Us V. Them!

This Spring/Summer is once again turning into a prime season for fleas. Even though our cats are indoors, somehow they have contracted fleas again. Bummer! So, the battle is on!

We have already treat the cats with Frontline Plus monthly, as directed. We also comb them regularly with a flea comb. We have given them a bath and bug bombed the house. Still we have fleas...(we know they have eggs...)

Two weeks later and now we are ready for Round 2...First we give the cats Capstar Oral Flea Killer and wait about 30-45 min. Then we will do another extensive vacuuming, sweeping mopping campaign followed by a second round of bug bombs. We will also follow this by using a homemade Flea Trap (a light bulb suspended over soapy water) for a few days after to catch the little devils. We will also, once again, wash all our sheets and blankets.

Hopefully this will put us on the winning side. Why did God make fleas anyway?

King and Queen of the House

As you can see we have cats! They are the King and Queen of the House.

The original kitty is named Scout (aka: Fuzzball). Despite the addition of a new kitty, he is still Ruler of the House. We think he believes we got HIM a new cat when the new kitty came along.
He gets his way often because he captured the heart of my wife.












The newest member of our household is Ramey-Jem (aka: Girl Kitty). She joined us almost one year ago. She gets her way a lot because she purrs really loud when she's happy (we like that) and she meow's loudly when she wants something. She's even trained my daughter to turn on the faucet in the bathroom so she, the cat, can have a drink of water




We love our kitties very much and most of all they love us!

Someone Needs to Explain the Family Rules to the Cat

Every since our cat Scout, aka: The Fuzzball, had come into our home, he has been acting like he owns the place. He drinks out of your water glass. He sticks his head in the sink while you are shaving, getting in your way. He jumps on the table just to sniff at what you are trying to eat. He climbs into any lower level shelving space, if you happen to leave the door open just a little bit. He will hide in the closet and attack your feet as you are looking for clothes. He moves socks and wash rags all over the house and leaves them in the strangest places. Finally, he sleeps in our bed, right in between my wife and I. Someone really needs to put him in his place.

It certainly won't be my bride, Jamie. She loves that cat, almost as much as the me and the kids. In fact, that cat has awoken a whole new side of her, that I haven't seen in a long time. Her affection for the cat has spilled over into more affection for me and the kids and she is not as cranky. She will let that cat get away with almost anything.

It certainly won't be my daughter, Rachel. She loves that fuzzball and would actually let him eat her cereal, if it just wasn't too gross. She builds play toys for the cat out of cardboard boxes and other materials she finds around the house. Several months ago she used almost $80 of her own allowance money to buy the cat a "tree house" for him to play and sleep in.

It won't be my son, Caleb. He has been trying to lure the cat into sleeping on his bed with him since we have owned him. The cat even tore up one his favorite video game guides and Caleb didn't even care. After all the cat was just being a cat.

It won't be our dog, Schnitzel. The dog will end up blowing out his back trying to play with the cat. Plus, I think the dog is a little scared of the cat, even though Scout does not have any front claws.

I guess it will have to be me. I set the law down with the dog, and Schnitzel loves me more than anyone. I am the only one who puts the cat back on the ground when he jumps on the table or into our sink. I have always heard that dogs have owners but cats have staff. Maybe this cat needs to learn who is the real boss around here.

What...? Oh wait, I will have to finish this thought later, the cat needs his litter box cleaned and changed. Coming....Kitty.

Our Cat Scout Looses His Manhood

Our pet cat, Scout, aka: Fuzzball, had surgery today to "remove his manhood" and to get his front claws removed. Our dog, Schnitzel, should be happy that he and the cat will be on equal footing when it comes to their playful wrestling matches.

My poor wife, Jamie, has been very concerned about her "fuzzball." She and the cat have bonded in a way I thought they never would. She hates the fact the cat had to have the operation in the first place and she really doesn't like it that the cat has to stay overnight before we can pick him up.

The vet did call and let us know that Scout is awake and eating and everything looks "Great!" I will pick up the cat tomorrow after work and bring him home. Jamie, the kids and I will be so happy to have him back. I'm not so sure about what Schnitzel thinks.

...But the Cat

Our family has decided to write and illustrate a book together. It is a children's book, called "...But the Cat!"

It will have several little things that we would love to do but cannot because we own a cat; for example:

"I used to own a pretty fern...but the cat!" -- picture of the fern before and after the cat attacked it.

"I used to sleep until 7:00a.m. ... but the cat!" -- picture of the cat walking all over your face at 4:30a.m.

"I tried to finish my school art project early...but the cat!" -- picture of the cat playing with the art supplies and kitty paw-prints on the poster board.

"I used to have matching socks...but the cat!" -- picture of the cat sleeping under the couch with several non-matched socks.

You get the idea. We hope to have our book finished before Christmas, so we can give "unedited" and "raw" copies to relatives and friends. Maybe we can find a publisher and get the book in stores for you guys to read and enjoy yourself.