In Memory - Neelix, Sinda, Bella & George

 I have wanted to do a post in memory of the furry friends we've lost here over the past years. 

I'll start with Neelix - we got this sweet boy from the Humane Society and he was very tiny and very sick - in fact our vet said they shouldn't have released him to us - but we were so in love with him - we "fixed him up" and he was the best farm cat ever. And he grew and he grew - at one point he weighed 17 pounds!   He used to find The Shepherd when he got home from work, demand a piggy back ride on his shoulders and help him do the chores every evening.

He loved lambing time and could always be found checking out what was happening in the barn. 

 He was also very laid back and could often be found sleeping on his back in the middle of the living room - so secure in his position. 

He went to the rainbow bridge in August 2008 -
He's still at the top in number of posts - only "from the garden"  and "Shetland Sheep" out do him. 

This is my Sinda - affectionately known as Sissy -   I got her from some friends when she was 8 or 10 weeks old in the Spring of 1990

A little bit quirky and a lot-a-bit fun - 

On February 5, 2011, at the age of 21, she succumbed to kidney failure, leaving me "catless" for the first time since 1975.  

 This Handsome Boy is George - We got him and his little sister Gracie in July 2011.

They were just the sweetest pair -  you can read more about them if you click on the label - "The Mrreows"

 
 And then came Bella - who I laughing have called our "transgender" cat - Bella "migrated" here from a neighboring farm - well we fed her, and they didn't... "Her" I say - she seemed so feminine - but when I took "Her" to the vet for something, She was pronounced to be a "He" - so what can I say - we left the name Bella - as he was quite a beautiful cat, and you know, Bela Lugosi -

Bella disappeared the spring of 2015 - I kind of think he might have gotten trapped in The Shepherd's work trailer and then jumped out along the way, as we heard that a cat looking very similar appeared at the Water District office a couple miles away.  Didn't go check though - he had already made a new home there.

George disappeared last August - not a good month for us and kitties - 8 years almost to the day that we lost Neelix to the Bridge.

I keep hoping that George just got waylaid and will come home some day, but he was pretty much a momma's boy and never stayed out more than a day.  Gracie and I miss him a lot - she's pretty lonely since both of us are gone all day long and she's here by herself.  Thinking about adopting someone new, but we'll see. 

You can read more about our furry friends by clicking on their names in the "Labels" on the sidebar.  Thanks for indulging me on my memories. 

We Remember Neelix

It was just a year ago this weekend that our sweet boy Neelix went to The Bridge. The disease that overtook him came on so swiftly that it defied our desire that he stay here with us. I always intended to write a memorial post for him, but it never quite happened - I thought now was a good time.

We got him from the local Humane Society - he was so little and had this rattly purr - turns out it was "rattly" because he was sick - even the vet said that they should not have given him to us - but I was glad that they had, because from the moment we saw him - he had a hold of both our hearts. We were big fans of the show "Star Trek Voyager" and Neelix the cat had the same orange striped pattern on his head as "Neelix the Talaxian" on that show - so he became our Neelix.

For The Shepherd, he was his "right hand man" - he snoopervised the building of the barn and outbuildings, and required a ride around the farm on The Shepherd's shoulders every evening when he got home from work.

Neelix loved the sheep and was in attendance at most lambings - pacing like an expectant father. When he knew things were all "good" - he would purr loudly - "See what we've done?" he'd say.

For as big as he got (almost 22 lbs. at one time) he had an "itty bitty" meow - left over from the respiratory illness that he had as a kitten.

He used up two of his nine lives - one time, disappearing for over a week - when he returned, he was missing his collar and was a few pounds lighter. There was a bad storm the night he disappeared and we think he'd gotten it caught in some underbrush and was only able to get loose when he'd lost enough weight to get his head out of it. I never put another collar on him after that. The other time, he got locked in our storage room out in the barn for a day and a half in the hot part of the summer. Any other cat would have put up a ruckus that we would have heard, but, as I said, Neelix's meow was no more than a tiny "mew" - Luckily, The Shepherd remembered that he'd had the door open for a few minutes the day before - when I raced out with the key to open the door I was met by one very thirsty kitty. After that, he stayed out of the storage room, that's for sure.

