My boxer is my life! He has been my first and only dog; a true best friend. He luckily has not had any seizures in the past few weeks and seems to be in good spirits for now. His doggy MS is getting progressively worse though :(
Aww lady thanks and sorry your doggie has ms. As someone whose various pets have had epilepsy, leukiemia, cancer , strokes and chronic ear infections, i can relate. Youre always guessing how they are feeling and hoping youre picking the right treatment.
Lady, My boxer is like my shadow. I'm pretty sure he can talk too. When we go out we always picture him with his buddies playing poker & smoking a cigar :). I adore him.
Boxers always look so damn dignified don't they? My baby likes to rides in my passenger seat with his paw on the armrest, sitting totally like a person. He is around 80 lbs and has been cracking up motorists for nearly 12 years now!
Some dogs (and cats) have seizures other neurological symptoms eating and drinking out of plastic bowls. It may not be the cause of your dog's problems, but if he is eating and drinking out of plastic, there is no downside to switching to glass and seeing if it helps. Good luck!
Im down to one cat, a part persian named Belou, who sheds like crazy. Inherited him from my daughter. We have him like 11 yrs now and love him to pieces. But heres a little pet peerve of mine; i am not a pet parent. I did not give birth to boof- his nickname- and he us not my child in any way shape or form. He more like our roommate. Lol
Yes, we have Fluffy, a second-hand cat from a neighbor who married a man allergic to cats. We love Fluffy, but she has the unusual characteristic of liking to go in the shower several times a day. She likes to soak her paw and drink from it, and then get all wet and then scoop the water off her head. It would be a lot cuter if I didn't work from home; she often interrupts me 15-20 times per day with requests to go in the shower. My particular favorite is when I am doing a phone interview and insists on a trip under the water: I'm sure my sources can hear the tinkling of the water in the background, but none of them has ever been impolite enough to mention it.
Nutty, my cat does the shower thing too, but doesnt meow, just looks at like" Well? Get your ass moving, and this shower on!" Lol. Also comes up on table when we eating to look and sniff at our food. Then he gives up a disgusted look and proceeds to lay across the table. I cld go on and on but i wont but our pets i believe can be angels from heaven. Little cuties!
4 Dogs! I have a pyranees/Mastif mix. My hubs brought a husky into our house hold. He rescued a terrier mix at the pound as a gift to me. (I saw him on line and said he was adorable. He's the light of my life) And a long hair chihuahua found us. He must have been abandoned and abused poor thing. He wasn't chipped nor was there any record of him at the local vets. No one has claimed him so he's getting snipped!
See, this is why I can't bring myself to get fish. So beautiful to watch but it's like you have to take a course in who eats what. Ha but it's no wonder that remaining fish is big, Dragon :)
I don't have any pets at the moment, but I share a house with people who have 2 dogs and a cat.
The puppy is just about 2 months old and is right this very second tearing my heart apart with her crying!! :( I understand she needs to learn to be crated and all that jazz, but oh my god, she sounds awful.
I have toy poodle and she is my besty. When she was still under a year she broke her hip. I'm so thankful I had the resources and right doctor to fix her. Nursing her through that was so hard. She's going to be five in May and is the happiest most fun loving little girl. She has a quirky sense of humor and likes to hide chewy bones all over the house which sometimes includes under my pillow.
A dog (my first) and a cat (my first male cat). The dog is a beagle and no one told me beagles tend to have anxiety and security issues. She thinks the UPS guy is a ninja come to murder me with my Amazon order and howls when she's left alone.
The cat is an orange tabby that we rescued as a tiny abandoned kitten that had somehow been trained to pee in the toilet. He's about four now, and he rarely uses his litterbox, just hops on the toilet and lets it go. And he's a fan of ho strolling across the desktop and sitting on the keyboard when he feels he's not getting the attention and respect he deserves.
I have a black lab w/anxiety too. I order stuff from Amazon all the time too, always same 2 guys that deliver, but every time Cole thinks they've come to murder us all. Whenever he gets scared he jumps in the bathtub and starts digging Super jealous of your potty trained cat. I get real sick of cleaning the effing litterbox
I've had big, outside dogs my entire life. Just feed them every day and pet them once in a while and that was it. After the old lab died at 13, I said no more. Well, that lasted just a couple of months when a relative showed me a picture of a mini schnauzer puppy for sale. I had no intention of getting a small, house dog, and told myself I was just going to "look" at the pups. Ya, right. I am now a full-fledged furbabymama and this stupid little dog has changed my life. I can't believe how much I love him and miss him when I'm not with him. He's the cutest and smartest, dog ever!
