Sunday, November 19, 2006
2 New Pages up!
Ipve put up 2 new pages. One was inspired by my email, and has to do with getting some peppermint extract to help with your cat. The other one is about my technique for talking to your cat. I hope you like the new content! I haven't put any photos on the pages yet, but they will come.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Cars, computers and cat urine smells
Well! Lots going on. The car is down, stopped yesterday morning. It seems that the fuel can't get to the engine. It has almost a full tank. I can't even get it to the mechanic right now. I talked it over with a friend & I'll get it fixed enough to run & trade it in. The poor thing is a 1981 Volvo station wagon. It just turned 200K miles, and needs a lot of work. I could fix it up, but the cost would be the same as a new car. Might as well just get a new car, right? At least I'll have something to drive. The insurance would be more, but if the new car needed repairs, I could get a rental while it's in the shop on the insurance. I totalled this car just after I got it. It was insured but not yet registered, so the car has seen better days. The only damage was some plastic around a headlight - but the age of the car was against it. So, I'll go ahead and get a new car.
The computer was making a lot of noise in the fan, so I took it apart and cleaned it. It's quieter now, and I'm not so afraid it won't work - but I called a fellow to come help me with it. I'm putting in a CD-R/W so I can take some stuff off the hard drive - it's getting pretty full, adding RAM and another hard drive. I just need more space for the pictures and website files. I hadn't planned on building a website when I got the computer, so it's at near capacity. So, instead of getting a new computer, I'm going to spend a little bit on this one to upgrade a bit. And the thing seems so slow and overburdened. My choices were to upgrade or get new - in this case, I'll upgrade for now.
My cats are fine, but there are 2 vacant apartments in the building. My landlady came by today to check things out & asked me to get something for the cat urine odor in the back hall & one of the vacant apartments. Now, that was a Godsend! I need the stuff myself because of some things that got marked before I added the 4th litter box, and I've been dealing with it - but not too effectively. I got inundated with fleas first, you remember. We have to wait another week to get the drops, but now I can get the Microbe-Clean on her dime. Not a bad trade off, all in all.
I guess there's a plan in all this, but it just seems overwhelming right now. I've been feeling kind of disconnected this past week. I've barely been able to function, and I'm not sure why. I've been sleeping and eating well, and work hasn't been that draining, but I've just been unable to cope. In my old life, I would have blamed it on Mercury retrograde, and maybe that's it. It just feels like everything has piled up on my at once.
At least my house is kind of clean! When the computer guy comes over tomorrow, I won't be totally embarassed by the place. Just by the smell of the urine that I've still got around here. It's my briefcase, OK? I just can't bring myself to get rid of it, but I really need to. All the rest is gone, but I just can't get rid of that because I need a briefcase. I guess I'll jave to take the stuff out of it that I can keep and toss the unit, use one of my totebags instead. Not as professional, but neither is a smelly briefcase! And, by tossing it, I won't have that smell in the house anymore.
So, yes, I deal with this stuff, too!!!! I'm not some guru who sits on the top of a mountain and tells you what to do. I live it. Cats are my life, even when I (sometimes) hate them. Beasley and Princess are fine, lets not get into "rescuing" cats, OK? I just can't take 5 cats & yet, I have that many right now. I sure hope that one or more of my visitors gets a home. I'm almost resigned to having 5 cats!
Well, all for now. Best to you and "Purr" to your furpeople.
The computer was making a lot of noise in the fan, so I took it apart and cleaned it. It's quieter now, and I'm not so afraid it won't work - but I called a fellow to come help me with it. I'm putting in a CD-R/W so I can take some stuff off the hard drive - it's getting pretty full, adding RAM and another hard drive. I just need more space for the pictures and website files. I hadn't planned on building a website when I got the computer, so it's at near capacity. So, instead of getting a new computer, I'm going to spend a little bit on this one to upgrade a bit. And the thing seems so slow and overburdened. My choices were to upgrade or get new - in this case, I'll upgrade for now.
