daily dose of dogs (aka cats with your coffee)

Cats of Webbthistle

Today’s brick is from Webbthistle, and these are her words:  

With each cat goes a piece of my heart.

Whether it is my very first kitten, Sunshine, who introduced 4 year old me to a lifetime love of cats, or those other sweet cats of my childhood - Whiskers, Blossom, Wild Bill Hickcock, Snowflake, Dominique and Napoleon - they all live on in my dreams and soul.

As do the cats of my 'grownup' years: Sil and Sof, Kitty and Ehos, and Lacey, who all now wait at the Bridge for Lacey's 17 year old sister Cagney to join them. And they wait for me too, and the other cats who may come into my life before I am called to cross the Bridge to be with them forever.

All have a piece of my heart.

With each of my friends' cats, the wonderful critters Chrystal has introduced to us, and each of the felines I've met through the Cat Blogosphere, I am reminded anew of the grace, companionship, serenity, laughter and joy these beautiful animals bring to our lives.

So, for all the cats I've loved before...Thank you.

Webbthistle ~ THANK YOU.


Before I close this post, I’d like to offer an update on the Walkway.  Yesterday was an absolutely gorgeous day here in southern Illinois.  I MADE time to do something really special.  I had my husband take the two (very heavy) boxes of bricks from the second fundraiser down to the Winnie’s Wish Walkway Work-in-Progress.  There was a southerly breeze and bright, warm sunshine. It was the perfect day to work on the Walk.  I placed each of the new bricks in the Walkway.  One by one, I re-read the words, cherished the deep sentiments in those words, and felt my heart soar for all of the Love captured in those bricks.  To those of you who have a brick (or two) (or more) in the Walkway, let me say this.  Every animal represented in those bricks not only held a place in your heart, but they now hold a place in mine as well.  What an awesome tribute to the furry family members you have loved and continue to love.  Of course, thank you for helping us by purchasing a brick.  But also THANK YOU for being who you are.  I never cease to be amazed at the connection I feel for each one of you who cares enough to stop by this blog, read about dogs and cats you’ll never actually know, and share in your comments, thoughts, and prayers your support for us and your love for the sweet souls who have graced your lives.

See how the Walkway has grown?  There's a red brick up in the middle of the Walkway holding a spot for a pre-ordered brick.  And there's room for about 40 more bricks before the Walkway is complete.  Probably for my 2nd blogoversary, I'll do the third brick fundraiser.

See you tomorrow for another brick story.

Trex's Transport

Younger Daughter and I got up early Saturday morning, got the chores done, and hit the road with one Mr. Trex.  As many of you know, Trex was “chosen” and his new home was to be in Arkansas.  We set our course and hoped that Trex would be a good traveler.  He was.  He also received a special nickname during the day - Trexarkana.  Get it? 

As always, we started the trip with Trex in a carrier.  We never know how a kitty is going to do in a moving vehicle.  We’ve had a lot of good luck with our transports. We STILL haven’t had a kitty scream every minute, or panic so badly that we had to worry.  (Knock on wood.)  The previous transport was Luna’s, and she preferred to stay IN her carrier as she just didn’t care for the fast-moving objects outside the windows.  In all likelihood, Trex is her son, so we wondered . . .    Would Trex come out and roam around the inside of the vehicle, like so many had in the past?  Or would he prefer the safety of his carrier, like his mom?  It was a little of both.  Trex is such an attention monger, that he just couldn’t stay in his carrier continuously because he desperately wanted Younger Daughter’s notice.  He was very concerned about being pulled from his carrier, but when we allowed him to creep out on his own, he would cautiously find his way to Younger Daughter’s lap.  And then the affection poured out.  He purred (his bubbly, scar-tissue purr), rubbed his face on hers, and patted her face with his soft paws.  Trex is in heaven when he has someone’s undivided attention.  He partook of everything he could get from this human, and then he promptly re-entered the carrier for a bath and nap.  This pattern repeated itself a couple of times, and before we knew it, we were crossing the line into Arkansas.