I grew up with boxers. Love those dogs with all of my heart. Currently I have a shih-tzu who is an evil wicked little dog. The list of people he loves are thus: 1) my boyfriend 2)everyone else on the planet 3)me
I have multiple dogs. However, it's possible (sadly) that we may have one less next week. Our 16 year old rat/fox terrier can hardly hear and barely see. He's been missing steps and tumbling down the stairs and I'm afraid he'll end up getting seriously hurt. He's also having pain that the medication we have him on doesn't seem to be controlling anymore. It's a sad decision to have to make. We'll see what the vet says.
I worry about this time coming and how I'll handle it. I hope everything works out in the best way and just know that you gave them the happiest life they could have.
I am so sorry Karen. I know it's easy to say "That's the one final act of kindness you can do for your pet" but I also know how it is the most heartbreaking of them all. Prayers and strength (and great news from the vet!) your way.
Thanks very much for your kind words. We've been down this road before, but it never gets easier. Our last dog had Cushing's and couldn't control his bodily functions. Every day we'd get home from work to find him sitting in his crate in his poop & pee. It wasn't a hard decision to make, but still heartbreaking. I keep telling myself, it's the last gift I can give them - their dignity.
The love of my life Opie died of liver failure last March. I was so heartbroken that I fostered two different cats at 2 different times. Then one day a Craigslist ad about a big fluffy maine coon that is locked in the garage and needed to be rescued so I said fine bring him over. And he is now my fluffy blanket humping, perv cat who I adore.
I got Opie from an ex bc he did not spend time w him and traveled all the time so I said I'm a better pet owner than you and just never gave him back after cat sitting. Never been exposed to a maine coon before but he changed my life. He was 19 lbs when I got him at age 1 then Max was 26! I like big fat cats! Now Cheddar is only just under 17 lbs and is 10 inches shorter tip to tail so there is no way he can achieve Opie levels of largeness. Also he is only half at BEST coon! Lie but I love him and he is family now. But no one can replace the original Opster.
We have a dog and a cat. Our dog, Dita, is a min-pin and she is the center of my universe. she's so damn cute I can't even stand it and her personality is hilarious. Our cat, Phoebe, is a straight up bitch lol she tolerates me (some of the time) but mostly only shows affection to Mr Lizenberg. I love her anyways. They are both rescues :)
I have two beautiful boy kittays...one has kitty HIV (feline FIV that is) but he is funny, fat and healthy Engleburt Humberdink "Bertie" for short. And the other beautiful baby is "Charcoal" and as you might expect, he is a dark grey chartreux but he is 14ish and won't be with us much longer :( They are my children. Hubs and I always adopt the ones that are older and have been at the shelter a very long time. Always boys too...I always seem to gravitate to wanting male pets...they just seem nicer to me. Maybe I'm imagining that. Anyway, adopt from shelters!!!!
I only adopt boys too(neutered of course) I just think of mummy's boys and daddy's girls. When I had female cats they seemed to bond with the men in my life but male cats love me so maybe there is something.
My cat Romeo is also FIV+--he's a rescue from upstate NH that one of my oldest friends found for me via one of her former students who was working for a vet, although it wasn't the vet who found him, but the former student. He'd been hanging around her building for months (through a NH winter!), and she assumed he had a home, but finally realized he didn't when she kept finding him sleeping on insulation in the garage. So she caught him, took him in to work, got him cleaned up, found out he'd been neutered and was too friendly to be a feral, and after a couple of adventures (including having to get him back from a shelter where they'd taken him after the shelter determined he was FIV+; apparently NH state law won't let shelters adopt out cats with "communicable diseases"), she eventually brought him down to me the day before Mother's Day. He got out for a month in June & early July, but came home in time for my birthday, and he's been back safe ever since. He's a big (14 lb.) brownish-gray classic tabby with green eyes and HUGE paws--he has extra toes on his front AND back feet, and can't quite retract all his front claws, hence the need to take him in for frequent nail trims (he's due again; I haven't been able to convince him that I can get acupuncture treatments elsewhere...), and the vets think he's around 6-7 years old. He can be a big butthead sometimes, but he's also very sweet and likes to sleep snuggled up next to me, and he was just what I needed after I lost Jezebel after nearly 18 years. Oh, and he came with the name; Laura (the student, who's now in vet school in Colorado) named him that because she decided he was such a sweetie. OK, I will shut up now, but yes, I'm a crazy old maid with a cat who's gonig to be a librarian when I get out of grad school...you got a problem with that? ;-)
@RTMP awww...what a great story, made me smile :) Sounds just like my Bertie (fat, big paws, butthead sometimes...no extra toes though). I'm like you girl. Crazy cat lover just short or dressing them up. That's just wrong. Good to see you around, haven't seen you post in a long time!
