Losing Part of My Right Ear

It seemed to take forever to become an adult. But it was worth it. I was quite the cat before I had met my girl. I could come and go as I pleased. In an out of a house. I didn’t have a litter box. Whenever I needed to relieve myself, I went outside and buried it all. It was better than having a litter box. I didn’t have to worry if someone was going to clean up after me. I had already taken care of that part.

Life was good as far as I was concerned. My brother Spitter was still alive and we would get into a few fights here and there. It’s what brothers and cats do. We never hurt each other. We just had arguments and disagreements. But we always made up afterwards. It wasn’t a bad house. The backyard with the woodpile was even better unless another cat came along who shouldn’t have been there.

Then, well, there’d be a fight for the territory. Spitter and I were here before the strange cats were. So, we defended our turf. Sometimes the fights got bad. This was the way it was where I’m from. Sometimes I ran into dogs when I was out and about. I don’t like dogs. Some are just plain mean. And the ones who aren’t mean, well, I still don’t want to have anything to do with them. My girl thinks I’m a bit prejudice against dogs, but she never blamed me for it. I think she understood why I feel the way I do about dogs.
I never thought anything of the fighting when it was happening. It was the way life was for me. Why question it? As long as the status quo wasn’t getting challenged, I had no reason to think about anything changing. Well, people still came and went out of the house, that didn’t change. The blind guy was the only constant human.

I’m sure if you look at my pictures, you’ll see it’s obvious that I’ve been in a few bad fights. Not with my brother, but other cats. We fought over territory. One fight was so bad, I lost part of my right ear. Look closely and you’ll see it’s notched. It was whole when I was a kitten.

But I didn’t stay a kitten for long. I grew up fast and became quite the cat. I didn’t approach strange humans. Who knew if they all could be trusted. Some were plain mean and had no qualms about torturing cats. Best to avoid all unknown humans altogether and just stick with the few who can be trusted. It’s been my way and it works for me.

So, there’s the story of my ear. I never grew it back. I never told my girl how it happened. But I remember what happened to my ear…

Of course it was a territorial dispute. These things happen where I’m from and when cats are allowed to go outside. If you’re an indoor cat, you don’t need to worry about it as much. Unless the human who’s taking care of you decides to bring home another cat or even more. Then you have to establish order pretty quickly. I was lucky with my girl. She was smart enough to stay out of it. She let us figure it out on our own when she had brought home another cat.

Not that we would have given her much of a choice about the matter. She would have to live with us and the order we established. She is a smart one. Even when she had caught me arguing with another cat she didn’t know, she knew to stay out of it. It’s just one of the many reasons why I love her so much.

So, it was a territorial dispute. We argued and couldn’t reach any kind of agreement. Things escalated. I wasn’t about to back down. This was my home. It was the only home I had ever known. This newcomer had to understand that. But he didn’t care. He wanted to be the alpha cat.

So we duked it out. We screamed. We wrestled. Tousled and raved. We threw punches. We used our claws. We used our teeth. Still the fight went on. Perhaps I don’t remember all the details clearly now. I am an old cat, what did you expect from me? A perfect and clear memory of every little event in my life? That cat did bite my ear. I didn’t realize how bad it was until long after he had gone.

I don’t even know now who won that fight. But I can tell you it was that fight that cost me a piece of my right ear. It’s obvious in the pictures my girl took of me. It just took that one time. It wasn’t the only fight I had been in. But it certainly was the most memorable one.

She never mentioned the loss of part of my right ear to me. She just loved me and took care of me. For that, I can’t complain. She was a good learner. I had to tell her everything. She had never taken care of a cat before me. It was much more than filling up my water and food bowls. If she wasn’t so willing to learn, I think I would have died from embarrassment.

But she was great. She has improved over time. She was good for me in more ways than I have been willing to admit. She was such a whirlwind that assured me I never had to fight like that after we lived together.

May 1, 2019 0

An imperial message on cat beds

We all know that cats need a variety of nice beds to sleep in. We cats are certainly connoisseurs of comfort and luxury, and this discerning taste only becomes more refined with age and experience. I have slept in/on a great number of different beds in my time, and I’m going to share my wisdom with you all today and rank my favorite sleeping spots.

