Ooooops ...... one more foster!

[bobbys girl]

Oh crikey! Grace is close to 6.5kg and she is a dainty-footed, small faced 'little' girl - just that she has and enormous, fat belly! Perhaps we had BOTH better go on a diet.

[Crewella]

I'm not being sizeist, it's because Daz had so many urinary blockages the year before last (I can't tell you how lovely it is to be able to type 'the year before last'!) and the vet told me that overweight cats are more prone to blockages. The last time he went in for a blockage there were three other male cats in at the same time with the same thing ..... all overweight. That's why I'm so 'on it'!

At Christmas 2013, pre diet, Daz was doing a very good impression of a Christmas turkey!

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d154/ ... /010-1.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bobbys girl]

Daz was doing a very good impression of a Christmas turkey!

See what you mean!

[greenkitty]

I can't believe all those problems were a year ago Helen, well done for getting Daz's weight down, it's tough, I know from getting Pip's weight down but hopefully no blockages is worth the pleading eyes and I'm sure Daz would agree begrudgingly!

[Camdengirl]

I'm sure Daz would appreciate all your hard work...if he understood! I remember how bad the blockages got, and I'm so glad Daz made it through and is doing so well. I worry about Hops getting bladder problems as he is such a 'stressy' cat and a greedy little booger! Because of that and the stress of any extra weight on his one front leg, I keep him on strict wet-food-only rations! Poor lad feels perpetually hard done by and regularly gives me the big eyes...I am sure Daz is well practised at those too!

Fusses to Daz and Pugwash...and all the other flurries too

[Crewella]

Fusses gratefully received, and please give Hops and Mme P a fuss from me too. xx

Poor Daz is also having to put up with seeing me trying to get some weight on Pugwash ..... I swear I see him looking at Pugwash's food and thinking "not fair ..... he gets TWICE what I do".

It's working with the prescription diet though ..... Puggy the Piggy is finally starting to add some weight on his back end and is getting a more balanced shape.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d154/ ... 040186.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

And you know that your cats are settling in well together when you at last get pics of them, sitting, in the same pic!

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d154/ ... 040182.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[greenkitty]

Oh wow what a difference, he's definitely filled out and his coat is looking fabulous. What a difference to the dirty, skinny scrap that turned up a few months ago, he's a credit to you x

[Camdengirl]

Fusses passed on

Pugwash is looking great, I think you're going to have to start calling him Captain Pugwash soon!

Hops feels Daz's pain. Pip has always needed more food than him, but she tends to eat little and often, and even with her hyper-t under control it's a constant battle just to keep her weight stable. As a result, I am forever shoving bowls of food under her nose, while poor Hops gets smaller portions (and sometimes just snacks) to occupy him while she eats. It doesn't help that he can wolf a whole pouch in under a minute, whereas Pip takes about ten minutes to eat half that amount. Not being very gentlemanly, he also has no qualms about shoving her out the way and cleaning her bowl should I get distracted for a moment, so I spend moggy mealtimes dancing around the flat after him as he repeatedly tries to sneak through to the other room where madam is eating!

[Kay]

Tiffany eats quite fast unless Tosker is around waiting to snap up her leavings - in which case she eats really really slowly, just to thwart him - I can see her glancing sideways to check he is still there so I know it's just meanness - she doesn't really want, and certainly doesn't need, the food

[Crewella]

So many cats of different ages and needs here that I have to have a house rule that they only eat from their own bowl. I have to play dinner monitor and pick up any bowls with food left in. Daz knows the dreaded "Nooooooo Daz ..... that's NOT your bowl".

Pugwash, on the other hand, has no clue what I'm on about, so at the moment I'm having to feed him in another room ...... if he hears a bowl, any bowl, hit the floor he gets there so fast he almost knocks it flying! It will be interesting to see if he ever gets the hang of the 'house rules'!

