Meet Jimmy

Before I get to my post today, I would like to draw your attention to my fab new header.  Sammy and Andy's generous mum Judi took time away from unpacking her new home to whip together this wonderful header for Cat's Cats which incorporates the new addition to our clan and even has maple leaves in the background... 'cause we're Canadian :-)  Thank you Judi for your kindness and creativity!

I have been thinking about why I feel the need to change Ash’s name.  I know his coat is truly the colour of dark ashes, and the name is therefore apropos, but strictly speaking ashes represent mourning.  I think I would like this little cat to have a happier name to carry with him throughout his life.  Ellery and Winston both mean joyful so they were in the offing for a while, but I was never entirely sold on either of them. 

In my head I went through all sorts of names trying to match something with our baby: Daniel, Vern, Isaac, Reginald, Rufus, Desmond, Dexter, Fritz, Lloyd, Tavish, Roland, Jeremiah, Jed, Zach and Jack but I didn't get that special feeling from any of them. So I toyed with Otis, Arnold, Wendall, Giles, Gabriel, Cecil, Tobias, Thomas, Beau, Earnest, Wilbur Wally and Martin. I hovered around Otis for a while, it means prosperous, which doesn't really hold any great significance but I liked the name. 

Then last Sunday Robert and I were with my family for lunch and they were all asking after Ash and wanting to know what we had decided to call him.  I started to tell them some of the names we had been considering and they threw out a few suggestions of there own...all of which were atrocious - lol!  Then Robert (who btw has never named one of our cats) said "What about Jim"?  Well I have always loved the name James which also lends itself nicely to many nicknames (the other cats have at least three each) and it just seemed to suit him once we said it out loud!

So, ladies and gentlemen...I would like you to meet James, Jimmy, Jimmer, Jimbo, Jim!  

Ash Update/Worldwide Moment

Hi All,

Darling Ash was at the animal hospital this morning to have his follow-up appointment.  The vet was very pleased with his  progress and thought the fur was growing back nicely on his ears!  I was thrilled because I had told Ash that we would throw his cone away today.  Unfortunately the vet said we had to continue with the anti-fungal/antibiotic cream for another another week.  It is starting to look now like it was some kind of skin infection and Ash got another injection of Convenia, but he can't rule out ringworm until the culture produces a fully negative result which means staying in isolation from the other cats for another week.  Poor lonely lamb, I feel so sad for Ash but I have to do what is best for the household too. 

Today we joined our CB friends to participate in the Worldwide Moment. At 11:00pm GMT, 6:00pm our time, we paused for reflection on all the wonderful kitties who have gone before: Doobie (Mr. Dubois), our very first family cat which I brought home from school, Tiptoes, Tigger, Abby (the amazing Abyssinian), Ally, sweet Max and lovely Molly.  We sent all our healing thoughts and positive energy to those kitties out there who are ill or abandoned in the hopes that they will be well again and that kind souls will open their homes and save a life.  I personally contemplated how truly fortunate I am the live with four wonderful kitties who enhance my life everyday!

Ash and the Cone

For those of you who were wondering, I take Ash's cone off when I am with him. I asked my vet about using a soft cone (which doesn't seem to be available in Canada, but I could always order it from the States) but he said they were no good and come off all the time.  So unfortunately it seems we are stuck with the hard cone for the duration.  But we have cuddles and play several times a day without the cone and he runs and jumps and gets a great work out mostly with Amy's "Da Bird" that she gave us. Ash just loves it! But if he starts to scratch at his ears or try to lick them I have to put the cone back on because the vet said prolonged ingestion of the anti-fungal cream can cause liver damage and he has to have the cream applied until the 14th. So I'm trying to be very careful, but still give him some freedom.  Ash seems to take it all in stride, it's me that is the wreck (lol)! The great thing about Ash though is he doesn't seem to be the type to hold a grudge :-)

Ash before the cone

Some Purrs for Ash Please

Hi All,

Little Ash had to be back at the animal hospital on Saturday to find out what is happening with his ears and head. The furless patches that we noticed on the drive home had grown quite large and I was getting worried. Unfortunately Dr. D. who I trust and adore is out of town (and was away last weekend when I took Ash in on Sunday) but yesterday we saw a new partner at the practice who I felt was very thorough.  Ash is a little bit of a mystery because his fungal culture for ringworm is not growing anything, but this vet said that was what he thought it was.  He treated Ash for what he called "the big three" which are infection, parasite (mange) and fungus (ringworm).  He got an antibiotic injection and the poor lamb has to wear a cone because he can't lick the anti-fungal cream which has to be applied twice a day.  I feel terrible for our little man, he is so lovely and affectionate and doesn't understand whats going on.  If it is ringworm it could be weeks that he has to be separated from the other cats!  As it is I was told to wear gloves when I touch him and when I come out of his room I must change my clothes!  It is a tiresome protocol, but I have to protect Casper, Ben and Archie too.

