cuddler plopped himself on the floor when i came home last night, right in teh middle of the kitchen. i straddled him with my feet, one foot next to his fuzzy belly and one next to his long black back.
but he didn't like this none so he hoisted one loooong foot, planted it on the inside of my ankle, and PUSHED. i didn't go anywhere but he sure did. he slid stiff as a board about two feet, on his side, looking up at me the whole time.
'neat trick' i said.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
exit meera
funnies...
this morning i left the bathroom door just barely open, enough for meera to poke her paw in, then the tip of her face, and then her whole lovely curviness.
the gap she left was big enough for wickers. but bad timing- he snuffed the open door just as meera wanted to leave. and no joke, my bathroom is a tight space.
wicket is the truck that can't be stopped, so meera neatly avoided the head-on collision by rearing up on her hindlegs, giving her fat bro enough space to slink through, below her. and then- exit meera.
this morning i left the bathroom door just barely open, enough for meera to poke her paw in, then the tip of her face, and then her whole lovely curviness.
the gap she left was big enough for wickers. but bad timing- he snuffed the open door just as meera wanted to leave. and no joke, my bathroom is a tight space.
wicket is the truck that can't be stopped, so meera neatly avoided the head-on collision by rearing up on her hindlegs, giving her fat bro enough space to slink through, below her. and then- exit meera.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
yip-yip kids
new target weight for WICKERS is 14 lb.
precious cargo cried from home to the vet's, and then crouched silently in his carrier during the visit. lots of dogs barking, lots of jumpy yelpy children in the waiting room. but also an incredibly nice receptionist considering some of the rudeness she had to deal with.
i'm on track: exercise, fewer calories than he's taking in, and frequent weigh-ins. slow and steady wins the race. how to figure the amount of calories in his food tho? i'm still working on that one...
precious cargo cried from home to the vet's, and then crouched silently in his carrier during the visit. lots of dogs barking, lots of jumpy yelpy children in the waiting room. but also an incredibly nice receptionist considering some of the rudeness she had to deal with.
i'm on track: exercise, fewer calories than he's taking in, and frequent weigh-ins. slow and steady wins the race. how to figure the amount of calories in his food tho? i'm still working on that one...
Monday, April 28, 2008
to the doc's
wicket and i are off to see the vet this afternoon, a lady vet downtown at a practice established in 1844.
w has no aches, nothing that needs bandaging; i just want to make sure i know what i'm doing with this new exercise/diet thing. we'll figure out a target weight and probably switch foods (i hear that my cat food of choice is "kitty junk food"!!).
the giant plastic carrier has been sitting in the kitchen since friday evening. i've even caught wicket sitting in it a time or two. ("Fool! Fool!" meera sez.) this morning i transfered it to the table. the challenge won't be wicket's resistance. it will be getting his bulk through the narrow opening.
to be continued...
w has no aches, nothing that needs bandaging; i just want to make sure i know what i'm doing with this new exercise/diet thing. we'll figure out a target weight and probably switch foods (i hear that my cat food of choice is "kitty junk food"!!).
the giant plastic carrier has been sitting in the kitchen since friday evening. i've even caught wicket sitting in it a time or two. ("Fool! Fool!" meera sez.) this morning i transfered it to the table. the challenge won't be wicket's resistance. it will be getting his bulk through the narrow opening.
to be continued...
Thursday, April 24, 2008
today's stats
...and no, i won't be posting our weights every day. it's just that the novelty of the new scale hasn't worn off yet...it's so shiny.
this morning, wicket weighed in at 16 pounds, 6 oz.
kai was 10 pounds 13 oz.
meera was 12 pounds, 10 oz.
this morning, wicket weighed in at 16 pounds, 6 oz.
kai was 10 pounds 13 oz.
meera was 12 pounds, 10 oz.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
circumscribation or death
yesterday afternoon i emptied and put way up on a shelf our free feeder. no more 24/7 drive-thru's for you, my pretties.
no one seems to be upset. [by which i mean, no one has planted a wet hairball on my pillow.]
w goes into his own bedroom to eat now. he hasn't quite caught on yet that when he's put in his own room, that's his cue to eat what's in the bowl. the other two ate a bite or two from their bowls (in teh accustomed spot by the door), then walked over to w's closed door to sniff and probably crow. after fifteen minutes i let him out again.
dinner over, i put away all the leftover food and gave everyone fresh filtered water from the brita. loves all round.
also yesterday, but earlier, the twins went into their own room while w and i played with first the peacock feather (woefully used by now, bent, no longer proud) and the strange much-loved toy: a cloth-covered rattle-ball with dangly faux rabbits' feet attached, all stuck on a thin plastic stick.
w gamboled and jumped and pounced. i tried the laser pointer, thinking "let's avoid boredom!" but he couldn't have cared less about the red spot. he stared off into middle distance as meerakai's arms shot out from under the bedroom door, desperately reeeeeaching for the light, the light, the light!
