Fluffy Collar Cat

Doesn't every one know Fluffy Collar Cat ?   Well we have a visiting cat, and can you guess it's fluffy and wears a collar.  The collar first, it is not on tight, but it looks like it was on a leash and probably broke away just by the looks of the end of the collar hanging down.  Now for the fluffy part, oh my gosh I have seriously never seen a tail the size of this fluff ball, it has to be 3 inches round of FLUFF long hair.  The rest of her, not sure so I will say her, body is long hair, she really needs a good brushing.

So Fluffy Collar comes and eats but if you go out side, FCC does not run, just jumps down off the table and walks to the end of the deck, and sits and watches you and you sit and watch FCC.   Gary is determined to catch FCC and take the collar off and then brush FCC and let FCC go back out side.  Now as you read and you see "GARY" you know darn well WHO will be doing all that, yes, ME.

So I am going to try and friend FCC I went and got some turkey lunch meat and when I see FCC I will go out with my bait, oh sorry, food and see if I can get FCC closer to me.

Wish me luck and I'll keep you updated on our progress.

Shoes or NO Shoes..........

As I sit here working, yes still at home.  I have NO shoes on and I'm thing, "I HAVE to get to my shoes"  why? I'm home alone with two crazy cats, they don't mind what I look like as long as I pet them give them food and water and turn on General Hospital at 3pm for them.

I have always had shoes on my feet growing up, not a 'no shoe' person or home we lived in.  I did live on a farm, and I did take my boots off at the back door but if I had my sneakers on, they stayed on.  Just not comfortable with no shoes on. 

So anxious to GO GET MY SHOES I still have to clean them, they have some mud in them and I already have to vacuum the living room from the two crazy cats I really don't feel like cleaning up the mud again.  

So I have a window of opportunity to go get the shoes and feel comfortable.

Should I put my slippers on, no, need my sneakers on.

Off I go to clean the sneakers and get comfy.

The Party is Over..............

Well, some of you know I have the ability to work from home, well the party is over.  We have some new people in the company and they are taking the perk of working from home away.

Yes your thinking, GAS is going up and they take the perk away, yes, we looked at them like they had 10 heads too.  And the people I assist are not even in the same state so yes, they now have 20 heads!  We don't try and figure them out, I have enough problems keeping hair under control on my own head, never mind 20 heads.  I live 36 miles, one way, from my office so I should get a my bike out, who knows.  But like my boss said, he tried and you never know with the way gas is, we may get the perk back? what ever.

So now I have to tell Thomas and Martha that I will not be home during the day.  Thomas never knew me to NOT be home and Martha thinks I'm part of the couch so she has no clue on me not being home for 5 days during the day.  Martha will miss me very much, Thomas will have to deal with Martha alone.  Martha may be strung up to the ceiling fan, not sure or in a closet?  I have to have a talk with them, the one day I do go into the office, Martha really misses me.  I feel bad but someone has to go pay for their food. 

Martha is chatting right now to me and walking in front of the monitor, I didn't tell her I am not listening to her.

So the party is over and it was a nice ability, just hope we get it back.

Chatterbox

Miss Martha chatters all day long, to who, I have no clue.  You hear meow, meow all over the place and I would love to know who she is talking to  because I'm sure not listening.

Callie would 'chirp' and now suddenly Martha chirps chatters.  I hate to tell her I'm not listening, I don't like to hurt kids feelings.

Thomas also has a new bed, he loves foam, 3 inch firm form.  I went to the store to buy it and the lady asks, "OH what are you making?"  I am now thinking, ok how do I tell her its a bed for my cat?  I just say, OH you would not believe and you wouldn't be able to make it. "OH I always like to hear what people are making"  I'm thinking, sure I'm making a bed !   So I just say, OK it's a bed for my cat, he loves the foam, I guess the memory foam bath mat is not good enough for him.  She just starts to laugh, I'm sure thinking, freaking nut lady get her out of my store !  She said she understood she has two very spoiled dogs at home. 

As I walk out the door she says, "Happy Easter" YOU TOO oh and my cat will have a good one too!

