I have lots of updates and will be posting in a few hours. Stay tuned!
TazzyD =^..^=
Friday, March 29, 2013
Saturday, February 16, 2013
I gave my cat a bath the other day ... they love it. He sat there, he enjoyed it, it was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue, but other than that . . . Steve Martin
It’s time to get back to Taz’s blog. I’ve been away from it since Thanksgiving, but I’ve kept some notes to catch up.
We thought we might be able to get away for a few days in December to go up to Monterey. The weather was bad down here, rainy and cold, but worse up there, so we decided to postpone the trip until Spring.
There is a State park, Forest of Nisene Marks, north of Monterey which we like a lot. We try to visit the park whenever we are in the Monterey area. The last time we were there, December 2011, it had been raining quite a bit and the trails were too muddy to hike on, so we didn’t go there on that trip.
There are beautiful Redwood trees and ferns along the trails. When we lived closer, in Monterey, we went to the park at least once a month or so and never got tired of it.
Dogs are not allowed on the trails though. On a visit one time, we took Chelsi there and someone told us that a ranger was on the trail turning people back if they had a dog with them. It’s a shame that dogs can’t hike with their owners in most of the parks here. We always kept Chelsi on a leash, even though she didn’t need it. She was not like Sheila, who, unleashed would take off for parts unknown and we’d never see her again!
Mr. Creme had a fructosamine test a few weeks ago and his blood glucose was well within a good range. Unless we notice his appetite failing or a weight loss, he won’t have to have another test for 3 or 4 months. He is stable at 6 units/day insulin (3 a.m./3 p.m.).
The B12 pills he takes for his weakened legs have helped so much. He walks normally now. He is also able to jump up to his table which has his bed on it with no trouble.
Lexi is doing well on her antihistamine allergy pills. I give her ½ in the morning and ½ at night. She seems to be less congested, although she still sneezes some. I think she does feel better though. We had some cold nights and since she sleeps on the enclosed patio, I have a little radiating heater which I keep on low at night.
We’re letting the cats outside into the backyard almost every day now. They are staying in the yard too. Not long after we put the lattice on top of the fence, Jonesie figured a way to escape. He jumped up onto the gate and climbed over the lattice and into the front yard. We managed to fix the problem. Charlie bought some shade cloth from Home Depot and covered both gates. I’m not sure why it works, but the cats don’t go to the gate anymore.
I like to let the cats outside in the yard, but I couldn’t do it if they were not going to be safe. The birds have to be safe too. Jonesie not only likes to watch birds, he will stalk and catch them when he can. I usually put a box lid over the bird bath to keep the birds from trying to drink or bathe while Jonesie is out. I moved the feeders up higher and so far he has had no luck catching a bird. I know it’s a natural instinct that cats hunt and if Jonesie catches a bird, he is not punished. We just feel bad for the poor little bird and try to make it hard for Jonesie to catch another one.
We had solar panels installed on our house a week ago. They have not been activated yet. Everything is in place, but the electric company needs to complete paperwork and we won’t have energy going until next week sometime.
Installation took three days. The first day, our electricity was off for 7 hours so they could upgrade our electrical panel. The next day they started installing the panels on top of the house. It was very noisy. Mr. Creme and Debby were in the garage in a 4x4 kennel to keep them out of the way. The garage door was open part of the day. The cats in the house stayed hidden because of the noise on the roof. On the last day, they had to finish the rest of the panels and do the hookups. It was supposed to rain that day, so the guys arrived early, 7:00 a.m. to try to get ahead of the rain if they could.
I left for work at 9:00 a.m. and it was pouring rain. The guys were still on the roof working away. As I drove away, I looked up at the panels and thought how ironic it was. Solar panels being installed on a dark, cloudy, rainy morning. I sure hope they start paying for themselves soon.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
We thought we might be able to get away for a few days in December to go up to Monterey. The weather was bad down here, rainy and cold, but worse up there, so we decided to postpone the trip until Spring.
There is a State park, Forest of Nisene Marks, north of Monterey which we like a lot. We try to visit the park whenever we are in the Monterey area. The last time we were there, December 2011, it had been raining quite a bit and the trails were too muddy to hike on, so we didn’t go there on that trip.
There are beautiful Redwood trees and ferns along the trails. When we lived closer, in Monterey, we went to the park at least once a month or so and never got tired of it.
Dogs are not allowed on the trails though. On a visit one time, we took Chelsi there and someone told us that a ranger was on the trail turning people back if they had a dog with them. It’s a shame that dogs can’t hike with their owners in most of the parks here. We always kept Chelsi on a leash, even though she didn’t need it. She was not like Sheila, who, unleashed would take off for parts unknown and we’d never see her again!
