|
I do the TNR/care for ferals & strays in my neighborhood thing and OMG, you rock. Every time I find a loving home for one of the cats that I've spent time and effort taming and caring for, I do a little happy dance. On average, we feed about 10 cats. Numbers go up and down depending on if new cats wander into the area or if old cats get adopted. There are 2 ferals that actually trust us enough to come inside and sleep but I don't think they'll ever be adoptable. We burn through about 40 lbs of kibble and 50 cans of wet food per month. It's worth it though. It's so good to see all the neighborhood cats healthy and happy. Besides TNR, we also give our colony all their vaccines, and they all get wormed and get flea drops. Just a few months ago they all got ear mites, including our pet cats. So they all got ear mite treatment. I've also got one semi feral who likes to fight raccoons. He gets antibiotics for bite wounds pretty regularly. I've tried to find him a inside only home but he runs away and comes back to the colony. Seems he would rather live rough than be pampered
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 04:18
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 17, 2024 19:29 |
|
|
1). Roswell is goddamn adorable. 2). You, your husband, Vet Friend and Nice Lady are all excellent people. 3). Please spoil the crap out of that kitten and the two nice cats who accepted her.
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 07:01
|
|
|
Wroughtirony posted:This is Roswell.  Yup. I admit it. I'm Mr. Wroughtirony, and I fell in love with a cat at first sight. :-D thetechnoloser fucked around with this message at 12:11 on Dec 21, 2018 |
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 12:08
|
|
|
welcome to the club
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 14:03
|
|
|
Wroughtirony posted:This is Roswell.
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 16:22
|
|
|
thetechnoloser posted:
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 16:33
|
|
|
thetechnoloser posted:
You chose...wisely
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 19:42
|
|
|
Goober Peas posted:You chose...wisely Being a good Catdad was a prerequisite for our marriage.
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 22:33
|
|
|
wisdom
|
|
#
?
Dec 21, 2018 22:36
|
|
|
hi so i havent posted about pet happenings lately. *knocks on wood* we havent had any new friends show up since tonka but Doyle (big orange dog) has been having a ton of issues with his undercoat because of the heat and his ears because of the humidity. ladyfrogs folks were down here for xmas and offered to take him up to michigan and i reluctantly was ok with it, mainly because he seemed so miserable. i still kinda feel like an rear end in a top hat.  he apparently really liked the car ride. and apparently really likes his new home and buddy.  his buddy is a very timid st bernard in case he just looks like a heffalump in the first picture  so i guess thats 3 foster successes, im just a bit torn on this one.
|
|
#
?
Jan 5, 2019 17:24
|
|
|
You're not an rear end in a top hat, you did what was best for the dog and he's living his best life with a great family. Roswell continues to improve and be absolutely adorable. She got a double ear infection so I've been having to give her ear drops twice a day and this is what she thinks about that: 
|
|
#
?
Jan 5, 2019 21:43
|
|
|
|
|
#
?
Jan 5, 2019 22:02
|
|
|
 
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2019 13:38
|
|
|
Is that some sort of... St. Bernese?
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2019 13:55
|
|
|
not sure, its ladyfrog's grandmas dog. They always refer to it as a st bernard. its massive though, most likely weighs more than i do.
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2019 14:00
|
|
|
sneakyfrog posted:not sure, its ladyfrog's grandmas dog. They always refer to it as a st bernard. its massive though, most likely weighs more than i do. Close; that's a Bernese Mountain Dog. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernese_Mountain_Dog St. Bernards are the ones from Beethoven
|
|
#
?
Jan 7, 2019 00:10
|
|
|
Fostering an adult for the local shelter, poor guy probably has the 2nd worst case of ringworm i've seen in many years of fostering.
|
|
#
?
Jan 8, 2019 13:02
|
|
|
So frustrating. I volunteer for a no-kill shelter. We had a cat come in about a year ago, Sybil. She was very, very difficult, alternating at random between curiously docile and hyperviolent. Still, she eventually got adopted after about two months. Eight months later she comes back. Family says daughter moved back in and was allergic to cats, and either we take Sybil back or they'll just dump her somewhere. So we give in and take her back. She has lost ANY chill. She hisses constantly, growls, swipes, and threatens to bite. She used to be rough to handle, but now refuses to let anyone NEAR her, and even looking at her from 5' away elicits a negative fear response. Wife's guessing she was abused, which makes sense. We're a no-kill shelter, but this cat is completely un-adoptable right now, so I have no idea what the plan is for her. Can't kill her, can hardly clean her enclosure for fear of attack, can't adopt her out...what do you do with that? Sucks.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2019 20:39
|
|
|
Are there people who foster difficult animals on a long-term basis? Sounds like she's going to need a lot of time to maybe learn to trust people again. That family sucks.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2019 22:32
|
|
|
yeah that one just needs a quiet person who is willing to spend months just reading or hanging in the same room with that kitton without expectations  most likely couldnt have other pets either. pass that families name around to the other shelters too gently caress that poo poo
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2019 22:54
|
|
|
Pander posted:So frustrating. The org we work with has a few connections of places that will take unadoptable cats. Basically they're people out in the country who set up sheds to be cat-cosy but not human-habitable, and keep the cats in there.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 02:36
|
|
|
In happier news: Mika is getting adopted! We had high hopes for the nice gay couple who saw her before christmas. They were asking tons of questions, and seemed like they'd be great cat-parents. They were quite taken by her, but we think they decided to take on a more challenging cat. Anyway, a Belgian couple came and saw her last week, and decided to take her. They also seemed nice, albeit a little more introverted, but have been pretty engaged since making the decision. The foster org usually wants adopters to take the cat as soon as possible, but one of them has a work conference this weekend, and they wanted to make sure they were both around as much as possible for Mika's first week. (All good signs!) That all said, we're a little sad, and Mika's been extra-cuddly this last week. I almost think she knows... Here she is in a box: 
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 02:45
|
|
|
Lead out in cuffs posted:Here she is in a box: Just remember to poke some airholes in the box before you seal her up for shipping to her new home  .