My cats are fine, but there are 2 vacant apartments in the building. My landlady came by today to check things out & asked me to get something for the cat urine odor in the back hall & one of the vacant apartments. Now, that was a Godsend! I need the stuff myself because of some things that got marked before I added the 4th litter box, and I've been dealing with it - but not too effectively. I got inundated with fleas first, you remember. We have to wait another week to get the drops, but now I can get the Microbe-Clean on her dime. Not a bad trade off, all in all.
I guess there's a plan in all this, but it just seems overwhelming right now. I've been feeling kind of disconnected this past week. I've barely been able to function, and I'm not sure why. I've been sleeping and eating well, and work hasn't been that draining, but I've just been unable to cope. In my old life, I would have blamed it on Mercury retrograde, and maybe that's it. It just feels like everything has piled up on my at once.
At least my house is kind of clean! When the computer guy comes over tomorrow, I won't be totally embarassed by the place. Just by the smell of the urine that I've still got around here. It's my briefcase, OK? I just can't bring myself to get rid of it, but I really need to. All the rest is gone, but I just can't get rid of that because I need a briefcase. I guess I'll jave to take the stuff out of it that I can keep and toss the unit, use one of my totebags instead. Not as professional, but neither is a smelly briefcase! And, by tossing it, I won't have that smell in the house anymore.
So, yes, I deal with this stuff, too!!!! I'm not some guru who sits on the top of a mountain and tells you what to do. I live it. Cats are my life, even when I (sometimes) hate them. Beasley and Princess are fine, lets not get into "rescuing" cats, OK? I just can't take 5 cats & yet, I have that many right now. I sure hope that one or more of my visitors gets a home. I'm almost resigned to having 5 cats!
Well, all for now. Best to you and "Purr" to your furpeople.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Total Flea Wars-Being busy
I've been so busy, I haven't even been able to do the email for the website in a timely manner! It's been really crazy. I'm hearing noises from the computer, too. I'm afraid it will quit working pretty soon.
The collars I got, "Breakaway" from Vet-Kem, don't seem to be killing the fleas as well as I'd like. I got the Siphotrol & that works well. The Ovitrol is for use on the cats, but it also doesn't work as well as I'd like. I'm having to comb the cats to remove the fleas. Since I can't get a comb on many of them, this isn't working.
I'm going back to the flea drops. I'll be using Advantage. I have 3 cats over 9# and 2 cats under 9#, so that's the split I'll be getting.
I had hoped to get the odor control stuff instead, and finances being what they are, I can only do one thing at a time. BUT, fleas are something I can't put off.
I received an email asking me to speak in New York about Cat Whispering. We'll see where it goes, but I'm certainly flattered.
Well, at least I've caught you up... Gotta run!
The collars I got, "Breakaway" from Vet-Kem, don't seem to be killing the fleas as well as I'd like. I got the Siphotrol & that works well. The Ovitrol is for use on the cats, but it also doesn't work as well as I'd like. I'm having to comb the cats to remove the fleas. Since I can't get a comb on many of them, this isn't working.
I'm going back to the flea drops. I'll be using Advantage. I have 3 cats over 9# and 2 cats under 9#, so that's the split I'll be getting.
I had hoped to get the odor control stuff instead, and finances being what they are, I can only do one thing at a time. BUT, fleas are something I can't put off.
I received an email asking me to speak in New York about Cat Whispering. We'll see where it goes, but I'm certainly flattered.
Well, at least I've caught you up... Gotta run!
Saturday, October 28, 2006
connection reset
Sorry about that, the connection reset during publishing, so the entry got published twice.
Connection reset
Sorry about that, the connection reset during publishing, so the post got done twice. No link to the title above, either.
Wow! It's been a while- flea treatments
I got the flea collars and Ovitrol from Entirely Pets on Tuesday or Wednesday. I put the collars on the cats. They are supposed to last 8 months! Boy, that was a nice surprise! I also sprayed the building as much as I could.
The fleas are now biting ME! So, I've been dealing with flea bites and getting rid of them as best I can. I comb the cats as much as they will allow it. The alcohol on the comb really works, and I can get the fleas dead before they jump off and go someplace to hide and bite me again later. It's the ones that get away that end up biting me.
Princess has been very skittish - not surprising considering the flea treatments going on around here, but she's slowly warming up again. She spent some time snuggling this morning.
