Dear Diary,
The weekend was great, even in absence of quality heating pad time. We did crafts, made cat forts, watched tv, knitted and finally on Sunday, we watched the Packer game. Mom's yelling at the t.v. startled me out of a dead sleep while I was on her lap a few times. I don't know why, for what reason she was yelling but a couple of times I almost got up and ran for the hills. Wasn't sure if there was a predator we needed to run from or what.
I watched mom clean the litter boxes out this morning, I was thinking to myself how thankful that I was that she didn't care that I wasn't the type of cat to poop in the litter box. I do pee in the litter box, that's no problem but pooping is a whole other issue for me and always has been. It's probably part of the reason why I did not become an indoor cat at the farm.
The farm owner told my mom that I like to poop on news paper, or paper of any sort, really and that if I was inside for any length of time at the farm that she'd have to lay news paper down next to the litter boxes so that I could poop. I think mom was initially worried that I wouldn't poop in a proper location because of my habits on the farm. To contain my poop and not have it just laying around on a piece of news paper, she decided she would try lining an empty litter box with news paper and bingo... I got in and used it! My poop to be forever contained!
Sometimes it just takes a little creative thinking to get over obstacles with pets, especially cats who are particular about where and when they poop, like me.
There are times however, that the poopin' papers are not up to my standards. I don't like pooping in the box when I've already previously pooped. If the poopin' papers get too bad, I go into the kitty hut that we have in the cat room and poop in there. Then she know's it's definitely time for a paper replacement.
All is well here in Nut land, especially since the poopin' papers were replaced this morning.
Until later,
Nut
Monday, December 30, 2013
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Took a Sabbatical, but I'm back in the game.
Dear Diary,
I took a short sabbatical from writing, mom's been home more recently so I've been spending a lot of time soliciting for food, laying on her lap and getting use out of the heating pad. She's had some sporadic time off since the holidays are upon us. Christmas has come and passed. Grandma sent boxes of things for mom to open, inside there was even a catnip toy for us! We all sat around in bed on Christmas morning where mom brought all of the presents she had received from family members that lived out of state. We watched her open each one and then took a nap.
Mom got us some new glitter balls and even cooked us a fillet of salmon for dinner. It's been a great holiday season so far!
Mom said tonight we would make cat forts out of the boxes that she got her Christmas presents in. Mom makes us cat forts when she receives boxes that are big enough to cut holes in. We have 3 good sized boxes, so Titan, Mira and I are pretty hopeful of the possibilities!
I think things are going to change for us, this next year. The other cat's and I are hoping for that house with room to run, though mom would probably say that's a little ways off. All we know is that she's been doing a lot of stuff lately, a lot of planning and writing. I think she's sick of living in an apartment. The winters can get a little annoying with all the snow plows going in the middle of the night and all the scraping of the shovels we hear. This winter has been a rough one. Constant freezing temps and snow almost every, if not every other day. I just think the other cat's and I are ready for windows that mom can hang bird feeders in front of, so we can bird watch more effectively.
Mom also spends a lot of off time at the clinic taking care of some cats that she's been nursing back to health. We know she secretly wishes she could just have a place big enough to do that at home, so that she doesn't have to spend so much time away. I guess it takes a lot of careful planning, but we all think mom's ready for the next leg of her journey in animal care and future plans. We all think 2014 is our year!!
That's all for now, until later,
I took a short sabbatical from writing, mom's been home more recently so I've been spending a lot of time soliciting for food, laying on her lap and getting use out of the heating pad. She's had some sporadic time off since the holidays are upon us. Christmas has come and passed. Grandma sent boxes of things for mom to open, inside there was even a catnip toy for us! We all sat around in bed on Christmas morning where mom brought all of the presents she had received from family members that lived out of state. We watched her open each one and then took a nap.
Mom got us some new glitter balls and even cooked us a fillet of salmon for dinner. It's been a great holiday season so far!
Mom said tonight we would make cat forts out of the boxes that she got her Christmas presents in. Mom makes us cat forts when she receives boxes that are big enough to cut holes in. We have 3 good sized boxes, so Titan, Mira and I are pretty hopeful of the possibilities!