Neelix was the only cat I've ever had who slept on his back. He was our official farm greeter and would run out the door to meet whoever had come in the drive way.

I loved how sassy he was - He patrolled the farm and protected us from skunks (yes, he got skunked once - that was enough), and was observed knocking a young raccoon off our back porch. He had a mean left hook. Most of all, he kept the rabbit population down. The Shepherd has really missed that this spring as the rabbits have decimated his garden.

With his floofy fur, he often looked like he had a halo -

I have written almost 500 posts since I started my blog and if you look at my "labels list" you'll see that he was a part of 50 of them - such a big part of our lives.

Our friends Karla & Miss Peach wrote a beautiful poem for us that weekend. It still "makes my eyes leak" but it is a good reminder of a (not so) little fellow who was a big part of our lives.

For Neelix (and his "mom & dad") -

Close your eyes now, my longtime friend,
and let this time of suffering
come to a peaceful end.
We'll walk together soon, I'm sure,
as winter turns to spring,
when snow gives way to budding leaves
and birds begin to sing.
The gentle breeze shall call your name
along the water's edge.
For what we shared and what you meant
shall never be forgot.
Your friendship spans the years behind,
your memory ahead.
You'll always be there next to me,
companion and good friend.

Neelix peacefully passed over the bridge early this morning in his sleep and now rests in a quiet spot in the Shepherd's Garden where he can snoopervise the comings and goings as he always did.

Thank you so much to everyone who stopped by and left messages, as well as emails that I have received. We are tired beyond words from not getting much sleep last night and from being at the fair with the boys since 7:00 a.m. today, but I wanted to check in with your comments as I knew they would be loving and help me sleep on this very sad night. I will be by in the next week or two to say thank you to all of you who left your kind words.

We received the following picture and poem from our friends Karla and Miss Peach - No one could have said it any better. Close your eyes now, my longtime friend,
and let this time of suffering
come to a peaceful end.
We'll walk together soon, I'm sure,
as winter turns to spring,
when snow gives way to budding leaves
and birds begin to sing.
The gentle breeze shall call your name
along the water's edge.
For what we shared and what you meant
shall never be forgot.
Your friendship spans the years behind,
your memory ahead.
You'll always be there next to me,
companion and good friend.

I have sad news

My heart is breaking and my eyes are past leaking. We came home from the fair tonight and Neelix is not able to stand or walk. I tried to give him water with a syringe and he was not able to swallow. He is losing his fight.

We have an emergency vet here in town who said they would put him to sleep for us, but John doesn't want to stress him further by taking him on a car ride. We will see what happens overnight - if he is still here at 5:00 a.m. whe he gets up to do chores, we will take him in then.

I don't want him to die here alone tomorrow. He has such a strong heart and is so full of love, I'm sure that is what has kept him going this past week or two when any ordinary cat would have gone to the bridge. I know that those who came before, Frank, Delores and Jaxom are waiting for him so they can show him all the special places to sit and watch the angels.

I'll post some special pictures of him in the next day or two - I think I'll go sit with him a while before I go to bed. We have a long day tomorrow, and whatever the outcome of the fair, it will be tinged with sadness at the loss of our sweet boy.

A Neelix update

Several people and kitty friends have asked for a Neelix update. What is the old saying, "De Nile is not just a river in Egypt". I guess I just haven't wanted to talk much about it.

We went to the V.E.T. today - Neelix has continued to lose weight - and with the heat yesterday, he could barely move from one place to the other. So I called and left a message for Todd (our V.E.T.) to call me back - we talked about options, (*NOT "that one" ) about why he is continuing to lose weight - there are no lumps or bumps (other than mats of fur that he won't let me cut off - maybe when they grow out). We also decided that since they never did a urinalysis, that I should bring him in this a.m. & he'd see if he could get a little bit to test - to see if there were a lot of proteins in it or what. (since he's been eating pretty steady, its just that the "food" isn't metabolizing or something.) The blood tests were negative for kidney problems, but apparently urine tests show other things -

Being in a "coulda-shoulda-woulda" mode, I agreed that I should bring him in - he REALLY didn't want to get into the PTU (that's prisoner transport unit, or, in other words, the cat carrier, for those of you who are uninitiated to cat language). He also was a lot more spunky than he's been in a few days. Adrenalin maybe? Anyhow, the V.E.T.'s office was packed. including someone bringing in a BIG dog on a stretcher, and they still were able to get me in within an hour. He'd had a big drink of water before we left home, so there was something in his bladder. They were supposed to call me this afternoon, but didn't - so I'll check with them in the morning and post a quick update before I leave for the fair.