Mr. Creme had a fructosamine test a few weeks ago and his blood glucose was well within a good range. Unless we notice his appetite failing or a weight loss, he won’t have to have another test for 3 or 4 months. He is stable at 6 units/day insulin (3 a.m./3 p.m.).
The B12 pills he takes for his weakened legs have helped so much. He walks normally now. He is also able to jump up to his table which has his bed on it with no trouble.
Lexi is doing well on her antihistamine allergy pills. I give her ½ in the morning and ½ at night. She seems to be less congested, although she still sneezes some. I think she does feel better though. We had some cold nights and since she sleeps on the enclosed patio, I have a little radiating heater which I keep on low at night.
We’re letting the cats outside into the backyard almost every day now. They are staying in the yard too. Not long after we put the lattice on top of the fence, Jonesie figured a way to escape. He jumped up onto the gate and climbed over the lattice and into the front yard. We managed to fix the problem. Charlie bought some shade cloth from Home Depot and covered both gates. I’m not sure why it works, but the cats don’t go to the gate anymore.
I like to let the cats outside in the yard, but I couldn’t do it if they were not going to be safe. The birds have to be safe too. Jonesie not only likes to watch birds, he will stalk and catch them when he can. I usually put a box lid over the bird bath to keep the birds from trying to drink or bathe while Jonesie is out. I moved the feeders up higher and so far he has had no luck catching a bird. I know it’s a natural instinct that cats hunt and if Jonesie catches a bird, he is not punished. We just feel bad for the poor little bird and try to make it hard for Jonesie to catch another one.
We had solar panels installed on our house a week ago. They have not been activated yet. Everything is in place, but the electric company needs to complete paperwork and we won’t have energy going until next week sometime.
Installation took three days. The first day, our electricity was off for 7 hours so they could upgrade our electrical panel. The next day they started installing the panels on top of the house. It was very noisy. Mr. Creme and Debby were in the garage in a 4x4 kennel to keep them out of the way. The garage door was open part of the day. The cats in the house stayed hidden because of the noise on the roof. On the last day, they had to finish the rest of the panels and do the hookups. It was supposed to rain that day, so the guys arrived early, 7:00 a.m. to try to get ahead of the rain if they could.
I left for work at 9:00 a.m. and it was pouring rain. The guys were still on the roof working away. As I drove away, I looked up at the panels and thought how ironic it was. Solar panels being installed on a dark, cloudy, rainy morning. I sure hope they start paying for themselves soon.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
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| Me and Taz |
Monday, November 26, 2012
KITTENS ARE ALWAYS THANKFUL FOR ATTENTION, FOOD, AND A WARM PLACE TO SLEEP–AND WE’RE ALWAYS THANKFUL WHEN THEY’RE CONTENTED, FULL, AND QUIETLY SNOOZING!
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| Time to be thankful and eat! |
We had a very nice Thanksgiving Day. Our friends, Bob and Patti, were going to come and visit for a couple of days, but Patti was sick and they had to cancel. It was becoming a tradition for them to spend Thanksgiving here with us. We do see them several times during the year though. They only live two hours away.
The day was warm and the cats were outside mostly. We sat down to eat at 2:00 p.m. and then afterward we went out to sit on the patio. It was nice to just sit and talk and listen to music. The cats and Sheila kept us company. Sheila lay behind the glider and the cats strolled or ran by. It was just a quiet, laid back day. Nice to have a day off!
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| Sunset |
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| Lexi |
Mr. Creme will be going to the vet this week to get a fructosamine test to see how he’s doing. He may be gaining a little weight too, which is fine. He had lost some and the doctor said it would be good if he could gain it back. He’s never been overweight, but at one time he was a fair sized cat at 15 or 16 pounds. He was 13 pounds at his last vet visit. We have always had big cats. Jonesie is our smallest male, only weighing about 10 pounds.
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| Jonesie |
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| Mr. Creme and Debby |
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| Dash |
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| Kodi |
Our fraternal twins, (the frat girls) Dash and Kodi are fully grown now. They were a year old last September. We thought Kodi was going to be a very small cat, but she has sprouted up and is filling out. Dash has always been the bigger of the two. They are still skittish, even though we’ve had them since they were six weeks old. They were taught by their mom, Kiki, to stay hidden in the woodpile and I don’t think they’ll ever really be unafraid. But, they are nice cats. If they are settled in the cat tree or on the bed, etc., they will allow us to pet them. Kodi even comes up to our laps for attention. I don’t think Dash will ever do that though. She would be so nice to hold. She has the thickest, soft fur and she’s pure white.
