A Nice Quiet Sunday Evening

After coffee session with my fellow cat slave lover, Gerry, I went home feeling lazy and was just in a mood for a quiet evening. We decided to have a movie night. So I cleaned up a little, showered, fixed some snacks and jumped on the bed with my hubby and started a movie. Surprisingly, Nishi jumped on the bed between us, rested her body against me and started to watch the movie. She was very quiet, very sweet. She didn't complain when I pet her. She usually bites me when I do, get pissed, and then get off. But this evening, she was super behaved, like the old times. She haven't done this in a very very long time. I enjoyed the moment. It's just like those times when she was little where she always love cuddling and sleeping beside me. Mark and I were very happy.

 However, like a typical Filipino, as soon as the movie ended, she stood up, stretched her tortoise back, and left the bed - without waiting for the credits :).

 The movie was >The Cat Returns (Neko No Ongaeshi) by Hiroyuki Morita. This is one of those simple joys I appreciate and cherish. I love my baby cat!

The Laptop Destroyer

I swear I won't be talking to Lotto and Sylvia for days if my laptop would start causing me problems in the following days...

I was taking a piss in the bathroom when they rioted, once more, on the bed where my laptop was peacefully sitting on top of a bed tray that Mark gave me on Christmas. The intense fighting resulted to pushing the table off the floor, crashing my laptop on our tiled floor. I was horrified to see but couldn't do anything because I was sitting on the throne.

3 months ago, one of my naughty cats also knocked down my laptop but didn't witness it, and after a day, it wouldn't boot anymore. Apparently, the hard drive was damaged, probably because of the fall. Now, I can't handle another repair, worse, a replacement for this laptop. I can't be changing laptops every year.

A Brother's Love

Apart from being hungry 100% of the time, who would eat almost anything that's edible, Lotto's also the friendliest cat in this house. He loved all the cats that we fostered in the past. When they were gone, he would look for them and meow all over the house.

Now, Lotto's playing a big brother to the 3 kittens we currently foster. I'm sure he'll miss them once they get adopted.

Sylvia's Song

Sylvia has proven our cat-proofing efforts, once again, a failure. She escaped again, for the nth time, roaming around the extended balcony of our neighbors. She does comes back, but I don't really like the idea of her being out. She might cause troubles in the other balconies, like eat neighbor's plants, or get eaten by neighbor's dogs. So Mark's yet again re-enforcing security in the balcony.

Now, I wonder what goes inside Sylvia's head...

I think this song plays in her head whenever she plots her escape.

A Blessed Weekend!

My Saturday was welcomed with 2 good news:

Gonzo, the stray cat we've been regularly feeding is going to be adopted by the kind manager of North Park who's also been caring for him for a while now. One emotional burden unloaded! We've been thinking about re-homing him after we do a neuter operation on him... and now we don't have to worry about who to take him anymore!

Next, the "jumper" will be welcomed at Ann's farm next week! We fostered this cat by accident because she was seen to jump from our building and the guards thought it was our cat and caught her. They knocked on my door and found her in a sack, very scared. After telling them she's not mine, we couldn't turn our back because we knew that the guards will just let her out - and it was raining hard then. The guard also mentioned that she might have fractured her legs for that high jump. And so we took her in. Unfortunately, she's not a house cat type. She's extremely wild and would hiss and scratch me if I go close. And even when I feed her everyday, she wouldn't tame. After spaying her, we were already thinking if we should take her back in the streets or what? She can't be adopted. But I just feel so sorry for her that I don't want to give up. She was sent to us for a reason, and maybe it's our chance to save her from the streets. And so, since she's far from being adoptable no matter how hard I try, I tried to contact one of our dear friend, Ann, who also do cat rescues, and ask if the farm that her cousin owns can accommodate one more cat. I explained what happened and told her what "jumper" is like. And there, she said yes! I was very happy!

We will schedule to bring her there next week. Another emotional burden gone :).

Kal's Ready For Halloween!

Kal decided to be the one-eyed cat monsturr. He's practicing his scary growl in this picture.

The Application Called EEEEE=M

One of my cats' favourite hang-outs is my laptop. They sometimes type cat language on my Skype chat window sent to my bosses, and sometimes they just play my itunes music when they feel like chilli'n. Today, Pan seemed to be looking for an application called EEEE but failed to find it.

Two months ago, I had this laptop serviced. I was pretty embarrassed that when they dismantled it, they found so much cat hair I could make a cat keychain from it.

Cats, cats...

3 Kittens Health Update

Even if their health progress was super slow, I'm quite happy that slowly they are recovering from various illness they encountered in the past weeks. We are continuously and religiously giving medication and immune system boosting vitamins each day to help them build a stronger immune system so this period of their lives won't ever happen again!

Pan.

Pan is a beautiful girl once again. The skin disease is gone, and she's finally growing her fur back. Her face is back to normal, no more ear mites too. The only issue she have now is the respiratory problem. Her nose is still a bit stuffy and I can still hear her having breathing difficulty. She sticks her tongue out when she can't breathe during her sleep. She's still in antibiotic and there's about 3 days left. I nebulize (is that the right term?) her every day like a baby.

Van.

