Apr 14, 2012

4-Week Old Kitten Marshmallow

Marshmallow was born on March 1 as a tiny little thing. She was only 60 percent of the weight she should have been, so four weeks later she is still super tiny!

Her family is so happy that she is doing so well, and loves her tons. And they call her "Marshy" which, for me, makes this fluffball even cuter.


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Apr 13, 2012

Sal, the Most Special Kitty I've Ever Known

How can one little cat touch so many people so deeply in so little time? Sal was one of the special ones.

For those of you who have been following, I have sad news. Sal was helped to the Bridge yesterday. I burst into tears when I heard. Thick, blubbering tears. And I've burst into them more times than I can count in the hours since then.

How can one little cat work his way into your heart so fast?

On July 5 last year, a couple friends and I rescued Sal from inside a Mustang's engine in our office parking lot. We called him Mustang Sally until we realized he was a boy. So then he was Sal.

This video is him when we first got him out and safe in a carrier. It took us hours to get him out of that engine. Poor, tiny scared thing.


Luckily, my good friends at Cats Exclusive had room in their foster program to take him in. He was perfect.

His foster mom fell in love with him and we all suspect she kept a little extra saying he needed "more socialization time" before bringing him in to the adoption center -- because she loved him so much and wanted to extend his stay with her. He had that effect on people.

Once he got to Cats Exclusive, it was clear this boy was a love bug. He was perfect! Love, love, love.

Sal cuddled up with his best buddy, Smokey.

One of the techs even seriously thought about adopting Sal himself. He had that effect on people.

Then somewhere along the line in the next few months, he developed a neurological issue and lost control of his back legs. He was happy, though, and checked out healthy otherwise. He purred and played and didn't seem at all affected by his wacky legs -- a little frustrated sometimes, maybe, but not bothered.

His wobbly legs only made people love him more. This perfect boy was still perfect and he just weaved his way deeper in everyone's hearts there. The techs and everyone who worked there all gave him special attention and he was an obvious favorite. He had that effect on people.

One day a couple weeks ago, I got a call from the shelter manager (she knew how much I loved him) to tell me that Sal had been really going downhill in that past week. They had been and would continue to do all they could, but did I want to come see him? Yes, of course I did. I dropped all plans to go hold him for a couple hours. (That's me smooching Sal that day over there on the right.)

He was weak and I could see what she meant. But he was still purring like mad, still loving. He'd had some additional blood tests and it turned out that something was low (his platelets maybe?) and they put him on a medicine to fix that.

Within a week, he was back to his old "special" self! Yay! I went over to visit him again -- just this past Saturday -- and it was almost a miracle. There he was holding his head up high, drinking water, eating food and scooting around!

This is a video of him scooting. You'll see when you watch it. He'll have that effect on you.


Cute, right? Gah, I wanted to gobble him up. He spent most of my two-hour visit curled up in my arms or my lap. Purring and just looking at me. I spent most of that two hours just thankful that he was getting better.

He had gone from death's door to his playful self again, and everyone was optimistic. They decided to keep him on that medicine for another month to see if he could even improve more. And then we could do physical therapy! And he could get even stronger! Everyone was Team Sal.

Here he is playing with a fishy toy that day. He didn't care that his back legs don't work well -- he was just a normal cat!


I left covered in cat hair and just so happy. I assumed he was in the clear.

But today I got an email from the shelter manager, because she knows how much I loved him. The subject line just said "I'm so sorry" and I knew before I even opened it.

I read it in tears, squinting just to see the words. Sal was losing everything and they couldn't watch him completely go to nothing. They were all in tears. He is an angel in Heaven. She thanked me for bringing him into their lives.

I was so sad and mad at the same time. I would have been there with him when he went. I wish they'd told me first. But I don't know how bad he was, and maybe she thought she was protecting me. And I was SO happy that I'd just been with him and had such a special visit less than a week before. I truly know they did all they could for him and wouldn't have made that decision lightly.

Me and Sal hanging out last weekend. We were a pretty cute pair, huh?

