Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 6, 2018 2:27:51 GMT -5
I do have to say that there were a couple of stark reminders for me tonight.
The first happened on my way home. It’s really smurfing cold tonight and it took forever for my car to warm up on my drive home from work. As such, my hands were cold despite the fact I was wearing two sets of gloves. I blew on my hands through my gloves and realized that my gloves were still infused with my cat’s smell from carrying him around to all of the vet visits over the past two weeks. He actually smelled exactly like mushrooms, so that smell was unmistakable. It was a comforting smell.
The second happened just now. I went downstairs to get some water for the night and stopped by the downstairs bathroom when something felt off in there. It took a minute to figure out that the issue was that the toilet seat was actually down. It hasn’t been down since shortly after we moved in because it was the toilet Ata usually used. I think that was a shocking moment for me.
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SmashTV
Dennis Stamp
Big Money, Big Prizes, I Love It!
The Excellence of Allocation
Posts: 4,484
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Post by SmashTV on Jan 6, 2018 7:39:02 GMT -5
Sorry for your loss, my friend; I've lost cats in the past myself, whether they were our own pets or cats who adopted us. It never got easier saying goodbye. My condolences to you and your family.
Reading these posts just brings home that my dog Oscar won't be around forever. He's a 12 and a half year old border collie who we've owned since he was about eight weeks old. He's been my faithful companion since that time, he's helped me lose weight, made me laugh daily, given me an extra sense of responsibility - so, so many positives. He's slowing down now, he sometimes struggles to jump on things he used to be able to leap on and sleeps way more than he used to. I know that he's nearer the end than the beginning, and reckon that he's got about three years left. Of course, hopefully he's got longer but only if he's not in pain, as I'd not like him to suffer in his old age.
When he goes, however, I'll be absolutely heartbroken.
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Post by Milkman Norm on Jan 6, 2018 9:45:05 GMT -5
I'm so sorry for you loss.
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 6, 2018 16:15:42 GMT -5
We went to the pet shelter today. We did not go to pick out a bed pet (and did not get one). Instead, we simply went to see some kitties. There was a 12 yr old one that was really, really friendly. She went out of the way to get my attention and then climbed her way into being held by my wife (who has issues with the fur; hence us having a hairless cat in the first place). My wife was conflicted. It was adorable but it was getting fur all over her.
There was a young kitty that I spent the most time with. She was the last of a feral litter. She was clearly still uncomfortable around people. I took the time to get her comfortable with me before petting her. She eventually laid down and tried to rest as I pet her. It was nice. I’m not ready for a new cat, but I would like visiting them again.
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Post by "Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay on Jan 7, 2018 10:15:32 GMT -5
Since I moved in with my partners, I now am co-owner of five cats, a dog and a snake. The snake and I don't really have any interaction. The dog is my boyo, I love him to pieces. I do wrestling moves on him onto the bed and he doesn't sell shit. Too much fighting spirit.
The cats are all black. One of them has white socks. I'm not going to name them, but they each have their own weird personalities that define them. - The smallest one likes to sleep in bed with us, often in a spoon position. It's adorable. I have sometimes just woken up and found myself cuddling her. - The second smallest is a bit of a weirdo. She likes to nibble on our fingers, chins, noses. Lovely little freak. - One of them is a lot lankier than the others and has a touch of Oriental cats about him. He is definitely the one that is most sociable, but also the one most indifferent to being socialised with. He chews on loads of weird things and likes to bolt into the kitchen and jump onto the top cabinets. - The biggest boy is just confusing. He has a weird kind of submissive gay relationship with the dog. He often wanders around on our laps, exactly at the moment we're trying to do something important, in classic cat fashion. - Last and by no means least, is my favourite of the cats. He looks a bit like Teddy Roosevelt. I often quote facts about his political career to him. He also likes to be picked up and cuddled and have his belly tickled... but only in the kitchen. Never anywhere else.
