Naughty kittens… I’ve seen some but some are so funny!
The one who peed on the hamster makes me laugh every time!
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Have you seen this chicken coop?!
I have, and it’s cool – but insane. I cannot imagine trying to clean that thing!
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Is it hard to believe you’ve only had the screen door for 1 year now? Kills me dead, since I know what picture is coming soon… your famous last words ‘no kitten has tried to climb it yet…’. Have any recent ones climbed it?
That comment was from Teresa, mama to Orlando, who’s in one of my favorite series of pictures from last year:
Those pictures still make me laugh out loud.
Peter climbed the door about halfway up (and had to be rescued), and every now and then I’ll hear one of them start to climb it, but then give up. None of them have done it quite as fabulously as Orlando did.
That screen door continues to be THE best thing we did to the house last year, if not EVER!
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Oh, Unca Dennis, you have to be the best babysitter EVER. Hard to believe that a year ago or so he was a little guy looking up to Uncle Stefan and Uncle Tommy.
Have they encountered Grandma Poo yet?
No, they haven’t really encountered Miz Poo, aside from seeing her walk by the screen door at the bottom of the stairs. Miz Poo has no use for little babies, so she just ignores them as they stare at her walking by!
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Does Miz Poo make tummy biscuits? I could use some of those today!!
Miz Poo does not make biscuits; she’s too Lady of the Manor to do any baking. HOWEVER, if you would like someone to lay on your chest or stomach or head and purr like crazy, occasionally showering you with a big wet sneeze, she’s your girl!
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Is Dennis getting used to all these tween girl kittens seeing him as the Justin Bieber of the Kitty World?
He’s not surprised that they find him totally fabulous, although in recent days he’s been spending his time downstairs, away from the kittens. I think that Peter watching him use the litter box was a liiiiittle too creepy-stalker for Dennis.
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I’m kind of curious why you have a power drill on the table, Surely your meatloaf isn’t that tough.
Because Fred’s workshop is allllll the way across the driveway, and I need that drill more often than you’d think (I think this time around I needed to hang a light or a hook, I don’t remember which). It’ll eventually go back to the workshop when I get tired of seeing it sitting there – and rest assured that as SOON as it goes back into the workshop, I’ll need it for something!
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I took my cat for her checkup & shots yesterday. She is 10yrs old & weighs in at 16.5 lbs. She doesn’t eat anything except 1/3 cup dry food in the morning & night. Occasional treats. No wet food or people food. Just a big girl. She doesn’t play as much as she used to. She has a lazer pointer which she just usually lays and bops the red dot. She used to run up the walls. What is the largest cat you have had? Any suggestions from readers on toys for older cats to get them moving? I do have da bird, she likes but not like my foster kittens. My last cat became diabetic so I am just trying to keep her healthy.
Rather than post all the great responses in yesterday’s comments, I’ll just link to them so y’all can go read them yourselves. I do think that switching to a good canned food would be a better choice, food-wise (and switching to raw feeding is an option, too!) Since she does get the occasional treat, someone mentioned the great idea of making her work for her treats, which I like. As an older cat, she won’t fly around after Da Bird the way kittens do, but getting her to play with it is still a good idea. Anything that gets her moving will help, I think.
Y’all, have any other suggestions? Please chime in!
And to answer the question – the biggest cat we’ve had was Tubby, who passed away unexpectedly in 2004. He weighed over 20 pounds and did develop diabetes toward the end. We made a concerted effort to feed him better food and to get him moving in the months before he died, and he’d lost a little weight.
Currently, our biggest cat is Newt, who weighed in at 15 pounds last month (he always bulks up in the winter and then loses weight in the summer; several of our cats do, actually.)
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My fat cat won’t touch wet food either… any suggestions for getting her interested? If it’s a kind that has meat chunks with gravy, she’ll just lick the gravy off, but most others she just gives a sniff and moves along.
SC Amy said: I think someone recommended here before to grind up some of their dry food and sprinkle it on the top of the can food. That way they smell/taste the dry first and start to eat.
I would recommend trying that, or you could buy something like Forti-Flora (which you can get from your vet or online – here’s an Amazon link for reference), which a lot of cats love, and which you could sprinkle across the top of the canned food to get her interested.