[cross reference this very interesting article about identifying your cat's prey of choice: http://vet.osu.edu/2219.htm.]
so out came the peacock feather and the strange much-loved toy again. he also has a lot of fun with one of those rubber colored bracelets (mine says "Got Guts?").
later that night, as i was trying to get to sleep, w chased meera around and around and around. oh the yelps! the hisses! the smacks!
and even late-later, when meera got sick of the play and found sanctuary atop the blue chair, w ran just for the hell of it. he skidded around corners; he ricocheted off bean bags; he lost his footing on the linoleum and crashed into doors. picked himself back up and went sliding under my bed. ("----SAFE!!----" screamed the imaginary ump. "Sheeeeeit," moaned the imaginary opposing team.)
point being, i in no way tired him out earlier. this boy has energy to BURN. he was probably thinking back on his wild loose days of danger, on how the night would stretch ahead of him in all its trashcan and feral friends and dirty sidewalk glory. he has become circumscribed. he has become fat.
well, w, i can help you with one of those things but not the other. trust me when i tell you that you wouldn't have lasted on those dirty sidewalks much longer. it was circumscribation or death, and we're so glad you let yourself be caught.
loves to aunt jennie.
no one seems to be upset. [by which i mean, no one has planted a wet hairball on my pillow.]
w goes into his own bedroom to eat now. he hasn't quite caught on yet that when he's put in his own room, that's his cue to eat what's in the bowl. the other two ate a bite or two from their bowls (in teh accustomed spot by the door), then walked over to w's closed door to sniff and probably crow. after fifteen minutes i let him out again.
dinner over, i put away all the leftover food and gave everyone fresh filtered water from the brita. loves all round.
also yesterday, but earlier, the twins went into their own room while w and i played with first the peacock feather (woefully used by now, bent, no longer proud) and the strange much-loved toy: a cloth-covered rattle-ball with dangly faux rabbits' feet attached, all stuck on a thin plastic stick.
w gamboled and jumped and pounced. i tried the laser pointer, thinking "let's avoid boredom!" but he couldn't have cared less about the red spot. he stared off into middle distance as meerakai's arms shot out from under the bedroom door, desperately reeeeeaching for the light, the light, the light!
[cross reference this very interesting article about identifying your cat's prey of choice: http://vet.osu.edu/2219.htm.]
so out came the peacock feather and the strange much-loved toy again. he also has a lot of fun with one of those rubber colored bracelets (mine says "Got Guts?").
later that night, as i was trying to get to sleep, w chased meera around and around and around. oh the yelps! the hisses! the smacks!
and even late-later, when meera got sick of the play and found sanctuary atop the blue chair, w ran just for the hell of it. he skidded around corners; he ricocheted off bean bags; he lost his footing on the linoleum and crashed into doors. picked himself back up and went sliding under my bed. ("----SAFE!!----" screamed the imaginary ump. "Sheeeeeit," moaned the imaginary opposing team.)
point being, i in no way tired him out earlier. this boy has energy to BURN. he was probably thinking back on his wild loose days of danger, on how the night would stretch ahead of him in all its trashcan and feral friends and dirty sidewalk glory. he has become circumscribed. he has become fat.
well, w, i can help you with one of those things but not the other. trust me when i tell you that you wouldn't have lasted on those dirty sidewalks much longer. it was circumscribation or death, and we're so glad you let yourself be caught.
loves to aunt jennie.
worth their weight in...catnip?
So this afternoon the human drove waaaay out to find herself a scale. An electronic scale. With an accuracy of within .2 lb.
She (I) probably didn't have to drive out so far. There was probably, most likely, yeah fer sure something closer.
But (1) when I try alternate routes, I tend to get lost [whereas exploring off the metaphorical beaten track is rewards galore]. And (2) this claustrophobic mecca of buyables is very close to my older sis, she of the darling blue-eyed boy, who was dressed head to toe in a red Power Rangers costume when I arrived and invited me to sit and watch the red Power Ranger on his dvd.
[How often do I shop? Not often. Does my wardrobe reflect this? Yes. Does this cause me pain? Sometimes I feel a twinge when I don the same pair of greeny-gray cargos for the third time that week. But only for a moment and then I QUASH it. QUASH SQUASH BIQUASH. The shopping was bearable today because I knew what I wanted, and I knew in approximately which aisle I could find it ("Bath").]
