Okay, so people have been nagging me about wanting to know what the monkeys have been up to lately. Be prepared for a lot of info! :-)
Johnny & Simon have been good little troopers with handling lots of changes in their environment and routine.
1. They spent 5 days alone over Thanksgiving with a daily check-in by one of my classmates.
2. Three days after we got back, we picked up foster cat Daisy, who stayed till mid-December.
3. Two days after Daisy was adopted (great home, by the way), we had a visit from mother/father/brother-in-law.
4. Two days after the in-laws left, J&S got to spend another 5 days alone with a pet-sitter once a day while we were in Minnesota.
5. After we got back from MN, they had to put up with me hanging around the house constantly for 2 more weeks until my spring semester started.
6. Finally, a period of relative calm! That is, until...
7. Lucy arrived for a visit in late February.
8. Two weeks of peace, and then....
9. Dad arrived for a visit this past week!
The cats act a little put-out when their routine is disrupted - especially when somebody else is staying in the house. With all of our human guests, as well as foster cat Daisy, J&S have been kicked out of "their" bedroom (the guest bedroom) where they like to lounge on the bed in the sun, sleep at night, and hide in the box springs. They are thus relegated to snoozing on the couch downstairs. (Yep, it's a pretty rough life.)
Simon went to the VTH in early January for a rabies vaccine. He was such a good boy - he is quiet in the car, doesn't protest the carrier, cooperates for his exam, and even tolerated me stopping for gas, groceries, and to return a DVD on our way home. I felt it was nice to give him a bit of a respite and remind him that it isn't EVERY time that he goes in his carrier in the car that he has to stay at the VTH for the entire day and get needles poked in him and be knocked out and feel loopy for the whole afternoon.
In late February, Simon got to make his "therapy cat" debut at a Fort Collins nursing home. I honestly had no idea how he would do - I thought he would be ok but was entirely prepared for the possibility that he would totally flip out.
In the end, he tolerated it. I don't know that he really enjoyed being there, but we had no hissing, scratching, growling, biting, etc., he came out of his carrier willingly, didn't try to get off his harness/leash, and didn't try to run away after the first couple minutes. There was only 1 other cat there and no dogs, so that wasn't an issue. I held him in my arms for the residents to pet, and when he got antsy, I let him walk around on his own on his leash. I'll probably bring him back again when they do their next visit, and hopefully he'll be even better on the second visit.
Yesterday, I brought Johnny to the VTH for his annual exam and vaccines. He got to have both a rabies and an FVRCP, and he got dewormed and had a chemistry panel and CBC and got sent home with a sterile sample container to bring back a fecal sample -- all courtesy of a new "pet wellness plan" the VTH is offering, which is normally $99/year ($59 with my vet student discount) and included the exam/vaccines/deworming/fecal and I still get my 40% discount on the bloodwork which I was going to do anyway. Plus if I bring him in any time in the next 12 months, he gets additional discounts on his exams and more bloodwork/fecals if he needs them.
It's been a year and a half since I brought Johnny to the VTH (a year since I brought him to a local Windsor clinic for shots), and I guess I have just been bringing Simon so many times that I forgot what a wuss Johnny is.
First of all, Johnny doesn't like riding in the car. (Actually, to clarify, he doesn't like riding in the car on the way to the vet.) He meowed pretty much constantly for the entire 35 minute drive (or at least I assume he did - I turned up the radio so I wouldn't have to listen to him).
We got to the VTH a little early for his appointment, and community practice was running late, so we sat in the lobby for about 20 minutes before they called us. (I am used to this, fortunately, so knew to bring a book.) But poor Johnny was just totally freaked out, and was shivering (nervous shivers) so hard that he was shaking his carrier on the bench next to me. Poor little dude!
He was mildly reluctant to exit his carrier once we got into an exam room, and didn't want me to hold him -- he preferred to pace around the room and check things out. He was a little squirmy for his exam, but nothing too terrible. Amazingly, he even tolerated a rectal temperature (for the most part)!
After the senior student got his history and did his physical, she took him back to the community practice rounds room to consult with the clinician, get his blood, and vaccinate him. She told me it would be "about 20 minutes," to which I thought, "Ha!" and said, "Okay, I'll be in the lobby."
Forty-five minutes later, Johnny was back, and not looking much happier. As predicted, his blood draw was pretty much a repeat performance of his last bloodwork 18 months ago -- no aggression but lots of squirming and knocking the needle out of his vein at the last minute, multiple veins used, and a nice hematoma on his leg from wriggling around. He really doesn't like to be restrained. At least this time I knew to warn them in advance to watch out for his anal glands.