I think things are going to change for us, this next year. The other cat's and I are hoping for that house with room to run, though mom would probably say that's a little ways off. All we know is that she's been doing a lot of stuff lately, a lot of planning and writing. I think she's sick of living in an apartment. The winters can get a little annoying with all the snow plows going in the middle of the night and all the scraping of the shovels we hear. This winter has been a rough one. Constant freezing temps and snow almost every, if not every other day. I just think the other cat's and I are ready for windows that mom can hang bird feeders in front of, so we can bird watch more effectively.
Mom also spends a lot of off time at the clinic taking care of some cats that she's been nursing back to health. We know she secretly wishes she could just have a place big enough to do that at home, so that she doesn't have to spend so much time away. I guess it takes a lot of careful planning, but we all think mom's ready for the next leg of her journey in animal care and future plans. We all think 2014 is our year!!
Oofta, thinking about the future wears a cat out. Thankfully, today will be a relaxing day for us, as mom is off to work for the day. Sometimes it is stressful when she's home all day. We feel like we have to follow her around and solicit for food and make sure she doesn't need us for anything, all day long.She did leave one of those big boxes full of wadded up wrapping paper. She did that on purpose so that we can jump in and out of the box like the wild, stealthy Puma cats that we are. Other than that, I anticipate a day of napping until she gets home.
That's all for now, until later,
Nut
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Day 8, Entry 1 - The Nerd Herd
Dear Diary,
I guess I should talk about my sibling cats, the other two that make up our dynamic nerd herd. Titan is a large orange tabby cat, and by large I mean he's tall and husky and is almost double my body weight. This puts me at an extreme disadvantage when he play fights me, sometimes he's just a jerk though and likes to sit on me and bite my neck. I just lay there and scream until mom yells at him. The bed is the safe zone in our house, he often won't come up there and bother us so I know if I can make a break and make it to the bed, he gives up.
He has behavioral issues. He's kind of a jerk and we think it's because he was cuddled too much as a kitten. He is the only cat of the two that will cuddle and sleep with me, though. Mom finds us spooning a lot. He's the big spoon.
Titan also has issues with food. He's always hungry and worried about his next meal. If mom takes too long to come home he starts to panic and he gets into the cupboards. He has to jump on top of the fridge and then up to the top surface of the cupboards. He then flips the door of the highest cupboard open. His panic go-to meal is in there. Cheerios. Yup, he eats cheerios when he gets hungry and worried that mom isn't coming home. He literally has to lower himself into the cupboard and since he's huge and slightly overweight, it's always a show for Mira and I. He has a lot of upper body strength and has a good 3 minute arm hang. Anyway, he gets in there, pushes the Cheerio box out onto the floor, jumps down and begins his feast. After he's done he starts talking about how we're going to have to ration out the rest of the Cheerios and drink from the toilet if mom doesn't reappear.
He's really the nerdiest cat I've ever met. I think his time would be better spent learning how to work the can opener, at least for Mira and myself. We don't care for Cheerios.
Mira is a beauty. She's a very petite tortie (tortoise shell). She never really got past the size of a teenage kitten. She's really sweet but is often aloof. She's very independent and plays alone. She doesn't like sleeping next to Titan or myself unless the apartment is cold, she likes to sleep next to mom. She always has to have a paw touching mom when we're sleeping.
Mira's weird behavioral problem is wool sucking. She does it when she gets lonely for mom or when mom is really stressed out. Wool sucking is a habitual behavior that some cats take on as a way of stress management. She sucks on fabrics and almost nothing is safe. Everything from shirts to sweaters to bed comforters is subject to Mira's wool sucking. Titan sometimes does it too, but not as much as Mira. Sometimes she eats the fabric which is real bad and makes mom worry a lot. Needless to say we get a lot of supplements to keep our digestive tract healthy which means we poop a lot.
Pooping is stressful for me. Pooping is the one hang up / behavioral issue I have (other than being very assertive when I'm hungry). That's a story for later though.
No matter how weird Titan and Mira's behaviors seem to me, I still love them very much.They are my family and I'm proud to be the first cat they knew. All they had was each other (and a mini weiner dog) for the first year of their lives. Dogs make me nervous.
Mom says one day we will have a house that we can run around in and be wild. She says we'll live in the country and she'll hang bird feeders outside the windows and on Christmas we can have tree that we can climb in and stockings filled with our favorite treats.
Mom also says that when we move, we can help other cats that need homes or care until they can find homes of their own. We're just fine with that. Titan and Mira's mom was most likely a farm cat too. She was found alongside the road pregnant and so hungry that she was willing to eat McDonald's french fries, on the way home.
