I Wanna Treat!

I was giving Mom my "Please give me a treat" face just before she took the photo.  I looked down just as she pushed the button.  I did get my treat, though.

Karen Jo:  I think I am going to have to hold the treat or the treat bag in my hand next to the camera if I really want to get that look.

I have just about finished off my Duck and Pea and there is no sign of any more coming.  Sigh.  At least I still get my Medley and Stinky Goodness three times a day.  Mom got up early to go to the store to get the groceries that she would need for the next few days.  We are supposed to get a big snow storm starting any time now, but it hasn't started yet.

Karen Jo:  If I had known that the storm was going to hold off this long, I wouldn't have gotten up.  When I got up, it looked like it was going to start snowing any minute and there were tiny flakes in the air as I walked to the store.  Then at noon we actually got sunshine for a little while.

It made a big sun puddle on my big green pillow and I made the most of it.

Karen Jo:  It is certainly cold enough for a big snow storm.  The birdbath was frozen solid.  I couldn't get the ice out to put in water, so I just poured some water on top of the ice.  Hopefully, that will melt enough ice to get it out of the birdbath, so I can fill it with water.  The birds are really going after the suet, so I put out a new cake today.

You are doing something funny with your fingers and my fur.

Karen Jo:  You are getting little mats in your chest fur again.  I am trying to work them out with my fingers.  I don't want to try to cut them out because you have a thin fat layer and loose skin right where the mats are.  I am afraid that I might cut or pinch your skin.  At least you are enjoying your brushing again and don't run from me any more.

Most of my fur isn't long enough to catch in the brush, so it feels good.  You can forget that Furminator, though.

Karen Jo:  It's not that bad.  I need it to thin out your chest fur so you get to keep it for the winter.  Remember how cold you got last winter because you had to have your chest shaved for mats?

Boy, do I!  Did you find something good at the store?

Karen Jo:  I found some turkey thighs and a roast beef.  I will cook the turkey thighs, then get rid of the skin and bones and cut it up and freeze it for lunch meat.

Don't you dare put it in the freezer before I get some!

Karen Jo:  Don't worry.  I will save some out for treats for  you.  Tomorrow I will cook the roast beef. Then I will have lots of food to see us through the storm.  I will let you lick up the beef juice after I carve it.

Yay!  I love beef juice.

Tuxie Tuesday

I am getting a lot of use out of my ham-mick these days.  I can't believe that Mom forgot to include all of our blogging friends in the things that we are thankful for.  I don't know what she was thinking.

Karen Jo:  I wasn't thinking very much.  My brain was still full of how much I was missing Emma.  Your fur is growing back nicely, Herman.  It even looks a little wavy.

Just in time, too.  It's getting cold around here.  Mom left the door open and the screen door closed and I went up to the screen door to check things out.  I soon retreated because the air coming in was so cold.  I don't know how Mom goes out in it in just her shirtsleeves.

Karen Jo:  I am only out long enough to feed the birds and change the water in the birdbath.  It's not too bad as long as the sun is shining.  You have been pretty cuddly lately.  When I sit on the couch to read, you often come up on the couch and sit beside me.  You have even put your head on my thigh. Are you turning into a lap cat?

You wish.  I do like to be near you and get petted, though.  I like to play with you again, too.  I am playing with almost all of my toys, even some of the wand toys. I even played with Da Bird for a little while.

Karen Jo:  That surprised me a little.  You hardly ever payed any attention to it before Emma came.  I am glad that you are playing with me and even chasing your balls around and running down the hall.  You jumped up on the sink for a drink of tap water a couple of times, too.  I was afraid that you would turn into a lounge cat and lose the muscle tone that you built up playing with Emma.

We are almost out of Duck and Pea.

Karen Jo:  I know.  I am reluctant to buy any more.  You didn't lose any weight last month.  You didn't gain any, either.  I am thinking about not giving you any more Duck and Pea until you lose the rest of the weight you need to lose.

Dang, not only didn't you bring me any turkey, now you want to cut down my buffet even more.

Karen Jo:  I tried to buy us a turkey yesterday, Herman, but all they had were really big ones.  I will wait until I can buy one of the smaller fresh turkeys again, then you will get some turkey.  As for cutting down on your buffet, you have to lose some weight.  I want you to stay healthy.  From what I have read about FeLV, if you make it through your fourth year, and you are halfway there, you stand a good chance of living a normal lifespan.  I don't want anything to compromise that.

At least I still get some treats, though not as many as I would like.

Karen Jo:  I wouldn't make you go without treats completely, Herman.  I know how much you like them.

Happy Thanksgiving

Karen Jo:  These china quail mean Thanksgiving at my house.  My mother always used them for table decorations.  I am thankful for many things -- my home, my family and Herman, mainly.  I am also thankful that I got to share in Emma's joy of living for eight and a half months.  What are you thankful for, Herman?

