DCFemella

To Get or Not Get a Dog

Since I was a little, I have always wanted a dog. My parents wouldn’t allow any animals in the house, so it was a dream that never came into fruition. I now have Hagi, my black cat, and I love him more than ever. However, I feel like the time has come to introduce a new member into the family. A dog.

Here is my criteria:

1. Small dog
2. Not a barker
3. Gets along with children
4. Gets along with cats
5. Just damn cute

I am excited to possibly get one during Christmas, but I also have my doubts. One thing about a dog is that it’s like a baby who doesn’t age. With Hagi, I can be gone all day and not worry that he is going to pee/poop all over the house. Additionally, if I want to stay over one of my friends’ houses, I just have to ensure that he has food and water for the next day. I don’t know if I will have that luxury with a dog.

I’ve seen friends who have dogs, and they have to always come home to let the dog out. If they want to stay at a place longer than the evening, they can’t. They have to run home to let the dog out before they can drive back. Do I really want that? I don’t know if I do. The kids and I have extremely busy schedules, and I don’t want to worry about having to come home. However, my heart is saying that I should get a dog.

What should I do?

Photo Detail: cute puppy, originally uploaded by iklash/.

Finally Found Out Why My Cat Kept Vomiting!

Martha Stewart Cat Photo Contest

Originally uploaded by dreamingindc

If you follow my tweets, you would have read about my dilemma with my cat Hagi constantly vomiting. He would vomit every day. In January, I took him to the Vet where she ran tons of blood, urine, saliva tests to see what was going on with him. The tests came out normal. I changed his dry food to canned food, brushed him every day, and ensured that he had filtered water. Still nothing.

After his vomiting increased to twice a day, I freaked. I couldn’t imagine life cleaning up vomit every day of my entire life. Therefore, I did what I do best. I researched. I came across VetInfo where I saw tons of questions focusing on vomiting in cats from frustrated people like me. After reading about how it could be related to a sensitive stomach, one of the Vets mentioned skin issues. He said that it could be dry, itchy skin that is making the cat vomit when he/she starts biting his skin. I thought about all the times I saw Hagi biting away at his skin.

On Friday, I went to the store, and I bought hydrocortisone lotion and fish oil supplements for his skin. Guess what! He hasn’t vomited since. It was his skin the entire time. Two days later, I bought this organic papaya supplement for digestive issues, just in case, but I really think that it was due to his skin.

People always make fun of me because I am a research fanatic, but it makes me feel good in situations like this. Sometimes self-diagnosing can be dangerous because you can cause yourself to have increased anxiety. However, I am a big believer that more often than not, you can figure things out that would cost you tons for a doctor to figure out. If I would have gone the Vet way, the next step was to open up his stomach. It seems way too obtrusive to me, so that was definitely not an option.

Hagi is now happy, and so am I.

Hagi Has FIV (HIV for Cats)

I just found out that Hagi has Feline Immunodeficienncy Virus (FIV).  It’s HIV for cats.  He should be ok because he is always going to be indoors and an only cat.  Additionally, we spoil him like crazy, so he should not have the issues that other cats would have.  My poor little kitty.  FIV is in the same retrovirus family as feline leukemia virus (FeLV), but the viruses differ in many ways including their shape. FIV is elongated, while FeLV is more circular. 

He is already part of the family, and we adore him like he has always been with us.  I am going to take him to the vet in a month, so they can run more tests.  The vet said that sometimes a FIV vaccine will make the test a little skewy and give a false positive.  She says she thinks that might be a very likely scenario for Haji because he is very healthy.  Also, my little fat ass is a pound heavy.  Every time I head to the kitchen, he follows me so I can give him more food.  He hates dry food, so I am going to return the dry food that I bought because he refuses to eat it.  Also, the vet says that dry food actually makes cats heavy, so Mr. Haji Fat Cat will not be eating that.  

The only issue with Haji in our lives is that the kids’ bedtime is all messed up because I have to spend 30 minutes getting them to bed, and then another hour telling them to go back to their room from “checking on Haji.”  After being late for the 100th time this week, I told them that I am going to be super hardcore about bedtime because I’m sick and tired of them being late for school.  

Last night, he slept with my daughter and I.  He sometimes will creep up on me and sleep on my chest.  It kinds of freaks me out because I watched too many horror films where cats supposedly steal your breath.  Damn Haji, calm down and sleep next to me.  I think he did that last night to show that he was no longer mad at me for taking him to the vet.  

Every time I tried to hold or pet him, he would walk away and look at me like “F* you for taking me to the vet to get shots and stuff.”  

The kids would hold or pet him, and he would let them while looking at me with contempt.  I felt so damn guilty.  

I’m worried about the FIV, so if anyone has more information for me, I would appreciate it.

Giving a Cat a Bath is Rough!

Man, I thought that giving a dog a bath was rough.  A cat is 100 times worse!  This is compared to a huge German Shepherd.  I shampooed him twice with this yummy lavender shampoo that I bought at PetSmart.  It was a challenge but with two kids, I was able to do it.

I was impressed.  I stayed super late at work, and I was worried the house was going to be destroyed.  Everything was perfect, and he was totally lounging on the carpet.  He uses his litter box and doesn’t even attempt to poop or pee on the carpet.  Anyone who knows me knows that I HATE bodily waste.  Ick!  

The kids and I are now watching “A Charlie Brown Christmas!” while Haji dries himself.  I still feel crappy.  My back and hips hurt, and my stomach feels queasy.  I don’t think I am going to work tomorrow because I was suffering today.  I hope to feel better tomorrow.

Hagi, the Snuggliest, Cutest Cat in the World

Welcome Haji Polastre!Our new cat!

We decided on Haji, who is my favorite character from Blood Plus. It’s the best name for him. He is just like Haji. Quiet, watchful, protective, dark, and vampiric. This cat is perfect.  He is a total geek.  He is obsessed with my Mac and snuggles on it when I am typing.  

He is already spoiled and he hasn’t even been here a day. We are already in love with him.