#5: The Tried and True Cat Bed

I have two cat beds, which my human has smartly placed on the floor beside a large window. They are good, sturdy, practical things. They’re soft enough for a quick nap and they keep my butt warm and add extra comfort when I’m watching birds, but they’re nothing remarkable. True luxury exists elsewhere.

#4: The Couch

I like the couch more than my cat beds because it’s off the floor and much softer. I can stretch out and lounge on blankets and cushions. It also gives me a good view of my domain.

#3: My Human’s Bed

This was the best sleeping spot I knew for years. Warm, cushioned, and plush, the bed is certainly an unparalleled kind of luxury. I can sleep here for hours in all sorts of positions: stretched out, on my back, cat loaf, and more. I can rest my head on pillows and snuggle with my human. The bed is a solid, staple favorite of mine.

#2: My Cat Tree

Oh, how my life changed forever once I got my tree! I love my cat tree! It combines so many of my favorite things together — I can be up high, reclining in plush luxury, and I can watch birds comfortably from my window. I spend many hours of my day in my cat tree. It offers great versatility, allowing me to carry out my favorite activities in warmth and comfort.

#1: My Basket

Don’t get my wrong — I love my tree, I love my human’s bed, but this one takes the cake above everything. I never knew how wonderful baskets were until recently. I discovered this by accident and a true stroke of luck. There is something so beautifully, enticingly rustic and wild about being in a basket. It makes you feel like a true tiger, surrounded by nature, sleeping in the rough. It fits me snugly and perfectly, and I sleep just like a kitten. I would recommend a well-fitted basket to every cat who can get one!

April 2, 2019 0

Sleep Disorders (Monthly Cat Care Article)

15310262_1226993964013571_1553764470_n — photo by Clarabelle Fields

Disclaimer: the staff writers here are not vets nor are they qualified to give medical advice. This article’s purpose is strictly to share stories/information and should not be used for diagnostic purposes. Please take your cat to the vet if you suspect anything might be wrong with them. Your vet will know best what to do in your specific situation.

Cats can certainly adhere to odd schedules, at least by human terms. Cats often sleep blissfully through entire days only to burst with lively energy and enthusiasm at particular hours of the night. Most “normal” cats do sleep quite a lot — sometimes upwards of 15 hours or more — but this sleep is generally light or dozing sleep, from which they can awaken quickly if need be, and most “normal” cats awaken for activity during dawn or twilight hours. That being said, however, cats can and do suffer from a variety sleep disorders, especially as they age.

Narcolepsy is one kind of sleep disorder cats can suffer from. A cat with narcolepsy will suddenly collapse and seem to have fallen into a deep sleep, and the cat will also exhibit signs of REM sleep as if it is dreaming. The exact causes of narcolepsy are unknown. The disorder in and of itself is not dangerous, but could present dangers if the cat were to fall into water or from a high height because of a sudden sleep attack.

Sleep apnea is another sleep disorder cats can have, especially if they are overweight or if they are Persian. Symptoms to look out for include loud snoring, gasping/choking while asleep, and spasms of the diaphragm. Treatment might involve weight loss if the cat is overweight or corrective surgery in more extreme cases.

Cats can also suffer from insomnia, especially elderly cats. Some elderly cats will develop erratic sleeping schedules and will have difficulty sleeping. Some cats will be extremely restless and vocalize frequently throughout the night as well. In many of these cases, insomnia and disrupted sleeping patterns can be the result of age-related cognitive decline or sometimes hyperthyroidism.

So what’s a pet parent to do? If your kitty doesn’t seem to be distressed or in pain and their sleep schedule stays relatively the same, perhaps they just enjoy roaming during nighttime hours. You might want to invest in earplugs.

April 2, 2019 0

Cats and UTIs (Monthly Cat Care Article)

20181130_091222 — photo by Clarabelle Fields

Last month, we talked about FLUTD/FIC, which are diseases that afflict cats’ urinary tracts. This month, we are continuing to look at urinary tract issues, this time focusing on a well-known, common problem: urinary tract infections (UTIs).