If she’s a gravy lover, adding a little chicken broth to the canned food you offer might help (just be sure, if you use canned broth, to check the label to be sure there’s no garlic or onion added).
Also, this from Candace: I use the pate, but I leave about a teaspoon size amount in the can and add about 2/3 can very warm water. Mix the food and water in the can, then pour it over the rest of the food. It cools off the water just enough so it won’t burn them, but they lap it up like crazy, with no extra calories from gravy.
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Not fair. Not only do you get to boop Mary-nose and nap with kittens (c’mon, that’s like – EVERYONE’s dream), you have a fleece/flannel blanket. With cats on it. I am jealous. (Seriously, where did you find it?!!) You have jammies with cats on them stashed somewhere too, don’t you.
I got that blanket at TJ Maxx years and years ago. It was initially my plan to cut it up to make cat beds out of, but it’s just the perfect weight to take naps under, and it’s cute and the kittens always like the feeling of it (it’s kind of velour-y). The tag says “Thro by Marlo Lorenz”, but a quick look through Google image search didn’t show me any throws that look like it. Maybe I have the only one on earth.
I have some pajama pants with cats on them – which my mother made for me – but I rarely wear them because I rarely wear jammies!
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Peter would like it known that he could totally lift that 25 pound weight if he wanted to.
“Um. Not that I WANT to!”
Can you tell that he’s just a sassy little monkey, full of attitude? Does that come across in this picture?
Paul shows his teefs.
Sweet, sweet boy.
Look. It’s just exhausting being this cute!
Mary teef.
I call these next few pictures “Pictures wherein Robyn thought the speed flash was off, but it very much was not, DUH.” Or more simply, “Overexposed.” I could pretend that I took them this way on purpose, because I am an ARTEEST.
This really shows Paul’s hidden stripes and swirls.
And this really shows Peter’s hidden stripes and swirls!
Those boys sure do like to climb.
::LEAP::
Peter, Paul and Mary are headed off to be spayed and neutered today! They’re all well over 2 pounds, which happened all of a sudden. One minute Mary was 1 3/4 pounds, now she’s 2 1/4. The boys are both over 2 1/2 pounds
So, spaying and neutering today. Tomorrow they’re headed off to another foster home.
I know you’re surprised and want to know WHY. Why are those little monsters, who we have come to love and adore, why why WHY are they going to another foster home?
Well. It’s for the usual reason. We needed the room!
Yes, that is a pregnant belly.
The vet guesstimates that she’s between 3 and 4, and that this isn’t her first litter (which may mean that we’re in for a big litter!) She’s a tiny thing, and ALL belly. She’s super friendly and sweet, and just wants to be petted.
She’s not named yet – I decided to wait ’til she has her babies to decide on a naming theme, this time around. Definitely feel free to leave suggestions in the comments!
(I’ll just refer to her as Mama for now, because I’m super creative like that.)
After I drop the kittens off at the vet this morning, I’ll be scrubbing down their room and moving Mama into it (she spent last night in the downstairs bathroom and was perfectly happy about it.) The kittens can have the run of the rest of the upstairs for tonight, and will be going to their new digs tomorrow. FYI, if anyone is seriously interested in adopting any – or all! – of them, they’ll be ready to go in another couple of weeks.
I am excited about having a pregnant cat, but I am going to miss Peter, Paul and Mary. They’re at such a fun age!
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Videos! In the first, the kittens have the hippity-hops.
And in the second, Peter, Paul and I are having some naptime snuggles… until my stomach decides to make noises. Stupid stomach!
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“Oh, joy. More kittens.”
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Previously
2014: Orlando is showing that camera strap who the boss is.
2013: “Oh lord, how am I going to pay for college for all five of them at the same time?!”
2012: “I HAZ A COMPLAINT AND MY COMPLAINT IS STOP TAKING PICTURES OF ME AND ALSO MAMA KEEPS PUTTING HER PAW ON ME AND IT IS HEAVYYYYYYYYYY, WAHHHHHHHHHH!”
2011: No entry.
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry.