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| Kiki |
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| Jason and Kaci |
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| Rhody |
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| Two casualties of my destructive trio--in my intensive care glue repair shop (tape comes off soon!) |
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| Miss Ellie with her mom |
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| Jezibel |
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| Sheila gets her hair combed by her dad |
Our dog, Sheila, is hanging in there. She enjoys the cats and when they run around the house playing, she wants to join in like she is one of them. They like her well enough, but they don’t appreciate her attempts to be part of their games. She doesn’t get the hint though.
We took her for a walk the other day. There was hardly anyone around and still she tried to go off the side of the trail and under the bushes. She is just so afraid of being away from home. That is the only place where she feels safe and comfortable. We were hoping that by taking her out and exposing her to strangers, she would somehow feel more confidence in herself. She also could use the exercise. I believe in the saying that “if your dog is overweight, you’re not walking her enough”! The vet has said that Sheila could lose a pound or two. We don’t have her on a diet, but I think she does need more exercise.
She’s not like most dogs who like to play ball. It’s boring to her. She will run a couple of times and bring the ball back, but then it’s obviously not something she really wants to do. I think the border collie in her is telling us that she needs more challenges because she’s smarter than to fetch a stupid ball. ( Joke: “How many dogs does it take to change a light bulb? Border Collie: Just one. And he'll rewire the house while he's at it.”) I guess just herding cats is not enough to keep her busy.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
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| Tazzy D and me |
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. - William Arthur Ward
I’m still seeing the chiropractor once a month and having acupuncture at least once a week. I do notice an improvement though. I’m walking every day now and have added some running. The routine is to walk for about five minutes, run for five, walk, run for five, walk, etc. I have worked my way up to running a total of 30 minutes. I don’t know how long it will be before I can run that 30 minutes non-stop like I used to do, but I am hoping that I’ll be able to do that sometime soon. Even if it never happens, I am so much better than I was a year ago.
Mr. Creme’s last fructosamine test showed high again. It was 630 and his blood glucose was 333. We increased his insulin from 2 to 3 units in the mornings and remained at 2 units at night, for a total of 5 units per day. He still eats well and I think he is maintaining his weight well. He’ll go back for another test in a week or so.
Lexi still has the congestion. We talked to the doctor about it and because of Lexi’s hyperthyroidism, we are limited as to what meds we can give her because it may cause high blood pressure. But, the doctor suggested we try Chlorpheniramine. It is an antihistamine. I plan on ordering a bottle when I order my next supply of Advantage for the cats. That way I will get free shipping because a bottle of Chlorpheniramine is only $6.99. In the meantime, Lexi is still eating and acting normal. I think her congestion bothers me more than her. I’m still using the vaporizer for now.
A couple of weeks ago we noticed that Rhody was squinting in his left eye. It was tearing up. We kept an eye on it (no pun intended) and when it didn’t seem to get any better we took him to have it checked by the vet. She said there were two abrasions on his eye. We have no idea how he got them. But, she sent eye drops home with us to put in his eye three times a day for a week. Charlie took him back to the vet to have his eye rechecked and it is fine now.
We have decreased our TV watching time. I used to turn the TV on as soon as I woke up in the morning and watched the news. Now I get my news during the day, by newspaper and radio. I find other things to do besides watching TV. It’s amazing how quiet the house can be. Of course, I still record my favorite soap opera, “Young and Restless” and we watch that in the evening. It’s nice to have an escape from the real world.
I also never thought I could enjoy coffee or tea without adding sugar, but I have stopped using sugar. I am having hot tea in the mornings instead of coffee, and enjoying it. When I was visiting my friend, Patti, in Palm Springs last week, I did have a cup of black coffee and was surprised that I actually liked it. Miracles do happen.
The cats are still enjoying their outdoor freedom. We don’t let them out if we are not at home, but if we are home, they are allowed to spend the whole day in the yard if they want to. We go outside periodically to count heads and make sure everyone is doing okay, but it’s so nice that they are staying in our backyard.
When we bring them in at dusk, they have their dinner and then while we are having our dinner, they are nowhere to be seen. I’ve always thought that our cats were happier to be outside, but we have always been careful to not let them just roam.
We’re happy and relieved that Jezibel doesn’t go into the front yard anymore. We were lucky that for all of those years she was allowed to roam, nothing happened to her.
Of course, there was the time three years ago that she was attacked by two dogs who had gotten out of their yard from the street up the hill behind us. They chased her from our yard into the neighbor’s yard. If our neighbors had not been in their open garage and come out with a broom to chase the dogs off, Jezibel may have been killed.
We rushed her to the emergency vet. She was bitten and in quite a bit of pain, but thank goodness nothing was broken and she didn’t have to have surgery, just some stitches. It could have been much worse.
Jonesie has become quite the little sweet cat. He allows me to pick him up and hold him and he likes for me to talk to him. When I’m sitting, sometimes he comes up to my lap. I’ve been hoping that he would spend more time with me, but he is still a little standoffish. I will keep working on him. We don’t really have any lap cats. Jason will come and sit with me for a little while sometimes.
