A year in review (part 2)

July:
With Killian getting adopted and the rest of the beer kittens up at Petco, mom felt the need to bring home more kittens: Sorcha, Sebastian, Sierra and Screech

And then Licorice arrived....that has been an adventure (and she is STILL waiting for her forever home).

Our wordless Wednesday posts were dedicated to one of us per week. Most of July was taken up trying to determine what was up with Licorice, getting her healthy and less itchy.

August:
Sierra and Sebastian got adopted. And of course mom brought home more kittens - Hobbes and Mandy.

We celebrated our 4th blogoversary.

Busch and Miller were adopted together. We helped a former adopter rescue a kitten named Mitts. And Jake and Elwood came to the house as fosters.

September:
Stella was adopted!!!  And the pilot kittens - Goose, Maverick and Amelia (the Dust Bunny) joined us as fosters.

Mitts got adopted!!

Licorice finally was spayed, got her teeth cleaned and went up to Petco.

Spud and Ivy turned 5 years old and Maestro turned 19 years old!!

Elwood got to meow like a space-pirate.  MOL

And mom had an adventure with Junior that she could have done without.

October:
Tim and Tom turned 10 years old!

And we celebrated National Feral Cat Day. Especially our girl Allie.

Our cousin Max crossed the Rainbow Bridge. And Jake and Elwood got adopted.

And Basil and Saffron joined us as fosters.

November:
Oliver went to Petco, came here (in October), gave everyone the snot and then got adopted.

Rosie came to join Basil, Saffron and Amelia.

And Chex and Milano were returned due to medical issues with their family.

December:
Amelia finally got big enough and without snot to be spayed. Basil went with and was neutered.

Mom broke out some Christmas stuff....and made some of us wear it.

Basil got adopted. Maverick got adopted. Milano moved up to Petco. It was a wild weekend. :)

We got a special Catmas present from mom.

We participated in the Secret Paws gift exchange.

Rosie got adopted.

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It has been quite a year. The blogging community has lost several members - you can see them here at the blog Our Rainbow Friends.  We have taken in fosters, and some were not strong enough to survive, but we know that part of fostering isn't always the good things but sometimes being there to help those that need us - even if it is help crossing the Bridge.

We have taken in 39 fosters this year. We have had some great adoptions. Mom has helped transport 20 dogs.

We wish you a wonderful, healthy and happy 2014!!  We can't wait to see what comes.

weekend wrapup....

Well, if you follow us on Facebook, you have seen this guy:

Yep, mom offered to "baby" sit for the weekend. The little guy doesn't have a name, but mom thinks she may try to christen him Logan (after the Wolverine). If you look close at the second picture, you can see his back legs. One foot is a little crooked, but the other back leg is pretty curled in toward his body. The person who brought him to the rescue saw his mom carry one kitten away. Another kitten (with deformities also) had been killed by something. And then this little guy. We have the woman keeping an eye out for mom and the other kitten. In the meantime, he is eating very well and is a joy. Mom has enjoyed having him here. Oh, and that other kitty she got a Blog Paws as part of a microchip demonstration.  Mom calls him Floyd (if you are old enough, think about it and feel free to laugh....for the rest of you, mom just sighs).

 

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Our boy Screech was adopted on Saturday. The family has a 13 year old daughter and a 3 year old Bichon. We wish him well and know the girl will spoil him rotten.

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Recognize these kittens:

 

What about now:

Yep - that is Nasa and Orbit.  :)  They are finally up for adoption at the shelter. Nasa (now known as Hubble as they got the names backwards) took a while to grow the fur back after being so sick. But the change to Orbit shocked mom.
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Miller went back to Petco on Sunday. He is in the top cages with Busch. Stella moved downstairs with Sorcha. And while mom sat there for the adoption event....  NO ONE was happy about it.  MOL  Busch hissed at Miller, Miller growled at Busch. Sorcha and Stella spent some time calling each other names as well. But, by the time mom left for the day, everyone had settled down.

Sierra and Sebastian....

Yep - those two cuties crack us up. That last picture is Sebastian curled up with Maestro. We are pretty sure Maestro could do without kittens sleeping near him, but he is too old to care enough to get up to move. MOL

On Sunday, mom wanted to be sure the kittens were microchipped before being adopted (normally this gets done during surgery, but with the ongoing issues about who is getting surgery and when they are leaving, mom didn't want to be running around at the last minute). She needed to take Busch with her for Miss Mona to check (a whole other story), so when she stopped at Petco, she put Sierra on the scale - which read 1.9 pounds. Holy Cod!!! 

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Miller is feeling much better. If he wasn't still sneezing somewhat, mom would suspect him of faking it to come back to the house (ok - there was snot at the store, but still). He is getting a little less crabilated with everyone around here. The way he is acting, you would think we had all never met. He was growling at Ivy the other night and got whapped so maybe he will knock it off. :)

Mancat Monday....

Well, some beer kitten at Petco decided to get a cold and ended up back here over the weekend.