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 02:57
|
|
|
Alright y’all, got some tough news. Butterscotch and Monty are going to be rehomed. First, please do understand that katdicks and I have looked at this from as many angles as possible. We’ve tried to find different solutions, but none are viable. The issue comes down to allergies. I don’t want to get much further into it, but suffice to say, we have no good alternative to rehoming. This wasn’t a decision that we arrived at without a lot of reflection and, of course, we’re both pretty torn up about it. The silver lining here is, with Literally A Bird’s permission, we are seeking to rehome both of our cats right here in this thread. We’ve been given permission to start our own thread for this purpose, but if possible, we’d love to make it happen right here. So we’ll start this way. Let’s be real, Butterscotch belongs to Somethingawful just about as much he belongs to katdicks and me. His triumphant journey happened right here, and you all motivated me to help him reach a healthy weight. My hope for him is that his legacy can live on through a new loving set of hands. And Monty, his equally wonderful, but entirely different brother is deserving of a great home as well. So having said that, here’s what we’re looking for: We’re based out of Baltimore, MD. We’d be happy to drive quite a distance to meet someone halfway. So if you’re like… 5 hours? or so from that area, you could very well end up with one of two very awesome cats. Due to the nature of our circumstances, we do need to make this happen, but we’re not in a rush. The most important thing to us is that we find amazing homes for both of our boys. Accordingly, we’d like to video chat with anyone who might like to take on either of our guys. If you’re interested in taking either cat, but finances are a concern, do not let that deter you. We have some money set aside to help both cats transition to new homes, should that be necessary. In an ideal world, we adopt both cats through this thread, and their journeys can continue on as new rescues! That would be incredible, and we’d be so happy if we can find a way to make it work. On to both of the boys. They never really got along, and, as I’ll detail further, they’re both probably better of flying solo in a new home. Butterscotch: Y’all know him well enough by now but here’s some of the things you may not. Butterscotch is incredibly entertaining, cuddly, and active. He is a cat who needs to be the center of attention. If he’s not, he gets stressed out. It just so happens that he will probably be much happier in a different setting than ours, and maybe this unfortunate situation will end up working out for the best for him. He’d do really well in a house with kids who’d like to play with him, or with a single/couple who do not have an infant. Despite the cute pictures and videos, I wouldn’t recommend the infant/butterscotch lifestyle. We would’ve made it work but it is not ideal. He’s obviously highly food motivated, loves to sleep in beds, and is now perfectly healthy! All you’ll need to do keep him at weight is feed him like you would a normal cat. He may not love that, but he makes do. Our best guess puts him at around 11 years old. Also; edit: I should add that he's done very well with dogs in the past. Both his previous owner told us about that and he's gotten along very nicely with foster dogs since then. I think because dogs inherently love giving attention he's sort of all about it.  Monty: The quieter half of the duo. He’s my boy. After I went through a tough breakup, he showed up and was there for me. It’s a total bitch to have to give him up. I’ve had him for six years now and he’s a great friend. Before I got him, he spent two years out in the wild when he ran away from his previous owner. Then, as cats do, he just showed back up. Now, he typifies ‘chill cat’. He’s very loving to the regulars of the house and would thrive in a relatively calm environment. I wouldn’t recommend a home for him with kids who are younger than high school age or so. Before we got Butterscotch and started all of that fostering, he was pretty much a perfect cat. Since then, he’s had some issues. Most seem largely due to the fact that Butterscotch treats him badly. When Butterscotch spent a night at the vet for dental surgery, Monty seemed much happier. He did have some litter box issues, but it’s important to note that we didn’t have those issues before Butterscotch. He's just picky and needs it clean. It’s very likely that in a new home he won’t have issues so long as he’s the cat of the house. Our best guess puts him around 12 years old.  So that’s it y’all. When this kind of thing happens, it’s a very unfortunate part of pet ownership. Though it breaks my heart that we’re here, I hope that we can find a wonderful happy ending for our cats. Again, we aren’t in a rush. We will not rehome either one of our cats until we find them a better environment than the one they have now. Until they leave our care, they are our responsibility. We will do right by them. If you’re interested, PM me, or post in the thread if you don’t have plat. Thank you all for coming with us on our journey. Fostering was a hugely important element of my life and it will be again some day. Having you all here with me has been an incredible experience and believe me when I say that you all had a hand in motivating me to help hundreds of kitties in need and climb the biggest mountain of all: gettin dat fat offa dat cat. Edit: threw in some other details I forgot. Chili fucked around with this message at 08:35 on Jan 11, 2019 |
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 07:13
|
|
|
