MacBeth totally zonked

Hopefully sleeping off the illness

Protecting them from the resident cats

These three little ones are not in good shape. Their guts sound like a washing machine. When they eat and at least now they are eating – I hear what sounds like air in their throat I wonder if she accidentally aspirated them? Whatever the case, I will probably never know, and so when a bottle baby becomes ill, it really becomes a crapshoot as to what is wrong with them. For these guys, their churning guts indicate a lot of digestive upset, gas and air trapped in their systems. The nasty green diarrhea means that they either have coccidia, giardia, a parasite load or some other infection working. The bloating of the bellies both before and after feeding/stimulation could indicate FIP Feline Infectious Peritonitis and if it is FIP then these kitties will be dead by the end of the week, because IF they do have it- it is the wet form not the dry- and the wet form is aggressive and merciless on little ones. But FIP also mimics other diseases as well and these little ones aren’t big enough to be tested for much.

So for now, I will stay the course and keep adding probiotic powder (just a pinch) and a bit of mineral oil to their formula daily. They are not even a half-a-pound in weight, so they are getting .15 cc of Albon once a day. If the Albon fails to arrest what is going on, my next step is to put them on Amoxy.

When your bottle baby is so ill, it is imperative that you don’t change up their routine in any way and keep them to a set schedule of feedings, stimulation, playtime and bonding. Even these young ones need a set routine in order to feel comfortable and to reduce any stress they might feel- as stress can kill a young kitten quite quickly.

Wish me luck faithful readers- as the feline specialist told me yesterday- it is still quite possible I can lose one if not all of them before this is over- 🙁

I have the three kittens back and they aren’t in good shape. They are not eating, they have nasty bad diarrhea and MacBeth is constantly crying. He bit me hard when I was stimulating him. This is the first time I have ever been bit by such a young kitten. I talked to the feline specialist and she suspects tummy trouble so I have them on a bit of probiotics as well as Albon to see if I can simmer them down a bit. I miss Triffles though- next to Troy, she was my favorite.

Introducing a cat to a dog does not always flow smoothly because animals can be unpredictable. Before you proceed to put the two animals together, please consider first the following factors:
• What breed of dog you are working with.
• Are you the leader of the pack?
• Is your dog obedience trained and compliant?

If your dog is a cross-breed and the two breeds are not fully compatible, you could have a genetically confused dog. This can make for a bit of a problem when you want to introduce Fido to a cat or kitten. If you are not Alpha over your dog, then he does not respect you, he will not listen to you, and introductions to your cat should wait. Things to remember:

• You cannot control the cat. Your focus should be on controlling the dog.
• You need to consider the breed of dog you are working with.
• The dog should be obedience trained, and should respect you.
• A puppy will become overly excited, and could hurt the cat unintentionally.
• When it goes right, you praise, praise, praise. If it goes wrong NEVER punish!

Your dog needs to have completed basic obedience training before this introduction. Dogs are pack animals. They respond to other dogs differently. Don’t make the mistake of thinking because he is accepting of other dogs in the class or at the dog park, that he will respond to a cat favorably right away. Cats and dogs are by nature, prey and predator.

If you have a purebred dog, be sure to research how this breed gets along with other pets. For example; an Afghan hound is a hunter. If an Afghan sees a cat outside, it will chase the cat. But inside the home, it will not. Cocker Spaniels, Beagles, Bassett Hounds and Dachsunds are good with other pets. Your sporting dog groups are not generally good with pets: they may have issues with cats.

If you have a cross-breed ask your vet what the dog resembles, then make a judgment of how best to handle that first introduction.

Here are some tips.

• I cannot stress this enough! Obedience classes are a must. If your dog has not been through an obedience course, do not attempt the introductions.

• Keep your cat isolated from your dog. Make a safe and secure room for the cat.

• Swap scents; using an old blanket or towel, give the item to your cat. Let her play on it, sleep on it, eat on it. Rub her with this blanket and then leave it in her room for 24 hours.

