Easy weekend in a KritterKondo

Hi Pals,

Last October, M ordered this great KritterKondo for me, but then the weather turned cold, and winter came.  It got packed away in the basement.

Then on May 1st M and D set it up in the livingroom and let me investigate it whenever I wanted to.  Iwas having tons of fun playing in it.  

Now summer is here so M put the KK up outside, and I just LOVES it.   First she has to walk me around the back yard on a leash tho, then I'm very happy to go in there and listen to the birdies, watch the neighbors, and be with my oomans.   It's just the greatest.  So since it's Sunday, this is where I'm spending it.  You can come over and play in with me if you'd like.  There's lots of room.

Hope everyone has a good Memorial Day weekend - I know i'm going to love it cuz we can finally get outside again and the windows can be open.  It must be summer!

Mom

Life After Adoption - Graham's Story



Graham comfy with dad.

Hi Pals,
This is just so exciting - the news we've all been waiting for.   Graham's new mom sent me all these amazing pictures and answered a few questions that I had asked her.  I hope you are as thrilled over this news as I am.

5-22-11  "Graham is the sweetest girl around. Today we took her for a long walk in the park and she just trotted beside us. She even killed her first mouse the other day. Here are some pictures of her."

Does Graham show any signs of her former "supposedly" feral traits?

"No, she's very docile and laid back. When we first got her, or at least, when we first visited her, she was definitely a little wild. But I think that's because she was cooped up in a cage. She only gets a little feisty when we play. Other than that, you could hold her like you'd hold a baby and she's cool with it. She'll even ride on our shoulder when we walk around the house."

What kind of toys does she like to play with?

"She's got loads of toys, but I think her favorite is the one we got at the vet. It's a squishy ball that has hairs sticking out of it. But mostly, I play with her whenever she wants. She loves, absolutely loves, this box we have that we attached a leash to and pull her around in it. She'll lay in it for ages. We also play hide and seek and she's gotten really good at it. She finds me almost anywhere now and if she can't, she'll cry. It is the only time she'll meow, otherwise she is not a very vocal cat."

Is she mostly and indoor cat or allowed to roam outside by herself?

"I would think she is mostly an indoor cat. Except when we decide to bring her for a walk in the park or bring her for a ride in the car - she loves that. She comes with us whenever we visit family and she's gotten to know Dan's parents home really well. She walks around the place like its hers. But an outside cat? I don't think so, she's not allowed outside without one of us."

Is she a social cat when you have visitors in or does she hide in a corner somewhere?

"She is the most social cat we've had. She loves visitors, can tolerate dogs, and typically runs up to children when she's outside. She will follow us to each room and plop herself down and watch us doing whatever. I think she looks at me as her playmate and Dan as her sleeping bag (she loves sleeping on his chest)."

"She's really a good kitty and we love having her around."

Graham's name is still Graham

Well pals - is this the most amazing success story ever or what!  It really shows what a lot of love, patience,  and good care can do for a kitty.   Now if you are interested in talking to Graham's parents, you might like to follow:   mom:   @shamboliclife
dad:   @dbeckinsworth

A big thank you to:

Graham's new parents for adopting her, giving her such a wonderful, loving home, and for taking the risk of contacting me to share pictures and her story.

Bay Area Humane Society for seeing that Graham was trainable, for working with her to make her adoptable, and for their willingness to give my letter to the new parents.

To Cheriswan for being alert to that first tweet from Graham's original mom that she was turning Graham over to BAHS, for alerting me, and for all her hard work.

To all of  you amazing pals for the RT's

This is truly an amazing success story with a "happy every after" ending.  Life can't get any better than this.

Mario



EXCITING NEWS

Hi Pals,

The most exciting thing happened tonight.   I got a tweet from Graham's new dad and he sent this current picture of Graham.   I don't have any details yet as he said he'd talk to me later, but we were so excited and so are all the Twitter pals.  So now we wanted to share with our dear blogging pals.

Doesn't Graham look relaxed, happy and all grown up now.  It's obvious to see she is one happy kitty and getting lots of love and good care.   Remember when she looked like this in August?

And then in September she looked like this:

It's been 9 months since the above picture was taken.  Now look at this bootiful girl: 

We've been so excited here and have leaky eyes.  We're just so very happy she looks so contented, relaxed, and well cared for in her latest picture.

Thanks so much to Graham's new family for sharing the picture with me and for providing Graham with the love and care she can thrive on.  At least once very two weeks someone would ask if we had heard how she is doing.  So, it's such a pleasure to know she is doing well - thanks to you, her new family.   We'd love to hear more about her, if you are willing to share.   You can DM me and I'll send you my email address.

Thank you so much for "making our day!"

Mario

A Tribute to Sweet @Sydpie

Hi Pals,

Twitterland has had to say temporary goodbye to another dear friend - @Sydpie - who entered heaven on Friday, May 6th.   Her sudden passing left many of us in shock, as I know it did her family.   I'm still trying to wake up from the bad dream.   M says we have to be thankful that she didn't have to suffer for very long, and I am thankful for that.

Some pals who have not been on Twitter that long have asked me why some of the boys are wearing pink ribbons.   It's in honor of sweet Sydpie.   Sydpie actually started on Twitter without a pink bow.  he he - I kept calling her a "he" for months, and each time she would nicely correct me.  A few other pals had problems with the he/she thing too, so one day Sydpie started wearing a pink ribbon so we could plainly see she was a SHE!  I never had a problem with calling her a she after that.  So we boys proudly wear our pink bows in honor of Sweet Sydpie.