Poor Johnny finally figured out how to get under the towel in his carrier and buried his face there for the remainder of our visit and checking out.
He was remarkably happier on the car ride home - perked up, not a peep out of him, and gave his shaved neck as thorough a bath as he could physically manage before settling in for a nap. Simon also saw to it that Johnny received a thorough bath once he got home.
So everybody is vaccinated, as healthy as they usually are, and back to a normal routine for awhile. Simon doesn't go in to donate blood until late April. Lord willing, Johnny doesn't have to go in again till next spring. We aren't expecting more houseguests for two or possibly one more month.
That means they can get back into their usual routine of kicking litter all over the place, pulling dish towels up the stairs every night, shredding toilet paper when they're bored during the day, and generally being annoying, albeit charming and loveable, little cats.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Friday, December 4, 2009
Business as usual
The bedroom door must not have been closed all the way when CLH left for work this morning, because I was awakened by Simon marching across the pillow over my head. When I sat up to shoo him away, I promptly noticed Johnny sitting, quite contentedly, on top of the dresser. Sigh.
Now downstairs eating breakfast and checking email. I just found Simon standing with two of his feet in the several inches of water in the big pot we keep on top of the garbage can. Johnny is trying to steal the toast crumbs off of my plate.
But hey, life would be so dull without cats!
Now downstairs eating breakfast and checking email. I just found Simon standing with two of his feet in the several inches of water in the big pot we keep on top of the garbage can. Johnny is trying to steal the toast crumbs off of my plate.
But hey, life would be so dull without cats!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
New monkey!
"Monkey Business" has been temporarily expanded to include a third monkey.
Introducing....
Miss "Daisy"!
(Technological difficulties. Use your imagination to insert a cute picture here.)
"Daisy," as we are calling her, has been living as a stray outside my vet school friend TR's condo in Fort Collins for 6-9 months. With the recent drop in temperatures, Daisy finally got smart and started asking people to let her inside.
TR took pity on poor miss Daisy and took her in. The only catch is, TR has two English springer spaniels that think cats are great. Very tasty.
So Daisy lived in TR's bathroom for about a week, coming out to enjoy the house only when the dogs were in the backyard. Things clearly weren't going to work out with both a cat and the dogs living in the same house, so I offered to bring Daisy home for awhile, depending on how she did with Johnny & Simon.
I went over to TR's house after school on Monday to meet Daisy and bring her home. At TR's house, she was just the sweetest thing - snuggling, cuddling, purring, and generally sweet and adorable.
(If you want to know how sweet she is, consider this: In my 16 months of knowing TR, I have never once heard her make a positive comment about any cat. But she told me that she actually wished she could keep Daisy, if only her dogs wouldn't eat poor Daisy.)
We loaded Daisy into one of my carriers (Daisy dislikes riding in the car and chewed her way through TR's cardboard cat carrier on the way to and from the vet) and set her up in the car.
All was fine. For about a block.
Then Daisy threw what I can best describe as a hissy fit. Think of a 2 or 3 year old kid having a total, all-out, screaming, kicking, writhing tantrum. She yowled, cried, reached her arms through the bars and tried to destroy the upholstery, threw herself onto her side and her back, kicked the carrier... you get the idea.
I thought there was some hope for a peaceful drive home when we finally got onto I-25. Daisy shut up and sat still for about 2 miles, but started up again with the tantrum for the last 4 miles of freeway, plus the 10 minutes into Windsor.
Since then, she's been calmer, although not entirely much calmer. It took her a couple days to settle in and get used to her surroundings.
She now has a ravenous appetite, is less wary of Johnny & Simon, knows she is not supposed to be up on the kitchen counters, and has torn her way into the mattress in the guest bedroom so she can have a cozy place to hide and sleep.
Johnny is getting along with her pretty well. He is intrigued and curious about her, and not exactly sure what to think. He tends to keep his distance and takes her cues pretty well (i.e. backs off when she hisses at him).
Simon is feeling more combative. He will hiss at her and tussle with her if they are out together. He's gotten better in just a few days but they are still kept separate.