Anita and her friend met us on the north side of Jonesboro, Arkansas.   Anita is a delightful person who actually shines her love right out through her eyes.  I handed over the medical record, and then it was time to hand over Trex (who was now truly TrexArkana).  We said our goodbyes, and headed back to Illinois.  Anita, her friend, and Trex headed deeper into Arkansas.  I hoped that at some point during the trip, Trex might step out of his new carrier and greet his new mom.  I hoped he might peep at them with his tiny little mew.  Younger Daughter and I talked about the amazing gift this was to us and to Trex.  I know with Anita’s Mr. Bugs, there will be some adjustment time.  But as I said in an email to Anita, Trex is a mellow fellow, looking for love.  Once Mr. Bugs decides that Trex is OK, I’m hoping for a happy ever after.

THANK YOU, Anita.  As I’ve had the pleasure of saying many times before - you have given the ultimate gift.  You have saved TWO kitties - Trex and the one you just opened a spot for.  And believe me, come Kitten Season (just around the corner), we’re gonna need all the space we can get.





Two quick updates.  The little kitten Chase, who came to us from the shelter because he was doing so poorly, is holding his own.  His URI is getting better, but he’s having some GI tract issues.   We continue to hope he will come all the way back to health.



And hopefully you remember China.  She is the pomeranian who was completely despondent when she came to us.  Younger Daughter worked with her, and she slowly became a normal dog (with extra sweetness).  She was adopted yesterday.  She had been placed on the shelter’s Facebook page and there were a couple of applications.  A family who has had poms in the past met her yesterday and fell in love with her.  This one pulled my heart strings.  It was SO hard to send her off to the shelter yesterday when Older Daughter went to work.  Of course, a forever home is ALWAYS the goal.  Older Daughter found out this morning that China will be spayed today through the shelter and do her recuperation with us.  I’m excited to get her back for a few days.  Then she will move on, which is as it should be.  From utter despondency to a family of her own - another happy ending.





Have a good Monday.

Tom Dog

Ginny purchased a couple of bricks in the first round, and now she's back to memorialize another of her MANY animals.  I'm going to repeat what I wrote last time - Ginny is a dear friend who lives about an hour from me.  She and her husband Jim have known our family for years and years.  They board their dogs with us when they get to take the occasional trip.  Ginny is an animal lover, and she has both dogs and cats.  She also feeds the strays and gets Jim to build shelters for them.   This time Ginny's brick is for a dog from her past whom I never had the privilege of knowing.  Of course, now I feel like I DID know him.  Here's his story, in Ginny's words.

My brick is for Tom-Dog Wells. He was a lhasa Apso Mix. He walked out of our corn field into the back yard – a dirty, hungry, little beige mop of a dog. He had a large infected sore on his back and his hair was matted with burrs. He came toward me and he seemed to know I would help him. I took him inside the house and fed him and gave him water – then I let him rest a while. Later on he got a bath in flea soap. The next day we went to the vet – he got shots and his sore treated, and later on he was neutered. We named him Tom-Dog, because he acted like a big house cat, a (i)tom/-cat, if you will. He would wash his body with his tongue like the cats and let them lay down beside him and soon he became our little house- mop dog. He was so sweet and he would flop down on the cool tile and watch everyone.  We all loved him dearly.  He traveled with us and even went to live in Arizona when we moved. Time went on as it does and he grew older and lost the sight in his eyes.  Our new puppy (rescued from the pound) would take Tom-Dog’s leash and lead him outside and back inside. The new pup was a golden retriever named Mc Cloud – Tom-Dog lived another 2 years with his seeing-eye dog (McCloud) by his side. When we moved back home to Kentucky he came with us- we tried every thing to make him comfortable in his ancient years. He began to hurt and got to where he could barely walk. One very sad day we knew it was the time to let him go to the Bridge – he was our love dog and is still loved to this day. The saddest thing was that we could not tell Mc Cloud (aka Big Mac) where he had gone and Mc Cloud would lay down in the spot Tom-Dog slept in and kept looking around for him for a long time.  I don’t have enough words to tell his story – I had no idea where he came from or what kind of life that had been.  We guessed him to be about 3 or 4 when he came to us and he never seemed to miss his old life at all so I don’t think it had been very good.

