I sat down on the floor of the cubicle at my vet’s clinic. Kodiak, my almost two year old blue heeler mix settled down next to me. Her eyes were looking right into me and I hugged her neck tightly while I whispered in her ear, “You are such a good girl!” Her 99 pound frame struggled to gain all of my lap- but there just wasn’t room on my lap for her. She already hogged my heart.

Dr Doer came into the room and tried to smile. “Look at that teddy bear of a dog,’ she said softly. I smiled wanly, we had originally named Kodie, Kodiak because when she arrived at our home after being rescued from a meth house, she looked just like a little bear.
But, a teddy bear was a far cry from what she had become in the last six weeks. More appropriate would be a grizzly bear with an aggressive nature that kept rearing its ugly head at any time of the day or night.

I requested a muzzle, knowing full well when the first shot hit its mark, she would attack witih a vengenance before the drug would take effect. She had been muzzled at the vet’s before and she fought briefly my attempts to put it on her.

Prior to this last visit for this special friend, we had shared one last romp in the woods. I had taken her tennis ball with me, and just as a Border Collie is fixated on sheep, Kodie has always been fixated on tennis balls. I threw it for her in the tall grasses until my arm threatened to sue me for pain and suffering. She would run after the ball every time, bringing it back to me then dropping down low to the ground waiting for me to throw it again.

I knew I was stalling and we finally packed it in and headed back to the car. My appointment was at 1:00 and it was almost 1:30 now. But this decision had been difficult, for both Mike and myself, borne of the recent attacks Kodie had launched, first on the gas station attendant, then on Traveler my horse, and lastly on Mike himself. She had been to several vets in our quest to find answers, but none were available. We knew she was in pain, but no one could locate the source of her pain and her aggression grew.

Gone was the loving pup who would bring me my slippers (after she chewed all the lining out of them of course) Her reluctance to move in the late afternoon brought tears to our eyes. Her shoulders would hunch down and she would hug the rug refusing to budge.

When on the rare occassions in the last week we could coax her outside, she would eat more grass than the horses then promptly vomit orange froth all over the ground. Whatever was wrong with her was major. We decided she deserved to leave with dignity, before she really hurt someone badly.

As the needle found her vein, she reared up and were it not for the muzzle securely fastened, I believe the vet would have lost some skin. But then the anesthesia set in and soon the potassium mixture stilled her courageous heart and she was gone.

Goodbye Kodiak, your torment has ended and ours now begins. I hope those disconnected neurons are firing on full cyclinders now and you have joined the rest who went before you.

I found out later this same day that a good friend had also passed away. She was only 24 years old. I have to think that Kodiak was there to escort Hope over the Bridge and into the tall grasses in search of tennis balls to throw.

G

Took Kodie and Gretchen to my favorite forest today for a walk. It was the first time that Gretchen walked without a leash and she did quite well. Mostly, following Kodie. I became sad as we walked for the forest has been destroyed by clear cutting. My favorite paths were blocked by heavy timber and small paths I used to follow had been graveled so that the heavy machinery could get through. It was dismal.

We reached a point in the trail where the path curved downward and rounded a bend. The dogs were running ahead of me a bit, when right at the curve, they both slid to stop and crouched down. As I watched, I saw Kodie’s ruff raise up high enough to rival a moose, and she tucked her tail in tight and began to growl. With no idea of what was around that corner, I whistled them softly back to me, they came with Kodie still growling. Not sure what was behind me, I walked backward for quite awhile, watching closely but nothing pursued us.

It could have been anything, a deer, a wild turkey, a coyote or a fox as it around dusk that we took this walk. i am glad they alerted me though. I well remember the coyote encounter last year and do not wish to have that repeated.

Matt went to the vet this morning for a recheck. She has gained 1 pound 10 oz. since the last visit but her gingivitis isn’t as cleared up as Ben would like it to be. I asked about pulling her teeth, but he said the worst part about Mattie’s condition is that the gingivitis is occurring in the back of her mouth (almost to the passage of the throat, where there are NO teeth. So he has changed her antibiotic and told me to “keep up the good work.”

I brought her home and decided to bathe her. She has all this oily stuff on her fur from the malnutrition and I just wanted to give her a clean slate. ( I normally do not bathe cats, don’t believe in it) God gave them good grooming aids with their tongue. But, this was different. She tolerated the bath better than I expected her to. I think that she enjoyed it as well, especially the towel rubdown at the end. She has been fed, medicated and is now lying on the bed purring. She looks so much better!

This morning my last two kitten rescues were neutered. Muddy and Chilkoot are now over 6 months old and they have been clipped, bringing to an end, my rescue of bottle babies. It’s been a lot of years, tears, heartaches and rewards of trying to help kittens gain a foothold to health and find a good home. I know that there are hundreds out there who now are living the good life, or have lived the good life in a home full of love just for them.

