Fire Cat

So much has been going on lately. E went a way and left me by myself for almost a week. Of course, she left me my crunchy food, and my automatic waterer. And she arranged for Esther to come see me everyday. But, she doesn't realize how disrupted she makes my life when she goes off like that!

I need to be allowed to go outside and sniff my plants and see who has been visiting the garden. You know, like Miss Cinnamon, and Ronnie, for example. Cinny has a certain fragrance that I recognise..as entirely her own and she rolls around in my dirt all the time. If I don't get out there and roll in the same dirt, Cinnamon will think she owns my dirt! I will not tolerate that!

And Ronnie, though he is a fixed boy, he does have a strong smell about him, and he rubs up against my bushes and especially the corner of my house and door. I know he is just saying hello and wants me to come outside. But, how can I do that when the doors are closed?

If E were here to respond to my beck and command she would open the door and let me out to sniff around, roll in my dirt and have a bite of grass or catnip! I was really miffed at her for going off and leaving me.

So, when she got home, I let her have it. I yowled at her all night long and didn't let her sleep for the next whole week. Ha Ha! That will teach her! Once she learned her lesson and was sufficiently obedient to me, I let off from waking her. After all, I need to get my beauty sleep too.

She got so concerned about my yowling she thought there was something wrong with me and made an appointment to take me to the vet. It was the hottest day of the year. Thank heavens she put ice packs on top of my travel cage and another one underneath my blanket, because even with the air conditioning on in the car, it was quite warm. Though I like the heat better than hoomans do.

As we left the house and drove away, suddenly I saw a huge plume of smoke arising on the horizon. I nudged E to take a look as she was driving. Even though she puts my cage in the car, sometimes I ride beside her. Any time I want to go into my cage, I can, because she leaves the door open for me. E looked up and saw the huge plume of smoke. It looked like a nuclear bomb had exploded!

I realized that the fire was very close to the edge of town by the airport and the hospital. I told E that we couldn't possibly drive to the vets office on our usual route of Hiway 1. I was right about that as they had to close that hiway. So, she decided to take the back road out of town, Freedom Blvd. But as we drove that way, all the traffic that was being diverted from Hiway 1 was beginning to slow us down. E turned around and we went back home. Thank Heavens!

Presently there are other fires all around us, and the smoke makes the sky look dirty. We cannot see the sun. And no matter how much I beg to go outside, E seldom gives in. I sneak out behind her when she takes out the garbage. But, my catnip is covered with Ash. I think Ronny and Cinnamon are not allowed outside now, too. I cannot smell them on my dirt or on the corner of my house or on the bushes.

I am very glad that I live in town and not out in the areas where the fires are. So many cats and dogs got rescued that the animal shelters are full up now. Big dogs that ran away from the fires got lost and picked up by the rescuers. If they had ID tags, Tattoos or Microchip ID, then they were eventually re-united with their people.

Cats are more likely to hide than to run, they say, so firefighters rescued some who were badly burned. Local Veterinarians took them into their hospitals to treat them and heal them. If they had no ID, they were put to sleep. How SAD!!!

With all the fires burning week after week, I often wonder what is happening to my distant kinfolk. Out here where I live there are many Mountain Lions, and I don't mean just in remote regions. With all the fires, where are they? Mountain Lions can, and do run away from fires. They don't hide like domesticated cats do. Where can they run to now? So many many acres of forest are burning! Will they soon be moving into hooman inhabited areas? Will the hoomans be scared of them? Chances are the big cats are scared too, and nervous. That is sure to cause trouble if they show up on some hoomans doorstep. I'm afraid my dear cousins whose lives have been saved by the fires will die at the hands of a gun.

I saw on the news where they rescued some Condors. Those are the biggest most frightening birds to me! But, they are a disappearing species, so some wildlife specialists somehow were able to capture 8 of those condors. But, like I said, what about my kinfolk???

