Tag: #petmomma

Our Spicy Little Cali Girl

It’s so hard to type this, but we had to say good bye to our Cali this morning. I hate how quiet the house is.

Last week was rough. It was basically a full time job taking care of her, but we made it work, and enjoyed every second we had with her.

She went to the vet every day last week for IV fluids. We tried meds to stimulate her appetite, and even an injection of anti-nausea med on Friday, but nothing was helping.

I tried all her favorite foods, chicken, deli turkey, ice cream, whipped cream, popcorn, gatorade, broth, she didn’t want anything. She ate a spoonful of whipped cream on Saturday and that was about it.

She really enjoyed the fireplace this weekend. On Saturday, she grabbed the closest spot to the fire, so we let her have that spot, and put our chairs next to hers. Yesterday, she slept most of the day, and then got up and walked into the living room and snuggled up by the fireplace, waiting for us to light a fire for her, which of course we did!

Thankfully, she seemed comfortable over the weekend, she was lethargic and slept a lot, but she was able to go outside to pee and enjoyed sniffing the air and walking in the snow.

Last night, I slept in my daughter’s bed with her. When my daughter was home, Cali always slept with her and she was very comfortable there.

We headed to the vet this morning. We talked about rechecking her kidney values, and maybe giving her more fluids, but for what? She wasn’t eating, or even drinking on her own. Her kidneys weren’t coming back. We FaceTimed our daughter who couldn’t be with us, but Cali got to see her and hear her voice, and she got to say goodbye. Goodbye is so freaking hard. With the vet’s help, she passed peacefully snuggled up in my lap.

When we got home, the cats were howling at us, and even Hector the parrot seemed upset. I had to snuggle the cats, and explain to Hector what was going on. She was listening to me so intently, tilting her head to take in every word. I think she understands. I think the cats also know and understand.

As my daughter said, our lab Cheese will no doubt great Cali with open paws, even if she feels the need to chew on his ears like she always used to. Love you Cali girl! Please give all your pets an extra snuggle from me today.

My Cali Girl

I’ll be the first to admit that Cali can be a handful. She bites my husband’s ankles. She barks too much. She growls if you try to move her when she is settled on the couch, and she’s always been a pick eater, but I love her.

She’s not feeling well, and I would appreciate any good, healing energy be sent her way. She stopped eating two weeks ago when I was traveling and she was staying with a friend. I didn’t think too much of it, she can be really picky about her food.

My friend did what she could, tried chicken and rice, the usual things, but when I got home, I found Cali still wasn’t eating. I tried forcing her to eat her normal food because sometimes she just gets sick of something and doesn’t eat it until I changed it up, but this was different.

She absolutely loves popcorn, and when I had some the other night she ate a piece or two and then curled up and went to sleep.

Something wasn’t right. She had a check up scheduled for yesterday anyway, so I didn’t bother calling the vet on Friday. Maybe I should have, but I still wasn’t totally convinced that she wasn’t just being stubborn about her food. She ate treats, she ate some chicken, I waited until Monday.

The vet was very concerned. She had lost a pound and a half and that vet said that was most likely something going on and not just her not eating. We did blood and urine tests and the results came back today. Her kidneys are definitely in distress.

Unfortunately there isn’t a ton that can be done. I brought her right back to the vet, and they are giving her fluids. They want to keep her for 48 hours and give her intense fluids to try and kick start her kidneys. Maybe it’s just a flare up? or maybe the kidneys aren’t working so well, but the intense fluids and another blood test should give us an idea of what is going on.

I hated leaving her this morning. I made the vet promise to call me if she was anxious or upset and I’d come get her and keep her at home tonight and bring her back in the morning for more fluids. I brought her bed and treats to the vet for her, so hopefully she will do OK there.

Please send your healing vibes her way. I’m not ready to lose my bratty little princess.

Update: She’s coming home for the night tonight and going back in the morning for another day of fluids. Vet thinks it would be best for her to sleep in her own house tonight to minimize stress. I’ll be happy to have her home!