While I was at the vet, this man brought in on a harness, a beautiful short-haired gray and white cat. He immediately jumped in my lap (the cat, not the gentleman!) and then climbed on my shoulder and nuzzled in my ear! His owner was surprised and said “You must be a cat person!” I just laughed. I guess that is an understatement.

The man had rescued this kitten from a feral litter and my friend Kelly took him into his home and raised him. Once he was weaned off the bottle, the man took possession of him. He is a sweet, sweet boy who loves the harness. His name is Lincoln and he is 3 years old.

I go to pick up Muddy and Chilly in a few minutes then it is off to work. I am sure they will be fine. I will put them into the bedroom for a few days as I attempt to keep them “quiet!” LOL You cannot keep these kittens quiet, they are enrolled in Kitty Kamakazee Kamp!

It is snowing here and windy.

Stryker, the horse attacked by the pits did not survive. He was humanely euthanized at OSU yesterday. I am so incredibly sad for Kathi. I know how much she cherished him and she lost her other horse a few years ago. I don’t know what else to say but that these dogs are dangerous when they “pack up.” One on one, they might be “pussycats” but these three were roaming free and look what happened as a result? It breaks my heart to know my friend has lost her courageous boy.

Amy?

There has been an inquiry to me about if you have a shelter in Barcelona? Another reader is planning a trip to Spain soon and would like to meet with you and see your operation. Is this a possibility?

Yesterday, a good friend of mine had her horse attacked by three stray pit bulls. The dogs proceeded to attack her Mustang. Stryker now has over 200 bites all over his legs, flanks, underbelly and neck. Hopefully the vet was called in time and any infection was stopped at the source. Animal control has taken possession of the dogs. Kathi has never seen the dogs before yesterday.

I am not for banning any breeds, but I certainly wish they would castrate the owners of these pits who allowed these dogs to get to this extreme. If it were my horse that was set upon, I do not know what I would have done. I do know, I would petition for the dogs to be euthanized and the owners (if located) held accountable for the large vet bill that now looms overhead.

Thanks to Hurricane Charlie. my computer is hosed up a bit. I hope this posts because Charlie baptized my power supply to my computer and my emails and other aspects of my computer are not working right. One thing about living with so many cats is the battle of the cat pee is always so challenging. Mike went and bought a new hard drive today and he will be installing it tomorrow. My screen is flickering, i need to go

I am going on record to state, “I hate ear mites!” More than fleas, worms or other pestilence, ear mites are the scourge of stray cats. The dark build-up of blackened crud seen inside your cat’s ear and canal is the wasteland of an ear mite invasion. Taking a bit of cotton dampened with warmed olive oil, if you roll this gently around the ear and pull out sediment resembling burnt coffee grounds, then your cat has ear mites. Plop that bit of cotton into a jar of water, the water will turn red like blood. This sediment is a combination of blood, oils, ear wax, ear mites and waste products (from the mites).

Mattie doesn’t have ear mites. Her ears look oily and glassy. One vet said it was wax (he was wrong). It is an infection and a bad one. She fights me daily because I have to put ointment in her ear and rub them gently. Her paws draw up to my fingers claws extended…touching her ears is a prelude to war.

Trump on the other hand has ear mites. He has kept them even though he underwent several “one time” treatments by vets to clear them up! Ear mites cannot be seen easily by the naked eye. Even though these tick-like mites are white, you need a microscope to see them. They live inside the ear, but they also travel. They can end up on the tip of your cat’s tail if he curls his tail around him when he sleeps. Ear mites can crawl out of the ear and move on to the head or the face of the cat. Ear mites are also contagious among animals, especially when they mutually groom each other. If one cat has ear mites, it is a sure bet that all the rest of the pets in the home are invested. Trump isn’t selfish, he shares his mites gladly with the rest of the group.

When an ear mite lands in a cat’s ear canal, it will live inside the canal devouring ear wax, oil and loose tissue. The mites have three stages of life…larvae, nymphs, adult. This life cycle only lasts for a period of three weeks. Once hatched, the larvae (six legged) will feed on the oil, tissue and wax for a period of four days. In a period ranging from three to ten days, the larvae molts into an eight legged protonymph. During a 5 day stage the protonymph molts into a deutonymph. Three to five days later, the deutonymph becomes attached to an existing adult mite. If two males are attached, the union is meaningless. If the adult hooks up with a female, she is fertilized so she has the ability to produce eggs.