Good news! Van is not going to go blind like what the eye specialist vet in the Mandaluyong clinic said. We are extremely happy. After being confined in the Animal House for 5 days, she came home to us with still closed eyes, but manageable. The only reason we had her confined was we couldn't administer the medications in her eyes as we are required to force open it - something we aren't qualified to do. Her eyes is way better now, still a little bit swollen, but you can tell it's healing. However, she's still having breathing issues like Pan. You can hear some sort of phlegm build up in her throat, and like Pan, she's under antibiotic for another 3 days + nebulizer everyday.

Kal.

Kal's respiratory issue is almost gone. He hardly sneeze now and his breathing is normal. He's also under antibiotic for another 3 days. The eye infection is almost gone too. But the bad news is, he's going blind. It wasn't Van after all that's in the risk of going blind but him. I feel terrible and sad for this baby boy. The infection left his right eye lens cloudy. It almost looks like glaucoma. I am still hopeful that in a few weeks or so, it will improve and clear up, although the vet has already set our expectations. I still pray that the eye heals. He's still a kitten and most of him is still developing.

Pan, Kal, and Van Health Issues

The health issues with my rescued cats are far from being over. I wanted them to get adopted soon as we are crowding here, but it's the least of my priorities now. I want them to be 100% healthy. But the 100% seems to still be far from reach.

This week is a hell week. Mark and I are both miserable to find cure for the 3 rescued kittens who are very sick now.

I get emotional when I see the 3 kittens suffering. The people who have seen me cry because my cat can't breath, or wouldn't eat probably thinks I'm a bit of a looney, but I don't give a shit. I love my cats as much as you love your own sons and daughters. So to vent out, and at the same time keep record of what's going on, I decided to write it here as sort of journal - hopefully, to their recovery.


After Pan's never ending confinement in the clinics and inexplicable skin problems that doesn't seem to be contagious, plus after Lotto's recovery from an unexplained infection, we started to religiously give vitamin C and L-Lysine to all the kittens in this house. I always give them vitamins, but it's the Nutri-plus gel that I think is only good in boosting appetite. Pan is getting Immunosin, a supplement to boost her weak immune system. These all started first week of September.

September 20

We noticed Kal (orange kitten) started sneezing, and his right eye is irritated, but not that bad. We thought, he probably got the colds from Lotto, but he would be OK. We continued with Vitamin C and Lysine. We also clean his eyes regularly by just flushing it with an eye cleaner solution we got from the vet, and applied anti-bacterial, eye drops (Vigamox) twice a day to prevent it from getting worse.

September 22

We noticed Van (black kitten) is also sneezing, and the eye was also a little bit irritated. We have an appointment for checkup on the 23rd so we decided to wait until the check-up so they can give us antibiotic if necessary. We continued the Vitamin C and L-lysine for both, and also started to clean Van's eye. We didn't apply the vigamox yet because it doesn't seem to be that bad. I wanted them to get checked by the vet the next day and have them recommend what to do.

September 23

We went to the Animal House for the follow up check-up. Both were de-wormed. I told the doctor that they started to sneeze, first Kal, followed by Van. I also told them about the eye irritation. I told them about the vigamox that I also got from them a month ago when we first got Kal (who used to have eye infection too). I told her we had been using it on Kal for three days now. She asked if it seemed to work.

Mark said "Yeah, well... it doesn't get worse, so was wondering if we should continue".

And so they said it's OK and just continue using it. They also prescribed amoxicillin trihydrate to give the kittens, 3x a day. Other than that, they said they are healthy. So we went home happy and started their antibiotic right away.

September 24

There was no improvement on Kal's eye. It seemed that there's no change. It's still red, with lots of mucus discharge - but to us it doesn't look like it's getting worse either. But Van's a different story. Even with the eye flushing and vigamox treatment, her right eye seem to look worse. The conjunctiva is inflamed, and her eyes are getting smaller and smaller. We put our faith on the vigamox, since it's been just a day of doing it. We proceeded as usual.

September 25

No change on Van's eye. Still swollen conjunctiva, with more mucus secretion. We clean it regularly to make sure that the mucus won't build up and get crusty. We still apply the vigamox, although I'm already doubting that it's working. If it is working, we should be seeing at least a little improvement by now. And if it does work, it should show on Kal, who's been using it for more than 3 days.

But Kal's eyes were still the same. Red, swollen, with lots of mucus discharge. His sneezing is also getting worse. But then again, I have to put my trust in the anti-biotic which is probably just making it's way to build it's army inside his tiny body.

Earlier in the evening, we were visited by our friend, a fellow cat-lover. I prepared a failed-cendol-but-still-yummy, chitchat, hung out for a little bit. Gave anti-biotic to Kal and Van. Cleaned both eyes and gave vigamox drops. Van's eye is getting smaller, but it's still opened. Then we went out for dinner.

We came home after about 2 1/2 hours. We checked on Van's eye, and to our horror, we couldn't open it anymore. It's stuck. We can open the lid, but the conjunctival sack is closed. We rushed immediately to the 24 hour Animal House.