2007: I bet the country cats would kick his butt all over the yard, though.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Is this the pregnant mom we were trying to name on your Facebook page? She’s so pretty! I like the orange tracks down her back.
No, that was a cat that Forgotten Felines of Huntsville has. I think she had her babies on 3/14, and they went with a mathematics naming theme (one of them is Pi, I believe. 🙂 )
How cute!
Have you had a Pratchett naming yet? After he left us last week we re-watched going postal. She could be the smoking Gnu, Adora Belle Dearheart. There are very many great names in Terry’s books, mostly girls you could do witches, mostly boys, the nights watch.
I second the Pratchett idea for this sweet-faced mama and her babies. And for anyone who has yet to read his hilarious, provocative, humane, and endlessly inventive satires, now’s the time. No need to begin at the beginning: “Night Watch,” for instance, is a great intro. Also, like one of his many indelible characters, Death, Pratchett adored cats.
I am most whole-heartedly throwing my votes to a Pratchet/Discworld theme. Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaassseee!!!
Awww, she’s a beauty. I will miss the romping monsters, but mama needs you more I think. And YES YES YES on a Pratchett naming theme. It’s a good tribute IMO.
For a second I thought I was looking at a photo of Khalessi, but mama will do for know.
I did, too!
Bless her heart if she has 7, but has their ever been a Snow White and 7 dwarfs? I could easily see females with some of those names. She doesn’t have all white hair, but neither did Snow White… :-). So pretty…. Good luck to you and the new mama… and hope the trio aren’t too disappointed they’re not going to Disney today!
My cats also like brewers’ yeast, and one in particular likes it so well that if I mix some kind of crumbled medicine into her food (like the azithromycin “chew” she won’t touch but needs every day) and then sprinkle a generous pinch of brewers’ yeast on top, she usually eats it up. So it might jazz up that wet food.
Another suggestion for overcoming aversion to wet food is to experiment with the various textures available. My beloved Zoey, who ate wet food her whole life (with me, at least – 16 years), would only deign to eat pate or shredded types. She hated the meaty chunks variety and would only lick the gravy off.
I also agree with putting a bit of hot water in and making the mixture a bit looser and more liquidy, and love the suggestions of adding sprinkles of dry food or brewers yeast on top.
I think my heart skipped a beat when I saw that first beautiful picture of the New Mama at Crooked Acres. I was instantly transported back to Khaleesi for a brief second when I saw those big gorgeous eyes, but after viewing the other pictures I see there’s not that much of a resemblance, though I love her colouring and can’t wait to see what kinds of little spuds she produces.
As much as I wish there weren’t strays getting pregnant all over the place and we could get that situation under control, it always makes me happy to know the wee babies are coming into this world in one of the best places they ever could, where they’ll be loved and cared for and shared with the innernetz so they can become famous and be loved and adored by many others, and possibly find their new homes that way!
So exciting! I can’t wait for the squinty, mewling faces, teeny ears, precious antennae tails, wee-tiny toesies and all the other cute bits of kittens in our future!
Because they’re going to be the next big stars, I suggest an astronomy type naming theme: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_proper_names_of_stars
You said it perfectly Sourpuss !!!!
Happy for new babies 🙂 How long do we have to wait for itty bitty kitties ???
Sad/happy about Peter, Paul and Mary !!! They are going on to new adventures !!!
My cats will taste anything if I sprinkle Nature’s Variety Raw Boost powder on it. I also gave some to a friend whose kitty was not eating much (low appetite for some reason) and it turned her around. I also second the dry food on top of the wet food thing. If a cat has been eating dry food all their life, wet food is a big change, and it may be that you’ll need to put a bit of wet food out with their dry food for awhile just so they can get used to the smell and start associating it with food. I have found though that once they do try some, it’s pretty likely they’ll start eating it regularly. 🙂
Awww safe travels Peter Paul and Mary! I hope your families find you soon!
And new babies soon! Looking at the previous posts I knew it was about time for you to get a pregnant mama! Admit it…you’ve been begging Challenger’s House for one for a while, haven’t you?
