#Cat care

[sprinklethecat]

I'm making this post as we haven't gotten the help we need for the vet appointments. We have put aside all the extra money we have this month, but that only covers the necessary vaccines for the boys.

While the girl kittens haven't shown signs of going into heat, their mom still is and the boys are at the age that they might start with their mom.

You can read the full post HERE.

Please, please, please consider reblogging if you aren't able to donate!!! We're just trying to avoid another litter of kittens, and unfortunately, most of the local resources don't fully cover the bills. :(

PayPal Donation Pool

GoFundMe

Amazon Wishlist to help with cat food

$160/500

[bardic-inspirjaytion]

Why do you call your cat piss king? Is he really good at it or something?

hi anon!

we're gonna learn a bit about cat urinary systems and issues! it may be a bit TMI for the scope of the question but, given how few cat guardians know about this, I'm always looking for chances to educate since being informed can literally save a cat's life.

the main takeaway: if you notice that your cat cannot pee, HEAD TO THE EMERGENCY VET NOW, DO NOT PASS GO! full stop.

if they cannot pee, that is one of the few true emergencies in a healthy cat, and you NEED to treat it as such.

usually you'll see a blocked cat straining and vocalizing in the box, licking themselves, whining and highly reactive to being touched on the lower belly, and - of course - you won't see any proper urine in the box. there may be dribbles or blood, but no pee. this is a problem that escalates really fast, and can easily be lethal. do NOT fuck around with it.

what qualifies me to talk about this? it's exactly what happened to pekoe (peek for short) about three years ago.

proper Storytime and more detail below the cut.

see, the thing with cats is that their bladders are tiny and their kidneys are, uh, bad! so if they can't pee, not only is it incredibly painful, but the liquid and toxins building up in their system can do a LOT of organ damage in a VERY short amount of time. this can get very bad, very fast, and it is very easy for them to die from it if the issue can't be fixed easily and promptly.

usually, the vet will be able to get a catheter into the blocked cat to relieve the pressure, flush out their bladder if there's a physical blockage (ex, if they've made bladder crystals/stones, we gotta get those out of there!), and give them medication to prevent spasms and infection as they heal. a cat then needs to go on urinary-friendly food to prevent additional blockages for the rest of their lives, and some other lifestyle adjustments should be made to treat any underlying risk factors that the animal might have.

sometimes, however, that doesn't resolve the issue, and they block again. and if you're extra unlucky, they'll block AGAIN after that. and maybe again, for extra spice. if you're extra extra unlucky, this will all happen in the same week.

this is the situation that peek and i found ourselves in.

picture the urinary system of a cat as a funnel, with the external bits being the tip of the funnel. when you ultimately need to make a funnel bigger because it can't drain anymore, what do you do?

you remove the tip.

this is an operation called a perineal urethrostomy, or a PU for short. it's a last resort salvage procedure that essentially removes the external genitalia of a male cat to widen the exit of the urinary tract and prevent future blockages. it's a difficult and delicate operation with a very long recovery time. it was also the only option left to save peek's life.

real talk before this next bit: i will never judge pet guardians for impossible decisions made in good faith based on qualified medical advice, in the interest of trying to do what's best for their pets. flat up, i don't stand for that shit.

okay? cool, let's keep going.

a PU is definitely not a surgery that has any guarantees, it can be very painful, it needs a very skilled vet to do it, and it's both expensive and difficult to see an animal through it safely. it was also the one option we had left to save peek, who was very very VERY sick at that point. the vet told me that she was also willing to do euthanasia, if the PU was not right for us, with zero judgment - the little guy had been through a lot of pain and several surgeries already, and doing this operation would be asking a lot more from an animal that was already very weak, with no guarantees of success.

he was briefly stable so i took him home to think about it and sat with him overnight. hours in the darkened living room, with my fluffy best friend sleeping fitfully in my arms like a sick baby. in the morning when he woke up he gave me a little lick on the face, and then a headbutt with a weak but undeniably hungry little meow. he hadn't had an appetite in a week, but now he wanted breakfast. in that moment, i knew he was letting me know that he wasn't finished fighting yet, so i knew the right decision for me was to keep fighting for him.

i called the vet, and we went ahead with the surgery.

i'll spare you the rest of the grisly details - the procedure was a success, and i was lucky enough to be able to work remotely and nurse him through the recovery. it was long and difficult and stressful. it sucked! it was crazy making. i would break down weeping with relief every single time i saw a dirty litter box for WEEKS. if you're reading this and going through it yourself, please feel free to reach out to me any time, okay?

but we persevered. i took care of him, and he rallied like a goddamn king. and hey. anon. guess what?

that was almost three years ago. his life went fully back to normal after he healed. you wouldn't know that this had happened if you didn't already know, because that fluffy little king still pisses like a champion race horse.

so, that's the story of how pekoe became

THE PISS KING.