We know we can't solve the word's cat population problems, but we want to help.
One day, we will.
Until later,
Nut
I guess I should talk about my sibling cats, the other two that make up our dynamic nerd herd. Titan is a large orange tabby cat, and by large I mean he's tall and husky and is almost double my body weight. This puts me at an extreme disadvantage when he play fights me, sometimes he's just a jerk though and likes to sit on me and bite my neck. I just lay there and scream until mom yells at him. The bed is the safe zone in our house, he often won't come up there and bother us so I know if I can make a break and make it to the bed, he gives up.
He has behavioral issues. He's kind of a jerk and we think it's because he was cuddled too much as a kitten. He is the only cat of the two that will cuddle and sleep with me, though. Mom finds us spooning a lot. He's the big spoon.
Titan also has issues with food. He's always hungry and worried about his next meal. If mom takes too long to come home he starts to panic and he gets into the cupboards. He has to jump on top of the fridge and then up to the top surface of the cupboards. He then flips the door of the highest cupboard open. His panic go-to meal is in there. Cheerios. Yup, he eats cheerios when he gets hungry and worried that mom isn't coming home. He literally has to lower himself into the cupboard and since he's huge and slightly overweight, it's always a show for Mira and I. He has a lot of upper body strength and has a good 3 minute arm hang. Anyway, he gets in there, pushes the Cheerio box out onto the floor, jumps down and begins his feast. After he's done he starts talking about how we're going to have to ration out the rest of the Cheerios and drink from the toilet if mom doesn't reappear.
He's really the nerdiest cat I've ever met. I think his time would be better spent learning how to work the can opener, at least for Mira and myself. We don't care for Cheerios.
Mira is a beauty. She's a very petite tortie (tortoise shell). She never really got past the size of a teenage kitten. She's really sweet but is often aloof. She's very independent and plays alone. She doesn't like sleeping next to Titan or myself unless the apartment is cold, she likes to sleep next to mom. She always has to have a paw touching mom when we're sleeping.
Mira's weird behavioral problem is wool sucking. She does it when she gets lonely for mom or when mom is really stressed out. Wool sucking is a habitual behavior that some cats take on as a way of stress management. She sucks on fabrics and almost nothing is safe. Everything from shirts to sweaters to bed comforters is subject to Mira's wool sucking. Titan sometimes does it too, but not as much as Mira. Sometimes she eats the fabric which is real bad and makes mom worry a lot. Needless to say we get a lot of supplements to keep our digestive tract healthy which means we poop a lot.
Pooping is stressful for me. Pooping is the one hang up / behavioral issue I have (other than being very assertive when I'm hungry). That's a story for later though.
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| Newborn Titan and Mira - dry and warm. |
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| Mira being cute for the camera |
Mom says one day we will have a house that we can run around in and be wild. She says we'll live in the country and she'll hang bird feeders outside the windows and on Christmas we can have tree that we can climb in and stockings filled with our favorite treats.
Mom also says that when we move, we can help other cats that need homes or care until they can find homes of their own. We're just fine with that. Titan and Mira's mom was most likely a farm cat too. She was found alongside the road pregnant and so hungry that she was willing to eat McDonald's french fries, on the way home.
We know we can't solve the word's cat population problems, but we want to help.
One day, we will.
Until later,
Nut
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| Titan having a nap. |
Monday, December 9, 2013
Born Wild - Notes from the Peanut Gallery
There is no greater accomplishment than the human-animal bond. Regardless the species, to attain an animal's trust is one of the most rewarding experiences a human can ever have. Animals do not have to grant us their trust, it is not our God given right. Trust is earned with animals in the same way trust is earned with humans. The only difference is, regardless the baggage of past traumas, most animals love continuously and unconditionally once they learn to trust again.
Asserting one's self as dominant and / or more deserving over an animal is only representing the coward that lies within man. It also represents man's altruistic ego. Some of the world's most grounded and happy cultures worship animals rather than taking on the idea that animals were put here for the benefit of man.
Animals are much more primal than humans, to love us unconditionally is not only their choice, but it is also unnatural for them since it is clear that we've given them so much to fear about us.
So, to ride your horse, to walk your dog or to read a book with your cat in your lap is a gift that should not be taken for granted. I think sometimes we forget that all animals of domesticated parents or not, are born wild. Those who truly grasp this concept share the deepest connection and benefit most from the gifts they have to offer us.