Around 12:30 midnight, when we came, we are welcomed by my not so favorite vet. Gerry and I are quite not very impressed with his skills, but nevertheless, he's the attending vet. Anyways, he changed the eye medication to ilium chloroint. He gave Van an anti-inflammatory shot, and then flush her right eye with an eye cleaning solution. The problem with this vet is that he's hard to communicate with. We don't know if he's understanding us or not. Most of the time, he contradicts himself, but I'm not going to elaborate on that. So Mark asked him, if he can open the conjunctival sack, because how are we suppose to apply the medication if it's closed. Mark asked him to flush it again and at least open it up for us so we can do it ourselves. But the vet said no, do not open the sack it's extremely painful. So there, we got our medicines, got Van's eye flushed but the sack still closed. We went home confused if can apply the medication outside the conjunctival sack since it wouldn't open, and if the medication will work that way.

September 26

Mark wakes up every 2 hours to check on Van, frequently removing the mucus and flushing it with eye solution. We were scared that we might not be able to open even the lids.

At 9am, since we were confused about the vet telling us to not open the eye, but at the same time didn't tell us how we will apply the medication, we decided to go to a bigger veterinary clinic, in the hopes that they have an eye specialist, plus they have all the equipment to perform test. We rushed to Vets In Practice (VIP) in Mandaluyong. This time, Pan also started to sneeze. So we brought the three kittens to be evaluated.

We gave all the information. Medications that we applied, for how long, their symptoms, what happened the other night - everything in detail... It was exhausting. The vet asked us to leave the 3 kittens and come back for them. Apparently, there's such thing as eye specialist on cats, and they have it. The doctor will after lunch so we were asked to leave the kittens.

Mark and I were both hopeful for positive results. I called up at 5pm to check if I can pick up my kittens and what's the update. And there, our worst nightmare was about to be extracted right on our faces. The doctor evaluated Van, and she said that the right eye is already blind due to the infection. They said they managed to open the conjunctival sack and examine the eye. They also put the same medication. They said there's nothing we can do now, but to wait until the swelling stops. Worse case, they will have to remove the eye if the infection will not subside to save the other eye. I was crying on the phone while the vet was saying this. I don't know where we went wrong. I can't just let Van lose her eye...

I was feeling miserable, and just kept on crying. I felt like a liar to Van telling her she'll be fine, when she wouldn't. I don't know who to blame. I don't understand where we went wrong, when we tried to take care of all their health issues at the earliest stage. I don't know who screwed up. I was blaming myself at some point, that I already have suspicion the fucking vigamox is not working, but I still continued. But then what can I do? It's prescribed. And besides, it was already changed by the doctor and still nothing.... I was totally miserable.

So we picked them up. Kal's eye said is still OK and just continue cleaning and medication. They also changed their anti-biotic to something stronger (Cefalixin). The three were asked to take it 2x a day. They advised to do eye cleaning on Van every 2 hours, as well as apply the medication. They also recommended us to do nebulizer on the kittens to help them breathe. We went home with a broken heart.

Mark immediately ran to Greenbelt to get the stuff needed. We do not have a nebulizer. It was expensive. The medications and frequent visit to the vet these past weeks had really cost us an arm and leg. We seriously don't have a budget for a nebulizer at the moment, but we decided to get one anyway. We were thinking that if anyone of them dies because we are cheap, we will never forgive ourselves.

After 2 hours, he came home. Just about time to clean Van's eye again. But alas! the fucking conjunctival sack was closed again! There's no way we can open it. So we started fighting, he was blaming me that I waited too long. I was telling him that it has just been 2 hours, and I couldn't do it myself either. I need his help. I started panicking and crying again. I didn't think twice, I said we should go back. But since VIP is farther (located in another city), he suggested to just go to Animal House since we will just ask them to open it, flush it, nothing more.

I was praying to not see my not so favorite vet because if it's him, Van's doomed. And thank God! Van's doctor was luckily there in the late shift! She checked up Van like everyone did. She showed us what has to be removed, but asked us to step out while she do the procedure. I was already crying that's why she didn't want me to see. It must be painful. After that, she called us back in. I told her what the other vet said, that Van's eye is already blind. But she said no, the eyes looked OK, just clouded with puss and mucus due to the conjunctivitis. She said that it's not blind yet. She gave us hope. She said that we just have to make sure to keep it open so we can apply the medication. She instructed us to force open it if necessary, scrape the fucking puss when cleaning. She was the most helpful of all the vets we have seen today. She explained everything about the infection, and like the other vet said, there's nothing we can do but to wait until antibiotic kicks in, and the swelling stops. She just advised to continue medications. So off we went.

Unfortunately, Van's eye closed again, after an hour. We attempted to force open it, but I just couldn't bear Van's cries. And here we go again, I told Mark we should go back, and this time, let's just have Van confined in the clinic. I even wondered why they instructed us to force open the eye, when we are not medically qualified to do that. We were afraid to make things worse. We might scrape the conjunctival sack and not the puss, we can't tell the difference anymore.

In less than 3 days, Van turned from bad to worst. We went back to Animal House, had her confined, told everything all over again in details to the vet that's on night shift... it's overly exhausting. I don't want anyone committing mistakes in the medication so we made sure that everything is written...

We went home and I was still crying. I don't know what to do anymore with Van, nor with Kal, nor with Pan... I just want them to be well...

