Wall Worthy

A little like peering into a just-done nursery for a coming newborn =p 

What can I say? I can dig 'slap you silly' CUTE. 

These are the same pictures I posted on the side last week except that these are the original copies. It looked too messy with the borders and you couldn't see the details as the images were automatically made to fit on the small side space (in which blogger had to shrink). Better to see their faces in these.  

Look what the cat dragged in...

Want to do lunch after this?

Got fleas?

The former owner of P, B & J bought Frontline Flea Spray for them and gave it to me just in case the jumpers attack. So far, they're still parasite free. The thing is that I prefer to use the Spot-on medication instead because the cats will go ape-shit if I try to spray anything on them. Because of that I'm selling this off and putting the money into the kitty fund. This is BRAND NEW and I have never opened or used it. The price is RM37.00 but I'm selling it for RM35.



I also have one pipette of Advantage. This one was a leftover from a box I bought for my cats a few months back. And I haven't had to reapply since to any one of my cats which I find rather amazing. That was the first time I tried Advantage. Before this I used Frontline Spot-On and after about 1-2 months I had to reapply because the fleas would be back. Advantage however seemed to have proven itself better. All my cats are still flea-free after about 6 months! I'm NOT kidding or giving you a sales pitch. It's a true account of my personal experience with the product. Trust me, flea control is highly important to me not only for the health of my cats but also for myself. When they had fleas, I HAD FLEAS. My legs were speckled like a leopard and it WASN'T pretty. I bought this for rm14 each. I'm letting it go for rm10.

BUT there's a downside to this product. 2 of my cats had a bad reaction to it. They started drooling and foaming at the mouth after I applied it on. It only lasted a little while with one of them, but my other cat, Kiki, was spitting out saliva on and off for two days. Apart from that she didn't have any other adverse reactions and it still worked at killing the fleas. I suppose it was not as compatible with her than the other 5 cats because they were fine with the medication. So, it should depend on the cat. I've read that other cat owners have experienced the same thing with the cats when they applied any type/brand of flea control medication. It spooked me out nonetheless and I've decided not to use it on her again. Not that I have to because she is STILL flea-free and so are ALL my other cats. So it is a good product. Actually, it's effing AMAZING.

So, if anyone is interested in the Frontline Spray or the Advantage feel free to email me at curlywiseone@gmail.com. Yes, you can try your luck and negotiate the price with me as well so long as you're reasonable AND NOT demanding. Thank you. Oh, and COD only preferably around Kajang-Bangi area.

Acana Prairie Feast

I'm starting my cats on a new diet for the second time in 2 months. The Vetmaster that we bought for them last month wasn't a hoot with most of my cats esp Sakura. But they don't really have a choice but to eat it because we bought the BIGGEST pack. I decided I'd mix it with this.


My cat Mimi has been on her own special Orijen kibbles also known as the 'Mengada Old Cat Wants Expensive Super Premium Food' diet. With ikan rebus on the side every night-- but this is only because she needs to take some meds and would not eat it any other way. Not to mention she also gets charity pieces from my dad's special ikan bakar diet, no salt no nothing. Just grilled fish meat and need I add it's also expensive sea fish. She carefully positions herself atop the dining chair next to my dad and plays her puppy eyes. Every time she succeeds. But that's not the point. Occasionally, I'd mix some of Mimi's Orijen with the Vetmaster for the other cats so that they'd find it more appetizing. Or they'd eat Mimi's remnants in her food bowl once she ambles away. Usually she leaves more than half of it because she's THAT kinda cat. Given how I kesian, I decided to get them Acana from the lovely Kak Leotazz at cari.com.my forum who buys it from her supplier at a reasonable price. Acana is almost the same as Orijen. What I like most is that both are grain-free food and made from the same grade of meat fit for human consumption. The only difference is that Acana's protein percentage is 10% less than Orijen.

I'll have you know Acana smells GOoOooOd. Like chocolate. Seriously. So I'm going to mix that in with Vetmaster so they'd be happier. Then, I'll go eat everything in the fridge to try to forget how EXPENSIVE it is to keep these furkids happy. By the way, we have two refrigerators.

Toys

Why chickens hate evolution that disallowed them the ability to fly.

I don't really indulge in buying toys for the cats because a) they cost as much as my eyeballs and b) they don't last more than 5 minutes. Not to mention that almost anything and everything you already have in the house could be a cat toy because they're not very picky when it comes to destroying human property. For example, here's Peekaboo reaching for ANYTHING that he could get his paw on underneath the fridge. He even found himself a piece of broken glass in which he played with like a man in love with himself his PS2.