Asserting one's self as dominant and / or more deserving over an animal is only representing the coward that lies within man. It also represents man's altruistic ego. Some of the world's most grounded and happy cultures worship animals rather than taking on the idea that animals were put here for the benefit of man.
Animals are much more primal than humans, to love us unconditionally is not only their choice, but it is also unnatural for them since it is clear that we've given them so much to fear about us.
So, to ride your horse, to walk your dog or to read a book with your cat in your lap is a gift that should not be taken for granted. I think sometimes we forget that all animals of domesticated parents or not, are born wild. Those who truly grasp this concept share the deepest connection and benefit most from the gifts they have to offer us.
Sunday, December 8, 2013
Day 6, Entry 1 - Bottle Feeders
Dear Diary,
I have not made an entry in a day or so. The weekends with mom always seem to go by too fast. I enjoyed a heating pat Saturday.Mom turned the heating pad on when I wasn't looking nor in the room just to see if I would figure out if it was on. She's crazy if she thinks I didnt hear the clicks from across the apartment.
I could probably hear the heating pad turn on from up a flight of stairs during a severe thunderstorm.
Sometimes I wish I could have an entire week of Saturdays with mom, its nice to feel like the whole family is here. I'm pretty sure we are all that each other have got.
Titan and Mira were orphaned at birth, they've known no mother cat, they've known no other cat except me and mom was literally their mom. Sometimes she calls them the bottle feeders. They do have strange little quirks about them.
More tomorrow.
Until later,
Nut
I have not made an entry in a day or so. The weekends with mom always seem to go by too fast. I enjoyed a heating pat Saturday.Mom turned the heating pad on when I wasn't looking nor in the room just to see if I would figure out if it was on. She's crazy if she thinks I didnt hear the clicks from across the apartment.
I could probably hear the heating pad turn on from up a flight of stairs during a severe thunderstorm.
Sometimes I wish I could have an entire week of Saturdays with mom, its nice to feel like the whole family is here. I'm pretty sure we are all that each other have got.
Titan and Mira were orphaned at birth, they've known no mother cat, they've known no other cat except me and mom was literally their mom. Sometimes she calls them the bottle feeders. They do have strange little quirks about them.
More tomorrow.
Until later,
Nut
Friday, December 6, 2013
Day 4, Entry 1 - Meditation
Dear Diary,Today was uneventful and I definitely slacked. Tomorrow I'll have to groom myself longer, as a result of my laziness. There was more to look at outside our windows since the sun was shining, for a change. Not to be mistaken for warm weather, I can tell by how cold it is by the windows that it has to be very cold outside.
Sometimes I meditate. I sit on the heating pad for hours om lum lumming hoping my well intentions alone will turn it on. It hasn't happened yet but I'm still hopeful. Mom turns the heating pad on for me on Saturday mornings for a few hours while she has her coffee. What a blessing that is. In my life there's only two seasons now. Summer and heating pad season.
Mom meditates too, she also burns candles with scents of Nag Champa and Peppermint Eucalyptus. We cats don't necessarily enjoy them but at least they don't smell as bad as the essential oils that she uses. Mom's a little bit "new-agey" but I don't mind it that much, especially when she give me Reiki. It's my favorite thing especially when my nose is stuffed up. Sometimes I let mom hold my head in her hands and just fall asleep. Time for my pre bedtime nap.
Namaste to all.
Until later,
Nut
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Day 3, Entry 1 - Baby Love
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| Wally and I |
Dear Diary,
Our weather is so confusing. One day it's 46 degrees and the next day it's 16 degrees. I look outside through our many windows in our apartment and am thankful that I no longer have to huddle up in the milk house for warmth. We were all so thankful for the farmer's wife, she bought us special food and let us stay anywhere on the farm that had a little extra heat.
I got pregnant in the middle of summer with litter number 2, I didn't realize that because of that, my life would change forever.
When I first moved into the vet clinic, I was a little bit timid but after I started to eat the kitten food and the high calorie wet food that was being offered, I grew to love every second. My belly kept getting bigger and bigger and my pregnancy waddle was definitely a source of laughter around the clinic. I was starting to develop a bond with one of the girls who worked there. She felt bad for me because of all of my sneezing attacks, globs of boogers. There were times it was so bad that I'd sneeze out a booger that looked like a stick. Those times were the worst, but they had to be careful what medicine they gave me, because of the babies inside of me.