I am thankful for this nice sunspot on your bed.  I am also thankful for my forever home and my Mom who does so much for me.  I am thankful that I got to know and play with Emma for a few months, even though I wasn't always nice to her.  Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Tuxie Tuesday

I am sitting my my toy baskets, trying to decide whether I want to play with what Mom has gotten out for me today, or pick one out for myself.  I went with Mom's choices, though I didn't play with all of them.  Mean Mom deserted me for most of the day.

Karen Jo:  I left the house for my teeth cleaning appointment a little after ten and didn't get back until a quarter to one.  At one my friend called and wanted me to go with her to visit her mother in the nursing home in twenty minutes.  I didn't get back from that until three-thirty.  I did try to play with you after I fed you on my return, Herman, but you didn't want to.  I invited you to share my easy chair while I read after I did my chores, but you only wanted the chair.  I moved to the couch and you took my warm spot on the chair.  I tried to play with you again after supper, but you weren't much interested. At least you joined me at bedtime last night.

About midnight last night I jumped up on the bed and stared at Mom the way I do when I think it's bedtime.  She actually put on her PJs and came to bed.  We snuggled all night.  I got a lot of petting.

Karen Jo:  I was so glad that you wanted to come to bed with me again that I petted you until I fell asleep.  We stayed that way until dawn, when I had to get up to use the human litter box and I fed you.  I was so happy that you came back to bed after you ate.  I really missed you those two nights you didn't come to bed.  I think we were both missing Emma quite a bit today.  I found Herman in her room twice, lying between the litter box and the spot where Emma passed away.  Herman used to only go into Emma's room to use the litter box or play with Emma.

You told me that you are deserting me for Thanksgiving.

Karen Jo:  That's right.  I am going to my brother's house Thanksgiving morning and coming back on Friday.  Don't worry, the same nice lady is going to come in and feed you and give you fresh water.

Does that mean that I don't get any turkey?

Karen Jo:  I will ask for some turkey to bring home.  If it all disappears, then I will cook a turkey just for us soon.  How's that?

I guess that will do.

Mancat Monday

I am up on my big pillow in front of the window, washing my face.  This is a spot that Emma and I shared.  Sometimes I would get up here and sometimes Emma would.  Mom finds it interesting that I got up on the couch that Emma preferred yesterday, even though I had not been up on that couch since Emma moved in with us.

Karen Jo:  You seem to be moving back and forth between spots that Emma used and spots, like your bed by the heat vent, that she never went.  You also used Emma's litter box almost exclusively yesterday.  I wonder if her smell lingering in these places comforts you.  I cleaned and put new litter in both boxes today, as it was long overdue.  I hope that didn't upset you.

Heck, no!  It was high time that you put new litter in the boxes.  You took the food and water out of Emma's room, but you refilled both litter boxes.  Why?

Karen Jo:  You have gotten so used to using either box that I thought I would keep both boxes filled up.  If you stop using one of them, then I will cut you back to just one.

Hey, kitties, you will never guess what has showed up on my buffet!  I have kitten food again and I got a treat of baby food yesterday and today.  I was feeling too sad to eat the baby food yesterday, but I cleaned it up today.

Karen Jo:  Don't get too used to it.  I decided to let you have the kitten food that was left in Emma's bowl and to give you the baby food that I was going to try to tempt her to eat.  When that is gone, you won't be getting any more.

I'll just enjoy it while it lasts.  You didn't share your lunch today.

Karen Jo:  You didn't show up to ask for any until I was on my last two bites of roast beef sandwich.  You can have some roast beef tonight, if you want it.  Speaking of not showing up, where have you been at bedtime the last two nights?

I have been sleeping in my bed in the living room.  I did join you just before dawn both mornings.

Karen Jo:  Yesterday morning I thought you just wanted petting and didn't get why you kept putting your paw on my face.  This morning it finally dawned on me that you wanted early breakfast.  You haven't asked for early breakfast in a very long time.

Well, I want it now.  You should be glad that I am waiting until just before dawn instead of o'dark-thirty.  Why didn't I get my lunch until just now?

Karen Jo: Sorry, Herman, with all that has been going on, I just forgot.  You should have reminded me.

I have been sleeping, so I guess it's OK this time.  I want you to be more punctual in the future.  It's not like you are all that busy. 

Karen Jo:  I have had a busier day today than in a long time.  I got up early to cancel Emma's vet appointment, so they could get some other animal in her slot.  I did my usual chores and cleaned the litter boxes.  I played with you more than usual, as you have been more playful with me.  I went to the grocery store.  I finally applied for my Social Security, which I should have done weeks ago.  That trip to the allergist has really paid off.  The new medication has made me feel better than I have in months.  I actually have my energy back. Before today, just getting my daily chores done has been all I could do and I didn't always finish all of them.  It's too bad that Emma didn't live to see the new/old me.  She would have enjoyed the extra play time.