• Remove the blanket and present it to your dog. Rub him all over with it, let him roll on it, sniff it, sleep on it for 24 hours, then switch and do the same thing again. This blends their scents, making them a bit more at ease with each other.

• Stay away from plush soft toys for your dog. A soft chew toy resembles a small kitten and the dog may not be able to make the distinction. Stick with kong toys or tennis balls or rope pulls instead. Never buy a faux fur toy for your dog if you have a cat in the home.

Obedience course completed? Good job!

You are both ready for the first meeting.

Take the dog for an extended walk, use a choke collar and short leash, not a retractable lead. You have minimal control with a retractable lead, and you do not have your dog’s attention if he is allowed to run all over the place.

Bring his favorite toy and find a safe place where he can run and play fetch. You want him tired and relaxed.

Return home and put him in one of your largest rooms. You should have a second person there to help you now. Put him in one end of the room, farthest from the door, on a down- and- stay command. Keep your hand on the leash so you have control of him.

Have the second person bring the cat into the room, and set the cat down in the opposite end of the room. Make sure the dog stays calm.

The cat will react in various ways upon seeing the dog. The cat can spit, hiss and run out of the room, or dive for cover. She could attack. If she runs at the dog, bring the dog into a sit position quickly. This should stop her attack.

She may just walk carefully over to the dog to check him out. As long as you have that lead attached to that collar and the dog’s respect you have control. Keep your emotions down for both animals will feed on your emotions.

If the cat runs out of the room and the dog wants to chase, pull up sharply one time on the lead and collar and tell the dog firmly “No Chase!” Then leave the dog in the room with the door closed.

Locate your cat and herd her into her room (she probably already is there). She is going to be scared and defensive, so don’t pick her up. Herd her into her safe room, turn the lights down, turn on some classical music low (to help soothe her). Shut the door and leave her be. Don’t mess with her, or you may get bit or scratched. It is helpful to have feliway spray available, you can spray the room to help the cat stay calm.

Try the same routine the next day. Keep doing this procedure for as long as it takes for the animals not to react to each other.

Have patience, it is a slow process. They have to come to understand that, they are not a danger to each other. Once you see that neither animal reacts, take the lead off the dog. Be sure to observe them carefully. Some dogs will chase the cat when it turns around and runs. This is a normal reaction on the dog’s part, but the dog may also hurt the cat in the process.

Make sure your dog does not gain access to the cat’s litter boxes. Cats are gulpers by nature, so they rarely chew all their food. What they leave in their pans smells like pure protein to a dog. He is going after the scent of the *food* he smells, the cat is just in the way.

One of the quickest ways to destroy the trust these two animals will build up with each other, is to allow the dog to ambush the cat in the litter pan. A Booda domed litter pan works, only if you have a dog of a larger breed, but a small puppy can easily find his way through the opening and attack the cat inside.

If you have a small puppy, the safest first introduction is done best while the cat/kitten is in a large cage. You don’t want to use a cat carrier, or a dog crate, it should be a large wire cage.

Place the cat/kitten inside the cage, and bring the puppy (on a lead) into the room. Again, be sure the puppy has gone through basic obedience. Let them see each other; don’t allow the puppy to get to close. Keep your voice level and firm and put the puppy on a down and stay command near the cage. Let him lie there for five minutes, then lead him out of the room and feed him a tasty treat. Go back and release the cat/kitten out of the cage.

Do this style of introduction over a period of two weeks. Gradually move the puppy closer and closer to the cage. If the cat is spitting and hissing let her. This is normal behavior. As long as you have control of the puppy that is the most important aspect of this method.

If you haven’t brought the dog/puppy into the home yet, there are a few ways you can prepare your cat for this. Make sure first of all that you set-up safe places. Places tall enough where the cat can scramble to if danger confronts her. A tall cat condo is ideal. Dogs cannot climb, but they can jump so be sure that the condo is tall enough and sturdy enough, that if the puppy or the dog jumps against it, the condo will stand. You can attach it to the wall by some sturdy screws.