Today Pugwash had his second vaccination, and has now been pretty much signed off by the vets as "as good as we're going to get him" and we don't need to go back for a year, unless something crops up, of course.

I know he's a bit squished, but he is the newby after all, and I'm just thrilled to see Pugwash and Basil (my two permanent foster boys) alseep so close together.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d154/ ... 040220.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bobbys girl]

Oh sweet! Pleased to hear he is doing so well and he has been signed off by the vet. Fusses to the little man.

[Camdengirl]

Awww look at them lovely!

I only have two cats and we still have to have rules for mealtimes! Waaaaay back in the mists of time when I first got them, Hops and Pip used to eat side-by-side from bowls on the same tray. Then, after poor Pip had the most traumatic dental I've ever heard of and could barely lap liquid food for a week, she started eating more slowly and Hops learned that he could shove her out the way and finish her meal after he'd hoovered his own. Soon enough she started refusing to eat with him, so now they each have their own tray and the trays are in different rooms. Like Daz, Hops knows full well what 'Hopppps!' in a warning tone means, unfortunately 90% of the time it doesn't stop him and I have to stand up (and often follow) for him to scoot back into the room where he is supposed to be! (This process usually repeats several times before I get cross and shut the door!) Daz is clearly better mannered...here's hoping Pugwash learns to follow his example!

[greenkitty]

I'm dinner monitor in my house too, with Hector easily distracted by what might be in someone elses bowl and his tummy problems he has to have a close eye kept on him!

Pugwash looks like a proper cat now Great he's been signed off, he can now relax and enjoy life again, please do keep on with the updates, I have loved reading about his journey.

[greenkitty]

How's Pugwash doing Helen?

[Crewella]

Oh Pugwash, the little thug, is doing very well thank you very much!

I had an auction on at work last week, so was out doing long hours and OH was on cat duty. I picked up the reins again over the weekend to find that Pugwash has asserted himself, growls at anyone that gets in his way and has usurped Daz from his customary spot on the sofa!

It's all OK, there's no real aggression there and Daz is always miserable on sale weeks when I'm not around much. He was off his food for a few days, but is now fine again and is now sitting with me in my office. He's a big wuss, but he's had lots of cuddles (he hides his head in my armpit ... "where've you beeeeeen, it was aaaaaaawful without you") but he's back to his routine and he'll be fine.

[greenkitty]

Life in the old Pugwash yet

Poor Daz, Hector is really mummies boy too. Even after everything he's been through in the last couple of weeks he can't stay cross at me for long!

Pass on fusses from me x

[Crewella]

For an elderly cat, Pugwash is astonishing - now that he's got his mojo back and is feeling well, I can see exactly how he survived on his own for so long. You cannot beat him through a door, and you cannot approch a door without him wanting to go through it (I imagine in case there's food on the other side). He is speedy, but it's the sheer determination that won't allow any other cat, or your feet, or the fact that the door's only open 3", to stop him. When you pick him up to put him back in the room he's supposed to be in, he shows his extreme displeasure, growls and hisses. Loudly. You also cannot pick a bowl up off the floor with out him charging at you and knocking it out of your hand - he's like a little terrier!

We've learnt to pick bowls up slowly, so as to give him a chance to check it's empty, to save on broken china, and he is slowly learning that when you put him back in a room, he has to stay there. Even if he still moans and groans. He's also gradually learning that our food is nothing to do with him, and we never, ever give him food from our hands as he'll happily have your fingers! With him, routine is definitely the key, so he knows when and how he gets fed, and I'm hoping he'll gradually realise there's no point in rushing to the kitchen every time we do, as unless it's food time it'll be pointless.

Because he growls and hisses such a lot, he comes across as very, very grumpy, but he really isn't. You can tell that he's just had to be that way to survive. When it's just him and me, and there's no food about, he's purry and cooperative. He's just a bit of a 'character'. And we love him.