Miller was a VERY unhappy mancat when he got back here on Friday night. He growled and stayed in one corner. Mom grabbed him Saturday morning and put him in the play pen where the s kittens spend the night to be sure he had access to food and water without being too threatened. He is still pretty snotty, so he may be here a few days. Mom got a call about Stella on Saturday, but she looked ok so she is still there.
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Someone came out of the bathroom:

Yep - that is Miss Licorice. She came out Saturday afternoon. She didn't really settle down but spent most of the time wandering around getting the lay of the land. She disappeared for a while and mom would find her snoozing in the bathroom.
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Questions from Friday:
Sierra and Sebastian's new mom will sign an agreement to make sure Sierra is spayed by age 4 months. She will need to send a copy of the information to mom for verification.

Licorice could be spayed now, but mom was trying to get a little more weight on her. While the clinic will do her while she is in heat, they (and mom) prefer to wait, so hopefully this will end soon and mom will get her spayed ASAP!!

Random Fridays....

Mom is so fired - AGAIN!!!  She forgot Ivy's birthday yesterday......

 Happy (belated) Birthday Princess!!!

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"A dog like that" - mom found this article about how we view dogs - and how to change how we look at them.  Mom like when the author mentioned she now asks "what personality are you looking for?" since that is the question mom asks most when people come to the shelter to look at cats.
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Well, Sierra and Sebastian are being adopted together and moving to South Carolina. :)  The rescue lady gave the ok to get Sebastian neutered since he is big enough and send them now and let their new mom get Sierra spayed when she is big enough. Not our normal procedure, but we are glad an exception is being made.
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And, in an effort to raise awareness (and money) a volunteer at Manchester Dogs' Home in England will be living for 35 days as one of the dogs in the shelter - since that is the average time a dog spends waiting to be adopted. You can read more about it here. We wish him well and hope his efforts bring some much needed funds to the shelter and some VERY much needed awareness. Good luck Sean.
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And in other news: Licorice started singing the "I need a mancat" song last night. Oh joy......

Toesday.....

We haven't done this for a while and mom was on a roll this weekend.

Mo toes - yeah....that is as good as it gets sometimes  :)

Ivy toes - so cute, it is a shame she won't let you touch them

Sierra toes - squeeeee

Junior toes

weekend wrap up....

The cool weather stuck around!!! The windows have been open for several days and we have been enjoying it. And it is supposed to be nice this week too.....  Hope we don't pay for it.  :)

Sebastian and Sierra are having a good time. They now weigh about 2.1# (Sebastian) and 1.6# (Sierra) (mom takes them to Petco and puts them on the scale their - MOL).

And.....Sierra has a new mom. Now if we can only get her to weight. She is thinking about maybe taking both kittens, so we will see how that goes. Mom spent an hour with them at Petco on Sunday morning with both kittens. Then she brought them home, fed them a snack, and they PASSED OUT!!

For those of you who missed our commentathon, don't feel bad - we made mom round up a few bucks.

Licorice got a bath on Saturday with the special soap. The vet wanted it to sit on her for 10 minutes, but mom just couldn't make Licorice sit still that long. So she scrubbed it in good, let it sit for a couple of minutes and then rinsed. Mom also tried this weekend to get Licorice out of the bathroom. Mom sat there with the door open. Mo and Sierra and Tim came in. Licorice freaked out a little, walked a little way into the hallway and growled at Tommy when he growled at her. She came back into the bathroom and went into the corner, so mom left it at that for the day. But it could have gone MUCH worse..... She tried again on Sunday. Licorice came out to find 4 other adults in her safe place and after sniffing the tip of Tim's tail, backed up again. But still, progress....

Random Fridays.....

Some comments from Tuesday on the Litter One system:
"will it stand up to a super scratcher" - we have to say maybe not. The floor of the box is smooth though, so it may take some abuse. Licorice's nails are still pretty short so she can't do much damage.
"my cat likes to chew cardboard" - yeah, we hadn't thought about that. This box may be way too much temptation for a cardboard chewer.
"does the cardboard stand up to pee" - so far so good. Not sure the back would last nearly as long if you have a spayer, but it might. But there are some spots on the floor where the litter didn't cover as much as it should.

So here is Licorice's update: don't know how it is going to last 4-6 weeks....maybe 2 with the amount of litter left. The cardboard scoop they included doesn't work so well - bent in half pretty quick. And the cardboard does absorb some pee though there isn't any smell.

Mom really wanted to like this product, but it may need some work.
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Mom was off Tuesday for one of those "gotta get a million things done on a weekday-day". The beer kittens got their rabies shots.....Stella was grumpy, Busch hissed at the vet and Miller got so worked up he panted and drooled on mom. sheesh....  And we really don't understand where their families are - these kitts are so friendly and outgoing and are even dog-friendly.

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Our Sierra girl has a new mom. Now if we could only get her up to weight..... anyhow, if you have curious cats around or are at work, you may not want to turn up the sound on this:

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Thanks for all the comments yesterday. We got a grand total of 39 comments so mom will be sending $25.00 to OBR!! *she rounded up, not that she can't do math 
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Quick Licorice update (sorry no new pics). Mom took her to the vet on Tuesday to get her spots checked out. The vet thinks she is over-licking due to the itches. So Licorice is getting antibiotics and a steriod to help with the itchy and the inflamation. And.....mom has to give her a bath. Oh joy..... 