Well, I know it was good with you, Ginny.

Ginny and Jim ~ THANK YOU.

Tomorrow is Trex’s Transport Day.  We’ll be driving down into Arkansas to meet up with Anita and turn over her new boy to her.  Have a great weekend.  See you Monday.

Miracle

Before I start today's brick story, there is an issue in Ohio right now that needs everyone’s attention.  A petition is being offered for signatures.  I saw it on Jeanne’s blog yesterday (Random Felines - her Wordless Wednesday post).  You can go over to her blog and click to sign, or you can go to the CB where Jeanne has put a line up (it's third from the top today).  It’s about stopping a city from killing stray and feral cats.  I REALLY hope you will take a moment and sign the petition.  THANKS.

Now to Madeline's Miracle . . .

I have an aunt who is my mother’s sister.  Aunt Madeline is an over-the-top animal lover like me.  She has taken in many many dogs and cats over the years.  For Christmas this year, my mom wanted to get my aunt something extra special.  The most special gift she could get for her sister would have to have something to do with animals.  So she purchased a brick for her, and told her to have put on it anything she wanted.  Here is what my aunt chose to put on her brick in the Winnie’s Wish Walkway.


This is the story of her Miracle:

I was out walking my dog in 1998 and there was this very small calico kitten laying under a bush, so small she fit in the palm of my hand.  She was in very bad shape, so skinny and weak, eat up with fleas and ring worm and so very dirty.  I took her home, cleaned her up, got all the fleas off and fed her a little and then took her to the vet.  The vet said she was in very bad shape and it would be a miracle if she lived, hence there was her name - my little MIRACLE.  I spent many nights in the recliner holding her close to my heart and we shared her ring worm and many sleepless nights. 
Well she is now 13 years old and a beautiful calico.  She is my constant companion and sleeps with me every night.  She is my heart and soul cat.  Who says love can't heal.  I love her dearly.

Aunt Madeline and Mom ~ THANK YOU.

Sissy Update, New Foster, and an Observation

AS ALWAYS, the comments that came in concerning losing Liberty were wonderful.  Thank you to each and every one of you.  You are here to celebrate with me, and here to offer comfort when things get tough.  That is such a gift to me.

Last week I told you that Sissy (aka Mom Pom, aka biter dog, aka dancing princess) had been taken into a home for a trial run.  The family has two other dogs, and they wanted to be sure that Sissy would fit in before making the adoption final.  Well, the adoption IS final, and the report is that Sissy has taken up with both dogs and every human in the household.  This was a dog that was labeled a biter and thought to possibly be unadoptable.  What a GREAT ending to that story.

                                    A kiss goodbye to Younger Daughter (aka pom whisperer).

Older Daughter brought another kitten home to our “quarantine” room.  He was named Chase at the shelter, and he is typical of the ones we foster - he is sick.  I am almost afraid to introduce him to you for fear that I could be reporting another loss at some point.  We’re giving him a fighting chance.  Of course, I’m already in love with him.  Who wouldn’t be?  Look at what a cutie he is!



                                                    Keep your fingers crossed for this little one.

Do you happen to remember what I posted about on Monday?  (Large Smile) Yes. That Trex has been chosen.  Well, I have a story to tell about an observation of a kitty who is NOT Trex.  But Trex IS part of this story.  I wonder if you remember the chaos that ensued when we took on the Fantastic Fifteen.  We had tons of kittens and six new adults.  We didn’t know anything about any of them.  We couldn’t even identify who was who for a day or two there.  None of the adults were spayed or neutered. We didn’t know which moms belonged to which kittens.  The adults came after the kittens, and when we delivered the moms into Winnie’s Room with the kittens, Golden ran to Luna’s side.  She never left her.  Everywhere Luna went, Golden went, too.  Of course, we deduced from this that Luna was the mother of Golden.  We had Aeon, a single kitten who was much older than the others.  She didn’t look like any of the adults - male or female.   There was Dearest, who was smaller than the others. And Max, who was only slightly bigger than Dearest.  We finally pieced together that Dearest and Max were probably the kittens of Halo.  All of the other kittens were exactly the same size, except for Golden . . .   and Trex.  So, it went like this.  The bulk of the kittens were from a litter together.  Aeon, we’ll never know.  Dearest and Max belonged to Halo.  It must be that Golden and Trex were the two survivors from Luna’s litter.

