Struggling With Play Time

[calicosrspecial]

:/ Yes

Great!!! I wonder what is causing it. :/

I trust you!!!

She really is. Great she has gotten over that. Awwwwww, as perfect as a dog can be. Puppy I guess really. 1 yr old. Yes, that is young.

 

[Animal Freak]

Looks like they suspect an old abscess ruptured on King's leg.

I gave him some different treats because we bathed him last weekend and I wanted to give him something, so we're blaming that for now.

She really is an amazing little dog. I'm excited to get to see her again tomorrow. We also might've talked my brother into fostering. He's interested in Dixie though he says he's not ready to commit to adopting a dog. He had a flea infestation going on though, so he had to deal with that and is still getting the house cleaned up.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Poor King. At least he should get well soon now.

Ahhhhhhh, very well could be. Hopefully that is it.

You absolutely fell in love with her. :/ That would be cool if he did. He still has his dog, right? Ughhhhhh, fleas, yep, need to clear that before.

Dixie really must be something. I haven't see you this in love so far in the new job.

 

[Animal Freak]

He seems to be doing alright. He's moved hiding spots. Him and Queen have apparently decided to trade. He still flinches whenever you move towards him. Queen is nervous too, but she relaxing pretty quickly once you've started petting her. King takes time.

Hopefully.

She was just a really awesome little dog. I'm not sure I felt the need to adopt her like I do with some of them, but it was hard not to love her. She's so easy, I'd feel bad taking her away from someone who needed any easier dog. My brother doesn't have a dog; just two cats. He lives across the street from the cat house. Dixie got adopted though, so didn't get to see her again and my brother won't be able to foster her. But we have plenty of other dogs, including her sister. I did walk her sister, Trixie, today. She seems a lot like Dixie, but not as good on the leash and a bit more interested in other dogs. Still a very sweet dog though.

I think I've gotten more attached to animals in the shelter, but Dixie just makes such a good impression so quickly. Plus, I don't really get to spend that one-on-one time with very many dogs, so when I do it makes it a bit easier to get to know them and really fall in love. It was nice having a dog behave in the car for once too. Lol.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Poor King. He might have had a far amount of pain or discomfort so maybe when it is healed he will get better. Fingers crossed. Great that Queen is doing alright.

Yes

Awwwwww. Well, THAT was fast. Kinda figured given how you responded. Oh, I thought your brohter had a dog. Maybe some day....................... Trixie sounds really good too. She'll get there.

Yes. Yes, getting to know them it makes it easy to fall in love. Hahahahaha, yes!!! Pretty amazing she was so good. It is so true, many dogs do not (even really good ones!!!).

 

[Animal Freak]

Yeah, I hate to think he's been in pain all this time, but at the same time it would be nice if it was that easy for him to start acting better. He seemed maybe a little bit better last time I was there. It's subtle, but there seems to be a little more 'life' in his eyes. He's switched to a slightly less hidden spot and sat up for a moment. Still flinches whenever you move towards him, but seemed to relax into being petted a bit quicker.

Now one of the cats is having diarrhea and I don't know who it is. It doesn't seem constant, but it's happened twice now. Ember and Ash are going to the vet for annuals on Friday, so would be nice if I could figure out who it is by then. Probably Frost who doesn't have an appointment until November 2nd.

Yeah, not really surprising. Trixie has been adopted now too. I'm running out of dogs to recommend to my brother if he wants to foster. I was wanting to give him an easier dog to start with so hopefully he'll decide to keep doing it. Right now I'm thinking might Bonnie. She looks like a mini husky. Not a small dog, but small for a husky though you can't see any other breeds in her. Very sweet, calm, chill. Has growled at other dogs who annoy her, but hasn't escalated anything. She does shed like a husky though...

Yes it does. She really was a really good dog. Neither of my dogs do well in the car.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Yes. Cats do tolerate pain pretty well and sometimes we just don't know they are in pain but I hear you. I am sure no one ignored it if they knew. It very well could help, fingers crossed it does help. GREAT!!! MAYBE it was that or partially that. Fingers crossed!!