Yes I'm crazy but as I type this he is sound asleep on his foam, in front of the open window enjoying life.
That's all that matters to me.  Now if the little chatterbox would shut her trap ............

After reading.....

The Crabby Mom Blog it struck me so funny and thinking, hummmm I WAS like that when I was little, YES chatty ole me.

When I was little I can remember 'hiding' behind the chair when people came over and never talked.  I remember being in my room, by myself under the bed or in a corner just playing and being by myself.  It was not strange for me to just sit, sit back and listen and I still do it to this day, well not this day since I'm typing away on the computer. 

I remember my mother coming into the bedroom looking for me, I'm OK I'm under the bed.

I can remember people coming over, FAMILY and NOT talking, just didn't feel like it, I just sat and listened.

Now when I get tired I get quiet, or thinking, well you also see smoke when I'm thinking.  I'm just in general a quiet person, just sitting there listening and taking it all in. 

So Crabby Mom, your child is not the only quiet one around.

Just brought back childhood memories, thanks!

First Road Trip.....

Martha did her first road trip, yep down the shore. 

So I trick the little creature, stuff her in the carrier, oh sorry, PLACE her in the carrier, close the lid and pray.  In the truck we go and head south to the shore.  Now Thomas is the worlds worse traveler, he has to get anxiety medicine, we "juice" him 30 minutes prior to departing.  He will just lay in the carrier like a beached whale and meow.  First off he is funny looking, he has the grid against his face and 2nd, he has just about no clue what he is doing sometimes.  And then there is the driver, ohhhh boy does he meow just as loud, he does not want Thomas to get 'upset' Upset, I'll give you upset when I hear Thomas meow and then Gary meowing at Thomas, not a fun trip at all.  Then you look at Martha in her carrier, SLEEPING, can someone take some lessons from the carrier next to you and shut your mouth and eyes.

She did great, go to the house and she found the washer God, got behind it when we were not home and came out when we got home.  I like the carpet at the shore, I can't see their fur all over the place!

She came home great and when we got home, she actually was a little nicer with me, came running to the couch and enjoyed a scratch or two, oh and yes, 2:30 a.m. too came on the bed, just checking I didn't leave!

So little Miss Martha made her first road trip for the summer, it will just continue till October.

Her job is done..........

Callie's job on earth has come to a end.  I had to have her put to sleep today, her time here on earth is no longer needed.  I needed Callie to help me with Martha and Callie did a great job.  With my animals a new animal comes into my life when one is to leave me. 

Thomas came into my life and LuLu passed 8 months later, Thomas helped us with LuLu's passing.

Martha came into my life and Callie passed 3 months later, Callie helped me get Martha to come out from behind the vanity.

And Gary and I know, when a new addition is added to the family, one is to leave us, and the new addition usually shows up when someone is sick.

I have said many times I need a rest from animals, I have had a animal in my life for 40 years, I am the vet, I am the pooper-scooper, I tend to them when sick, ill, and in need of meds.  I need a rest from animals.

But I have also come to believe God put me here on this earth for the animals, any animal that has come into my life has issues.  Thomas has aids, Martha, may have trauma to her head, but if I am put here for them, that's ok, they don't ask for anything but a lap, or couch, and to play string.

Callie is with her Orangie, and that's all that matters, she is in a much better place right now.

I will miss the little Gnome, but her time is done here on earth.

To my furry little Gnome, you will be missed dearly, we love you.

Little Miss Martha, well Marty....

Martha really started out as Marty, Marty Feldmen with the crazy eyes.  Martha showed her little foot prints, to Gary, and went under our neighbors shed.  It was in the middle of winter, why not! And Gary followed 'the' footprints and I get the ole, "There are tracks under the shed" line at dinner.  So this was when we already had a stray cat living under my desk, Lil Boy.  But Thomas had no doings with Lil Boy so he moved to Nutley and now lives on a green shag rug, what ever.  So Gary proceeds to tell me there IS this little gray cat, sure, now we are seeing colors for sure in the snow.  One day I'm working at my home desk and suddenly I see, yes I SEE a little gray cat on the deck headed towards the food. I get on the Nextel to Gary, "THERE IS A GRAY KITTEN ON THE DECK"  see, I told you !  The next day I trap this beast, make ME the bad guy for getting the cat in the trap.  I bring it in, she is scared, I get the trap in our large bathroom and let her go, well if you ever saw a ping pong ball bounce around, well a scared cat looks the same way! I call Gary and say, 'you really don't need a shower till she calms down, right?'