UTIs can affect both male and female cats, unlike FLUTD/FIC, which is much more common in male cats. UTIs more commonly affect older cats, cats with diabetes, and cats with FLUTD/FIC, with UTIs being most common in older female cats. The cause of most UTIs is relatively straightforward. Just like in humans, feline UTIs are caused by a bacterial infection of the urethra. If left untreated, the infection can spread into the bladder and kidneys, which can be very dangerous. Fortunately, UTIs can usually be treated with antibiotics, and with prompt, early treatment, most cats make full recoveries.

UTI warning signs include:

– Struggling to urinate. The cat passes small amounts of urine or none at all.

– Frequent trips to the litter box.

– Urinating outside the litter box.

– Discomfort while urinating. The cat might hiss or yowl in the litter box.

– Licking at the genitals.

– Restlessness, listlessness, maybe a fever.

– Blood in the urine.

If you observe any or some of these signs in your cat, take them to the vet right away and have them checked out. The earlier you catch any infections, the better, and the sooner you can get them started on antibiotic treatment. During and after treatment, however, it is important that you monitor them for additional signs of distress — sometimes the inflammation caused by the UTI can lead to the development of a urinary blockage, especially in male cats, so it’s important to stay vigilant and make sure your cat is not developing additional complications.

With quick treatment and the eye of a watchful, loving pet-parent, most cats can recover from their UTIs and go back to being their playful, happy selves in a short time. When in doubt, it’s always a good idea to ask a vet to make sure your fur-baby is okay.

February 1, 2019 0

The Gremlins in My Litter Box

juliusinbag

Recently, I have had the misfortune of being persecuted, my dear followers, by what I can only assume are gremlins in my litter box. I have no idea why these invisible creatures have chosen to come after me, especially now. At troubled points in my past, I dealt with their curmudgeonly attacks, and I dealt with these attacks largely in silence. These attacks, although irritating, would eventually pass, and I would forget about them until they would inevitably return one day without warning. Sometimes weeks would pass where I would be left undisturbed, and I would relish those weeks, relish the freedom of being able to use the litter box in peace. Other times, I would have to grit my teeth, knowing that the gremlins would emerge and make my litter box an unpleasant place whenever I attempted to do anything. I was brave for a long time, enduring the gremlins, but eventually it became too much for me. I had to seek out alternative options just to try to escape them. I tried to use other places–the bed, the couch, the rug, hidden corners around the house. The gremlins still managed to find me. Now I wasn’t safe anywhere in the house, and I started hissing at them. They were lurking invisibly around me, everywhere. I just wanted to win back the trust and peace I had formerly enjoyed in my litter box.

I had tried to tell various humans about this at points when it got especially bad. My humans didn’t seem to understand my distress. They thought I was just being a bad-tempered emperor, upset by the rearrangement of furniture in my palace. Some vets didn’t understand me either, saying it was just because I was fussy about my litter. It’s the gremlins, I kept saying, it’s the gremlins, but my cries fell on deaf ears for a long time. It was really the hissing and the madness that got my humans’ attention–finally, at last, someone was aware of my struggle with these gremlins.

I almost regretted bringing their awareness to it at first. I can’t count the number of times I got stuffed in the dreaded cat carrier and hauled to a vet. The number of times I saw the cold insides of that vet’s office! The number of times I got poked and prodded! The number of times I was forced to eat horrible, bitter liquids! But whatever they did to me, as awful as it was, chased the gremlins away, at least for now. It’s hard to believe that they’re actually gone and won’t torment me anymore.

February 1, 2019 3

Julius’ Journey with FLUTD/FIC (Monthly Cat Care Article)

juliusasleep — photo by Clarabelle Fields

Disclaimer: the staff writers here are not vets nor are they qualified to give medical advice. This article’s purpose is strictly to share one individual’s story and should not be used for diagnostic purposes. Please take your cat to the vet if you suspect anything might be wrong with them. Your vet will know best what to do in your specific situation.