 

 

Foster Mice – 11 Days Old

Just a super quick update, all 8 babies seem to be doing really well. Their fur is coming in, so I’m starting to see all their different colors. It looks like a couple of them are starting to open their eyes!




Momma mouse is a little less nervous. She happily goes and eats her breakfast while I check the babies and doesn’t seem to care at all. So fun watching these tiny guys grow and change!

Another Foster Update – More mice!

Well, things didn’t go so well with Thelma and Louise. One had her babies, but I never saw them. We believe they were eaten as soon as they were born. I kept the pair for about a week, but it seemed clear that the second mouse wasn’t pregnant, so both mice were returned to the shelter.

When I went to return them, they asked me if I could foster another pregnant mouse, but when they went to get her, she was no longer pregnant. We are guessing her babies met the same fate.

It seems so horrible, but it’s nature. These mice came from a situation where the home had over 1000 pet mice. They were being kept in plastic bins, plant pots, really any kind of container the owner could find. We don’t know what kind of diet they were getting, so there’s a good chance the babies may not have been healthy.

While I was at the shelter returned Thelma and Louise, I was about to leave when I noticed another very round mouse in the “female only” cage. The shelter employees examined her, and believed that she was also pregnant, so she made her way home with me.

Just a couple of days later, she gave birth! At first I thought there were 6 babies, but I wasn’t really sure. The mom is very nervous, so I’m trying to leave her as quiet as I can. I’m cleaning quickly and partially, and refilling food and water. I open the top of the nest quickly to peak and make sure the babies look OK. Mom gets some Yogi treats that she runs and hides, so I get a chance to peak at the babies. This photo is from when they were three days old.

Today the babies are a week old! They are starting to get some fuzzy fur, and starting to show different colors. I also learned that there are actually EIGHT babies, not just six!

One of them has a big white spot on its head that I haven’t been able to get a picture of yet. Those little noses are just so cute!

The mice will be with me until just before Christmas. When they turn four weeks old, the males and females need to be separated so we don’t end up with even more mice! Check back for more photos as these babies blossom!

Hector Update and NEW fosters!

Heard from the vet yesterday regarding Hector’s blood tests. He said for the most part they were “unremarkable” which is good, but her fat levels were a bit high. I had been feeding her a bit more seed than usual with Magoo here, so we are wondering if (hopefully) it is just a result of that.

He wants Hector on a very restricted diet for 30 days. Basically she can eat non-starchy veggies and parrot pellets. No nuts! She is not a happy girl, but I’m trying. I bought a ton of fresh veggies today and made her a fresh chop. She at least picked at it. I feel bad she doesn’t understand what is going on. Hopefully, blood work in 30 days will be back to normal and I can adjust her diet and give her back some fun treats!


In other news, I picked up new fosters this afternoon! I was supposed to foster a rat that needed some extra TLC, but apparently the poor rat was in worse shape than they originally thought and he had to be euthanized. The shelter asked if I would be willing to take on some mice.  Apparently over 1000 mice were just taken in by another local shelter, and the other shelters in the area are all trying to take some to help.

Thelma and Louise are on pregnancy watch, so they can’t be adopted yet. One of them looks pretty round to me, the other not so much. We’ll see what happens. I wouldn’t be surprised to see baby mice any day now, exciting! Of course I’ll share more info as I have it. 

Cali Update

I think I posted about Cali hurting her leg about a month ago? If not, Cali basically did the dog-equivalent of tearing her ACL. She is not a candidate for surgery because of her age, kidney issues, and heart murmur. We’ve been managing her with pain medicines, but she is still limping and not getting around very well. The vet switched her to another pain med last week and that is helping a bit. On Monday, she is going to start laser treatments. Hopefully that will help accelerate the healing process. I’ve done laser treatments myself for stubborn muscle issues and found them helpful, so hopefully they hope Cali!