So I walked in and I walked out. Later that afternoon I weighed myself and then weighed myself plus a cat. Kai first, since he was most near (transl: most trusting, inquisitive, stable). Light as a feather, my sweet boy.
Kai: 10.8 pounds (plus or minus .2 lb.) which I think translates into 10 pounds 13 oz.
[Does someone want to check my math on this one?]
Next came the chunker, w himself. A whopping 16.6 pounds, or 16 pounds 9 oz. Should I be shocked? All ye hoomans of plus-size cats, what do yours weigh?
And finally (But not without a FIGHT!) I got Bella semi-still in my arms. The read-out kept jumping around b'cus she kept jumping around, but I think she's 13 pounds even, my lucky number. I tried to lull her with back scratches and neck rubs, but didn't try hard enough.
So there we have it. Our first set of data. To be continued...
She (I) probably didn't have to drive out so far. There was probably, most likely, yeah fer sure something closer.
But (1) when I try alternate routes, I tend to get lost [whereas exploring off the metaphorical beaten track is rewards galore]. And (2) this claustrophobic mecca of buyables is very close to my older sis, she of the darling blue-eyed boy, who was dressed head to toe in a red Power Rangers costume when I arrived and invited me to sit and watch the red Power Ranger on his dvd.
[How often do I shop? Not often. Does my wardrobe reflect this? Yes. Does this cause me pain? Sometimes I feel a twinge when I don the same pair of greeny-gray cargos for the third time that week. But only for a moment and then I QUASH it. QUASH SQUASH BIQUASH. The shopping was bearable today because I knew what I wanted, and I knew in approximately which aisle I could find it ("Bath").]
So I walked in and I walked out. Later that afternoon I weighed myself and then weighed myself plus a cat. Kai first, since he was most near (transl: most trusting, inquisitive, stable). Light as a feather, my sweet boy.
Kai: 10.8 pounds (plus or minus .2 lb.) which I think translates into 10 pounds 13 oz.
[Does someone want to check my math on this one?]
Next came the chunker, w himself. A whopping 16.6 pounds, or 16 pounds 9 oz. Should I be shocked? All ye hoomans of plus-size cats, what do yours weigh?
And finally (But not without a FIGHT!) I got Bella semi-still in my arms. The read-out kept jumping around b'cus she kept jumping around, but I think she's 13 pounds even, my lucky number. I tried to lull her with back scratches and neck rubs, but didn't try hard enough.
So there we have it. Our first set of data. To be continued...
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
the Plan
the Goal:
Shed W-pounds. Lessen risk of diabetes, etc.
the Plan:
1. stop using the 24/7 feeder
2. feed MeeraKai small portions at specific times throughout the day
3. feed Wicket smaller portions in a separate room at meal-times
4. take away food bowls when they're done eating
5. give W extra exercise throughout the day; get him to jump and run
6. get a sensitive digital scale
7. keep a weight loss chart; measure progress in ounces not pounds
8. check with a vet for target weight and other suggestions
9. be patient and stay motivated! it's for the children!
Shed W-pounds. Lessen risk of diabetes, etc.
the Plan:
1. stop using the 24/7 feeder
2. feed MeeraKai small portions at specific times throughout the day
3. feed Wicket smaller portions in a separate room at meal-times
4. take away food bowls when they're done eating
5. give W extra exercise throughout the day; get him to jump and run
6. get a sensitive digital scale
7. keep a weight loss chart; measure progress in ounces not pounds
8. check with a vet for target weight and other suggestions
9. be patient and stay motivated! it's for the children!
ask and ye shall receive, or something like that
wicket was especially sociable last night. he trotted next to me as i walked from room to room. surprised me twice with a particularly loud, plaintive 'MroWl.'
And as I slept, twice in the night he jumped onto the bed to be near me. through the haze of half-asleepness i felt him sniffing my hairline and then throwing his weight to the bed, jawline just within reach of my sleepy fingers. i curled my arm around him- he was so dangerously close to the edge of the bed- and fell back asleep.