Ear mites can drive my cats crazy. I am not far behind this craziness! Infested with ear mites, my cats will shake their head frequently, rub their head along any hard surface (carpet is the best choice so far) and scratch their ears till they bleed or the hair falls out. In advance stages, ear mite infections give off a distinct odor. To me it smells like rotten gym socks left inside a locker for a week during a heat wave! Since I work with strays, it is an almost endless battle here to stop all this ear mite invasion.

Treatment of Ear Mites:

Over-the-counter products for ear mite prevention should be avoided at all costs. Generally, though they may kill the adult mites, they don’t affect the eggs and the larvae. There are injectables, topical and oral meds available that will work against the ear mites. Make a vet appointment for the proper treatment.

Before any treatment is given, it is important to clean the ears out of the sediment that has already collected there. Use cotton balls, not Q-Tips. Q-Tips have the capability of pushing the crud deeper into the ear canal. Plus one wrong jerk of the cat’s head (even a scruffed kitty) could mean another vet visit for a punctured ear drum. Keeping the cotton ball moistened with warmed olive oil or mineral oil will help clean out the ears.

Treatment of ear mites is a repeatable treatment sometimes, even when a one-time only ear mite medicine is used. Topical treatments should be used once every three days. Wait for one week, repeat application. Wait another week and repeat the process. One time treatments are easier on the cat and on you.

Revolution: Revolution flea treatment by Pfizer is effective against fleas, ear mites, heartworm, ticks, roundworms and hookworms. Follow the package directions carefully when applying this product.

Ivomec 1% – This is NOT to be confused with the Ivomectrin paste available over–the-counter for livestock. Ivomec solution is available at your vets. Over-medicating with Ivomec can place your cat into toxic shock.

Ivermectin is an injectible solution used for ear mite invasion. According to Dr. Susan Little DVM, DAVBP of Bytown Cat Hospital, Ivermectin can be used both orally and topically.

Acarexx Otic Suspension- This is a one-time application for ear mites. The tip of the container is designed to get deep into the ear canal. There is no stinging sensation so the cat is less likely to shake goop all over you or your vet.

In Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats, he offers the following suggestion: “A mixture of ½ ounce of almond or olive oil and 400 IU Vitamin E (capsule) makes a mild healing treatment for cats or dogs. Blend them in a dropper bottle and warm the mixture to body temperature by immersing the bottle into hot water. Put about ½ dropper full in each ear and massage gently. Then clean out the opening gently….apply this oil every other day for 6 days.” This will heal the ear, smother some of the mites but not kill the mites.

Be diligent when you are on the prowl for ear mites. Untreated, ear mites can cause damage to the ear canal and change your cat’s behavior from pussy cat to tiger. They can if severe enough and not tended to also cause deafness. Be careful when bringing in new cats to the home. Quarantine the new arrival until a vet check has been done. Ear mites are not contagious to people just to other pets. Once they gain a ear-hold on your group, it is tough for them to let go.

The only way I have found to stop earmites in an outdoor or indoor colony is to have the ears cleaned thoroughly during the spay and then have the vet follow up with injectible Ivermectin a cattle dewormer. This medication should not be given without a vet’s say-so and intervention, but it has shown effective in stopping ear mite invasion.

This morning, near one of the feral feeders, I saw a cat who looked vaguely familar. Not believing what I was seeing, I called for her- “Mattie?” I knelt down and she came slowly over to me and I wept when I saw her. Mattie has been gone from here for a long time. She was originally from a feral colony I cared for, and I had to pull her out as she is one of those cats that if you look at her, she matts! She was an inside/outside kitty here, and one night, she simply vanished! She is a tortise-shell and now she is half of what she weighed. I took her inside, shaved her and rushed her to the vet.

She has a severe case of gingivitis, she is suffering from being malnourished. I am really the only one within miles who feeds ferals. 🙁 She has flakes of skin just shedding off her from dehydration. He gave her a depo-medra shot, some ointment for the two infections in her ears and some clinidrops. But he said, overall, for all the time she has been missing (over six months) she is in reasonable shape. She tested negative for all the diseases.

She is in the bedroom- Fiona is now in general population so Mattie has the bedroom all to herself. I got head-bumped to death by this loving cat but she is now under the bed, understandably upset about the vet visit. I will be feeding her small amounts of measured food about 8 times a day and will take her back for re-evaluation in ten days. It was absolutely wonderful to know that I didn’t have to worry about the bill, because not only did I pay the vet bill off, but I left some in the kitty for such an emergency.

I have had a lot of cats simply vanish from here. Not many have returned. Some, I find later- victim of a hungry road, or I find pieces of fur in the field evidence that a coyote found my cat before I could. I am grateful that somehow God led her back to us and appreciative that other than malnourishment she should be okay in few weeks-

Maybe I better just leave that cat magnet alone. There are other treasured kitties who vanished from us, perhaps, they too will follow the magnet’s pull and find their path home-