Everybody else is doing well. Even missy Bugs is doing well! She slept on the bed last night and didn't squirm around at all - now it's Queenie doing the squirm dance. The black cohosh is still working.
Bugs has come up with a new behavior - when you flush the toilet she comes running to see if the lid was left up and she can get water without the tea in it. I tell her that the chlorine isn't good for her and to drink the water in her bowl. She looks very disappointed, but does what she's told. It's cute, but I've been so tired at night after work that it feels annoying.
Work is very difficult during the last 10 days of the month. And, since the holidays are coming up and I work in a church, it will only get more busy and hectic in the next 2 months.
All I can do is pray, breathe in and out and tackle the next item on my list. I'm working on the effect of stress in my life, and office work always touches that nerve.
On the bright side, the website is doing gangbusters! I'm very pleases. Google is doing their every-other-month dance and traffic is dropping (in my case holding steady) and every one is complaining about it. My site seems to be holding it's own, and the financial end is excellent with the new structure. I got the books split into several pages so that things are easier to find, and now I'm finally moving on with other product pages. I have the collars, tags and leads in process.
I started the next newsletter issue, and I have subscriber-only specials in the newsletter itself instead of on the specials page, so that's a change. I'm also publishing more often. I need to write my article on black cats and hallowe'en, but it feels like I let time get away from me and it won't ever get done.
That's it for now.
The fleas are now biting ME! So, I've been dealing with flea bites and getting rid of them as best I can. I comb the cats as much as they will allow it. The alcohol on the comb really works, and I can get the fleas dead before they jump off and go someplace to hide and bite me again later. It's the ones that get away that end up biting me.
Princess has been very skittish - not surprising considering the flea treatments going on around here, but she's slowly warming up again. She spent some time snuggling this morning.
Everybody else is doing well. Even missy Bugs is doing well! She slept on the bed last night and didn't squirm around at all - now it's Queenie doing the squirm dance. The black cohosh is still working.
Bugs has come up with a new behavior - when you flush the toilet she comes running to see if the lid was left up and she can get water without the tea in it. I tell her that the chlorine isn't good for her and to drink the water in her bowl. She looks very disappointed, but does what she's told. It's cute, but I've been so tired at night after work that it feels annoying.
Work is very difficult during the last 10 days of the month. And, since the holidays are coming up and I work in a church, it will only get more busy and hectic in the next 2 months.
All I can do is pray, breathe in and out and tackle the next item on my list. I'm working on the effect of stress in my life, and office work always touches that nerve.
On the bright side, the website is doing gangbusters! I'm very pleases. Google is doing their every-other-month dance and traffic is dropping (in my case holding steady) and every one is complaining about it. My site seems to be holding it's own, and the financial end is excellent with the new structure. I got the books split into several pages so that things are easier to find, and now I'm finally moving on with other product pages. I have the collars, tags and leads in process.
I started the next newsletter issue, and I have subscriber-only specials in the newsletter itself instead of on the specials page, so that's a change. I'm also publishing more often. I need to write my article on black cats and hallowe'en, but it feels like I let time get away from me and it won't ever get done.
That's it for now.
Wow! It's been a while- flea treatments
I got the flea collars and Ovitrol from Entirely Pets on Tuesday or Wednesday. I put the collars on the cats. They are supposed to last 8 months! Boy, that was a nice surprise! I also sprayed the building as much as I could.
The fleas are now biting ME! So, I've been dealing with flea bites and getting rid of them as best I can. I comb the cats as much as they will allow it. The alcohol on the comb really works, and I can get the fleas dead before they jump off and go someplace to hide and bite me again later. It's the ones that get away that end up biting me.
Princess has been very skittish - not surprising considering the flea treatments going on around here, but she's slowly warming up again. She spent some time snuggling this morning.
Everybody else is doing well. Even missy Bugs is doing well! She slept on the bed last night and didn't squirm around at all - now it's Queenie doing the squirm dance. The black cohosh is still working.
Bugs has come up with a new behavior - when you flush the toilet she comes running to see if the lid was left up and she can get water without the tea in it. I tell her that the chlorine isn't good for her and to drink the water in her bowl. She looks very disappointed, but does what she's told. It's cute, but I've been so tired at night after work that it feels annoying.