If your friend has a dog that is used to cats, ask your friend to bring the dog over for an evening. Don’t force the cat to come in the same room. Chances are she won’t, and she will hide fairly effectively. But it will allow your cat to be exposed to what is coming.

You will want to start feeding your cat off the floor. Dogs love cat food. If you have a table that you can clear off, or a shelf and start feeding your cat there, you will have less confrontation issues over-all.

After the dog arrives, be sure and put the cat in another room everytime you feed the dog. More cats and kittens get bit when they try and raid the dog’s food bowl. It is a “doggy accident” and not intentional.

Set up a secure room for the cat. Do not allow the dog access to this room. This is the place where the cat knows is a “no-dog” zone. Allow her someway to access this room 24/7 while the dog cannot gain access to it.

Despite the fact that in nature these two are enemies, this sharing of space can work. The key is really YOU. YOU have to take the initiative and research the breeds of dogs. YOU have to take your dog through obedience courses, keep YOUR stress level low at all times. Don’t expect trouble, but be prepared should there be.

Dogs are pack animals, and cats are generally quite sociable. The two animals can get along in your world, if you pay attention to details and apply what you know to make this work.

The caregiver called me this morning and Triffles the little tortie girl crashed hard. She rushed her to the vet clinic, but it was to late and Triffles passed away. I gently questioned her as to what happened and she told me she had picked up Triffles to feed and thought she seemed extremely warm. She fed her, then before she put her back in her bed, she took out the heating pad…..sigh…and replaced it with a plastic bottle filled with hot water and wrapped that with a cloth. Her thinking was this way the kitty could move off or toward the heat if she got to hot. The problem was that the kitten has to be kept warm at a constant temperature or she will become cold and her organs will start to shut down. So the little tortie girl is with the angels now.

I’ve come to the realization in my life that I can’t really do it all (no matter how much I like to think that I can!) With Mike’s illness and subsequent failing health, me, working outside the home, trying to finish writing assignments and keeping up with the property and the housework plus caring for my own animals- well there is little me left over at the end of the day. Sometimes, I feel like I am just going to shake apart. It’s just to much anymore. People don’t listen, they won’t spay and neuter- there are boxes of kittens being given out like candy on halloween in every shopping center within 50 miles. My phone rings incessantly with tales of woe about kittens being found and I hate this when the caller says “Well, if YOU won’t take them- then I can’t be responsible for WHAT happens to them!” I used to cave when I heard that- but now, I just respond with “It’s not my fault those kittens were born, it’s YOURS!” Then I hang up the phone.

I am passing my bottle baby baton over to another caregiver. It is time for me to step down and teach others the joys and tribulations of raising bottle babies.

Older kittens are fine, it’s just the ones that require feedings around the clock that are taking their toll on me. I wake up in the morning so tired my entire body is numb. Catching only short naps between feedings has left me fuddle-brained. I’ve been doing this umpty-dozen years now. It is going to feel very strange (almost empty) to stop now- but it’s time. Hailey is a vet tech so she won’t suffer those panic moments when the kitten gets sick of not knowing what to do to make it better. She now has possession of the latest arrivals- and mama kitty and her litter are now back with their owner.

The minute the last kitten left our home, the resident cats came back and stayed with us. It’s always amazing to me to see the changes in my crew both when the kitten arrives and when it leaves. The house is settled now, the older cats napping in selected cool spots- it’s going to be 90 degrees today. Even the kitty dragster track has taken a sabbatical. The drapes and the fireplace are no longer substituting as a rock-wall event and the floor is no longer moving in a flurry of activity. They all know the newest batches are gone and peace reigns.

It was a difficult decision for me to make- but it was the right one.

A few weeks ago, one of my customers told me that at a nearby business, there were two feral cats roaming around. The owner was getting ready to put poison out and so I stepped in. I have been going over there late at night 11:30 and feeding them. One cat reminds me of my dad’s cat Boots. She is black and white long hair, the other is a Maine Coon cross in desperate need of a vet visit.