I’m looking forward to the new babies but I have no ideas for a naming theme right at the moment. I KNOW you have a great list here somewhere (or on actual paper in your desk somewhere). We all made great suggestions back some time ago.
Also, can I please nominate the 2012 post from today as an “all time great” and add it to the other page.
I think Fred insisting on an office in your home, thereby usurping a second set of kittehs, is simply beyond the pale. I want BOTH the new kittehs and PP&M. I do not feel I am being unreasonable. At all.
I am, however, completely irritated with myself because I thought of a naming theme the other night, and I was REALLY proud of it, so of course I can’t remember what it was…
Me Too! Fred can share with the babies – they won’t take up much room at all AND they’d be quiet for the first couple of weeks and not at all rambunctious and by the time they got that way, you’d have already found forever homes for PP&M. And before they get here, it would only be Mama Cass! (Sorry, I have a difficult time saying just Mama – it’s either Sheriff Mama or Mama Cass for me. :))
I will miss Peter, Paul and Mary!! Hope they all get new homes quickly, and will wait patiently for the new kittens to arrive!! Mom
OMG – that last picture ALMOST made water come out my nose 🙂
New Mama reminds me of Khaleesi and Livia, but she looks even smaller. Pretty girl! She’ll have a colorful litter from the looks of her.
Yes, get the cat off dry food and it will lose weigh.. When i finally stopped giving dry food as treats my Muffin lost a dramatic amount of weight and she only got a few pieces as treats.. I was actually getting scared of the weight loss until a) I made the connection and b) she stopped losing weight..
http://www.catinfo.org/?link=felineobesity
Also transitioning a cat is hard, and it’s biological not the cat being picky or spiteful. Cats learn what foods are foods when they are kittens because it is what ‘mom brought home’ and if mom didn’t bring it home then it wasn’t food. It keeps them safe.. well it did when they lived in the wild and they had to determine what to eat each day. Now that they are pampered house panthers, it does work against them a bit. You simply need to go slow and introduce small bits of the new food along with the old food so they can get used to the smell and the sight of it. Eventually they’ll start associating that with food and will give it a go. “tricking’ them by changing up the smell to smell more like something they want to eat with ground up dry or fortifloria does work in a lot of cases.
http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf
I literally jumped up and down in my chair when I saw pregnant Mama. I’m at work though, so it was a little awkward 🙂 I will definitely miss PPM though!
“he always bulks up in the winter and then loses weight in the summer; several of our cats do, actually.” OMGosh I’m like a cat (the same thing happens to me).
I’m sad that the trio will be leaving for a new foster home but it’s been a while since you had a mommy cat and litter so I’m looking forward to that. May it all go well for the trio and the mommy-to-be.
Oh mummy puss maternity ward opens again! 2 suggestions for names this time I vote for a Terry Pratchett theme with Cherry Littlebottom as Mum? or Adora Belle or Susan..so many to choose from on Discworld. We has an eclipse of the sun here today and as your doing music how about Bonnie Tyler (Total Eclipse of the Heart!) and she is welsh so either welsh names, Nerys,Blodwyn,Dilys, Gwyn, Wil,Evan, Ioan…or sun themed Sol,Aten,Ra…Tiki..
A couple of days ago, the link to the 2010 post suggested The Verbs: Dither, Ponder, Discuss, and Swagger. I love this idea!
And as exciting as a pregnant mama is, I will miss Peter, Paul, and Mary!
Yes, I also noticed the Verbs and wondered if they have ever been used. But my heart goes to the Terry Pratchett theme.
I am so going to miss our trio. All of them are so special and unique.
Me, too. I mean, I’d never pass up some tiny bebeh kittens, but I have grown very attached to the three. I will miss starting my morning with their silly antics — particularly the (play) spitting and fights in Robyn’s lap!
This might be a bit out there, but since it is the first day of spring, you could name Mama kitty Persephone the goddess of Spring, and all her little babies could be gods and goddesses.
or…
Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters…
LOL
BUFFY CHARACTERS!!!! Buffy, Giles, Xander, Willow, Cordelia, oh fun!