Work is very difficult during the last 10 days of the month. And, since the holidays are coming up and I work in a church, it will only get more busy and hectic in the next 2 months.
All I can do is pray, breathe in and out and tackle the next item on my list. I'm working on the effect of stress in my life, and office work always touches that nerve.
On the bright side, the website is doing gangbusters! I'm very pleases. Google is doing their every-other-month dance and traffic is dropping (in my case holding steady) and every one is complaining about it. My site seems to be holding it's own, and the financial end is excellent with the new structure. I got the books split into several pages so that things are easier to find, and now I'm finally moving on with other product pages. I have the collars, tags and leads in process.
I started the next newsletter issue, and I have subscriber-only specials in the newsletter itself instead of on the specials page, so that's a change. I'm also publishing more often. I need to write my article on black cats and hallowe'en, but it feels like I let time get away from me and it won't ever get done.
That's it for now.
The fleas are now biting ME! So, I've been dealing with flea bites and getting rid of them as best I can. I comb the cats as much as they will allow it. The alcohol on the comb really works, and I can get the fleas dead before they jump off and go someplace to hide and bite me again later. It's the ones that get away that end up biting me.
Princess has been very skittish - not surprising considering the flea treatments going on around here, but she's slowly warming up again. She spent some time snuggling this morning.
Everybody else is doing well. Even missy Bugs is doing well! She slept on the bed last night and didn't squirm around at all - now it's Queenie doing the squirm dance. The black cohosh is still working.
Bugs has come up with a new behavior - when you flush the toilet she comes running to see if the lid was left up and she can get water without the tea in it. I tell her that the chlorine isn't good for her and to drink the water in her bowl. She looks very disappointed, but does what she's told. It's cute, but I've been so tired at night after work that it feels annoying.
Work is very difficult during the last 10 days of the month. And, since the holidays are coming up and I work in a church, it will only get more busy and hectic in the next 2 months.
All I can do is pray, breathe in and out and tackle the next item on my list. I'm working on the effect of stress in my life, and office work always touches that nerve.
On the bright side, the website is doing gangbusters! I'm very pleases. Google is doing their every-other-month dance and traffic is dropping (in my case holding steady) and every one is complaining about it. My site seems to be holding it's own, and the financial end is excellent with the new structure. I got the books split into several pages so that things are easier to find, and now I'm finally moving on with other product pages. I have the collars, tags and leads in process.
I started the next newsletter issue, and I have subscriber-only specials in the newsletter itself instead of on the specials page, so that's a change. I'm also publishing more often. I need to write my article on black cats and hallowe'en, but it feels like I let time get away from me and it won't ever get done.
That's it for now.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
General Conditions of my cats
The cats now have 4 litter boxes, as I got another one last weekend. When I cleaned the bathroom, I removed the food and water bowls from there, so they only eat in the kitchen now.
They got fleas from my walking through the building where Muffy was running loose, but they have a much worse infestation at this point.
Bugs is doing very well. She's cuddly and loving. Queenie is now sitting in my lap when Beasley is not there, and Beasley is no longer running away from her all the time. Whe had a spat the other night, and it was Princess on Queenie.
Pretty Girl is very snuggly. She has an opportunity to go to a pet rescue event tomorrow, but I'm waiting to hear if they have a large cage to show her off in.
Beasley is allowing me to use the flea comb on him. I found an article that said using alcohol on the comb will stun the fleas, making it easier to get rid of them. I filled a little jar with alcohol and put it next to the comb so I can dip the comb and have better luck getting rid of them - instead of combing them off onto ME! So, we'll see how that works.
I rearranged the bedroom last weekend, and the cats are having fun with the new arrangement. I put the bed against a different wall and completely re-made it. The frame fell apart when I tried to move it (not unexpected) so I had to get bolts and nuts to put it back together. Then I could put new sheets and stuff on it. But I really re-made the bed. It should hold together for another 3 months, at which time I need to get or make a new frame. I won't be able to fix it again. It's made from particle board, so it falls apart easily. Without tools, it's hard to repair things made of wood!