The girl who I was growing close to, the person I now refer to as "mom" used to hold me when she had free time. Holding was uncomfortable for me with my enormous belly so we developed a position that was comfortable for me to be held in. I would put my forearms up on her shoulders an then I'd sort of lay laterally and kick my back legs out and she'd cup my butt to keep me from falling. I'd sit like this for hours if she'd let me. To this day, that's exactly how I prefer to be held.
One afternoon before the girls were about to head home, I started to go into labor. Usually cats and especially ones who are used to more privacy like farm cats, tend to like to do labor and delivery on their own. This wasn't my first rodeo and I didn't care who was watching, it was time and I was going to downsize my belly with or without the humans peeping in. I let them look on because I saw the wonderment in their eyes as each baby came out. It was no big deal to me.
I had three kittens. The first and second came out with no problem but the third one was a fat ass. I had to stand up and let gravity help me. I put my front two paws on the side of my queening box like some cats do when they're pooping. I pushed and pushed and finally one last little push and gravity did the rest.
The birth of my kittens took the girls at the clinic a little bit by surprise. They say that when a queen is about to go into labor, she won't eat for up to 24 hours prior to delivery. Not me, I'm a farm cat and farm cat's aren't dumb enough to pass up a free meal.
They named each of my kittens after a type of nut. There was Beechnut (Henry), Walnut (Wally) and Coconut (Coco). Coco was my only girl, until Hazel came along. Hazel was not my biological daughter, she was a kitten who was orphaned by one of the more feral cats on the farm that I came from. Since I knew her mom and I only had 3 kittens, there was room for one more. She was so tiny and had a lot of catching up to do so my original three would get kicked entirely off of me once or twice a day so Hazel had me all to herself. Orphaned kittens usually get independent pretty quickly (I would know, I now live with 2 cats who were orphaned at birth). She grew big and strong and just as beautiful as my other three. She was the last kitten to wean and let me tell you, I was ready when that day came.
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| (Left to right) Coco, Wally, Hazel (she's burried between Wally and Henry) and Henry |
Sometimes I miss my kittens but every kitten has to grow up and do their own thing, eventually. Plus, I'm happy with the life I have now. Except for when my poopin' papers are not up to par but that's a story for a different day.
Until later,
Nut
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Day 2, Entry 2 - Mom gets home from work.
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| Helping mom play on the PS2. I make a lot of weird faces. |
Dear Diary,
When the days get shorter the sun plays evil tricks on us. It begins to get dark earlier, confusing our minds. My brother, sister and I get hungry for dinner much sooner in the day than what we are accustomed to. By the time mom gets home, we nearly turn circles when we hear her keys outside the door. At least 2 of us are usually at the door to greet mom and remind her that it is time for supper. I usually see her and do a victory lap around the apartment. My victory laps are a quick navigation down the hallway, through the living room, in the far entrance of the kitchen, through the kitchen and finally ending up back at the front door.
When mom comes in, we all walk in front of her, in a hurried fashion. Sometimes she kicks us and then stumbles, and it's always our fault. Usually mom says "damn it Peanut, I'm sorry," but most of the time I'm completely unaffected by her tripping over me. Sometimes we walk so fast that our speed is just short of a run and we are walking on our very tippy-toes. When we walk like this our tails are straight up in the air and our fat pads on our tummies (except Mira she eats to live, doesn't live to eat) swing back and forth in our hurry. Our aim is to get her to follow us to the room in which we are fed, she often deviates the course whereby we have to stop short, turn back and attempt to get her attention again. This is frustrating for us but we keep trying until our obvious needs has been fulfilled.
Often, during breakfast and supper, we are locked in the room in which we eat. This is because mom "would like to enjoy her dinner and not share." We don't understand why its unacceptable that we dip our paws in her milk, cereal or other foods of high moisture content, lick our paw and repeat. We would let her eat our food any time she'd like.