I’ve described Golden on a couple of occasions.  After her relationship with Luna dissolved, she began to interact with some of the other kittens.  But she has mostly been a very quiet, more introverted kitty.  Recently, she has completely attached herself to Percy, who is a gentle mancat with total admiration for kittens.  In fact, it has been kittens that have brought Percy out of his shell.  The thing that I guess I had not even realized is this.  I had never heard Golden make a sound.  (Yes, this really is coming back around to Trex.)

Last week, I used brick money to get the last two spays done.  Over the months, all of the kitties in the cathouse had been spayed and neutered, one by one, here and there.  Frosting and Golden were the final two.  When I brought them home after their surgeries, I set them up in our downstairs bathroom.  They stayed there until yesterday, recuperating and being lavished with attention.  (Frosting is a desperate attention hound, so she loved this.  I was hoping this would also be a way to pull Golden out of her shell a little more.)  It started with purring.  Over the months, Golden had actually never purred when I was petting her or holding her.  But if I sat on the floor in the cathouse beside her and Percy, she would purr up a storm.  I knew she was purring because Percy was close to her, NOT because I was.  Anyway, I was pleased as punch to have Golden start purring as a result of interaction with me while she was staying in the bathroom.  It was wonderful to know that she really could be content with a human.  The purring was great.  But then one day I walked into that bathroom and Golden spoke to me in a brand new way.



I stepped in, went to the sink, and started doing something without really acknowledging the kitties.  Frosting was immediately ON the sink rubbing against me and staring at what I was doing.  Golden rubbed against my legs as she had taken to doing in her new environment.  And then . . .    I heard a noise that I automatically identified.  I heard a meow.  Not just ANY meow.  I heard Trex’s meow.  I have described how ridiculous it is to have Mancat Trex come running over and start talking.  From the time Trex came to us as a tiny kitten, he has been mewing the tiniest, little bitty, high-pitched meow any of us has ever heard.  His sisters, and cousins - all of the kitties in the cathouse - have a deeper, more manly meow than does Trex.  It is 100% unique, and it completely cracks us up.  Now here was Trex’s teeny weeny little mew . . . .     coming out of Golden.  It was final then.  Golden and Trex HAD to be sister and brother.  Never before had I heard a meow like Trex’s . . . . until now.  Ms. Golden speaks with the same voice.  She spoke to me many, many times after that - always with her brother’s voice.   So funny.

Golden is available for adoption.  Her favorite person in the whole world is a cat - Percy.  And Percy loves her, too.  Anybody for a pair?

                                                     (Frosting is available for adoption, too.) 

See you tomorrow when it's back to bricks.  

We Lost Our Liberty

I’m sorry to say this is one of those hard dives on the roller coaster that IS rescue work. 

We had a very sad event over the weekend.  I could have posted about this yesterday, but I had already dangled the wonderful news about something good in front of you in Friday’s post.  I had you anticipating a happy event for your Monday.  I decided I just couldn’t draw you in with that teaser only to switch gears and give you bad news instead.  What happened regarding Trex deserved its day.  And good news on a Monday is always better.  But that leaves the really sad news for today.  I wrote into yesterday’s post how I know that you hurt with me when I’m faced with tough things.  What happened Friday and Saturday was tough. 

On Friday morning, I published my post for the day and headed out the back door to the kennel.  That is where Momma Willow and her three kittens are set up.  They have one of the big cages in my kennel office.  You might remember that this mom cat and her three tinies came in to the shelter where Older Daughter works.  The babies’ eyes were sealed closed, and Older Daughter had to peel them open and squeeze infection out of them just to get started with antibiotic drops.  The babies were seen by a vet and it was the same old story.  Give meds and love, and then hope.  We were lucky to have mom along with the kittens.  We’re usually trying to keep kittens alive without the advantage of mother’s milk and the comfort that comes with still having mom around.   The kittens improved right away, mom was provided with good nutrition, and the little family had a warm, comfortable environment with plenty of human attention and love.