And down here is Jess with a fallen soldier who has been lying in peace under that fridge...until THEY found him.

I just couldn't resist though when I found a pack of cat toys going for a very cheap price. 2 squeaky mice and a bouncing ball for just about 3 bucks AND there was a discount on top of that. As predicted though, 5 minutes after I initiated play with the brand new toys they were reduced to trash. Actually 1 mouse was badly injured while the other one went missing along with the bouncing ball and THAT was the fault of my brothers. Apparently cat toys are also attractive to little boys in need of friends their own age. Or sleeping pills. KIDDING! Had to add the obvious because you never know if someone reading this might actually believe that I ONLY say what I mean and am nothing but a stern bullshit-less individual. In which case, we should set up a date and you could arrange a job for me- maybe yours. I am SO trustworthy and don't know the meaning of procrastination.

The squeaky mice turned out to not only be a source of joy for the kittens but a great way to make my cat Kiki (the one in the first picture) jump backwards and lose her bladder. Throw it at her and she'll run like you just released a hand grenade her way. It also works like a bell. I squeeze it, it squeaks and not a second later, the kittens come running to my feet. I wonder if it'll work on my future husband. I bought 3 more, all in green to keep for when I get married because we keep on losing them and before this I had one in gray (in which I named Misery) and it disappeared even before a paw touched it and has not been located since. Green stands out more thus easier to find and IS supposed to be good for the eyes.

They're all called Peace the Green Mouse. Clearly they wear their battle scars like it's fashion =p

This is Shero the Sheep. It is not a cat toy but Peekaboo took the liberty to do as he pleased with it and so he herded it... but of course.
When he's in the mood for that you can find Peekaboo transporting the woolly thing in his mouth from on the bed to under the table. Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth.

I use my mom's plastic flowers as a cat teaser. If I were to buy a plastic stick with some feathers taped to the end it'd have cost me rm10. This only cost me my mother's love.
Actually, the vase that they were arranged in was already broken by the cats and of course I was not the one to command them to do so. *SHRUG* Cats are just gracefully clumsy. So a lot of my mother's plastic flowers have parted from their bouquet arrangements and so I took these to play with the cats. They go MAD over it. Especially Ben.

Bottom line--cats will play with anything. Even your heart. So get creative and save money.

Update: And guess what Peekaboo swiped out from under the fridge? Misery! The mystery has been solved and the missing has been found.

Playmates

Introducing the newbies to the resident cats was a concern to me and it was important that I find the balance to make sure both sides won't murder each other. Luckily, no one has yet been injured. There has been the expected growling, snarling and once or twice my senior cats have swiped one across the face of the kittens to put them back in their place which is in their minds, down the toilet I'm sure. I really wanted Kecik and her kids to feel welcomed and get comfortable with the house. But I also wanted to mind the feelings of my own cats. I didn't want anyone to be upset but naturally, cats don't like change. Especially if it's caused by other cats. And having more of them enter their territory would much resemble the house of ANTM with girls clawing and bickering at each others throats. As expected most of them were hostile and for a few weeks NONE of them wanted to use the front door nor walk about the front of my house because there were aliens invading their space there. They started lounging around at the back and would only come and go through the kitchen door or the windows. Of course there was a lot of evil looks being thrown here and there. And envy was evident.

Parsi was different though. Parsi was very welcoming. He embraced them with opened arms like the annoying school counsellors in highschool who 'REALLY care about YOUR feelings'. He immediately took to the newcomers and fast became their bapa angkat. He thinks of them as his new playmates and often follows Kecik around. They quickly familiarized themselves with each other and they seem to like him too. You wouldn't think that he'd be the one to play with the kittens because he looks like such a freaking badass and IS the biggest sour puss I know. But then again he likes cats more than he likes people. He is so damn heavy though you wouldn't think he would be able to walk let alone run. Or tumble. Or give chase. He draws the line at climbing trees -- clearly he's got some sense and uprooting trees would bring on a DIET scheme for him, and this one LOVES his food. He truly is a kitten at heart. I think Kiki is relieved that he has someone else to bother. If not, every night he'd be rolling around the floor and ambushing Kiki. While she tolerates his playfulness but she doesn't really want to break a hip bone over Parsi's inability to grow up. Plus, he doesn't know his own strength.

Parsi. Master of the death sleep. Also known affectionately as Pat, My Big Black Cat, Epat or Dark Lard. He's clearly done for the day. Playing is a tough job.