This post today will discuss our long and at-times frightening journey in discovering, diagnosing, and treating Julius’ FLUTD/FIC. For those who might not be extremely familiar with FLUTD, it stands for feline lower urinary tract disease. FLUTD is a general term that encompasses a number of related medical conditions, all of which involving issues with urination, the bladder, and the urethra (especially in male cats). Cats with FLUTD often struggle to use the litter box and may experience a lot of pain when attempting to urinate. This pain can often prompt them to urinate outside of their litter box, if they are even able to urinate at all. FLUTD can be caused by a number of conditions, such as the presence of urinary stones or blockages. It can also be caused, as in Julius’ case, by a condition called feline idiopathic cystitis (FIC), which basically means that the affected cat’s bladder becomes inflamed for some unknown reason and then causes pain and other problems with urination. These conditions can be life-threatening if they lead to a severe infection or a urinary blockage, which can kill a cat very quickly if left untreated.

Julius came to me with a tentative diagnosis of FLUTD/FIC, but at this early stage of our lives together, this diagnosis was not one that was set in stone. Various vets disagreed over whether he actually had the condition or not. Before I got him, a woman had adopted him and then returned him to the shelter because he had been peeing consistently outside of his box. A vet had diagnosed him with “probable FLUTD” but hadn’t done any tests such as urine analysis to check for crystals or infection in Julius’ urine. This tentative diagnosis, which was displayed prominently on a card above his cage, warned potential pet parents that he would need to be on a special kind of food that can be quite pricey.I think this is what scared people off from adopting Julius for so long. He was (and still is) an extremely cuddly, friendly cat, but he had been in the shelter for nearly a year by the time I met him. I adopted him anyway, knowing that he might have health problems and might require a special diet. I have a special diet myself (hello food allergies) so I sympathized a lot with his situation. I was concerned about his medical history, of course, but two other feline medical professionals told me they did not believe Julius had FLUTD. They both believed he had been incorrectly diagnosed and that his peeing problems were behavioral — the result of his previous owner having left him for periods of 3 weeks at a time and not regularly changing his litter box. Since the vets didn’t believe the FLUTD diagnosis, I fed Julius “regular” indoor cat food instead of his special diet. Things were fine for a while. He ate the regular food and didn’t seem have FLUTD. But then…

About a year and a half later, we began having issues. Minor ones at first. Julius started peeing outside of his box, not all the time, but enough that Nature’s Miracle became a regular staple on my shopping list. He seemed to be peeing strategically, in front of doors and, unfortunately, on the bed. I thought these issues were behavioral as well. He would do it when I was gone for a weekend or on short trips. He would do it if something upset him. He began to get really bad after I rearranged the furniture. I thought he was just acting up, being bad, being naughty. I was frustrated and didn’t understand why he kept peeing everywhere, even when he had a clean litter box. I took him to another vet, who also agreed that it was behavioral. She told me to get Feliway and keep his litter box immaculate. It made no difference. He kept peeing in his favorite “pee spots”, often going on week-long rampages where he would pee everywhere. I was at my wit’s end.

It took six months of this before I finally understood that something was seriously wrong and it was not just “behavioral”. One morning I found Julius in obvious extreme distress. He was straining to urinate but only passing very small amounts. I watched him attempt to use the litter box six to eight times in the span of 30 minutes. He was clearly in a lot of pain and distress. I took him to an emergency animal clinic immediately, afraid that he had become blocked or something similarly serious. The vet there ran a urine analysis and said that she found an infection but no signs of urine crystals, so she sent him home with a ton of antibiotics and pain medications. They were all goopy, stinky, disgusting liquid medicines that I had to shove down his throat twice a day, each time with him struggling and acting like I was trying to murder him. He spent most of his time sleeping, refusing to leave the comfort of his cat bed. This vet said she wasn’t completely convinced that he had FLUTD/FIC. She rechecked his urine and said she found nothing abnormal in it. She suggested that I put him on an OTC special diet to see if it helped. I began feeding Julius a store-bought cat food with a “urinary tract health formula” in the hopes that he would be fine from there on out and not need to be on an Rx diet. Turns out I was very wrong.