I Deal With This Day and Night

Cats love to sleep and chill out on odd places. Nishi loves to chill on top of our fridge, while Sylvia loves to be inside of any bag, including grocery bags. Lotto, however,  loves to be behind our computer screens - most specially when I'm working.

Imagine if this is a human head - creepy. So how can I work like this?

This is Lotto's favorite spot since we got him. But he hardly fits now. He's in denial of his size.

Tell me, how can I work like this!!!

On the other hand, he's so cute. How can  I not tolerate?

Right above is Van. Very convenient guys!

Help! Are You Familiar With This?

After Pan's recovery from digestion/intestinal issues, a new problem came in. She is suffering now from this certain skin infection that two different vets have failed to identify. It started with a spot on her nose, and then on her head. We had her checked up even before it got worse, but no medication seem to help. Right now, we are just applying an all-in-one cream (anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal) as instructed. The skin sample's negative for scabies. It also doesn't seem to be fungal. I get worried more and more every day as I see it get worse :(, that's why I'm posting pictures of what it looks like so if you have are familiar with this, please please leave me a comment. The vet got a sample in the petri dish and they have to wait for it to grow 7-14 days, maybe to prove if it's a fungus or bacteria. I honestly don't get it. And I don't think I can wait for 14 days to know if that stupid thing grows or not. In 14 days, Pan may not have fur left.
(Note: Click on the picture to get the large version.)

See the black spot all over her nose, under and sides of the eyes? That's part of the skin infection.

Bald spots and sort of skin irritation on her feet.

Balding and sort of irritated skin on the back too. This is just new.

Skin infection on her head part. This was the first spot of the infection. It is feels dry and crusty now but I doubt that it's totally healed.

I feel terrible for Pan. At a very young age, she's been through a lot of medical conditions. Maybe she just really have a weak immune system since she was really in bad shape when I found her. If you have a pet cat and have encountered this, how was it cured and what was the experience? We've been researching various stuff, but still would like to learn more about what this is from experience, than painfully waiting for the slow effects (if there's any) of the cream, or for that 7-14 days test.

The Recovering Lotto

Lotto is extra sweet these days, after he recovered from a 3 day confinement in the vet clinic. It was a roller coaster week for the Lots health-wise, but he's almost fully recovered. So much has happened, but let me explain what's up with the shirt he's wearing.

He have a wound on his back that he just can't help but to lick. It won't heal completely because he keeps on licking it, so instead of giving him the cone of shame (which drives him nuts), we decided to give him a shirt. So I made him a shirt. Yup, I made him a shirt - by hand. I like making dresses for my dolls when I was young, and apparently I haven't forgotten how it's done. Unfortunately, I only have a scrap fabric available, and that fabric's print is just so gay. Now I laugh every time I see him in that shirt, running around, sleeping, or just chilling out with the other cats. He looks like a mother. Sorry Lottie, it's just temporary :).

The Sickly Pan

Giving Pan a hug after blood extraction attempt.

I spoke too soon. I was too excited for Pan's recovery. After 3 days of being hyperactive and just being a jolly little kitten, Pan went low energy once more. This time, there's no fever. She's still alert and responsive, but with no appetite. I noticed that her poop is not healthy, and that she often vomits. As usual, we gave her the special wet food diet for kittens having intestinal issues. I knew she wanted to eat, and she really tried, but she just vomits after.

I am paranoid when it comes to my cats' health. They are like my babies and I treat them like a family. Last night, when we noticed the vomiting and unhealthy poop, we immediately went to the same clinic she was confined a week ago for check up. Her doctor was in the morning shift, and the doctor last night is not really my favorite doctor. I don't want to talk ill as he might be good at something else (like maybe dogs), but I don't really trust his judgement because of an incident before, and an incident that happened with a good friend of mine concerning the same doctor. But I have no choice since he's the one on duty and available.

So we told him the story of the vomiting and appetite loss. We also told him that we notice this sort of skin irritation on Pan's head that we found right after we took her out of the hospital last week. We didn't think it was bad until it grew. We gave first aid such as cleaning it with betadine and putting some anti-fungal cream but didn't help. He recommended that Pan get confined for observation and that he's going to do stool and blood test. I don't really like Pan to stay in the clinic specially if they are not going to administer something that we can't administer at home. He said there's no need for IV since Pan's trying to eat. He also said that there's no parasite found in the poop, so that's not the reason for the vomiting. Then we came to the blood test. He tried to extract blood from Pan, but failed - 3x. Pan was in pain, screaming, and I couldn't bear hear or see it. He couldn't find the vein so Pan ended up with 3 needle pokes for nothing. He gave it a rest and I carried Pan like a baby to pacify and calm her. So while he's away, I told Mark how easy it was for the other doctor to find Pan's vein without causing too much pain, and that this doctor did it at one try. I was pretty pissed that he couldn't do it like the other doctor, but what do I know about veins and kittens? But then, I was already decided to not pursue with the blood extraction since I didn't trust that he would be successful on the next try. When he came back, we told him that we wouldn't want Pan to be confined if it's not totally necessary as we would like to care for her. If there's something oral to be given, we can do it. And then he said yes it's fine to go home, since there's nothing serious he found on the feces, on the skin test, and that she didn't have fever anyways so there's no need to pursue the blood test. I was relieved. He just gave Pan a dose of a low-acting antibiotic that's good for 14 days. And then we went home.

