Wayward Pussy Inn
Showing posts with label Wayward Kitties. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wayward Kitties. Show all posts

Happy Autumn!

September 22, 2017  
Credit: Julie Collet https://www.facebook.com/juliecolletgoddessart/
First Autumn for me. While I know this can also be the celebration of the second harvest (maybe I get a third harvest then?) this is my first Autumn. With the Maryland Renaissance Faire continuing I get to celebrate the changing of the season and all of it's colorful glory here in MD. Then, just as the weather turns to nippy, I bolt from MD and take up residence in Louisiana where there will hopefully still be plenty more days of warmth before it turns to nippy there as well.

The Louisiana Renaissance Faire can be tricky for a traveler as far as climate. It can be sweltering humidity in November or a cold humidity that chills your bones. In either case Autumn is extended for a period and since it's my favorite time of year that is okay by me.

I'll be in MD for just about another 5 weeks so if we need to touch base, we should do that.

Other happenings:

- I have a fun idea for a little polymer clay project that I'm hoping is received well enough that folks will want to take one home. I'm taking my time and figuring out the costs and what the cost of the final project will be. I've done a lot of searching and find things close to what I want to do but not exactly so I have that going for me. In the meantime I'm watching tons of tutorials regarding painting and coloring of polymer clay because I'm not a paint-gifted person. I'm not sure I'm even artistically inclined. I'm creative but artistic? Nah.

- Dot went for an unauthorized outdoor adventure this week. Last Sunday she decided bolting out of the RV door was a terrific idea. Once out there she looked around like she had gone through some sort of mystical rabbit hole to a new universe and promptly ran scared for the neighbors shed and brush where she spent nearly two nights before deciding the van was a better option. She's fine but I really wish she would stop doing this. She's clearly not happy once she actually gets outside. She's also not usually one to bolt out of a door unless it didn't latch properly and no one is around so I'm not sure why she went this time.

- The rest of the cats are doing fine. Baron Mortipurr von Fuzzybritches has settled in quite nicely. He is an old soul I think. Calm & relaxed he is simply adorable with his flat little face. I don't think he's going to get much bigger so definitely small than I was expecting him to be. Maybe some of that had to do with how sickly he was when I first got him. Who knows - I love him.
Baron Mortipurr von Fuzzybritches
Not much else is going on. Hopefully I'll have pictures of the polymer project soon. Continue Reading

Goodbye Anchovy

September 28, 2016  
My old guy passed away on September 12. Sadly, I wasn't home with him. I was on my way home from a trip to Colorado, riding in a car somewhere in Kansas when I got the call from my bestie (and pet sitter) that Anchovy wasn't looking very well. I trust my girl, Jen. We worked together at an animal hospital for a lot of years; if she says it's time then it's time. I'm exceptionally saddened that I wasn't here to be with him. We were together almost 17 years, why couldn't he wait three more days?

I'll miss his little alien looking self. I always jokingly said if Anchovy were a person he would be a gay French dude. He's going to be terribly missed.

Pike on the left, Anchovy on the right. Both have now passed.
Oddly, he left in the same time frame that he came in. Pike was my first kitty and when he turned 6 Anchovy came to live with us. Pike passed 6 years ago and now Anchovy has followed him.


My little family is shrinking alarmingly. We've gone from 7 bodies in the van to 4 in a little over a year.  Dandy. Dot and Tadpole are all close to the same age 6/7 so hopefully we won't be suffering any more losses any time soon. Continue Reading

Wayward Pussy Wednesday

September 16, 2015  
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Wayward Pussy Wednesday Series

August 26, 2015  
Starting a new picture series. Wayward Pussy Wednesday. A new kitty pic from the Wayward Pussy Inn every Wednesday! Today Dandy sleeps in the passenger seat. Continue Reading

Dandy Debacle

August 02, 2015  
As any of the regular readers here know I started my journey on the road with 6 cats three years ago. This past spring I lost two of my fuzzy friends to different illnesses three weeks apart. The passing of Gobie and Cuda has left me rather overprotective of my remaining kitties.

