Well, I've Acquired Another Owner

"Arthur Shapiro" wrote in message
...
Yowie wrote:

Holly is a nice name though.

Bless you for caring, and taking on another owner.


Thanks, everyone. She wolfed down more baby food this evening, and
did pretty well on a can of Fancy Feast. I took her out of the
little cat bed before going to work, and she's spent the entire day
on the bed, moving around slightly with no attempt to craw back
into the cat bed.

But she still hasn't used the cat box after about 32 hours.

I'm fairly hostile (to put it mildly) toward mythological holidays,
so Holly is most assuredly out as a name. But I appreciate the
sentiments.

The area of the bandages stank when I got her, and it hasn't gotten
any better or worse. As this far-off vet has a stellar reputation,
I'll assume it is the medicine they applied before wrapping her,
and not anything like gangrene.

Art

Poor kitty. If you think it stinks, I shudder to think how she feels
about it. Some of the stuff they have to use with dressings and to
treat infection are pretty rank.

If its only been a few days and she smelled like that right from the
start, its likely the stuff to treat infection.

Jo

"Arthur Shapiro" wrote in message
...
In article
,
Sherry wrote:
This is the best post I've read all year.
I'd
love to see a picture of her.

Well, I'd love to see what she looks like too! With this
totally-bandaged
head, I really have no idea. I'll get a picture when the far-off
vet removes
the bandages.

I'm getting really worried about her not using the cat box for a
day and a
half now, and don't know if I should contact the remote vet, take
her into my
local vet, or just wait it out. I'll leave the cat box on my bed
tonight as
she has absolutely no interest in leaving the bed.

This cat is really, really thin; bones around the back by the tail
are easy to
feel. But she's still purring up a storm, and I am encouraged that
she loves
baby food. It's hard to find that stuff all-meat, but I got
several jars of
Gerber, both chicken and turkey.

Art


You want to see her go nuts, try to find the lamb and veal. They are
available as they are less likely to be allergins for some people.

The big chains don't seem to carry the all meat baby food.

Jo

"Sherry" wrote in message
...
On Dec 19, 12:31 am, (Arthur Shapiro) wrote:
In article
,Sherry
wrote:

. This is the best post I've read all year.

I'd
love to see a picture of her.

Well, I'd love to see what she looks like too! With this
totally-bandaged
head, I really have no idea. I'll get a picture when the far-off
vet removes
the bandages.

I'm getting really worried about her not using the cat box for a
day and a
half now, and don't know if I should contact the remote vet, take
her into my
local vet, or just wait it out. I'll leave the cat box on my bed
tonight as
she has absolutely no interest in leaving the bed.

This cat is really, really thin; bones around the back by the tail
are easy to
feel. But she's still purring up a storm, and I am encouraged that
she loves
baby food. It's hard to find that stuff all-meat, but I got several
jars of
Gerber, both chicken and turkey.

Art

I've noticed that Fancy Feast is starting a line of canned kitten
food. Can't
help wondering if she'd like that, since most cats do like FF. Even
if
you
had to puree it, since you already know she likes the texture of baby
food.
And it's great that she's eating something, but if you could coax her
into
eating cat food, she'd be getting taurine and all that other
essential
stuff.
I don't blame you for worrying about the lack of a bowel movement;
hope
that resolves itself tonight or tomorrow.
Good luck!
Sherry
*************

Sometimes when a dog or cat is blocked up after illness or surgery, a
good tummy massage is called for. Mamma cats don't just lick their
babies to clean them up, but to 'get things going' as well.

Two fingers and rub in a circular motion should do the trick.
Jo

On Dec 18, 7:00*pm, "Jofirey" wrote:
"Arthur Shapiro" wrote in message


Now that's a marriage. *You do all of this for a strangers cat and
your wife is fine with it, but the name...

Sounds like he married a good person to me.

I so feel for the woman who had to hand the kitty over- she must have
been trying so hard to keep her. Thank you for taking the kitty in and
for letting her be at the vets when the results come in

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

MLB wrote:
Arthur Shapiro wrote:
With the loss of two of my cats this year, Milo and Thalia, I was down
to three for the first time in many years. Three is actually a pretty
good number - convenient and not overwhelming. But...

Nine days ago I answered a CraigsList ad for a kitty, described as
desperately needing medical care for a badly wounded ear. It turned
out that the person placing the ad didn't have the cat - it was for a
friend. It took several days of "back and forth" emails before she
was satisfied that I wasn't some laboratory looking for an
experimental victim kitty. She was really suspicious when I mentioned
that I had one cat (Banana Simian) who had to have her ears removed
due to skin cancer, and figured I was really blowing smoke.
My personal web site, with many pictures to prove it, immediately
convinced her.

So I ended up talking with both people. The lady with the cat is
recently homeless and was living with the cat in her mother's car!
And today (Friday) she has to return the car, and apparently will be
out on the streets. She somehow raised $350 toward the cat's
treatment at a relatively-inconvenient (to me) vet hospital. I told
her to return the money and I'd handle things at my own vets. She was
really reluctant to do that after arranging all these things, so I
agreed.
So before even seeing the cat, I paid for the balance necessary to
have the cat's one ear removed. Apparently it was completely ignored,
living outside, and "owned" by the ex-wife of a friend. They stole
the cat, in desperate condition with the probable skin cancer, and the
lady was devoting all her time to trying to care for it. She was
totally devoted to the kitty.