[greenkitty]

Such complex characters, I hope you manage to teach Pugwash some manners

I have a soft spot for this old chap

[Kay]

he sounds as if he's about ready for his own mini-series

I love feisty cats, especially those that belong to someone else

[Camdengirl]

Awww poor Daz! Hops is a Mummy's boy too, but not enough to go off his food if I'm not around!

Pugwash has clearly registered he's found his forever home and has decided to make his mark! Here's hoping in time he might let Daz share that spot on the sofa...

[booktigger]

he sounds as if he's about ready for his own mini-series

I love feisty cats, especially those that belong to someone else

I agree, everyone goes on about how great Buster is, I point out they don't have to live with him!

Glad Pugwash is doing well

[bobbys girl]

Glad to hear Pugwash is so settled that he is taking over, poor Daz!

My boy, Tommy was a stray for years and he has some food/territory issues, but is THE biggest wuss at heart. He and my other boy send head bumps to Pugwash.

[Crewella]

I've watched Pugwash and Daz together carefully. Daz isn't scared of him (like he was with foster Baxter) and is happy to barge through doors with Pugwash or sit near him when waiting for food. I've also seen him swat Pugwash when he tried to steal his food, so I'm not worried, especially as Daz is so much bigger, fitter and younger. Daz is a serial bed-mover anyway and I think just sees Pugwash as an annoyance. Daz is a cat that needs the reassurance of cuddles now and again, but rarely sits down with us and usually prefers to be out hunting for a lot of the evening, so it's not as if the lost spot is much prized. I note that Merrick, who ALWAYS either sleeps on me or the spot where I sit on the sofa, is still there.

I've actually seen Pugwash try to wash himself, a bit, a couple of times over the last week, and last night he sat between us whilst we ate our dinner. Purring hopefully the whole time, but sitting quietly like a good boy and not trying to divebomb us. He's learning! I was very, very tempted to reward him, but I know that would undo all the good work ..... so gave him a treat about an hour later when he definitly would not associate it with our food - even if it was a piece of our chicken!

[Crewella]

It's like Pugwash and the Three Bears around here at the moment - I've just found him asleep in poor old Basil's bed on the other sofa!

[bobbys girl]

It's like Pugwash and the Three Bears around here at the moment - I've just found him asleep in poor old Basil's bed on the other sofa!

Our old lad Tommy likes my picnic basket. But lately he is having difficulty getting in under the bar that runs across the middle. So for Christmas we had a willow basket made, just for him. Needless to say, he doesn't use it, but Purdy has just decided it is right for her. She and Gracie are having 'issues' at the moment, so the basket is a nice safe haven for her. Funny how they all have their spots.

[greenkitty]

Perhaps Daz bribed him with a treat to get off the sofa

[Crewella]

Sue, you could, of course, try deciding to use the lovely new willow basket for another purpose, non feline. That's bound to give it a whole new air of desirability in Tommy's eyes!

And there are probably all sorts of dodgy negotiations going on behind my back!

[meriad]

My lot love playing musical chairs it's always interesting to come home after work and see who is where that particular day.. they are an odd bunch

I got a lovely child's wicker chair off freecycle the other day. The lady I got it from asked me if it was for a child of mine and I didn't have the heart to tell her that it actually was going to be for the cats so crossed my fingers behind my back and said it was for my niece when she visits

[bobbys girl]

Sue, you could, of course, try deciding to use the lovely new willow basket for another purpose, non feline. That's bound to give it a whole new air of desirability in Tommy's eyes!

Now THERE'S an idea!

[Crewella]

At last, all is calming down and Pugwash seems to have settled in properly with the rest of the gang. He's much less frantic, seems slightly less food obsessed and there are fewer squabbles in general. They all seem to be playing musical beds a bit still, but I think I can say he's now properly integrated and has, and knows, his place in the household. Phew!

He's also been outside a couple of times and had a little toddle about before coming back in, so he knows where his home is.