Monday, May 29, 2017

Getting to know the foster kittens



The fun part of fostering kittens involves getting to know each individual's personality. What is really interesting is these kittens mirror the last set quite a bit. Aloe is a high octane kitten, rarely sitting still for more than half a second. Getting photos is quite a challenge as I have to focus on where I think he is going to be and not where he is. He is absolutely a little extrovert.

Aaron is more laid back. He is not into being patted but he does like to climb up into my lap. He is a total introvert.


For a few days, I was a bit worried about Aaron as Aloe appeared to be dominating every single wrestling match, but that has abated over the last day or two. Aaron is also has a much smaller palate for food than Aloe, who will eat anything. As I result, Aloe is now 1lb 12 oz and Aaron is only 1lb 8.5 oz.


Friday, May 26, 2017

American Journey Wild Alaskan Salmon Oil #chewyinfluencer


It is that time of the month when I review a product from Chewy that I received for free in exchange for my honest opinion. This month I saw the American Journey Wild Alaskan Salmon Oil I knew I would be picking that option. It is specifically marketed for dogs, but salmon oil is salmon oil and it is good for most pets. Salmon oil is high in long-chain omega 3 fatty acids like DHA and EPA which are good for skin and coat health as well as their immune system. It is also very good for aging kitties as they are also helpful to ease arthritis or achy joints (Jack and Muffin) and kidney issues (Muffin) (so my vet said)


I like that it is in an opaque container because when fish oils are exposed to light they start to go rancid. I'm not a fan of the container it is in since it is a squeeze dispenser, like a mustard bottle, and controlling how much comes out is something I haven't figured out how to do. But, since they could use a lot of it, I figured a squeeze would do.

But, would the kitties like it?  I squeezed some on a plate and offered it to Jack.


Jack had a lick and decided it wasn't something he was willing to eat right off the plate. So I offered it to Muffin.


Muffin took a lick, but she wasn't willing to eat it right off the plate either. I am not surprised. Would they like it mixed in baby food?


Yes, yes they did. They even didn't mind it mixed into their raw food. I put a squirt on each serving of food for the kitties and it was all consumed. It is nice to have an option to add fish oils to my cat's food after it thaws. I put a lot in their food when I make it, but we can't know how much of it survives the freezing process, this way I can know they are getting a little bit more.

Have you ever thought of adding fish oil to your cat's food?

Thursday, May 25, 2017

Glad I didn't have to wait another 57 days for kittens



After dropping Sherlock and Watson off at the shelter I emailed the foster coordinator my recommendations for info for them for their adoptions. She replied thanking me for the information and offering me two more kittens. The Catman ran up to the shelter and picked them up for me and I ran home from work and furiously started cleaning.

They came with the names Aloe and Aaron. They were part of a larger litter but they are held back because they are smaller and one of them has a heart murmur. Their mom tested positive for FIV but so far they have tested negative. I was told that Aaron (the one with more white) is smaller than Aloe (mostly gray) but when I weighed them they were both one pound eight ounces.


They didn't seem to like the Science Diet food that the shelter sent home with them, but they did like the Merrick Turkey Dinner that Chewy sent us a while back, so they will be finishing off that case of food I'm sure. My webcams caught them eating several times yesterday, which is good. They LOVE to play and run right up to me when I show up, but they are a little too busy to get snuggles right now. Hopefully, that changes soon.

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Skippy and his new bow tie


Skippy, sweetie, what happened to your bow tie?


I took it off momma


I can see that darlin, Why?


Well, momma, this box came in for me and you were hiding it from me


These are mine

But Skip, they are a little big for you, they will get in your way when you eat and stuff. Look at them compared to your last one. Despite your being a ManCat, you really need boy sized ties.


I don't care.


I make this look good.

I received this box from Amazon without a gift note inside. While I'm pretty sure I know who sent it to me, I'm guessing they want to remain anonymous - if Amazon screwed up and forgot to tell me, then I'll give a great big public thank you :)

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

The multiple surprises of the Groom Ninja #giveaway sponsored


When I went to the Global Pet Expo I was introduced to the Groom Ninja. I was offered a free product while I was there, and I know they hoped I would talk about it but no promise was given and I was not compensated in any way for this post.