                                                     This is just after the family came to us. 

On Thursday night I mentioned to my daughters that I hoped little Liberty was OK.  In the last week or so, the kittens had reached the age of discovery.  They were starting to play with the toys, and they had even learned to climb the cat tree in the office.  The cute in the room was large and spilling over.  It was wonderful to watch the babies growing and thriving.  On Thursday night Liberty wasn’t playing as hard as her sister and brother were.  She did still play, but I happened to notice that she just wasn’t racing as hard.  I picked her up and listened for a little purr, and I got it.  She even wiggled free to get back to her siblings.  I thought no more about it.

                                                            Liberty is the little gray one.

 After posting Friday morning, I went to the kennel to get to work, and I went into the office first.  I reached to let mom and babies out of the cage so that they could begin playing while I went about tending to the dogs.  Mom Willow jumped out of the cage followed by two kittens, and I immediately saw that something was wrong.  Liberty had been hunched underneath her mom.  When mom hopped out of the cage, Liberty fell onto her side.  I grabbed her and drew her close.  She was struggling to breathe.  Older Daughter had left for work only about twenty minutes before.  I called her cell phone.  Liberty isn’t breathing right.  I mean, she’s STRUGGLING to breathe.  She needs a vet NOW.  I’m going to start driving that way.  Can you get on the phone to get her in to a vet?   Older Daughter got to the shelter and got busy with the arrangements.  I drove with one hand and held Liberty against me with the other.  I delivered a struggling Liberty into Older Daughter’s arms.  Soon she was on her way to the vet.

I checked with Older Daughter a couple of times that day.  The report was that Liberty had pneumonia.  I asked the question I always ask.   How in the world could this happen so suddenly?  I got the same answer I’ve been given dozens of times.  This is the way it goes with tiny kittens.  They go down fast and hard.  She was given the biggest antibiotic dose via injection she could safely receive and she would be monitored.  If we could get her back that evening, we would do whatever we needed to do here at home.  But the vet said he couldn’t release her that day.  She wasn’t improving and he felt he needed to keep her overnight and see where they were by the next morning.

Saturday morning the news was bad.  She was alive, but worse.  The vet said he did not expect her to make it.  They would close at noon, and Older Daughter told me she thought we would be faced with making the decision to have her euthanized before the clinic staff went home for the day.  I burst into tears.  All day Friday I had been keeping a quiet vigil for little Liberty.  I hated that she was off at a veterinary clinic instead of here with us and her siblings and her mom.  I wondered all day if she was suffering.  I wanted her to get better and come back to us.  Now I had to say whether or not to end her suffering.  Older Daughter called back and talked to the vet.  (She had worked for him during an internship and felt she could get a clearer picture by talking to him about the level of suffering.)  He told Older Daughter that he couldn’t see Liberty pulling through.  But he said he would come back in and check on her that afternoon (when they were closed) and if she was struggling even harder to breathe, he would call us for the approval to euthanize.  He said he knew how much we wanted to bring her home, but that the hour-long trip would stress her so much that it would be torture.  So we waited.

Liberty let go on her own at noon.  The vet had gone in to check on her before locking up, and she was gone.  I spent the rest of Saturday in a sort of fog.  I was angry at myself for being SO upset.  After the year of loss that 2011 had proved to be, I should have learned something.  I should be tougher now.  These things shouldn’t knock me off my feet anymore.  I thought back over all of the kittens I had lost over the years.  I remembered every gruesome detail.  And I knew I wouldn’t quickly let go of this, especially since I wasn’t there for Liberty’s last breath.  Once again, I would have to push on.  The vet couldn’t say why this happened to Liberty and left two kittens unscathed.  I knew I would have to watch the other two very closely.  I also knew that we had lost many a ONE kitten from a litter.  Why that ONE?  Why little Liberty?  I didn’t know, and I won’t know.  I guess I HAD learned from the long year of loss one thing - I would survive it.  And there was too much to do to fall apart for more than a few hours.