I love them all to pieces.
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 7, 2018 15:05:40 GMT -5
Since I moved in with my partners, I now am co-owner of five cats, a dog and a snake. The snake and I don't really have any interaction. The dog is my boyo, I love him to pieces. I do wrestling moves on him onto the bed and he doesn't sell shit. Too much fighting spirit. The cats are all black. One of them has white socks. I'm not going to name them, but they each have their own weird personalities that define them. - The smallest one likes to sleep in bed with us, often in a spoon position. It's adorable. I have sometimes just woken up and found myself cuddling her. - The second smallest is a bit of a weirdo. She likes to nibble on our fingers, chins, noses. Lovely little freak. - One of them is a lot lankier than the others and has a touch of Oriental cats about him. He is definitely the one that is most sociable, but also the one most indifferent to being socialised with. He chews on loads of weird things and likes to bolt into the kitchen and jump onto the top cabinets. - The biggest boy is just confusing. He has a weird kind of submissive gay relationship with the dog. He often wanders around on our laps, exactly at the moment we're trying to do something important, in classic cat fashion. - Last and by no means least, is my favourite of the cats. He looks a bit like Teddy Roosevelt. I often quote facts about his political career to him. He also likes to be picked up and cuddled and have his belly tickled... but only in the kitchen. Never anywhere else. I love them all to pieces. Yeah, those are the kinds of quirks that are so adorable. Ata’s love for hanging out on the top cabinets and the top of the fridge had us so concerned that he would has a seizure up there and fall without the ability to catch himself. I think it is the view if the high perch that they like.
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Post by edgestar on Jan 7, 2018 16:48:06 GMT -5
My Pete took in a stray cat, and didn't leave it's side. When we brought the kitty to the shelter, he looked all over the house for it. My mom wanted to keep the cat, but we couldn't, because of my brother's allergies. Pete was a very special dog. I hope you and your family are doing well, even though the time is tough. I'm still very sorry for your loss.
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Nikki Heyman
Fry's dog Seymour
EXTREEEEEME Pony Manager
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Post by Nikki Heyman on Jan 7, 2018 17:30:45 GMT -5
all this talk about pets, now they're all in my dreams.
The last two nights I've dreamt about stray cats, and an incident where my cats got outside.
Last night I dreamt I was living with my parents again and that all manner of strays were climbing over the fence in the backyard to see if there's room for them. My cats aren't very "cat socialized" so these strays had to stay outside. One of them was a longhair tortie (his coat was mostly black, with dark orange highlights), there were a couple of silver tabbies, including one that turned out to be a young bobcat. I think that's where Mom drew the line ^_^;;;;
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Matt
El Dandy
Posts: 8,613
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Post by Matt on Jan 7, 2018 22:37:34 GMT -5
We got a very small kitten in October 2004. She was left outside and abandoned by her mom so we took her in from a family friend. She was so small that we actually had to feed her with an eye dropper, since I was in college at the time and home first this became my job. The little kitten and I quickly bonded and I named her Mavis. She was always sickly and we had to get her antibiotics a couple times but nothing major until she got her rabies shot.
Apparently her body had some kind of reaction to the area of her leg muscle where she got the shot. And cancer cells formed, her first surgery to remove the lump of cells was in 2006. She recovered surprisingly well and had two healthy years. But when petting her in late summer 2008 I found another lump. The vet confirmed our worst fear that the cancer was back.
On September 11, 2008 Mavis had surgery to remove her entire leg at the hip. She survived the surgery and the area healed. But one night I told my mom that I could tell Mavis wasn't breathing right. She was rushed to the Emergency vet and her chest was drained. Two weeks later of daily draining of her chest and another EV trip Mavis died of a stroke during the treatment. I was lucky to have her for four years and that my mom and sister had the money to try and save her. Unfortunately it wasn't a happy ending but I do take comfort that her death was fast after all we went through leading to it.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 7, 2018 22:46:54 GMT -5
I'm sorry for your loss.
