No, it’s Supercat
He really loves that bed.
He’s been to the vet again today for some swabs to see if the bacteria in his nasal passages has gone now. He certainly seems to be better and has lots of energy so we’re hoping that he’s 100%.
There’s a lovely big platform on the cat tree, which Frodo loves to lie on. He was really enjoying it the other day; showing us how big he is now by stretching right out.
Frodo really does have the most beautiful tail. It’s so long and fluffy!
Following Frodo’s round of tests at the referral vet, he was put onto two different medications. Both were antibiotics, one a tablet and the other one a liquid. The liquid one is the longer term one, about 40 days and should be squirted into his mouth with the syringe. He was having none of that and as he’s very strong and very determined, we were really struggling with it. Even with both of us trying to get the meds down him, and holding him in a towel to control him more easily, it didn’t work.
I didn’t want to stress him any more, and he obviously didn’t like the syringe so after checking with the vet, we’ve been adding it to his food. He needs a bit of coaxing to eat it, but I reckon part of that is him milking it a bit. I have to get on the floor with him, scoop some food onto a spoon and he’ll eat it off that as long as I’m cuddling him with the other hand. Sometimes it takes a while, but he’s getting most of the antibiotic down him that way, and with no stress. I’m pretty sure he’s enjoying all the attention.
The tablets were much easier in comparison. We knew there was no way he was going to let us put a tablet in his mouth so we got some of these.
They are brilliant. The tablets are quite small, and he had two in the morning for ten days. One tablet fitted nicely into a pill pocket, which you then seal up and roll into a ball. Just to make sure, I then sprinkle a bit of ‘magic powder’ on it and roll the pill pocket in it. He just eats them and the pills go down a treat. He’s had all those now and we had no trouble at all. The pill pockets were quite expensive, but worth it for not stressing him.
The magic powder is Fortiflora which makes the food much more appetising and is also good for his stomach. I sometimes add it to his food to encourage him to take his medicine-laced Whiskas.
He’s still got quite a bit of the liquid antibiotic to take, but it’s looking encouraging. He’s almost stopped sneezing and his breathing sounds normal. He’s got a lot, and I do mean a lot more energy and is running round the house like a little dervish. Poor Sammie doesn’t know what’s going on. He’s also got a bit more mischievous, but we’re not complaining. It’s brilliant seeing him so lively and obviously feeling good.
Frodo enjoying a bit of summer a few weeks ago.
I thought it was about time that I showed you what we built in the garden so the cats can get some fresh air. We looked around for ages to find a reasonable sized cat enclosure but the only ones suitable were way too much money and were pretty basic.
We knew what we wanted so I started roughing it out on a pad and came up with a design that would be sturdy enough without costing too much. We made it all ourselves which took a few days, spread over a couple of weeks, and it may be ever so slightly wonky, but it does the job.
It’s 4m long by 2m wide and has a slabbed base. That looks a bit mismatched as we used whatever slabs we had lying about in the garden.
We wanted somewhere that the cats could go to shelter from the sun (if we got any) and hide in if they wanted to have a nap. We found a rabbit hutch on Amazon that looked ok so installed that. They like sitting on top of it so they can see what I’m doing.
At the other end we’ve put some wooden staging that was in the shed. They enjoy sitting on that too as like most cats, they like being high up. Frodo likes to do acrobatics on the bars beneath the top of it.
We also made a climbing frame for them out of logs from a tree that we had cut down. It’s bolted together and has thick string wrapped round in places to give extra grip when climbing and for scratching. I’ve also hung some balls from the staging and climbing frame.
Sammie is a bit of a climber and she’s explored every inch of the pen. She does get a bit nervous if there are children making a lot of noise in the nearby gardens so we try to only take her out if it’s fairly quiet. We only take them out if one of us is working in the garden, or if I’m doing a lot of cooking and can keep my eye on them from the kitchen.
I don’t suppose we’ll get much more use out of it this year, but hopefully we’ll get a drier summer next year and we can all get outside more.
The cats have been sharing one of the beds again.
I’m not sure that looks quite comfy but they seemed happy enough. Stephen saw what happened this time. Sammie was asleep in there, minding her own business, when Frodo decided he’d like to share it with her. He just climbed in on top of her and wiggled round until he was in.
I’m not sure what Sammie thought of that, but she stood for it so she can’t have been that bothered. Either that or she was too sleepy to move.
Both cats seem over Frodo’s overnight trip to the vets now. Frodo seems to be feeling much better too with less sneezing. One of the tests came back showing a bacteria that may be causing the problem so he’s having to take two different antibiotics to try to clear it. He’s even more lively and mischievous than he was before so we’re hoping that the drugs are working.
Frodo had to have an overnight stay at the vet last week. He’s been sneezing and snuffling a bit so has had various tests to find the problem. Our own vet took x-rays of his skull and chest when he went in to be snipped ‘n’ chipped and found nothing. He hasn’t had a temperature and a swab found no bacteria that shouldn’t be there. He’s lively and affectionate and has a good appetite.
Our vet was great and took the time to show us the x-rays on the screen, and explained what we were seeing. It was fascinating.
So, next step was to refer him to a specialist and luckily there’s a very good one not far from here. They had him in for the day, and as he had a biopsy, which bled a little, they kept him overnight to keep an eye on him. They did a CT scan, which didn’t show anything abnormal, and have done a few different tests that we’re waiting for results on.
We’re really hoping there’s something there that can be treated as it must be miserable having cold symptoms all the time. If we can’t treat it though, at least we’ll know we did everything we could to find the cause.
At the referral vet, it was a bit like being in an episode of Super Vet, which we love watching. It was also very expensive so hooray for pet insurance.
Frodo was a bit clingy when he got home and came to sit by me, getting as close as he could without actually being on my lap. He managed to wrap himself around my arm so I was immobilised for a few hours.
It’s a bit tricky taking a photo of a cat when he’s got your arm trapped. Luckily Stephen was in and took a couple for me.
He must have had a vet smell about him for a few days as Sammie was quite scared of him. She really doesn’t like the vet so we think that was why she was hissing and growling at him. From a distance – she wouldn’t get too close and was very wary if he was in the same room.
She’s ok again now. They’re chasing each other round the bedroom at the moment, so I’m having to hang on to the laptop as they keep using the bed as a shortcut. They do seem to get a burst of energy just as I go to bed. Little monkeys 🙂
We came home one day and found the pair of them, cuddled up together in one of the beds on the new cat tree.
It was a definite Awww moment.
Look how big Frodo is compared to Sammie and he’s half her age. He’s going to be a lovely size when he’s finished growing.
I’m so glad they love their new tree so much.
Frodo loves to come on our laps for a cuddle. He’ll wriggle about and push your hands and arms just where he wants them until he’s comfy enough to have a nap.
If I’m doing some cross stitching, he can’t quite get on my lap so he’ll often curl up on my legs instead. The other night he stretched right out and got comfy.
The adventures of Sammie and Frodo 