Two German Shepherd's ages 12 and 2. The older one's dad was Jim Belushi's doggie partner in the movie K9. They are such loving dogs, but also very protective of their mama. Any squirrel who has ever dared venture into our yard knows that. :-)
I have 2 Doberman. I wasn't supposed to be able to have kiddos so I had furry kids. To say they were spoiled is an understatement. Luckily they've adjusted well to being older siblings. They are really big and needy. So needy. But I just love them. My female just turned 9 and she is starting to have some health issues and it breaks my heart. She is literally my closest friend, I'll be so devastated :( My male is just this obese balding dope, but he is just so tender and sweet it makes up for it! Love my fur babies.
We have 5 dogs and are down to 2 cats. Mr. Min Pin had a black cat (Blackie) that he brought with him when we got married 9 years ago. We just lost Blackie a few months ago to Cancer :(
We have 4 rescue min pins - Lily, Violet, B.B. and Marek (first 3 are female, Marek is a male) AND we just last month got a rescue Italian Greyhound (male) from OKC and named him Cosmo. The 2 cats are my parents, and they're both rescue kids too (both female) Minnie & Little Bit.
I'm a huge cheerleader of rescuing/adopting not buying pets. I think it's New York that is working to outlaw puppy mills which would be spectacular if the other 49 states would join in. Even though all of our dogs are rescue, several of them are purebred. People don't realize that you can get a purebred dog in rescue, you just have to be patient and look in the right places online.
Our dogs are definitely our kids. I never was interested in two legged kids. We love our furry children ;)
I never understand people buying from a breeder. Most people are adopting a pet, not a show dog. There are lots of animals out there that need families. From puppies to senior dogs. The number of cats needing homes is frightening.
Italian grey hounds are adorable! I agree about rescuing. Neither of mine are from breeders, though my female could be papered. We saved our male from such horrible Conditions :/ he was 4 months old and kept in a cat crate kennel. He's almost 6 and has just finally become openly affectionate. Poor buddy!
@Krystie that is awesome! Hubs and I have noticed most of our adopted cats evolve over a long period of time. Both physically and personally. For example, my FIV+ cat, physically had horrible horrible gas for a YEAR! til it finally stopped. I mean knock you over gas! And threw up after every meal until I finally figured out he can't have too much at once. And leaky eye syndrome until a recent round of antibiotics (for something else) and now that's gone. He was so high maintenance for a year or so and now so much better AND he still (going on 2 years now) creeping closer and closer to me in bed at night. The trust still continues to evolve. He's just a totally different cat today that when we got him. I was just saying to hubs last night... how at the 1 year mark, I was still kinda worried I was never really going to bond with him and today I am so in love with him and he is now finally totally attached to me. Like your story...sometimes it takes A LOT of time and people sometime give up way too soon.
I have enjoyed reading everyone's pet stories. Most people here know we recently lost our cats Lucy and Ethel. They were 20 and passed a few weeks from one another from Uremia. Saying goodbye was the hardest thing we've ever done. You're never sure if it's too late or too soon when you have to put them down. But they do not live forever and we must stay goodbye as humanely as possible.
I'm crying now just thinking about it and how profoundly I miss them. They were our everything.
At this point we are still grieving too much and not ready for new pets. But when we are, and we will as a tribute to our girls, we will adopt from a shelter, preferably an older bonded pair. I have only had female cats but may get a male as I have heard they can be so much less persnickety.
Sorry to hear about Lucy & Ethel <3 I remember the day our other cat, Thomas, passed away. He was such a loving, affectionate tuxedo cat the size of a small turkey. Brian (my partner) had already had him for 5 years when we got together and then for another 10 years after I came in the picture. Saying goodbye to Tommy was by far the hardest thing we've had to do as a couple. I get verklempt just thinking about it. Big hugs to you, Sherry!
