  She couldn’t believe it either and then word quickly got around that I was missing my purse.  I stood there and kept looking down at the stool, like I couldn’t believe my eyes.  Chair controls were laying on the stool where my purse had been.  I looked to see if my purse had fallen behind the seat I had been using. 

This disbelieving moment went on for what seemed like minutes, when it was probably only seconds.  Everyone was holding their breath and checking to see if their purses were safe.  The lady who had just sat down in the chair next to me said, “This is scary”, as she made sure she had her belongings. 

The manager went back up to the front desk and before I could yell, “Close all the doors!  No one leaves until I find my purse!”, one of the manicurists said, “What color is it?”  I said, “Brown!”  She said, “Is this it?” and held up my purse.  It was safe!  My life had passed before my eyes when it went missing, since my life lives inside that purse!

Apparently the lady who had just finished her pedicure also had a brown purse.  When she went over to the manicure table, the manicurist had picked up my purse, thinking it was her client’s brown purse, and put it next to the lady on the floor.  She didn’t notice that it wasn’t her purse.

All was well.  We all sighed relief that we didn’t have a phantom purse snatcher in our midst.

I have always liked the pedicures and manicures I’ve gotten from that salon, but I do have a problem with the manager.  The salon accepts credit cards and even has the Visa and MasterCard emblem stickers on the front desk.  But, when people give their cards to pay for their treatment, he asks if they have cash.  He’s asked me before and I asked “why? when you say you accept credit cards”.  He said it saves him from having to pay the service charge that the credit card companies charge him when people use their credit cards.  That time I did have cash, so I paid cash.  But, this time I didn’t have enough cash, so I said I had to use my credit card, which is a check/debit card.  He didn’t like it, but he took it.  I think he should just change his policy and put signs up, “no credit cards”, if he makes you feel like he doesn’t want to take them.   

Charlie and I went to Palm Springs for the day on Sunday, the 24th.  We went to see our friends, Patti and Bob.  It was Patti’s birthday and we wanted to take her and Bob to lunch.  She wanted to go to Olive Garden, which was a good choice.

Patti and Bob, Charlie and me

We had finished eating and were just talking, when one of the waiters came over and said, “Did anyone lose a ring?”  He held up the ring that Bob had given Patti for her birthday!  It was a little big for her ring finger, so Patti had been wearing it on her index finger.  She hadn’t even noticed that it fell off and was on the floor.  The waiter said he had walked by and kicked it all the way across the room.  I think she was pretty lucky to get that ring back.

We had a nice visit for the rest of the afternoon.  It was 103 degrees, but of course, we were in the house which was about 80 degrees and very comfortable.  Compared to outside, it was like a cooler.  No wonder these desert dwellers almost freeze when they come to our 70's temps in San Diego.

More later......
TazzyD..... _^..^_

She played with her cat and it was a wonder to watch the white hand and the white paw frolic in the shade of the night.--Paul Verlaine

Path to the Rainbow Bridge

It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since Toby passed away.  We were on our cross-country RV trip from May 10-June 16, 2011.  The day after we came home, we noticed that Toby was having breathing problems. 

We too him to the vet.  After tests and scans, it was determined that Toby had a hernia which was pressing his lungs.   We approved surgery which would correct it.

Upon the start of surgery to repair the “hernia”, it was discovered that Toby had a malignant tumor and it was inoperable.  We received the call just after midnight on Saturday, June 18, 2011.

Toby was the second of “Jezibel’s babies”, as we called them, to pass away.  He was 11 years old.  His brother, Grady, left us in February 2010 at 9 years old.

My friend, Kim, adopted one of Toby and Grady’s brothers, “Pinto”, when he was 8 weeks old.  Through the years, we have seen Pinto regularly.  I usually take care of Pinto and Kim’s other four cats when she and her daughter, Haven, travel.  

Pinto in his box top.  This is one of his favorite places to lie.

I love Pinto.  He was one of ours and for those who know me, I try to stay in touch with how “our” cats are doing.  It was easy with Pinto because Kim and I became good friends as well. 

A couple of weeks ago, Kim noticed that Pinto was not drinking water.  She took him to the vet.  Upon examination, the vet found a tumor under Pinto’s tongue. 