As the months have gone by, most of my kitties have gotten used to them being here. They're no longer opposed to being in the same room with them breathing the same air and they now share the same feeding area. But still, they have their personal space that the new ones need to respect and they understand that. What's funny though is how the kittens and Kecik are more gravitated towards the ones who dislike them the most. That volatile one is Sakura. She utterly despises them. But whenever she enters the room, they'll run up to her or follow her and insistently tries to sniff her butt =p And Sakura acts like a drunken star trying to shoo away the pestering paparazzi.

It's a lot of work because I still need to be aware of how much attention I need to divide between all 10 of them. Forget one and you risk finding your shoes soaked in urine the next morning. 10 is a HANDFUL. Make no mistake. But since I'm a stay-at-home- hobo freeloader daughter-&-sister, my time and strength is well spent on making them all happy including the human residents. Of course this is only entirely possible because all of them understand that I don't do dishes nor cook and they don't expect me to. But I can open a can of catfood and use a spoon mighty skillfully. Oh and having the BEST MOM works well for me too.
Living the good life? I say, not bad for now. It'll end soon enough but in the meantime, I'm content.

$$$

If vet bills could kill I'd be six feet under and still feeling the flames from my burnt pocket.
You and I must ask -- why does love have to be so expensive? If the gov could subsidize animal medicine, our people would be more caring and passionate citizens. Thus, resulting in a more harmonized community of togetherness without race and class distinctions. No...SERIOUSLY.

I have been making frequent visits to the vet last month all the way through to this month of May. My last visit was just last week and I'm hoping I won't have to venture there again till AT LEAST when I turn 24 later in the month if not when I strike gold while scooping up scattered cat shit on the lawn. I can tell you, I've probably been there approximately 10 times or so and each time I part with cash by the twenties. AND I'M NOT EVEN WORKING. But what can you do when you have SUCH A BIG HEART, eh? Credits and gratitude towards my pimp sugar daddies parents for providing the dough.

From helpless strays to vaccine shots to old injuries to unabated sniffles to scabies to vehicle accidents to spaying procedures to post operation treatments to forcing me to consider selling my organs. All of that was needed, week after week, for both my own senior kittyzens and the newbies along with 2 unrelated homeless puppy-eyed kittens. One died as it was only about a week old and motherless while the other 6 months old kitten was successfully rehomed thanks to the vet student doing his practical training at the clinic. I was so ecstatic and relieved that WonderCat found an unexpected home with a vet student (!) as that very morning my dad had yelled at me to get rid of it. I frantically looked for a fosterer as no one had yet showed interest in adopting it. But I had to cancel sending him to a fosterer for luckily I went to the vet and as his fate would have it, fell into the embrace of that vet student.
That was a bad day gone good =) Should have more of those days and it wouldn't hurt to throw in some $ as well and while we're at it, why not include a rock star?
I actually asked for donations for WonderCat but there were no charges in the end so I returned the money. It's nice to know though that my family and friends were willing to help me out even if they don't have mad love for animals & would never phantom spending as much as I have forked out for the furry ones. See, love IS expensive and I know they all did it for me because they love me =)

Out of the 3 kittens, Peekaboo was spared the scabies however he found himself with other problems. A day before their 2nd vaccination, I found him foaming at the mouth which only indicates one thing. He had consumed something poisonous. And of course I HAD to worry because I've had a cat die from being poisoned before. After several hours he seemed to be ameliorating and was drooling less. That night my mom and I took a coconut frm our coconut tree and hacked it open for some of its water. I've been told before by a JPH worker (and have also read somewhere) to try and give some coconut water to cats with symptoms of being poisoned. I do not know though if this is an entirely safe treatment for cats so do not attempt it if you aren't sure, as it could further exacerbate the cat's condition. Best to ask your vet first.
But I took the risk and tried it anyway. However by this time, Peekaboo was no longer foaming or drooling. He just looked a little tired. I gave him about 2mls of it. Thank God, he fully recovered the next day without an inkling of illness. I did ask the vet to check him later and he said that he was fine. Perhaps he had just swallowed a slightly poisonous bug or plant.
Peekaboo's life is not uneventful as danger seems to come to Peekaboo at every turn. Perhaps it is the curse of his crossed eyes. On Labor day, my brother accidentally ran him over with the car. I was shocked to hear of this and immediately looked for him. As the story goes, my bother had done the routine cat check under the car before he started it. Now the kittens are NOT spooked by the sound of the engine so they couldn't care less to remove themselve from
underneath the vehicle. He shooed them away and saw that they were gone. But when he backed up the car he hit something and then heard a loud meow furthered by the sight of
Peekaboo running off. Since he was late for Friday prayers, he called my mom to check on Peekaboo. Sure enough, Peekaboo was injured. He was limping on his hindleg.
Again, I took Peekaboo to the vet. No one could say for sure where or how he was hit because no one was there to witness it. But the vet said that he had no broken bones but we would have to wait for 2-3 days to see if he has any internal injuries. If he did, there would be visible bruising. So I waited anxiously for 3 days and alhamdullilah, till today there has been no signs of bruising. Plus, he's back to his active self and does nothing but play, ambush and attack fingers and his siblings.