How one little cat can have such an impact on someone, I don't know. I've probably spent less than seven hours total with Sal and I'm just as sad as if I'd lost a cat who I'd had for 20 years. I wish we could have done more for him. I wish there had been a magic cure. I wish I'd brought him home with me so he'd have at least had a real home for a little while.

I'm sorry for getting so sad in posts like these. They help me. I like to have memories recorded, and it helps to write out my feelings. I was just going to post a couple pictures and videos, but then I got to typing and I wanted to do it right. For Sal.

Cats Exclusive is going to have him cremated and they're going to keep him in a little urn at the front of the adoption center as a "lost little soldier." He fought so hard. He was sweet and playful, no matter what the world threw at him. They've only ever done this with one other cat, but Sal was just so special...

He had that effect on people.

Apr 12, 2012

Dog Protects Food Bowl From a Duck

For those of you who don't know, ducks have guts. They are bold and brave and often really annoying. (I know this from experience when a gaggle of them once lived in my office parking lot and I spent my days chasing after them like an idiot in my work clothes outside my office building so the cats could have a few minutes of peace to eat. I hope to never do that again. But I would. Anyway...)

You'd think a dog would be a big enough opponent for a duck to not try and steal his food. You'd also be wrong.

But this pretty doggie is not about to give up his noms!





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Apr 11, 2012

Kitten Plays Dead

Well, this cat attack did not go exactly as this cute white kitten had planned. Luckily, though, she had a plan B... Play dead!


BONUS CUTE: Here is another cat playing dead. And three dogs playing dead, because dogs are pretty good at this sort of thing, too.

Apr 10, 2012

Two Cats Tuesday: Update on Pimp's Thyroid Stuff

Happy Two Cats Tuesday, Cuteheads! Today Pimp wants to tell you how he did on his test last week. He is a very good student, apparently, because he got great scores!

Last Tuesday I brought him in for his four-week follow-up visit. Remember he was diagnosed with hyperthyroid and we decided to treat it with the special Hill's Prescription Diet y/d food?

His initial levels when we first started the food where at 11.1. The V-E-T said this number was off the chart! Normal levels are between 0.8 and 4.0. The special food (as long as it's the only thing he eats) is supposed to bring them down pretty quickly -- and he'll have to eat that for life to keep his levels down.

Well, when we went in, she retested his thyroid stuff, and his levels are almost back in the normal range! He tested at 4.5 now... almost there!

I am a genius!

She also wanted to do two other test, just to make sure there weren't any underlying kidney problems (these can be masked by the high metabolism caused by hyperthyroid). He took one of those tests and passed with flying colors (yay!), but there was one more we weren't able to do, because of a little "issue" Pimp had.

See, whenever we go to the vet, poor Pimp always pees in his carrier in the waiting room and then poops in it there to, or right when we get in the examination room. It's just been his routine for the past couple years. So, like the good mom I am, I brought a towel to soak it up in the carrier so he didn't get icky.

Sure enough, he peed (on the towel, yay!) and pooped. I cleaned it all up like a good mom.

And then the vet said she needed a urine sample.

Um, I said as I waved the plastic bag with the pee-soaked towel in it, can you squeeze it out of here? (I was really only half joking.)

She couldn't, and Pimp didn't even have a drop left in his bladder to give her, so we have to get back to that one. He refuses to go in the special non-clumping litter she gave us so I could collect a sample, so it looks like we're taking a car ride to the vet this week -- without the towel. ;)

Paws crossed the pee test comes back great, too!

Apr 9, 2012

Smart Cat Opens Freezer Door to Get Fish Sticks

Oscar has a thing for fish sticks and learned all by himself how to open the freezer door to get to them.

The first time he did this, the family came home to find a 2-pound turkey nearly completely eaten on the floor. The next time, it was the fish sticks. Those are his favorite.

To me, the best part of all of this is how he hangs on to the door and swings as it opens. Wheeeeee! And for the record, they know have a safety lock on their freezer door.


Thanks to Cute's friend and fabulous supporter of Save Loews Cats, Michael, for sharing this cat opens the freezer door video!

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Apr 8, 2012

Happy Easter From Cute!

Happy Easter, everyone!

No matter what your religion, I am sure that you all believe that Pimp in bunny ears is cute.


I'm just not sure if he believes it.
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