:/ Ughhhhhhhh. I know, with multiple cats it is so hard to know. :/ At least Ash and Ember are going in on Friday so process of elimination. Maybe they can get Frost in earlier.

OH MY!!! Trixie too!!!! YES!!! Not surprising. Hahahaha, don't worry, he will not run out of dogs (for better or for worse). Oooooooooooo, Husky!!!! BONNIE!!!!!

Yes :/ She sounds wonderful. Well, that is common. Some dogs do well, some don't. :/ Never really know if they will or if they will even learn. :/ BUT I still LOVE your dogs!!

 

[Animal Freak]

We were busy today, so I didn't really have any time to hang out with King. Queen is coming out more and more though.

They haven't had diarrhea again, so I'm at a loss. Someone keeps having diarrhea every now and then, but it's infrequent. At this point, I don't know if it's the same one every time or if we've had more than one issue possibly with more than one cat. If it's the same one then it's one of the boys... We had the cat's appointment, but I got most of their vaccines done at the shelter for free. They got their rabies at the vet and a checkup. Ember is still a little underweight and her heartrate is a bit fast, so we increased her dose of medicine. I suspect Ash's arthritis is getting worse. He won't let me brush his backend at all and is getting matted. So we're doing a trial run of an anti-inflammatory to see if it helps.

Well, it won't be for a lack of dogs, but most of our dogs have some 'problem' and I don't know if my brother will want to deal with any problems. I didn't want to scare him away from fostering with the first dog.

I took Bonnie to the park on Thursday. She was great. Rode most of the way there with her front feet between the seats and licked my face while I was driving a couple of times, but a very calm and sweet dog. Overdid the walk a little though. She got hot really fast and I almost didn't think we'd make it back to the car. I let her ride up front on the way back so she'd have plenty of AC and she hung out with us at work for a meeting. She got food and attention and sat on the couch between me and the manager. She also had a meet that day and went home today.

I love them a little less when I'm in the car with them. Osiris is getting better. Stella can now go to the park and back without much of an issue, but that's about it.

We have a dog at the shelter who isn't really doing well. His name is Walter and he's a 7 year old hound dog. Sweet, energetic dog, but he just barks all the time. It's nonstop sometimes. And he's losing weight. Apparently he'd lost 12lbs and they're now feeding him 1 1/2 cups of puppy food 3 times a day, but he's still lost another 3lbs in the last couple of weeks. He's just skin and bones at this point.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Awwwww, that is ok. Nice Queen is getting better.

Well, it is good that no more diarrhea BUT it does make it hard to figure out who and why. :/ Great on the vaccines at the shelter. Ember doesn't sound that different, right? Yes, for Ash is probably will get worse at times. :/ Let's hope the anti-inflamms work.

Yes :/ But some of the "problems" aren't too bad. But I hear you, you want a good one for the first one.

Awwwwwwww, HOW ADORABLE!!!! SO Bonnie found a home? Wow. Makes sense since she sounds WONDERFUL!!!

Hahahahahaha. Wow, Stella, GREAT!!!

Ughhhhhhhhh. Stress? Poor thing. HOPEFULLY they can find a foster home. Ughhhhhhhhh. So sad.

 

[Animal Freak]

King is doing better. He's still very jumpy/flinchy, but he doesn't flinch every time you touch him. And I've seen him up, moving around when I was passing by the room a few times. I don't think I'd ever seen him doing anything other than laying down before yesterday.

So far no more diarrhea. No, Ember just hasn't completely gotten over the thyroid issues. She's still only about 6.5lbs. At her heaviest, she was almost 11lbs. She should probably be closer to 8lbs. I'm very worried though because cats can typically only be on this medication for 3-4 years before the dose has to be increased, but eventually the medication starts making the cat sick so it can only be increased so much. Usually cats are already fairly old when they get diagnosed with hyperthyroidism, so getting a few more years is great, but Ember will still be pretty young. We always joked that I'd probably be stuck with this cat forever (I love her very much, but she isn't always the easiest cat to live with), but now I may not have her for very long at all... Unless I pay for a very expensive procedure that could fix the issue.

