Fur-riends on another blog

Two of Cat's handsome boys are not feeling well ... and I do hope they get better soon.  It can be a helpless feeling, not knowing exactly what is wrong and not being able to understand what is wrong with your pet.  This morning, we had a whiny pup out on the 5 AM walk (nothing wrong with him) and we were discussing how frustrating it can be trying to figure out whether the whine means hunger, thirst, pain or simply just a desire to play with someone. He had a round of needles yesterday so it could be residual discomfort..but I wish he could talk just a little to let me know what is wrong.

Still Life

The continual hot weather here means that the soil is drying out and the gardener doesn't want to go out in the heat to weed the garden. So "planting" metal ornaments sounded quite appealing!  Although these photos aren't very clear (I took them rather than the resident photographer who does a much better job of it) they show the latest additions to the garden.  The local dollar store had some cute painted metal cats (blue, orange and white) and I couldn't resist. I know they will probably be rusting within a year or two but hopefully that will still look suitably charming in the back yard….which sports a couple of flamingos which did cost considerably more….and are already rusting.

The blue cat sits in front of a flowering almond bush which has pretty pink flowers in spring.  There are purple heucheras behind the cat but they are not very visible in the shot. The orange cat has a Golden dwarf Japanese barberry bush behind it (stays small and compact, with bright lemony yellow leaves all summer), with the yellow flowered lysimachia and a vine which started as a piece cut off the vine which grows up the side of house.  The white cat really stands out in the early evening and is actually surrounded by purple flowers (magenta purple salvia to left, soft blue lilac coloured salvia behind and the remnants of some deep purple bachelor buttons to the right.)

I missed a great opportunity to capture a true cat "still life" earlier in the week...Spike was curled up in the chair by the front window fast asleep.  A dog was walking by outside and within 30 seconds all 3 dogs were gathered around the chair, woofing loudly. Even the pup added in a few yips for good measure. Through all this cacophony of noise, Spike stayed soundly sleeping. Sure enough, by the time I tracked down the camera, the dog outside had disappeared and woofers inside had headed back to their respective napping spots.  Even though Spike was still fast asleep, the irony of the "still life" photo op was gone!

A Rare Sight in This House

I know many of you have cats that willingly cuddle together...and I have bemoaned the fact it doesn't happen here. But..to my surprise...I found a photo opportunity that I had to leverage quickly before the joy of proximity changed to the pain of personal space invasion.  Angel had been fast asleep on the cat bed when Spike came up and carefully stepped into the empty space left at the side (since this is actually a large dog bed it provides plenty of space). As Spike wiggled in that chubby body of his, the fur on his side must have tickled Angel's nose. Angel opened one eye warily but decided against a quick exodus. Instead he closed that eye and snuggled his face into the cushion in the cat bed.  Spike watched him for a few seconds and then put his head down to go to sleep.

Why I love my cats

Sometimes a sleepless night really brings home how much I love my cats. First ..at around 3 in the morning...a loud yakking sound at the end of the bed..a scramble to get up and see which dog was getting sick and make it there before next dog decided to jump on clean up duty.  Then, an hour and a half later, a couple of soft, piteous whines from the third dog at my side of the bed, looking for someone to carry her downstairs. (She can't climb stairs due to her age and arthritis so I carry her upstairs each night - although don't usually have the AM shift to come downstairs.)  After snuggling back under the covers and falling asleep, I heard the sharp yap of a wide awake puppy.  At this point all three dogs were downstairs with hubby (who is always up by 5 AM to feed dogs and cats) so the pup wanted someone to give him attention.  I hoisted him out of his crate, took him outside to take care of business then handed him over to hubby.

Now, over this time, Angel was sleeping at the end of the bed, not bothered by anything going on and not moving until he heard hubby heading downstairs for feeding time. Angel comes up at night time right after I head to bed, jumps on the end of the bed and spreads himself over my feet.  At some point during the night, Sadie saunters down the hall and curls up on the laundry basket just outside the room (well..not a functioning laundry basket anymore..now taken out of use and filled with a cat blanket). Spike occasionally sneaks up to sleep in the headboard...squishing his ample frame into a rather small bookcase section in the headboard, right by his adored "papa". And NOT at any time during the night, am I woken up by any of my sweet cats!   

  

Sadie and Seumas are sharing the couch in the photos above.  Sadie crawled up on Saumas' blanket just after it had come out of the dryer. She was fast asleep when Seumas was put on the couch to play with his toys..she opened an eye to see who it was and then went right back to sleep. Seumas followed suit shortly after!

A New Furry Boy ...but not what you think

Sadie, our well known "flopper", who will sit or lie anywhere that catches her fancy, has decided to sit on top of the new dog cage holding the new furry boy.  She has taken a sniff or two of the new pup without any real interest and is now ignoring him. She can easily ignore his little yips, being deaf, and he isn't eating her food so it is just another day in the household.  Spike and Angel have similar reactions..a sniff or two of puppy's face and then back to what they were doing.  Sebastian, ever wary of anything that might pose a threat, hissed and backed up.  But he keeps away from every four footed furry in the house and only has eyes for hubby and youngest son.

Lady Gray earns a nickname

Aaaah...the joy of being tucked into a snug cat bed with some warm Ontario sun rays streaming through the glass door!

My friend's silver kitty is certainly enjoying her life and I am sure is spoiled wonderfully now.  Apparently she loves to curl up and snooze much of the time during the day and she has recently been nicknamed "Lazy Gray" by the man in the house, who swears she is always sleeping.  My friend knows better since she sees the food in the Lady's dinner bowl has mysteriously vanished when no one was looking.

What Cats Do on a Holiday

The long awaited holiday weekend came...and all of us in the house took full advantage of a day of peace and quiet. Sadie made herself comfortable on hubby's leg. Angel stayed up in the bedroom tucked into a little ball.

And Spike....well, Spike was just being himself...nest napper on a large scale.  He decided that the dog bed would be just the spot to stretch out in.  He could probably smell a wee bit of himself from the last time he usurped this bed..but clearly the dog smell wasn't enough to deter him.