Cat Food

Josie had been sick a few weeks ago and kept vomiting up her food. We weren’t sure what was causing it, but we thought of the possibility that she had tainted food. She’s fairly finicky but seemed to enjoy the Science Diet Light Adult dry cat food we fed her. On a whim, we decided to try Nutro Natural Choice Weight Management. She loves it! The pieces are bigger, too, so she has to chew them before swallowing (which is good for her teeth). Also, she used to constantly beg for treats. She doesn’t anymore. She seems to prefer her new cat food over the treats.

On a related note, Josie has become quite the mouser in her old age. Lately, she’s been regularly bringing home dead mice. We let her go outside because she’s usually well-behaved and stays near the house. Tonight, I heard the bell on her collar jingling, so I went to the front door to let her in. It was dark, and she darted in. I went to the top of the stairs to see her gloating over a prize mouse she had deposited on the carpet. I hadn’t noticed it in her mouth when she came in. She seemed quite proud of herself.

Update: 10/31/2007

On Sunday, Josie brought home 3 mice in less than 2 hours. We watched as she devoured the first two (she ate the entire thing, bones and all). The third one was bigger, and by then I think she was full. She gnawed at it a bit, but then abandoned it.

October 15th, 2007  Pets   Tags: cat, chunky, hunting, josie, Pets, more...

Hyperactive Cat

For some reason, our cat Josie has been extremely hyperactive lately. It’s like she’s a kitten again. We did put her on a diet a couple weeks ago because she was getting too fat (I’m a sucker when it comes to giving her what she asks for). Since then, she has lost some noticeable weight and has had more energy than ever.

She’s very finicky when it comes to cat food. We had been feeding her Science Diet Chicken & Rice Adult formula. I switched her to the Light Adult formula. I was surprised that she seems to like it – she usually doesn’t take change very well.

Anecdotal update (1/21/2006): We recently installed a new fan in our foyer. Once finished, we were missing one of the pull-chain ornaments. I was pretty sure I saw two when I opened the box, but we searched everywhere and could not find it. We contacted the company and asked them to send another, since we liked the ornaments and they didn’t sell the at the store. Several days pass, and Wanda eventually found it laying in the middle of the floor in the cat’s room. It wasn’t there previously, so she must have pulled it out from a hiding place during the night and deposited it there.

I guess it should be no surprise. One of her favorite toys is a stick with a fan pull-chain segment attached to the end of it (which resembled another of her favorites – millipedes).

January 16th, 2007  Pets   Tags: cat, josie, Pets, more...

Brush Your Cat’s Teeth

Last week, we brought our cat Josie to the dentist. She had a bad tooth for awhile, but we hadn’t done anything because we were hoping it would get better (and switched her from soft food to hard food, plus added tarter-control treats). Unfortunately, it did not get better.

The total bill came to about $1250.

Because this is a PG-13 blog, let’s just say I almost had a heart attack. That includes a tooth pulling, anesthetic, blood work, and an x-ray. So the lesson for today, kids, is BRUSH YOUR CAT’S TEETH!

November 13th, 2006  Pets   Tags: cat, dentist, hygiene, josie, money, Pets, more...

Don’t Declaw Your Cats!

I’ve been told by several veterinatians and those who run animal shelters that it is a bad idea to declaw your cats. As a result, we chose not to do so on our cat. Wanda found this link that describes why it is inhumane to do so. Perhaps we’ve been lucky, but we didn’t have too hard of a time training our cat not to claw the furniture. We got her a quality scratching post, and wasted no time using the dreaded spray bottle of water on her when she misbehaved (like nearly all cats, she hates getting wet). It didn’t take her too long to understand what was good and what was naughty.

• The Truth About Declawing

Here’s an alternative to declawing your cat: http://www.softpaws.com

March 12th, 2006  Pets   Tags: cat, josie, Pets, more...

Josie vs. the Doorknob

Our cat recently figured out how to open doors. Due to my allergies, we don’t allow our cat in our bedroom at night by closing the door, keeping it the only allergy-free sanctuary in the house. This upsets her greatly, as she always needs to be by people. In the past she just meowed and pawed at the door at all hours of the night, which we’ve learned to ignore. Recently, she figured out how to open the door by jumping up on the knob and messing with it. In the past couple of months, she has managed to open the door almost a dozen times and enter the room, where she happily jumped up on our bed to snuggle with us.

The doorknob to our bedroom doesn’t lock (who the hell puts a closet knob on a bedroom door anyway?!), and admittedly it doesn’t take much to turn it open. We have yet to replace it. It is a round knob, but that doesn’t seem to matter. Wanda managed to take a video of Josie trying to open the door to the bathroom one day. She jumps up and tries to hang onto the knob until she is able to turn it just enough. It’s very amusing and annoying at the same time. Time to stop at Home Depot for a new, lockable knob I guess…

January 18th, 2006  Pets   Tags: cat, josie, Pets, more...