We Are Family

There is something really really wrong with people who don't love kittens.
Just my humble opinion.
These three little orphans are waiting for a home at the shelter. Wouldn't it be nice if they could all go together?
Instant family!

Ramona Cleans up

It's very important to be clean you know.



Every little bit must be attented to.



Good for my health and my feline beauty.



I am a Beauty, you know. Everyone says so.



I clean around every claw.



And then I go do Brendan too. He needs a little help.



There. Done!

It's Good to Have A Sister

Ramona was sleeping peacefully in the circular, Harper next door in the bigger bed, when suddenly he seemed to get a little lonely. So there's the two of them, ying yang. I'd never adopt s single kitten again. And if I find one in the back yard I'll go get it a friend. They are so content when they have a bud and just like people, it has to be the right one. The shelter we got the kittens from was smart enough to know that these two were a pair. That's why when I asked for Ramona as well as Harper, they gave her to me even though there were other applications for her, because they knew she and Harper were bonded.

Not much going on here this week. Ramona caught mouse five and did her imitation of Growl Tiger around 3 AM. I found one pitiful remain in the kitchen and now there is a distinct oder of Eau de mouse morte in the bedroom. I can't find it but I guess I'll have to get out the flashlight.

The score? Ramona/Harper five. Mice zero. Not even a scratch on the Tigress or her back up guy.

We almost lost our snow. Shoveled out a path to the sitting place and enjoyed one day in the sun. Then we got about eight inches of heavy wet white stuff. Once you're in the mood for spring it might as well melt, especially when it is too funky to use your good skis. Or, like us, you're passing the wicked bad valley cold back and forth.

I'm working on this audio tour project so I get to curl up with my mac, my cats and a stack of library books looking up exactly where all those grand hotels were and how tall was Ethan Allen really (seven feet, they say). This area has a lively history of settlers and characters, people who trekked miles through the notches, up and down the mountains, building farms and running hotels. These mountains were a hotbed of tourist travel in the 1800's when people wanted to connect with Nature as a spiritual activity. There was a huge hotel on top of Mount Washington and there is still a road to the summit you can drive up and a cog railway going up the other side. Bit of a disappointment, if you don't know about it, to hike up the 6200 feet and then find a huge modern building (the Observatory) and tour buses unloading to the cafeteria and snack shop. It's a long story. When the audio is done I'll post a link to it for anyone who is interested. I've made videos about Mount Washington so I know most of the stories.

I know they are not kittens any more at 13 months but these two still act like kittens which is fine by me. They run around the house up and down the stairs playing hide and seek. They're up much of the night hunting the mighty mouse and they cuddle up from about noon till evening. They're both sweet.

It amazes me that an animal who is really a wild thing can settle in so happily to a loving relationship with people. I guess it shows you how smart cats are. They know a good life when they get it.

Harper is just the nicest guy. He's an innocent. He has no plans for running the place though he sometimes bosses his sister around (or tries to). She just puts up with it but there is nothing serious about it. When you call his name he flops down and rolls over for a belly rub and says something like "merack!" It's like having a big teddy bear. And when he shows up at 3AM for a hug he hops up and gives a little cry to make me roll over and then he flops down and snuggles up and purrs. His purr is like a tractor idle. Loud and rough. URRRR URRRR URRRR. Though I call it "snorkle snorkle snorkle" He loves to be carried around with his paws on my shoulder. Really, just a big teddy bear of the nicest kind.

Ramona could not be mistaken for a boy cat. She is all girl. Since she is our first girl cat I find it fascinating that she is so female. I think she is the best hunter and she has this wonderful self contained attitude. She doesn't need a hug in the middle of the night but she will suddenly decide that she wants to be near you and she will come either sit close to you or hop up on your lap. She is dainty and keeps herself perfectly clean. Harper has somethings to learn in that department. Her purr is softer and her meows are higher and feminine. If she is sleeping downstairs and wakes up alone she will give out a plaintive call "where is everybody?"

Brendan goes to the chiropractor every month and gets acupuncture. He is an old man but he is doing fine for all that. He has cabin fever and wants to go out every morning. These days we walk around with him. He's been an outdoor going cat all his life but he is slowing down so we feel we should keep more of an eye on him. He smells for the spring. He says it's not here yet. Brendan is very bossy, he runs the tribe and he runs us too. He yells for attention, when he wants food, when he wants to go for a walk and when he wants a nice warm bath. He gets bits of kitty litter stuck in his front paws and I think that is because his paws are spread out more in his senior years, the kittens don't get that. I am switching to the Feline Pine from a clumping Arm and Hammer. I love the clumping one and so do the cats but I am having to clean Brendan's paws everyday and he DOES NOT LIKE IT.