@Sherry BIG hugs sent your way!!! Since hubs and I have been together (11yrs), we have had to put down 3 (cuz we adopt older cats) and one soon to follow. Strangely, the hardest for me was the one we had the shortest (1.5yrs) he got pneumonia :( ... I'm heartbroken over all of them, that one crushed me the most for some reason. I bonded with him so much over such a short time. Cried for days and days. He was my baby and he totally knew it. Your right, it is hard and you said it best about the humane part. My mom is a nutcase. She is a dog person (irrelevant) but she has this idea that it is "not her place" to decide when they "go". She's not even a religious person!!! but she just says "God, will take them when it's right". She lets them all die in her arms if possible. It absolutely makes me crazy that she is that way (and a million other things) and I hate that for her animals. But she thinks it is the right thing to do! It's not! Letting them go too soon is better than too late IMHO. When the time is right, you know there are always many animals out there ready to be adopted and any of them will be soooo lucky to have an owner like you Sherry. Hugs to all pets lovers!!!
I have 2 male Chihuahua's. The oldest is 10 and he is a "super size" Chi, he is 16 lbs. The other is 8 and is a teacup tipping the scales at 5lbs. The little one is a shit...they do what I like to call a "Chihuahua Symphony Orchestra" where the little guy starts to howl and the older one just joins in and it's non-stop :/ my poor neighbors lol
I have a lunatic Staffie,he is mad and stubborn and naughty but soooo affectionate and loving and handsome!!drives me mad when people judge dogs like Staffies/bulldogs/rottweilers etc,a dog is as good as its owner!
I have a 5 year-old yellow lab/golden retriever (we think) mix that we got from a rescue when he is a puppy. He's kind of foolish, but also understands English better than my husband and 2 kids combined. He was going crazy at 2am a few nights ago, standing on the couch and barking his head off. I peered out of the window to see if a psychotic murderer was trying to break into my house, but instead saw a coyote laying on our front yard, chewing on a previously buried bone. My dog was not impressed.
(Know I'm late to the party but i cannot resist talking about my fur babies) My old workplace had a feral cat hive birth to a litter of kittens in thick bramble. We had to go in with Secateurs and cut our way through to get to them. We took one home. The RSPCA wouldn't take them as they were classified as "feral" & advised to call the council to have them destroyed. No. Way. He was riddled w worms, malnourished and scared as hell. It only took me half a day to cajole him out from under a dresser and after that? Instant bond. My shadow. He would even lay on my feet whilst i washed dishes. He's "special needs" - no balance, falls off the couch & hits the floor, runs into walls, doesn't wash, but he's been my best friend when I've been sad, sick, he's there with a head nudge and lottsa cuddles. We've had Ashram 7 years. Mr Haven , self proclaimed cat hater is in love. Then someone from work found feral kittens dumped in bushland 8 months ago. There were 6 tiny kittens and one twice the size of the others (we suspect she was from a first litter, then the cat had another litter & they were all dumped. Eartha Kitty looks the same as all the others. Anyway, NO ONE wanted the "big one". So she was going to be destroyed (the whole feral thing). We took her home & apart from attacking & annoying Ashy, she's a little angel. We also have two puppies (5 years old each) who are both rescues & adorable (& neurotic & destructive) This makes up our happy family, as well as my pet trouser snake
My boxer is my life! He has been my first and only dog; a true best friend. He luckily has not had any seizures in the past few weeks and seems to be in good spirits for now. His doggy MS is getting progressively worse though :(
ReplyDeleteThis baby boxer learning how to howl clip that has been circulating online literally brought me to tears last night with its cuteness!
Hugs and kisses to the beloved pets of my fellow Anarchists!
Aww lady thanks and sorry your doggie has ms. As someone whose various pets have had epilepsy, leukiemia, cancer , strokes and chronic ear infections, i can relate. Youre always guessing how they are feeling and hoping youre picking the right treatment.
DeleteLady, My boxer is like my shadow. I'm pretty sure he can talk too. When we go out we always picture him with his buddies playing poker & smoking a cigar :). I adore him.
DeleteBoxers always look so damn dignified don't they? My baby likes to rides in my passenger seat with his paw on the armrest, sitting totally like a person. He is around 80 lbs and has been cracking up motorists for nearly 12 years now!
DeleteSome dogs (and cats) have seizures other neurological symptoms eating and drinking out of plastic bowls. It may not be the cause of your dog's problems, but if he is eating and drinking out of plastic, there is no downside to switching to glass and seeing if it helps. Good luck!
