I live in Quebec, Canada and my passions above all else are cats, gardens, fine wine and True Blue. Not always in that order of course, and sometimes all at once. But each an important and integral part of my day - even when the cold icy Quebec winds blow - and I dream of what lies beneath the snow - waiting - waiting....
A very sweet, energetic, and playful Chaiyka, has that "got any coils in your pocket?" look on his face. I tell you, he is absolutely addicted to those coils that are used for binding books are brochures, now commonly used as cat toys. He catches them in mid-air, tosses them, rolls them and even carries them around in his mouth. As a clawless cat (and I repeat, I DO NOT APPROVE OF DECLAWING - he came to us this way), he needs special toys that give him satisfaction, and these coils are just the ticket - he can play for over an hour, all by himself. And any move toward my pocket, elicits this look. Isn't he cute??And speaking of cute, these tiny amaryllis, a South African variety known as Piccolo Sonatini are in bloom right now, but there are many more bulbs pushing up scapes (flower stalks), so Christmas should be the usual floriferous festival of amaryllis in my window garden.
When our PeeBee (rest his soul) was under insulin therapy, we had set up an alarm to remind us it was time to give him the shot. The alarm was on the computer and it triggered a particular piece of music to play. Now, another of our cats (Dito) has been diagnosed with diabetes, and although for over a year he seemed to be doing fine just on oral medication, he now has to have shots of insulin. So, yesterday morning, the TV music station was on, as we were preparing Dito’s very first shot, can you believe what happened? That same piece of music, PeeBee’s song, came on, as if right on cue! Truly amazing, don't you think? But as you can see, he is ever watchful, so giving these shots has to be well-timed. His pal is watching too ;)
Ah - the young ones - carefree and playful - and always a joy to watch! Here Chaiyka (I often call him Chai-Chai) pretends to be asleep, while Chesney (Little Ches) has a feeling something is up,
A paw finally appears, and they're off!
This little game lasted a while - they can get pretty rambunctious, and even rough, but they are both declawed (NOT by me - they came to me this way), so no serious damage is done. I am pretty sure it's mostly youthful exuberance!
I feel it is necessary to expand a little on Mr. Poole and how he has been faring here at Maple Grove Gardens since his arrival in early summer.He had appeared frightened, hungry and clearly sick, but most of all, he seemed just tired. Tired of being on the road – on the run, and as he lay in the grass, he had the look of saying “that’s it, I’m staying here – what will be will be - I just can’t go on anymore.”Long story short, every day he was coaxed to come closer and closer to the house (with food, of course), where we could see he was very much in a bad way: thin, poor coat, runny eyes and nose, red third eyelid.And not fixed. He was finally snatched away to the vet where the latter was taken care of, and all the rest.Luckily it was summer, and because it was warm outside, we were able to keep him outside in a basket on the porch, as bringing him in would have caused great distress amongst the other residents. Even in a sick state though, there was something “imposing” about this strange dark cat – he can even be a bit scary looking. But come inside he eventually did, and despite a few deep, low growls from her little highness, Angel, and from the Grand Manitou of the Townships of the East, things settled down, more or less.
And look at him now: clear eyes, glossy coat, with the type of fur that is more like that of a silky dog, not a cat’s, and his tail that seemed so poor-looking and oily even, has gained a bit of “puff”, and indeed, as if in competition with the floof-meister Manitou, seems to be acquiring a bit of winter-puffiness of his own, particularly around the neck and chest area. And he is heavy! Yes, heavy. When he comes onto the lap (oh yes – he sure knows how to do that!), it feels like a bag of lead has landed on your knees – his neck is thick like a football player, and his shoulders are massive – very solid and wide. I suspect it was this underlying solid and strong structure that enabled him to survive on his own as long as he did. But I doubt he would have survived another brutal winter out there – he found us just in time.
We are having some warmish days - and the cats seem to know that these are the last ones before the real cold weather sets in. So here they are, enjoying the warming rays of the waning autumn sun:
A very sweet, energetic, and playful Chaiyka, has that "got any coils in your pocket?" look on his face. I tell you, he is absolutely addicted to those coils that are used for binding books are brochures, now commonly used as cat toys. He catches them in mid-air, tosses them, rolls them and even carries them around in his mouth. As a clawless cat (and I repeat, I DO NOT APPROVE OF DECLAWING - he came to us this way), he needs special toys that give him satisfaction, and these coils are just the ticket - he can play for over an hour, all by himself. And any move toward my pocket, elicits this look. Isn't he cute??
And speaking of cute, these tiny amaryllis, a South African variety known as Piccolo Sonatini are in bloom right now, but there are many more bulbs pushing up scapes (flower stalks), so Christmas should be the usual floriferous festival of amaryllis in my window garden.