I have very few teeth because along side of chronic rhino-sinusitis, I also had oral stomatitis. My gums were inflamed and very sore, I had a canine tooth that was broken off and had minor ulcerations on my tongue. Often, removing the teeth of dogs and cats with stomatitis is one of the best routes of curing the stomatitis. Sometimes I have to pick my dry food up with my paw and bring it to my mouth since I don't have all the teeth necessary to pick up the last few kibble in my bowl. My gums and palate have grown accustomed to eating dry food and I do get wet food when I need supplements and medicine. I don't mind either way. Any day my mouth doesn't hurt and my boogers don't hang from my whiskers like Christmas tree tinsel is a good day to me!
Sometimes my lip flips up because I'm missing teeth and if I had an actual speaking voice, I'd probably talk with a wisp ... lisp.
Until later,
Nut
Day 2, Entry 1 - More about me, Nut
Dear Diary,
This morning was uneventful with our usual wake up routine. We (Titan, Mira and I) still think it's crazy that we have to wait until mom is done showering and getting ready, before we are fed. We spend much of that in between time pacing the apartment and popping our head through the shower curtain to remind mom to hurry, that we are still hungry and more hungry than we were 10 minutes ago.
Sometimes we just sit in the bathroom and wait rather than wasting our precious energy reserves on pacing. Usually, if I wait in the bathroom, my eyes get a bit runny.
I have chronic rhino-sinusitis which is much better than it used to be. My eye likely runs because I have scar tissue built up in my nasolacrimal duct(tear duct) from having chronic rhino-sinusitis and constant inflammation. The scarring causes irritation which causes my eye and sometimes nose to run.
Chronic rhino-sinusitis is a common ailment among farm cats. It's part of the upper respiratory complex diseases that run in our circles. We are often afflicted by these diseases because we are not vaccinated and because some of these diseases can spread trans-placentally (through the placenta from mother to kitten) so sometimes we're predisposed before we are even born.
My symptoms used to be a lot more aggressive which is partly why I was adopted out rather than being sent back to the farm, after I was spayed. I used to go into sneezing fits so violent that I would have to climb down off of high surfaces to avoid falling.
The humans would come running when they heard me start to sneeze, paper towel in hand. I think getting the boogers wiped off my face was far more traumatic than the actual sneezing fit, itself. I would always try to tell them "DON'T WORRY, I EATED IT," but it never mattered, they would still smear that semi abrasive white towel all over my face.
I used to have to sneeze and simultaneously eat my boogs at the same time, when I lived on the farm. Any trace of illness when you live outdoors does not usually weigh in your favor.
Chronic rhino-sinusitis is like having a constant sinus infection. I used to have headaches from the congestion, my mom would give me headache medicine to relieve the pressure. She could always tell cause my eyes would get squinty and I'd sit still for long periods of time. After a series of trials on antibiotics and then immune supplements, we were able to hold back the beast. Now I only have boogers in the spring and fall when I'm suffering from my seasonal allergies.
I think I also have food allergies, some foods make my skin itchier than others. We haven't done any allergy testing yet but we experiment with different foods and supplements. My skin being itchy is why back scratches made my "things I like" list.
Sometimes I run and jump and play so hard that the other two apparently more domesticated cats, Titan and Mira get concerned and stay to the outside perimeter of our living room. They just sit and watch me with a look of horror on their faces. I guess I'm just living out my kittenhood. I'm roughly 4-5 years old but I didn't get to be a kitten on the farm. Dealing with illness and raising a litter of kittens of my own, was what I spent most of my time doing. I was however, in the favor of the farmers wife. When I really didn't feel good, I got to come inside the farmhouse and warm up and get injections of penicillin. When I was healthy, it was back outside for me. I learned to potty in the litter box but never learned to poop in the litter box and that's why I never became a steady house cat, at the farm. I had friends and family (brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, mom, dad and my own children) outside, so I was ok being a mostly outdoor cat.
That is all for now, it's 9:20 a.m. and it's time for my mid morning nap.
Until later,
Nut
This morning was uneventful with our usual wake up routine. We (Titan, Mira and I) still think it's crazy that we have to wait until mom is done showering and getting ready, before we are fed. We spend much of that in between time pacing the apartment and popping our head through the shower curtain to remind mom to hurry, that we are still hungry and more hungry than we were 10 minutes ago.
Sometimes we just sit in the bathroom and wait rather than wasting our precious energy reserves on pacing. Usually, if I wait in the bathroom, my eyes get a bit runny.
I have chronic rhino-sinusitis which is much better than it used to be. My eye likely runs because I have scar tissue built up in my nasolacrimal duct(tear duct) from having chronic rhino-sinusitis and constant inflammation. The scarring causes irritation which causes my eye and sometimes nose to run.