DeleteIm down to one cat, a part persian named Belou, who sheds like crazy. Inherited him from my daughter. We have him like 11 yrs now and love him to pieces. But heres a little pet peerve of mine; i am not a pet parent. I did not give birth to boof- his nickname- and he us not my child in any way shape or form. He more like our roommate. Lol
ReplyDeleteOur hairy beautiful uber shedding roomate, lol
DeleteYes, we have Fluffy, a second-hand cat from a neighbor who married a man allergic to cats. We love Fluffy, but she has the unusual characteristic of liking to go in the shower several times a day. She likes to soak her paw and drink from it, and then get all wet and then scoop the water off her head. It would be a lot cuter if I didn't work from home; she often interrupts me 15-20 times per day with requests to go in the shower. My particular favorite is when I am doing a phone interview and insists on a trip under the water: I'm sure my sources can hear the tinkling of the water in the background, but none of them has ever been impolite enough to mention it.
ReplyDeleteNutty, my cat does the shower thing too, but doesnt meow, just looks at like" Well? Get your ass moving, and this shower on!" Lol. Also comes up on table when we eating to look and sniff at our food. Then he gives up a disgusted look and proceeds to lay across the table. I cld go on and on but i wont but our pets i believe can be angels from heaven. Little cuties!
Delete4 Dogs! I have a pyranees/Mastif mix.
ReplyDeleteMy hubs brought a husky into our house hold. He rescued a terrier mix at the pound as a gift to me. (I saw him on line and said he was adorable. He's the light of my life)
And a long hair chihuahua found us. He must have been abandoned and abused poor thing. He wasn't chipped nor was there any record of him at the local vets. No one has claimed him so he's getting snipped!
I have a big fish that keeps eating all my golden fishes i buy. =/
ReplyDeleteSee, this is why I can't bring myself to get fish. So beautiful to watch but it's like you have to take a course in who eats what.
DeleteHa but it's no wonder that remaining fish is big, Dragon :)
Oh no, Outtie!!
ReplyDeleteI don't have any pets at the moment, but I share a house with people who have 2 dogs and a cat.
The puppy is just about 2 months old and is right this very second tearing my heart apart with her crying!! :( I understand she needs to learn to be crated and all that jazz, but oh my god, she sounds awful.
I am the meaniest meanie that ever did mean. :(
I have toy poodle and she is my besty. When she was still under a year she broke her hip. I'm so thankful I had the resources and right doctor to fix her. Nursing her through that was so hard. She's going to be five in May and is the happiest most fun loving little girl. She has a quirky sense of humor and likes to hide chewy bones all over the house which sometimes includes under my pillow.
ReplyDeletedo pet hates count? I have loads of those
ReplyDeleteA dog (my first) and a cat (my first male cat). The dog is a beagle and no one told me beagles tend to have anxiety and security issues. She thinks the UPS guy is a ninja come to murder me with my Amazon order and howls when she's left alone.
ReplyDeleteThe cat is an orange tabby that we rescued as a tiny abandoned kitten that had somehow been trained to pee in the toilet. He's about four now, and he rarely uses his litterbox, just hops on the toilet and lets it go. And he's a fan of ho strolling across the desktop and sitting on the keyboard when he feels he's not getting the attention and respect he deserves.
I have a black lab w/anxiety too. I order stuff from Amazon all the time too, always same 2 guys that deliver, but every time Cole thinks they've come to murder us all. Whenever he gets scared he jumps in the bathtub and starts digging
DeleteSuper jealous of your potty trained cat. I get real sick of cleaning the effing litterbox
3 chihuahuas - mom and her 2 sons. Lucy, Manny and Bacon. All spoiled rotten and make me crazy, but I love them all to pieces!!!
ReplyDeleteI've had big, outside dogs my entire life. Just feed them every day and pet them once in a while and that was it. After the old lab died at 13, I said no more. Well, that lasted just a couple of months when a relative showed me a picture of a mini schnauzer puppy for sale. I had no intention of getting a small, house dog, and told myself I was just going to "look" at the pups. Ya, right. I am now a full-fledged furbabymama and this stupid little dog has changed my life. I can't believe how much I love him and miss him when I'm not with him. He's the cutest and smartest, dog ever!
ReplyDeleteI grew up with boxers. Love those dogs with all of my heart.
