Post by xeopse on Apr 26, 2011 11:50:03 GMT -5
So I went to visit my family two Sundays ago. My parents have had this cat since I was 4, and I'm 24 now. I moved out when I was 17, but I always check on all the animals whenever I come to visit because I know that they probably won't catch anything themselves. Preventative care, I guess. Rambo (the kitty) has been an outdoor cat her entire life, and actually used to be quite feral when she first showed up on our property all those years ago - no human could go near her and actually we named her Rambo because she beat the SNOT out of all our big dogs. I mean, beat them up like faces bleeding, probably could have used stitches, running away whining and whimpering. As a kid I was always persistent in making friends with her, sometimes it worked out, other times it didn't... but apparenlty she appreciate the effort because she will still to this day NEVER sleep anywhere inside that house (winters can be harsh in RI, and they'd bring her in during other bad weather) but my old bedroom - she makes a mad dash for that room and sleeps on my old bed, not anywhere else. As shes' gotten older, I'm still the only one that can handle her which never bothered my parents because they aren't "cat people" as they say and could really care less - they kept her as a barn cat and she did her job with the rats, mice, shrews, birds and they were happy with that. She's never been to a real vet except to get rabies vaccines, she's never stayed longer than probably 24 hours in a house, and she's never had normal cat things like toys and beds and such.
So on my visit she was sitting next to the front door, so I went to let her inside the house. My father yelled at me "NO! Don't let her in!" so I was a bit confused... Why wasn't she let in...? She's 20 years old! All she does is sleep! In my room no less, no where else! She's the easiest cat in the world now. Well, turns out that he came home the other day and the house smelled like cat pee after they let her in that day - so she hasn't been in since. I explained to him that she's TWENTY and there could be a few reasons why she's not using the box, like a medical condition which wouldn't be a stretch, or maybe she just needs the box closer to where she sleeps because she can't "make it" in time. He said that's not it, but instead it's because he found out my mother didn't clean the litter box in TWO WEEKS. I said "Papa... No wonder why she isn't using the box! You ahve to scoop it every day! It takes 5 minutes! How would you like it if youc ouldn't flush your toilet for 2 weeks? You'd find somewhere else to use the bathroom real quick" and he said it was so full of dirty litter that they had to dump the entire thing because it was just just so heavy, heavy enough to break the locks on the litter box that keep the top and bottom halves together. He said he didn't have the time to scoop the box (apparently neither did my mother or 23 year old little brother) so she had to live outside.
I was so mad. Here's this cat who needs very few things in life - good food, clean water, a clean litter box, and attention... and they can't even provide that to her. I took her home that night after visiting the rest of my family. She's never been anywhere in 20 years so she was stressed for a few days, but she knows I love her I think. She follows Kevin and I around CONSTANTLY and rub on us, headbutting us, and makes muffins whenever we touch her. She's probably never had so much attention since I moved out at 17, she's just eating it all up now.
I brought her to an Integrated vet (both allopathic and holistic medicine) and they gave a general health okay but she needed to fast for 24 hours for bloodwork so she's having that done this afternoon. Her teeth are okay but obviously covered in tartar - I'm concerned because she eats her food whole that her gums/teeth hurt her, but the vet got ar eally good look in there with me restraining and said there aren't any abscesses or anything - just tartar. Overall she walks pretty well (but she doesn't jump much on anything, assuming arthritis) but she's probably hyperthryoid which is what we'll see today I'm sure. She has a large wound on her back that she gets every year whih could be from a million things living outdoors, so she treated it with ozone therapy and we'll see how it does now that she's an indoor-only cat. Surprisingly she hasn't cried once in over a week now to go outside, she hasnt' made a mess, doesn't scratch anything, eats well, and generally appreciates affection and even rolled over for belly rubs for both of us last week.
Now, how can I clean her teeth naturally? She has ZERO interest in raw, but she will eat chicken if I cook it lightly and mix it into her food. I'm feeding her EVO turkey/chicken formula with EVO turkey/chicken soft food (she's never had soft food in her entire life before, so this is new for her, I have to mix it in with hard food) I have NV Bison medallions from when Lulabelle was sick (RIP baby girl) that she will eat with the soft food mixed in but I'm not sure if its a good idea to mix with her hard food too. Stools are great btw, no issues in that department. My parents said that she was a problem cat because she throws up so much (apparently every time she eats) but since she moved here she has not thrown up ONCE. Occasionally I will wake up very early in the morning and she will hurkhurkhurk like she's goign to, but I never see anything so I assume it's a hairball. She's kept all her food down no problem, so I don't know what my parents were talking about.