The day Sydpie entered heaven, her mom made the comment to some of us that she knew an angel had come down to help Syd make the journey to heaven.  I had M do a photoshop so I could see what it might be like.

Our thoughts, prayers and sympathy go out to Sydpie's family and her dear sweet kitty sibling, @Cheddums, who keeps "looking at their mom, wondering why she doesn't let Sydpie back in the house."  We had leaky eyes when Sydpie's mom told us dat.   So sad!   

Mario

Happy Mother's Day To All

Happy Mother's Day

Just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Mother's Day - to ooman moms and mom's to my anipal pals.  You are all very special.

Sorry that I won't be reading many of your wonderful blogs for the next two weeks.   M & D have the nerve to take a vacation without me!  Can you believe it.   Don't worry too much about me tho, cuz I have a very nice pet sitter coming 3 x a day and she even tres to give me lap time a couple of times a day.  Peeps don't leave yet for a few days, but M says she'll be pretty busy getting stuff ready and won't give me much puter time.

Hope all you moms are pampered well today - you deserve it.   Kitty kisses to all of you.

   

Love, Mario

 

Yikes - I got Furminated - No Hairballs For Me

DANG Oomans!

National Hairball Awareness Week

Hi Pals,

This has NOT been a good morning.   The ooman was reading where kitties can die if they gets hairballs caught in their throat.   (Wish my ooman would stop reading so much!  It puts bad thoughts into her head and usually spells TROUBLE for me!)

Now I have never been fond of getting brushed unless I'm napping in a lap.   So here I am in one my favorite spots this morning on my perch, just soaking up a couple of sun puddles, feeling all warm and cozy, and resting my eyelids.  

Out of nowhere comes my ooman with the FURMINATOR!   I was trapped, with no escape route.   She was talking in that calm voice of hers, trying to psych me into liking that hair-yanking, torcher thing, so I did let her get in a few swipes before I started loudly protesting.   She sitll didn't take the hint.   I kept protesting, she kept swiping!   Well, before long she had a pile of my fur.   Then she wanted to attempt to do my tummy - can you imagine!!!   No one touches my tummy with a FURMINATOR or brush, so I put the bitey on her.  (Don't feel too sorry for the ooman pals, because I have no toothies - remember!)  She had the nerve to laugh at me.

M said this HAD to be done because I was shedding so much.  (Well, of course I'm shedding, it's spring).  She said she and D loved me and didn't want me to choke on a hairball and die.  She wanted me to stay around for lots more years.   Den she gave me a nose rub and a kiss on the head.   But, I fully intend to scowl at her all day.

(Shhh  - don't tell the ooman, but my fur does feel all silky and soft now!  It's our secret pals!)

I really think I prefer getting dat hairball goop that she sometimes give me over getting furminated.  It's tough life for us cats.

Mario

Join in on the photo hunt and tell us your story about being furminated or brushed and how you are preventing hairballs.

Blogosphere Remembrance Sunday

Hi pals,

Some of the blog world is doing rembrance Sunday, so I'd like to remember all my pals that have crossed over the bridge.  I love you all.   At least once a week go over to my OTRB page and look at your pictures.   Now M would like to remember all her animals that came before me.

Unfortunately, M did not have any pictures of the animals before me (well 1 of Misty), so she just googled pictures looking for pictures that looked like her beloved pets.  They are quite close she says.

Pepper (age 19)

M says Pepper was the smartest of all her kitties.    He would team up with their dog and the two of them would get in all kinds of trouble and Pepper was the brains behind the duo.  Pepper loved unhooking hook and eye latches, pulling out the drawer, and he and Fritz would then proceed to pull out all the kitty kibble or doggie kibble and leave a mess all over the floor.   He raided the garbage disposal every night looking for a tasty leftover morsels.  

Fritz (age 12)

M says Fritz was the smartest dog ever.   Trained easily, did whatever M told him to do.  She said he was her baby - well until my ooman sisfur came along.   He was never norty and never got in trouble unless Pepper instigated the trouble.  She really misses having a doggie around too and gets leaky eyes whenever she thinks of Fritz.

Tinker Bell (age 12)

M says Tinker Bell was really my sisfur's kitty.   She and sisfur were always together if sisfur was home.   They were so close, that Tinker Bell actually died of a broken heart about 2 years after sisfur left for college.  M says Tinker Bell didn't have a mean bone in her body.  When she was a young, she'd let sisfur dress her up in baby clothes and never once struggled to get out of them.  She worshiped sisfur, and sisfur loved her as did M and D.

Misty (age 13)

Misty was the kitty just before me.   She loved M and D but really preferred D, especially if he was sitting down and would mash her all over with his feet.    She could be all cuddled up on M's lap, and the minute D sat down, she'd leave M's lap and wrap herself around D's feet.   She didn't even care if he had shoes on or was in stocking feet.   She just loved it when he'd put his feet around her and just mash her back and forth - rubbing her.   She was in seventh haven.

M loved all her animals, and she and I both love all my pals that have crossed the bridge.   Please take a minute and go over and look at their pictures in the OTRB page. 

Sorry I'm a day late with this - it was all ready to go yesterday, but we forgot to publish it.

Mario