Tailspring

 *this is a sponsored post 

all opinions expressed are my own

I don't raise bottle babies. I have done it once and baby sat for a weekend. It is HARD!! I have all the respect in the world for those fosters that take bottle babies and raise them. They are so fragile and it can be seriously heartbreaking. Those fosters pull out all the stops to save these tiny lives and are always looking for new resources to help them. 

Right now there are two main brands of replacement milk out there being used to bottle feed tiny kittens and puppies. There is a new brand coming out from Tailspring that is available on their website and Amazon. The main difference in this new product is it is goat milk based. They have learned that goat milk is easier for small puppies and kittens to digest and therefore can cause less side effects. They are a division of a larger company that sells products for people as well.

What struck me right off the bat was the difference in the ingredient list. Tailspring has so many less additives. They are using human grade ingredients and trying to keep their product as clean as they possibly can for the animals they serve. 

I did get a sample of the Tailspring kitten formula from the company.

This will be great to keep on hand for future kittens. While I don't take bottle babies, I have had some I want to supplement. It comes in cans that need to be used within 72 hours once opened. The powder will stay good and once opened will keep for 3 months in the fridge. That would totally get me through most of kitten season here in the mid west. 

I admit, this will be added to my supply closet. I try to keep something on hand "just in case". I priced out the difference between this and KMR (which most rescues use) and it is $5 more - which isn't bad when you consider it doesn't have all the additives. 

They don't recommend this for adults except maybe as the occasional treat due to the added lactose. Kittens can process it up to a certain age, but then lose that ability and cannot process the lactose. 

I wish I had known about this when I first got the muffin kittens - it would have been a much better thing to use to supplement Cranberry when he was so tiny. 

Thanks to Tailspring for the samples, supporting rescue and coming out with a product to help those tiny babies that need the most.

Comfort Zone [sponsored]

Mom had a chance to meet the makers of Comfort Zone when she was at Blog Paws in Kansas City. They actually sponsored a breakfast to talk about their product and mom took Chanel. After the food was served, a marketing person started to talk and suddenly Chanel decided she needed to be ON the table expressing her opinion about everything. 

We've never tried a diffuser like this in the house before, though we have certainly heard about them and actually seen them in other cat houses as well as at vet offices. Mom has been interested to give them a try but never actually did anything about it. So when Comfort Zone offered to send us some to try and review, mom was on board.
           **disclaimer: we got the diffusers at no charge to us in exchange for a free review. While we didn't pay for anything, receiving the product in no way affected our opinions. Everything here is our own opinion of the product (well ok - mom's opinion).

We put two of them up in the house. One of them in the kitten room (you can see it below behind Saporro) and the other in a main corner of the house. At that corner, the tile is the kitchen and the hall behind Ivy leads back to the bedrooms. The main space you see is the living room. The back bedroom is where the cat stuff is located and the water dishes are in the kitchen. This makes for a major traffic area.

As we have said before, Ivy and Junior have a rather tense relationship - he stalks her and she hates him with a passion. Mom is hoping the diffuser at the corner will help with anyone being stuck there.

The one in the foster room was mainly for Goldfish. The minute we got the box (about a month ago), mom put one in the foster room with her. As most of you know, Goldfish has been a work in progress. Mom would be able to touch her, but then have to do something (like medicate her or grab her to take her to get spayed) and all that trust would go out the window.

The nice part with two of them up now is that Goldfish still gets the exposure while leaving one in with the kittens to help with any stress there.

Mom knows this isn't a miracle product, but after a month, she will say that she is seeing Ivy be a little calmer, Junior be a little less jumpy...and Goldfish getting more relaxed. All things considered, we will count that as a success.

Thanks to Comfort Zone for allowing us to try their product. They make the calming formula and have now branched out to a multi-cat formula as well.

we got treats [sponsored post]

This month from Chewy.com we got Only Natural Pet Wild Caught Salmon treats. And that is all there is....salmon, nothing added. We don't get much fish around here but mom figured this would be good for a treat once in a while.

Daiquiri seemed pretty interested.

Junior ran in, grabbed a treat and took off down the hall. Mom can only hope he actually ate it. MOL Ivy of course sniffed everything and decided she wasn't eating those. Chanel gave them a good sniff but didn't actually try one. The ones that mom put out were in pretty good sized chunks, so mom is going to try another time and break them into smaller pieces that might entice Chanel.