This morning, I took Pan to my trusted vet clinic in Mandaluyong, together with the pupi casts for a full check up. I want to make sure that the 4 also didn't carry worms that they might get from the 3 kittens we are fostering.  Nishi, Patterick and Sylvia are all in good health and got their periodical deworming. Lotto, however, was diagnosed with a fever due to a bacterial infection. I figured it's because Lotto spent most of the time with the kittens and he's the most friendly. So Lotto got his medication. Pan, on the other hand, was confined and under observation.

This is the 3rd time Pan's been in the hospital. Her stay there is far longer than she have stayed with us. I am very hopeful that we nail the problem with her health and soon be a healthy cat once more - for a long long term. I miss her. She's a sweet, considerate and smart kitten for her age. It's been a tough life for her ever since she was born. Poor sweetie.

Pan's Back, Hyper Than Ever!

The return of the Pan.

After a week of confinement and treatment in the animal clinic, Pan is now back, hyper than ever!

She was diagnosed to have a hip trauma, caused by either a rough play or a fall. This was the cause of the fever and the sudden appetite loss. At one point, the doctor had to assist her peeing/pooping by expressing her bladder. But thank God, alle's goed now.

For a week being apart, she grew so much. She's bigger now, more active and alert, and more rowdy. Pan loves to attack-play the two other kittens we are fostering, Kal and Van. She's like a Mexican jumping bean. Unstoppable. We always have to watch over the two kittens because she's always rough playing. Right now, Kal's limping and we are suspecting it's because of her. So Kal's now off limits at the moment.

Lotto, Naughy But Neat.

I caught Lotto again, for the nth time, in the outer balcony. Bringing him back isn't a problem because he can easily be lured back with food. So I locked him in until Mark figures out how we can prevent him from crossing the line again.

But then, he needed to go. We have a small litter box inside, which is for the kittens we are fostering. I saw him carefully fitting himself in that small box, as he do his business very carefully. It was hilarious to see how he tried to perfectly fit his ass on that box. Before he finished, I left the room with the thoughts that shit the room will be stinky. I grabbed the pooper scooper to clean up the box, returned to the room, and I was surprised! I still can't get over the thought and I still laugh just thinking about it. The room didn't stink. He was even able to bury the poop - without spilling any sand on the floor!

I don't know if he's just naturally smart and neat - or he just have an OCD.

It's also worth to mention that Lotto was the only cat in this house that was able to use our toilet trainer properly. Not too long ago, we bought a toilet trainer to transition our cats from using the litter box to using our toilet. We had a small stool where they can jump on if the toilet feels too high for them. Only Lotto seemed to get the concept, and I always see him using it.

But since I see shit there every time, I thought everyone's using it. I felt proud of ourselves for training, and proud of my cats for being smart enough to get used to it - until it was time for laundry...

It turned out, that for an entire week, they were shitting on the laundry basket. We weren't smelling it, because we just keep on piling the clothes on top. Use your imagination. Everyday shit, everyday we throw clothes in there. So layers of clothes with layers of shit. It was absolutely disgusting!

The poops in the toilet trainer, were all from Lotto, after all.

After the horrific laundry day experience, we threw away the dreams of  making our babies use the toilet for their #1s and #2s.

Lotto in the Balcony

Lotto just found a way to cross to the extended balcony, where no cat is allowed. The extended balcony is open air, with a low wall division between my neighbor's extended balconies that any cat can jump on. I'm afraid of two things - they fall off the balcony to the street, or they cross the neighbor's balcony and run in to a dog.

Mark worked so hard to reinforce the cat-proofing system, that was once destroyed a few weeks ago, in the inner balcony. Unfortunately, Lotto outsmarted our system and can now cross constantly. His only problem is getting back. He can't come back so he just cries.

It's funny that he can't deny he was out, because his tail smelled like rosemary. I have a nice fat rosemary plant in a pot on the extended balcony :P

He's now locked in, until we reinforce cat protection tomorrow.

Pan In The Hospital

After 24 hours of no improvement, I decided to rush Pan to the vet clinic. Yesterday, she spent day and night on the bed, curled up and almost always sleeping. I had to carry her to the litter box to do her thing and she could hardly stand up. I gave her vitamins as usual and she took it, but ate only a little of her wet food.

As usual, I went to the Animal House since it's the closest though not cheap. My car's coded today so I can't drive to Mandaluyong to visit our other vet who's taking care of Nishi, Patterick and Sylvia. I think it is also a good thing because Dr. Tina was on duty, the doctor who took care of Pan when I first got her. At least she has Pan's history.

Pan was just curled up inside her kennel, and would hardly move. Dr. Tina gave her a dose of glucose, to increase her blood sugar in case it's the reason for her low energy level. Pan was also x-rayed to see if there's a fracture on her hind legs because she can hardly stand up, and she cries when the doctor pinches that part. The x-ray showed a possible fracture or a sprain (as explained to me), and there were poop deposits in her intestines. Apparently, even when she do #2 every day, she not getting rid of everything so the doctor will also give her laxative. Dr. Tina said that she probably had a rough play with the other cats in this house, or possibly fell somewhere, and since she's still a young kitten, her  bones are still developing so she wasn't able to handle the impact. She did climb our chairs a lot, and I have no idea if she did fell at all. Tomorrow, she will have blood test too, to eliminate the possibility of infection since she also have fever. Dr. Tina recommended that she stayed in the clinic for observation. I left her with an IV attached to her tiny arms :(, laying on the little towel I brought for her to sleep on.

