Christmas with the Excellent Cats

[TheShellBeach]

......... Silent Night.........

Well, maybe not so silent when there's a cat about who wants to be fed.

Join us in the run up to Christmas 2023!

@Catsmere , I'm impressed that your cat has such beautifully matching ears.

Nearly 10kg is some weight! But respect to you for getting him a bit lower. If it makes you feel better it’s only the weight of SOME dogs. I’ve posted on other threads about this but my ex’s was a lovely, friendly dog who outweighed me by a good five kilos. Absolutely terrifying. Matt is only the weight of the really tiny annoying ones and at this rate Velvet will join him (she’s rapidly becoming spherical but some battles with my parents I do not fight).

However I do NOT expect the same riotous activity at 5:30 am a week before the Winter Solstice when sunrise is apparently due today at 755 am.

4:30am here. Bastard.

My lot get a pouch a day split over two meals,plus dry food. They're all indoor cats. Their weight is steady on this regime, they do not get dreamies daily. Fettuccine is the biggest at 5.5 kilos (but he is also tall and burly, vet says he is not overweight). Tortellini and Cannelloni both weigh in at 4.7kg, Lasagna is 5kg even but looks lean because he is long and tall. Finally Rigatoni is 3.8 kg but he is teeny tiny.

Can I write up some formal findings from this thread? I keep telling my parents Velvet’s overfed (she is literally blowing up like a balloon - as a TINY cat she’s getting three sachets a day plus snacks) and a little handful of Dreamies here or there won’t do any harm, particularly as we’re trying to teach an extraordinarily dense cat several life-saving skills - how to get back in through the catflap, how not to jump through the balustrade onto the floor below, how not to bite the Christmas tree - and a scientific study might help? Ish?

@CeciledeVolangesdeNouveau sounds like a good project for a little spreadsheet...

Which reminds me, I must make that spreadsheet I keep meaning to do, listing posters and their DCats. I might have some time soon, I have technically moved, but still have to complete moving stuff from old flat (thankfully new tenant is away for a few days and is on board with this).

Cedric and Doris in their cat tree.

That's an absolutely terrifying photo, @Grumpyoldpersonwithcats

@RumNotRun
Well she certainly has 'cattitude' with her tongue stuck out! Rude!!!

@Grumpyoldpersonwithcats

Oh my God! I thought he has a bit of avocado in his arse!!!! Glad you explained!

@TwigTheWonderKid

Well, more cats! Duh! Much more decorative!·

@coastergirl

That would make a beautiful Christmas card!

Socks is a skinny minnie, @twobluechickens . Not sure of her weight and she's not particularly tiny in height, but she is quite long and slender. She's just not motivated by food, unlike Matt (and me).
Yes, Spartacus. I was adamant dd wasn't coming back but she was homeless and children's services asked me to have the baby, otherwise it would be foster care. Dd was initially refusing to come too, then realised that if she didn't want to be separated from her baby, she had no choice. I don't know how long it will be for but till new year at least, I guess.
I'm trying to stay as uninvolved as possible and not to get too attached this time because I can't go through that heartbreak again.

They are neat, aren't they? 😸

@Papergirl1968 I'm so sorry you've got all the worry over your DD and the baby once again.

I have so much admiration for you. And I'm absolutely keeping you and your family in my thoughts and prayers over the Christmas period.

I put that rug which we bought for DS2 on the bed, and I was going to wrap it up, but I found someone was having a nap on it.

Linney's improving the quality by adding catmere fibres.

Just adding my admiration too, Paper. It' a very difficult situation to be in. You have been so supportive when it hasn't been easy.

@Papergirl1968 you are doing superbly well. I’d probably fit in the same demographic as your child - huge difficulties but in my case due to parental abuse - and I know it can be super tough to deal with those of us who have needs that people just can’t fulfil and life can be supremely painful in this type of situation, I can’t imagine how it is a parent. Thoughts to you.

@Catsmere you’re on the same thread as me about cats being put down but I thought I’d share my thoughts here instead of on that thread. Just really sad at so many people losing their little friends, I’m crying. And Velvet is at most two and fairly healthy - bit fat and snuffling but we can sort that out - but I can’t imagine carrying her lively little body home all still in the same way I did with MrN, in my arms. I’ve been companion to a number of cats and my family have buried a fair number of them, but none is Velvet. I’ve also never been allowed to show sadness for their loss. I worry about Velvet every time she goes out.

@CeciledeVolangesdeNouveau I get you, I dreaded the thought of my Katie (proper name Caitlin) dying from the moment I got her. As it turned out I didn't put her to sleep, she died on the way to the vet. Something happened afterward which I don't want to write here, but brought me a lot of comfort.

This is Katie, smart and sassy little cat all her life:

Hello everyone. I've followed your threads off and on for ages. I also follow the old Olly legacy / paws fb page.

Our Mr Darcy is a bit of a poorly puss this week. He has idiopathic cystitis confirmed by the vet. When the vet checked his records last night, she noted that it's the third year in a row during December. She told me it's likely caused by the stress of the Christmas tree coming out. I feel awful, now as maybe it's been blocking the poor boys access to the windowsill. Going to try and rearrange things a bit today.

Here he is.

Ooh @RainbowZebraWarrior isnt he gorgeous!!

I was also on the cats going over the rainbow bridge thread, just following, and cried my heart out at the poem.
my precious and beloved Boone has started heading downhill again. He won’t take his meds and the neurologist said it’d be weeks, maybe months and it’s been a year so every minute I’m grateful but terrified.
So this year he’s got his favourite catnip pressie for Christmas AND a Gus and Bella box ☺️
Although it seems all he and Eli actually need is a paper bag and some wrapping!

Eko not Eli ☺️

Rainbow, as I said elsewhere, Mr. Darcy is a glorious puss.

@LostCats I'm so sorry to hear the news about Boone.
That's very difficult to hear.