Disaster Preparedness for Pets by Elizabeth

I've thought about this for the last week or so, whether or not I should make this posting. But, finally came to the decision to do so, as it weighs heavy on my heart.

I'm sure I don't have to remind anyone how precious our pets are to us.

I am enamored of my ancient 18 year old kitty, too. She sits at my elbow right now forcing me to type one handed. I'm sure we have many in the group who are owned by their dogs, I mean, who are dog owners. (hope to see some soon).

When a friend recently mentioned about going to the Rescue Shelter, it nudged me to go there too. Not because I need a new kitty, or want one in paticular, but because it has become apparent that Keli needs one. As much as she might dislike an interloper, she is lonely when I am gone, and even when I am here, .she would rather have feline company to help her harangue me. (she tells me so).

So the other day, I went to the shelter. But, instead of coming home with a new pet, I came home with an aching heart. Right now the shelters are overflowing with animals rescued from the fires. Bunnies and Chickens, and goats, and dogs and cats. You name it. The news had been presenting a lot about people evacuating their horses and livestock. But, I hadn't thought that people's pets wouldn't be safe. My cat would go into my car before my purse or family photos or my grandmother's antique vase. I would carry her in my arms (in cage) if I couldn't get away by car.

Of course if an owner isn't home when the fire starts and his dogs are outside on his property, there isn't much he can do to save his dogs (or cats). In the rural areas where these big fires are decimating the forest and brush, people's pets do not necessarily live indoors. The shelter had gone into the fire areas with their trucks and rescued as many pets as they could. Many were injured by fire. All were nervous and traumatized. Too many have gone unclaimed by their owners now that the fires in my immediate vicinity area are out. I couldn't bring myself to adopt a kitty who would not get my full attention for healing. It wouldn't be fair to Keli, It wouldn't be fair to the fire cat.

All this being said, I just had such an epiphany about it. We make preparations for disaster (don't we?) We put away food, water, medicine and blankets for those times when flood, fire, earthquake, etc. occur. We make plans for where the family will go if we can't be in our homes. But, when we are making all those plans, do we include our animals? Not me. the thought hadn't crossed my mind.

When I put aside canned goods and emergency lights and bandages in the garage, I didn't put away any cat food. In case of a true disaster, my cat will be one of those ending up in the shelters, and because of her advanced age, euthanized, as it is the young ones who get adopted when their owners cannot be found. I learned that when I went to the shelter to find an older cat to be companion to mine. No older ones available.

My cat doesn't wear a collar with an ID tag. She doesn't have a computer chip. That will change this week. I don't expect the fires to embark upon my own neighborhood. It was the other side of Watsonville that was so closely involved in the fire last week. I'm surrounded by strawberry fields where I live. Only smoke will bother me. But, I do live in a flood plain. It hasn't flooded in years, but it's best to be prepared.

Just putting my thoughts on all this out here. Have you thought about your own disaster preparedness? What plans have you made for your pets? Who will take care of them if you are not able to? How will they be kept safe? How will you prove they are yours if they have no ID on them?

Stifles?

Keli is an 18 year old neutered calico female. Up until about age seven there has always been at least one other cat in her life. Then a period of years went by as a single cat. She has been both an outdoor (occasionally) and indoor cat. Presently, she will step outside the door to sniff the live catnip, lay in the sun a few moments and come back in. She has no interest in balls, stuffed animals or other self play toys as she once did, and has little interactive play with any feather or long snake-like (her favorite) toys, except for laying on her side and batting at them a couple times, then she ignores them.

She still likes to be picked up and cuddled like a baby. She seems happiest with this.

I am very well aware she has arthritic changes in her sacro-illac joints and spine near the tail, which were diagnosed last year. the vet ordered pain medicine for her which makes her foam at the mouth, and she will fight to the death not to take in any way. He had also ordered prednisone and aspirin

sclerosis of spine narrowing the bridge L-Sacral. degenerative disease in the elbows. (hips and stifles were ok.) Stifles? she has small left kidney.