The Very Eventful Lives of the Excellent Cats

[TheShellBeach]

Calling all cats and their overworked slaves - join us as we grudgingly accept that every day is National Cat Day as far as our moggies are concerned.

I can't actually remember why I started calling him Toad. His name was Toby when I adopted him and I always change their names so maybe I just went with something that sounds similar. He was the first one to be named after an animal so it can't even have been to follow the theme (Pigeon, Vixen, and Raven followed) I think I'll steal the witchy back story for him though.

'Yeeted' is a brilliant word. Poor Paws but excellent that Shady has settled in so well. Munchkin, Velvet and of course Tobias seem to be very settled.

Finlay is extra handsome too! There are a lot of Excellent Cats on The Litter Tray.

I saw a post on one of the Christmas threads about what people were having for Christmas Dinner. One poster is having lots of main courses, including salmon for her cat. I thought that was lovely.

More problems with Matt..sigh.
Sat on the litter tray twice this morning and failed to produce anything. Tried to wee on the floor and again nothing. So back to the vets we go, when I’m actually supposed to be going to work.
He was given some meds to relax him in the hope he would then wee, but nope. So had a catheter and x rays under anaesthetic and a sample of urine has been sent off for analysis. Fetching him at 5.30 but the catheter has to stay in all weekend which I’ve been warned could be messy.
I don’t have a dog cage in which to contain him so was going to put him in en suite. Now though I think I’ll just leave him in the lounge as it has wooden floor and leather sofa which can be wiped down.
I dread to think of the bill. Tempted to rob a bank…

Oh Papergirl I'm sorry about Matt.

I hope the bill isn't too awful and that his problem gets sorted out soon.
How old is he now?

Sorry to hear about Matt. I hope he gets better soon and that the bill isn't too awful.

Just realised I used the same bill description as Shellbeach - that was weirdly coincidental and not on purpose.

He's nine.
The bill was £540-ish, on top of the £100-plus for the previous two visits, the new carrier, the food, the meds...
The cone of shame was off before we'd even got home. I can't get it back on because he runs off. I'll let him calm down and try again.
He's got another appointment on Monday but nothing showed on the x ray so unless the samples come back showing anything, they're putting it down to a spasm (of the urethra I think, they said).

Oh poor Matt and poor you Papergirl1968 with that bill. Does your vet have payment plans or anything like that?

I'm using my overdraft and thank goodness we get paid this week.
He's currently snoozing on the radiator, sans cone of shame. To be honest he's so darned fat I don't think he can reach the catheter.
Also the plan of keeping him contained downstairs failed but the carpets upstairs need a good clean anyway so I'm letting him get on with it.
I've cancelled plans I had for tomorrow. I've had a cough and cold too and feel wiped out by all the stress and running back and forth to the vet. A nice quiet weekend will be lovely.

All the vibes for your and Matt's health, @Papergirl1968 . Vet bills are wild.

Sending love & (((hugs))) Paper & Matt ❤️

Sending much love to lovely Matt

I don't know how I'd manage without Dr Daisy's help.

I wonder what the success rate is for cats keeping on the cone of shame?

Thankfully Midnight never needed one.

In Girlcat's bad books this morning. She had found herself a lovely resting place on my bed on top of a pair of bundled up chinos all nice & lumpy, and that cruel slave of hers TOOK THEM AWAY to put them in the wash! She's now sitting in the doorway of the study, looking at my back with the Stare Of Death.

Oh Allergic! You're so cruel.

As Toby Toad kept making Frank share the box, I realised I had a smaller box which would be perfect for Frankie. No. Toad is now in the smaller box looking mournful while Frankie enjoys having his to himself.

Very typical cat! Mr N used to snub cardboard boxes very pointedly when our well-meaning but sadly uneducated gardener would cut handy doors in them. Hilarious photo as well. I do often wonder whether cats actually prefer a smaller box because it gives them a sense of containment while maintaining an exit route. But they might just be having fun making things difficult for you and themselves!

Velvet has had an exhausting morning playing with the wand toy - after about an hour of flying leaps, racing up and down stairs, rapid sideways rolls and generally being virtuosic at catting she decided she had become Very Delicate and swooned upon the stairs just as my mother wanted to get up them. However, she then recovered and decided to explore the shower. While it was on. You can’t see the water but I have photographic evidence. She’s interspersed her exploits with rapid running from room to room, followed immediately by pitiful cries that nobody is entertaining her and life is very unfair. Poor little Velvet.

@Allergictoironing @RumNotRun @CeciledeVolangesdeNouveau

Oh the suffering of all these poor cats! It's just too much, poor darlings.

Daisy's suffering today came about because I spent about two hours in total in the lounge rather than on the bed with her. And this after she'd put so much work into doing a squishiness assessment of the cardigan I'm making. The ingratitude!

It’s a very hard life for a cat out there. Velvet’s put on a black armband in memoriam for Daisy’s hard work :(

😂😂😂

Raven is Not Happy as I have given attention to the other cats.

That's one hell of a Displeased Expression!

@Catsmere beware as Daisy gets older. Sometimes some or all of their claws may not retract properly as they get older. And I would hate for your exquisite knitting to get pulled threads

This is why I often found myself talking to elderly Midnight thus: "Hold still a minute! I need to unhook you."

Tbh it doesn’t even need them to get older sometimes. Our old cat Custard (the one who habitually ran into glass doors, pulled an entire dresser down onto my head and his sister and somehow managed to be run over with no bad effects apart from a tyre print) used to go around with his trimmed claws extended. We could always hear him coming along, it was like high heels clicking about. Velvet tends to be very careful with her claws but has still clipped me a couple of times and I hide my blanket from her because I don’t want it kneaded, worried at or for that matter snuggled by a cat who has just rolled in a litter tray, VELVET.

Saw this and thought of all of you