The next day, the vet did a biopsy on the tumor.  The report said that it was malignant.

Pinto on the scales at the oncologist at VSH, Sorrento Valley

Kim took Pinto to an oncologist for a second opinion and to see what the options were.  There were no feasible options:

Chemo would not help; radiation would cause such horrible side effects.  He would need it twice a day for a week.  It would cause terrible sores in his mouth for about a month and he would have to have a feeding tube inserted; surgery would be very complicated and would drastically lower Pinto’s quality of life.  A feeding tube would have to be inserted.  None would extend his life by more than a month or two.

The tumor was very aggressive.  It would grow and eventually make it impossible for Pinto to eat or drink.  He would slowly starve.

Kim made Pinto as comfortable as she could.  He had always slept with her, so she put up a gate at the bedroom door.  The other cats stayed out and Pinto had Kim all to himself. 

He was having trouble eating because of the tumor under his tongue.  He liked his kibble, but could only smell it and couldn’t chew it.  He did manage to eat the rich pate A/D canned prescription food, but he wasn’t getting enough.  Kim mixed it with water and managed to feed him with a syringe.  For the past couple of days she gave him kitten weaning formula.  That helped with his hunger.

Pinto also was on pain medication and that helped him rest.  Kim gave it to him twice a day.

Kim and her baby, Pinto 6-13-12

Kim took very good care of Pinto and she didn’t want him to suffer any longer.  She scheduled a vet who does home euthanasia, to come to her house today and help Pinto along on a peaceful journey.

Pinto is now with his brothers, Grady and Toby.  The three of them are again running and playing like they did long ago with they were kittens together.  Their legs are strong and they are pain free. 

Toby and Grady with their sisters, Lexi and Ellie 2003

Kim and Charlie with Pinto 6-18-12

Rest in peace little "Pinto" pony...rest in peace.

More later......
TazzyD..... _^..^_

“Beware of a man that does not talk and a dog that does not bark”---Portuguese Proverb

I just went outside to put something in my neighbor’s mailbox.  I didn’t turn the outside light on since I could see okay from the street light.  I saw something at the end of our driveway and really didn’t know what it was.  Then it turned and moved on down toward the neighbor’s house.  I still didn’t get a good look at it.  As I started out to the street, I saw a large raccoon on the sidewalk by my car.  It moved up towards the other neighbor’s house.  There were two raccoons. 

I guess that was why the dog in the yard behind us was barking for the past hour non-stop.  Of course, he barks quite a bit anyway.  We see a opossums in our yard sometimes and the raccoons have been on our patio before.

One night I saw an opossum walking along the fence.  Something looked weird.  When I looked closer, there were several baby possums hanging onto her fur.  I don't know how many survived, but I'm sure they are around somewhere.

What an improvement!

Today a “shelf genie” came to our house and put sliding shelves in our kitchen pantry and in the cupboard where I keep the pans.  It makes all the difference in the world.  Now I can slide the shelves out and get to everything that is stuck in the back.  The pans are easy to get to also.  Now if I can get new countertops and a new sink!

We have been letting Jonesie outside on nice days when I have the time to go out and keep an eye on him.  He’s discovered he can climb the tree at the front window and get on top of the house.  He walks around the roof and then comes back and meows because he can’t figure out how to get back down by himself. 

One day I was working in the yard and I didn’t know he was on top of the house.  Charlie came out with the ladder.  He said he heard Jonesie meowing and when he looked out, Jonesie was on top of the patio at the side of the house in the backyard.  He rescued Jonesie.

The other day I was sitting on the bench and I heard Jonesie meowing.  He was on the house again.  He walked out on the beams near the front door.  That’s about 10 feet high.  Before I could go and get Charlie to help him, he jumped down to the concrete walk.  I don’t want him doing that again since I know that he could sprain his leg.  Mr. Creme did that once just jumping down from our 6 foot fence. 

Mr. Creme is still doing well.  His walk is close to normal now.  We’re still giving him the B12 pills.  He’s also still on 2 units of insulin a day.  Charlie took him in for his fructosamine test and blood glucose test today.  The blood glucose test was very good (128) and he weighs 14.9 pounds.  We will hear the results of the fructosamine test tomorrow.  We’re hoping he’s on his way to remission.