Daisy is a cute little brown tabby girl, 1-2 years old and about 7 pounds. She is such a little thing compared to Johnny & Simon - makes them look like cartoonishly large, slow, lumbering catosaurs. She moves at the speed of lightning and is excellent at sneaking through doors when you least expect it. She needs to keep busy and hates being cooped up in the bedroom alone. She uses the litterbox just fine but has absolutely no house manners - she sees nothing wrong with being up on the kitchen counters, bathroom counters, kitchen table, bookshelves, dresses, computer desks, TV table, etc. It really makes me realize how "good" our two monkeys are in comparison (of course, she just hasn't learned what's appropriate and what's not).
TR has posted a couple ads on Craigslist looking for a home for Daisy, and we've had some interest. Maybe the best possibility is an acquaintance of a vet school classmate who is looking to adopt a cat. I've talked to a couple sketchy people who may need to look elsewhere. TR got Daisy vaccinated, dewormed, and FeLV/FIV tested, but we don't know if she's spayed. (She was a little, erm, fractious at the VTH so they couldn't shave her to look for a spay scar.) We'll probably end up taking her to the Fort Collins spay-neuter clinic to be spayed (or make sure she already is) and microchipped.
She is a good little girl, but a little wild and in need of attention. It is not the best set up for her to be locked up in a bedroom by herself most of the time, but I guess it's better than being frozen (temps got down to zero last night) or eaten by a pair of springers!
Introducing....
Miss "Daisy"!
(Technological difficulties. Use your imagination to insert a cute picture here.)
"Daisy," as we are calling her, has been living as a stray outside my vet school friend TR's condo in Fort Collins for 6-9 months. With the recent drop in temperatures, Daisy finally got smart and started asking people to let her inside.
TR took pity on poor miss Daisy and took her in. The only catch is, TR has two English springer spaniels that think cats are great. Very tasty.
So Daisy lived in TR's bathroom for about a week, coming out to enjoy the house only when the dogs were in the backyard. Things clearly weren't going to work out with both a cat and the dogs living in the same house, so I offered to bring Daisy home for awhile, depending on how she did with Johnny & Simon.
I went over to TR's house after school on Monday to meet Daisy and bring her home. At TR's house, she was just the sweetest thing - snuggling, cuddling, purring, and generally sweet and adorable.
(If you want to know how sweet she is, consider this: In my 16 months of knowing TR, I have never once heard her make a positive comment about any cat. But she told me that she actually wished she could keep Daisy, if only her dogs wouldn't eat poor Daisy.)
We loaded Daisy into one of my carriers (Daisy dislikes riding in the car and chewed her way through TR's cardboard cat carrier on the way to and from the vet) and set her up in the car.
All was fine. For about a block.
Then Daisy threw what I can best describe as a hissy fit. Think of a 2 or 3 year old kid having a total, all-out, screaming, kicking, writhing tantrum. She yowled, cried, reached her arms through the bars and tried to destroy the upholstery, threw herself onto her side and her back, kicked the carrier... you get the idea.
I thought there was some hope for a peaceful drive home when we finally got onto I-25. Daisy shut up and sat still for about 2 miles, but started up again with the tantrum for the last 4 miles of freeway, plus the 10 minutes into Windsor.
Since then, she's been calmer, although not entirely much calmer. It took her a couple days to settle in and get used to her surroundings.
She now has a ravenous appetite, is less wary of Johnny & Simon, knows she is not supposed to be up on the kitchen counters, and has torn her way into the mattress in the guest bedroom so she can have a cozy place to hide and sleep.
Johnny is getting along with her pretty well. He is intrigued and curious about her, and not exactly sure what to think. He tends to keep his distance and takes her cues pretty well (i.e. backs off when she hisses at him).
Simon is feeling more combative. He will hiss at her and tussle with her if they are out together. He's gotten better in just a few days but they are still kept separate.
Daisy is a cute little brown tabby girl, 1-2 years old and about 7 pounds. She is such a little thing compared to Johnny & Simon - makes them look like cartoonishly large, slow, lumbering catosaurs. She moves at the speed of lightning and is excellent at sneaking through doors when you least expect it. She needs to keep busy and hates being cooped up in the bedroom alone. She uses the litterbox just fine but has absolutely no house manners - she sees nothing wrong with being up on the kitchen counters, bathroom counters, kitchen table, bookshelves, dresses, computer desks, TV table, etc. It really makes me realize how "good" our two monkeys are in comparison (of course, she just hasn't learned what's appropriate and what's not).
