The Pets

Split Sister wondered how the pets were adjusting to their new home. How about we ask them?

Zephyr, what do you think of New Hampshire so far?

"It wasn't me!
"...Uhhhh, I mean-- Hi!
"Yeah, we like the glider chair, and -- as you can see -- Loki and I share it very well. We love to share. Yep. We do. Because I wouldn't force him out of it if he were in it first; even if that is what my people do to me every. single. day. here.
"Oooh! and I love the long walks they take me on. The other day, they even took me for a walk in the woods. Down a dirt road. And when a car drove past, I ZOOMED after it. Hah! My first chance to chase one of those things where I wasn't stuck behind a stupid fence. I eventually returned to my people. They didn't seem worried about me taking my time. They're good people. (Even if they do kick me out of my favorite glider.)"

Loki, how about you? The change has been more drastic for you: You used to be an outdoor cat, and now you've been kept inside, seeing as the apartment is on a busy street.



"Mmmmm, it's been fine, man, fine. I'm still working my way down that incredible high, so spending time inside is cool.

"Man, did I hallucinate on that trip. I felt like I was in this big plastic box for -- like, days on end, man. The box kept shimmy-shammying for hours. It seemed like every couple of hours, we'd stop, and a bowl of water would appear -- POOF! -- and I'd look at it, and it would look back, and I could, like, drown in the ripples, man. It was so ... intense!

"But I'd blink and -- POOF! -- the water would be gone, and the world was all shimmy-shammying, and the plastic box was everywhere, man. It was like an existentialist nightmare, man -- even ... an existentialist nightstallion -- yeah, that's what it was. Unbefuckinleivable.

"So, yeah, it's cool, man, it's cool. The loco dog keeps flipping out when the folks leave the house and all, and once they even left this door open? And I looked at the opening? And the dog was right there next to me, man. And she's all 'Let's go!' and I'm like, 'Where?' And she says 'To follow the people, man!' And I'm like, 'Duuuuuuuuude. That, my friend, is the door to Hell, man. We just got to stay the hell away from it.' You know?

"Peace out, man. I'm just gonna chill on this glider for a while.

"Yo...."

And there you have it. In their own words.

Rosqro the Rat, July 2005–4 March 2007

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Rosqro “Rossi” the Rat . She died quietly in her sleep during the night, after having enjoyed Saturday evening watching Twelve Angry Men with her family. The death was unexpected and quick. Her owner, Trixie, shed many tears despite her family’s assurances that there was no blame to be taken in this death.

Saved from an infancy of despair as a potential snake meal from a local pet shop, Rosqro grew up with a cheery disposition. She was always looking for fun, and her easy-going nature won over everyone who met her. She never complained that her name was misspelled more often than not (her name, spoken “Ross-cue-roe” would often be written R-o-s-c-u-r-o, despite the fact that it is perfectly within reason for it to be spelled, as it should be, as Ros-q-ro). She was always happy to eat the apple cores and vegetable bits brought to her, and loved to clean off her office-mate’s desk of cracker crumbs whenever she was let out for a romp.

Rosqro will remain in state at the Chest Freezer Morgue until spring thaw allows for a proper burial in the garden.

Cheerful officemate, exuberant playmate, faithful confidante. She will be missed by all.
Rest in Peace, Rossi.

Poor (Animal) Husbandry

Lately, Loki has been acting more needy than usual. This is saying a lot, because, for example, Loki’s favorite way to eat his kibble is for one of us to be standing beside him and brushing him as he munches away. He also feels that after the girls are in bed, when I typically settle down on the couch with a blanket and my laptop (or a book), is the perfect time for some neck scratching (on my part) and lap kneading (on his part).

This neediness started (I think) last Thursday, and I attributed it to the frigid weather (which made it nearly impossible for even a furball like him to want to spend any time outside, hence: intense boredom). All weekend, he insisted that one of us be in the bathroom with him whenever he ate. We’d walk in, give him a quick pat, and walk out (we do have better things to do than be our cat’s personal slave, y’know). At first, he tried to get us back in there—by walking out to us, whining, looking pitiful, and taking a few steps back towards the bathroom, all the while looking over his shoulder to make sure we were following. By Saturday, he felt that maybe surfing the Web would give him an answer to his troubles:

By Sunday, he figured a change of scenery would cure his ennui:


On Sunday evening, Trixie said, “Mom, I think Loki cries when he eats.” Sure, sure, the poor pitiful unloved cat. Whatever.

Monday morning, I happened to be in the bathroom while he was at his food, and—ohmygoodness!—he was crying; not whining. Something was wrong. I scheduled an appointment at the vet’s, and found out Loki has sores in his throat. The vet implied this can be common in cats. He got a shot of steroids, which should help the inflammation for about a month (although he hasn’t eaten anything yet; even when I put some kibble in my hand, he turns his head away like a poor pitiful soul). If this is a run-of-the-mill virus, then the sores should be gone by then and everything is peachy. If the inflammation comes back, then we’ll have to discuss the two treatment options. Which are: (1) Monthly steroid shots to keep the inflammation down. Side effects: It might induce diabetes, which would resolve as soon as we end the steroids (when would that be?!), but in the meantime would need to be treated (she implied diabetic cat care is a big pain in the butt). (2) Pulling out all his teeth. She says it’s amazing how quickly this tends to resolve the sores in the mouth problem. Side effects: No teeth! And .. No teeth!

Poor kitty, I sure hope this goes away on its own in the next 4 weeks…

And if this story hasn’t provided enough cat-ness for the day, then I will end with the following YouTube link:
Nora, The Piano-Playing Cat (2:48)