And if there is a blonde boy – SPIKE!
ooooo I would love to have a Buffy themed litter! … it would totally confuse the heck out of my sister who’s a die hard Buffy fan XD
I was wondering if you were going to get any pregnant cats this year! Yay for bitty babies! I will miss PPM though.
I believe I’ve suggested this in the past but seeing as how it’s the 50th anniversary of the Sound of Music It’d be awesome to see a Von Trapp litter! It’s musical too so it kinda stays with the music theme of the year, too!
Oh, I second sourpuss – there’s a bit of the Khaleesi in beautiful Mama’s face! Babies!!! So.Exciting!!!! Any idea around when they make their grand arrival?
Can’t be coincidence that she’s probably due the same time as the Duchess of Cambridge is expecting her second… Now, I know you had a Royal-themed litter already, but I say you salute the British and have an English-themed litter – say, Monty Python or Fawlty Towers (you thought I was gonna say Coronation Street, or something like that, huh?!!) – or even in keeping with the 70’s band theme of late, maybe choose the names of British invasion bands. Anyhoo…
Aw, bye bye Peter, Paul and Mary! I know you will find your forever families, and you will be so happy and loved. Thanks for all the smiles!
I agree with Candace about the canned food. We use very warm water at the no kill shelter to entice the cats to eat their canned food. They even like it on the slurpy side. Some are also particular about the variety. They may not like beef or fish .
You and Fred are really the best. Every time I get discouraged about people, I think of you guys-and I know there are awesome people in this world, and it restores my faith.
So, we know she is pregnant, and not just on the chunky side, right? How about Mildred? It was my grandmother’s name, and I heard it in a school the other day (I am a substitute teacher)-you could call her Millie for short, or my grandma’s nickname-Doll.
Ooh, I really like the idea of using old-fashioned names for a litter!
I saw someone ask about keeping their elderly kitties moving & playing & I swear, thee best cat toy EVER, for young & old, is “The Cat Dancer.” A simple piece of metal wire with what looks to be rolled paper thingies on the ends, gets my crowd fired up & when I just stash it with the holder they offer, some will entertain themselves with it for hours!!! Seek out “The Cat Dancer” & get a kitty dance party going.
P.S. The biggest, non-fat kitty I ever had was my Manny, a 20 pound, pure white polydactyl with pink nose & paw pads & who purred like a freight train (his “twin” brother Leo was born deaf, so Manny made up for it in loud meows & purrs, if that didn’t work, he’d go find Leo to let him know food, treats or fun was to be had.) Manny was TALL & looooooooong, who took after his Daddy, Chowder (who, contrary to what the shelter said; was NOT neutered!!!) who was a large, white kitty. Manny had 2 sisters & as previously mentioned, a brother. We raised the whole family, including Mamakitty Ivee (who was a polydactyl, tortie/tux). Manny’s sisters were fat sausages!!! The both fattened up to being over 22 lbs. Poor Manny was my first kitty I had to euthanize, after my vet went all out to save him, but alas, he was a mess & stolen away from the world of the living at 8 years old in 2005. His twin, Leo, lived the longest to be 17 years old & I will forever be thankful for how the stars lined up to have this kitty family for our home to be blessed with. I currently have 8 kitties, the eldest at 16 years old is my beloved Edgrrr, who was good friends with Manny, & the youngest at 15 months is our brother duo; Shelby P. Winkleton (friends may call him Wanker) & Kirby Q. Stinklewicz (a.k.a. Kirby-Kirbay) who keep the rest on their toes & made my older cats more lively & playful.
I guess with all my babbling, the gist of it is this; aside from the toys the best thing to get an older kitty moving & playing is a younger kitty (or 2)! >^._.^<
P.S. (uh… again) As for Mamakitty’s name; I’d love to see her dubbed Priscilla Pansy Pettibone. Priscilla, because she looks like one, Pansy because she has a sort of pansy design by her nose & Pettibone to pay homage to her favored pastime of pettings. Yes, I am a kook who gives her kitties a whole name, some with middle names, some without. However, 99% of the time their “official” names are taken over by nicknames & yes; I DO need a life. 🙂
I adore the Pratchett idea, but “Mama Cass” was the first thing that popped into my head with the musician theme you’ve had going on lately.