The thought of this day coming for one of my cats frightens me. They're about to turn four and I love them so much.
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 8, 2018 9:23:17 GMT -5
My Pete took in a stray cat, and didn't leave it's side. When we brought the kitty to the shelter, he looked all over the house for it. My mom wanted to keep the cat, but we couldn't, because of my brother's allergies. Pete was a very special dog. I hope you and your family are doing well, even though the time is tough. I'm still very sorry for your loss. That is so sweet! As awesome as Ata was I find it hard to believe he would have adopted another animal as his own. In fact, we were certain he would be openly hostile to any new animals based on his reaction to all small human who was new to him (translation: he would hiss at my nephews and nieces when he first met them). Granted, after a number of visits he lightened up to merely avoiding those children, so it was possible he might get used to another animal, provided he did not kill it before that point. We opted not to try. Edit: Spell check does not like my baby’s name and keeps changing to “ATA”. If any of my posts say that, I meant “Ata” and not any of the 20 or so organizations that have those acronyms.
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Gecko
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Post by Gecko on Jan 8, 2018 14:40:02 GMT -5
If non-fluffy pets are allowed, I'm currently dealing with a slight situation that everybody apart from me might find amusing. My oldest Tokay has never been friendly, but recently I've decided to try and get him to at least tolerate being handled to make it easier for me when he does need moved. Until today it's been going quite well; he's been a little less aggressive each day I've handled him. This time I put him on my bed to adjust my grip on him and he decided that my quilt was looking at him funny and bit it. When they bite, they hold on. Normally, him biting things isn't an issue; I just put the towel (or whatever) back in his viv with him and he'll let go in his own time (30, 60, 90 minutes). 1) Throwing the whole quilt in his viv isn't an option 2) I can't let go of him in case he makes a run for it 3) He won't release his grip while I'm holding him and everytime I move, he clamps down harder. We're at the 20 minute mark right now and I'm at the point where I'm starting to consider sacrificing a finger to get him back in his viv. ----- As we move into the second hour of the Battle of the Quilt '18, morale is low. We are losing this fight. We tried giving the enemy the finger, figuratively and literally, and he didn't even blink. Probably due to that whole no eye lids thing. As a show of good faith, we have allowed him to return to his base while holding onto the hostage (which remains in neutral territory). We have not given up hope however; Operation 'give him a small towel as a compromise' is on the horizon. ----- The plan was a failure. On the plus side, He only had a good grip on the cover so I've got my actual quilt back. New plan is to leave him alone for a few hours until he's forgotten he's got it in his mouth, then when I go near him he'll try to bite me. I'm getting outsmarted by a f***ing lizard.
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Post by Zaq "That Guy" Buzzkill on Jan 8, 2018 16:41:38 GMT -5
About a month and a half ago our Dog, Teya, of twelve years had to be put down after being sick for several weeks. It was hard the first time I heard it, but I went o parents place for Christmas and it was so strange not seeing her come running to the front door, little tail waggling and being all happy. We have another dog, Pepper but seeing just the one when two years ago we had three happy, healthy little dogs is just heartbreaking. The worst part is that Pepper isn't in the best health these days either, he's pushing ten and used to be so bouncy and happy but now had trouble climbing on the couch.
Good news is that back here I have a little poof of a rabbit and she's as happy and healthy as she's ever bin, albeit a little pudgy because she's a lazy bitch.