I still miss Taz very much. It’s been two years and I miss the attention that Taz gave me. He was always nearby or sitting next to me. He was really special to me.
Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your day and remember that we do have a lot to be thankful for.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
Mr. Creme’s last fructosamine test showed high again. It was 630 and his blood glucose was 333. We increased his insulin from 2 to 3 units in the mornings and remained at 2 units at night, for a total of 5 units per day. He still eats well and I think he is maintaining his weight well. He’ll go back for another test in a week or so.
Lexi still has the congestion. We talked to the doctor about it and because of Lexi’s hyperthyroidism, we are limited as to what meds we can give her because it may cause high blood pressure. But, the doctor suggested we try Chlorpheniramine. It is an antihistamine. I plan on ordering a bottle when I order my next supply of Advantage for the cats. That way I will get free shipping because a bottle of Chlorpheniramine is only $6.99. In the meantime, Lexi is still eating and acting normal. I think her congestion bothers me more than her. I’m still using the vaporizer for now.
A couple of weeks ago we noticed that Rhody was squinting in his left eye. It was tearing up. We kept an eye on it (no pun intended) and when it didn’t seem to get any better we took him to have it checked by the vet. She said there were two abrasions on his eye. We have no idea how he got them. But, she sent eye drops home with us to put in his eye three times a day for a week. Charlie took him back to the vet to have his eye rechecked and it is fine now.
We have decreased our TV watching time. I used to turn the TV on as soon as I woke up in the morning and watched the news. Now I get my news during the day, by newspaper and radio. I find other things to do besides watching TV. It’s amazing how quiet the house can be. Of course, I still record my favorite soap opera, “Young and Restless” and we watch that in the evening. It’s nice to have an escape from the real world.
I also never thought I could enjoy coffee or tea without adding sugar, but I have stopped using sugar. I am having hot tea in the mornings instead of coffee, and enjoying it. When I was visiting my friend, Patti, in Palm Springs last week, I did have a cup of black coffee and was surprised that I actually liked it. Miracles do happen.
The cats are still enjoying their outdoor freedom. We don’t let them out if we are not at home, but if we are home, they are allowed to spend the whole day in the yard if they want to. We go outside periodically to count heads and make sure everyone is doing okay, but it’s so nice that they are staying in our backyard.
When we bring them in at dusk, they have their dinner and then while we are having our dinner, they are nowhere to be seen. I’ve always thought that our cats were happier to be outside, but we have always been careful to not let them just roam.
We’re happy and relieved that Jezibel doesn’t go into the front yard anymore. We were lucky that for all of those years she was allowed to roam, nothing happened to her.
Of course, there was the time three years ago that she was attacked by two dogs who had gotten out of their yard from the street up the hill behind us. They chased her from our yard into the neighbor’s yard. If our neighbors had not been in their open garage and come out with a broom to chase the dogs off, Jezibel may have been killed.
We rushed her to the emergency vet. She was bitten and in quite a bit of pain, but thank goodness nothing was broken and she didn’t have to have surgery, just some stitches. It could have been much worse.
Jonesie has become quite the little sweet cat. He allows me to pick him up and hold him and he likes for me to talk to him. When I’m sitting, sometimes he comes up to my lap. I’ve been hoping that he would spend more time with me, but he is still a little standoffish. I will keep working on him. We don’t really have any lap cats. Jason will come and sit with me for a little while sometimes.
I still miss Taz very much. It’s been two years and I miss the attention that Taz gave me. He was always nearby or sitting next to me. He was really special to me.
Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your day and remember that we do have a lot to be thankful for.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
Monday, October 29, 2012
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also--Matthew 6:21
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| Have you voted? Mom and Dad voted today! |
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| I put this out for me to lie down on, but looks like Kaci, Jason and Lexi had other ideas |
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| Dash, in the window, would like to be outside with Kaci, but we can't catch her in the house, much less outside! |
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| Jonesie and Mr. Creme |
The vaporizer for Lexi works well. The pre-moistened wicks are kind of expensive and there are only about 6 in a box. We bought a bottle of the liquid which is used in water vaporizers. I soak the wicks in it because it is the camphor based solution used in the pre-moistened ones I was buying. It works just as well. At least Lexi breathes better.
Her diarrhea seems to be cleared up (knock on wood) over the past week or so. I hope it doesn’t come back. With all the tests she went through, we still don’t know for sure what caused it for such a long period of time. The vet is convinced it’s food allergies, but we tried changing her food for a couple of months and nothing changed. I have her back on her original food and I think that may be helping. We’ll see.