I hope everyone saw the notice about the pet food recall. I am posting the web site for the page with the cat food brands. Do check it out as there are a lot. The web site is rather odd. It is called the menufoods income fund. I think they have taken some stuff down but the list of foods is there for both dogs and cats. They say they have tracked it down to a supplier of wheat gluten. I don't see what wheat gluten is doing in pet food. We use Evo dry without any grain but Brendan loves the new Max Cat Gourmet Classics which does have wheat gluten in it. Nutro was one of the companies affected but Brendan's line isn't on the list. I think Wellness is the best wet food as far as quality but he is 17 and he loves this food and will eat it three times a day. With the Wellness it was hit or miss. And he is thriving at this time.

Maybe I could just add some tomato paste.

http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_cat.html

If your cats were people what would their occupations be? If you don't comment on Blogger you can email me Zuleme AT zuleme dot Com. Then I'll tell you what we came up with for the Tiger Tribe.

Cabin Fever

It's March and it was something like 20 below with the wind chill last night. Or the night before. Unusual for March to be so cold. We got nice snow, we got out in it, then it started freezing and Olof got a wicked cold so we haven't been out since Saturday. Cabin fever sets in about now in the Frozen North while we read about daffodils coming up in France. The kittens are vastly entertained by the bird and squirrel show going on at the feeder placed outside the window by my painting table. But they need to get out and run around. Harper is a little butterball. And it's not that he's a chow hound. Ok so maybe it's just kitten fat. Ramona is a round little thing too. Not that Brendan minds, he says he likes them Rubenesque.



Afternoons find everyone at the beach. The warm spot in front of the heater. Or on the couch next to it.





As soon as a warm spell hits we shovel out a path to the patio. We still have about 14 inches on the ground. Not much, I've seen Aprils with three feet. We're just waiting for that spring air. Brendan goes out in the driveway and lifts his head smelling for it.

It ain't here yet.

Harper is a Flirt

I know you think I'm handsome.





See me lick my toes. Can you do that?





This pose is irrestistible, isn't it? Don't you just want to hug me?



Hey, let me see that thing!

A Winter Afternoon

I wrote on my laptop while these guys did what they do best.



Letting it all hang out.



Ramona cuddled up in the cat house.



Brendan waited for spring in front of the heater.





I got to chapter ten and then everyone woke up.



Hey, when are you coming upstairs to sit in front of the talky box?

Cats, Books, Life is Good

Winter nights the pride tends to gather and cuddle up. There hasn't been a whole lot to write about lately. The mouse score stands at Harper and Ramona 4, Mice 0. Must be a home team advantage.

Ramona got inspired after watching 2 reruns of Miami CSI every night. She signed up for an online course at ITT Tech and just got her license as an MSI, Mouse Scene Investigator. I hear her telling Harper to "send that to Trace". The mice should have the sense to move on and pursue their criminal activities somewhere else. Like Miami.

Brendan is fine. He has discovered Max Cat Gourmet and I order it by the case from Petco. He loves the Duck Stew and the Seafood Bsique with tomato. He demands 3 to 5 warm wet meals every day, laced with Glucosamine and MSM and the Chinese herbs he gets for his kidneys. Brendan has also been getting chiropractic treatments and acupuncture. He's moving much better and even gets frisky. For an old fella he's in great form.

This morning Brendan was taking a nice warm bath when I heard a desperate cry at the door, "Let me in!". I had moved the upstairs facilities in there because we have company and Harper needed to get in the room in a hurry.

Brendan came out to assist me with bookkeeping in my office and now he's being very purry next to me. He has been checking the air for spring but he says it isn't here yet.

I have been plowing through my projects. One video just needs a few edits, two TV spots to finish and one which isn't started and then an audio tour script that has to be written and recorded and duplicated on cd by spring. I am up to chapter seven on my book rewrites, trying to decide if going to a writers day is worth it to get five minutes with an editor. And we are waiting to hear if we are going on a video shoot in France in June, studying French just in case.

Oh yes, it is almost time to start some tomatoes. The cherries we put in pots last year did very well.