And as I slept, twice in the night he jumped onto the bed to be near me. through the haze of half-asleepness i felt him sniffing my hairline and then throwing his weight to the bed, jawline just within reach of my sleepy fingers. i curled my arm around him- he was so dangerously close to the edge of the bed- and fell back asleep.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
the comb, the cooooomb!
aunt jennie gave me two combs to try: one a metal comb especially for cats with two layers of teeth, and the other a man's basic black plastic comb. guess which one worked better on wicket?
last night and again this morning we had a little session. he seems to like it, up to a point, then he grabs for my hands with his teeth and his claws. i keep the treats handy and the compliments flowing.
he was about two pounds lighter by the time we finished. just in time for spring! but we still have more work to do. what with his huggable squishiness (i.e. FAT) and his cerebellar hypoplasia, he can't reach the back of his back very well.
i had just spring-cleaned (again) before pulling out the comb last night. had to vacuum again when we finished. he's so smooooooth now
last night and again this morning we had a little session. he seems to like it, up to a point, then he grabs for my hands with his teeth and his claws. i keep the treats handy and the compliments flowing.
he was about two pounds lighter by the time we finished. just in time for spring! but we still have more work to do. what with his huggable squishiness (i.e. FAT) and his cerebellar hypoplasia, he can't reach the back of his back very well.
i had just spring-cleaned (again) before pulling out the comb last night. had to vacuum again when we finished. he's so smooooooth now
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
for ye of the messed up video card
for those of you whose video cards have been fuxed up by basement cat, here's a play-by-play of the kai vid below:
1.
kai squeezes his eyes shut and kneads the air. bliss, natch.
2.
a disembodied hand reaches into the warm soft fur of his underbelly and now you can hear the purr. more ecstatic kneading.
3.
a brother (or maybe a sister) catches his attention. his eyes snap open and he lifts his neck to look into the kitchen. he realizes it's just his boring brother (or sister) and not a treat that has spontaneously jumped off teh counter for him to snarf.
4.
now that he's up and alert, the swingy toothable cord of the camera in his face has his full attention. he comes in close, he sniffs around, he NOMS on something just beyond the viewfinder. at first it seems totally harmless. we viewers are safe, right?
5.
the nom-nom'ing becomes more intense, more plasticky-destruction-sounding. kai turns his head this way and that to get a better fang-grip on whatever it is he finds so tasty about this totally unappetizing canon. his beautiful clear dark eye flashes in and out of sight.
6.
all of a sudden the vid ends. we're left to wonder if this tape was brought in by the intrepid videographer herself, or whether it was found months after the encounter amid a pile of licked-clean bones and delivered to the authorities by a weirded-out tourist.
now that he's up and alert, the swingy toothable cord of the camera in his face has his full attention. he comes in close, he sniffs around, he NOMS on something just beyond the viewfinder. at first it seems totally harmless. we viewers are safe, right?
5.
the nom-nom'ing becomes more intense, more plasticky-destruction-sounding. kai turns his head this way and that to get a better fang-grip on whatever it is he finds so tasty about this totally unappetizing canon. his beautiful clear dark eye flashes in and out of sight.
6.
all of a sudden the vid ends. we're left to wonder if this tape was brought in by the intrepid videographer herself, or whether it was found months after the encounter amid a pile of licked-clean bones and delivered to the authorities by a weirded-out tourist.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Monday, April 14, 2008
Thursday, April 10, 2008
kai walks
i lean down to pet kai and he starts to walk forward. i follow a step or two, still petting, and then i stop following him, thinking he doesn't need the luvvin right now. but then he cries and stands still and looks at me, so i lean down again and pet. he walks. i follow, petting, walking, trying to stay in step with this tiny light creature.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
so sweet this morning
scritch, scritch, scritch goes meera's paw while i'm in the bathroom. sometimes i leave the door barely ajar so she can push it open. she's the only one (so far, that i know of) who opens doors, so for a little at least she's got the room and me to herself. purring like a motorboat.
during breakfast wicket rolls in from the living room to lean against my leg. then he reaches up to put front paws on my thigh, digs his claws in, and streeeetches. scritches along his jawbone and in that funny bare spot in front of his ears.
later, about five minutes before i leave for work, i'm bustling back and forth between the kitchen and my bedroom and the bathroom, making sure i've got everything i need and keeping an eye on the clock. kai sits calmly atop the kitchen counter, mewing when i pass and looking me straight in the eye with those clear eyes. scritch, scritch on the top of his head.
during breakfast wicket rolls in from the living room to lean against my leg. then he reaches up to put front paws on my thigh, digs his claws in, and streeeetches. scritches along his jawbone and in that funny bare spot in front of his ears.
later, about five minutes before i leave for work, i'm bustling back and forth between the kitchen and my bedroom and the bathroom, making sure i've got everything i need and keeping an eye on the clock. kai sits calmly atop the kitchen counter, mewing when i pass and looking me straight in the eye with those clear eyes. scritch, scritch on the top of his head.
Thursday, April 03, 2008
guess! guess!
guess what i am!
iz smaller than a breadbox...
but bigger than a radio...
smaller than a table...
but bigger than a box of envelopes...
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
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