Martha lived behind my vanity and hugged the radiator God.  We still were not sure what she was, boy or girl and when she came in her one eye was closed a little. So Gary named her Marty, I said what if he is a girl? OK Martha.  So she came out with a trail of treats, I would bring Callie in by her and she would come out and be friends with Callie, meow and chat with Callie.  But Callie is a old lady and wanted no part of this young brat. So as Martha came out from the vanity, I tried my hardest to "look" and see what she was, you ask how that can that be hard, easy when you can't get close and see and forget to bring your glasses in so you can see.  So with her being so young, I had to do research, go online and look for graphic description, and you know, you do get graphic pictures on HOW to tell young apart.

OK I have my knowledge, back in the bathroom, make a trail of food, out she comes, starts to play, get the ole tail UP and I LOOK, yep Marty IS a Girl!  

So Martha lived in the bathroom for a while, I was able to get her fixed also, yes, I drugged her, stuffed her nicely in a carrier and off we went. Came home, back in the bathroom.  She lived in there till she would come out with out treats and 'miss' us, well me and Thomas.

She then came out into the house, she has only been with us since January 29th and she has made major progress a millimeter a day progress.  Her eye is still lazy, not sure if she was hit or in a bad fight that also hinders her progress.  She finally lets me pick her up, not all that happy but no scratching the wiggles have calmed down too.  As Gary says, she follows me around like a little duckling. 

Her and Thomas have WWF fights in the living room on the carpet, fur, fur all over the place and then they look at me like "What" kids.  She has made progress with Gary, he was the Swamp Monster since he was at work all day and it's just her and I she is finally letting him pet her. He keeps saying something "I can get my hands around her neck and put her in the carrier?" but I don't hear him.  Tee Hee

Right now, I have Thomas sleeping on my desk, Martha is in the living room on the couch, she has become a little independent.  She is a little cutie but she has the ruffest fur down the middle of her back, ick!

She will be heading to her shore house so if you never hear from me again, she ate me alive of getting her in and out of the cage and getting her back in the cage down the shore oh and finding her down the shore, we don't own a big house, but I know she will find behind the washer in no time.

We do have a feral cat that I trap for the winter, Mooch, yes Mooch is a Mooch for food, till next time the live and times of Mooch on the washer machine................

Thomas the Tom

That's how it started.  I saw this LARGE cat, yes, yes, out the back door.  So I feed him, knew he was a boy! And he kept coming back, I know, who wouldn't when your getting pretty good food.  So then he started to sleep on my swing on my deck.  Now that can't happen, why sleep on a swing when I have a house full of beds and couches.  So I say, "Gary.... should I trap him?"  Sure.  So I do, and I get him, boy is he a heavy one.  I get the cage in the house, just about need the tractor for this one.  I get him in, let him settle down, and he falls asleep in the cage!  I call Gary, "GARY, THIS IS NO STRAY CAT HE'S SLEEPING" Well let him out, he belongs to someone.  So I let him out of the cage.  We only have Callie and LuLu at this point so it's boy against two old ladies. 

He proceeds to look and like this inside joint.  But Thomas needed to be fixed if he was going to come in and visit and live with us. So I pay to have him fixed.  He still wanted to go outside, how can I keep a 15 pound cat INSIDE, so he would go in and out and in and out and he didn't like when we had the fire on, made him too hot so he would go out and sleep on the swing with snow on him.  That was not going to happen, so I open the back door, scoop him up and in the house he came.  This went on for a bit, as time went on his stays IN the house were longer then his stays outside, Thomas came to us in January 2010 so he did the winter thing of in and out and then summer came. 

