July was very busy on the pet sitting side. Even in our semi-retirement July is a crazy month. And with some very hot days as well (though thankfully not as hot as some places in the country) I am glad to be about to put July in the rear-view mirror. I had my last really busy day of pet visits yesterday morning, and spent the rest of the day catching my breath.
With a lighter work schedule ahead I'm focused on some of the kittens with medical needs, and a couple with socialization needs. I haven't had enough time to spend with some of the newer kittens, so that's on the agenda here for a bit. Two more kittens got adopted this last Friday, so my foster room is only seven kittens now - down from 13 which was entirely too many in the one space! I have two more kittens, always the black ones sadly, who are ready to go, and one possible application for one of them. The rest of the kittens won't be ready for a few weeks yet.
Little Miss Cora, with her broken tibia, had a third splint change last week, and this week, instead of just dropping her off in the morning for them to do that when they can, they had me make a doctor's appointment, and plan a new x-ray, so the hope is that she will be healed and can get the splint off for good and join the gang. She's pretty frustrated being by herself in the ferret cage, and really ready to be free. She's a cutie, with amazing whiskers. Paws crossed she gets her freedom on Friday.
Francine, the kitty with the eye that is being reabsorbed, is also stuck in the other ferret cage. A little upper respiratory - not bad, but being treated - and some internal parasites also being treated, and later this week she should be able to join the crew as well. She's scheduled for her spay and also to have that eye removed and everything sealed up so it isn't a source of future infection. The eye seems to be in the process of being reabsorbed right now, and some rescues just let it go at that, but it leaves her open to future problems so we will remove what's left and close it all up properly for her in a couple weeks. She's a sweet little ginger and will make someone a welcome companion.
Otherwise, it is just working with a couple of the youngest kittens who came in as solo babies and just need more socialization. They're not bad at all, but could use some practice at being handled without play biting and scratching, so they are each getting one-on-one time with me in the bathroom, away from the gang, for some play with the cat dancer, some lap time, and some treats for connecting with me, to create a positive association with people time and the food they love. Athens and Madrid got their first sessions yesterday and they made lots of progress in a short time.
On the non-kitten side, Ember is now a permanent foster and joining our household as such. She just has too many medical issues that prevent her from being adoptable, so she's stuck with us for life. She'll be on her prescription food for good. We tried a short challenge with a single source protein (chicken) and it was a big failure and resulted in lesions again. Those are gone now, but we're not going to try anything else. She's good on the Z/D so that's that. She seems to have some issues with other allergies - probably environmental - and she is pure hell to pill. (I say that as someone who doesn't have that much trouble pilling any cat, but she is so violent about it that this isn't an option for her.) She is fine at the moment, and hopefully she mostly stays that way. The vet and I both agree that her resistance to medical care is a big problem, and we're hoping she can stay on a mostly even keel.
Yesterday she decided that she wasn't happy to be in her own gated room any longer, and she managed to squeeze through the slats and was found wandering the house. One of our residents cats wasn't too happy about that, but they have been aware of each other for months now, and hopefully we can work it out. What Ember will do about the dogs is yet to be seen. If she's willing to give Gracie and Carly a good swat they will leave her alone, like they do Hiro.
And that's the state of foster life here. Busy days, but so nice to be down to 7 kittens and one cat. Things are so much quieter for now. My schedule is very quiet this week and the weather is much more pleasant, so the week is starting off well. I hope yours is too.
No comments:
Post a Comment