Just a month after his first ordeal, Julius became severely distressed again. I found him straining to urinate. This time he was growling and hissing viciously, and he couldn’t pass any urine at all. I rushed him to the emergency clinic again. He saw another vet this time, and this vet ran even more tests than the other vet had — x-rays, urine analysis, etc. This new vet told me that Julius’ urine was completely full of crystals and that he had a blockage in his urethra. Julius had to be put under for a procedure to clean it out and remove the blockage. Those few hours where I was at home alone without my furbaby, waiting for the vet to call me back with news, were some of the worst hours of my life. I could not imagine living without him, and it was terrifying to me just how easy it could have been to lose him. To repeat — blockages are extremely dangerous for cats. If you think your cat could be blocked, take them to a vet immediately. They can die within days if it is not treated.

Luckily, Julius was able to come home the next day. He was woozy, wobbly, and had even more medicine to take. This time, this new vet, I think vet #5 at this point, told me that definitively, yes, Julius has FLUTD and FIC, and that it would be important to put him on a special diet to prevent him from having more issues in the future. The vet did not believe that Julius’ old “special” food was special enough to fix the problem. The vet instead put Julius on Purina Pro Plan Veterinary UR Urinary St/Ox Cat Food, with strict orders that Julius be fed nothing else at all — no treats, no human food, no other brands of cat food. Julius had to take antibiotics for the next 2 weeks and steroids for the next month. This time they were pills, which he happily ate with his food. I watched him like a hawk every time he used his litter box. Gradually, over that month, his urination problems went away. He became bright and happy and playful again, just like he was when I first adopted him.

Julius has been exclusively eating this new food for several months now, and to date he has had no more urinary issues. He no longer pees outside of his litter box and hasn’t had to go back to the vet for any health concerns. He is playful and as light on his feet as a kitten. I think putting him on the expensive, high-grade special diet food has done wonders for his health. It definitely costs more than feeding him something I can just go pick up at Walmart, but the difference it has made in his health and happiness has been worth it.

January 1, 2019 0

Love at First Sight? Meeting My Forever Human (Julius’ Adoption Story)

photo by Clarabelle Fields

Do you believe in love at first sight? I definitely do, because that is exactly what happened with me and my human Clarabelle when we found each other two and a half years ago. Until then, I had experienced a life of heartbreak and false love. My first human family brought me to the shelter when I was just a little kitten. They already had a house full of cats and didn’t want to deal with another crying mouth. Then my next human returned me after only a few months. She was too busy to play with me and left me alone a lot of the time.

I was back in the shelter again, this time for the longest, most miserable stretch of my life. The vets said I needed a special diet that was very expensive, so most humans, even though they were nice to me and cuddled me, didn’t want to take me home with them. I was very sad most of the time. I kept hoping that someone would take me away from the cold, noisy shelter, but they never did. They would play with me and snuggle me until they saw the sign on my cage alerting them to my health problems, and then they would always back away, turning their affection to some other, less expensive cat.

So that’s where I stayed for a long, lonely year, always getting my hopes up and always having my heart broken. Then, one day, after so many days of hoping and waiting, my forever human came. I had been sitting in the lap of one of the shelter workers, and she had been saying kind things to me to keep my spirits up. My forever human spoke to her, asking for a cat that would be cuddly and sweet and all the things that I already was. The shelter worker offered me, and my forever human sat down beside us. She had a soft, gentle voice and a soft, gentle manner, and I knew in that moment I wanted her as my forever human. I had to win her heart before it was too late — I leaped into her lap, throwing my paws around her neck, pressing my face against hers. I purred as loud as I could purr. My human, my human! And she put her arms around me, and I knew from her eyes that she loved me too.