Well what 'stray' cat would not like a shore house! with a full screened in porch with couch, so yes, Thomas took to sleeping in the porch, I fooled him in thinking he is being 'let out' when I open the door to the porch!  This winter came and Thomas didn't ask to go outside to 'cool off'.  During the summer of 2010 he would ask to go outside, he did, I let him out but got yelled at from Gary to not let him out, what if he gets in a fight or hit by a car. I know, I know, well trust me every time Thomas went outside and was gone for over a hour, if I didn't pray to the Cat God to get his fuzzy Butt in the house! And thanked the Cat God every time he came back in. 

Thomas was almost named Teddy, if you all remember the Teddy Ruxpin talking teddy bear that is what Thomas's face looks like.  Thomas is a gray tuxedo, another handsome little fella like George.  Perfect little cuffed paws and a nice little tuxedo bib.  I couldn't name him Teddy, every time I did I thought of the Kennedy's.

Thomas had to let his girlfriend pass, LuLu. He did ok after her passing, he still had Callie. Callie has cancer, she has hyper-thyroidism and the tumor on the thyroid there is a 1 to 2% chance it will ever turn to cancer, well poor Callie fell into that percent range and will not be with us much longer.  Callie did her job in this world, when we trapped Martha.  OH didn't I mention Martha, well I wonder how that happen.

Till next time, the life and trapping of Miss Martha............

Orangie, Callie and LuLu

If there were ever 3 stooges, I had them.  Each was so different in personalities.
Orangie was the boy of the group and Callie and LuLu followed Orangie, if he can do it, so can we. If he can go in there, so can we, it must be safe, Orangie is doing it.  Yes Orangie was a orange cat, Callie is a Calico and LuLu was black and white, she just had a 'flower child' look on her face and became LuLu.

Orangie we rescued from Gary's aunts house one winter night, you got it, trapped them! in the truck they went and in Gary's mom's basement they went.  Since I am the animal tamer, feeder, they took to me first.  Orangie loved to sit on my lap.  So as time went on we let them outside, they were not going anywhere, would you ?  Free food, great bed and a warm basement.  So in and out they went, I would clink the cat food can every night at the basement door, ears would perk up and run, yes in this order, Orangie, Callie and LuLu. 

Then suddenly the worst thing happened, the basement door was 'left open' to the house, darn Orangie got out and ended up in the bedroom by us.  How did that happen, "I have NOOOOOOO Idea" George was still alive but his time was very near.  So it was Tilly, Bandit, George, Orangie, Callie and LuLu.  After George passed, the 3 stooges ended up on the main floor of the house and became mine full time.  They stayed where we stayed and when we traveled, they traveled. 

Orangie was just a character, good guy.  He had kidney failure so he ended up in the hospital for a week and passed.  I was now down to Tilly, Bandit, Callie and LuLu.

Callie is your typical calico, stubborn, determined and a mind of her own. She has cancer now and making it day by day.

LuLu had a 'secret' boy friend too, Thomas.  Thomas came into the home in 2010.  Thomas and LuLu didn't have much time together before her passing but her boyfriend was Thomas. Thomas loved LuLu.  Tilly never got to meet Thomas, I am not sure the Princess would like "the bully"  Thomas has a few names,  Thomas the Bull, Thomas No-Nose, when I trapped another kitten, Thomas would beat up Lil Boy to no end so we swore Thomas was in the Mob.

So then there was Thomas......

Your not allowed in the ditch.....

OK I know the blog is about my 'creatures' but you will come to learn I can come up with some good stories.

So we are having a French Drain dug around two sides of our house, it looks like I live in a war zone or we are building a mot and the Croc's will be delivered at noon. Gary has to tar the foundation and I was the clean up crew in the ditch when the machine would dig out dirt and leave behind, I would shovel it in the mess again to be dug out, well try again, just didn't want to leave the hole.  Then we got to a smaller area, and I was told, "Stay out of the ditch" I think, stay out, this is fun, why?  Well I was told the sides could cave in and I would be taken out in a body bag.  I'm thinking, man these guys are no fun! So I stayed out of the ditch, highly against my wishes.

But I was the dump truck driver on Saturday.  We were taking the dirt away by dump truck too, so they are digging and filling the truck, I hear.... "Crabtree go dump it"  I am thinking, I get to drive and dump I am doing the happy dance I reply "OK"  as I pass Gary in the drive, I say out the window, "Gary I just unhook this and dump, right" "right" OK and I hit the gas.  I was the dump truck driver Saturday and in my glory.