If you hear screams this afternoon, don't panic.  Mom just feels bad cause it is hard enough pilling Licorice (not is the giving it to her sense, more in the pitiful expression sense) and feels like she is going to betray what trust they have built up. Hopefully Licorice will be less itchy and forgive mom quickly. Oh - and get this: in 2 weeks she gain 1.5 pounds!!! YEAH!!!
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We hate to end on a sad note, but this was posted on the website for the rescue where we foster:
"Our Hearts are Saddened...

We are saddened to learn of the death of one of our wonderful volunteers, Lanlin Zhang Lee.

Lanlin was the proud mother of Maisy, a cat adopted from Colony Cats (& dogs). She was a regular worker at the Kit & Kaboodle Boutique, always with a warm smile and ready hug.

Please remember her husband, Eugene, in your thoughts and prayers. Lanlin's life ended too soon and she will be greatly missed"
We understand that she was competing in a triathalon in New York when there was a bike crash. One other rider was killed as well. Mom met her once and while she seemed a little reserved she was very nice.

Weekend update.....

The adoption event on Saturday was successful - but we don't think as much as last year. It was hot and rained part of the day and we suspect that influenced everything. However there were 4 adult cats, 17 kittens and 10 dogs adopted. And the three space kittens that were there all went home!!!

The kid arrived on Saturday. You may remember from last summer that mom's niece spent all summer last year with grandma and grandpa. This year she is only here for two weeks. She came over on Sunday to see the kittens.

 No other adoptions - but we are keeping our paws crossed.

Oh - and check it out - we won an award for having a blog and having five or more cats from The Cat on My Head blog.  THANKS!!!

Random Fridays.....

Sorcha and Screech are now at Petco. They went Wednesday after being spayed/neutered. Normally they would come home, but there is space at the store. And honestly, they will get less activity and get into less trouble up there. Plus the public can see them..... Mom did have to laugh when she picked them up - the tech asked if there was just the one carrier. Mom nodded and the tech said to keep on eye on them since they had decided they didn't like each other. Sorcha was a little growly, but she was probably just ouchy as she was fine once they got to the store. Screech was just stoned....

Screech making friends

(with Maestro, Junior, Mozart and Ivy)

 So now it is Licorice in the bathroom and the two smaller kittens in the playpen in the living room. We knew the littler ones were siblings and Sorcha and Screech were older single kittens. For those who don't remember, Screech came with his name and mom picked Irish names that start with S for the girls.

Well, the darker tabby has a mild case of the snot and mom has been giving meds, wiping noses and picking boogers (geez - don't you want to run right out and volunteer to foster now?). So, Wednesday night, mom made an amazing discovery.

The darker tabby.....previously known as Siobhan.....is actually a boy!! 

(mom is so fired)

Sierra and her BROTHER - Sebastian
(mom dropped the Irish thing - just stick to the S)

Mom kinds worries about him - he is little and snotty. And yet yesterday morning once he got out of the playpen, he was bouncing around in circles chasing his own tail. Just gotta find a food he REALLY likes to put some weight on him (OK - and his sister).

Mom was trying to get a better picture of Licorice. This is her favorite position - those back legs just don't curl up. Mom mentioned her bald spots yesterday. Mom took this picture on Wednesday night.... and discovered there are more spots than she realized. We thank you for the comments from yesterday. Mom is going to try to get some coconut oil and try that first. Certainly can't hurt her any.....  Licorice is due for the second run of Frontline on Monday for her lice problem. Mom hasn't seen any, but in this case WAY better safe than sorry. :)  We also have some pet wipes. Mom is going to try those over the weekend and we will see what happens.

Wordless Wednesday.....

Our pictures of us will return next week....this week we thought we would share some videos.....

Turn up your volume......that girl has a serious purr.

Screech and Sorcha having a good time

weekend update.....

No transports this weekend. There was some cool air on Friday and Saturday so mom turned off the cool air machine and opened the windows!!!

Sunday was the monthly adoption event at Petco. Stella, Busch and Miller are still up there. After mom got set up, she notice Miller and Busch sitting next to each other - and Miller is a LOT bigger than Busch. The manager up there is a dog person with NO cat skills. He mentioned about separating the kittens. Mom asked why and he said that two of the kittens seemed to be hurting the other one. Mom snickered.....the boys are picking on Stella and she is a screamer - but they aren't hurting her. So no, they won't be separated.

Stella looking out at the world

Mom took the S kittens up there with her. Sorcha and Screech will go for their spay/neuter surgery on Wednesday so mom figured if someone fell in love with them, it wouldn't be a long wait to send them home. Siobhan and Sierra were in baby jail - the other two were in the Petco cages (cause mom figured they would be able to get over baby jail).

Busch is super cool and super sweet - where is his family????

Miller (back) and Busch (front - check out those ears)

July is usually a slow adoption month, but we wish there were families stepping up for the beer kittens before they get much bigger. They are dog friendly and just a nice group of kittens.