No, not too bad, but I don't really know what my brother would be willing to deal with. I feel like having a home at all is better than sitting in a kennel in the rescue, but I don't see my brother being one to inconvenience himself with a dog. I don't even know if he'd foster a dog he doesn't like the look of. We have similar tastes in dogs, so I pretty much know who he'll like the look of (right now, that's not anyone!).

Yes, she went home. She was a really good dog. Too good, honestly. Not very husky-ish. Lol.

The park is about 3 minutes away from us. We're working on increasing the length of the drive.

Yeah, he's a very high anxiety dog. Very smart too. He can open the gates in the play yards and can also open some of the doors in the shelter. I feel terrible for him. I don't really know what his chances of getting a foster are. It seems like we tend to have more repeat fosters who would already know about him than new people who might give him a chance.

 

[calicosrspecial]

FANTASTIC!!!! I think we know the cause of his skittishness. Whew. I am so happy. I think progress can be made now.

Great no more diarrhea. Poor Ember. I know, it is hard to have health issues. Just work with the vet and figure out the best path forward. And enjoy every moment you can. Just try to stay in the moment and do your best. :/ It is so tough.

Yes. Well, just keep talking to him and try to figure it out. And sometimes people surprise us BUT finding a good fit is a good way to increase the odds.

Ahhhhhh, terrific. Hahahaha, you are too funny!!!

Great. That is nice to be so close.

:/ Poor thing. Hopefully they can find a foster or someone that wants a dog like that. Fingers crossed. HOPEFULLY.

 

[Animal Freak]

I feel so bad that he's been through so much and was in so much pain. Yes, I do think we'll have a better chance of making progress now though. That's the one bright side to all of this, but I can't imagine feeling so bad for so long.

I'm in a difficult position because I know there is another option and I feel obligated to take it because it could save her life (and why wouldn't I want to do that?) but it is very expensive and at this point most of the money I have is grant money that's supposed to get me through school. And Ash still wanted to remove my hand from my arm despite the anti-inflammatories last night, so we might be trying something different.

I will.

It is nice to be so close to the park though it's a shame we can't just walk anymore... Always have to be worried about loose dogs.

I hope so. Something needs to happen with Walter. He's just wasting away in the shelter.

Keanu is really improving! Since they moved him into the cat room, he reverted back to being scared and hiding, but he's starting to come out more and will eat and hang out while I'm in there. He even came up to me while I was laying on the floor and batted at my hand. We have two other kittens who were moved into the room as well. Chip is adorable little solid black cat who is sweet, but skittish. He came up to me for the first time yesterday and let me pet him. Apparently he got out of the room yesterday though and I'm not sure if they've gotten him back or not. Dumpster Dan is also a black cat with a white spot on his chest. He was, as you might've guessed, found in a dumpster. He's very hiss-y, but doesn't do anything unlike Keanu who would slap you if you got too close. Dan is actually very sweet once you get your hands on him, but until then he's not very nice. He mostly lays in a box on a cat tree. The other day I set my hand in the box and he sniffed it then reached out and put his paw on my hand. It was adorable. He stayed like that for a bit and when he moved it away, I reached over to pet him and he didn't even bat an eye.

 

[calicosrspecial]

I know. :/ But it wasn't intentional. Yes, agreed, now progress can hopefully be made.

I know. Well, it is so hard. BUT it is grant money and your education is VERY important. Ughhhhhhhhh, it is so hard. If the money was for something less important that is easy. BUT your education will impact your whole life (hopefully 70+ more years) AND so many additional animals. Maybe check around for help from Foundations, etc. Maybe figure out if there are things you can sell, or another part time job. Maybe the vet can help on a payment plan? Is the surgery needed sooner rather than later?

Well, how long does it take for the anti-inflamms to work?

Great

Bummer. I was going to ask why you don't just walk but I thought you wanted to get them comfortable with the car.

It is so hard because it is impossible to find perfection with everyone.

So great to hear about Keanu. There can be adjustment times. :/ I LOVE that he came up to you!! Oooooooo, Chip. I LOVE black cats. I hope he is found and ok. Skittishness can be gotten over. Awwwwww, Dan, he sounds wonderful!!!! They all sound great and they can find homes if people are available.