What fair you ask? Well, The Shepherd has entered H.B., Louie and Danny in the open class sheep at the Skagit county fair in Mt. Vernon. He has been working very hard halter training them so they will behave in the show ring.

It is a little fair - I didn't walk around much last year - since I'll be there tomorrow afternoon and all day Saturday, I'll explore a little and report in. He's also taking Luna's Blue Ribbon Fleece - we'll see how she does.

I'll leave you with one of my favorite pictures of my baby boy - I took this a couple of years ago, and even had a mouse pad made from it. Doesn't he just look sassy? Please get better, my little friend.

Neelix got a Cool Cat Award!

Neelix is very honored to have been awarded The Cool Cat Award by our friend Rascal! Thank you Rascal!

We're going to pass the award along to our friend Benjamin Fuzz a'cause he lives right here in the Pacific NW and he is one Cool Cat! We're thinkin' about it and there may be a couple of other Cool Cats we want to nominate - we'll let you know.

Cautious optimism

Happy Friday! Quick update on Neelix this a.m. - I've been working on some spinning & crocheting projects for the fair, so have not had much time to post this week.

We weighed Neelix with the lamb scale (nylon sling that hooks onto a digital scale) on Wednesday night. He didn't much like the "swinging in air" but did hold still long enought to get a weight - 8# 7 oz. - I called the V.E.T. yesterday & had them check his chart for how much he weighed last week when we went in - he has gained 7 oz. YAY!

He has stopped running the other way when he sees me coming but I'm not sure if that's because he's getting used to taking the pills or if he just doesn't have the energy. I got some more Sheba cat food yesterday - he really likes it, so does Sinda - I have to really watch her or she eats his share before I can set him down by his plate.

I'm hoping to get some time with him this weekend where I'm not giving him pills or bugging him for anything, so he knows I'm not always the "bad guy".

Everybody have a good weekend.

Expansive, desmull faleyour

Sinda here, reporting in - - Mom went to town this morning for more pills from the V.E.T. for Neelix. She was mumbling something about the stinky oil she got for him yesterday being an expansive, desmull, faleyour, what ever that means... Think I'll lie down here on the deck and take a nap. This whole thing is so tiresome. He gets all the attention now.

"Mom" here - that new liquid medicine upset Mr. Neelix far more than giving him the pills ever did. So, I ditched it, and we have gone back to the pills. He just let me put one in his mouth then ate a little dinner to go with it, so I guess we'll settle for that. Now we have to get him to gain a little bit of weight back. And don't believe a word that Sinda says. She gets PLENTY of attention.

Some Great News!

I talked to the V.E.T. last night and the blood tests came back very promising. Neelix's thyroid level is right where it should be - (controled by meds, of course) - so now today I go get the chicken flavored liquid & hopefully that will be an easier way to give him his medication. (as long as I wear my glasses - this morning he was being squirrely and I squirted his anti-biotics all over my hand instead of in his mouth. Oops...)

Aunty Kathy from Sheep Thrills Farm sent him a pink sock full of organic catnip yesterday - he really likes it - he also liked the strained baby ham that our friends Leigh and Rascal suggested.

Onward.

Mom is furry worried...

A couple of months ago mom took me to the V.E.T. because I was having a lot of diarreah and was very stinky. I was also loosing some weight. Actually, alot of weight - in April I weighed 12# and a month ago I weighed a little over 9#. In April when I went in, we saw a doctor who had never met me before - he picked me up and at 12#, that seemed like a big cat to him. He didn't know that I used to be a manly cat and weigh 17#. He gave mom some icky cherry tasting anti-biotics to try to stop the trotts - that worked for a while, but I kept getting thinner, so she took me back and asked if we could see Dr. Todd Perry, who has taken care of me since I was a baby. When Dr. Todd picked me up last month, he was really shaken because I had lost so-o-o much weight. They vampired some of my blood and found that I had hyperthyroidism.

