24 posts tagged “cat rescue”
Got a voicemail that Bella's owners brought her home today.
There was a little bit of "meant to be" good mojo tonight: My boss brought in her extra cat stuff but it was just a litter box, carrier, and door gate. Not having a lot to do at the office, I opted to bail early to check out dog crates at PetSmart. I was really into one with nice wood corners (fancier than just metal) till I realized it also had a solid wood top. No air flow. Well, WTF, I don't want a table (they literally show one used like that.... coffee table/dog crate) so I started looking at other models. Back & forth... forth and back... NO idea what I want. This one's too small. That one's too enclosed. Blahblahblah. I stop in front of a generic box that has a 36" collapsible crates... and I think they look interesting: Simple and a pretty good "hold her for now, but not forever" size option. And being collapsible means I can store it in the garage for other pet issues. After a good 10 more min of "dooooh... do I want this one?" staring, I finally see the sign in front of me... 70% off!! I went from looking at a $149 crate to buying one for $30. Meant to be!
So I have a temp safety house for Skritches. And a bed for it (already had it for Espressa but she never uses it). And the litter box from the boss. And I picked up a suspended hammock contraption so she can have a "2nd level", if she so chooses. I think all I really need are food & water dishes (of which I have a billion) so we're pretty much set.
Except for me figuring out in which room to keep the carrier (this room gets to hot; that room is where everyone eats but will be afraid to enter; I don't want too smell cat poop in my bedroom). But I'll deal with that later.
This is all a bit of a big deal because, this morning, the vet said Skritches can move home any time that I want. She's no longer on pain meds. She no longer has wire holding her jaw together (doesn't that seem quick?!?). She still needs daily antibiotics and eye drops (she's apparently going to, permanently, have "googly eyes" - they literally look like a cartoon cat; i'm trying to get pics)... but that's about it. So it's really just a matter of me figuring out how/when to best work her into our life.
Boo (or both Boo & Espressa) is going in for dental cleaning on Friday. And it's a 3-day weekend. So I'm thinking that might be the time to make this transition. I dunno for sure... not sure about increasing the difficulty in getting the cats to come indoors (afraid of the newbie) on 4th of July. But I keep feeling that striking while Boo is "down" (recovering from vet shock) will be harder on her but better for everyone else. Thanks to a comment from one of the vet techs, I ordered a bunch of Feliway (calming cat pheromone) refills today... hoping they arrive ASAP and keep the "new cat" drama down too.
And keeping everyone's personality under control is also kind of important because now that Skritches is feeling better her "real" personality is emerging. Today, as I let her wander around the quiet room at the vet, she started hissing at a dog (I don't know if she realized it was a dog - she was right up in his face, smelled something, and just hissed). Mild. But hissing. If she hisses, my cats will hiss, and then there's growling and drama and everyone's pissed at everyone and no one wants to be in the same room and I worry about who's where, in or out, and everything else. Eeegads!!
btw: Skritches was also apparently a fan of Micheal Jackson... everytime I tried to hold her today, she'd "moon walk" her way out of my arms. Her preferred spot was on the cool tile floor, at my side, getting lazy/casual skritches.
So... I dunno for sure when, but Skriches is moving in soon. It will all work out. I don't have to figure it out today. And if I'm not ready by Friday, I can keep her in boarding longer. The vet said it's not a problem for them (they love her).
I'm also still busy being elated that "Bella" was claimed.
Two people, actually. Starting at 5:45am.
A couple of women who were in Vegas over the weekend. Came home to find the window open and "Bella", a mother's day gift, missing. They're from 1/2 block down the street.
I gave them her shelter ID info so they can get her on Wednesday. I told them to let me know if they need any help with timing (the shelter has crappy hours - like 8 to 4 or something) or cost or anything. And just to be sure all goes well and they really pick her up, I'm going to follow up too.
I REALLY needed this!
She (the kitten) cried all the way to the shelter.
I still am.
I'm super frustrated. This kitten is soooooooo cute! She follows me everywhere. Slept on me all night (still nurses in her sleep!). She's full of energy and super smart & curious about everything.
I hate that I have to take her to the shelter. And I have to do it today or I never will. They're closed Mon/Tues. If I have her that long, I know I won't give her up.
I'm hoping they have some way for me to indicate that I'll pay all her adoption fees, and/or donate to a rescue group, if someone will save her. I'll also contact all the local rescue agencies and notify them.
Hoping for the best. Non stop crying as I fear the worst and feel horrible about it.
Betcha no one calls.
No one was out looking for a cat.
I found a house, about 1/2 way up the street, with a similar sized (and sounding) kitten running around. Maybe she goes there. I put 2 flyers in front of their house. But, even if she goes there, if they're letting the kittens run wild then they may not bother to claim her.
I had to lock her in the bathroom to get my cats back in. Too bad... I'd really like to play with her for awhile.
I have to drop her off at the shelter by 4pm (they're closed Mon & Tues so she really has to go tomorrow). Owners.. or anyone... will have 5 days to claim her there. It would be really sad for this adorable ball of energy to get euthanized.
I can't rescue the world. Not even just the kitty world. And that sucks.
I'm keeping her at my house till tomorrow (so someone has a chance to notice her missing, see my signs, and claim her). Then she's going to have to go to the local shelter. I am NOT a crazy cat lady!!
This was her first time out & about since the accident. 1.5 weeks ago.
She can definitely see something but no fine detail - she almost walked off edge of a table twice (and obviously doesn't know who/what she's looking at in this pic). Funny to watch & hear her go into "super sniff" mode when she detects something interesting.
Left eye (the "good" one) has blood in it. I asked to have it looked at.
They say she's eating like crazy now - waiting for her food in the morn and eating before they even set the dish down.
I heard her meow for the first time.
I confirmed that her litter was not only malnourished but also super premie. That makes it hurt a little less.
I figure I have maybe a week before they try to send her home. But if I'm not ready, I'll keep her in boarding till I am.
Mom is eating on her own now & doing well. Due to lack of foster care, I'm definitely going to adopt her. There's no other option available.
My phone rang at 8am with a call from the vet's office, which I knew probably wasn't going to be good. Took me an hour to suck up the willingness to listen to it.
Two of the kittens died overnight - "skritches2" and one of the black ones.
Good News: The other black one is still holding on and the tech who took them last night is going to take that one for her entire vacation time - which I think is a week or something. I thanked her profusely and offered my sympathy for having to deal with losing the other two.
Although I really believe it's for the best, I feel horrible. Those little kitty lives started hard - so much trauma, being exposed to lots of xrays and medications not meant for their little bodies, and no food for the first 48 hours after they were born. At least they had lots of people caring for them.
Rest in peace, little babies... and watch over your remaining brother.
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