I am enjoying it.  We played with the blue-mousie-on-a-string that Emma got for Christmas in July.  I don't usually play with wand toys, but maybe watching Emma have so much fun with them gave me ideas.

Karen Jo:  Herman seems to understand what happened to Emma quite well.  He is not looking for her, unless he is doing it after I have gone to bed.

Goodbye, Emma

Karen Jo: I want to thank all of you for purring so hard for Emma.  It really means a whole lot to me. This is the most recent picture that I have of Emma that shows her and her personality well.  She ran off to the Rainbow Bridge last night.  It all happened so dang fast.  Tuesday she was running and playing and being my lap cat and Saturday night she's gone.  I keep asking myself if I missed something, but I don't think I did, really.  She was a bit more subdued after the fight with Herman, but not much.  She was a bit more leery of Herman, but I thought that quite normal.  The vet checked her over very carefully and there was no sign of any injury.  Wednesday, she hid all day.  Thursday she was lethargic and I whisked her off to the vet, who found nothing.  Friday she was weaker, but still jumped up in the easy chair to sleep on the fake sheepskin cushion.  Saturday she seemed about the same during the day.  She was moving around the room, though very slowly.  I sat with her for over an hour starting about 4:00.  She was over by her bed, soaking up the heat from the heat vent and I went over and spent some time petting her.  She made some funny little noises, like she was maybe in a little bit of pain, so I stopped petting her and went to the easy chair to read.  After a bit, she walked over to lie beside the chair, where I could easily reach her and I started petting her again.  I kept on petting her until I had to get up to go to the bathroom.  When I got back, she was in her hidey-hole, too far back for me to reach her.  I checked on her hourly, but she stayed in her hidey-hole until I found her in the litter box at 9:00.  She had gotten in and done her business, then hadn't the strength to get out again.  When I picked her up to put her on the floor, she was so limp that I think I knew, deep down, that she wouldn't last the night.  I got the syringe and gave her some baby food because I didn't want to believe it.  I petted her and talked to her, but she was very unresponsive.  I left her and left the light on because I didn't want her to be in the dark  I came back at 10:00 and gave her some more baby food, petted her and talked to her, again with very little response.  I stayed as long as I could, but seeing her like that was more than I could bear for long.  When I came back at 11:00 she seemed cool to the touch and I think she had already gone, but I didn't want to believe it.  When I checked her at midnight, there was no denying it.  Rigor mortis had set in.

I slept very little last night.  I wrote her a limerick, because I had to do something other than lie in bed and wonder if I could have done anything differently.  I will be posting it a little later.  She is still there on the floor of her room.  This morning, I opened the door to her room and took Herman back to see her.  He sniffed her paw for quite a while, then went around to his little hidey-hole under the sewing machine.  He was attracted to her food, but kept looking back at Emma. Finally, he reached out and very gently touched her paw.  Then he nibbled on her kitten food and left the room.  In a little bit I will go out and find the shovel and see if the soil is frozen or if I can dig her a grave.  There is a spot under the living room window just across from the bird feeder where I can bury her. If the soil is frozen, I will put her in the garage until tomorrow when I can contact the vet about having her cremated.

Most people stop blogging for a while after losing a loved one, but I think I will be blogging more.  I need to keep my mind occupied and it's good to know that other kitties are having birthdays and gotcha days and house trashing parties.  Goodbye, my dear sweet Emma.  I will miss you so much.

Caturday

This is kind of dark, but you can see the contrast in my ruff, which wasn't shaved and my lower chest, which was.  I am growing fur back, but slowly.  Mom hasn't taken any pictures lately.

Karen Jo:  I promise to take new pictures of you, Herman.  I am not going to take any pictures of Emma until she feels better.  I hate to see her lying flat on the floor.  The Emma update is that she is not doing too well.  The good news is that she is still drinking and using the litter box.  She does feel much more comfortable in her room with the door closed.  She moves around the room and last night I even found her upon the fake sheepskin cushion in the easy chair.  The bad news is that she isn't eating.  I bought some baby food today and she wouldn't even lick a tiny bit off my finger.  She just turned her face away from it.  I am going to mix up a slurry of baby food and water and syringe some into her tonight.  I syringed a little water into her today and it prompted her to drink more water on her own. So far she is hanging in there and she does have some body fat, but not much.  I know that I can only syringe one ml of the diluted baby food into her at once, but does anyone know how many times a day I should do it to keep her going?

I want to go see Emma.

Karen Jo:  I am sorry, Herman, but you can't.  She is too sick.

Now that I can't play with Emma, I am playing with my toys again.  Mom and I played for a long time this evening.  Mom plays with me whenever I want now.  She gives me good stuff to eat, too.  I have gotten chicken, steak and roast beef in the last couple of days.  I am getting more treats than usual, too.

Karen Jo:  I have to watch myself to see that I don't spoil you even rottener than you are now.  I am glad that you want to play with me again.