Mom looked it up on the computer and this disease is actually very common among us middle aged (I am 12) kitties - I have had to take a pill twice a day for the last month, and maybe for the rest of my life. I don't really like taking pills - sometimes I spit them out - patuey! Mom has found them on the floor and on top of the washer machine (she tricks me to come in for food and then wraps me in a towel - I think that she said it had something to to with having her arms shredded to ribbons, what ever that means...)

We went to see "Dr. Todd" today - he weighed me - I have lost another 1.5# and he vampired some more of my blood. Besides weight loss and drinking a lot of water some kitties have diarrhea - and I've had that problem on and off for the last three months - it was "on" this week - mom called me Mr. Stinky! I don't think that's very nice at all, do you? Anyhow, Dr. Todd trimmed some of my furs off my butt so I'm not so stinky now. I didn't like it when he was doing it, but I'm glad he did.

Mom & Todd talked about changing me from pills to a liquid medicine (that way she would know I wasn't spitting it out). It will be mixed 'specially for me and will be chicken flavored. Beats the heck out of the cherry flavored anti-biotics they are making me take again. I think mom is related to that Nurse Ratched lady...

Nurse Ratched, I mean, Mom here - They don't really know what causes Hyperthyroidism in cats, but statistically it has been found that cats fed a diet of fish-based cat food develop more hyperthyroidism and other glandular ailments. This may be due to rancid polyunsaturated fats found in poorer animal-quality fish products. The feeding of cat foods in pull-top cans seems to also be associated with this disease in some inexplicable way. They think up to 30% of cats may have this disease and some think that the incidence of Hyperthyroidism has increased in the last 25 years, and others say that vets have just learned how to diagnose it, so there are more cats diagnosed with it.

It makes me very sad, because all this time, I thought I was feeding them a very good quality food that they liked - (and was easy and affordable, etc.) Chances are that, if Neelix will settle in and likes this "Chicken flavored medicine" and if he stops loosing weight (!) he will live a few more years. I've been trying to find foods that he likes to tempt him to eat (Like Sheba Chicken & Duck - looks just like canned chicken) - Todd suggested giving him a little bit of pumpkin every day for fiber. Lord only knows, we have a freezer FULL of frozen pumpkin - if he'll eat some of that, I'd be greatful!

So, please think good thoughts about our little fellow. He'll know you're thinking about him and his mom will appreciate it.

Eeek! It's July!

Well, I kind of wore myself out doing all those posts about the Black Sheep Gathering - I think we had a lot of new visitors to see them - hope some of them will keep coming back.

The Sheep are doing just fine - the "Boyz" are all out in the front pasture - taking all the adoring praise of the neighborhood in stride. They have developed a funny habit lately - & of course when they are doing it, I never have my camera - They KNEEL down to eat. I call it their Cornish Cross chicken routine - (The Shepherd says that Cronish Cross chickens will eat so much that they just fall asleep at their feed trough - this reminds me of that)

Sinda was terrified of all of Mother Nature's fireworks the other night - We had a HUGE thunder and lightening storm at 2:30 in the morning on Thursday. She was practically cowering, poor little thing.

Neelix has an appointment with "Dr. Todd" next week to see how he is responding to the Thyroid medicine that he's been getting. It's turned from a "battle" into a "hide & seek" game to get his meds into him. We have settled on Sheeba cat food as a treat to make up for the indignity of having to take a pill twice a day. In fact, I ran out of Sheeba Thursday night and had to give him my ham lunch meat to make up for it. The looks of recrimination were just too much for me.

I think I'll have The Shepherd bring the PTU (Prisoner Transport Unit) into the house tomorrow so he'll get used to having it around and won't skip out on me.