When we traveled from DE to MD in mid-May of this year I started noticing that Dandy was losing weight. Dandy is the youngest of my cats and he's also the favorite - the one I am most bonded to and who is most bonded to me. While the other cats seem to merely tolerate me, (because I can offer food, water and occasional scritches) Dandy seeks out affection and reassurance from me constantly. He is a momma's boy and I love that about him. His weight loss sent me into a panic. I was terribly worried that he was also beginning to show signs of hyperthyroid disease (which is what Cuda passed from) and I was scared that I was about to start the process of losing a third cat in nearly as many months.

I am at the end of my off-season for work which means I am scraping the bottom of my bank account. I knew a veterinary visit was going to cost a small fortune and I simply didn't have it in the bank. In steps a wonderful angel friend who, knowing what this cat means to me, sent me the funds to have him checked out. Blessed are the angels in out lives who are willing to give a helping hand when we need one. I would do just about anything for my furry friends. There have been many times where I have gone hungry to ensure that they had food and clean litter. Yes, I know that sounds crazy. I am a crazy cat lady.

Dandy grew up very socialized since he came from a rescue program at a veterinary hospital that I worked at. He was never meant to stay with me as I was just a foster home while he weaned. He came into the hospitals care at around two weeks old. He is a bottle baby and originally was in the care of another veterinary worker who was inexperienced in such intense care. She called me one day to ask me to come to her house and look at the kittens because they didn't seem right. She was correct, they were nearly starving to death because she was attempting to wean them at 4 weeks with no bottle supplement. One of those kittens did pass. Dandy tried to pass twice but after some mouth to mouth resuscitation and a bottle or two he pulled through. From the day I breathed that  little baby back to life, he was mine to care for. I was also in the process of losing my first cat, Pike, to diabetes and old age so I decided that Dandy would stay with me. He got his name because I just kept chanting to him that he, "would be fine and dandy".

But I digress - he loved going to the vet hospital. For some reason veterinary workers always have a soft spot for orange cats. I think it's because they are usually very even tempered and Dandy is no exception there. They cooed and cuddled him. Giving him lots of hugs and kisses. He was rolling around on the exam table happy as could be and then they did it - they took his temperature. From the second that thermometer went into his little butt he was a different cat. Grumbling and unhappy. When the doc came in and pulled his skin up to see if he was dehydrated he actually turned to bite the doc. I was shocked, this cats has never bitten anyone out of anger, just play biting.

The doc and I talked and decided to run a set of blood panels to check everything including his heart and thyroid as well as get some urine for a unrinalysis. Off to the back Dandy went where they took the blood and had to do a cystocentensis (using a needle through the abdomen to get into the bladder) to get urine. When they brought him back to me he definitely had his grumpy face on and his tail was tucked between his legs. Poor little guy. He was so stressed by the entire ordeal that he developed a fever and slept the rest of the night.
Poor passed out pussycat
We got his test results back the next day and it turns out he's fine. Perfectly healthy. The doc said to check his weight again in a month and if he's lost more then we'll consider x-rays and other tests at that point but she didn't feel it was anything worth getting upset about. Perhaps because we spent the winter in DE (where it gets extremely cold) rather than TX (where it gets mildly cold) he put some extra winter weight on and was just shedding those pounds. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is all that is going on. For now I have my boy and I have the peace of mind that he is okay and that's good enough for me. Continue Reading

In Memoriam Cuda

May 22, 2015  
Cuda otherwise known as Barracuda, Little Lady, Little Miss Thing, Cudybug, and Cudapatooda left us on May 19. She was let go with as much grace and dignity as I could afford her. She was euthanized at 6:50pm. I just couldn't take seeing her suffer.

On May 18 she stopped purring. Cuda had the most wonderfully loud purr for such a dainty kitty. She also stopped responding to touch. These were signs to me that it was time to let her go.

Cuda came into my life 10 years ago. Someone at one of the hospitals I worked for found her abandoned under their porch and so I fostered and then fully adopted her. She was shy - VERY shy. So shy, in fact, that it took her nearly 5 years to allow me to pet her and even then I had to be laying down in bed before she would approach. In the past 5 years she grew to be a rather social kitty but still spent a lot of time in hiding. She loved to be patted on her butt with anything you could pat her with.