Willie, our boarder cat, will be going home next week I think. I received an email tonight from her parents. They are on their way home from West Virginia, leaving before the storm hit back there. They started driving and didn’t stop until they were out of range of the storm. After driving for 24 hours, they made it to a hotel in Arkansas for the night. They are pulling a packed trailer so I’m sure they are not going really fast.
Willie has been here since May and I know she will be happy to see them. We manage to give her attention, but it’s nowhere near what she gets as being the only child at home. She’s a really sweet cat, but she really doesn’t get along with our cats, so we keep her in her own room most of the time. Sometimes when our cats are all outside, I will open her door and she comes downstairs for awhile. It works out fine, but of course, when our cats come back inside, she has to go back to her room.
A couple of years ago we decided to replace the carpet in our family room with laminate wood flooring. We liked the way it turned out. That left only two rooms downstairs with carpet, the front living room and the master bedroom. Last week we had those two rooms done in wood flooring too. It looks really nice.
The floor guys were here for a couple of days, so we had to shift our cats around. We didn’t want any of them hiding somewhere and not being able to get to the litter boxes, so we put Dash, Kodi and Rhody in Charlie’s computer room. They were fine because they just slept all day as usual. We just knew where they were. None were allowed to go outside during those two days except for Lexi. We never have problems with her being outside.
It was funny, at the end of the second day, after the guys left, we opened the door to let the cats out. They scrambled downstairs and when they saw the floors, it startled them. They all scattered in different directions, sliding, as they ran. Cats are so paranoid. But, no one was hurt and they quickly settled down. They just notice every little change. Of course, this was a big change I guess.
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| Rhody and Jonesie, the cautious one. |
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
If a flea had money, it would buy its own dog....... Jamaican Proverb
or cat!
Last week we had Terminex come and treat the inside of our house for fleas. We had to get the cats out. Since the yard was not being treated, we kenneled Kiki, Dash and Kodi and put them on the back patio. The others were allowed to be loose in the yard. We couldn’t get Debby in a kennel, so we had to leave her in the garage and not have the garage treated. We had to stay out of the house for four hours.
When we were allowed back inside, Charlie vacuumed the floors. We were told to vacuum two or three times a day for a few days and empty the cannister into a trash bag, seal it up and put it in the dumpster. I hope it takes care of our problem.
The night before we had the house done, I gave the cats Capstar, which would kill all of the adult fleas on them. It was supposed to be effective for 24 hours. While we had them all outside, we applied Advantage II, the topical, for continued protection.
I feel like we are doing everything we can do to get this problem under control. It does seem to be better now. We checked the cats and haven’t found any fleas on them so far. The weather is turning cooler and that is helping too.
Kiki had bumps on her body. The vet said it was from an allergic reaction to flea saliva. We decided one night to give her a bath. She didn’t like it much, but she tolerated it better than we thought she would. The bumps were still there, but she seemed to feel much better. After the Capstar and Advantage treatments last week, the bumps have all but disappeared from her body.
Ellie’s flea problem was really bad too. Charlie combed her and we were amazed at the number of fleas she had. Poor little thing. She was being eaten alive. We also gave her a bath. She didn’t like it any more than Kiki did, but it helped to soothe her.
When she dried, we combed her again and found a few fleas, but an improvement. Later, she settled in the cat tree in the family room and went sound asleep. When it was time for bed, Charlie took her up to her room for the night. This was before Terminex came, so I had treated the floor for fleas and Charlie said it seemed to be clear.
When I went up to feed her the next morning, instead of being at the door waiting, she was still asleep. She looked up and yawned as if to say, “Morning already?” It was good to see her getting her rest.
Sheila was groomed the other day and she received her monthly dose of Comfortis. I ordered Capstar for her too, just in case. Charlie has checked her several times and she has no fleas.
We had some trees trimmed in our yard a couple of weeks ago. It may have been better to wait until the weather cooled a little more. I miss the shade in the back of the house that the two trees provided. It made a difference when we were having the 90 degree temps.
Charlie has finished putting up the lattice on the fence and it is working very well. None of the cats have escaped the yard.
Jonesie, however, is our little hunter. He thinks it’s his job to catch birds. I have been taking the bird feeders down and covering the bird bath when he’s in the yard. The birds will hopefully stay away.
Mr. Creme went to the vet for his fructosamine test yesterday. The vet called today and said that his blood glucose was still too high. We were told to increase the insulin from three units a day to four units a day. He gets two units in the morning and two at night. I hope he stabilizes on this.
The B12 pills still seem to be working and keeping his legs strong. He eats well, but does drink quite a bit of water.
Lexi is still congested, but eats well and enjoys spending her days in the yard. We bought a plug in vaporizer for her sleeping area. When I feed her in the mornings, her congestion sounds better, but when I bring her in for the night, she is congested. I don’t think that keeping her inside would make a difference and she would not permit it anyway. She likes being outside and that’s it.