I hope that there's nothing more serious than that. I miss my little Pan :(.

Pan's Feeling Under the Weather Today

We just noticed that Pan's been sleeping all day today, in contrary to her daily routine of bugging everyone, running sideways and just constantly eating. Today, she seemed low energy and wouldn't eat. At first I thought she have an appetite but later realized that it wasn't her finishing her food but Lotto. She's also warm to the touch and always curled up on bed. I fed him with ID, a prescription diet for kittens with intestinal issues, or fed to kittens that have no appetite. She did finish the serving and we were quite happy. She seemed very weak, probably because she didn't eat the entire day. I gave her a dose of vitamins too, to boost her immune system (she actually takes it everyday since she came here). I'm hopeful that it's nothing. We have experienced this with our previous rescues, Annie and Nikki, where they just lost appetite and became lethargic and lymping. We both took them to the vet for examination and the vets didn't find anything. They eventually regained their strength and now happy adopted cats. I hope it's the same case for my Pan.

If there will be no improvement tomorrow, I'll bring her to the vet.

Cal from Kalayaan - Another Rescue

We were walking home from Rockwell, along Kalayaan Ave. when Mark heard a distressed crying somewhere close. He didn't have a hard time looking for the kitten because it was super loud and eventually has revealed itself. Like the usual, this little kitten have a terrible eye infection. Obviously, it couldn't fend for itself since the mucus on its eyes were totally dried up he could hardly open it. The mommy cat was nowhere to be found. We took it immediately to the closes 24 hour veterinary clinic where he was cleaned and de-wormed. We got an eye drops for the eye infection too.

 We named this little kitten Cal - from the street where we found him "Kalayaan", plus we just watched Crazy Stupid Love, where the main character was called Cal.

Not so sure why he wanted to climb on my face.

It was probably too early for Cal to be separated from his mom, which explains how unbelievably clingy he is. I could hardly do anything at home because of his loud cries. He constantly wants to be cradled. So to make him shut up and saves me the trouble of taking paracetamol for myself (loud noises gives me migraine), I just carry him around. When he falls asleep, I still can't leave his side because the moment he realizes he's alone on the couch, he will start crying.

He's so clingy, he wouldn't eat on the bowl. He would like me to pick up the wet cat food, and feed him with my fingers. I really don't enjoy the fishy smell of wet cat food, but I had to do it, else he wouldn't eat. Just for 24 hours, he became a spoiled little brat!

Cal thinks he's too good for the basket.

On the other hand, he looks healthy. I gave him a sponge bath this morning, to remove the remaining road dirt on his paws. After the eye medication, we will send him for adoption.

The Story of Pan

Pan was rescued in August 5. I went to my friends house for lunch after taking care of a few things for our wedding the next day. We were having coffee at the front of her house when we notice a guard came out of one of the apartments, holding a dust pan - with a kitten on it. I immediately approached the guard and asked what's he going to do with it, and asked if he will throw it away. He denied and said he will just bring it out of the compound. I was confused because he brought it out of the house and, what? The owner doesn't want it anymore? The guard said it wasn't owned by anyone, and it was just thrown inside their place from the other side (apparently, there's an open area inside the house). So I took it. The guard was confused saying "It's blind, are you still going to take it?", I said "No it's not blind, it is sick, very sick. You don't just throw away kittens like that", he said "No, I'm not throwing it away, I will just bring it out because they don't want it here".  He probably felt guilty when I picked it up that he started explaining himself, telling things about stray cats that come and go in the compound.

The rescued Pan.

Pan's eyes were closed, that's why the guard thought she's blind. Her eyes were covered with heavy dried mucus, covered in dirt and fleas all over. She also had small wounds all over her small body because of the fleas bites. She's about 6 weeks old. I took her to the vet for checkup, and there she was confined until cleared from infection and possible transmissible diseases.

So Pan's name was derived from the word "pandakot" which is dust pan in Tagalog. But I realized today, that the name fits her so much, because she looks like a "paniki" (bat) too :).

Batpan.

Like everyone else, she gets along pretty well with Lotto. She have a very good appetite. In fact, she eats so much her tummy is so big that she looks like a big ball of fur. When she runs, she runs sideways - could hardly carry her big belly! I think she's catching up with food.  So far she's doing well. In 2 weeks we will bring her back to the clinic for a follow up check-up. When she's 100% healthy, we will put her up for adoption.

The Batpan warning.

Batpan fights for justice.

Haydi, Now a Beautiful Black Kitten

Haydi's status now is adopted. She's living with an animal loving family, and is living with a friend named Missy - a very smart Calico female cat.

Every time I look at Haydi's photos that I took when we found her, it always amazes me how she turned out to be one beautiful, gentle, black kitty.

