PET'S CORNER

[Cathy]

Is Minnie all settled in her new domain now?

[PanBiker]

Getting there Cathy, still wary of visitors but has found loads of hiding places. She is happy with us as she has visited both our laps for cuddles etc. She will stay Minnie but I had an inkling to rename her Dora (Ola!) after the young Spanish educating explorer! We haven't opened up the attic yet as there are too many hard to get at hiding places up there and we yet have a capture event looming for her booster jabs at our local vets. She will be able to venture outside then but I will have to offer her up to the cat flap in the front door so that it can learn her chip which will let her back in. All in all very good progress for a semi traumatised small cat.

[Cathy]

[Stanley]

I'm impressed. It's certainly an exercise in patience. All credit to both you and Sally for investing the time and effort on the project.

[Cathy]

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Awww

[Stanley]

[PanBiker]

Just back from taking Minnie for her first visit to Stanley House Vets. Nothing wrong just a booster jab and an update of her details on the practice computer. Her chip is registered to us and she had her claws clipped while she was there. Lianne gave her the once over and all is good. She was not really impressed and was very vocal about the visit. We reckon her lineage may have a bit of Siamese in it! She hid for a while when I let her out of the carrier but it looks like she has forgiven us now.

I should report that she is a climber and the original Art Deco set of green glass vase and candle holder that we used to have is now just a vase! She decided to investigate the 5 ft high mantle top of our 1920's Oak fire surround in the back living room. It was very brief visit and a very loud crash! We will dust the shelf while it's empty. She is pinching knitted pumpkins at the moment, trimming up for Christmas, especially the tree will be interesting this year.

[Stanley]

That reminds me of when Jack ate the lining of the van roof.....
I call this pic 'The Lurcher's Revenge'.



Never leave a disgruntled lurcher alone in the back of a van.....

[Cathy]

Ian - any new pics of Minnie?

[PanBiker]

Here we go Cathy, she's still a climber and gets in everywhere there is opportunity.

[Stanley]

She makes a good ornament on the mantelpiece!

[Cathy]

Oh lovely, , I like Minnie’s window-sill pic.

[Stanley]

Somehow I knew those pics would light Cathy's fire!

[PanBiker]

It's time to teach Minnie how to use the cat flap in the front door. She is always first there if the opportunity to explore the front garden presents itself! She is still quite timid with strangers and noises in the back street when she is out in the yard. Consequently she will need to learn the cat flap from both sides.

I cleaned the door and window last week and now it just needs some new batteries as a first job. I can them wipe the memory of our previous cats ID chips from the device. I don't have to do that as it can hold 30 different chip ID's in it's memory. It has at least three former users and there is no point them being registered any longer. A long press on the programming button should wipe the memory which should reset after rapid LED flashes. A shorter press then will put it into learn mode, indicated by slow flashes on the LED, this lasts about 2 minutes before locking shut again. New cats to be registered have to go through the door and tunnel within that time frame and the door will register and store their ID chip. It doesn't matter from which side but it will be a helped procedure in the first instance. The cat itself needs to know how the door and flap operate from both sides. It's automatic de latch once the chip is registered but the approach from outside is through a short tunnel and the cat has to know that the door will open when entered.

Should be fun, here we go!

[Stanley]

Sounds complicated to me but then all these computer procedures are a mystery to me.
(I'm OK with pieces of 3" bar a foot long..... )

[PanBiker]

Wiped the memory OK and put the flap in learn mode. Managed to get the cat through from the outside, she wandered out when the door was opened. Flap is now registered to her ID chip and is fully functional. When unlocked on the manual rotor for the flap it is always in a free "out" mode, the door is just lightly held in place by a magnetic strip and keepers in the door frame to stop it rattling in the wind. The "in" electronic latch is in the lock position. In effect the cat only has to trigger the flap when returning home. She has not yet figured out the free exit that is available! She will probaly discover this by accident when peering out through the door.

[Stanley]

[Cathy]

A couple of days ago I had a strange thing happen. I was stood in my lounge watching something on the tele, turned around to leave the room and saw this on my sofa. It was just a bit of washing, waiting to be folded. But what I saw was my cat .
I was , then . She died just over 3 years ago. I had her for 15 years. Still miss her.

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[Wendyf]

Oh Cathy that is sad. I instantly saw a cat on your settee. Our lovely fluffy Feebie is 19 this year and we fear it won't be long before her time is up. She is almost blind, completely deaf and though she eats constantly, is just bones and fur now.

[Cathy]

I’m sure you are keeping her comfy and loved. Enjoy every moment.

[Stanley]

I saw the cat as well and understand your reaction perfectly. That's the price we pay for all those years of unconditional love.
I still find myself doing things as though Jack is in the house......



(Kev's wonderful image of Jack.)

[Wendyf]

Another sad goodbye yesterday to Feebie the fluffy cat, who was almost 19 years old. She was queen bee in our house for all that time, and it seems very empty without her. She was blind in one eye after being shot many years ago and had nearly lost the sight in her other one, totally deaf and latterly just skin and bone but she still demanded food at least 4 times a day and drove Colin mad insisting on sitting on his bony knees at every opportunity. Yesterday morning she greeted me with her usual welcome cry, stretch and high five, before wolfing down her breakfast, but mid afternoon she collapsed and started retching so we we whipped her down to Stanley House.
Col buried her this morning in our rather overcrowded pet graveyard.....

[PanBiker]

Sorry to hear that Wendy. Always a wrench even when they are old. Our Millie made it to 18 also and a similar story at the end.

[Stanley]

Commiserations Wendy..... I'm glad I haven't got a companion animal any longer. I have enough on looking after myself!

[Cathy]

Wendy , so sorry to hear about Feebie. Animals are amazing just how they ‘hang in there’, then suddenly they are gone.
I remember spending my cat’s last day with her, telling her what a good cat she was and how much she was loved. I was trying to make us both ready, knowing that we were taking her to the vets that evening. She was ready.
Feebie did really well, of course your care had a lot to do with that. Adjustment is hard, I feel for you.