She still has diarrhea and no matter what food I’ve changed her to, it doesn’t help. We’ve had blood work done, Xrays done, given her antibiotics, probiotics, and nothing has helped. I’ve taken her off of wet food and fed only dry food and still nothing changes. But, she doesn’t act sick at all.
Yesterday was shot day for Jonesie. We thought he only needed two vaccinations, but he actually needed three. He just turned two years old and the rabies shot he had last year was only good for a year. I thought that having three shots would slow him down, but it didn’t faze him a bit.
I took a friend to the airport the other day. On the way back, I saw two cars go through a left turn light, which had turned yellow and then red. There is a traffic camera there and at least one of those two people driving those cars are definitely going to receive a citation in the mail. I know, because a couple of years ago, I was cited there.
I had picked up Charlie at the airport one night and we were approaching that turn. I followed a car right through the light. Charlie said, “You just ran that light.” There was a bright flash, which almost blinded me. I said, “I just got my picture taken.” We didn’t really know if it was really enforced or not.
Not long afterwards, I received a citation which included a picture of me behind the wheel. I had joked with Charlie that I would say it was him driving the car. Well, I couldn’t do that because it was obviously me. A bad picture of me, but me. That turned out to be a very expensive drive from the airport.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
Last week we had Terminex come and treat the inside of our house for fleas. We had to get the cats out. Since the yard was not being treated, we kenneled Kiki, Dash and Kodi and put them on the back patio. The others were allowed to be loose in the yard. We couldn’t get Debby in a kennel, so we had to leave her in the garage and not have the garage treated. We had to stay out of the house for four hours.
When we were allowed back inside, Charlie vacuumed the floors. We were told to vacuum two or three times a day for a few days and empty the cannister into a trash bag, seal it up and put it in the dumpster. I hope it takes care of our problem.
The night before we had the house done, I gave the cats Capstar, which would kill all of the adult fleas on them. It was supposed to be effective for 24 hours. While we had them all outside, we applied Advantage II, the topical, for continued protection.
I feel like we are doing everything we can do to get this problem under control. It does seem to be better now. We checked the cats and haven’t found any fleas on them so far. The weather is turning cooler and that is helping too.
Kiki had bumps on her body. The vet said it was from an allergic reaction to flea saliva. We decided one night to give her a bath. She didn’t like it much, but she tolerated it better than we thought she would. The bumps were still there, but she seemed to feel much better. After the Capstar and Advantage treatments last week, the bumps have all but disappeared from her body.
Ellie’s flea problem was really bad too. Charlie combed her and we were amazed at the number of fleas she had. Poor little thing. She was being eaten alive. We also gave her a bath. She didn’t like it any more than Kiki did, but it helped to soothe her.
When she dried, we combed her again and found a few fleas, but an improvement. Later, she settled in the cat tree in the family room and went sound asleep. When it was time for bed, Charlie took her up to her room for the night. This was before Terminex came, so I had treated the floor for fleas and Charlie said it seemed to be clear.
When I went up to feed her the next morning, instead of being at the door waiting, she was still asleep. She looked up and yawned as if to say, “Morning already?” It was good to see her getting her rest.
Sheila was groomed the other day and she received her monthly dose of Comfortis. I ordered Capstar for her too, just in case. Charlie has checked her several times and she has no fleas.
We had some trees trimmed in our yard a couple of weeks ago. It may have been better to wait until the weather cooled a little more. I miss the shade in the back of the house that the two trees provided. It made a difference when we were having the 90 degree temps.
Charlie has finished putting up the lattice on the fence and it is working very well. None of the cats have escaped the yard.
Jonesie, however, is our little hunter. He thinks it’s his job to catch birds. I have been taking the bird feeders down and covering the bird bath when he’s in the yard. The birds will hopefully stay away.
Mr. Creme went to the vet for his fructosamine test yesterday. The vet called today and said that his blood glucose was still too high. We were told to increase the insulin from three units a day to four units a day. He gets two units in the morning and two at night. I hope he stabilizes on this.
The B12 pills still seem to be working and keeping his legs strong. He eats well, but does drink quite a bit of water.
Lexi is still congested, but eats well and enjoys spending her days in the yard. We bought a plug in vaporizer for her sleeping area. When I feed her in the mornings, her congestion sounds better, but when I bring her in for the night, she is congested. I don’t think that keeping her inside would make a difference and she would not permit it anyway. She likes being outside and that’s it.
She still has diarrhea and no matter what food I’ve changed her to, it doesn’t help. We’ve had blood work done, Xrays done, given her antibiotics, probiotics, and nothing has helped. I’ve taken her off of wet food and fed only dry food and still nothing changes. But, she doesn’t act sick at all.