ReplyDeleteCurrently I have a shih-tzu who is an evil wicked little dog. The list of people he loves are thus:
1) my boyfriend
2)everyone else on the planet
3)me
I have multiple dogs. However, it's possible (sadly) that we may have one less next week. Our 16 year old rat/fox terrier can hardly hear and barely see. He's been missing steps and tumbling down the stairs and I'm afraid he'll end up getting seriously hurt. He's also having pain that the medication we have him on doesn't seem to be controlling anymore. It's a sad decision to have to make. We'll see what the vet says.
ReplyDeleteI worry about this time coming and how I'll handle it. I hope everything works out in the best way and just know that you gave them the happiest life they could have.
DeleteI am so sorry Karen. I know it's easy to say "That's the one final act of kindness you can do for your pet" but I also know how it is the most heartbreaking of them all.
DeletePrayers and strength (and great news from the vet!) your way.
Thanks very much for your kind words. We've been down this road before, but it never gets easier. Our last dog had Cushing's and couldn't control his bodily functions. Every day we'd get home from work to find him sitting in his crate in his poop & pee. It wasn't a hard decision to make, but still heartbreaking. I keep telling myself, it's the last gift I can give them - their dignity.
DeleteThe love of my life Opie died of liver failure last March. I was so heartbroken that I fostered two different cats at 2 different times. Then one day a Craigslist ad about a big fluffy maine coon that is locked in the garage and needed to be rescued so I said fine bring him over. And he is now my fluffy blanket humping, perv cat who I adore.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful tribute to Opie you have made! :)
DeleteI got Opie from an ex bc he did not spend time w him and traveled all the time so I said I'm a better pet owner than you and just never gave him back after cat sitting. Never been exposed to a maine coon before but he changed my life. He was 19 lbs when I got him at age 1 then Max was 26! I like big fat cats! Now Cheddar is only just under 17 lbs and is 10 inches shorter tip to tail so there is no way he can achieve Opie levels of largeness. Also he is only half at BEST coon! Lie but I love him and he is family now. But no one can replace the original Opster.
DeleteWe have a dog and a cat. Our dog, Dita, is a min-pin and she is the center of my universe. she's so damn cute I can't even stand it and her personality is hilarious. Our cat, Phoebe, is a straight up bitch lol she tolerates me (some of the time) but mostly only shows affection to Mr Lizenberg. I love her anyways. They are both rescues :)
ReplyDeleteI have two beautiful boy kittays...one has kitty HIV (feline FIV that is) but he is funny, fat and healthy Engleburt Humberdink "Bertie" for short. And the other beautiful baby is "Charcoal" and as you might expect, he is a dark grey chartreux but he is 14ish and won't be with us much longer :(
ReplyDeleteThey are my children. Hubs and I always adopt the ones that are older and have been at the shelter a very long time. Always boys too...I always seem to gravitate to wanting male pets...they just seem nicer to me. Maybe I'm imagining that. Anyway, adopt from shelters!!!!
I only adopt boys too(neutered of course) I just think of mummy's boys and daddy's girls. When I had female cats they seemed to bond with the men in my life but male cats love me so maybe there is something.
Deleteright!?!?? and I swear boy pets have less "attitude" than girls, just like real life...lol
DeleteMy cat Romeo is also FIV+--he's a rescue from upstate NH that one of my oldest friends found for me via one of her former students who was working for a vet, although it wasn't the vet who found him, but the former student. He'd been hanging around her building for months (through a NH winter!), and she assumed he had a home, but finally realized he didn't when she kept finding him sleeping on insulation in the garage. So she caught him, took him in to work, got him cleaned up, found out he'd been neutered and was too friendly to be a feral, and after a couple of adventures (including having to get him back from a shelter where they'd taken him after the shelter determined he was FIV+; apparently NH state law won't let shelters adopt out cats with "communicable diseases"), she eventually brought him down to me the day before Mother's Day. He got out for a month in June & early July, but came home in time for my birthday, and he's been back safe ever since. He's a big (14 lb.) brownish-gray classic tabby with green eyes and HUGE paws--he has extra toes on his front AND back feet, and can't quite retract all his front claws, hence the need to take him in for frequent nail trims (he's due again; I haven't been able to convince him that I can get acupuncture treatments elsewhere...), and the vets think he's around 6-7 years old. He can be a big butthead sometimes, but he's also very sweet and likes to sleep snuggled up next to me, and he was just what I needed after I lost Jezebel after nearly 18 years. Oh, and he came with the name; Laura (the student, who's now in vet school in Colorado) named him that because she decided he was such a sweetie. OK, I will shut up now, but yes, I'm a crazy old maid with a cat who's gonig to be a librarian when I get out of grad school...you got a problem with that? ;-)
Delete@RTMP awww...what a great story, made me smile :) Sounds just like my Bertie (fat, big paws, butthead sometimes...no extra toes though). I'm like you girl. Crazy cat lover just short or dressing them up. That's just wrong. Good to see you around, haven't seen you post in a long time!