Gobie was one of her best freinds in the house and I have no doubt that his death caused her illness to spiral out of control. I think her depression in the three weeks he was gone just got the best of her as she completely stopped eating and started dropping weight at an incredible rate. She wouldn't drink either and so was extremely dehydrated.

Cuda (left) Gobie (right)
Her presence will be missed by the remaining kitties and myself. She was buried next to her brother, Gobie, and I finally released the ashes of my first cat, Pike, on both of their graves since Cuda and Gobie were such sweet kitties and Pike was so fierce. Hopefully he is watching over both of these sweet little souls. Continue Reading

In Memoriam Gobie

April 27, 2015  
It is with a heavy heart that The Wayward Pussy Inn says goodbye to one of its crew. Gobie passed away here in the van on 4/25. He was surrounded by the other kitties and in my arms when he took his last breath. Gobie will be severely missed. He was my rolly polly, squidgy kitty. With his huge owl eyes (that didn't always point in the same direction) he always looked amazed at the life around him.
Always a sound sleeper
Gobie didn't have the easiest start to life. He was found in someone's backyard when he was about 7 weeks old, his tail was all but severed from his little body. The doctors assumed that a bird of prey attempted to make a meal of him because he also suffered head trauma, which is why his eyes didn't always point in the same direction. He tried to pass away several times during surgery to amputate the tail but thankfully survived. When he was old enough to be neutered he tried to pass away during that surgery as well as the surgery to close a hole we found in his palate. I always called him my special kitty because he never had full kitten or cat qualities. He was content to sit in whatever spot you put him and was always grateful for a cuddle. He loved snuggling to sleep and had a terrific purr.
Gobie and Tadpole snuggling
He also loved the other cats and they would often be found sleeping together. His silly, sweet and gentle soul will be greatly missed here at The Inn. I hope where ever he went someone is cuddling him.
His favorite sleeping position


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Tadpole Entered Into 2013 Calendar Contest

December 17, 2012  
I entered Tadpole into a contest to be in a 2013 calendar. If you have a Facebook account please consider taking a moment to vote for him. He's currently in 8th place with two votes - the number one spot has only seven votes so it won't take much to get him up there.

Click Here To Vote Continue Reading

Maryland Renaissance Festival

September 04, 2012  
I love the MD faire, there is no question about that. In most years I have purchased a season pass. Most years I would only go one day each weekend. This year I've done two weeks straight (5 days) and I'm pooped. This past weekend was 3 straight days. The humidity has been insane, the rain has been heavy and being scrutinized by everyone has taxed me.

On top of all of that, my little Miss Mouse passed away sometime the night before last. I took the tank out to feed her and change the bedding and I found her in her little nest, curled up and cold. Definitely not a good way to start yesterday.

RIP little friend :(

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Meet the Wayward Pussy Crew

August 05, 2012  

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Your Turn!

August 04, 2012  
I've always known my cats were against me sleeping. I always assumed it was some masterful ploy by them to keep me malleable but I'm starting to wonder if this isn't some sort of watch-keeping.

I've always wondered why my cats would wake me up and then as soon as I'm UP they go to sleep. Definitely a wonky practice on their part but I'm wondering if, in groups of feral cats, they "keep watch"

I could just be nuts because it's 5am and I'm awake and now they are all asleep like it was my imagination that randomly started tipping things off the counter. Continue Reading

Cat Proofing the Windows

July 30, 2012  

You might be a van dweller if you have reclaimed lattice bungeed to your windows to keep your pets in.

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Dot Escapes The Van

July 17, 2012  


I knew it was bound to happen, it was just a matter of time. Yesterday while sitting at a rest area in Connecticut Dot squeezed out one of the small triangle windows. I looked up from texting on my phone to see her standing outside of the van on the driver's side door. As quickly and quietly as I could I got out of the van and walked around that side.

A note about Dot, she's my barely 5 pound, skittish little lady. She lives with me because she was too skittish to adopt out and she rarely comes to me unless I'm laying in bed. She's gotten better but it's not like she'll come running if I call her.