 

[Animal Freak]

King is definitely coming out of hiding more. The other day he was out in the middle of the room laying down so I went in there to see what he'd do. He was totally calm when I went in there, but still flinched when I touched him. It's interesting because he doesn't seem to be scared of a person's presence, but is scared of being touched.

It's hard to say my education is more important than Ember's life, but you're right that it's something that will impact my future, my animals, and potentially a lot more animals. Unfortunately, if I could pick up another part time job then I could have just taken a full-time position at the shelter, but I struggled just keeping up with four days and went down to three. I am picking up another shift for the rest of October because one of our employees quit and we're short-staffed, but I'm starting at the four-year university in November. I have no idea what my workload is going to be like at that school. It wouldn't be done at my normal vet, it's a specialist, so no idea about payment plans. I'd have to talk to them about it. I don't think the timing is too important. Of course, I'm spending money on meds that could go towards the treatment.

The vet set a few days. We started them Friday evening and tried brushing on Monday. I'm going to try again today as he's now been on the anti-inflamms for 6 days.

I wouldn't have Stella in the car at all if I could help it. I spent years trying to get her to calm down in the car because she'd, like, genuinely be hyperventilating. I think getting a new car helped, but the short drive to the park is still all she can manage. Even if my mom goes, she does way worse. I do want them to be comfortable in the car, of course.

I found out the shelter has apparently had agility equipment and is now possibly wanting to get rid of it. Why on earth we don't try using it to help some of these dogs, I have no idea. Walter is wasting away, Malcolm keeps injuring himself, and Megan and Ivy are getting everyone in the playgroups overstimulated and causing fights. I talked to someone about it and said if they still don't want it then I definitely do. I've wanted agility equipment for a while now but that stuff is expensive...

They are all great if given the time. I do worry about them though. Even with their improvements, I'm sure they'll still struggle with new people and new places. And, as much as I hate to make judgements based off of looks, their appearances don't do them any favors. They'd probably struggle to get homes without the skittishness. Keanu is just your typical brown tabby with dull coloring and the other two are black cats which we know tend to have a hard time getting adopted. We always have several black cats. I think they're beautiful. Chip in particular is a very good looking cat. Not often you get a truly solid black cat. But even Kadence is having a hard time getting adopted and she's turned out to be the sweetest, most affectionate, funniest little cat with a very sweet, adorable face. She's just a little bit jumpy still. Not that she doesn't trust, but she wouldn't do well with a lot of commotion. We have a lot of cats like that. Very jumpy. And we can't seem to get them adopted. Archie has been there since I started working there. His sister, Lucy, was fairly jumpy though not as bad (she'd gotten a lot better) and was finally adopted, but it took months.

 

[calicosrspecial]

FANTASTIC!!!! So King was the was he was because of the abscess. So wonderful to hear!!!! He is now getting better. He flinches because of the past BUT he should over time get better. SO great to hear!!!

I know. :/ Decisions like this are not easy. So you have to think about the pros and the cons. If money was not a problem it is easy BUT for most of us money is an issue. Yes, too much work would impact your education as well and we are back to square one. :/ I would ask the specialist about payment plans, cost, possible financial help, etc. Good that timing may not be too important. I would ask. And you are so right, spending on meds will cost so that could go towards the payment of the procedure. Also ask about the risks of the procedure, the recovery, etc. A LOT of things to consider. BUT I know you will make the best decision.

Yes, makes sense. Hopefully they are starting to kick in now. Fingers crossed.

Yes. Poor thing, some dogs are like that. BUT she has gotten better.

Hmmmmmmm, yeah, there must be some reason? I know, it seems odd. Yes, if for some reason they don't want it I hope you can get it.

Yes. I know. :/ Appearances, etc. I don't get the "black cat" thing. I think they are GORGEOUS!!! My girl comes up for a half hour of love every night before bed. She is the sweetest cat ever, always was. My boy in my colony is so sweet, loyal, loving. Keanu will get adopted. Poor Kadence. I think a lot has to do with people being "full" with cats. I would LOVE to take in more cats but I am full. And everyone I know is full. It is so hard to find homes. A jumpy cat is a normal cat really. :/ Love does wonders for cats.