You and your family have done some amazing things! I can't imagine how hard this must be for you guys. I would take either one of them in a second if I wasn't halfway across the country and already sharing a house with a cat that hates other cats. You're good people.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 14:54
|
|
|
I still can't believe that's the same cat. What a wonderful job you did, and I hope the cats find new owners that can meet the standard you've set.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 18:52
|
|
|
that sucks, if it werent for the attention hogs of the sneaky horde i would gladly take notsofat cat but i'll put some feelers out for ya.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 19:50
|
|
|
I'm so sorry, I know that decision wasn't easy or pleasant. If this happened five years ago when I was living on my own I'd take Butterscotch in a heartbeat. I'd love to see how he does with a cat wheel.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 20:18
|
|
|
that avatar cracks me the gently caress up every drat time now
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 21:04
|
|
|
Aww, Chilli. That's really hard.  But yeah, what everyone else said -- you've done right by them, and you're doing right by them by getting them into places that would be best.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 22:13
|
|
|
Dienes posted:If this happened five years ago when I was living on my own I'd take Butterscotch in a heartbeat.  Although if I could, I'd take Monty instead, he's more of my kind of cat. I'm within the required distance (central VA) but I do not live in a place proper for pets, and I'm stuck here for the long haul due to good ratio of price/amenities. My roommates are all strangers (it's the kind of place where management finds them), and the quality varies wildly. Thus I'd never trust any of them with a pet around. Chilli, I wish you luck in your endeavors. Not an easy thing to do.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2019 23:16
|
|
|
Thank you all so much for your kind and understanding responses. I was really worried that this decision would be met with a lot of judgement. Really, that was just my own projection and I shouldn't have underestimated all of you. This thread had consistently been one of my happy little corners on the internet. I hope it keeps going even if I have to step away for a bit. I'll give this thread another day or two, and then I'll open it up to pet island at large. We also have some friends who we think might very well be interested in one or both of our cats. We have one friend who has a cat that's exactly like butterscotch, and we think that in that rare situation they might get along and take the pressure off of the owner. It's an interesting idea and since it's a friend we might be able to casually and informally introduce the two to each other on a trial basis and just scrap it if it doesn't work. Would be really nice to be able to stay in touch with either one of my boys so we'll see!
|
|
#
?
Jan 12, 2019 00:52
|
|
|
I am probably close enough by my current cats would not get along, Max is basically a Butterscotch in that she has to run the household and is a bit mean to Sam sometimes. He's good-natured about it but I know neither 'scotch or Monty would be. Wishing you the best of luck with rehoming them, it must be incredibly difficult for you. I don't think anyone could judge you about Butters, man, you put so much love into that cat he melted!
|
|
#
?
Jan 12, 2019 07:48
|
|
|
Buttersweet news. Looks like our big boy found a home. My wife knows an amazing, and responsible coworker who's a nurse practitioner, and she's interested. They have a dog and Butters loves dogs. We're thinking this may be a pretty good fit. They're coming over tomorrow night for a meet and greet, and, if things go well, they'll take him for a couple of nights to make sure he does well with the others. If he does, then he'll have found his forever home. As it's a friend of ours, we'll probably be able to get pictures every now and then (which of course will be forwarded to y'all) and may even get to check in on him from time to time. 
|
|
#
?
Jan 16, 2019 18:59
|
|
|
at least you can see the not so big boy from time to time
|
|
#
?
Jan 16, 2019 19:03
|
|
|
My crystal ball says that Butters is going to be eating a lot of dog food.
|
|
#
?
Jan 16, 2019 19:34
|
|
|
I hope it works out! It sounds like they'd be a good fit, and hopefully you can keep in touch. It's bittersweet, definitely, but you're doing the best you can for Butters.
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2019 01:19
|
|
|
Thanks for sharing Butters and Monty with us, Chili. It sucks that they can't stay, but you're doing the best thing for everyone. I'm really glad Butters found what sounds like a great home!
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2019 03:02
|
|
|
I'm going to be really honest and say that I feel really emotionally out of it right now because for a time, buttersposting was what got me through a week and I'd be lying if I said that there wasn't at least one time I was having really dangerous thoughts about myself and tuning in and seeing a new post or rereading the story and it got me out of it. I'm really gonna miss the updates
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2019 04:11
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 17, 2024 19:29 |
|
|
Yeah, it wasn't just the cat, but the updates were really fun to read. The fishkittens were fun, and for some reason I really liked reading about Pie. My favorite video was Swinging the Alphabet with Butterscotch. I think you guys are going to be great parents. You had a great fostering run. Thanks on behalf of all the cats (and at least one dog, I think), and for making all the effort to post.
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2019 04:31
|
|