I was panicked. What the hell am I going to do? When she saw me she jumped off the van and ran towards the picnic tables (about 5 feet away from where I was parked). There was a crowd of folks standing in the lot stretching their legs who saw all of this and started heading my way to help round her up. I had to tell them that I was thankful that they wanted to help but that them coming near her would only chase her farther away since she won't even come to me and with that I got back in the van while keeping an eye on her to see where she was going to head. To my surprise she came back over to the van yowling and looking for a way to get back in the window she jumped out of.

I got back out and left the passenger door open (no small feat to leave a door open to get one cat in and keep 5 others from jumping out) and walked around the van hoping she would run from me and into the open door. Cat brains don't work like that - she knew how she got out and wouldn't accept any other way of getting back in. After three rounds of chase the cat where she and I did circles around the van I finally opened the drivers side door and tried one more time. Thankfully she decided to jump in and I ran over and shut the door to cheers from the crowd that was watching. I'm so glad she understands the van is "home" and didn't decide to take off into the woods.

She's actually been sort of clingy with me since the incident and I guess maybe she figures I ain't so bad compared to the loud trucks that were pulling into and out of the rest area!

*This post was edited on Aug. 5, 2020 for a racial microaggression. I learn every day.
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I want you to draw me like one of your French girls

May 15, 2012  
Dandy makes himself at home no matter where home may be. Continue Reading

The Fuzz - Part 3 - The Immortal

January 20, 2012  
This is my nearly 6 year old Deer Mouse - the oddity in my Fur Squad. She was originally named Jaws due to the fact that she bit me when I attempted to sex her prior to euthanizing her. Once she bit me I knew she would be strong enough to live so she came home and took up residence in an old 10 gallon aquarium I had.

I don't mess with her or handle her so she's got a pretty cushy life. She's outlived two friends and when the last one passed I decided to stop buying her new friends (I truly think she's eating their souls so she can live) When she hit over 2 years old she became The Immortal. Well past her life span, she's happy and healthy so I needed to make room for her in the van.

Today her living space was downgraded from the 10 gallon glass tank to a cozy 5 gallon acrylic flat back hexagonal tank. She also got a new running wheel since I've noticed lately she doesn't run in the metal one anymore. I think since she's a bit geriatric the bars were too far across so she's now got a toes & tail safe plastic non-squeaking wheel.

The tank fits perfectly where the old microwave was and even leaves room to stow her bedding material. I don't bother buying mouse food and just toss scraps of whatever I eat and occasionally some cat food into the tank - it's worked for 6 years I'm not going to change it now.

She's currently very busy rearranging her bed (a fish tank skull full of fluff) and the bedding to suit her needs. Seems no worse for wear with the downgraded size.

One more thing off my to-do list.

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The Fuzz- Part 2- Dandy

January 19, 2012  
In part 1 of The Fuzz I showed you guys three of the Fuzz Squad (Gobie, Anchovy & Barracuda). This post is just about Dandy.
Dandy is a special guy. I've had him in my home since he was 4 weeks but he's been in my care since he was about a week old. He came into the veterinary hospital I worked at and into our kitten rescue program. Unfortunately the girl who was bottle feeding them tried to wean the litter far too early and I received a phone call asking me to come look at the kittens. When I got there this little guy was on the edge of death. His head was just rolling around on his little body, his color was bad and while I was holding him he stopped breathing - twice. After two rounds of CPR and a good warm bottle he perked up and I took him into my care to foster at home.

While Dandy (named for the fact that I kept telling him he would be "fine and dandy") was fostering at
my house I lost my oldest cat, Pike, to age and diabetes. it was decided then that this little guy would live with me permanently. One of the best decisions I've ever made. He is a definite light in my life. He makes me laugh multiple times daily with his human Al Bundy-like sitting posture. He loves to snuggle and is smart as can be. He gives high-fives, will jump into your arms if you pat your chest and will hold a conversation with you as long as you understand cat-speak (otherwise he gets bored and wanders off)

Watching him grow from a near-dead 5 ounce fluff ball into the 9 pound beast of love that he has become is one of my great joys in life. When people ask me why 6 cats - Dandy is the epitome of why. All of my little Fuzz Squad have a similar story and I can't imagine my life without them.