I'll keep everyone posted on his progress.  The vet said hopefully we would see some improvement by Tuesday and to call him and we can discuss the situation then.  In the meantime, please keep Ash in your prayers and purrs.

poor sweetie!

Tuesday Ash Update

Well after two days with us (and 83 pictures already!) Ash continues to settle in and show us what a fantastic boy he is.  On Sunday I took him to the animal hospital to give our vet his paperwork.  He was registered as my new kitty Ash (no name change yet), and had a quick check-up.  He was given his second booster shot, weighed (1.59kg) and got his sharp little talons trimmed.  He was fine for the jag but became a wiggly little worm for his nail trimming...how can he hate that so young - lol!!! The vet noticed he was missing some patches of fur on his ears and head and thought he might have ringworm but luckily nothing showed up under the black light.  He sent away a culture of some fur but we won't know anything for two weeks.  He gave me a little ointment to put on the patches twice a day and hopefully that will help clear it up.  He said whoever performed his neuter did a great job as his incision was barely visible!  Then he pronounced him to be in good health (which I knew he would be because Chrystal had cared for him so well!) and sent us on our way.

Here he is back at the house obviously traumatized by the whole experience - LOL!

notice the tiny white spot on his tummy?

This guy is such a lovebug!  He is so happy, he purrs and does happy paws continuously!  When Robert was having a little visit with Ash before bed last night he came out of his room and said "I think we've got a winner there"

he just loves his new cat bed :-)

Whenever I go into his room the same scene plays out.  Usually he is sitting up on the bed and he meows at me with his tiny but insistent meow to let me know he is not happy that I left him but will of course forgive me.  I come over to the bed and he flops down for some loving. 

cuddle me mum

Then he jumps down to have some food, because nobody likes to eat alone, then back on the bed for more snuggles. 

nom, nom, nom

Here he is supervising my blog visits  :-)

be sure to tell everyone what a good boy I am!

He reminds me a little of my sweet Maxie, who's temperament was just so happy and gentle right from the get-go!

The Dash For Ash

Wow what a busy weekend...three States, three helpful people, one Province, a ton of driving (518 miles, or 833kms each way) and the sweetest cat you ever met!

We left Friday afternoon and our first stop was Michigan

Where we stayed the night in beautiful downtown Kalamazoo.  The next day we headed into Indiana

and had some great early Christmas shopping time at the Michigan City (even though its not in Michigan) Outlet Mall before we headed to

Matteson, Illinois to meet wonderful Amy, her man Brad and the star of the show Ash!!!  Amy had already met up with Chrystal who brought Ash from southern Illinois where he was born and you can read about their portions of the journey on House of Cats and Daily Dose of Dogs and Cats.  Not only did Amy bring Ash to me, but she had a cosy cat carrier (which was much better suited to Ash's size than Molly's large carrier which I had packed) two bags of treats and a Da Bird toy (which Ash loves) from her kitties.  Our meeting was brief because we had the better part of a ten hour drive home, but it was so nice to put a face to the blog and meet Amy in person.  Thank you so much Amy!!!

Ash had been on the road for quite a while so before we got going we took a little time for a drink and a nibble and a pee in his portable litter box!

As we set off, Ash told me that he no longer cared to be in his carrier with a series of plaintive meows.  I had packed a fleecy blue blanket for him, so I spread it on my lap and let him out.  Ash rode the entire way home alternating between my lap and Robert's lap or the back shelf of the car where he could look out the window.  I can't even begin to tell you how perfectly behaved he was in the car.  Sometimes he stretched out

and sometimes I swaddled him in his blanket

He was so good the entire trip!  We got to the Canadian/Ontario border around midnight and there was quite a line-up because only two lanes were open.  The person in front of us took so long with the customs agent and then was directed to secondary search with sirens and lights blaring.  Robert and I looked at each other and thought that this was perhaps not a good sign!  The customs agent took one look at Ash and exclaimed what a cute cat he was. 

Ash had his rabies certificate which was all that was needed and we were through in no time!  We arrived home at 2:30 am and all of us were exhausted.  Ash was sleeping like an angel in my arms when I took him upstairs to his room.  He went for a pee in his litter box and then settled in for bed.  A little meowing underneath the door to the boys who were on patrol outside then not a peep out of him until morning!

I really can't believe how good he was considering his ten hour journey was not a roomy, smooth SUV or luxury sedan, but my tiny car.

I would like to mention that even though Saturday was a joyous day for us it was not for everyone.  Amy was driving in memory of her lovely boy Floyd who went to the bridge exactly one year ago

 

and our good friend Skeeter from the Kool Kitty Krew went to the bridge just that morning.