On the 2nd of May, Kecik and Jess were spayed at Klinik Kembiri SPCA in Setapak. I wanted to go there because the price they offered was more than reasonable. Half the charge at a private clinic. I highly recommend people to go there to spay/neuter animals esp if you're on a tight budget or if you want to practice TNR. I plan to join in on that once my money tree bares fruit. There are several resident strays here who could use a better life. I expected to get lost as usual because as much as I like to think I'm a good driver but my sense of direction is as bad as Paris Hilton's acting. Save for one wrong turn and missing the SMALL DBKL sign, it was a good trip and I arrived at 9.20 am. 2 1/2 hours later they were ready to go home.

Since all my own cats were spayed eons ago, I had forgotten how it was like and how they had reacted after the operation. While Kecik was quiet and drowsy, Jess had a different reaction.
Once she woke up in the office she started howling like someone was branding her butt like they do horses in the cowboy ages. Geez, that cat acted like she had been abused by some deranged hobo. She slipped in and out of consciousness and each time she came to she'd screamed no less like a drunken donkey pretending to be Mariah Carey.
It got a little scary and caused me to think that they might've left a baby alien scalpel in her or something. But she soon calmed down and several hours later was back to her usual self. 10 days have gone by and things look good. The time to release them from cage-arrest was today. Immediately they took to wrestling around with Ben and Peekaboo and settling back into their usual routine of turning the house into a home fit for the cover of Pigsty magazine.

Update: And just a couple of hours ago, Ben found himself succumbing to his innate kucing kampung desires and went through the kitchen trash. He then got himself a piece of fish bone stuck between his back teeth. If my eyes could roll back any further it would drop into my skull and roll down to be squeezed out of my rectum from the antics of these cats. To assist Ben, I tried to tug it out but to no avail so I had to call my mother who is wiser and patient and less of a finicky girl such as my HUMBLE self. And of course she fixed Ben straight. Exhausted from the ordeal, he flopped in the middle of the floor into lalaland.

P, B & J

The very first thing I HAD to do was bless them with names. There were some discussions between my little bothers and I but in the end we managed to agree with names that wouldn't cause them to be bullied at school.

Let's introduce the little snot-nosed newbies!
P, B & J are...

The one who stands out the most because he's the WHITE one. Siamese-like with a slender body and long face accompanied with ash-lilac points. Generally, he'd be the one people would immediately consider cute. And hell, he IS. He is also slightly but visibly crossed-eyed! Which only adds to the urge to want to squeeze his face like lemons. I named him this just because I thought it'd be a cute name. This guy will try to eat your hand off and will try to catch anything that moves. He has a particular liking for fingers. As active as a drag queen on ecstasy .

He was the last to be named because the names my bother suggested were likely the names of felons or faggots. After some thought, he was named after Ben 10. Often times we alternate between doubling his name to Ben Ben and Benny Si Lembu (of Dora the Explorer fame but in Malay) or occasionally Benji just because we want to call him by two syllables.
A lot of people don't find black cats much to fuss over but I for one dig the mysterious brooding appearance of these dark underdogs. Usually it's in the face. But Ben here is a cliche --where he lacks in looks, he makes up for in personality. Boy, does this one have a personality to clinch your heart. He may not be very attractive but he does have a unique face and his hooked tail is imperfect but he'll lure you in if you give him the opportunity. His face is very expressive and he is a go-getter. Also talks a lot (or rather whines like a brat). During the earlier days, he looked mainly sad which made me pay more attention to him because it looked like he always needed a hug. Just like a Carebear minus the rainbow rays shooting out of his pot belly.