<3 If you look at my facebook (http://www.facebook.com/#!/jacqbetty) you can see a couple pictures of her - she looked in pretty rough shape the first night I brought her here but she's settling nicely I think. I hope she really likes it here, she is far more appreciated than she was at my parents house and even though we live in another state it was well worth her unexpected arrival. Kevin told me her third night here, "We aren't giving her back to your parents" and I was so surprised because it was totally out of the blue. I asked if he was sure and he goes "OH YEAH. I'm definitely sure, your parents neglected a 20 year old that only wants a chest to make biscuits on and a clean litterbox and they couldn't even give her that. I like Rambo, she's a good cat, she'll like it here and she'll actually be loved." I was floored. Previous boyfriends have never been intersted in the animals and there isn't even a SINGLE male student in my entire program... I've accepted that men just don't care. Lucky for me I was wrong For other people that wonder, I found this page on FB called "Real Men are Kind to Animals" which is definitely something you'll need a few tissues for to go through the galleries. Made me a little more hopeful for mankind, anyways.
So anyways, Rambo is happy and safe here She's a little ham though, I'll tell you - she's very aggressive when it comes to getting our attention LOL
So on my visit she was sitting next to the front door, so I went to let her inside the house. My father yelled at me "NO! Don't let her in!" so I was a bit confused... Why wasn't she let in...? She's 20 years old! All she does is sleep! In my room no less, no where else! She's the easiest cat in the world now. Well, turns out that he came home the other day and the house smelled like cat pee after they let her in that day - so she hasn't been in since. I explained to him that she's TWENTY and there could be a few reasons why she's not using the box, like a medical condition which wouldn't be a stretch, or maybe she just needs the box closer to where she sleeps because she can't "make it" in time. He said that's not it, but instead it's because he found out my mother didn't clean the litter box in TWO WEEKS. I said "Papa... No wonder why she isn't using the box! You ahve to scoop it every day! It takes 5 minutes! How would you like it if youc ouldn't flush your toilet for 2 weeks? You'd find somewhere else to use the bathroom real quick" and he said it was so full of dirty litter that they had to dump the entire thing because it was just just so heavy, heavy enough to break the locks on the litter box that keep the top and bottom halves together. He said he didn't have the time to scoop the box (apparently neither did my mother or 23 year old little brother) so she had to live outside.
I was so mad. Here's this cat who needs very few things in life - good food, clean water, a clean litter box, and attention... and they can't even provide that to her. I took her home that night after visiting the rest of my family. She's never been anywhere in 20 years so she was stressed for a few days, but she knows I love her I think. She follows Kevin and I around CONSTANTLY and rub on us, headbutting us, and makes muffins whenever we touch her. She's probably never had so much attention since I moved out at 17, she's just eating it all up now.
I brought her to an Integrated vet (both allopathic and holistic medicine) and they gave a general health okay but she needed to fast for 24 hours for bloodwork so she's having that done this afternoon. Her teeth are okay but obviously covered in tartar - I'm concerned because she eats her food whole that her gums/teeth hurt her, but the vet got ar eally good look in there with me restraining and said there aren't any abscesses or anything - just tartar. Overall she walks pretty well (but she doesn't jump much on anything, assuming arthritis) but she's probably hyperthryoid which is what we'll see today I'm sure. She has a large wound on her back that she gets every year whih could be from a million things living outdoors, so she treated it with ozone therapy and we'll see how it does now that she's an indoor-only cat. Surprisingly she hasn't cried once in over a week now to go outside, she hasnt' made a mess, doesn't scratch anything, eats well, and generally appreciates affection and even rolled over for belly rubs for both of us last week.
Now, how can I clean her teeth naturally? She has ZERO interest in raw, but she will eat chicken if I cook it lightly and mix it into her food. I'm feeding her EVO turkey/chicken formula with EVO turkey/chicken soft food (she's never had soft food in her entire life before, so this is new for her, I have to mix it in with hard food) I have NV Bison medallions from when Lulabelle was sick (RIP baby girl) that she will eat with the soft food mixed in but I'm not sure if its a good idea to mix with her hard food too. Stools are great btw, no issues in that department. My parents said that she was a problem cat because she throws up so much (apparently every time she eats) but since she moved here she has not thrown up ONCE. Occasionally I will wake up very early in the morning and she will hurkhurkhurk like she's goign to, but I never see anything so I assume it's a hairball. She's kept all her food down no problem, so I don't know what my parents were talking about.
<3 If you look at my facebook (http://www.facebook.com/#!/jacqbetty) you can see a couple pictures of her - she looked in pretty rough shape the first night I brought her here but she's settling nicely I think. I hope she really likes it here, she is far more appreciated than she was at my parents house and even though we live in another state it was well worth her unexpected arrival. Kevin told me her third night here, "We aren't giving her back to your parents" and I was so surprised because it was totally out of the blue. I asked if he was sure and he goes "OH YEAH. I'm definitely sure, your parents neglected a 20 year old that only wants a chest to make biscuits on and a clean litterbox and they couldn't even give her that. I like Rambo, she's a good cat, she'll like it here and she'll actually be loved." I was floored. Previous boyfriends have never been intersted in the animals and there isn't even a SINGLE male student in my entire program... I've accepted that men just don't care. Lucky for me I was wrong For other people that wonder, I found this page on FB called "Real Men are Kind to Animals" which is definitely something you'll need a few tissues for to go through the galleries. Made me a little more hopeful for mankind, anyways.
So anyways, Rambo is happy and safe here She's a little ham though, I'll tell you - she's very aggressive when it comes to getting our attention LOL