AUTUMN/BAXTER
UPDATES FROM NEW FOSTER MOM
NOV. 29, 2012:
Baxter continues to do fantastic. He has a hard time deciding between his two favorite things, cuddle or eat? Cuddle or eat? We solve that by taking turns. He eats for a few seconds, gets distracted, runs to get cuddles, and then I put him back in front of the food dish. This is sure to cause some major issues when he is older- we will deal with the therapy later.
Willy simply will not sit still. He is so happy when it’s play time, he runs CRAZY all over my blocked off living/dining room, chasing his tail, chasing my dog, chasing Baxter. It makes his life easier to wait until Baxter is not eating to come and get snacks. Bax will sit in the food dish, scoop the food to himself with his teeny paws, and then growl at Willy.
WILLY
Willy has NO time for cuddles. He is at the “GEEZ MOM NO!” stage right now, and struggles when he is picked up. This is what we at Camp Leaf refer to as “Tough Love” as in Tough, Kid. You are GOING to get love. He will suffer about three licks when Boris (the resident cat) is trying to clean him. Baxter on the other hand LOVES uncle Boris, and will sit still happily. I am keeping a watchful eye, because not only is Baxter tiny, he also smells like delicious kitten food (because he crawls in it). I don’t think Boris is cleaning him out of love. He tastes like chicken.
DEC. 5, 2012:
Oh geez. Oh geez oh geez.
Willy is great, 2 lb. 5 OZ. Also Willy is a girl (explains a LOT) I forgot to ask the Vet yesterday (they went yesterday) to sex her for sure, but she appears to have little girl parts and not boy parts. We held up butts for comparison. High culture at our house.
BAXTER
Oh Baxter. Sigh. Baxter has a heart murmur. It’s is serious enough that he is being referred to get an ultrasound so we know what we are dealing with. Dr. Dan heard it yesterday. It is probably not the type that goes away, given his age. He said that is probably the reason Bax is so tiny, and he IS tiny for his age. I called Cathy, and she is making a referral for an expert to do the ultrasound. She said she will set it up for next week. He weighed 1 pound, 6.5 OZ. so he is still gaining, and he eats all the food I can stuff in him.
Bax is doing really well. We decided not to tell him he has a heart condition. He is pretty fearless for one so tiny, and he will investigate the whole living room during playtime. He bops my dog on the nose, and rubs against all the big cats, they LOVE him.
Willy is a bit more persnickety (girl cat). She is now clipped of her evil cat talons of doom. Front and back. My neck looks like I’ve been tortured. She was actually really good about the clipping, too. Baxter, not so much. I had to wait until he was asleep and ambush him.
Thank god for no kill shelters. My husband already threatened to chain himself to something if anyone talks about euthanasia (unless it’s a pain and suffering issue).
Little Baxter may have a good life. We had a cat with a similar heart condition, and he lived for seven happy years. That's a little on the short side (his heart did fail), since his sister lived to almost 17, but still he had seven really good years.
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