I've started spinning up some of the beautiful wool that I brought home from Black Sheep. I just couldn't help myself - it was like wanting to get into a new box of chocolates! I took my first two skeins to work and the ladies that I work with all said "Why it look just like yarn!" I think that I'll take that as a compliment...I cannot, however show you what it looks like, because one of my dear readers will be the Christmas recipient of what ever I decide to make with it - and that is even letting the proverbial cat out of the bag.

We are really enjoying the flat of fresh strawberries that The Shepherd brought home from "Small's Gardens" on Thursday. I put 4 packages in the freezer for treats next winter. These are some of the juciest berries we've ever gotten and they hardly needed any sugar.

I'm closing with a "Cold Box Meme" that I borrowed from the pages of my good friend Miss Peach.
It is a fun and simple MEME for the hot summer. "Show us a photo of the front of your Cold Box and tell us about at least one thing on it and one thing you keep inside of it! Tag your friends and remember to stay COOL!"

I love fridge magnets - and as you can see there are a lot of them on our cold box - & pictures of my friend's and relative's children.


I also love quirky cartoons. So there are plenty of those too. I even have a few things around the corner on the sides but I decided that was not necessary to show you.

I prefer not to tag people for Memes - to me that is just like sending a chain e-mail! BUT, if'n it's HOT where you are, play our COOL game and show us what's on YOUR fridge - leave me a note so I can come see!

Oh, and the BEST NEWS! The Mariners just beat Detroit, 3-2! Go M's!

10,000 AND STILL COUNTING!

Thank you to everyone who visits my blog - we went over the 10,000 visitor mark on Site Meter this week! (I downloaded Site Meter in late May 2007) I find it very interesting to look at the Site Meter map of the world and see where you all come from.

You never know what you'll find here - maybe the rhubarb - or maybe the rhubarb pie






The cats and the sheep are living in harmony - like ebony and ivory.









And the flowers come and go with the seasons.

Thanks again for visiting. Hope you'll leave a note now and again, so I can stop by and visit you too.

Constant snoopervision

I am playing for church tomorrow (I actually volunteered) - The theme is Father's Day - the songs are "Cat's in the Cradle" by Jim Croce and "My Father" by Judy Colins. Both kind of sad, melancholy songs, I guess, but I think they will work out OK.

When I used to sing at Dos Padres, I was always surprised at the number of young adults who would request "Cat's In the Cradle" - or, after I would randomly sing it, would remark that it was one of their favorite songs.

I have the words typed out, but I noticed that I didn't have the chords written in. Hope I can remember them!

Better go practice.

Neelix News Up Date or - Kitty Hide and go Seekey

Catch me if you can, Mom........

The official diagnosis ($109 in tests later) is kitty hyperthyroidism -

There is no "cure" but pills will reduce the symptoms and allow him to start gaining some of the 6 or 7 pounds that he has lost. He's not a very good pill taker, but so far, I THINK they've gone down the hatch - they are ITTY BITTY pills - think 1/4 of your little fingernail and he gets 1/2 in the morning and the other 1/2 at night. The pills will cost $9 a month. If it doesn't work giving him pills, there is now a way to make kitty medicines into a tuna, chicken or beef flavored liquid. That type of medicine, unfortunately, is $25 a month. We'll see how it goes. He definately knows that I'm up to something when he comes in the house for breakfast & dinner. I'm going to have to stop visualizing giving him his pill - I think he can read my mind...



Buddy is back to normal - thanks to those who have asked - But, if it's not one thing, it's another - now Jewell seems to have a bladder infection - I'm hoping that Regina, who has been very grumpy lately didn't bash her kidneys or something. The Shepherd has been giving her penecillin shots every evening (which we conveniently had on hand from Buddy's ordeal). As you can see by the sweet look on her face, The Shepherd is her favorite guy (even if he does stick her with needles)

The GOOD news, and the "no news"

The (extremely) good news is that the blood screen on Neelix's liver and kidneys came back "clean" - no liver or kidney problems. Yay!

The "no news" is that his thyroid was up a point from normal, but Dr. Perry had ordered several other thyroid screens and they are not back until Monday. I'll keep you posted.

Buddy is doing OK - not as "chipper" as The Shepherd would like, but he seems to be healing.