TR has posted a couple ads on Craigslist looking for a home for Daisy, and we've had some interest. Maybe the best possibility is an acquaintance of a vet school classmate who is looking to adopt a cat. I've talked to a couple sketchy people who may need to look elsewhere. TR got Daisy vaccinated, dewormed, and FeLV/FIV tested, but we don't know if she's spayed. (She was a little, erm, fractious at the VTH so they couldn't shave her to look for a spay scar.) We'll probably end up taking her to the Fort Collins spay-neuter clinic to be spayed (or make sure she already is) and microchipped.
She is a good little girl, but a little wild and in need of attention. It is not the best set up for her to be locked up in a bedroom by herself most of the time, but I guess it's better than being frozen (temps got down to zero last night) or eaten by a pair of springers!
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Cross your fingers
Tonight, we put up, for the very first time, a full-sized artificial Christmas tree. It has no lights or ornaments yet, and we are hoping it will still be standing in the morning after spending the night alone in the living room with the cats. Send happy thoughts our way!
Friday, November 27, 2009
Cats want a sister?
One of my good vet school friends recently claimed, somewhat begrudgingly, a stray cat that has been in her neighborhood for awhile. The only problem is, her dogs are serious cat-haters and would love to get their teeth on this poor kitty.
So I think Ms. Stray is going to come stay at our house for awhile. Or at least we'll give it a try and see how it goes. She's been to the VTH and had a clean bill of health, her vaccines, and a negative FeLV/FIV test. She's 1-2 years in age and it's unknown if she's spayed.
My friend reports Ms. Stray is quite friendly and playful when the dogs are absent. There are a couple leads on potential homes for her (she probably wouldn't do well in a humane society setting since she apparently flips out at the vet), but nobody could take her until about a month from now.
So she'll probably be coming to stay in our spare bedroom on Monday, and we'll see how things go. I'm interested to see how Simon likes having a new cat in his house! They will be separated for awhile. :-)
So I think Ms. Stray is going to come stay at our house for awhile. Or at least we'll give it a try and see how it goes. She's been to the VTH and had a clean bill of health, her vaccines, and a negative FeLV/FIV test. She's 1-2 years in age and it's unknown if she's spayed.
My friend reports Ms. Stray is quite friendly and playful when the dogs are absent. There are a couple leads on potential homes for her (she probably wouldn't do well in a humane society setting since she apparently flips out at the vet), but nobody could take her until about a month from now.
So she'll probably be coming to stay in our spare bedroom on Monday, and we'll see how things go. I'm interested to see how Simon likes having a new cat in his house! They will be separated for awhile. :-)
Home again!
We arrived back from Arizona this afternoon, after a 4.5 day absence. I think the cats were happy and mildly confused to see us. Seems like 4 days or so is just about the right amount of time for them really get used to being by themselves all day. Then we come back and shake up their whole routine and want them to share the house with us again!
One of my school friends came by once a day on Tues/Wed/Thurs to feed and water them and scoop the litterboxes. Other than that they were on their own, and it looks like they behaved themselves (though, of course, we have learned by now to take out all the trash, lock away the tempting items, close the bathroom doors, etc.).
I had hoped they would re-outgrow their toilet paper obsession sometime soon, but it appears not. They must have resented having both bathrooms closed while we were gone, because they took the liberty of unrolling half the roll of TP in the downstairs bathroom while we were upstairs tonight. (At least they didn't shred it! That's a start! Yes, I am trying to find a silver lining.)
So they are back to their normal routine, trying desperately to convince anybody who is upstairs that they are starving and haven't eaten for 3 days, and begging at the kitchen table during dinner. Guarding the DVD player while we watch a show, waiting for the disc to pop out at the end. (That's the new favorite game around here.)
One of my school friends came by once a day on Tues/Wed/Thurs to feed and water them and scoop the litterboxes. Other than that they were on their own, and it looks like they behaved themselves (though, of course, we have learned by now to take out all the trash, lock away the tempting items, close the bathroom doors, etc.).
I had hoped they would re-outgrow their toilet paper obsession sometime soon, but it appears not. They must have resented having both bathrooms closed while we were gone, because they took the liberty of unrolling half the roll of TP in the downstairs bathroom while we were upstairs tonight. (At least they didn't shred it! That's a start! Yes, I am trying to find a silver lining.)
So they are back to their normal routine, trying desperately to convince anybody who is upstairs that they are starving and haven't eaten for 3 days, and begging at the kitchen table during dinner. Guarding the DVD player while we watch a show, waiting for the disc to pop out at the end. (That's the new favorite game around here.)
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Zey took my blaaahhd!