We had beautiful, sunny weather today, so I couldn’t resist taking Cali for a walk. She seemed to want to go, so we took it slow and didn’t go far. We walked roughly a block, and she still seemed to want to go, so we walked just a little more and then she stopped and looked at me, so we turned around. She seemed to enjoy the slow pace and getting out to sniff! I had some yard chores to do, and she happily stayed outside with me for a while to smell everything in the yard, and to rest in the sunshine.

 

I’m also trying yet another new food for Cali,  Dr. Harvey’s food. Basically it is a dry mix that I will add protein, water, and oil to and mix up fresh to create a new meal for Cali. There is a special low-protein recipe to help her kidney issues, and I’ve also ordered a kidney supplement from them that I’ll try with her. I emailed them to ask what proteins they recommend for kidney dogs, and they told me they will help me customize a diet for her, so I’m waiting for a call from them. Cali hates all the low protein prescription foods I’ve been trying for her, and they are all expensive. Really hoping that this mix might be the answer for her. I’ve mixed up a batch from the sample bag I just got for her to try for dinner. Fingers crossed that she likes it!

Mixing it up was super easy, I just mixed one day’s worth to try it, but I could mix up to 3 days at a time and store it in the fridge. You mix the dry product from the bag with hot water and let it sit for about ten minutes. It’s kinda like making hot oatmeal, and I think there are even oats in this mix! Next I stirred that, and today I added hard boiled eggs as protein since I had them. I think lean chicken and turkey are going to be better alternatives with Cali’s kidney issues, but this was an easy way to try it. I mixed in the eggs, and added a teaspoon of oil, easy. Now it’s in the fridge and ready for Cali’s dinner!

As a quick Kanga/foster bird update, I got her a new toy. She LOVES to destroy wood! Here’s the toy before and after about 10 minutes.

Kanga wastes no time destructing wood! I just ordered a new six pack of perches since he eats through them pretty quickly. The current one is short, but wide and it has been lasting a bit longer. Overall, K is doing great. He doesn’t always want head scratches, so I’m trying to give him treats and reward him when he hangs out near me and doesn’t run into his cage to hide when I approach. Moving slowly to not overwhelm him, but making some progress.  We’ve also been having dance parties every morning. I’ve tried some different songs, but I have to say that Levitating is still his favorite!

 

Weekend With Cali

It’s been tough dealing with Cali, trying to keep her from doing too much, carrying her around, medicating her, and constantly checking on her. This morning I woke up to her barking at 6:30AM and had to go find her. She made her way downstairs (I’m going to have to gate the stairs from now on), had an accident, and couldn’t get back up to the bedroom. I wish she had just woken me up to put her out!

Today, I have to give a huge thank you to Treat Planet. I discovered their treats in a local pet store recently, and reached out about getting some more products to review. They sent me an amazing variety of treats, and it has been a life saver with Cali being injured.

The chew sticks, bars, jerky and Yumm Sticks have been great for keeping Cali occupied while she can’t really move around.

This Etta Says bacon flavored chew kept Cali busy all day yesterday. I like that there were no messy crumbles, no stains on her bedding, no odor, and she worked on it all day and there is still about a third of it left.

The Etta Says brand focuses on meat-based treats and unique chews. They are easy to digest, and thankfully they aren’t smelly!

I’ll be writing more about Treat Planet in the coming weeks, but wanted to thank them for their perfect timing on these treats for Cali! I’ll be writing about some of their other brands in the coming weeks. Overall, they have 5 different brands with different focuses, surely something for every type of canine.

 

 

Do you have a favorite brand of treats? What do you look for in a treat? Let me know!

First Foster! Meet Skye!

After two nights of volunteering at the shelter taking care of puppies, this one came home with me. Not to keep, just to foster. Out of 21 puppies brought up from the South, they are all already adopted except for a couple.

This sweet girl is named Skye. I’ve been calling her Pie, as in Cutie Pie because my daughter’s name is Skye, so it’s just a little weird to call the dog Skye.