When I first looked at the product, I had to say I was horribly skeptical that this thing would work for my cats or anything. Seriously, look at it.


It looks a bit like a hacksaw blade in a piece of wood. I scoffed at the idea but I watched the demonstration and the presenter was quite dynamic and very convincing. The video of the Groom Ninja being used on a horse is really interesting. I thought I'd like to try it with my cats to prove this thing wouldn't work in the real world, so when they gave me a small one I was tickled.

So, how did it work?


Surprise! I was totally wrong about it not working. It worked so well that I immediately got to writing a blog post about it in my head. It tends to work a lot better on my short haired cats vs my long haired ones. This is what happens when I used it on Skippy. The first shot shows five passes on his side, the second ten.


However, what impressed me to no end was that it has been the only tool that has ever been able to get fur off Muffin (who is a dense medium haired kitty) without her trying to kill me. Nothing else has worked. The Furminator will take the loose fur off of her but she hates it and will start snapping at me after the first pass.


Fifteen years old, this is the first time I've been able to get anything to work and I've tried all kinds of grooming devices. Since she is the one who tends to hork up small mice sized trichobezoars during the spring and fall shedding seasons, I am thrilled to have something that helps. It doesn't work as well on Jack; I haven't met a single grooming product that works well on each one of my cats

I wrote to Groom Ninja and asked if they might be willing to do a giveaway with my review. David replied and offered me not one but surprise! three of the small ones to giveaway!! The small size is perfect for cats, but they also come in medium and large sizes for dogs and horses. They also come in a rainbow of different colors and will occasionally do specialty colors to do fundraising like last November they made a silver one for diabetes awareness.


The small one normally retails for $15.95 the medium for $17.95 and the large one for $19.95. If you would like a colored one they charge you $3 more. They also sell a combo pack for $47 with the colored ones being $6 more. Free shipping kicks in when you spend over $23.

So now that you want one too, I hope you will enter the giveaway. (US only)


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, May 22, 2017

Happy healthy kittens means that we are close to saying goodbye



Sherlock and Watson are doing very well. Both of them have put on weight and are doing so well that they are going to the shelter tomorrow to be neutered. No one has committed to adopting them so they will stay there and once they have recovered enough they will go up for adoption.

I am hopeful that more kittens will be coming quickly. It is still early in kitten season here so it might not be immediate but I am sure it will be soon.


The kittens had visitors this weekend. Our friends Laurie and Peter who adopted Lion like to come out and test out of kittens and I am so happy to have 'strangers' come and see how the kittens react to new people. I generally like taking them to work with me for a morning, but that hasn't worked out for these kittens, so having guests was the next best thing. I was glad to see how they react to me is the same way that they reacted to new people.


I've also noticed that Sherlock, despite being incredibly curious and problem-solving, defers to Watson for a lot of things. He lets Watson eat and does not bully him out of food, which I would have suspected he would have done by how "high octane" he is. He will not be the first one in my lap, but once Watson is up on my lap and purring Sherlock shows up and joins in.


I am going to recommend to the shelter that they are adopted together because I think that Sherlock would be better off with a friend. I try not to do that for several reasons. Despite my fully believing that kittens are better off in pairs, sometimes people connect with two kittens from different litters or they might already have a young kitty at home and are realizing a second one would help.


Where ever they end up, they will have been vetted by the shelter and I trust them to make the best decision they can for them.

I hope you stop by tomorrow as I am going to have a giveaway for a fairly unique product that completely surprised me by how well it worked.

Friday, May 19, 2017

Home Again, Home Again Jiggity Jig


Watson hung out at the shelter yesterday trying to get a urine sample. He didn't want to give them one until the very end of the day, and I was the results was normal so I will be keeping an eye on him from now until Tuesday when they go back to be neutered. I was told they'll pull a cysto then (removing urine from the bladder) if he is still urinating a lot.

When they returned home they were full of energy and ran around quite a bit. The only way to calm them down a bit was to feed them, which they were quite happy to have.


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