Dear Diary,
Yesterday, I had to go to the veterinary teaching hospital with Mom so I could donate blood.
Which means I didn't get breakfast!
Dad got up before Mom and he said I wasn't too whiny or annoying.... but when Mom finally got up, I certainly expressed my displeasure to her. (I knew that it wasn't Dad's fault I didn't get b-fast.)
So, number one, no breakfast.
Number two: had to go in my carrier and ride in the car.
(Okay, I am a weird, weird cat and I will admit that I sort of like riding in the car.)
We left a little before 8 am and she dropped me off at the VTH around 8:30.
I always get to stay in the same ward (the cats-only internal medicine ward), which is fine. Usually there are 1 or 2 more cats in there, and no dogs.
But yesterday, there were 5 or 6 cats there already! Hence, I was a bit wary and expressed my displeasure via hissing.
Mom set me up with a blankie and a litter pan and a bowl of water (no food, bummer), then she left for the day.
When she came back to pick me up at 3 pm, I was soooo loopy!
Mom found a note on my cage that said that the internal medicine department was really busy today, so I didn't get to donate blood till 1:30 pm. Usually I'm done by late morning and I get to spend a few hours in the afternoon waking up before Mom gets here.
So, let's just say I still had a little ketamine on board. Made for an exciting ride home!
I also apparently misbehaved a little, because the note said I was great for my blood draw and beforehand, but that I was "grumpy" when I woke up. Can you blame me?
On the way out the door, the nurse who coordinates the blood donor program told Mom that I am an awesome cat and that I am her favorite blood-donor cat. Points for me!
When I got home, I got a little bit of crunchies, since I hadn't eaten all day, but Mom said I couldn't have too much because she didn't want me to throw up on the carpet. What a whiner!
My charming brother, as usual, gave me a thorough sniffing and decided I needed a bath so I didn't smell so much like hospital. I always get annoyed when he tries to sniff my butt over and over, and the lingering ketamine in this case made me not too accepting of his curiosity and his invasion of my personal space. He got the idea after a couple swats.
Now I have a nice shaved spot on my neck, and a bruise that's going away. And I don't have to go back to donate again till February '10!
(Although I do have to go next month and get a rabies shot.... boo.)
Cheers,
Simon
Yesterday, I had to go to the veterinary teaching hospital with Mom so I could donate blood.
Which means I didn't get breakfast!
Dad got up before Mom and he said I wasn't too whiny or annoying.... but when Mom finally got up, I certainly expressed my displeasure to her. (I knew that it wasn't Dad's fault I didn't get b-fast.)
So, number one, no breakfast.
Number two: had to go in my carrier and ride in the car.
(Okay, I am a weird, weird cat and I will admit that I sort of like riding in the car.)
We left a little before 8 am and she dropped me off at the VTH around 8:30.
I always get to stay in the same ward (the cats-only internal medicine ward), which is fine. Usually there are 1 or 2 more cats in there, and no dogs.
But yesterday, there were 5 or 6 cats there already! Hence, I was a bit wary and expressed my displeasure via hissing.
Mom set me up with a blankie and a litter pan and a bowl of water (no food, bummer), then she left for the day.
When she came back to pick me up at 3 pm, I was soooo loopy!
Mom found a note on my cage that said that the internal medicine department was really busy today, so I didn't get to donate blood till 1:30 pm. Usually I'm done by late morning and I get to spend a few hours in the afternoon waking up before Mom gets here.
So, let's just say I still had a little ketamine on board. Made for an exciting ride home!
I also apparently misbehaved a little, because the note said I was great for my blood draw and beforehand, but that I was "grumpy" when I woke up. Can you blame me?
On the way out the door, the nurse who coordinates the blood donor program told Mom that I am an awesome cat and that I am her favorite blood-donor cat. Points for me!
When I got home, I got a little bit of crunchies, since I hadn't eaten all day, but Mom said I couldn't have too much because she didn't want me to throw up on the carpet. What a whiner!
My charming brother, as usual, gave me a thorough sniffing and decided I needed a bath so I didn't smell so much like hospital. I always get annoyed when he tries to sniff my butt over and over, and the lingering ketamine in this case made me not too accepting of his curiosity and his invasion of my personal space. He got the idea after a couple swats.
Now I have a nice shaved spot on my neck, and a bruise that's going away. And I don't have to go back to donate again till February '10!
(Although I do have to go next month and get a rabies shot.... boo.)
Cheers,
Simon
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