And now a commercial break from our regularly scheduled programming -


This is Marietta's Lewis.

He is handsome, isn't he? Under those light brown tips is the most beautiful moosket wool (silvery fawn color).

He is for sale. If you are interested, let us know.




















Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming -

Be thinking of Neelix (and Buddy too)

Neelix isn't feeling well and we are going to the V.E.T. this afternoon - they are being nice enough to fit us in. He knows something is up because the PTU (prisoner transport unit) is out on the couch.

I will update this when I get home. Please purray for him, OK.

6:30 p.m. UPDATE - Well, I guess I kind of over-reacted - last night Neelix actually came IN to use the potty box - this is a cat who will only use a cat box in a full blizzard and then, under duress - and when he was "going" he seemed to be grunting, not exactly crying, but enough to make me notice. I've had a cat die from kidney disease before, so I freaked - He also has lost a lot of weight - he is down from 15# last year to 11 # today - (2 1/2# down in six weeks ) - Dr. Todd Perry (or Dr. Todd) and his dad Dr. Max Perry (or Dr. Perry) have been Neelix's vets since he was a baby and when Dr. Todd picked him up today, he said "Wow, he's lost weight - Lets do some blood work." Other than some "impacted feces" (probably from eating two mice the other night) which Dr. Todd "loosened up" we are thinking (hoping) that the blood work show hyper-thyroid, which is better than some of the alternatives - and will require medicine every day.

There is really a lot to be said for having the same vet over the life of a kitty. I did take Neelix in about 6 weeks ago because he was having a problem with diarrhea. They have a third vet in their practice, Dr. Curtis, who wasn't concerned that Neelix only weighed 12# - that's a lot of cat in most circles - but he had never seen Neelix before and had never picked him up when he was in his prime and weighed 17# - now THAT was a lot of cat - So I didn't press him to do any other tests than the fecal samples to see what was going on with his "messy poops" - guess I should have - There's that old word - "should" We could do a whole blog entry on SHOULD couldn't we? Anyhow, Dr. Todd said he'd call me tomorrow when they get the results. Think good thoughts...

And Buddy? Poor Buddy (the one in the foreground with the white nose) got "banded" (turned into a wether - if you really want to know how it's done, email me) on Saturday. Plus everybody in the barn got their CDT shots and Sunday everyone got worm medicine. Tuesday night John noticed that Buddy was kind of "stumbling" - not able to coordinate correctly - Wednesday a.m. he whisked him into our sheep vet and turns out that when they banded the little guy, they didn't get both of the testicles up in side the band - oops - he had a huge infection and so they did surgery, took off the offending parts and he's on antibiotics for a week. Luckily everyone else seems to be OK out in the barn. What a week.

An H.B. Update

Out for a run with Mom & Auntie Pearl.














Hmmmm - who's this?













Come on, big boy, gimme a kiss...


Friends? We'll see -

They're here!

They are finally here! - Regina had two handsome and healthy baby boys this afternoon - almost dry by the time The Shepherd got home from work.










This little guy looks like a Leprecon - I think we should call him Shamus. I don't think The Shepherd agrees with me.










Uncle Neelix is very pleased with the events of the day.











Auntie Jewell doesn't care as long as she gets her hay and her pets from The Shepherd.

There are still four (we hope) more to come - Anna Dee is probably out a week or 10 days and Gwendolyn the Grumpy will be at the end of the month. Keep tuned!

Happy Groundcat's Day

News Flash #1!

"Puxatawnee Neelix" sees his shadow!

Tradition says there will be 6 more weeks of winter.








News Flash #2

The ultrasound showed two (maybe 3?) beating hearts.

Sometime around April 17, we'll be saying "Houston, we have babies"

Little things that mystify me -

The lable says: "Natural catfood - High in protein, like a cat's natural diet, including real chicken and salmon"

Now, although they have shown some interest in the koi in the pond, I don't know about yours, but neither of our cats have ever said "Charter a boat, mom - we want to go deep sea fishing!"



Why doesn't cat food come in "Mouse" or "House sparrow" flavors?

Or 'nip? 'Nip flavored crunchies would be real nice...