She spent a week confined in a vet clinic to cure her respiratory problem and a badly infected wound found on her head. We fostered her for a month, feeding her with nutritious food and nurturing her with TLC. She turned out to be a very gentle kitten. I could hardly feel she's around, because she just always lay quietly beside you, cuddles you in the morning, and never whines when she's hungry. It wasn't also hard to potty train her. We didn't even expect that the bald spot due to the wounds she had would grow fur again. Anyways, she became a beautiful black cat that we grew attached with.

The time has come that she needs to be adopted. Mark and I have actually had second thoughts on getting her adopted since we both have grown to like and love her. She was never a bother. But we already have 4 full grown cats, plus we have a small space to house another. We promised before that our max will be 4, but when Haydi came, we almost broke the rule. It was pretty hard for us to let her go.

Mark and I felt like crying when we were driving her to her new family, thanks to the bad traffic that evening, we were distracted. But the sadness of letting her go turned to happy thoughts as soon as we met Ginger and Tita Agnes, the family that will take her in. They welcomed her with a hug and they were very excited. We also met Missy, a bossy and smart calico family cat, who seemed to be curious too of Haydi. I felt ease and comfort knowing that we'll give Haydi to a responsible and loving owners, who we trust that will treat her as a member of the family, and not just a possession.

We were sad to let her go, but we wouldn't be able to help more if we will keep each one that we get attached to. Mark still misses her. One morning he woke up thinking that Haydi was laying beside him, only to find out that it's just a crumpled black shirt. But in spite of the loneliness, a bigger part of our heart is filled with happiness for the fact that we have this feeling of ease, that Haydi's in good hands, and that she's in a family now that accepts her as a member - who will love and care for her for the rest of her life.

Annie and Nikki, Now Nermal and Garfield

We are very happy to find a new family for Annie and Nikki 2 weeks ago! We are also blessed that we found a real animal loving family, makes us feel more secured and less worried about what will be the outcome of their lives in the future. But as much as we hoped that they would keep their names, they changed it to Nermal and Garfield. I know, Garfield and Nermal are both male cats, but I don't think Annie and Nikki would mind :). We miss them, but yet we are happy and at peace to know that they are being loved and cared for.

Both Annie and Nikki were too young to be separated from their mom. So they found the "mother image" in the form of Lotto. Everyday they try to suck on Lotto's nipples, and everyday I try to drag them away :P. Lotto, however, seems to enjoy being their mom.

A Rescued Cat Called Nishi

Mark and I were walking to the restaurant when I heard a weird noise. It's like a crying bird. The street was still busy so I couldn't really tell where it's coming from. Mark didn't hear it so I thought I was nothing and proceeded to dinner.

After 2 hours, we headed back home taking the same street and I heard the same crying bird again. We tried to look for it, and there, we found this tiny calico kitten, about 2 weeks old, crying non-stop while laying in a small ditch at the middle of the walk way in Leviste St. Imagine, it was a busy evening, and yet nobody gave a shit to even pick up and put this little creature somewhere safe. Mark panicked and immediately picked up the kitten. She was very weak and filthy with street dirt. I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to touch the little kitten as it freaks me out. I never had a pet before. We both didn't know what to do with her because our building admin doesn't allow pets in the condo. But we couldn't just leave her like that. We took her to our building and was immediately stopped by the guards. We talked to them and promise to take her to a shelter the next day, and that we are just going to feed it.

Since Mark have experience with cats, he knew that cow's milk is not good for them so he just cleaned the little kitten, and then googled for a milk substitute just to get by through the night. Then we took the shade off our lamp and used it to warm the little kitten up. Everything improvised.

I was very stressed that evening because I was afraid the kitten might not make it through the night. I was also stressed that we don't know any shelter that would take in the cat. Plus, this kitten cries so much and so loud - I was stressed to be confronted by the guards again and get me pressured to get rid of the kitten.

The next day, we took her to the vet for check up. She was a strong kitten. She didn't even sip the improvised milk that Mark prepared for her, but she seemed to be OK. She was checked up, got her nails trimmed, and got kitten replacement milk for her. She also had been tested for worms etc.

And that's where it all started. Eventually, we decided to keep her, and kept her a secret :). I fell in love with Nishi. She have changed my life to something better. She's the reason why I help and rescue cats in need. She have opened my eyes, and she was an instrument to awaken my compassion for the stray cats/dogs population, and at the same time act on it. She's my inspiration.

I recently compiled all the video clips we have collected from the beginning we got her, how we nurtured her, and now that she's full grown. I hope this inspires everyone to care and give those stray cats a second chance in life.

Annie and Nikki

There were 3 kittens found in Greenbelt 5, roaming around at some posh restaurant, when a customer complained about their presence. The management immediately told the janitor to "get rid" of the kittens. Well, if you are from here, "getting rid" would mean throw them away. Luckily, the kind-hearted janitor took them to Bow and Wow employees instead, since he probably couldn't keep them. The pet store, however, doesn't shelter stray animals, but they are known to support animal welfare groups, so they took the kittens and hoped that their customers might have the heart to adopt them. One got adopted immediately, and two were left.

Mark went to Bow and Wow just in time before they close to get cat supplies and saw these two little babies in a box. The Bow and Wow vet explained where they came from and they would really need someone to take them in. Mark couldn't turn his back, but at the same time he couldn't carry these kittens because he didn't have a carrier and he went there on foot, he didn't bring our car. Then someone came. He said he can't take the kittens because he is full, but he can donate a carrier so Mark can safely bring them home.