Hang in there. :/ A lot going on but times like these do make us better. Just do your best.

 

[Animal Freak]

I thought it was interesting that he's so calm around people, but so scared of being touched. I am glad though. It's better than him being just terrified of people. Just interesting.

It is difficult. Especially because now we're working on finding something to help Ash. The anti-inflamms didn't help, so we're going to be trying a compounded Gabapentin. He's already getting Fluoxetine compounded which is about $60 a month though hopefully if the Gabapentin works for the pain then we can try taking him off the Fluoxetine. Ember's meds are about $43 for 100 tablets which she gets twice a day, so meds are starting to add up. I'm probably going to have to get Ash figured out before I can worry too much about what to do with Ember. One issue at a time. Maybe by then I'll find someway of getting more money.

Stella has always been a high-anxiety dog, but I think a lot of her car issues stem from when we decided to take her. We thought we'd do a slow intro with her and the cats and started taking her home over the weekends when I was home, but she'd get depressed every time we took her back to my aunt's. She associated the car with us leaving her. It took a long time for her to realize we weren't going to abandon her, but there's still some residual issues from it. I can't have her in my car at all which was the car she was taken back and forth in.

To be honest, a lot of times I think they try to find the quickest, most convenient ways of taking care of the animals. They want the shortcuts. Which isn't always bad, but it shouldn't be at the cost of the animals. I hope they'll at least decide to run an experiment and see if it helps. I know the one lady said she was wanting to see if we could get permanent equipment which would be awesome, but that'll take time. Might as well use what we've got until then. But yes, I'd love to have that stuff if they don't use it.

I don't get the black cat thing either. Chip in particular is a very good-looking cat. Not that Dan isn't, but there's something about Chip. He has a very expressive face and a nice, plush coat with no white. And both Chip and Dan are very sweet cats once you get your hands on them. They just don't quite know how to trust people yet, but they want to. Keanu is going to have a hard time. Even if he does get adopted, it'll probably take a good month or so before the adopters could ever even touch him. If they have the patience, they'll be rewarded, but if not they'll likely just bring him back. It seems like the people who always want our 'jumpy' cats are families with young kids and those cats just don't handle kids very well. They can't deal with the commotion. I like the idea of having a separate building I could set up for cats and have some of the harder to adopt cats like Keanu and Dan. Maybe foster some more feral-ish ones to help them become adoptable.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Yes, it makes sense now. Absolutely. I think he is going to be just fine.

It is so tough. Poor Ash. I wish it would have helped BUT hopefully this new compound will. I wish meds were cheaper or there was more help available.

Yes, well, dogs like Stella tend to be more anxious. :/ Ahhhhhhhhh, that makes sense. Bad association with the car. BUT you are helping her. Great she is making progress.

I am sure they think like that. I am guessing they are overworked, have too much, have too many, etc. Ughhhhhhhh. It is so hard. Hopefully the lady wins out. Hopefully they try to use the equipment.

Yes Awwwww, Chip. Sounds gorgeous. Well, if they want to trust they will eventually. Keanu really will have a hard time? I didn't get that sense. He does well with you. Yes, that is the problem, patience and knowledge. :/ Not many people have it. Every cat can learn to trust. Just takes knowledge and effort. I take in older ferals, those are the most difficult and I haven't once had one that didn't warm up eventually. How warm depends but absolutely able to live happily, the humans feeling safe, etc. Even in the colony they warm up. Yes, that is quite silly for young families with kids to want skittish cats. Yes, separate building, more fosters, etc are great. BUT it takes a lot of money, people and of course foster families and all those are very hard to come by. :/ BUT I LOVE the thinking!!!

I WISH I could find homes for every feral in my colony. They all would be great in homes (with the right people). It is heartbreaking to not be able to find them homes. But all we can do is our best. :/

 

[Animal Freak]

I sure hope so.

The Gabapentin is taking it's time getting here. At this rate, I'm going to have to buy more Fluoxetine. I was hoping we could get him off of it by the time this batch ran out.