I will miss you, Liberty, as I do each and every little creature I’ve had the good fortune to know.

Liberty - Farewell. 

Monday ~ Good News

Last Friday I left you with a bit of suspense about today's post.  I said it would make your Monday brighter.  After I wrote that, I thought about how I automatically assume/know that you will be pleased by things that please ME concerning the rescue work.  I mean, when I have a sick kitten here, I know you worry with me.  And when I lose a cat or dog, kitten or puppy, I know you hurt with me.  But I also know that when a really sick one pulls through, you are relieved.  And when a psychologically damaged one makes progress, you take joy in that.  So if I said that one of the best things that can happen here has happened, what would it make you think of?

Yep.  An adoption.  When it's all said and done, when sick ones get well, damaged ones come around, starving ones eat, and suffering ones find comfort - those things are all augmented by the ultimate act of adoption.  The bottom line is - these sweet souls who end up in my hands need homes.  That is the real goal.  And it has happened again.  Someone has been chosen.

Here's how it all started.

I'm just going along, minding my own business, when I receive an email that starts off like this:  Dear Chrystal, I just wrote on my blog about how I'm looking to adopt a cat.  Andrea of Celestial Kitties referred me to you.  Andrea says "distance is no object."  How would that work?  We are in Arkansas. . .

Right after that, I had an email from Andrea (at Celestial Kitties, who adopted Leo).  She said - Over at Kapnip Lounge, they got an award and instead of passing it along, they posted several low-follwer blogs, mine included, and asked people to go visit them.  So I visited each of the others, and one was Catself.  When I read that she was looking to add a new kitty to her house I about freaked out!  So my comment was - Get your new kitty from Chrystal!  I'm hope hope hoping and praying that she gets a kitty from you!!!  Please let me know if she does!  I'm so excited.

I DID let Andrea know that the lady from Catself had written to me:

Andrea!!!  Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh.  YES.  She emailed me.  She told me what you told me - that she came to my blog because of you.

And there began an email correspondence between me and "the lady at Catself" whose name is Anita.  The final word?  Trex has been chosen.  It is possible that as early as this coming weekend, Trex will be on his way to his forever home.  This is the good stuff.  The really good stuff.

You can read the story from Anita's perspective by clicking here.  (You'll see that Anita is wonderful, and there's an adorable picture of Trex as a baby.)  I have also added her blog to my Bloglist in the sidebar so you can visit any time.

Thank you Katnip Lounge.  Look where your decision about what to do with your award has led.  Thank you Andrea.  You have not only given the ultimate gift of a home to a Winnie's Wish kitty yourself, but you are our own personal marketing firm.  And thank you Anita for being willing to go the extra mile (miles  :-) to adopt one of the kitties here even when it wasn't the easiest route you could have taken.  As I've said about each adoption from us - you just saved TWO kitties . . . Trex, and the kitty who will eventually take his place.  THANK YOU.

Capstar, Sissy, a Gift, and Some Suspense

 

I have been asked to do another review.  This time it was vetDEPOT.com who contacted me.  This online company offers discount pet medications, and I have used Vet Depot myself in the past.  They have asked me specifically to review the product Capstar.  During our email dialogue, I explained that we have two small dogs who have a troubling reaction to fleas.  You might remember that Older Daughter adopted Rolly (the trash bag pup) and a friend for him - Trace.  Well, in general, our flea situation is normal for this time of year.  By that I mean - we aren’t really battling fleas at all here in the middle of the Winter.  But a Midwest winter is an odd thing.  It can be below freezing one week, and nearly Spring-like the next.  So when one of our small dogs goes outside, it is possible to pick up a flea.  The products we use for flea control, along with the current season (Winter) keep fleas from becoming a problem . . . . except for Rolly and Trace.  Rolly and Trace each have particular skin issues.  Just one flea, for even a very short period of time, causes an exacerbation of these boys’ skin problems.  Vet Depot sent Capstar for dogs 2 -25 lbs.  We used it successfully.  It is an oral tablet, easy to administer.  Within a matter of minutes after ingestion, any flea on the animal dies.  Yesterday, after using the Capstar, Rolly and Trace were flea-free. 