Chrystal was driving for little Winnie and of course if my Molly had not gone to the bridge there would not have been room at my house for Ash.  So I would just like everyone to know that the Dash for Ash was  poignant to us for a lot of reasons besides just bringing Ash to his forever home and that we were thinking about all our CB friends who are here and who have gone before :-)

Please pop by throughout the week if you have a chance because we will be posting more pictures of Ash and updates on how he is settling in.  Thank you to everyone who wished us a safe journey, I think everything went so smoothly for Chrystal, Amy and myself because we had so many people and kitties holding good thoughts for us!  BIG thank you to Chrystal for raising such a lovely boy, I feel lucky to have him!

On the Road

Hi All,

Just a quick post to let everyone know that we are heading off on the road this weekend to get Ash.  His room is all ready for him, complete with new cat bed that Casper has already given the "ok". 

look closely to see Casper

I have his food and bowls, a new litter box and lots of nice toys.  He will have to stay separated from the gang for about a week before I start the introductions to the boys, and I'm hoping he will settle in after the long journey and relax for the duration ("yah right mum, he's a kitten remember...sheesh" ~ Ben). 

Chrystal, Amy and I will all be posting on Monday about Saturday's activities, so please pop by for a visit and read all about The Dash For Ash! (thanks for the great name Jan).

Ash's Update

Hi All,

Some of you may or may not know that Ash had his neuter yesterday.  Our little man was very brave and came through with flying colours.  Chrystal said that in the evening when he was supposed to be resting, he was wanting to run around the house and play so she had to sequester him in her downstairs bathroom.  He cried and cried in the bathroom to come out and be with the family and all their cats and dogs.  I think this bodes well for his integration here that he is such a social boy!

Another great thing you may not know about is that our friend Amy from House of Cats has offered to help with Ash's transportation!  At first I thought Robert and I would go all the way to Chrystal's (1376 km or 855 miles) but that is a lot of driving to cram into one weekend, so I asked for some help.  Chrystal put the word out and three wonderful people stepped forward and offered to assist; Amy from House of Cats, Lee County Clowder and Meezer Tails.  Chrystal discovered that Lee County Clowder was too far away from the route that had been established so she was coordinating with Amy when Meezer Tails contacted her and offered to help.  Since Amy was already on the job, Meezer Tails volunteered to drive for the next adoption....

Which brings me to a serious topic.  Chrystal has just found six more feral kittens in addition to the five cats already in residence at her cathouse...she is full to bursting!!!  Ash will be coming to me, but Possom, Blossom, Alice and Sparkles still need to find forever homes.  They are all beautiful and social kitties, can anyone out there find room in their homes and hearts to adopt one of these deserving cats?  If so please contact Chrystal right away: c3k@lazernetwireless.net  :-)

So the plan for Ash is he will recover at Chrystal's house until October 30th which is transport day.  Now we need a name for our big adventure like Operation Ash only better lol!  If anyone can come up with some neat ideas please leave them in the comments.  Chrystal, Amy and I will all be blogging about our individual legs of the journey so I hope you will spread the word and tune in for the fun!

Homeward Bound

Look what fantastic Ann from Zoolatry made for Chrystal and me...Ash's very own Homeward Bound graphic!  Isn't she wonderful :-)

See my darling boy with his little kitty bags packed, what a cutie pie!  Ash is almost ready for the big trip, just his neuter (next Wednesday) to get through and then he is ON THE ROAD!!!

Ash: What's in a name?

Shakespeare said “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, meaning that it matters not what something is called, but what something is!  I know that Ash is the important something here but if it is okay with Chrystal, I have been thinking about maybe changing ye olde kitty moniker (she said no problem).

With the exception of Benjamin who was named in a hurry to ward off bad omens (I know I'm pathetic), it is my practice to see a kitty’s personality emerge and then choose a name accordingly. I particularly like to give my kitties nerdy human names.  I have three names in mind for Ash and I can’t wait to see if any of them fit his personality. 

In no particular order:

1. Tavish – I like this name for a couple of reasons. It is a Scottish name ( I was born in Scotland) which means “twin”. As some of you may know I had a very special kitty named Max who died; Max was an all-gray like Ash. Also, it contains the letters a, s, h, which of course spell out the original name.  I also liked Hamish, but then I found out it means "the supplanter" and I didn't think that sounded like a good thing.

2. Phoenix – I like this name because in the legend the Phoenix rises from the ashes and is reborn. Well first off there is the word ash again. But metaphorically speaking like the phoenix rises form the ashes, so hope rises from despair.  The despair we felt from Winnie’s death and Molly's death resulted in hope for this little guy to have a better life.  Also Phoenix is a U.S. city and therefore the name pays homage to his American roots

3. Lloyd – simply means gray and is nerdy :-)

Please feel free to cast a vote for your favourite name or help me by offering any suggestions of your own.  Remeber folks, these are just ideas and nothing will be decided until we spend some time together and Ash has had a chance to settle into his new home.