Today was the big day. The vet visit. As noted, Sigh was ready to go. As feared, I could not get Possum to even come near me, and I think it's going to be a while. Tiger must have gotten word to lay low. I didn't see her either.
We showed up at the clinic, and I must say that they were very organized. As each cat came in, they were matched with their name and information, and the papers were attached to the carriers. I felt kind of guilty because I was bringing a very upset cat in and she was in a live trap. I apologized for that and explained that she was feral, and that handling her was going to probably be a problem.
She assured me that they were very accustomed to dealing with the feral population, and that most of them did come in in live traps.
At the end of the day, I got my cat back. I bought some special food for her, but was not sure how long she should be kept confined. Much to my surprise, the worker suggested that if I could confine her, it would be great, but that she was pretty traumatized, and it might be better just to let her go if she didn't settle down. Her instinct would be to find a place to hide until she felt better.
She howled the whole way back home, a half hour trip. When she realized that she was back where she belonged, she set up a mighty caterwauling. Against my own better judgement, I let her go. I watched where she streaked to, and opened the special food I'd gotten for her and put it on a paper plate right next to the spot she ducked under. I checked later and she had eaten it all and was eyeballing me from the safety of her dark place.
Possum's appointment has been pushed back until next month. I have the two live traps in the garage now. They are big ones, raccoon sized. I will just start putting their daily cans of catfood inside the traps, keeping the trap door open so that they all get used to going in and out of the traps. The night before their appointments, I will set the traps so that they are functional. Hopefully, I will have two more cats to be neutered.
It is so humid here. Temperatures in the 80s, which doesn't sound unbearable, but combined with the humidity, it's just soul sucking. We were supposed to have rain this afternoon, which we were much looking forward to. It moved from 4PM to 7PM, and then all possibility of rain was removed from today's forecast. They also removed the rain from tomorrow's forecast. It's too hot to sleep right now, and I think supper is sitting too heavy.
I got my book, and I am so disappointed. Those fairy pictures are the only two pictures in the book. It is not the book from my childhood after all. I knew as soon as I saw the package. It was not the right size. I think I simply need to give up on finding that. My happy memories will not be shared.
My tomatoes have blossoms and my peppers have little buds too.
And that was today, just filled with breathless excitement.
One cat down, two to go. Hopefully you'll be able to get them neutered as well.
ReplyDeleteWe've had torrential rains these past couple of weeks, but it's not too hot which is nice. My tomatoes are coming along but it's been so cool now that they've slowed down. Feast or famine:)
It is not cool here, that's for certain.
DeleteCats...know...
ReplyDeleteSo it seems.
DeleteHi Debby, There is a book at project gutenberg called 365 Bedtime Stories by Mary Graham Bonner with illustrations by Florence Choate and Elizabeth Curtis. Might this be the book you remember?
ReplyDeletehttps://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/69225/pg69225-images.html
Marie! This is the book that I bought. The exact same. My version has two pictures only. I will have to examine in more closely. I wonder if someone has taken the pictures?
DeleteAnd I also came across this web blog all about fairies that you might find other images that appeal to you and your granddaughter. https://britishfairies.wordpress.com/tag/florence-choate/
ReplyDeleteI’m so sorry the book isn’t the one you wanted… so disappointing!
ReplyDeleteI'm so curious. Marie's link shows a book with many more pictures, which is how I remember it as a child. This book is the same book, same stories, but there are two pictures.
DeleteI live by a whole library of fairy tales at the Folklore Centre perhaps find a centre in America. Yes I know it's a big place;) Cats are very noisy and expressive. My Mollie gets absolutely furious sometimes just over food she dislikes.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the vet, Sigh is definitely chocolate point Siamese, and every Siamese that I have ever known is a talker. How we ended up with two blue eyed Siamese in the back of the garage is beyond me. The mother was a calico.
DeleteSo glad you got one cat there, anyways. *thumbs up*
ReplyDeleteSo sorry that wasn't the same book.
I hope you got some sleep in that heat.
I ended up getting up at like 11 PM. It was just too hot to sleep. I went back to bed and slept soundly until 6 when I woke up to the sound of rain. It did not last long, but what a wonderful sound. Now it is more humid than ever.
DeleteGood news about one cat anyway. Annoying about the book though and very disappointing.
ReplyDeleteIt is the very oddest thing. Read MarieQ's comment. I cannot understand it.
DeletePerhaps the cats will forgive you in time. 😉
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not, Sigh was the first cat to come running this morning when I went down to feed them. She came to me to be petted and for the first time in her life, she climbed into my lap for a cuddle. It was so unexpected, it brought tears to my eyes. She purred and purred. I guess that I am forgiven. Possum runs when she sees me.
DeleteCats won't forget, but they do forgive, more importantly they will be spared a lifetime of pregnancy and kittens.
ReplyDeleteUnexpectedly, I found myself forgiven today. She climbed into my lap. She's never done that before. I cuddled her, and that has never happened either. She purred and purred.
DeleteToo hot - I hope it cools down for you. What a shame about the book - and Possum.
ReplyDeleteIt will be a while before Possum forgives me.
DeleteThe only way I can sleep any more is to crank the ac way down at night, to "glacier" setting, as my Hubs calls it. I can endure a lot, but not not sleeping. It's a lot of work to trap and neuter cats - they are wise and have long memories. It's a timing thing, too, putting the traps out at the right time to get them to the vet. May the Force be with you, Debby.
ReplyDeleteWe have a small window unit in the living room at both houses.
DeleteGood on you for getting even one cat “done” as one can produce over 100 kittens in it’s lifetime and those kittens likewise. We have just ended those mid 90 degree and humid temperatures, record breaking here. This morning it briefly rained and it is 64 degrees. I might need to put on my sweatshirt lol. Gigi
ReplyDelete64°. We are at 83° with 63% humidity which is better than yesterday. If we put our temperatures together, it would put us at 74° or thereabouts. That would be nice.
DeleteYou're doing such good work with those cats. Just getting one in was quite a feat. Disappointing about the book. Maybe one day the real one will show up. But I wonder if they were loved to bits?
ReplyDeleteThat’s one battle won.
ReplyDeleteThe heat has broken. I am wearing my winter sweater.
One of my sons-in-law used to work in a vet's office and he said the most dangerous and impossible to control animals they saw were cats. One cat escaped the grasp of the vet techs and so savagely tore about the room, knocking over everything and screaming that they just had to walk away and close the door until it had calmed down.
ReplyDeleteSo- good job that you got one of those cats spayed. I think your plan for the next two is a good one.
Oh no! What a bummer about the book! Maybe you can give it to your granddaughter anyway, if the stories are the same (though I know the pictures were the main goal). At any rate, don't give up. It's out there somewhere.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on success with the cat! Hopefully the other two will follow in short order.
"soul sucking" That's an accurate way to describe humidity. I'm sorry about the book. 😔
ReplyDelete