Tuesday, January 22, 2013

The Joys of Cat Ownership

 

Wesley Chapel, Florida (high 71, low 39)

We’ve been busy trying to stock up on food and necessities for our trip to Kissimmee Prairie State Park. The nearest grocery store at the prairie is 30 boring miles away, so we’re trying not to forget anything important, like kitty food, beer, vodka, beans, or spinach.  Normally we don’t worry because there is always a grocery store nearby.

We’ve been sitting here nearly 6 weeks, so of course we’re well settled and have that much more to do to get ready for our trip tomorrow.

It would be helpful if we didn’t wait until the last minute to do things, but we never seem to learn.

Al is currently up on the roof lubricating the Winegard Satellite dish.  It made a squeaking noise the last time we raised it, so we decided a little lube might be in order.  Of course, we had 6 weeks to do that project, but we waited until the last minute.  Normal for us.

One of my procrastinated  jobs today is to get the Silverleaf Engine Monitoring system re-installed on my new laptop.  Of course, I’ve also had weeks to do that but again, I prefer to wait until the last minute so that I can feel stressed before travel day.    I’m having problems getting it installed properly, so now I’m waiting for a call back for some help. 

 

Yesterday, I saw a post on Facebook from an old friend from USAA.  He had a squirrel fall down his chimney and into the fireplace.  He needed a live animal trap.  We just happened to have one so we met up with him yesterday to give him the trap and visit a while. It was good seeing him.  I got a message this morning that he was successful and caught the squirrel.  He’ll let him go outside and hopefully the squirrel will be smart enough to stay away from the chimney.

This morning, along with all the other things we need to do, Mr. Baxter decided to eat a rubber band.  Al dropped a rubber band and before he could pick it up, Baxter ate it.

I’m worried it will become tangled around his intestines or something.  I stuck my finger down his throat and felt what I thought was the rubber band, but I was unable to pull it out.

We gave him a can of kitty food, trying to make him sick.  I gave him a handful of raw spinach (his favorite), some chard, kale and finally some freshly washed grass from outside.  I was hoping he would throw up, but nothing came up yet.  We called the vet and they said   they   could do an x-ray and see if it was tangled around anything.  Of course, it won’t be tangled yet…it just got in there.   I think we’ll watch him today and hope it passes.  We may end up staying put another day.  Darn cat~

19 comments:

  1. Hopefully it will pass thru without problems. I don't see how it could get tangled around anything. He is a big, healthy cat.

    We had a big tabby that ate a long piece of string once. It came thru, but not all the way at once. My mother had to cut it with a scissors at the "out" end!

    cat was fine and the rest pasted too. I miss having pets.

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  2. I had a cat many years ago who ate a piece of yarn, although we didn't know it. She stopped eating and we had no clue why. Took her to the vet, and the xray didn't show anything, but very soon afterwards she passed the yarn. We were lucky it wasn't entangled in her bowels! Fingers crossed for a quick and easy pass for Baxter!

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    Replies
    1. We're hoping the rubber band will get digested and not cause any problems..but it wasn't a small rubber band.

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  3. I don't blame you at all for being worried about Baxter. He so little that I hope he can pass it.

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  4. I'm just as bad at leaving things until the last minute. Hope everything comes out all right! :)

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  5. Kissimmee Prairie Preserve is a really nice park, we spent three nights there just after Christmas.

    The road into the campground is several miles long after you go through the front gate. Keep going, you're headed the right way.

    Also, several online map services showed the park address as several miles from the entrance. Google was 4.5 miles south, Mapquest was on the wrong street, Bing didn't find it at all. Here's the real park entrance, at the very northermost end of NW 192nd Ave. http://goo.gl/maps/OtRbo

    If you're there over a weekend, take the Swamp Buggy tour. It's guided by a ranger, it's over 2 hours long and it's the best look at the park that you'll get without getting muddy up to your hips. If you're interested, call ahead now and reserve, it filled up every tour when we were there. Dress warm, you're up on top, exposed to the wind.

    Here's video from our ride: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc72ihcJH2g

    Have fun!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the info and the video. We were there for two weeks in June and loved it. It looks a little wetter than when we were there.

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  6. How long will you be at KPSP? We are due in on the 28th for a few days.

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    Replies
    1. We'll be there for two weeks (providing Baxter poops out a rubber band)

      Look us up!

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  7. Ah Baxter! He's trying to remind you that cats don't have owners, they have staff. :-)

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  8. I am glad to have good company in being one to put things off to the last day. Somehow I need urgency to get into action. Hope Baxter is fine and that you don't have to delay your trip. I am looking forward to seeing your winter photos of the park.

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  9. Karen,
    My sister who has experienced kitty cat trauma such as this says that you should give Baxter some canned pumpkin purée and he will throw-up .......may be too late this time but if another situation arises, try it ........ Hope your trip is on schedule ......have FUN !!!!

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  10. I wouldn't worry too much! Hubs used to be very bad about accidentally dropping those darn things. I've seen many things in the litter box over the years that have gone through the systems of various kitties that we've had, including the rubber bands. Jasper's mother, who first started traveling with us along with him, used to eat holes in Hubs wash clothes! She and now Mombi absolutely l.o.v.e. him! It's pheromones, I'm sure! Pieces of those things even came through in tact! And with all the fiber you gave Baxter with the green veggies, I'm sure he'll be going soon, if not all ready!!!

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  11. Cats do the darndest things. I didn't even know the SAT had grease fittings. I must now put that on my "things to Do List"!

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  12. scary with the Baxter boy for sure...hopefully he will pass it and it will all be in one piece! Please let us know

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  13. Poor Baxter. Hope it passes without any problems. And, of course, all the food and alcohol you have purchased for your time in the Prairie is "vegan". Wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

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  14. I hope he'll be ok, I'd be worried too. Here's a recipe for making pets puke. Keep an empty syringe around as it's easier to fill up & adminster, without the needle of course!
    This has to be done as soon as the object is eaten though, so save this for future reference or google "how to make cats throw up".
    Instructions

    1

    If you haven't already, call the vet or pet emergency. They will be able to give you more specific instructions on what to do based on what your pet ingested.
    2

    Get the Hydrogen Peroxide out of the medicine cabinet. You know, it's in the brown bottle and is used to clean wounds and bleach hair. The stuff you have in your cabinet is mostly water, probably about 3% Hydrogen Peroxide.


    3

    Get a 1/4 measuring cup and fill it with peroxide. Sit your pet down and open her mouth. Pour as much of the peroxide as possible in. If nothing happens in 5 minutes, repeat.
    4

    Within a few minutes, your pet will throw up everything she ate and otherwise be fine!


    Read more: How to Make a Pet Throw Up | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4533116_pet-throw-up.html#ixzz2IquQeYgA

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