DeleteTwo German Shepherd's ages 12 and 2. The older one's dad was Jim Belushi's doggie partner in the movie K9. They are such loving dogs, but also very protective of their mama. Any squirrel who has ever dared venture into our yard knows that. :-)
ReplyDeleteNone that I know of (wink, wink).
ReplyDelete*I have an orange tabby named Abby. She pretends to love me so that I'll keep feeding her.
I have 2 Doberman. I wasn't supposed to be able to have kiddos so I had furry kids. To say they were spoiled is an understatement. Luckily they've adjusted well to being older siblings. They are really big and needy. So needy. But I just love them. My female just turned 9 and she is starting to have some health issues and it breaks my heart. She is literally my closest friend, I'll be so devastated :( My male is just this obese balding dope, but he is just so tender and sweet it makes up for it! Love my fur babies.
ReplyDeleteWe have 5 dogs and are down to 2 cats. Mr. Min Pin had a black cat (Blackie) that he brought with him when we got married 9 years ago. We just lost Blackie a few months ago to Cancer :(
ReplyDeleteWe have 4 rescue min pins - Lily, Violet, B.B. and Marek (first 3 are female, Marek is a male) AND we just last month got a rescue Italian Greyhound (male) from OKC and named him Cosmo. The 2 cats are my parents, and they're both rescue kids too (both female) Minnie & Little Bit.
I'm a huge cheerleader of rescuing/adopting not buying pets. I think it's New York that is working to outlaw puppy mills which would be spectacular if the other 49 states would join in. Even though all of our dogs are rescue, several of them are purebred. People don't realize that you can get a purebred dog in rescue, you just have to be patient and look in the right places online.
Our dogs are definitely our kids. I never was interested in two legged kids. We love our furry children ;)
I never understand people buying from a breeder. Most people are adopting a pet, not a show dog. There are lots of animals out there that need families. From puppies to senior dogs. The number of cats needing homes is frightening.
DeleteGo to a reputable rescue organization and adopt!!
Exactly
DeleteThey do "KNOW" and they are sooo grateful! I have seen it with my own eyes everytime!!!
DeleteItalian grey hounds are adorable! I agree about rescuing. Neither of mine are from breeders, though my female could be papered. We saved our male from such horrible Conditions :/ he was 4 months old and kept in a cat crate kennel. He's almost 6 and has just finally become openly affectionate. Poor buddy!
Delete@Krystie that is awesome! Hubs and I have noticed most of our adopted cats evolve over a long period of time. Both physically and personally. For example, my FIV+ cat, physically had horrible horrible gas for a YEAR! til it finally stopped. I mean knock you over gas! And threw up after every meal until I finally figured out he can't have too much at once. And leaky eye syndrome until a recent round of antibiotics (for something else) and now that's gone. He was so high maintenance for a year or so and now so much better AND he still (going on 2 years now) creeping closer and closer to me in bed at night. The trust still continues to evolve. He's just a totally different cat today that when we got him. I was just saying to hubs last night... how at the 1 year mark, I was still kinda worried I was never really going to bond with him and today I am so in love with him and he is now finally totally attached to me. Like your story...sometimes it takes A LOT of time and people sometime give up way too soon.
DeleteI have enjoyed reading everyone's pet stories. Most people here know we recently lost our cats Lucy and Ethel. They were 20 and passed a few weeks from one another from Uremia. Saying goodbye was the hardest thing we've ever done. You're never sure if it's too late or too soon when you have to put them down. But they do not live forever and we must stay goodbye as humanely as possible.
ReplyDeleteI'm crying now just thinking about it and how profoundly I miss them. They were our everything.
At this point we are still grieving too much and not ready for new pets. But when we are, and we will as a tribute to our girls, we will adopt from a shelter, preferably an older bonded pair. I have only had female cats but may get a male as I have heard they can be so much less persnickety.