Sheila’s usual spot is at the top of the stairs.  From there she can see anyone who walks or drives by the front of the house.  The front door has windows at the top and she can see anyone who comes to the door.  We have really tried to curb her barking because since she sees everything and we don’t, she will all of a sudden let out a bellow.  It’s so throaty and loud.  If you’re not expecting it, it startles you.  The cats all run in different directions. 

She still hasn’t been able to differentiate between the real doorbell and a doorbell on the TV program or commercial.  It’s just so disruptive when we’re sitting there watching something.  We always try to stop her by saying, “It’s on TV”.  That works most of the time.  But, I have to say that when she barks, there’s usually someone there.  It may be someone hanging a flyer on the front door that we don’t even hear.

She knows the sound of the UPS trucks, the Sparkletts water delivery truck, and the mail carrier.  They are her favorite things to watch for.  Recently Charlie brought home a little device called a “bark buster”.  It was inexpensive and for awhile it stopped her outbursts.  Supposedly it emitted a high pitched sound that only she could hear and it was uncomfortable.

Either it isn’t working any more or she has decided that she can stand the noise and would rather bark.  I still think of the dog that Charlie had years ago.  She was barking one night.  They opened the window and told her to be quiet.  The next morning their cars had been broken into.

More later......

for TazzyD..... _^..^_

“Cat people are different, to the extent that they generally are not conformists. How could they be, with a cat running their lives?” -- Louis Camuti

I took a few days off to go up to Utah to see my brother, Richard, and his wife, Alice.  They moved up there last October.  Their younger daughter, Jamie, and her husband, Josh, are in the Air Force.  After being in Germany for several years, they were transferred to Hill AFB near Ogden.  Richard and Alice wanted to be near them, so they moved with them to Utah.  Of course, their six year old granddaughter, Anna, had quite a bit of influence in their decision to make the move.

They like Utah and they love being able to spend time with Anna, Jamie and Josh.  I met Anna and Josh for the first time.  Anna was born in New Mexico.  Soon after, Jamie was transferred to Germany and Anna has spent most of her life living there. 

Jamie and Josh bought a house and Richard and Alice are renting a town home which is less than a mile away.  There is a bike/walk/run path near the town home.  It used to be a railroad track, but the tracks were taken up and it was paved over.  I really enjoyed going for walks on that path.

That bike/walk/run path goes on and on.....all the way to Ogden

My nephew, Patrick, drove down from Nevada and spent a couple of days with us.  I hadn’t seen him since 2005, so I was happy that he could meet me there.

The mountains after we had rain and they had snow

We went up into the Wasatch Mountains one day.  It was beautiful up there. 

Don't look now, but there's a buffalo behind you!

I can hold him in my hand!

Another day we went to Antelope Island State Park in Salt Lake.  It’s the largest island in the Great Salt Lake.  There are free-roaming herds of bison, bighorn sheep, mule deer, and pronghorn antelope.  Twelve bison were introduced to the island in 1893 and today the herd is 500-700.  They do an annual bison roundup each fall to check the health of the animals and sell extra ones.  We saw the bison, of course, and also antelope and deer, but no bighorns.     




After a restful week, I came home to Charlie and our house full of cats.  I was getting updates on how everyone was doing, so I really didn’t have any worries while I was gone.  Charlie had it all under control.

He got into the daily routine of giving Mr. Creme his insulin shots.  Since MC was due for a fructosamine test, Charlie took him to the vet for that. 

Mr. Creme relaxing on the back patio

The vet called and said that the glucose level was low.  She wanted us to reduce his insulin.  She thought he might be going into remission, which happens with cats sometimes.  We reduced his insulin from 6 units per day, (3 a.m./ 3 p.m.) to just 2 units, once a day.  We’ll take him back to be tested again in three weeks.  If he goes into remission, it will be a good thing.  Mr. Creme is walking “almost” normal now too.  We are still giving him the B12 pills, but also if he is not needing as much insulin, it helps.