So I started feeding them and at first they hid in a nearby culvert, but lately they come out and wait in the bushes for me to put the food out. My plan is to win their trust, then bring out my traps and get them out of the area before the owner changes his mind and poisons them.

Last night, I stayed later at work than normal. I was in the front of the store and I heard a scratching at the window. I looked down and to my surprise, the gray mackeral tabby/maine coon kitty was standing up on his back legs and looking inside! My car was parked directly outside the window and i know he followed the scent across the parking lot to find out what happened to his dinner. The other business is about 350 feet from the store where I work.

I went outside and apologized to him telling him I would be over in a few minutes to feed him, but he raced around the corner then kept peeking around the corner to see if I was still there.

I finished my late shift duties, locked the store and drove over to the feeding spot keeping an eye out for this cat. I have no idea how he made the trip without getting hit as teenagers, restless in the summer heat were revving their mud trucks and racing around the parking lot. If I knew that he would have let me pick me up- I would have gladly scooped him up and put him inside my car- but his feral tendencies are quite strong.

By the time I poured out his food and popped open a can of wet, he had once again found his way back to his haunts and he came quite close as his meal was laid out. I backed away- and now to set the scene, it was after midnight, the teens had gone off to a local diner to raise havoc. My car was running, the door was open and I was squatting down trying to get kitty to come to me. He wasn’t having any of it.

Suddenly, I am bathed in a bright light and I hear this voice telling me to remain very still! I looked around and see a police cruiser nearby- I guess someone called him about an intruder. Kitty fled- who can blame him and I was left to explain my presence.

I think what saved me was the crate of cat food in the back seat of my car- the empty cat carrier I take with me everywhere and the empty can of cat food on the ground near the paper plate. But just for a minute there, I wondered if my husband might have to come up with bail to haul my crazy cat lady ass out of jail!

Last night when I got home from work, all the cats, and I do mean ALL of the cats were sitting on my desk, looking intently skyward. I could see the decorative rock wall had suffered in my absence and scratch marks were visible on most of the rocks surfaces. Wondering if my cats had decided to learn how to rock climb in my absence, I set down my purse and walked over to investigate.

Mike laughs at me, but I have the hearing of a small child. I can hear even the smallest noise and catch conversation in restaurants all around me. As I drew nearer to my clowder cluster, I heard a rustling noise overhead and looked up.

We removed the wood-burning stove last year. It was illegal according to Oregon standards, and so we took it out and blocked up the stove pipe. The noise was coming in the stovepipe.

This pipe to our home has been a tunnel of traffic in the past- prompting us to not only install a face plate, but reinforce it with colored duct tape for good measure. Since the invasion of the honeybees two years ago, I keep a stethoscope in my desk drawer, so I grabbed it and had a listen. What I heard was a critter in distress- what kind of critter, I had no idea, but it was certainly one that captivated my group.

I woke Mike who had long gone to bed and missed all the excitement. We grabbed a large rubbermaid tub with a lid and pried the duct tape off. Mike moved the face plate slightly when all of a sudden a huge fruit bat flew into our living room!

The cats of course gave chase……”Live prey- Mom, you are wonder!” In between ducking when the bat got to close (and yes, I will admit, I did scream a couple of times) we were also watching the great prey game at work. All the cats including the kittens were leaping in the air trying to grab the bat before someone else did.

I grabbed a towel, but before I could fling it over the scared creature, Matuse leaped about five feet straight in the air. I saw his mouth open and one bat was now captured. It took some doing and some bargaining to get the bat out of Matuse’s clutches, but I finally suceeded. I hustled over to the front door, and flung the bat high in the air praying it wasn’t injured. Although there were blood spots on the pavement below the bat took off. I could only pray it would stay okay.

For about an hour the cats refused to settle down. When they couldn’t find their bat friend to play with, they turned on each other and several fights broke out. Feliway restored the peace within the hour.

On the Troy front, he is still with us although now he suckles his brothers and sisters so I have to isolate him. He’s on antibiotics to counteract any bacteria the milk might have harbored- but he seems perfectly fine.