Yesterday was shot day for Jonesie. We thought he only needed two vaccinations, but he actually needed three. He just turned two years old and the rabies shot he had last year was only good for a year. I thought that having three shots would slow him down, but it didn’t faze him a bit.
I took a friend to the airport the other day. On the way back, I saw two cars go through a left turn light, which had turned yellow and then red. There is a traffic camera there and at least one of those two people driving those cars are definitely going to receive a citation in the mail. I know, because a couple of years ago, I was cited there.
I had picked up Charlie at the airport one night and we were approaching that turn. I followed a car right through the light. Charlie said, “You just ran that light.” There was a bright flash, which almost blinded me. I said, “I just got my picture taken.” We didn’t really know if it was really enforced or not.
Not long afterwards, I received a citation which included a picture of me behind the wheel. I had joked with Charlie that I would say it was him driving the car. Well, I couldn’t do that because it was obviously me. A bad picture of me, but me. That turned out to be a very expensive drive from the airport.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
If we treated everyone we meet with the same affection we bestow upon our favorite cat, they, too, would purr.-- Martin Buxbaum
Our lattice work in our yard is almost complete. It seems to be working. We let the cats out in the afternoon and they are staying in the yard.
The flea problem still hasn’t gone away. We are using Frontline on the cats and Comfortis on Sheila. When the Terminex guy came the second time, he did suspect that with the neighbor’s dogs, we may have a problem until they do something in their own yards. He may have a point.
Mr. Creme went back to the vet last week for a fructosamine test. It came back high and his insulin has been increased from two a day to three a day; two in the morning and one at night. He will go back in two or three weeks for follow up. He’s eating well and getting around well. I think he feels better with the increased insulin.
Lexi also went back to the vet for follow up. She still has diarrhea and congestion. We got some more Fortiflora (probiotic) and some Metronidazole, which is an antibiotic that is used commonly to treat protozoal infections and anaerobic bacterial infections. It also has anti-inflammatory effects in the bowel. Since Lexi has had diarrhea for such a long time, we are only trying to find out something that works, I guess. It’s a liquid and she will take it for ten days.
Lexi seems normal in every other way. She doesn’t lie around listless. She eats, drinks water, wants attention and looks good. She has lost a few ounces though.
Ellie went to the vet to get her senior blood panel done. Everything looks fine. Her white blood cells are up, but the vet thinks it’s due to her neuropathy. She also has lost a few ounces. She gets around fine and eats well.
We are worried about Ellie though because she is so thin. She sleeps in my computer room, but during the day she likes to be outside. We’re feeding her three or four times a day to hopefully keep her weight up. I call her my colicky baby because she is constantly meowing and wanting to sit on my lap while I’m trying to work at the computer. When I wrap her up in a blanket and sit in my rocker and hold her, she falls asleep. I will spend as much time with her as I can because I know we won’t always have her.
She had an asthma attack last night. I gave her a pill. She started coughing and I took her outside for a few minutes where it was cooler. It seemed to help.
Mr. Creme, Lexi and Ellie’s mother, Jezibel, seems to be in good health. She doesn’t have the problems that her “kids” have. I’m glad. She is not on any regular medication, but does have asthma attacks occasionally.
Last week Charlie took Rhody to the vet to get his shots. He has never been to our vet because when we got him last year, they weren’t open on Sundays. I wanted to get him in and checked out before introducing him into our cat household, so I took him to our previous vet. They took care of him through his kitten-hood.
While Charlie was waiting at the vet’s, the receptionist couldn’t help but say, “So, Mr. Bell, you have another one?”
The vet noted that Rhody was a big boy and was mildly surprised that he was only a year old. He passed his physical though.
The “twins”, Jason and Kaci, went to the vet today. It was clinic day and all shots were half price. The twins have reaction to shots so we have to get only one shot per visit. They will have to go back for their feline leukemia shot next time.
We did manage to get away one night to see The Dave Mathews Band in concert. It was every bit as good as we expected. The Cricket Amphitheater is a great venue with excellent sight lines and a superb audio setup. We were just to the right of center stage and toward the back of the main seating area, but there is enough elevation in the outdoor arena that we could see everything that was going on.
The opening act was singer Alan Stone. We didn't know anything about him. Charlie looked up his bio online and it mentioned that he began touring about four years ago and sings R&B/soul. I would have to say that it’s likable music, but not something I'd go out and buy.
The crowd really wanted to get to the Dave Mathews Band. Stone, several times, had to plead for the crowd to get loud, but without much success. The sell-out crowd didn't even start to really fill up the place until Stone was two-thirds of the way through his set.
We had seen the Dave Mathews Band here a few years ago. If anything, the band has gotten even better. He opened with the song "Why I Am," a big hit from his last album, which got everyone on their feet, and they played almost non-stop for the next three hours.