Tell me you've seen the British animation Postman Pat. The theme song "Postman Pat, Postman Pat...Postman Pat and his black and white cat." That's always in my head when it comes to Jess, the tuxedo princess. She was named after Postman Pat's kitty because its cute and I watch kid shows because unlike working people, I can =p. She's a lot like my own cat, Mimi. She's demure and feminine but will join in the rustle and tussle of her brothers. She likes her space but can also be very chatty. Doesn't like to be picked up much and has a tendency to meow whenever you touch her but she doesn't scratch. I think she's very pretty although somewhat fierce. She's got a full black head with approximately 20 strands of white fur in between her eyes and she has white whiskers.

Their mother deserves an honorable introduction too. So here's Mommy Kecik who is a Russian Blue. Kecik is a very nice cat although a little reserved. Moving to my house was hard on her because she was very close to her owner and they loved each other =) You can tell she's very loyal. Her eyes were oozing with sadness from parting with her owner and perhaps she's expecting him to come back. She's still taking time to settle in but looks less broken-hearted as the weeks go by. Thankfully, she has her kittens to preoccupy her so more or less they're easing the transition. I do what I can to make her comfortable here and I do like to believe that I'm slowly getting her to open up to me. It's easy to fall in love with her but she's taken more to my mom than anyone else.

Little CATTY things

I wanted to start this blog even before the kittens got here while I was excitingly anticipating for their arrival. But naturally, as my habits would permit me, I am a top notch pro procrastinator. I make no pretenses that one day I'll ever do anything as quick as it takes for the idea to spark in my head while singing in the shower and boy, do I get inspired in the shower (good CLEAN inspiration, of course!). Anyway, the reason for the set up of this blog is to chronicle the new kittens' time here. Primarily, I wanted to use it as a reference site for future adopters so that people can get a better sense of these cats and also as a personal keepsake for me to remember them by once they leave my humble abode.

For you to be here, you should know that animals aren't just living, breathing creatures inferior to homo sapiens. There are many things that SHOULD mystify you about them and we shouldn't be so coiled in the idea that we're the only ones blessed feelings and personalities. They are individually unique and have very much distinctive personalities and I intend to get to know these kittens through and through and share it here even though it's going to cause me to become as attached to them as tape worms are to intestines. And when we part I'll cry the Nile River. I promise you THAT at the very least.

They've been with me for almost 2 months now and it has been a circus. Undoubtedly, there's more sunshine beaming on this home ever since. AND I don't feel so dead inside and in need of perezhilton.com as much to ease away the pain of my heart. I may not be fat but I am fat INSIDE. But that's a different story you'll probably never hear on this site. Anyway, I'll just give you a brief overview of what has happened in that time because this post could have no end if I decide to detail every bit. I'll rely on my acute memory to give you as accurate a summary of the earlier weeks.

Trouble started within just a few hours after they had arrived. Prior to having been sent to the house, they were vaccinated first. It was of utmost importance to have it done because my cats are virus carriers and unprotected little ones would be exposed to the dangers of a premature death. I knew they ran the risk of getting slightly sick over it as all babies do, but little did I know they would go ape shit on each other. Literally-- minus the ape. But let me tell ya, there was excrement flying around alright and none of it was too rosy. Their mother cat was baffled by her kittens sudden reincarnation as vengeful banshees. But she remained calm and did not decide to panic with them. Because of that I had to separate them into different cages. But I didn't have 4 different cages. So one of them stayed in a basket. I left them that night hoping that the next day they'd be wide-eyed dolls again. It took 2 days for them to recover from the vaccine shots and once they did they were nothing but playful, active 3 month old kittens. Just as enthusiastic to explore the new grounds as gay men are to get creative with a new flower arrangement. Steadily, they allowed us to join in the fun. Personally, it was such a fun moment for me because I haven't seen kittens running around my lawn in a long time. I cannot remember the last time that happened. It was refreshing especially in the mundane state that I have been in lately. This was a job I wanted to do and was happy to do it for free. If only life was as easy.

The first couple of weeks was about getting them to familiarize themselves with the house and its safe areas. Being cats, they were curious to venture out into further territory but I had to draw the line. Outside the gate is too dangerous as there are cars and other insanities lurking (spoken like a true recluse). In the many years that I've lived here, most of my neighbours have been fine with my cats. But many of those neighbours have also moved on and replaced with not so appealing ones. While my own cats know their turf well, the new kittens would have to learn hopefully without much drama or danger. Because of that, I had to make sure that they keep inside the gate. Luckily, we have some spacious land for them to gambol about. For now they still need to be supervised while playing. It may sound insane to some, but really, it's not as insane as caging animals up for life just because you claim to love it with all that protective affection coming from your behind. Some of my neighbours like to give me looks from actually watching my cats play like I would a child. But it really isn't anybodies beeswax.