Pets

[Addie]

When I was a kid, I remember dogs wandering around on the streets all the time Over the years the city has been cracking down and now you only see them on a leash. And they always have their tags on. If an officer should see you with your dog, even on a leash, without the tags you can receive a rather very large fine. More than one offense and you lose your dog. Right now I can't tell you that last time I saw a loose dog on the streets. And the streets are so much cleaner. I have yet to see a dog walker without a plastic bag in their hand.

You don't get your tags here in Boston unless the dog has had all of his yearly shots. So you are forced to take him to a vet to get his shots so you can take the paper to City Hall to get his yearly tags. The dog is protected and so is the public.

 

[Claire]

Rosebud is getting the dosage recommended for her weight. She hasn't had a seizure since starting, so although it would be great if we could reduce it, I'm loath to try. The pills are 16.2 mg and she takes 1.5 pills twice a day. My husband is in charge of the meds (I, myself, don't have any rx meds, just doctor-recommended vitamins and supplements, OTC stuff, but hubby has several Rx meds he takes, so he just pills Rosebud when he pills himself, so he's more dependable). Taking 1 pill a day would make it much easier for him, splitting such tiny pills can be messy. The fact is, she isn't overall lethargic enough to complain, it's mostly probably her owners and the weather. Neither one of us are ones for walking or sitting out in the rain. When she's outside she runs full out until she gets tired, then plops down for a rest.

After having a dog that took a week walk (decided to go see the Mississippi, I think, which is several miles away) I do my damndest to make sure tags are firmly attached and gates latched. Our neighbors on all sides know to tell me if they see any signs of burrowing under the fence and will actually shore up stones or bricks if they see it (yes, the were involved in the Keiki hunt after her great escape). I think most cities have laws about needing at the very least proof of current rabies vaccinations as a requirement to register/license your pets. Except Hawaii when we were assigned there. They had very strict quarantine laws, so rabies vaccinations weren't required. In fact, at that time, you had to call the vet in advance when you got orders back to the mainland to make sure they even had the vaccine on hand, or go to the Army vet

 

[ahoymatey2013]

My area doesn't require a vet's paper. I have tags on mine but its just their names and my number on their tags. I'm sorry but I refuse to pay a fee to license them. I spend a lot of money on their vet for them each year and until children have to be licensed then my kids won't get one either.

 

[taxlady]

Outside! That's a scary place! ...

Shreddy seems to have agoraphobia, but he forgets and wants to go outside. He gets out there and panics.

Okay...I had a slice of pizza on a plate, set it on the arm of the couch and I'll be darned if Latté didn't jump up there and was licking it. Silly cat was licking the pepperoni!

Sucha (now deceased) used to want some of our pizza. She just wanted the pepperoni and to lick the sauce and the cheese. We used to call her our Samurai Pizza Kitty.
Samurai Pizza Cats - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I had Latté on a leash outside when a car went by about 4 feet away...I was quickly wearing a clawed hat that climbed all the way up me to the top of my head.

I know that hat. Many moons ago I had an adorable 5 pound shenanikitty named Musmus. She became that hat when we introduced her to Bumper, the Saint Bernard.

I seem to remember that there was some discussion, here on DC, of vaccines not being good for senior cats. Does anyone know anything about that?

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Shreddy seems to have agoraphobia, but he forgets and wants to go outside. He gets out there and panics.

I seem to remember that there was some discussion, here on DC, of vaccines not being good for senior cats. Does anyone know anything about that?

I don't know about vaccines, but when we moved from OH to MA we drove straight through with our 10 year old cat. Since Midnight wasn't fond of car rides (she was one of those strays driven to a strange neighborhood and dropped off who have a fear of cars) I asked the vet about a sedative. He said the older the cat the more a drug affects them. I was a bit nervous so I gave my 12 1/2 pound cat a dose for a 10 pounder. Eventually she settled but I don't think it was so much the tranc as it was resigning herself to her fate. I suppose vaccines might react the same, a normal dose making more of an impact on an older the cat.

 

[taxlady]

Shreddy has stopped eating kibble and is demanding canned food several times a day. I was worried about his teeth.

I brought him to the vet today and he seems to have two abscesses. Poor boy, no wonder he only wants soft food and he's been yowling.

He had blood work done, a urine sample taken, and got an antibiotic shot. I'll know more in a day or three.

If he is healthy enough, they will give him a general anaesthetic and pull those teeth and do anything else dental that needs doing. The vet told me that if he just gets the antibiotic, the abscesses come back. He as senior, but in good weight. They will check for diabetes, thyroid, and a bunch of other stuff.

