Injured, Sick and Broken

We're late posting this because of limited computer time, and Windows went berserk in the heat again when we tried to post this earlier, so we were forced to shut down suddenly.  But we want Momo to know we are thinking of her.

Tomorrow is Purrs for Neala Day.  She is headed to Salt Lake City today for her surgery tomorrow. This is the same rare surgery Maxie needs but her problem is a birth defect.  Mom Trish will keep the Cat Blogosphere updated.

And Sammy Meezer broke a tooth.  He has to go back to the vet Thursday to stay overnight and have surgery to have the root taken out Friday.  Meezer Mom is short of funds unless they give up the internet or something. Can you imagine a whole month without a Meezer update? Or Billy Sweetfeets dancing videos? .  She is always helping others so if you can donate a dollar or two toward Sammy's surgery, it would help.  We don't want that "crazy" bunch off the internet for a month or two.  Readers requested a tip jar be put up so there is one in the Meezer's sidebar. 

We're still not officially posting.  Being forced to shut the computer down for hours at a time is actually helping us get some work done. Unfortunately, we're rushing like crazy while the computer is on.  So, bye for now.

Have a purring and tail wagging day.

Chapstick and Maxie

We needed a laugh today, so we were pleased a friend passed on a story to Jan. We borrowed it.

We had this great 10-year-old cat named Jack who just recently died. Jack was a great cat and the kids would carry him around and sit on him and nothing ever bothered him. He used to hang out and nap all day long on the mat in our bathroom. We have three kids and at the time of this story, they were 4 years old,3 years old, and 1 year old. The middle one is Eli. Eli really loved Chapstick. LOVED it. He kept asking to use my Chapstick and then would lose it. Finally one day I showed him where in the bathroom I keep my Chapstick and explained he could use it whenever he wanted to but he needed to put it right back in the drawer after he finished.


That year on Mother's Day, we were having the typical rush around and trying to get ready for church with everyone crying and carrying on. My two boys were fighting over the toy in the cereal box. I was trying to nurse my little one at the same time I was putting on my make-up. Everything was a mess and everyone had long forgotten that this was a wonderful day to honor me and the amazing job that is motherhood. We finally had the older one and the baby loaded in the car and I was looking for Eli. I searched everywhere and I finally went into the bathroom. There was Eli. He was applying my Chapstick very carefully to Jack's ... rear end.


Eli looked right into my eyes and said, "Chapped." Now if you have a cat, you know that he is right -- their little bottoms do look pretty chapped. And, frankly, Jack didn't seem to mind. The only question to ask at that point was whether it was the FIRST time Eli had done that to the cat's behind or the hundredth!?!


And THAT is my favorite Mother's Day moment ever because it reminds us that no matter how hard we try to civilize these glorious little creatures, there will always be that day when you realize they've been using your Chapstick on the cat's butt.

Author Unknown

And now that we've made you smile, we will update you on Maxie. Have a tissue handy.

Maxie is still alive after his surgery today, but the vet wants $6000 to insert a stent to hold his esophagus open. It was severely burned during a normal dental procedure due to negligence by the vet. Mom Laura tried unsuccessfully to find a way to borrow the money, so they are forced to choose the other option -- bring Maxie home for a few days so the family can say their good-byes and then have him euthanized within ten days. We are very sad for Maxie and his family.

Even if Laura does take action against the vet responsible, Maxie's need is immediate and it would not help him in time. There is a donate button on Laura's blog, should anyone care to make a donation to Maxie's care.

And as KC has posted on the Cat Blogosphere, "If anyone could help with an idea for a loan, please contact Mom Laura or even KC. They may be able to get the price of this surgery down somewhat."

You can read Laura's Friday update on Maxie's blog. We agree with the comment left by furkidsmom:"We hope that a miracle happens and that Maxie can get the operation."

See, Laura's apartment building burned in 2008 and her three cats were presumed dead. But Mu Shue, Lilly Lu and Iris were rescued a few days later. Mu Shue died of lymphoma and then Maxie joined the family.

Have a purring and tail wagging day.

Factual Friday

This is Rusty. Just dropped by to let you know we have dubbed today Factual Friday. and the fact is we're taking the day off. We are several posts behind but Jan has a gigantic head and we can't ...

Cotton: Psst, Rusty, Jan does not have a gigantic head. She has a gigantic headache!