Then came the true test — she saw the warning sign on my cage, the curse of my affliction. She asked about it. They explained. The numbers sent darkness flashing through her face. $80 cat food. Vet bills. Worry. This was the point at which the humans would leave. They would smile hesitantly at me, remove themselves, and walk away. But she didn’t. She held onto me. She kept her arms around me.

juliusandme2 — photo by Clarabelle Fields

Eventually, she had to let me go. It was nearly closing time, and the adoption window for the day was closed. But I knew from her touch and her cuddles that she had fallen as much in love with me as I had with her. As she was leaving, she saw another woman finding me, leaning over to love me. I had my eyes on my human. She darted back inside, began to pet me again, and said to the other woman: “He’s so sweet, isn’t he? I would love to take him, but his food is so expensive…” Perfect. The other woman made a disgusted face, immediately withdrew. My human hugged me again. She would be back. I knew she would.

The next day dawned more glorious than any other day. She came, my forever human, just like I knew she would. From the other room, I heard the staff saying to her: “Ma’am, we don’t have everything open yet–you’ll have to wait until noon, is that okay?”

And she sat and waited. And waited. And she let everybody know she had come for me, only me.

After the longest wait of my life, which felt longer than the year I had been in the shelter, they brought me out to her, and we were finally together and going home. My human, my human, my human. I finally had a human to call my own, and she was my forever human. I knew she would never leave me or give me up. She snuggled me and cuddled me and gave me a million kisses on my little head. She is still my forever human, and she always will be.

julius_snuggly — photo by Clarabelle Fields

January 1, 2019 0

Kittenhood—the Early Days

Sir Socks as a kitten drawn by Ali Noel Vyain.

I don’t know much about my kittenhood beyond being cared for in a woodpile in a backyard. My mother took care of me and my three brothers. I don’t remember two of them who went to different homes. Nor do I have any idea of what happened to them after they had left. However, I do remember my brother Spitter. He and I continued to live at this same place for a time. Our mother, when she had decided she was done taking care of us, left to live at the house across the street.
What bothers me the most about my mother was that even though she had taken such good care of us, she had left us without any warning. Spitter, Inky, Paintbrush, and I never had to worry about anything with her around. She had just left us in the woodpile and went to live across the street. I have no idea where Inky and Paintbrush went. I hear they were adopted by some humans and I never saw them again.
All three of us, my mother, Spitter, and me, lived in a small neighborhood in a cul-de-sac. I suppose Spitter and I were happy. I don’t even remember all the people who were coming and going in the house we lived in. All I know was the main human was a blind guy. He remained there with us for our early years.
My brother and I didn’t tend to talk to strangers much. Neither of us were ever outgoing. But nonetheless, we grew up and we stuck together. We had a happy little kittenhood there in the woodpile. I couldn’t have asked for a better beginning in this life.
All of us were black and white cats in various different designs. I just happen to be a tuxedo cat. I had more black than white than my brother Spitter. He was mostly white with some black accents. Even our mother was mostly black with some white. I suppose you could call her a tuxedo cat as well. But she had more white on her than I do.
Why did she just abandon us? It wasn’t fair. She didn’t have to leave us. She could have stayed. I am quite upset about it. Spitter agreed with me. After she had left us, we never liked her anymore. If we saw her, we hissed at her. Spitter was more of a hisser than I ever was. We were both skittish and didn’t trust humans readily.
The blind guy who lived in the house didn’t stop us whenever we came in. Eventually, he looked after us in his own way. He let us come and go when we pleased. He took pictures of us that my girl doesn’t have permission to use. It’s a shame. He took such good pictures of us. But my girl may make drawings based on those pictures she was able to get copies of.
I’m glad I grew up. Being a kitten isn’t a lot of fun when everyone expects you to play with toys and be cute all the time. Sure, I didn’t mind wrestling with my brothers, but I was never that into toys. I’m more of a cat that wants to observe the world around me and wonder what’s wrong with it and the humans we share this planet with. I prefer meditation to playing with toys any day.
What is it like to grow inside the womb before birth? Sometimes I have wondered. But I can’t think back that far. It is still a mystery to me. But that never stopped me from trying. When I meditate, there’s no telling where I go. But I usually learn something when I travel that way. I see things that I can’t see when I’m wide awake.
But even with the meditation, I couldn’t have foreseen where life would take me. Later on, car trips, bus trips, plane trips…it was all too much for a independent cat like me. I just wanted to be free to roam. To come and go as I pleased, but somehow when I had lost some amount of freedom, I had gained some security. Was that a good trade off? I suppose it was. My latter years were wonderful with my girl, Spot, and Isis.
Just to think that I met her and she didn’t seem to try to do anything to me when we first met. She just let me come and go. Never forced me to do anything at all. I couldn’t have asked for a better human to come into my life. I just had to wait a few years into adulthood before she could show up.
Where was she before that time? I have no idea. She never told me. And I never asked.
But I never saw my girl until after she was here. I had no idea when I first met her how much she loved cats in general. I couldn’t have foreseen how much she would love me and other cats. Actually, I thought she was too silly to make a good caretaker and caregiver. And at that time, I didn’t need a new one. Spitter and I were fine with the blind guy.
But it seems that her presence had disrupted our lives in ways that I never understood until much later. It was her fault, but she had no idea of what would happen when she put certain things into motion. At least she takes good care of me. Otherwise I don’t think I could have forgiven her now that I know.
By the time she had told me it was her fault, the damage had already been done. But by then I had learned what a good hearted and sweet person she is. I had to train her to take care of me, but that wasn’t as bad as it could have been. She at least listened to me. She isn’t stupid either. At times absent minded and too focused on her work. But not to the point that she wouldn’t listen to me when I need something.
She sometimes works with me sleeping on her lap. Those are the days. I’m glad we met. Without her, I don’t know what would have happened to me. She was a whirlwind that had changed my life so radically from what it was, but in a good way. I just had no idea until after the whirlwind had scooped me up and we were in a different place. It was my first move and I wasn’t sure what was going on.
Afterwards, it was one adventure after another. Not the kind she writes about. I’ve never lived with my head in the clouds as she does. No, this was real life and it was full of mundane cat experiences. It’s my life and I don’t regret living it.