 Dandy at 5 weeks
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Kitty Shitter

January 13, 2012  
A cat in a van presents some issues regarding a litter pan and where to put it. Six cats in a van presents an even larger issue.

My original plan was to place the litter pan in the tub. This seems to be the norm amongst full-timing cat owners. The problem with that for me is the litter pan size. While I'm prepared to scoop multiple times daily I realized that any covered ('cause who wants to look at that?) pan was going to be far too small for the fur squad's happiness. After much sitting, thinking and staring at my vans setup I came to the conclusion that for their happiness as well as mine the litter pan would go under the rear dinette seat. The lovely thing about my dinette seats - there is a little door on the front of each seat.

Off to Target I went to purchase a litter pan that would fit. I decided against a pan sold as a "litter pan" (they're pretty expensive when you think about it) and headed for the home storage section. I came away with a 28 quart under-bed storage container that fits perfectly under the seat. Not only does it fit perfectly but it leaves room for a 27 pound bucket of litter! Perfecto!

Now I'm in the process of getting them used to going into a little door to use their potty. I found a cardboard box that's the same size as the dinette seat compartment, cut a little door in it and what do you know, the fur squad has no issues using it.

Yes, I'm giving up much needed storage space since I originally had my tool box, electric plug in cord and a few fuse storage boxes in there but those can go in the tub and on the bright side I won't have to clean litter out of the tub to use it. Unfortunately the front dinette seat has my furnace bits under it so there isn't much in the way of storage there but I can put the two smaller tool boxes containing my extra fuses in there.

HUZZAH! Continue Reading

Pillow Pads

December 02, 2011  
Or plasmacytic pododermatitis (Also called Mushy Pad Syndrome/ Disease). Just noticed that one of my cats has this going on with both of her front paw pads. She's not an overly cuddly kitty so it could have been there for quite some time. It doesn't seem to be causing her pain and they aren't ulcerated or bleeding so I'm not going to worry so much. The apparent tie between that and FiV has me somewhat concerned but it's a little late for that now with 6 indoor cats. I'll just have to keep an eye on it and I suppose if it ulcerates I'll start treating with doxycycline (which I have and can safely compound down to a dosage for her) or steroids (hooray for that ginormous first aid kit I've created)

I'm wondering if she has a flea allergy or other allergin sensitivity since she'll sneeze profusely if I spray anything in the house like air freshener, perfume, carpet cleaner. Definitely something to consider as we move forward with van dwelling.

Poor little Cuda-bug.

On the plus side my 20+ years as a veterinary technician just saved me a $200 veterinary visit just to find out what this is and how to treat it. It probably also saved her the stress of going to the vets, the pain of possible biopsy and medications she likely doesn't need!



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Feline Wake Up Call

November 14, 2011  
There are days when I wonder how I went down the path of owning pets - let alone 6 cats. Today is one of those days when I'm spending my mid-morning tea wondering what sort of wake up call I will be provided with once we're all living in a RV.

At 4:05 this morning I awakened to the sound of the Shop Vac turning on. I know exactly what happened - one of the cats was standing on it trying to get a better look at the mouse and they hit the button. Whoever did it scared the shit out of themselves, literally.

Ahh, the joys of cats. Continue Reading

The Fuzz (Part 1)

October 25, 2011  
Figured it might be nice to put some faces to some names of the soon to be on-board crew. I'm sure I'll speak of them often.


 Barracuda (L) - female, Cuda for short. She's extremely shy. I've had her for three years and she's only just starting to approach me to be petted. She's 4th as far as age. Gobie (R) - male, suffers from brain damage due to head trauma. He's the love bug of the bunch makes up for the fact that he isn't the brightest. He's 2nd as far as age.

Anchovy - male, oldest. Yeah, he looks like an alien. He suffers from urinary issues which are controlled via diet and occasional fluid therapy. He loves EVERYONE as long as they are paying attention to him.
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