Daiquiri on the other paw found them awesome. She ate 3 and came over to mom looking for more.

We don't have many freeze dried treats here either, so mom wonders if maybe adding a little water and letting them get soft would make a difference to certain cats as well.

However, they don't have any added ingredients and at least Daiquiri liked them....which as far as she is concerned means more treats for her!!

Disclosure: We received this product free to try out in exchange for our honest review. This did not influence our opinions at all. We will always give our fair and honest opinion of products and we will only share information that we feel is relevant to our readers. Chewy.com and Only Natural Pets are not responsible for the contents of this post and the opinions expressed are based on product testing by us.

goody box

We got our box free of charge from Chewy and wanted to tell you about it. Getting the box did not influence our opinions and all opinions are our own. #ChewyInfluencer

So the other day the big delivery truck left an unexpected box at our door. Mom opened it up and there was a Goody Box inside from Chewy.com. Turns out they are getting in the surprise box business and have one for cats, little dogs and with dog treats. Well color us surprised and excited.

Daiquiri was sent in to inspect the box.

There are toys, treats and catnip along with 

a booklet describing each thing in the box.

Toy inspectors say YAY!!

We have to say, nicely done. It was well thought out and put together. And at $19.95, a good value as well for what we got. Mom is giving the broth to the kittens (which they are loving) and marinating some of our toys in the catnip for future use. What fun this would be to send to friends, family or even a rescue.

Thanks for thinking of us Chewy and letting us check out your new Meow You're Talking Goody Box. We give it lots of paws up.

clean plate club

  Chewy.com

We got the food at no charge but that didn't affect our review. All opinions are our own. Thanks though for helping to feed the hungry heathen foster kittens.

This month we got a box of Tiki Cat after Dark variety to try with the kittens. It is all grain free and the main source of protein is the first ingredient on the can. Mom does say be careful opening the can though - these have a pretty high moisture content and mom almost spilled the entire can when she opened the first one (so of course her fingers then smelled like chicken broth and the kittens got even more excited - you would think she would learn to open the cans and fill the plates somewhere other than the kitten room).

you gonna open that box or what??

Everyone was pretty excited about this. Cranberry and the Texas kittens ran each other over for the first can and mom had to quickly open a second one to keep everyone happy.

clean plate club

The kittens give it 6 paws up. They have loved every flavor and cleaned the plate every time. In fact, one of the Texas girls growled at Blueberry when he got too close. MOL

feed the kitten

  We are doing a kitten food review for Chewy.com this month. We received the food free of charge but any and all opinions belong to the cats. Receiving the food did not influence their opinions in any way. (sponsored post)

Dis r for me right?

Pro Plan Kitten was our choice this month since we still have a kitten around the house. We like that there is a variety, though you should be aware that 2 of the 3 varieties have fish since some people are wary of that. Mom did smile that it is labeled "Focus"...not sure if that means it is focused on kittens or what, but since Mallard has the attention span of a turnip, we doubt this is going to help HER focus. MOL

"hurry up weird foster lady and open the box"

Well, it got the two cat approval. Mom did finally have to get another dish as Panache wouldn't get her head out long enough for Mallard to get her head in there.

To be honest, mom is thinking maybe Tommy might enjoy some as a treat since he is currently having skinny old mancat issues (nothing medical....just skinny) and the v-e-t has approved kitten food for him as a snack.

review #ChewyInfluencer

 

We got the product from free from Chewy.com for our honest review. 

Receiving the product doesn't influence our views and opinions are our own.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

sorry - fuzzy picture

Strength by Wapiti Labs

Available at Chewy.com

Tommy - our old man cat at almost 14 years old

Mozart - our second oldest cat at almost 11 years old

Tommy has definitely been slowing down the last year or so. Mom noticed this along with him losing weight and had the vet run a senior blood panel on him. Everything came back normal, but he is still pretty skinny and was slowing down.

Mozart has ALWAYS been skinny but was showing his age as well. Mom hasn't had his senior bloodwork done yet, but he is getting up there and mom worries about him as well.