I asked the vet if she had any recipes for homemade catfood, and she does. I'll get them next time. I mentioned cats and diabetes and carbs and she agreed. She said the current science points to excess grain in the diets of cats as a cause of diabetes.

He was not happy about the ride in the car.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Poor Shreddy...extra hugs from me.

 

[taxlady]

Poor Shreddy...extra hugs from me.

Thanks, I'll do that. He doesn't mind hugs when we are lying down and snuggling.

 

[LPBeier]

Awe, gentle hugs for Shreddy from me too!

Violet has taken to wimpering a lot. We thought she was sick or during our furniture shuffle stressed, but she checked out fine. She will be sitting outside on "her" mat in front of the screen doggy door and will wimper. She can come and go as she pleases so it isn't that. She will be in the living room with TB and I and will go under the dining room table (a previous "Joie" spot) and wimper.

Well, we have decided she is just wanting attention, even though we are right there to give it. I think it is she is bored and misses her "brother" who has been gone five months now.

We really don't want to get another dog, but I hate to see her suffer as well. She has lots of toys, and as I said the freedom to go in and out to the back door as she pleases. We give her all the attention we possibly can.

Any ideas?

 

[taxlady]

Thanks Laurie. Shreddy gets bored too.

Have you considered getting a kitten as company for Violet?

 

[LPBeier]

Taxy, I would love a kitten and Violet loves cats (though the feeling isn't always mutual). However, both TB and I are highly allergic to cats and also we decided we weren't going to get any more pets.

 

[taxlady]

Taxy, I would love a kitten and Violet loves cats (though the feeling isn't always mutual). However, both TB and I are highly allergic to cats and also we decided we weren't going to get any more pets.

Allergies is a pretty good excuse.

The vet phoned. Shreddy has a hyperactive thyroid. No wonder he is so hungry and isn't gaining weight and may actually have lost some. They have placed an order for the special cat food with no iodine. The vet will talk to the nutritionist about homemade, food with no iodine. All his other levels were great except very, slightly elevated liver enzymes, which is probably because of the thyroid.

The thyroid diet usually works in 1-3 months. I will bring him in again when he has been eating it for a month and they will check his levels. Then we will talk about teeth again.

We are going to have "the talk" about how much are we willing to spend on the health of a 16 yo cat. We will think about it first. Stirling says he isn't sure, but somewhere between $1,000 and $10,000. And we want to figure out over how many years does that amount count for.

 

[taxlady]

I just bought a case of 24x154g (5.5oz) cans of the special diet food for Shreddy. $62.16 + sales taxes = $71.45.

And he is supposed to get 1.5 cans / day. $140 / month to feed the cat! Oh, for certain I want the recipe and start feeding him homemade diet cat food.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I just bought a case of 24x154g (5.5oz) cans of the special diet food for Shreddy. $62.16 + sales taxes = $71.45.

And he is supposed to get 1.5 cans / day. $140 / month to feed the cat! Oh, for certain I want the recipe and start feeding him homemade diet cat food.

TL, I found some good info here: animalendocrine.blogspot.com

 

[Dawgluver]

Awww, Shreddy. Hope you feel better soon. Tell your mommy you are worth it( she already knows)

 

[taxlady]

TL, I found some good info here: animalendocrine.blogspot.com

Thanks PF.

That just reinforces my notions about the dry food. This same company makes a dry cat food that is also for "thyroid health". I checked the website. The first ingredient is corn meal.

From their website, I see that carbs are ~30% of the dry matter. They are actually slightly lower in the dry food.

I really want to talk to the vet's nutritionist and get some recipes/guide lines for homemade food. I just figured out that this stuff costs over $19/kg (~$8.50/lb)!

 

[taxlady]

Awww, Shreddy. Hope you feel better soon. Tell your mommy you are worth it( she already knows)

Yes, he is worth it, but I feel like this food is a ripoff.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I've been searching my bookmarks, found this one for cat food, Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition :: healthy cat diet, making cat food, litter box, cat food, cat nutrition, cat urinary tract health

 

[taxlady]

I've been searching my bookmarks, found this one for cat food, Feeding Your Cat: Know the Basics of Feline Nutrition :: healthy cat diet, making cat food, litter box, cat food, cat nutrition, cat urinary tract health

Thanks for the link. That was very interesting. That vet really doesn't like Hill's and Hills Prescription Y/D. At least the canned one doesn't have soy, like the dry one. I'm going to ask the vet about the radioactive iodine treatment.

I betcha the cans have BPA in the lining. Looks like some of the stuff I have to avoid is stuff that Shreddy shouldn't have either.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I was more interested in the recipes for cat food, as I was determined my cats were going to have homemade food. I quickly grew out of that, but they do get a good quality food.