So far she is doing great. She doesn’t like going in her crate, but she is fine once she is in it. She spent the night in her crate, no accidents, and waited nicely to pee until I got her outside.

She is definitely nervous about a lot of things, but she can be brave and work through them with a confident human at her side. She is fantastic in the car! She doesn’t like to get in the car, but once she is there, she sits right down and doesn’t move for the whole car ride. I even left her for a second and got out to grab something, and she sat up so she could see me, but she didn’t try to escape the car or even to move around.

She hung out in this pen while I worked this morning and did great. She didn’t make a sound. She got a little nervous when I was out of sight, but she settled and didn’t try to get out of the pen which she easily could have done.

 

We went to the pet store and met the nice employees. She was a little shy and worried about the new smells at first, but quickly decided she wanted to explore. I didn’t get any pictures in the store because I was busy with her, but this is her back in the car with her bag of goodies.

 

I’m looking forward to getting to know her more. So far she is such a good girl. She really wants to please. We had a nice little adventure to the pet store today and then a short walk outside. I’m hoping the rain goes away and we can get out for a longer walk soon.

Happy New Year!

Lots of updates coming in later this week!

Cali got a new treat. It’s from Treat Planet. I hadn’t heard of this brand before, and the treat was literally an impulse purchase at my local pet store yesterday. I had no idea it would be such a huge hit! I got the Etta Says Crunchy Chicken and Chia chew bar. I’ll write up more about it later this week.

Today is a big day for Logan the cat. I start navigating her diabetes journey. She was diagnosed a couple of weeks ago and we’ve been waiting for test results to confirm and then making a treatment plan. We’ve decided to try a new Medicine called Bexacat. It’s an insulin-free treatment option. I picked up the medicine yesterday and will start the first dose today. Logan will need to have blood work done on Tuesday to make sure things are going OK. I’m finding it’s an interesting an involved path dealing with a diabetic cat. I’ll be sharing it all here and would love comments, questions and feedback from anyone else dealing with a diabetic cat. More on that later this week as well.

Bean and Puck

Bean and Puck enjoyed the holidays, and now they have been taste-testing a new creamy cat treat for me from Catit. This is another treat that seems to be a big hit in our house right now. More on that soon!

Wena the bearded dragon LOVES our new kitchen sink. Not sure if it is the color, size, material, whatever, but she is so happy bathing in it. She’s been pretty picky about her food lately, but I found a trick online that suggested baby food veggies for picky dragons, and it is working well. She had some purple carrot baby food with her breakfast today.

 

Cali isn’t a big fan of the cold. She’s spending as much time as she can snuggled up in blankets.

She also really likes the new candy cane pajamas she got for Christmas! Because I seem to have more than my share of pet issues these days, have I shared about Cali’s bump? She has a growth on her neck that the vet says is benign and nothing more than an annoyance, but it’s growing. It’s about the size of a dime and raised off her skin. She tends to scratch at it at times, and there is concern that eventually she will end up with an infection. We have tried to freeze it off twice, but it didn’t help. Surgery is the only removal option now, and I’m not sure I want to put my 14 year old dog with a heart murmur and kidney issues through surgery even if it is minor. For now, I’m keeping an eye on the lump and hoping it doesn’t get worse.

Thankfully Hector D. Byrd is thriving. She’s really my buddy. Someone would think I’m crazy listening to my house all day. Working at home, I find myself constantly chatting with her. She’s such great company!


Check back for all kinds of updates soon, and have a great weekend!

 

 

Looking for an Automatic Litter Box?

If anyone is interested in an automatic/robot litter box, now is the time. I just got word that Catlink, the company that made the litter boxes I use, has a new “basic” model available. The new launch price is $359!

I haven’t used this exact model, but I have two of their other models and I’ve been super happy with them. You can see my review if you look back in the blog.

Check it out, and if you get one, let me know what you think: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/catlink-lite-new-gen-premium-affordable-litter-box?secret_perk_token=75f5b927#/