So when the items came out for review from Chewy for June and mom saw this supplement, she got interested. Her original intent had been to start when she got it and give you the full 30 day review. Then life happened and we had kittens, and a big adoption event, and kittens, and delivering Cupcake, and did we mention kittens? So the boys have been taking this now for just over 10 days. The product website says you should notice results in 7-10 days, so at least mom knows she should be noticing something.

Which she has....both Tommy and Mozart seem a little more active and alert. Mozart has started back bringing a toy to mom each night when she goes to bed...while she could do without the howling "look I killed it for you" song, she does smile that he is back to being his mighty hunter self. Tommy seems more confident when jumping on the bed and not quite so creaky. Both boys are still skinny so we suspect it doesn't affect weight (they are both eating like normal, so no worries there).

Fortunately, Tommy and Mo are easy to "medicate". This comes in a liquid form and you just give them one dropper amount twice per day. Mom isn't sure what it tastes like (you want to know, YOU can try it), but both boys let her give it to him and Mo has been seem smacking him lips.

So we have to give this one 4 paws up. The bottle says it is a 30 day supply, but we suspect that is for 1 cat. That said, after 10 days there is plenty left in the bottle.

Thanks to Chewy and Wapiti Labs for letting us try this one. 

Fresh Wave Review #sponsored

Mom got to meet some great people at Blog Paws.

One of the booths was Fresh Wave - and they emailed her after the conference asking if she would like to review some products. Absolutely!! She has used the gel before and has the spray that she loves. However...they make these beads that go in your vacuum cleaner. She got pretty excited (yes, she is weird....we are aware). Along with the vacuum beads, we got a container of gel and a spray.

of course, if it comes in a box, some cat will have to inspect it

(Daiquiri)

Mom likes the natural ingredients in this: aniseed, cedarwood, clove, lime and pine needles (along with water)

Their website says put a capful in the vacuum bag or canister and replace monthly or as needed. We have a Dyson that mom has to empty every time it is used (can you say lots of cat hair?) so she first put in about 1/2 a cap just so she wasn't wasting anything. Mom didn't "notice" anything...and then realized that was the point. The house just smelled....clean. (not that it isn't normally but you know what we mean....nothing catlike lingering about)

The gel is now in a prime spot in the living room and the spray has been used a few times as well (kittens...enough said).

When you first open a container or use the spray, there is a scent. Mom couldn't figure it out at first until she read the ingredient list...she was smelling clove and lime. Very nice...and it dissipates quickly too into - nothing really. No original scent, no perfumey scent, no nothing.

They have a wide range of products....candles, scent pods, the gel packages (and refills), smaller stick on pods (and refills) along with the vacuum beads and even a laundry booster (mom is thinking this might be a good thing to buy and donate to the rescue). They do list a pet shampoo, but after reading, it is actually NOT to be used on cats. (we got a sample at Blog Paws and will give that to friends)

THANKS to Fresh Wave for letting us review their products. We got everything for free, but our reviews are always our honest opinion and not influenced by any company.

Also.....they agreed to a GIVEAWAY!!!  Just comment below and we will pick a winner (US only) and have them ship a box to you. Tell us your favorite product! All comments posted before midnight on Saturday June 10 will count.

Tidy Cats Direct litter box

  Chewy.com Influencer Review

We are a Chewy Influencer and got this product at no charge for our honest review. Receiving the product in no way influenced our opinions.

When mom got the email last month, she wasn't going to get anything to review simply as she wasn't going to be home during Blog Paws and was going to be running around trying to get organized.

However....the Tidy Cats Direct Disposal Litter Box showed up and mom knew that was perfect. No separate boxes, no containers of litter to drag around...everything all in one container. All mom had to do was bring a scoop and bags to scoop into. Chewy lists this at $26.60 and the information states it should last 1 cat for 1 month. We have NO idea if that is true or not....we sure don't have one cat and we go through a lot of litter in one month. That said, 3 kittens in one week barely put a dent in the litter (so mom brought the whole thing home and put it in the foster room).

Keep in mind, this is 13.5 pounds. The 8.5 pound container of light weight Tidy Cats costs $11.98.

