Tag Archives: cats

Apparently, a little family of mice got into the basement and our girls have been working hard to bring it to our attention. Winnie brought up the first little critter which appeared to be juvenile but was old enough to have fur. The following morning Riley brought up a second critter. We had been keeping our trash on the bulkhead stairs which has been effective at keeping the racoons out of it but I suspect that’s the draw for the mice. Jason bought some new outdoor trashcans with bungee cords to keep the lids on and the trash is now outside. No more squeekies have been seen. Snap traps were considered and rejected, poison bait was considered and rejected. If there’s any indication of mice still lurking we’ll go for a “humane trap” as that will be safest for the kitties while still effectively removing the mice.

Catnip is pretty well established in various places throughout my garden. I started planting it to attract the neighbor cats in hopes of discouraging the mice from chewing expensive a/c wires and the chippies from digging tunnels near my foundation. It’s been very effective in that regard. I try to bring a little fresh stuff indoors for my girls who really enjoy it. I think it’s hardly fair to go out and touch it in the garden and not return with a treat for them.

I was feeling a bit under the weather yesterday but I had most excellent nurses who soon put things to rights.

Last year when Riley was still quite small, I bought a cat tunnel. Riley thought it was much too scary so I put it away for awhile and forgot all about it. Last week I ran across it and put it out to see if she might feel a bit more adventurous. At first the noisy thing was eyed with suspicion but it wasn’t long before she was gleefully pouncing it and racing back and forth through it. Much to my surprised, Gabby likes it too. I suppose the prednisone is making her feel more chipper and in the mood to play a bit.

We’ve had a difficult week for the kitties this week. Last week Gabby girl had a seizure. I took her straight away to the vet for an intense battery of blood tests. She’s been diagnosed with FIP, dry form. Of course that meant Riley and Winnie had to go in for blood work right away. It was time for Winnie’s yearly exam so we did that at the same time. Riley is all clear so she will get an FIP vaccine and from here on out she’ll get that along with her yearly vaccinations. Winnie has a very high titer but no evidence of active FIP other than a low white blood cell count and an odd little cough/snort when she eats. For now we will just watch Winnie very closely but if there’s a change in her cough she’ll go in for x-rays of her chest. Gabby will go on prednisone which should make her more comfortable and hopefully improve her appetite since weight is our primary concern right now. So far, she has only had one seizure so she doesn’t need a seizure medication.  This disease is not well understood but since the FIP virus is sequestered in macrophage cells and is not shed by the body there is no need to quarantine Gabby.

The last couple of days, Riley kitten has decided she wants to be right next to me on the desk. She comes charging across the room and leaps up onto the desk and proceeds to nap on top of my calendar. I’m not sure what instigated this change but as long as she’s not knocking everything on the floor it’s fine with me.