I went to Walgreens and bought a glucose test meter and test strips.  I didn’t know how it worked.  You have to use the lancets to puncture your finger to get blood and then use the test strips in the meter.  The meter was fairly cheap, but the test strips were expensive.  You also have to buy the lancets.  The total for everything was $118, but, it beats the price of $193 that the veterinary hospital wanted.

We haven’t experimented on testing MC’s blood yet.  I still am nervous about it, but we will try it soon.

Of course, all of this is after we bought a new bottle of insulin and new syringes (200).  The insulin is dated, but the syringes are good forever.  We’re hoping that we won’t be needing them much longer though.

My back problem is getting much better too.  I’m now going to the chiropractor every three weeks instead of every two weeks.  I’m still getting acupuncture treatments twice a week and will do that for this month at least.  If I feel like I can reduce it to once a week, I will.  I actually look forward to the chiropractor and the acupuncture.  I wish doctors could make people look forward to seeing them!

I went for a walk yesterday morning.  I’m used to seeing signs on fences and poles advertising lost dogs or cats, etc., but I saw a sign I’d never seen before.  It was for a lost duck and her ducklings.  The picture showed them floating in a swimming pool.  Since the babies can’t fly, I imagine the gate to the yard was left open and they wandered out.  I always wonder if any of these dogs, cats (and ducks) are ever seen again.

Our pet insurance policy expires July 1.  I renewed for Jezibel, Ellie, Lexi and Mr. Creme.  I was happy to see that the coverage went up and the deductible stayed the same.  But, I was not happy when I talked to the agent and he told me that even though the policies have never lapsed, because of age, over 10 years, Mr. Creme’s diabetes will be considered a “pre-existing condition” after July 1.  That means that they will no longer help with the cost of his blood tests, medicines and syringes.  Same goes for Ellie.  Her asthma will be “pre-existing” as well.  Of course, Lexi is on thyroid medicine for the rest of her life and now that’s “pre-existing” too.
I told the agent that I didn’t think that was right.  After all, it’s when the pet gets older that they start having more health problems.  These illnesses should be covered right through the renewed policy. 

They’ve always had what they call “continuing care”, which would cover any illness from one period to the next.  But, when the pet becomes 10 years old, they do not qualify for that.  I told “John”, that in the interest of good public relations and because we’ve had insurance with them for the past several years, they should grandfather in that these cats should continue to be covered.

He said that I should go ahead and put in a claim for MC, Ellie and Lexi after July 1 and even though it would be denied, I should challenge it and explain how I feel.  These cats are 12 years old and these problems are not going away, but then, how long will they need coverage?  I want them to live as long as they can, but how long is that?  Two or three more years?

I have been happy with the insurance, but I will probably start looking around to see what else is out there.  When I looked before, the one I have was the best deal going, coverage and money wise. 

Kiki is starting to have more time in the house now.  The other cats are getting used to her.  She doesn’t bother any of them and if she gets scared, she runs back to her cat tree on the patio.

Kodi and Dash have been loose in the house at night since our boarder, Willie, came to stay with us on May 25.  Willie belongs to a friend of ours.  We’ve kept her before and she’s a little sweetheart.  This time we will have her through the summer.  Her mom had some business to take care of back east and will be gone until September.

Willie stays most of the time in Kodi and Dash’s room.  She has started coming out and roaming around the house now.  So far, she’s just a curiosity to our other cats and there have not been any confrontations.

Instead of closing the door to Willie’s room, we put a 4' gate up.  It seemed to work for a few days.  Willie stayed in the room, but could look out and the other cats could see her, but not come in.  I decided to leave it in place last night.  But, all good things always come to an end. 

Willie, watching her "subjects", Jason, Rhody and Jonesie (yeah, right!)

I woke up this morning at 4:00, hearing something like a scratching sound.  I looked over and Willie was on the floor by the bathroom door, wrestling with one of the Konga catnip toys.  Rhody was nearby, just watching.  Charlie was awake and he took her back upstairs and closed the door.  But, he said that he had already taken her up once already, around midnight.  She has discovered the art of getting on the bed and scaling the gate.  So much for that idea.

What would Tazzy D do?  _^..^_  I don't want to know!