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 8, 2018 16:58:40 GMT -5
If non-fluffy pets are allowed, I'm currently dealing with a slight situation that everybody apart from me might find amusing. My oldest Tokay has never been friendly, but recently I've decided to try and get him to at least tolerate being handled to make it easier for me when he does need moved. Until today it's been going quite well; he's been a little less aggressive each day I've handled him. This time I put him on my bed to adjust my grip on him and he decided that my quilt was looking at him funny and bit it. When they bite, they hold on. Normally, him biting things isn't an issue; I just put the towel (or whatever) back in his viv with him and he'll let go in his own time (30, 60, 90 minutes). 1) Throwing the whole quilt in his viv isn't an option 2) I can't let go of him in case he makes a run for it 3) He won't release his grip while I'm holding him and everytime I move, he clamps down harder. We're at the 20 minute mark right now and I'm at the point where I'm starting to consider sacrificing a finger to get him back in his viv. ----- As we move into the second hour of the Battle of the Quilt '18, morale is low. We are losing this fight. We tried giving the enemy the finger, figuratively and literally, and he didn't even blink. Probably due to that whole no eye lids thing. As a show of good faith, we have allowed him to return to his base while holding onto the hostage (which remains in neutral territory). We have not given up hope however; Operation 'give him a small towel as a compromise' is on the horizon. ----- The plan was a failure. On the plus side, He only had a good grip on the cover so I've got my actual quilt back. New plan is to leave him alone for a few hours until he's forgotten he's got it in his mouth, then when I go near him he'll try to bite me. I'm getting outsmarted by a f***ing lizard. I once took care of an anole colony for a research lab. Normally I would simply let them bite my finger when I moved them. I dared not do that with the other reptiles (one of the boas tried to eat my hand), but I know they usually abandoned whatever they were doing if you offered them a wax worm (I assume a gecko would eat them).
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Gecko
Grimlock
FAN Pyrite Member. Muahahaha
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Post by Gecko on Jan 8, 2018 17:25:03 GMT -5
If non-fluffy pets are allowed, I'm currently dealing with a slight situation that everybody apart from me might find amusing. My oldest Tokay has never been friendly, but recently I've decided to try and get him to at least tolerate being handled to make it easier for me when he does need moved. Until today it's been going quite well; he's been a little less aggressive each day I've handled him. This time I put him on my bed to adjust my grip on him and he decided that my quilt was looking at him funny and bit it. When they bite, they hold on. Normally, him biting things isn't an issue; I just put the towel (or whatever) back in his viv with him and he'll let go in his own time (30, 60, 90 minutes). 1) Throwing the whole quilt in his viv isn't an option 2) I can't let go of him in case he makes a run for it 3) He won't release his grip while I'm holding him and everytime I move, he clamps down harder. We're at the 20 minute mark right now and I'm at the point where I'm starting to consider sacrificing a finger to get him back in his viv. ----- As we move into the second hour of the Battle of the Quilt '18, morale is low. We are losing this fight. We tried giving the enemy the finger, figuratively and literally, and he didn't even blink. Probably due to that whole no eye lids thing. As a show of good faith, we have allowed him to return to his base while holding onto the hostage (which remains in neutral territory). We have not given up hope however; Operation 'give him a small towel as a compromise' is on the horizon. ----- The plan was a failure. On the plus side, He only had a good grip on the cover so I've got my actual quilt back. New plan is to leave him alone for a few hours until he's forgotten he's got it in his mouth, then when I go near him he'll try to bite me. I'm getting outsmarted by a f***ing lizard. I once took care of an anole colony for a research lab. Normally I would simply let them bite my finger when I moved them. I dared not do that with the other reptiles (one of the boas tried to eat my hand), but I know they usually abandoned whatever they were doing if you offered them a wax worm (I assume a gecko would eat them). I used to have a few Anoles years back, they were fun to watch hunt. It didn't bother me at all getting bitten by them. The younger Tokays that I have range from 'I'll put up with it' to 'I'm going to find someplace warm and cosy on you and stay there until you move me', but when they were getting used to being handled, my hands were constantly covered in wounds since even the slightest warning bite would draw blood. I tried offering him food, but he wasn't interested. He's getting on a bit and doesn't eat as much as he used to; the only thing that might have got his attention was a pinkie (mouse not finger) but I don't have any in. I even tried showing him the other male that I have, to no reaction. I finally got him to let go about 15 minutes ago. The 'let him relax and forget what he's doing, then offer him another target' approach worked. And I didn't even get bitten. I did come back to him examining the door that I forgot to close, but he didn't make it out.