You will also come to learn I am not your average girl and I am so far from 'pink' you can imagine.  I DO have a pink shirt, but it is just 'not me'.

So that was my weekend, oh I better go, I need to order two more tandem loads of stone.

George

George, he was such a handsome fella, he was all black, black tuxedo he had the perfect bib and perfect white cuff paws.  He was our first boy.  George's story, yes is not any of my animals connected to a story, well here it is......

We were at my MIL's living, didn't have our house yet, so Gary goes outside and he see's this black cat hanging around.  So yes, he puts food out, he eats and moves on.  Now George was almost named Charlie, why Charlie.  George showed up every day at 5:00, so he was "5:00 Charlie" something about Vietnam or something war story Gary said.  But George stuck, I don't even know how George came about.  So one winter freezing night, Gary saw George, shivering! That didn't sit well with us.  So Gary was able to get close to George with some lunch meat and grabs him!  In the house he came.  Now as you may notice I keep saying, "Gary" saw, "Gary" trapped, "Gary" caught, yes it's not all me !

So we put George in the laundry room, not sure what we had on our hands.  That didn't do well and then George just had run of the house.  He was your typical boy, he was younger, and didn't like living in the house full time.  So he would go in and out and realized, hummm this couch is pretty nice!  So it was Tilly, Bandit and George.

George was someones cat, he had NO claws and not too many teeth.  So we always worried when George went outside with no front claws.  But we felt much better when we saw him with a animal and he did well with his back feet, they were like his front paws to him.

One day my MIL was letting George in and all of a sudden I hear, "NOOOOOOOO" I run, no clue what I am going to encounter and George had a mole in his mouth and she almost let George in the house with the mole.  George was always leaving us treats at the back door.

George also had to go to the vet for a few days to 'watch' something pass thru him, sorry to be graphic.  One day I come home from work and he comes in and paws at his mouth, I think "HE"S CHOKING" in the truck we go and to the vet.  George stayed, he had a x-ray and the vet said he ate something.  So every day he had a x-ray to see how far thru the 'item' was.  It passed and I passed out at the bill.

George had a girl friend too, Tilly.  But it was a secret romance, Tilly was still Princess and could not 'like' a boy! How could that be.  We felt bad for Tilly when George passed, she already lost her sister and just about needed a psychologist what would happen with George.  She did well as can be for her.

George also had Hyper-Thyroidism, so we did the Radiation 131 treatment for him.  George went to upstate NY for the treatment, he had to stay a week since he was Radioactive, we did have a web cam so we watched him till lights went out.  One night the lights stayed on we said George is having a pizza party.  When I picked him up, I was given a letter from the facility that if I set off the Radiation detectors on the Tapanzee Bridge, show the officials this paper, they will let you go.  I'm thinking great, I can see it now, "Cat sets off detectors and shuts down the highway"  we made it over the bridge fine and home fine. We always joked that George glowed in the dark for a while. 

Then there was Orangie, Callie and LuLu.......

Bandit and Tilly

Bandit and Tilly, well how did Tilly get her name, please no laughing, the story goes like this.....
Gary was working on his Aunt's car, it was a old car, it had the push buttons in it ! and Aunt Irene drove like an old  "Aunt Tilly".  So the car was in the garage and when Gary would work on the car, Tilly would get in the car and sleep on the back ledge by the rear window.  So low and behold Tilly came along, sleeping in the old Tilly Mobile. 

Bandit, after Tilly's sister Kookie passed, I had a dream of a orange cat, so the local adoption place had a orange cat. OH My dream comes true! Lets go get the orange cat, well he was cute but he just didn't grab me but there was this little black and white cat behind us trying like heck to get our attention, it was Bandit.  We look at each other and say, we will take her !   And she came home, she was 6 months old and she had a black mask on just like a Bandit.

Tilly didn't do well after missing her sister so Bandit was the bully of the two.  Tilly was a little Princess and a Princess she was! Her crown never tarnished !  We always thought Tilly was going to be a BIG cat, her paws were big, but she never went over 7 pounds.  Bandit put on the weight with little stick legs. 

