We lost our Ruby-Dog

Congratulations on the impending celebration.

Quite a story about your family’s cat. So different is the experience of cat and dog. Both are great and fulfilling, though.

We're very lucky in that wenever had to put the cats down, they weren't in pain so that was a decision we didn't have to make.

Just curious. How can you be sure if a cat is not in pain? They’re so stoic and secretive.

They were both purring when stroked right up to the end.

Other than difficulty moving they showed no signs of distress.

They were both very good at letting you know they didn't like something.

When Vic was given flea treatment he made some horrible sounds.

Purring is definitely a good sign

Well y’all keep your fingers crossed for me. If all goes well, tomorrow I’m bringing two black kittens into my household. They’re brothers, a couple months old. Short-hair domestic.

awww, sweet!

Good luck, Snood. We lost Cooper several weeks ago due to a stroke...and then in a heartbreaking event, we lost Napoleon to a problem that we could not get tended to, because it started on a Sunday. We called our Vet...who was not available at all. Then we called several Emergency numbers...and none were able to see Nappy that day. He died over-night. We were devastated...two cats lost in a month.

Anyway...we have now adopted a kitten (7 months old) who came Saturday afternoon. He is still in hiding in what he considers a safe space. He has been eating and using the kitty litter box at night. We expect that he will feel comfortable enough to come out and be sociable very soon. Cats are VERY careful.

They sound adorable.

They really are careful, aren’t they? I had brothers as pets before, and it seemed that they were always more secure because they always had each other. Hope that’s the case with these two.

I have the photo bucket app. But I don’t know how to share the photos here on A2K. I wanted to show y’all the pictures from the rescue shelter.

I can still remember a 1950s TV show call the honey mooners that when the man went to the pound to bring one dog home came back with a dozen dogs.

The universe can be cruel with loving animals needing to be put down but every once in a while you can tell the universe to go to hell and state to the universe that this animal will be love and care for all his or her life.

Well, I got ‘em home! They’re both very shy and docile, so I’m just leaving them curled up together in the carrier, and they can come out when they feel comfortable. I’ll post a picture if I can ever figure out how to post a picture on A2K (again - I was able to do it awhile back, but have since forgot how).

found the "how to" thread --
https://able2know.org/topic/430246-1

I give you Merl and Theo. Will share better pictures as I catch them in better poses

Merl appears to have two jobs. One, terrorize his brother. He's very steady and consistent at that job.
The other job appears to be comforting me. He likes to crawl right up on my chest, plop himself down, and purr like a little outboard motor until he falls asleep.
I'm a sucker for this stuff.

I don't understand my dogs. They will be 18 and 17 this year. When they first came to live with us, they ate kibble. Several years ago, they started turning their noses up at it so I bought canned dog food to go with. Well, they initially liked both the pate and the stew, but after a while, they'd just sit there in front of their bowls and look at me.

So, I started buying canned ham and chicken. Again, good to go for a few days, but same result as before. Then I would buy cheap cuts of pork, sausages, whathaveyou. A year of mixing all the above, they will now no longer eat any of that. I bought liver, chicken hearts, etc., from a free range farm, and they only liked that for a week or so.

I've decided it's my husband's fault. Every day that he takes them out for a 'field trip' or 'car ride', they go to Wendy's or McD's and he gets a hamburger or fries for them to share. No wonder they won't eat what I cook. I tell you, I am NOT cooking them a hamburger every meal!

I really don't know what to do other than leave it in their dish. I suppose if they get hungry enough, they'll eat it. But I have seen hardened pate in there before and it's disgusting. Has anyone else had this issue?

My only experience like that was with a cat that wouldn't eat anything. Turns out, he had a kidney failure, which is not quite uncommon for cats. I got him a steroid injection the day before he was due to be euthanized, and he was a whole new cat. His appetite returned and he even started grooming himself again, which was a beautiful sight if you've ever had a cat that just quit. The effect was very temporary.

Since your dogs still enjoy McDonalds, I'm sure this isn't the problem.

Yeah - they'll eat what we eat (tuna sandwiches, chicken, gumbo, whatever) and they're certainly not starving, but this has gotten ridiculous. I'm only accommodating them because of their age. I suspect Brandon (who will be 18) won't last a whole lot longer so pretty much anything I can do I will. But I've just never heard of this.

So glad you got more time with your cat. Our cat died the night before we got home from a trip and fortunately a really good friend was here with him. He was 18, as well. He had cancer, but was a love right to the very end. Very sad we couldn't be here for him.