January 1, 2019 0

Cats & Moving

I hear there’s an old wives’ tale about buttering a cat’s paws when they are taken to a new home. Of course the cat will lick the butter off of their paws because we like to be so clean. I don’t know if butter works, but I do know my girl has tended to give me a can of tuna whenever we had to move to a new home.

Well, I usually didn’t get the tuna right away. As soon as I’m in a strange, new place, I go and find a place to hide. It’s just safer for me that way. She usually wasn’t done moving things around. Even a closet was a safe place to hide while she organized everything.

Once we moved with Spot. My girl put both of us in a closet together and closed the door. I could hear her moving things around and unpacking. I was quite content to stay in the closet. Spot tried to get out. He wanted to explore. I don’t know why he wanted to. Moving is scary and traumatic.

But a can of tuna after I’ve calmed down does help me to get over it. That and knowing we’re all still together.

January 1, 2019 0

Kitty in Other Languages

When Nuri and I were in Italy, people tended to call her gattina. She liked to get out of our apartment and roll around on the floor. She’d make her happy sound as she greeted new humans who were smiling at her. Gattina is kitty in Italian.

Here is kitty in other languages (source):
Albanian: kotele
Basque: kitty
Belarusian: кацяня
Bosnian: mače
Bulgarian: писенце
Catalan: gatet
Croatian: mače
Czech: koťátko
Danish: kitty
Dutch: pot
Estonian: kiisu
Finnish: kisu
French: minou
Galician: gatinho
German: Miezekatze
Greek: γατούλα(gatoúla)
Hungarian: cica
Icelandic: Kitty
Irish: Kitty
Italian: gattino/gattina
Latvian: kaķēns
Lithuanian: katytė
Macedonian: писе
Maltese: kitty
Norwegian: pus
Polish: koteczek
Portuguese: gatinha
Romanian: Kitty
Russian: Китти(Kitti)
Serbian: маче(mache)
Slovak: mačiatko
Slovenian: kitty
Spanish: bote
Swedish: pott
Ukrainian: кошеня(koshenya)
Welsh: Kitty
Yiddish: קיטי

January 1, 2019 0