My only complaint was that there was a couple of people who were two rows in front of us who wanted to stand for the whole concert. People asked them to sit down for awhile, but they refused. That got a little tiring not be able to see the stage. I don’t know why some people are so inconsiderate. We paid for our seats too.
But, it was a warm night and we really enjoyed being there. We got home around midnight.
I’m still working at the acupuncture clinic. My back problem is better than it was a year ago, but it still gives me problems. I went to the chiropractor two weeks ago for my monthly visit. My muscles were very sore, but he relaxed them and I felt better.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
The flea problem still hasn’t gone away. We are using Frontline on the cats and Comfortis on Sheila. When the Terminex guy came the second time, he did suspect that with the neighbor’s dogs, we may have a problem until they do something in their own yards. He may have a point.
Mr. Creme went back to the vet last week for a fructosamine test. It came back high and his insulin has been increased from two a day to three a day; two in the morning and one at night. He will go back in two or three weeks for follow up. He’s eating well and getting around well. I think he feels better with the increased insulin.
Lexi also went back to the vet for follow up. She still has diarrhea and congestion. We got some more Fortiflora (probiotic) and some Metronidazole, which is an antibiotic that is used commonly to treat protozoal infections and anaerobic bacterial infections. It also has anti-inflammatory effects in the bowel. Since Lexi has had diarrhea for such a long time, we are only trying to find out something that works, I guess. It’s a liquid and she will take it for ten days.
Lexi seems normal in every other way. She doesn’t lie around listless. She eats, drinks water, wants attention and looks good. She has lost a few ounces though.
Ellie went to the vet to get her senior blood panel done. Everything looks fine. Her white blood cells are up, but the vet thinks it’s due to her neuropathy. She also has lost a few ounces. She gets around fine and eats well.
We are worried about Ellie though because she is so thin. She sleeps in my computer room, but during the day she likes to be outside. We’re feeding her three or four times a day to hopefully keep her weight up. I call her my colicky baby because she is constantly meowing and wanting to sit on my lap while I’m trying to work at the computer. When I wrap her up in a blanket and sit in my rocker and hold her, she falls asleep. I will spend as much time with her as I can because I know we won’t always have her.
She had an asthma attack last night. I gave her a pill. She started coughing and I took her outside for a few minutes where it was cooler. It seemed to help.
Mr. Creme, Lexi and Ellie’s mother, Jezibel, seems to be in good health. She doesn’t have the problems that her “kids” have. I’m glad. She is not on any regular medication, but does have asthma attacks occasionally.
Last week Charlie took Rhody to the vet to get his shots. He has never been to our vet because when we got him last year, they weren’t open on Sundays. I wanted to get him in and checked out before introducing him into our cat household, so I took him to our previous vet. They took care of him through his kitten-hood.
While Charlie was waiting at the vet’s, the receptionist couldn’t help but say, “So, Mr. Bell, you have another one?”
The vet noted that Rhody was a big boy and was mildly surprised that he was only a year old. He passed his physical though.
The “twins”, Jason and Kaci, went to the vet today. It was clinic day and all shots were half price. The twins have reaction to shots so we have to get only one shot per visit. They will have to go back for their feline leukemia shot next time.
We did manage to get away one night to see The Dave Mathews Band in concert. It was every bit as good as we expected. The Cricket Amphitheater is a great venue with excellent sight lines and a superb audio setup. We were just to the right of center stage and toward the back of the main seating area, but there is enough elevation in the outdoor arena that we could see everything that was going on.
The opening act was singer Alan Stone. We didn't know anything about him. Charlie looked up his bio online and it mentioned that he began touring about four years ago and sings R&B/soul. I would have to say that it’s likable music, but not something I'd go out and buy.
The crowd really wanted to get to the Dave Mathews Band. Stone, several times, had to plead for the crowd to get loud, but without much success. The sell-out crowd didn't even start to really fill up the place until Stone was two-thirds of the way through his set.
We had seen the Dave Mathews Band here a few years ago. If anything, the band has gotten even better. He opened with the song "Why I Am," a big hit from his last album, which got everyone on their feet, and they played almost non-stop for the next three hours.
My only complaint was that there was a couple of people who were two rows in front of us who wanted to stand for the whole concert. People asked them to sit down for awhile, but they refused. That got a little tiring not be able to see the stage. I don’t know why some people are so inconsiderate. We paid for our seats too.
But, it was a warm night and we really enjoyed being there. We got home around midnight.
I’m still working at the acupuncture clinic. My back problem is better than it was a year ago, but it still gives me problems. I went to the chiropractor two weeks ago for my monthly visit. My muscles were very sore, but he relaxed them and I felt better.
More later....
TazzyD.... _^..^_
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