Miaou to all. Hope you are well all over the world. I'm sorry I haven't been writing more but life has just been too darn peaceful.

Snow, we love it

A couple of commentators suggested we were nuts to be happy about the major snowstorm presently dropping an inch an hour here. Though I admit, I feel sorry for the towns in New York that have over eight feet on the ground, for us here, the snow is a blessing.

I love it first of all because it is beautiful and it makes the world peaceful for a little while. No cars. Shut off from the modern world. Though Olof has to go into town to fix a printer. However, that may get postponed. It takes two feet to shut this town down. We may get that.

The other reason snow is loved where I live in northern New Hampshire is we are a ski resort. I live about two miles from Attitash, Cranmore is in town and Wildcat and Black in Jackson. Though I only ski cross country these days, the economy up here runs on snow in the winter. Two feet of snow means a good winter for the valley and my friends who run the cross country ski trails. And the restaurants and the inns and the shops which support the rest of the town. We started off this winter so warm it didn't feel real and we only got rain. It was sad, every inch was greeted with joy. Here, the bank tellers wear pins saying "Pray for snow" Two feet will bring lots of smiles around here as we get ready for vacation weeks and lots of skiers.

Two feet of snow means I can ski out my door, down into the woods, across the brook and to the Saco River. And if it's cold enough, we can ski across the river. We can also go up to Jackson and really get some outdoor air on our favorites trails like East Pasture (all up one way and down the other) or the Hall trail which winds way up in the forest above Jackson. And there is nothing better for the winter blues then a crisp day of white snow, blue sky and gliding through the forest. Then coming home to a warm woodstove and hot chocolate. You can't beat it for the life is good feeling.



Check our web cam
http://www.westsideav.com/KEYcam/WaveWEBcam.lasso



And bring on the snow!



Ok, so maybe the whole family doesn't share our enthusiam. As long as the heat is on they do just fine.

Mouse Busters

Who ya gonna call? Mouse Busters!

The little guys are starting their own business. At this time the score is Harper and Ramona, 3, Mice 0. It gets pretty wild here around 3 AM when they are chasing a terrified critter who should know better than to come out in the open when these two are around. I found one hiding in my slipper one morning. I'm not in the least afraid of mice, since I kept them as pets when I was a kid. I just picked up my slipper and dumped mousie out the window, onto the roof, to Ramona's chagrin. Mice aren't allowed in the house, I figure they should know that by now so if they get killed, the next generation should be smarter. But I won't turn one over to the hunters if it is smart enough to find a place like my slipper to hide in. And we have pretty mice, brown with big eyes and a white underbelly.

Last night the wind was whipping around here and Harper came to snuggle in my arms. We kept the wood stove going and it is below zero right now. Our biggest snow storm in two years is predicted for tonight. Yippee. We could get two feet.

I purr, therefor I am

Is it even possible this world was here before me?

I purr, therefore I am.

I am Beautiful, Herself tells me so.

Tomorrow is my purrday (and Ramona's of course)

I will be one year old.

She's My Sister

Yes, she's my sister and she's a little bossy sometimes when you aren't looking. For a while she was telling me the bed was for married couples only but then she saw I was getting lonely and she let me back on my corner at Herself's feet. I am, after all, the BoyCat around here.



But I love my sister, I really do. And she always lets me have the Feather Toy first.

Brendan and Ramona

We're speechless.

Let it Snow

Finally we have a blizzard and everyone up here is cheering and doing the snow dance. Well, most of us.



The rest of the tribe gather around the cozy spot near the heater and cuddle up for that long winter nap.

Harper Boy Cat

Harper is well and fine and a big sturdy boy cat now. We are passing this strange warm New England winter hoping for snow
(it snowed last night but there is now wet stuff coming down). The last few days were so warm our thin cover melted and we were working in the garage with the doors open.

I walked around with Brendan yesterday and Harper was yelling at us through the window so I thought he would like to go for a walk. (the cat yard is down for the winter because we were expecting snow). I put the harness on him and took him outside and he lay down on the door stoop waiting to go back in. Fergus would have been bounding over the yard and into the woods in a flash. Harper is really Mr. Laid Back.

He's a funny guy too and yes, very cuddly. He is solid built and very playful. He does this very funny move where he acts like a puppy that is trying to wag its tail so hard his whole body wags. He moves his head from side to side at the same time. He'll scramble up the cat tree and do this "wild tiger" act there too. I always encourage him to let his inner tiger out.