Rusty:  Oh, sorry.  Jan has a gigantic headache and she's determined to share it with all of us. We can't think when her brain is creaking and groaning.  By tomorrow her headache should be better.  If not, we'll have to lock her out back in the Romper Room while we try to catch 40 winks or write a post, depending on whether we manage to get any rest tonight.

Oh, I almost forgot. Jan posted some new collector plates and a couple of music boxes last night. You can check them out at Jan's Funny Farm Fair.


This is so frightening to us we almost can't post it. But Maxie is in serious trouble. All because he had his teeth cleaned. His esophagus was badly burned -- yeah, we're wondering how this happened too! -- and his mom has wracked up a huge vet bill -- with a different vet -- trying to save him.

Maxie is having surgery today.  Nothing has helped him and this is his last chance at survival.  Still, the vet might not be able to save him. He might have to be euthanized while under the anesthesia. Mom Laura and her twins are very attached to Maxie and are hoping for a miracle.  Please stop by his blog and support his worried family. We hate the thought he might not make it.  Who would have thought getting his teeth cleaned could bring about this horror.  Click to visit his blog.Lilly Lu, Iris and Maxie Tell All.

Have a purring and tail wagging day.

Teeth and Fleas

Yes, we do realize this is a strange title. Teeth and fleas don't have anything in common, do they? Well, actually they often do. Your vet.

This is not to knock your vet. There are many good vets who care about their patients and will work with your humans to do everything possible to help you to get well or to stay well.

But since we don't have a voice or a vote at the vet's, it is each human's responsibility to make a wise and informed final decision on what is done for us. There's a lot they won't understand and they just have to rely on a vet's expertise, but in non-emergency/non-lifethreatening visits, decisions will arise such as which vaccinations we should receive.

Some of you are already aware of the current controversy over some vaccines and their repeated use in relation to cancer. If your human isn't already aware, this is only one of many sites on the pet vaccination controversy.

Yesterday Jan's friend Mark sent her a link to one she'd never heard of. Dog dental vaccine. (From what we can find, there is not yet one for cats, since the bacteria in a cat's mouth is different from a dog's.) It has evidently been around for a year or so and is now being heavily promoted.

We have been reading a number of kitty and woofie blogs recently where they were visiting the vet for dental cleaning or tooth removal. We can only imagine the shock of one poor kitty mom who had no notification the vet intended to take out 7 of her kitty's teeth. Aside from the horror of her furbaby losing 7 teeth, from some of the prices other cat owners are saying they were charged, the increase to the bill was likely several hundred dollars. (Jan would faint!)

So we got to thinking, since pet tooth removal is happening more often, how willing would humans be to pay for a vaccine to save them green papers and save their furbaby's teeth? So we checked the link to the vaccine company. Although we don't believe we want to try the vaccine, the information looks innocuous.

But wait, Jan's friend emailed her back telling her to check the MSD info. We hijacked her email and scrolled down the site page. At the bottom is the Material Safety Data Sheet link. If you can't open this link, just use the link to the vaccine company and scroll down.

What? Formaldehyde! Who injects dogs - or any living being - with formaldehyde? It's a potential cancer hazard!

Mark further emailed: My major was chemistry. Formaldehyde is a semi cyclic (unattached cycle) hydrocarbon because it's missing a connective molecule like a halo benzoic or halogen ion. That crap is interactive degenerative with LIFE.

Okay, we admit we have no idea what that means. Except for the degenerative with life part. (Degenerative: Of illness; marked by gradual deterioration of organs and cells along with loss of function.) Jan says she would never allow us to be injected with formaldehyde, but, unfortunately, if a vet ever suggested we should have the vaccine, the word "formaldehyde" would never be mentioned by the vet.

And now for the fleas. There has been an email circulating on the dangers of the new flea product Promeris which is available only from your vet. If you check snopes.com or other rumor sites, the validity of this is still unresolved. But on About.com there is a link in the comments below the email to a statement confirming the incident from Fort Dodge, manufacturer of the medication. There are other Promeris complaints on the internet. Some vets will not carry the product. Others are waiting to see how the new product does over time.

Jan had a problem last year with a couple of us and Advantage. She doesn't intend to try Promeris on any of us, so we aren't pro or con from personal experience. But we hope any human planning to use it - or any other potentially toxic product - on their furbaby will do some research and make an informed decision.