Hugs to you my friend. I am so sorry,
DeleteI'm very sorry Sherry for your loss :( one of my doggies died a few months back, her name was Lucy, and I miss her so.
DeleteSo sad about Lucy, Ethel & Lucy :/
DeleteSorry to hear about Lucy & Ethel <3 I remember the day our other cat, Thomas, passed away. He was such a loving, affectionate tuxedo cat the size of a small turkey. Brian (my partner) had already had him for 5 years when we got together and then for another 10 years after I came in the picture. Saying goodbye to Tommy was by far the hardest thing we've had to do as a couple. I get verklempt just thinking about it. Big hugs to you, Sherry!
Delete@Sherry BIG hugs sent your way!!! Since hubs and I have been together (11yrs), we have had to put down 3 (cuz we adopt older cats) and one soon to follow. Strangely, the hardest for me was the one we had the shortest (1.5yrs) he got pneumonia :( ... I'm heartbroken over all of them, that one crushed me the most for some reason. I bonded with him so much over such a short time. Cried for days and days. He was my baby and he totally knew it.
DeleteYour right, it is hard and you said it best about the humane part. My mom is a nutcase. She is a dog person (irrelevant) but she has this idea that it is "not her place" to decide when they "go". She's not even a religious person!!! but she just says "God, will take them when it's right". She lets them all die in her arms if possible. It absolutely makes me crazy that she is that way (and a million other things) and I hate that for her animals. But she thinks it is the right thing to do! It's not! Letting them go too soon is better than too late IMHO.
When the time is right, you know there are always many animals out there ready to be adopted and any of them will be soooo lucky to have an owner like you Sherry. Hugs to all pets lovers!!!
I have 2 male Chihuahua's. The oldest is 10 and he is a "super size" Chi, he is 16 lbs. The other is 8 and is a teacup tipping the scales at 5lbs. The little one is a shit...they do what I like to call a "Chihuahua Symphony Orchestra" where the little guy starts to howl and the older one just joins in and it's non-stop :/ my poor neighbors lol
ReplyDeleteI have a lunatic Staffie,he is mad and stubborn and naughty but soooo affectionate and loving and handsome!!drives me mad when people judge dogs like Staffies/bulldogs/rottweilers etc,a dog is as good as its owner!
ReplyDeleteI have a 5 year-old yellow lab/golden retriever (we think) mix that we got from a rescue when he is a puppy. He's kind of foolish, but also understands English better than my husband and 2 kids combined. He was going crazy at 2am a few nights ago, standing on the couch and barking his head off. I peered out of the window to see if a psychotic murderer was trying to break into my house, but instead saw a coyote laying on our front yard, chewing on a previously buried bone. My dog was not impressed.
ReplyDeleteI have an Italian Greyhound. He was originally my daugher's dog, but we bonded and now he's mine.
ReplyDeleteIggies are awesome.
DeleteThank you all for sharing about your fur babies! Hugs and love to those who've lost them.
ReplyDelete(Know I'm late to the party but i cannot resist talking about my fur babies)
ReplyDeleteMy old workplace had a feral cat hive birth to a litter of kittens in thick bramble. We had to go in with Secateurs and cut our way through to get to them.
We took one home. The RSPCA wouldn't take them as they were classified as "feral" & advised to call the council to have them destroyed. No. Way. He was riddled w worms, malnourished and scared as hell. It only took me half a day to cajole him out from under a dresser and after that? Instant bond. My shadow. He would even lay on my feet whilst i washed dishes. He's "special needs" - no balance, falls off the couch & hits the floor, runs into walls, doesn't wash, but he's been my best friend when I've been sad, sick, he's there with a head nudge and lottsa cuddles. We've had Ashram 7 years. Mr Haven , self proclaimed cat hater is in love.
Then someone from work found feral kittens dumped in bushland 8 months ago. There were 6 tiny kittens and one twice the size of the others (we suspect she was from a first litter, then the cat had another litter & they were all dumped. Eartha Kitty looks the same as all the others. Anyway, NO ONE wanted the "big one". So she was going to be destroyed (the whole feral thing). We took her home & apart from attacking & annoying Ashy, she's a little angel.
We also have two puppies (5 years old each) who are both rescues & adorable (& neurotic & destructive)
This makes up our happy family, as well as my pet trouser snake
Wayyyy too many friggen cats.
ReplyDelete