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 8, 2018 17:35:11 GMT -5
I once took care of an anole colony for a research lab. Normally I would simply let them bite my finger when I moved them. I dared not do that with the other reptiles (one of the boas tried to eat my hand), but I know they usually abandoned whatever they were doing if you offered them a wax worm (I assume a gecko would eat them). I used to have a few Anoles years back, they were fun to watch hunt. It didn't bother me at all getting bitten by them. The younger Tokays that I have range from 'I'll put up with it' to 'I'm going to find someplace warm and cosy on you and stay there until you move me', but when they were getting used to being handled, my hands were constantly covered in wounds since even the slightest warning bite would draw blood. I tried offering him food, but he wasn't interested. He's getting on a bit and doesn't eat as much as he used to; the only thing that might have got his attention was a pinkie (mouse not finger) but I don't have any in. I even tried showing him the other male that I have, to no reaction. I finally got him to let go about 15 minutes ago. The 'let him relax and forget what he's doing, then offer him another target' approach worked. And I didn't even get bitten. I did come back to him examining the door that I forgot to close, but he didn't make it out. I underestimated their size if they can eat pinkies. How much do those cost?
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Gecko
Grimlock
FAN Pyrite Member. Muahahaha
Posts: 13,250
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Post by Gecko on Jan 8, 2018 17:48:06 GMT -5
I used to have a few Anoles years back, they were fun to watch hunt. It didn't bother me at all getting bitten by them. The younger Tokays that I have range from 'I'll put up with it' to 'I'm going to find someplace warm and cosy on you and stay there until you move me', but when they were getting used to being handled, my hands were constantly covered in wounds since even the slightest warning bite would draw blood. I tried offering him food, but he wasn't interested. He's getting on a bit and doesn't eat as much as he used to; the only thing that might have got his attention was a pinkie (mouse not finger) but I don't have any in. I even tried showing him the other male that I have, to no reaction. I finally got him to let go about 15 minutes ago. The 'let him relax and forget what he's doing, then offer him another target' approach worked. And I didn't even get bitten. I did come back to him examining the door that I forgot to close, but he didn't make it out. I underestimated their size if they can eat pinkies. How much do those cost? They're not expensive at all, probably due to them not being that popular because of their temperament. I think for my original (captive bred) pair I paid round about £70.
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Post by Mighty Attack Tribble on Jan 8, 2018 18:56:39 GMT -5
My condolences. One of my family's cats passed today. Tough old bastard, he was. At two years old he was run over by a car and dragged for almost a quarter-mile. Had one hind leg almost ripped off, broke one front leg, multiple lacerations, and several internal injuries. In as bad a shape as he was, the vet felt he had a fighting chance, and after removing the remains of his hind leg and fixing all the other injuries, he pulled through. He went on to father 19 cats and passed his 18th birthday just before Christmas. A life well-lived.
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Post by edgestar on Jan 8, 2018 19:39:32 GMT -5
I'm sorry for your loss
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
Knows when to hold them, knows when to fold them
I've been found out!
Posts: 31,359
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Jan 8, 2018 23:32:20 GMT -5
My condolences. One of my family's cats passed today. Tough old bastard, he was. At two years old he was run over by a car and dragged for almost a quarter-mile. Had one hind leg almost ripped off, broke one front leg, multiple lacerations, and several internal injuries. In as bad a shape as he was, the vet felt he had a fighting chance, and after removing the remains of his hind leg and fixing all the other injuries, he pulled through. He went on to father 19 cats and passed his 18th birthday just before Christmas. A life well-lived. Tough old bastard indeed.
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