We named these two kittens Annie and Nikki, after the two vets from Bow and Wow. They were very aloof and scared in the beginning. They hiss at us non-stop. But after two days, they began to be OK. The two are inseparable. They are about a month old and very playful. As much as we want to keep them, we have a very limited space, plus we already own four full grown cats. So we are sending them up for adoption, and currently looking for a loving and caring home for them. If you are interested, please shoot me a comment and I'll get back with you. It would be sad to separate them so we prefer to get them adopted together.

Annie and Nikkie posing.

Finding Haydi

Today, we found Haydi, a 3 month old, black, female cat, laying helpless along the PLDT building going to the walk way to Greenbelt. As always, there were hundreds of people walk pass her ignoring her existence and condition laying on that path. As normal, nobody gave a shit. It was similar to the rescue experience we had with Freddie, where the cat was just lying lifeless that we first thought was dead. Haydi hardly moved. Her eyes were filled with mucus, head balding from an infected wound. I offered her food but she wouldn't eat. We immediately put her in a re-usable shopping bag since we didn't have anything with us to carry her along. She was in a very weak state and didn't even try to object.

Mark brought her to the Animal House clinic. We found out that she's badly dehydrated, and she have a respiratory infection. The wound in the head was also pretty infected. She'll be confined in the Animal clinic for about 3 days, has been dewormed and cleaned. I'm glad we found her just in time. Soon we will be needing a loving home for her too.

Another Interesting Kitten Encounter

What's up with me visiting a government agency and then finding a sick kitten? This happened twice now.

I found Lotto when I went to LTO to renew my car registration. Today, I went to Makati's civil registry office to get requirements for our upcoming civil marriage - and there I found another kitten in dire need of help.

It was a very hot afternoon when Mark and I decided to just walk home from Makati city hall instead of taking a jeepney (my car was coded so I couldn't drive). The traffic was pretty bad and we'd rather walk than to sit, get bored and smell diesel fumes and road dirt while we wait the jeepney to move. I honestly don't enjoy long walks under the sun specially on streets that aren't really pedestrian friendly. We passed by a pile of dried branches and leave trimmed from a tree and saw an orange kitten lying lifeless beside it. I was horrified thinking that someone must have just thrown this poor kitten's body on the pavement. I stopped to check it out and said "OMG". For a moment, I really thought it was dead because it didn't move. Then I noticed that it is still breathing. We immediately picked it up and offered dry cat food we always carry around in our bags. Apparently, the kitten was exhausted from heat that it could hardly move. It was malnourished, dehydrated, and like most stray kittens, it has a heavy eye discharge that's a symptom of a respiratory infection. The kitten is about a month old. We knew that even if we leave food and go, the kitten will eventually die. As always, we couldn't turn our backs and leave it. Call me crazy, but I just can't leave a poor helpless creature like that, knowing that I have the power to save it. So since we weren't prepared for this, all we got was a little green grocery bag. We immediately put him in it and rushed to the Animal House, a veterinary clinic about a kilometer away from where we found it. It must be traumatic for him to be put in a bag but we have no choice. I can't just carry him with my hands because I was scared that he might jump off out of panic from hearing the cars in that busy street.

He's been cleaned, and currently in medication staying in our flat but separated from our four naughty cats. He's still weak but is eating. We will put him up for adoption once he's strong and recovered. We are hoping to find him a loving home that will treat him well soon.

Some of my friends make fun of me as "a crazy cat lady". I don't really mind because I'm not that crazy :P. I just have the heart to care for these helpless creatures, as I would care for helpless starving children victimized by poverty. The only difference is that there are enough people who helps out people - but very little number of people who acts on their compassion for animals.

In my older post, I mentioned that I wasn't an animal person. Not that I don't like them, but I just wasn't raised knowing their values as human companions. But after we got Nishi, everything changed. So why do we keep on rescuing these helpless creatures? Why do we waste time on feeding the strays almost every night in the small park in our village? Why do we throw time and money spaying/neutering stray animals we find? Is it just self-gratification?

People look at me weird when they see me pick up a ran over cat that's still fighting to live, or when we feed strays out of the blue. They give us a weird look when we take time to stop and pick up a cat that's just waiting to get hit by car on a curb. I sometimes get weird looks from other patients in a vet clinic holding their pure bred dogs and cats, while I carry a dirty little stray kitten on my lap. I've been judged by the looks of pet owners a lot of times, but I couldn't care less. Oh well, they can give me their best weird looks on their faces and I won't give a shit.

The thing is, I still believe, that an act of kindness can change things - no matter how hypocritical, discriminating and judgmental the people are around you. I have this faith that if I demonstrate an act of compassion and kindness, if people can see the sincerity of my actions, it could change someone's heart and mind. It has happened to me. I want to believe that there are still plenty of good people in the world. So I won't give up, for as long as Mark and I are able to do these things.

I consider myself very blessed with a lot of good things in life. And for that, I want to pay it forward by being a blessing to others too - not just to my fellow human beings, but to other creatures living in this world we share.

Dramatic, but a good thought to think about this lenten season.