She's definitely an anxious and easily traumatized dog. My mom knocked a dish on the floor once while Stella was eating and Stella no longer trusts her in the kitchen while she's eating.

Well, I brought the agility equipment home. I asked the manager if they were planning on doing something with it and she told me to take it. I've already got Osiris going through the tunnel and doing a jump. He took to it better than I expected, especially because the tunnel is one with the long sleeve at the end. I hope the shelter ends up getting the permanent equipment. We have a lot of dogs not doing well right now. On the bright side, Walter, the dog I mentioned before that was losing weight, has gone to a foster home with the potential of being adopted. The lady has three other dogs (a golden retriever type, a chocolate lab, and a pittie) who she does agility, scent work, and dock diving with. And she had a hound dog like Walter in the past.

Yes, they definitely want to. Chip has finally gotten less jumpy with me and has become very affectionate. Rather needy, actually. He makes it difficult to clean to room because I'm always tripping over him. Keanu just needs time. A lot of time. He's still very nervous when he's out in the open and hasn't let me pet him unless he's in a place he feels safe. He still hisses sometimes too though mostly if he's in a spot you have to move a blanket to get to. He's very sensitive. I think he'd do well in a quiet home with just one or two people, no kids, little company, and with a person or people who will let him do things at his pace. We did have one of our more difficult cats get adopted recently though. She can be a bit mean, so I'll admit I'm a little surprised she was adopted when we have so many friendly cats, including some of the jumpier ones, but I'm happy for her. We also had three newer cats who are very friendly and social who went home. Well, I would just like to have a building I can set up and take foster cats to get them out of the shelter environment and into a more stable one where there's someone who'll spend time with them. I wouldn't mind keeping a couple if they could have their own space outside of my house. I just don't know that I can introduce any cats into my household at this point.

It would be great, of course, but there are just so many cats who need homes. Right now, we need to cut down on the friendly, social cats who need homes. I'm sure your ferals are happy though. They don't know what they're missing.

We have made a grave mistake. The shelter posted on Facebook that they were looking for a foster for a five-month-old, purebred, AKC-registered husky puppy. She was too cute... We couldn't handle it. So say hello to our foster (because we most definitely do not want to keep her) Layla, the terror!

 

[calicosrspecial]

I think so. So far so good!!!

:/ Ughhhhhhhhhh, that happens all the time. Hopefully it gets to you soon!!!

Yes that is very common in a lot of dogs and especially her breed. :/

WOW!!! How cool is that?!?!?!?!? Osiris did????? TERRIFIC!!! How great is that. Now HOPEFULLY he doesn't get bored with it. :/ He is very smart. :/

I hope they get the permanent equipment as well. Yes, shelters are not great places BUT hopefully the dogs get adopted, etc. GREAT!!! Walter!!!! That sounds like the perfect opportunity!!! Whew!!! Fingers crossed!!!

That is great they want to trust. Awwww, Chip. How great is that!! Awwww, Keanu. That is very normal. Agreed on your assessment of the right home. Well, sometimes some people go for the hard to adopt animals. I have always done that since the easier ones have a better chance of finding another home. Wow, some good cat adoptions. Hopefully they are in the right homes.

Well, that is a great idea. Having a purpose made environment. Less sheltery and more homey. Yes, adding another cat to your existing would be very difficult and probably not a great idea. :/ Sometimes we just need to know our limits. It is hard (I sure know) but we have to do what is best for everyone. :/ Doesn't mean we like it but we else can we do?

Yep :/ Exactly. Well, I try to give them the best life possible. I WISH I could give them the best but it is not possible.

:O OH MY!!!!! I wish I knew the thing of hitting the head like you have done before the D'OH one!!! You and your mom are TOO FUNNY!!! Can't blame you she is SO CUTE!!!! Hahahaha, that is what you say now.................. Layla the terror.

 

[Animal Freak]

Hey, sorry for not responding. It's been really busy. I've picked up extra shifts at work. I'll type up a reply eventually, but not sure when. Just wanted to let you know I'm alive and well (though tired) and Layla went to her new home Tuesday night.