Chronic rhino-sinusitis is a common ailment among farm cats. It's part of the upper respiratory complex diseases that run in our circles. We are often afflicted by these diseases because we are not vaccinated and because some of these diseases can spread trans-placentally (through the placenta from mother to kitten) so sometimes we're predisposed before we are even born.
My symptoms used to be a lot more aggressive which is partly why I was adopted out rather than being sent back to the farm, after I was spayed. I used to go into sneezing fits so violent that I would have to climb down off of high surfaces to avoid falling.
The humans would come running when they heard me start to sneeze, paper towel in hand. I think getting the boogers wiped off my face was far more traumatic than the actual sneezing fit, itself. I would always try to tell them "DON'T WORRY, I EATED IT," but it never mattered, they would still smear that semi abrasive white towel all over my face.
I used to have to sneeze and simultaneously eat my boogs at the same time, when I lived on the farm. Any trace of illness when you live outdoors does not usually weigh in your favor.
Chronic rhino-sinusitis is like having a constant sinus infection. I used to have headaches from the congestion, my mom would give me headache medicine to relieve the pressure. She could always tell cause my eyes would get squinty and I'd sit still for long periods of time. After a series of trials on antibiotics and then immune supplements, we were able to hold back the beast. Now I only have boogers in the spring and fall when I'm suffering from my seasonal allergies.
I think I also have food allergies, some foods make my skin itchier than others. We haven't done any allergy testing yet but we experiment with different foods and supplements. My skin being itchy is why back scratches made my "things I like" list.
Sometimes I run and jump and play so hard that the other two apparently more domesticated cats, Titan and Mira get concerned and stay to the outside perimeter of our living room. They just sit and watch me with a look of horror on their faces. I guess I'm just living out my kittenhood. I'm roughly 4-5 years old but I didn't get to be a kitten on the farm. Dealing with illness and raising a litter of kittens of my own, was what I spent most of my time doing. I was however, in the favor of the farmers wife. When I really didn't feel good, I got to come inside the farmhouse and warm up and get injections of penicillin. When I was healthy, it was back outside for me. I learned to potty in the litter box but never learned to poop in the litter box and that's why I never became a steady house cat, at the farm. I had friends and family (brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, mom, dad and my own children) outside, so I was ok being a mostly outdoor cat.
That is all for now, it's 9:20 a.m. and it's time for my mid morning nap.
Until later,
Nut
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Day 1, Entry 1: Hi it's me. It's Nut.
Day 1 - mom is making me write a diary of my thoughts. I think she's going to sell and capitalize on it like the publishers of Anne Frank did. This causes suspicion. I don't know what to write about but mom says I should talk about myself so I will make you a list of the things that I like.
Things I like:
- Heating pads
- Salmon (when mom makes salmon, us cats get a fillet of our own!)
- Naps
- Birds
- My back scratched
- Nip
- Ground turkey
- Toys: milk rings, glitter balls and things of the like
- Titan and Mira (my brother and sister cats, except for when Titan sits on me and bites my neck)
Things I don't like:
- Baths (I run circles around the inside of the tub singing songs of my people so much that my brother and sister cat try to figure out ways help me get out)
- The toy, Da Bird - it had so much potential and I was the best cat in the house as far as catching it, it really looked like a bird but mom accidentally hit me in the face with it. Now I hide when it comes out.
- Being pilled
- Nails trimmed
- Ears cleaned
- The hair dryer (mom felt bad for me after a bath one day, thought I'd be cold and tried to dry me with the hair dryer. I went from tame to feral in 3 seconds)
- Titan when he eats my food
- Titan when he leaps from the floor on top of me, in the middle of the night
- Cat carriers; I hide
- Having to stay at the clinic while mom is out of town (I worry myself into depression, fever and illness within the first 24 hours of her absence)
- When the fire alarm goes off in the apartment building. All three of us cats hide. Mom says that we'll burn alive with the amount of time it would take her to peel us off of our respective hiding spots we've designated for the sound of the fire alarm.
I suppose that's all I've got for now.