Pros:
  - direct delivery
  - light weight litter
  - all in one container
  - the kittens took right too it no issues at all
  - the box is lined with a coating to keep it from leaking

Cons:
  - light weight litter (geez that stuff can fly around a room)
  - low sided box - if you have a flinger or a cat that pees standing up, this won't work

All in all, this is a great idea for traveling. Mom gives it 2 thumbs up!!

toy review #ChewyInfluencer

Chewy.com   #ChewyInfluencer  #sponsored

We received this product from Chewy.com in return for our honest review. Receiving the product doesn't affect our opinions and we only share information and products that we feel is relevant. Chewy is not responsible for the content of this review.


This month there was a neat looking toy being offered. Since we can't pass up something new to play with (seriously...we only have a bazillion toys here), mom requested this and opened it up as soon as it arrived.

Mozart of course was a little more interested in the box that the toy came in:

The toy is an interactive treat and puzzle toy from catamazing.com. It came flat in a package and required some assembly, but went together very quickly. There is a video on their website, but mom figured it using the information in the package.

Some cats were a little TOO helpful in the package opening process.
Tommy on top, Daiquiri chewing on the package

left to right: Diaquiri, Ivy and Spud (with his head in the hole)

The outside of the box has various holes in different shapes and sizes. Inside the box is an insert that waves up and down creating barriers.

Everyone was interested at first, but mom got this figuring that Daiquiri would be the one spending the most time figuring it out. To add to the fun, mom found one of Daiquiri's foam soccer balls and put that inside the box as well.

Spud watched as Daiquiri tried in vain to get the treats and toys out.

So far the biggest "fun" has been everyone pushing the box around the living room as they try to use their faces to get treats out of one end or the other. Daiquiri did manage to get her toy out though mom didn't see it happen. She and Spud spend the most time with this and mom has put more treats in every day.

The biggest concern mom had was that the box is cardboard and Daiquiri is a certified cardboard destruction expert. However, other than getting in one good chomp on the box as mom was putting it together, she has left it alone. How long remains to be seen....  :)

The toy is priced at $14.99 on Chewy's website and remember shipping is free over $49. The puzzle has been a big hit here and we give it 6 paws up! While some play with it more than others, everyone has checked it out at least a couple of times and tried to get those treats to come out.

food review #ChewyInfluencer

We received the product at no charge from Chewy.com. All opinions expressed are our own and are not influenced by receiving the product.

This month there was canned food from Taste of the Wild on the list and mom decided to try that. (the link leads to a 5.5 ounce can but we got 3 ounce cans) It is grain free which is what mom is trying to keep all us on.

Daiquiri heard the can open in the foster room and wanted in

the chunks are a decent size with a good amount of gravy

that said, if the kittens were any smaller, mom would have 

to mush up the chunks

starving kitten (not)

action shot

The kittens loved it. The first couple of times mom tried to get Mozart to eat it by himself in the bathroom. He licked off ALL the gravy. Fortunately the kittens don't care and were more than happy to play clean up crew for the house panther.

Then over the weekend mom knew we would have to be locked in the back bedroom so our sliding door could be replaced on Saturday. Mom split a can on Friday night and we all thought it was wonderful. She did it again on Saturday morning, and while we were all chowing down....she SHUT THE DOOR!! Dang...busted by the allure of canned food.

This does have a few weird vegetables and fruits in it, but they are pretty far down the list of ingredients. But all in all it seemed to be a hit here with everyone!

book review

*mom was asked to review this book. She received the book for free but that in no way influenced her opinion. All opinions expressed in this review are hers alone.

I love good fiction and if it involves cats, I'm in....so at the request of a fellow cat blogger and one of the authors Abby Cheshire, I downloaded the book and gave it a read. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of the term "crazy cat lady". I think it has a negative connotation and I avoid using it, but I didn't pick the title.

This anthology covered several genres: from paranormal fiction to suspense to cozy mysteries - a little something for everyone. I think what I love best about anthologies in general is that they are a vehicle to introduce me to new authors and different types of books that may not normally be on my reading list. And at the rate I read, it is always good to be adding new authors to my list. Plus anthologies being a collection of short stories, it makes for a quicker read of each story and a nice variety of genres.

Each novella has a cat - in some form - as a character. And none of the ladies are crazy....plus, hot guys. As an added bonus (for me), several of the stories also included information about rescues and adoptions. "Mr. November" even includes a diabetic cat that gets adopted.

This is an e-book anthology, so fire up your reader and download this - available today. I enjoyed every novella and look forward to reading other books by the authors.

Thanks for including me Abby....it was a great read.