Tilly and Bandit did well together, they lived with each other.  Tilly now Tilly was Princess, did NO evil in Gary's eyes, NEVER got into trouble, in Gary's eyes and did NO wrong, yes again in Gary's eyes.  Now if I dare said she did something wrong, I just about got time out!

Tilly had a cat bed in the shape of a crown, yes Pink.  Tilly was a very pink little girl.  During her younger days, if you tapped your chest, she would run/jump up you to get to your shoulder and once on your shoulder she would hang out on your shoulder with her arm out with a attitude to no end.

Many times we 'lost' Tilly, could not find her for the life of us.  So I lift the blankets and she was under the blankets on the water bed, HOT as a little pancake, eyes blinking at me, looking at me and if looks cold kill I would not be typing this.  And looking like DON'T LET THE HEAT OUT and I would drop the blanket back on her.  Always had to tell my MIL if you don't see Tilly, look for a lump on the bed, it's her.   Bandit did it too so word must have gotten out that its the 'hot spot' in the house. 

Tilly lived to 19 and Bandit till 18, they lived the life, everyone always says if you die, come back as Pam's animals.  You get a heated bed as you grow into old age, you get a shore house for the summer to sit on the porch and sleep.  You get a house in the woods for the winter, and a good lap to sit on and get good 'pets'.

During Tilly's and Bandit's time, George showed up.

More on George later........

The beginning ~ Autumn

The beginning, that's the start right? I grew up on a farm, it seemed all animals always came to me, my horse trusted me to no end, my pony did what ever I asked her to do even while she was pregnant.  I always say I would rather deal with a animal than a person, I would rather clean out a stall the shovel it with a person. 

I'm married 28 years, Gary, my DH of mine is a animal person just like me, no I think worse and everyone thinks its ME.  I remind them it's not, but somehow they don't believe me.

"Our" first animal, trust me I can't go way back to when I had my first animal, that would be for a book version of me and my zoo.  So our first animal together was Autumn, she was a red doberman, beautiful dog we always said she was a human in a dog suit.  We had gotten her for my birthday, that dog was our first child.  The things she would do, she loved to go for a "R" you could never say the word in front of her, she know, Ride, going for a ride in the truck.  She also loved "M", yes McDonald's she got a cheeseburger happy meal, yes I got the toy! We only went during good toy times !  She loved Carvel too and lets not speak of the bank!  Her long nose fit WELL in the tub of the drive up and knew what came out of those tubes.  She loved to drive down the road with her head on my shoulder as I drove.  She broke her leg when she was 6 months old, she learned how to work that cast well. 

She loved to go in the garden and you would see the corn stalks moving and out would come Autumn with a tomato in her mouth.  We think she was a German Italian, her mouth would water when we ate Italian food.
She really didn't like when I got gas in the truck, but I had to try and explain that man outside the window will let us drive around more if you let him do his job, she didn't get it but let him fill the truck.

She loved to play 'bucket' with Gary, we had a 5 gal pain bucket and she would fetch it, but just imagine this, a doberman, running around the back yard with a bucket in her mouth, oh did I mention she was looking on the INSIDE of the bucket, yes she had the bucket up so she was looking inside the bucket while she ran, don't worry we didn't let her run into the tree. 

We had gotten her two kittens to keep her company while I was at work, that was Kookie and Tilly, now those two are another story.  Tilly and Kookie were 6 weeks old when we got them, so they thought Autumn was their Mom, I know, dog / cat, you tell them. They would nurse on her neck, I guess Autumn liked the neck message the kittens gave her.  Kookie was not with us long, so Bandit came into our life. 

Bandit and Autumn were best of pals, Bandit and Autumn would play hide and seek.  Now just imagine a 80 pound dog running with a 5 pound cat behind her then they reach the living room, turn around and it would be the cat and the dog, it was a sight.

Autumn was with us for 12 years I am sure Bandit and Autumn are playing their never ending game of hide and seek.

Now the next set of animals at the zoo was Tilly and Bandit, their story next.