[happyhealthycats]

It took me a couple hours to find a cat nail clipper that didn't have a light on it or a little nail tray for the clipped bits or little scissor loops for your fingers or, most annoyingly of all, one of those damn guards on the back.

These bad boys are great and my idiot ass just realized from now on I should search for "professional pet nail trimmers" because I trust myself more than any of those gadgets.

[1v31182m5]

I got 26 days old kittens but they still look like they're 2 week going on 3 week expect for one of them is this normal I'm trying my best but is this because they're being fed by milk powder and not mother's milk? If you know anything about this being normal or not please tell me or give an advice (they have 3 week teeth but they're small and don't really walk like a 26 days old)

[catswarmth]

You are my bestie 🥰🐱

[patience4not]

[tamingicarus]

sorry for the crusty jpeg but i made it into a meme so reblog.

tags via @jackettranscribes (thank you!)

[ID: The Bernie Sanders "I am once again asking" meme, edited to say "I am once again begging you: please do not give your cats human medication ever". /End ID.]

[feralboo-the-weirdo]

Here is a big tip on how to get cats to like you:

RESPECT THEIR BOUNDARIES.

When cats don't want to be touched they will let you know. They will scratch you, bite you, growl at you, etc. My cat and I became much better friends when I started doing this. She would bite me when I touched her in a place she didn't like or I was touching her too much so I followed her signs and didn't touch that place/stopped touching her entirely, allowing her a break from the sensation. Some cats do love bite, but you will KNOW when a cat is love biting you vs biting you.

Also, when a cat doesn't want touch, that doesn't mean it's indefinite, when you stop touching them when they ask you to you build trust with them, and if they trust you they will come back for more pets because they know you will stop when they no longer want to be touched or talked to.

ALSO ALSO when they start wriggling in your arms that is when you put them down. Cats wriggle the most when they don't feel safe in your arms or they do not want to be held.

Cats do not like touch typically, and respecting their boundaries regarding touch and pretty much everything else will make them respect you more. Cats trust people who make themselves trustworthy. The people who stop petting them when their cat bites or scratches them for too much touch, the people who put them down when they don't want to be held, the people who bring food and talk softly to them.

A lot of cats have intense sensory issues from what I've seen/heard and more likely than not if your cat seems to hate you that is because you aren't respecting their boundaries, you're too loud, and they just might not like you. They hate too much touch and bad sensations and loud sounds.

In summary, a basic way to get your cat to trust you, is to stop touching them when they bite or scratch or growl or hiss, all of these are their defense mechanisms and signs they are angry/scared, use a soft tone of voice with cats, and put them down when they wriggle and fight out of your grip. Build their trust with you, and keep doing these things even when they DO become more loving. consistency and trust go hand in hand.

Respect your little furball and they will respect you. Cats do enjoy love, but in moderation and from people they trust.

Cats deserve respect just like any other animal.

Animal whisperers are the ones who treat animals with respect and love. It pays off. Trust me.

[movie423]

14 Magnificent Hunting And Chasing Moments By Wild Animals

[cute342456]

Animals Reunited With Owners After Years !

[happycatlovers]

Credit: purrberryshortcake

[cloaksandcapes]

Looking for a Tumblr miracle where someone recognizes having gone through the same\similar thing and somehow has advice on how to help.

[happyhealthycats]

If you've ever attempted to brush your cat only to meet residence, my first question is always "Did you try a rubber curry brush?"

This brush is an awesome tool - soft on skin, but still effective. Since we started using this brush, Citra has come to love brush time, and it's more of a sweet lil allo-grooming moment where she purrs and drools the whole time.

Search around for rubber curry brushes to try something out. I love these bad boys and they're super sensory friendly for more sensitive cats. I'm not sure what their effectiveness is for longer hair, but it's great for thicker fur or thin fur.

[catw23]

Valatty- Tale of Tails (വാലാട്ടി) - 2023 - Movie Trailer - English Subtitles enjoy watching

[sprinklethecat]

Our VERY good and brave boys finished their procedure a few hours ago and are home now.

Thank you to EVERYONE for the support!

We'll be watching them and crating them for the next few days to make sure they don't get hurt and I'll keep everyone updated. 💙

We could still use some help with kitten food, but you can purchase that on my Amazon Wishlist here.

Thank you all SO much. 💙