Anyway, I got the kitty yesterday, and let's just say it was a pretty
traumatic scene with the poor lady in tears as she handed the cat to
me. She knows it will get the best possible medical care and of
course we hope that it isn't too late. I won't have the biopsy
results until early next week. She asked if she could be at that
followup appointment; of course I had no objection. I have been given
antibiotics to give her, and had a couple pain medicine syringes left
over from another incident and gave her one this morning. I figured
it couldn't hurt.

So I've got a new cat, a pretty little girl, mostly white with a tabby
tail and a large tabby patch on her sides. Her head is completly
bandaged, like a mummy, with the eyes, nose, and mouth visible.
She ate a little people tuna when I got her home midday yesterday, and
then rejected all food until this morning. After rejecting the
morning food, I gave her the last jar of baby food left over from
Thalia's last days in October, and she absolutely wolfed it down.
Thank goodness - she's quite scrawny. She still hasn't used the cat
box in 22 hours. I put her in one box last evening, and she just went
to sleep in it. Right now, she's on the bed with a cat box on the
bed, and my wife says (I'm at work) that she's looking more alert and
looking outside.

She's quite a purrer. I want to name her Holyfield but my wife is
having a fit.

Art


You do write the most interesting stories. We are sending heartfelt
purrs and best wishes that the new kitty recovers and that you will have
many happy times together. I do not understand the name choice and can
understand why your wife objects to it. You do have a talent for
picking unusual names. I'll be interested to he\\



My computer dropped part of my message. I'll be interested to hear "the
rest of the story". We shall also send purrs for the lady who had to
give her up. If she is living on the streets, she will certainly need
some help. I would think it a good idea to transfer to your own
convenient Vet where you could get fast help if necessary.

Did you ever find a clue as to what happened to Milo? Best wishes. MLB

On Dec 19, 10:21*am, MLB wrote:
*If she is living on the streets, she will certainly need
some help. * I would think it a good idea to transfer to your own
convenient Vet where you could get fast help if necessary.


She had somehow got $350 together to pay for the vet but her vet was
awkward for Arthur to get to but he said he'd take the cat to his own
vet but she didn't want to do that so he ended up paying the vet and
telling her to keep the $350- to treat a cat he hadn't even seen as I
read it. He sounds like a saint and his wife also


Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

Lesley wrote:
On Dec 19, 10:21 am, MLB wrote:
If she is living on the streets, she will certainly need
some help. I would think it a good idea to transfer to your own
convenient Vet where you could get fast help if necessary.


She had somehow got $350 together to pay for the vet but her vet was
awkward for Arthur to get to but he said he'd take the cat to his own
vet but she didn't want to do that so he ended up paying the vet and
telling her to keep the $350- to treat a cat he hadn't even seen as I
read it. He sounds like a saint and his wife also


Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

Yes, he has a kind heart. Have you read his other stories? I recommend
them. MLB

The lack of litterbox activity is always
worrying, but cats can keep it in for a surprisingly long time.

Didn't Nox after the surgery to correct her spay- go 3 days without
using her box at all?

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

Jofirey wrote:

"Sherry" wrote in message
...
On Dec 19, 12:31 am, (Arthur Shapiro) wrote:
In article
,Sherry
wrote:

. This is the best post I've read all year.

I'd
love to see a picture of her.

Well, I'd love to see what she looks like too! With this totally-bandaged
head, I really have no idea. I'll get a picture when the far-off vet
removes
the bandages.

I'm getting really worried about her not using the cat box for a day
and a
half now, and don't know if I should contact the remote vet, take her
into my
local vet, or just wait it out. I'll leave the cat box on my bed
tonight as
she has absolutely no interest in leaving the bed.

This cat is really, really thin; bones around the back by the tail are
easy to
feel. But she's still purring up a storm, and I am encouraged that she
loves
baby food. It's hard to find that stuff all-meat, but I got several
jars of
Gerber, both chicken and turkey.

Art

I've noticed that Fancy Feast is starting a line of canned kitten
food. Can't
help wondering if she'd like that, since most cats do like FF. Even if
you
had to puree it, since you already know she likes the texture of baby
food.
And it's great that she's eating something, but if you could coax her
into
eating cat food, she'd be getting taurine and all that other essential
stuff.
I don't blame you for worrying about the lack of a bowel movement;
hope
that resolves itself tonight or tomorrow.
Good luck!
Sherry
*************

Sometimes when a dog or cat is blocked up after illness or surgery, a
good tummy massage is called for. Mamma cats don't just lick their
babies to clean them up, but to 'get things going' as well.

Two fingers and rub in a circular motion should do the trick.
Jo

I've been wondering if her kidneys were working. Of it is her
bowels.That could be corrected with a little oil -- not unusual after
surgery. But Art is a very smart man and I am sure he
"knows the ropes". Best wishes. MLB

She didn't use the box all night, but once again bolted down baby food and
picked at a little of the regular Friskies canned food I gave the others.

I had my wife call the far-off vet while I was out with the bicycle club this
morning, and we have an appointment down here with my local vet in a half
hour. The records will be transferred (if I understood her correctly on the
phone) so I might not ever meet that original vet. This will probably be
upsetting to the other lady, although she'd certainly be welcome to come down.
But I'm not going to tell them anything until I learn more.

I'm a nervous wreck right now.

MLB, nothing on Milo. Although Thursday, the day I got this new cat, I opened
the back door after the 7 AM breakfast feeding, to let Giovanni out, and I
swear there was a huge, fluffy black cat with a magnificent plumed tail. It
looked like Milo in his prime, and he immediately ran under the bushes. I
couldn't see him in the dense growth, called for him, and never saw anything.
Oddly, Giovanni didn't go into the area to attack. Was I imagining things???

The new cat has jumped down from the bed and is sleeping adjacent to it in the
bottom shelf of a book case.

Art