They got fleas from my walking through the building where Muffy was running loose, but they have a much worse infestation at this point.
Bugs is doing very well. She's cuddly and loving. Queenie is now sitting in my lap when Beasley is not there, and Beasley is no longer running away from her all the time. Whe had a spat the other night, and it was Princess on Queenie.
Pretty Girl is very snuggly. She has an opportunity to go to a pet rescue event tomorrow, but I'm waiting to hear if they have a large cage to show her off in.
Beasley is allowing me to use the flea comb on him. I found an article that said using alcohol on the comb will stun the fleas, making it easier to get rid of them. I filled a little jar with alcohol and put it next to the comb so I can dip the comb and have better luck getting rid of them - instead of combing them off onto ME! So, we'll see how that works.
I rearranged the bedroom last weekend, and the cats are having fun with the new arrangement. I put the bed against a different wall and completely re-made it. The frame fell apart when I tried to move it (not unexpected) so I had to get bolts and nuts to put it back together. Then I could put new sheets and stuff on it. But I really re-made the bed. It should hold together for another 3 months, at which time I need to get or make a new frame. I won't be able to fix it again. It's made from particle board, so it falls apart easily. Without tools, it's hard to repair things made of wood!
Fleas!
I ordered the flea control measures. I got 5 breakaway collars and some Ovitrol. I'll be de-fleaing the entire building, and I have to do it twice, 10-days apart. Next week, I get the de-wormer. I'll put some in the wet food and give it straight to the others.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Muffy
I feel totally whipped by this cat! I hate to admit that, but I do.
She will only use the litter box once a day - to poop. She squatted over the tub drain and looked straight at me and let loose. I've tried everything I recommend. I wiped the inside rim with feces and urine, I changed the litter type to clumping after 3 days, I put her in the box when she wants to use the tub. The only time she'll use the box is during my shower when she can't get to the tub.
I have too many cats to allow one free run who won't use the box. The others would be drawn into the bad behavior and that's going backwards. I hate to do it, but she needs to be an outside barn cat or something where her habits won't be an issue. She can't come back.
When I placed her after the initial rescue, she had impeccable litter habits. The people I gave her to let her box get really bad and didn't deal with it. Then, there were changes in the household - the daughter showed up and left, her son went to live with his dad and finally a new boyfriend showed up. That was the end of her good behavior. She pooped in an inappropriate place and he threw her outdoors. She never had a chance! When they moved out and left her, taking her in seemed like the right thing to do.
She's so eaten up with fleas that she's miserable, and the worms have her tummy very distended. She needs serious attention. The bathroom is covered in little blood drops from the flea bites. I'll need to use bleach when I clean it.
I feel really bad about this, and I hate to admit I'm whipped, but I need to clean my bathroom from the flea dirt. It's been over a week, and she's not using the box. She goes to the humane society today. Maybe someone needs a barn cat. Let's pray for her.
She will only use the litter box once a day - to poop. She squatted over the tub drain and looked straight at me and let loose. I've tried everything I recommend. I wiped the inside rim with feces and urine, I changed the litter type to clumping after 3 days, I put her in the box when she wants to use the tub. The only time she'll use the box is during my shower when she can't get to the tub.
I have too many cats to allow one free run who won't use the box. The others would be drawn into the bad behavior and that's going backwards. I hate to do it, but she needs to be an outside barn cat or something where her habits won't be an issue. She can't come back.
When I placed her after the initial rescue, she had impeccable litter habits. The people I gave her to let her box get really bad and didn't deal with it. Then, there were changes in the household - the daughter showed up and left, her son went to live with his dad and finally a new boyfriend showed up. That was the end of her good behavior. She pooped in an inappropriate place and he threw her outdoors. She never had a chance! When they moved out and left her, taking her in seemed like the right thing to do.
She's so eaten up with fleas that she's miserable, and the worms have her tummy very distended. She needs serious attention. The bathroom is covered in little blood drops from the flea bites. I'll need to use bleach when I clean it.
I feel really bad about this, and I hate to admit I'm whipped, but I need to clean my bathroom from the flea dirt. It's been over a week, and she's not using the box. She goes to the humane society today. Maybe someone needs a barn cat. Let's pray for her.
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