He is such an easy cat. He doesn't want to be Top Cat. Nobody in this group has claimed any special territory that I can see. The heat pad bed I bought for Brendan is used by whoever gets it first. Laps are shared and the third one takes Olof.

Harper loves a game of chase the feather toy and he will wait by the closet door and tell us it is time to play. Ramona will get into it too.

But what I love him best for is when I wake up in the too early morning he will come hopping up on the bed and meow to say, "hey move over" and when I make a spot for him he will bound happily down next to me and snuggle up under the blankets.

There's nothing better than waiting for the sun to come up with a soft warm furry creature who loves and trust you snuggled up close.

Happy New Year, Dear

Another night at home with a movie. Holding paws. I love you, Mona.
I love you too, Honey.



And Brother, where art thou?

Brendan

I did not pose her.

I haven't written for a while because we thought we were going to lose Brendan right before Christmas and I didn't want everyone to be sad. He is doing just great now and we are very happy with that as a big Christmas present. Mrs. B is happy too and she keeps an eye on him. They spend most of their time together now.

We had been in Portland after Brendan recovered from the bladder infection and he stopped eating. That was a Saturday. By Monday we were very worried and took him to the vets, both of us thinking This Could Be It. We were prepared for the vet to say we have to make The Awful Decision. I was in bad shape. Olof too.

At the vets Brendan got some fluids because he was dehydrated and he got more Clavamox, a B-12 vitamin shot, an anti-nausea shot and a antacid shot. Whew. And some bland food and instructions to get some down him with a dropper. He was obviously nauseated (lip licking). And he did not look like he felt well.

We made three more trips to the vet for shots and fluids and we learned to do it ourselves. Tuesday, he ate a little. Wednesday night we heard the sound of munchies in the night and it was B. Thursday we left for Christmas (with all three felines in tow).

He started eating normally again and we were thrilled. The vet said his tests came back and there was no infection and his kidney levels were normal. Not just better than last time, but normal. And he's seventeen.

The last few days he has been very enthusiastic about every meal and obviously feeling his oats. He wants to go out and check his territory every day (we go with him) and right now he is curled up with Mrs. B in front of the heater. He is enjoying his life and companions.

When I think of how it could have been, I know it was a very good Christmas indeed. And Ramona would agree.

Fluid therapy for cats is just amazing. Don't hesitate to try it if your cat is ill and your vet recommends it.

B and Mrs. B

On a lazy morning with the sun pouring in it is nice to cuddle up together. She stands by her man. She'll give him a thorough head licking too.

Brendan is doing quite well. We are sending our purrs to Smudge and his people on the far north (farther than our far north which is currently snowless and 50 degrees out).

Hang in there Smudge, you're well loved.

Too Cute

Sometimes it is a little hard to get anything done when you have this kind of distraction. They can be just too cute. I think there is something about being a brother sister pair that does it. They will sit or stand together in exactly the same pose.

Suddenly is has turned arctic cold outside and the wind is howling. Harper is curled up next to me as we wait in the kitchen for dinnertime. Last night as the house got colder we were surrounded by feline heat seeking missiles. Brendan on his heat bed (with the reflecting pad, very popular), Ramona on top of me and Harper under the blankets. I am well used to fitting myself in between sleeping felines.

Sometimes I imagine living in a cave with my tribe. The wind howls and we cuddle together, safe from the storm.

It's as good as it gets if you ask me.

Let's Just Stay in Tonight, Dear

Let's just stay in tonight and watch a movie honey.



Whatever you say dear.




Do we always have to have your brother along?




You two are sooo mushy!

Brendan is Doing Pretty Good

The old fella is doing pretty darn good with antibiotics and MSM. The bloody urine stopped right away and he has been eating three meals a day of warm wet food. I went to two shops in Portland and bought anything good quality he hadn't tried yet and that helped perk up his appetite. We will see next week if he has gained any weight but it looks like it. He thanks all of you who sent purrs. He plans on being around for a while yet.

In other news, Ramona woke us at 5 AM growling like a tiger under the bed. She had a mouse and I haven't crawled under there yet to see if it is still there or got eaten. It may have been eaten since she has been zombie like all day. Tiger Sleeps Off Major Kill. She was not going to let Harper have it no way.

It was 64 degrees outside last night here. Very very weird. But it is supposed to come to an end tomorrow with normal temps for early December and maybe some snow. Snow would be good much as I like running around in a tee shirt in November.