The Cat Never Ate the Food

Oliver was stronger than I was - I was ready to give up on him, after 2 days of not eating. I felt sorry for him, but he needed the medicine. So, I wrapped him tightly in a towel, got the pill in my tweezers, & Andy helped open & close his mouth & kept it closed till I knew he swallowed. Then I gave him the the half pill, so he is fully medicated. Andy suggested I put butter on the pill - that helped the flavor, covered the smell, & helped him swallow easier. I still hated to waste the other food, since it was expensive, $13 for 3 pills, but it was too much for Nebo - she would ony need one pill for her weight - it had 1 & 1/2 in it. So I got out her canned food for supper, she gets a third can each night - mixed it up with half the medicated food, & she ate it. I put the other out on the deck, & later on the stray cat ate it. Being out all the time, it may have needed the medicine anyway. And with Oliver here, I thought it might be good for Nebo too - I have never seen signs on her, but we'll consider it preventive medication for her. At least he got the medicine, finally got to go outside, then he showed me he still loved us - he came back & wanted supper. I know he will feel better later after this ordeal, & I am grateful he didn't run off hating me.

Oliver is Very Stubborn

Oliver is a very stubborn, hard headed cat. I realized the other day he has tapeworms - that is why he eats so much. Andy got some pills Thursday when he went to town. He fed him a little bit of food Friday morning before I got up. Then we gave him his medicine in some canned food after I got up. He used to eat at least 3 times a day, but with the medicine in the food, he won't eat it. And he hasn't had anything else, since Friday morning, & it's late Saturday night now. I thought he would get hungry enough to eat, but not ! I don't want him to get outside till he eats either, so he won't eat at his owner's house, or anywhere else. I hate to waste $6.50 worth of medicine, too. So, he may get more hungry before it's all over. I'm doing this to get him better, not to hurt him or punish him, but he probably doesn't know that. Or care - he just wants something better to eat. So he has sat in here looking out the door wanting out a lot the last 2 days. He cries a little bit, but not too loud. I just have to stay tougher than him, & not give in. How long is this gonna take ?? Oliver, just eat your food, please............

How much longer, mama

Nebo wants to know how much longer that white stuff is gonna be on her deck. She likes to go outside, to lay in the sunshine, or to just wander around. But she doesn't like the cold snow between her toes, so she becomes an inside cat most of the winter. Andy swept the snow off the deck one day this week so she did get to go out in the sun. It was very cold though, about 15°, so even the sunshine was not too warm. She did enjoy it for a little while. Then the next day she went over to the door, looked out, then looked back as if to say "where did that white stuff come from". Maybe late March it will start to melt, Nebo.

This is cold

They think they are cold in Texas, & this morning they were only a few degrees higher than here. But it got warmer there. This is what it looked like when I got up, & it continued to snow all day. And it will snow all night & all day tomorrow. We have gotten over 90 inches of snow for the season, which started the Friday before Thanksgiving. It felt colder all day today with no sunshine. BUT it is supposed to get up to 30 something Sunday, so I may get a snow creation then. That would be nice.

BAD CAT

Oliver, who should be grateful we let him in to have a warm place to live now, was very BAD just now. Andy went running out on the deck, birds were flying everywhere, because Oliver had grabbed a dove. Andy got it out of the snow & it flew off - ok so far. Oliver hid under the deck. He won't come in now - knows he is in trouble. And I can't even threaten to leave him out now, because then he would have to eat the birds to have food. We have a feeder out there to feed birds, so they are out there for me to watch. I don't need him out there hurting my birds. Harmony had to go live someplace else long ago because he was bringing birds in the house, & sometimes killing them in there. Oliver, please don't hurt my birds.

Let it Snow

They think they are cold in Texas - it is freezing down there today - maybe they would like to come visit me & find out what "cold" is. We got up to 20° today. It was 3° when I went to bed last night ( or this morning - it was about 2 a.m.). I used to hear the word powder used in reference to snow - now I know what it is. We can't build a snowman or have snow ball fights - you try to make a ball with a handful of snow & it falls apart. We thought it was gonna get warm enough last Friday to make it packable - & the kids were out of school & could have watched Andy make a cat creature - but it got to 30° then started getting colder. Maybe next week it will be warmer - a couple days are forecast, but that can change. My first winter here he made me a snow swan. The next winter I got a huge dragon. I'll post photos of them another post. Andy can't do anything easy though - anyone can make a snowman - he makes creations. Hopefully I will get one of them soon. We have had 88.9 inches of snow for the season already - we got the first snow on the Friday before Thanksgiving. We have gotten 24.6 inches in Jan. - so most of it so far has been in Dec. - they had a 20 in. blizzard a few days after I went to Texas. At night, before I go to bed I stand at the door - with the porch light on out on the deck, the wood & the grill sparkle like they are covered in glitter. It is cold, but it is so pretty too.

Facebook Profile Photos

I was tired of looking at the facebook "kewpie doll" faces in place of photos for granny & Ouida. I posted a photo & a message on their walls. Then I had to call & walk them thru the process, but it finally worked & both of them have real faces now. I am pleased with our efforts & I think they are too. I hope I can keep her interested in reading the messages, & posting on the walls too, to me & the others. I think it will be good for her, to bring a little lightness & cheer to her day. I will probably have to encourage granny too, but I like the interaction myself, especially since I am so far away from everyone. And leaving messages is so easy, & enables the others to interact when they have time. Andy is always trying to get me to CALL people, but I don't want to bother them if they just got home, or need to cook, or they are watching their favorite TV show, or they are napping cause they are tired, etc. So this works for me. And I like the blog too - I have so many things going on in my head, so it is nice to get some of these stories out.