I have used the product on kittens (even mentioned it in my blog), but this was a first try with canines.  The beauty of Capstar is how quickly it works.  It was fast relief for Rolly and Trace.  We will have to wait and see how long-lived the relief will be.

 

Now an update on Sissy.  You remember that Sassy, Sissy’s one and only little puppy, was adopted through the shelter and went to her new home.  That left Sissy here with us.  Well, on Wednesday, Older Daughter took her back to the shelter for a meet-and-greet with her new prospective adoptive family.  This family already has two small dogs, and they were interested in adding Sissy IF she fit in with their two.  She was taken to their home for a visit.  Sissy leaned into Older Daughter when the family reached to take her, but there was NO aggression of any sort.  You might remember that when we brought Sissy here with her little hamster baby, she was biting everybody in site.  Then Younger Daughter worked with her, and Sissy melted into a little princess doll.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this family will give Sissy a chance to adjust, and this will be the forever home Sissy deserves.  I’ll keep you posted.


Sissy - dancing for a treat.



Also on Wednesday, I received a box in the mail.  It was from Michele, a reader of this blog and kitty lover.  When you take a look at the contents, I believe you’ll be thinking the same thing I’m thinking - time for a cathouse party.  THANK YOU, Michele.



My plan is to do more brick stories next week.  But I might be starting the week off with NOT a brick story.  Let me say only this - it’s something that will make your Monday brighter.  Guaranteed.

Have a great weekend.

Mr. Chewy

I received an email from an online company named Mr. Chewy.  I was asked to look at their website and review it on my blog.  For this service, I would receive a coupon to use at their site.  Now, if you’re thinking of not finishing this post because of it being a review and not a story, you might want to read on - there’s something in it for you and for needy animals.

  I always wondered how this review thing worked.  I wondered if people were really honest in their reviews.  And now I’m doing one.  This one was easy.  I can honestly say that I quite enjoyed the visit.  Of course, my willingness to do the review was based on constantly looking for ways to get what we need for the rescue work.  What I found when I visited the Mr. Chewy website was this:

It is a bright, colorful, feel-good place to shop.  I didn’t know for sure what they wanted me to specifically look at, but I knew what I did and didn’t like about shopping online.  I like for things to be EASY.  After I browsed for a while, I decided to see how easy it would be to order up some of the type of dry cat food I use most in the cathouse.  EASY.  I typed it in, was taken right to it, and could have ordered with ease.  That’s not the only thing I like about this website.  Probably the neatest thing is that you can get your order delivered right to your door.  And here’s the best part - if it’s over $49, you get it shipped to you FREE. 

 I’ll mention one more thing, too, before telling you how to visit the website.  There is a way to help animals by ordering from Mr. Chewy.  Mr. Chewy has partnered with three animal charities -   North Shore Animal League, Best Friends Animal Society and Bidawee.  You can get 10% off your first order AND Mr. Chewy will donate $10 to the organizations I just mentioned if you use the promo code in this post.  (Each donation will be split between the three.)  If you go through me for your first order, Mr. Chewy considers you My Friend and will give you the 10% off/ $10 donation deal.

You can visit Mr. Chewy by clicking here.

Then use this code to get 10% off your first order and have a donation made to some great charities.

The code is    C3K9132

OK.  So, my first review.  I get a coupon to use at Mr. Chewy to get food for the cathouse gang.  And you might find something you like about Mr. Chewy, too.

See you tomorrow.

Apollo and Morgan

This is Kate’s second brick.  Let me repeat what I said when I did her first brick post.  Kate is a friend and supporter of Winnie’s Wish.  She is a cat lover extraordinaire.   Rather than write up something specifically for this post, Kate would like to direct you to a post on her own blog about her Apollo and Morgan.  PLEASE take a moment to visit that post.  It is a wonderful story.

For Apollo and Morgan's story, click here.   And anytime you want to visit Kate's blog, it is in my sidebar ~ First Chapter's 2nd chapter.


Kate ~ THANK YOU.