Until later,
Nut
The Beginning
The Nut Diaries
A little about Me:
I grew up in a household that consistently had more than one animal, more than one species and sometimes multiples of the same. Gerbils, hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, dogs, bunnies, birds, goats, a horse and a sugar glider (not all at the same time) were the creatures that filled our lives with joy. Every weekend was filled up with full cage cleaning, and cutting up extra treats for our pets to enjoy. More often than not, our tv would be off and my family and I would busy ourselves with playing with and enjoying these animals in which we shared not only our living space with, but also our lives.
It became a "thing" between my sister and I to pretend to read the thoughts in which we perceived our animals to be having. We soon developed voices for each and every dog we had, each with variation in sound and personality. We got made fun of by our cousins a lot, but it was fun for us and made life much more interesting living in a small town.
Impersonating our animals helped us develop a deeper bond, one that would carry over to every other animal in which we continue share our lives with.
A little about Nut....
(Pea)nut was a farm cat who came into the veterinary clinic that I work at. It was not the first time I had met her, she'd come in months before for a check up of her and her kittens. Peanut had come back for her spay surgery to be performed. As I was getting her ready for her procedure, I held her and cuddled her as I do with most of the farm cats (who are tame enough) to reassure them and build some trust between us. I remember picking her up, from her cage so that the veterinarian and myself could prep her for surgery. It wasn't the first time I had held her that day but in that moment I looked at the veterinarian and said, "we can't spay her, I think she's pregnant." It was a combination of gut feeling and the slightest, almost indistinguishable firmness in her belly that caused such a sudden anxiety to be present within me.
We opted not to spay her and decided to take a couple of radiographs instead. Knowing by feel alone, the babies inside were very unlikely to be far enough along to show any signs of bone calcification (something xray's could pick up) but did see a smaller black dot in the area of her uterus. That was indication enough for the veterinarian to not go forward with the spay surgery.
I gave her a snack and we sent her home to fatten up with the instructions that she was to return about a month before she was due to give birth so that we could give her proper diet and nutrition for the last leg of her pregnancy. We set it up so that she could have the kittens in the clinic and that we would adopt them out as soon as they were able to be adopted. Upon weaning her kittens, Peanut would be spayed and either returned to the farm, or be adopted herself.
This is Peanut's story as told through her own thoughts and perceptions of her world, at large.
A little about Me:
I grew up in a household that consistently had more than one animal, more than one species and sometimes multiples of the same. Gerbils, hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, dogs, bunnies, birds, goats, a horse and a sugar glider (not all at the same time) were the creatures that filled our lives with joy. Every weekend was filled up with full cage cleaning, and cutting up extra treats for our pets to enjoy. More often than not, our tv would be off and my family and I would busy ourselves with playing with and enjoying these animals in which we shared not only our living space with, but also our lives.
It became a "thing" between my sister and I to pretend to read the thoughts in which we perceived our animals to be having. We soon developed voices for each and every dog we had, each with variation in sound and personality. We got made fun of by our cousins a lot, but it was fun for us and made life much more interesting living in a small town.
Impersonating our animals helped us develop a deeper bond, one that would carry over to every other animal in which we continue share our lives with.
A little about Nut....
(Pea)nut was a farm cat who came into the veterinary clinic that I work at. It was not the first time I had met her, she'd come in months before for a check up of her and her kittens. Peanut had come back for her spay surgery to be performed. As I was getting her ready for her procedure, I held her and cuddled her as I do with most of the farm cats (who are tame enough) to reassure them and build some trust between us. I remember picking her up, from her cage so that the veterinarian and myself could prep her for surgery. It wasn't the first time I had held her that day but in that moment I looked at the veterinarian and said, "we can't spay her, I think she's pregnant." It was a combination of gut feeling and the slightest, almost indistinguishable firmness in her belly that caused such a sudden anxiety to be present within me.
We opted not to spay her and decided to take a couple of radiographs instead. Knowing by feel alone, the babies inside were very unlikely to be far enough along to show any signs of bone calcification (something xray's could pick up) but did see a smaller black dot in the area of her uterus. That was indication enough for the veterinarian to not go forward with the spay surgery.
I gave her a snack and we sent her home to fatten up with the instructions that she was to return about a month before she was due to give birth so that we could give her proper diet and nutrition for the last leg of her pregnancy. We set it up so that she could have the kittens in the clinic and that we would adopt them out as soon as they were able to be adopted. Upon weaning her kittens, Peanut would be spayed and either returned to the farm, or be adopted herself.
This is Peanut's story as told through her own thoughts and perceptions of her world, at large.
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