A gold star for Blaliko! (eating, feline, food, meows)
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On Thursday I brought Weasie's carrier out of storage, dusted it off, and put it in the entry hall after lining it with an old towel. With a vet appointment scheduled for this morning I wanted Blaliko to be familiarized with it. Things didn't bode well when I tossed in some Feline Greenies to encourage her to walk in. She wasn't about to take the bait as I'd hoped she would. Leaning inside only as far as she had to, she'd grab a Greenie in her mouth and promptly back out.
As the time that we had to leave neared, with no sign of her, I was worried that I'd have to postpone the visit. Lo and behold, Blaliko materialized and jumped in through an open window barely ten minutes before we needed to go. (Seteria, naturally, was trailing right behind.) I picked her up after some schmoozing and made straight for the carrier. She stiffened but put up almost no resistance when I stuffed her in as I tilted the carrier upward. A few meows were heard as I made preparations to depart. But that was mainly due to Seteria's provoking her by pacing around just beyond the crate.
There was no vocalizing or struggling while we walked to the bus stop and made the short trip to the clinic. When we got there she hesitated to emerge until the carrier was tipped, at which point she walked out without a fuss. The leukemia shot made her flinch but she didn't move a muscle while being microchipped. During her check-up she didn't start any drama or fight. We then had a totally uneventful ride and walk home.
Blaliko's exemplary behavior called for a can of tuna. That will have to come to pass sometime later, because I'd left the window to the back porch open while we were away and Seteria was nowhere to be found when we got home.
There's more to update about the new resident felines. Going into today it'd been a mischief week for them. I keep a big rectangular sponge on the lip of the bathtub, to the left of the faucets, for whenever I get the odd urge to scrub. On Thursday morning that sponge had been taken to the kitchen beneath the table, and lil' bits of it were scattered all around. Some small pieces and strips of plastic-y red paper had also been turning up on the kitchen floor. They were clearly from the bulk bag of dry Wellness food that stays propped against one end of the table for lack of better storage space. Yesterday the ladies attained their goal. Tearing into the sack from the side was achieved. Now, following the forbidden-fruit principle, they pretty much only consume their dry food from that ripped-open bag.
Seteria is still skittish as can be. BUT...earlier in the week, while I gave her mom ear skritches as she relaxed on the living room rug, she got close enough (and was curious enough) that her pink nose bumped the index finger of my scratching hand for a fraction of a second. I've also been able to sneak a quick touch to an ear or shoulder before she bolts. There are more and longer periods of the day when she's at large and Blaliko's accounted for, or vice versa. But as a rule she continues to shadow her mother. Like any parent, Blaliko tolerates this to varying extents. Mostly she puts up with her catolescent's nuzzling/grooming/playing - and often joins in. Now and then, though, it's swat-hiss-growl: "Go 'way kid, ya bother me."
"This just in," Seteria stopped by from her outdoor adventures in the rain-dampened grass to welcome her mom home. Blaliko walked her over to the carrier which is now once more permanently in the foyer. It must've been part of her retelling of our excursion. Wasting no time, I opened the promised can of tuna. They proceeded to happily feast for a good twelve minutes or so. As per usual, Seteria hung back while her mother did a taste test, but in no time flat they were chowing down side by side. Now they're "who knows where" and all but about 5% of the contents of that entire can are in their tummies.
Haha, Blaliko is no dummy! Why should she go into the carrier any farther than she has to?
Isn't it hilarious what they'll play with? This morning I discovered a jalapeno pepper on the dining room floor. It must have leaped off the kitchen table and walked into the dining room all by itself ...
Haha, Blaliko is no dummy! Why should she go into the carrier any farther than she has to?
Isn't it hilarious what they'll play with? This morning I discovered a jalapeno pepper on the dining room floor. It must have leaped off the kitchen table and walked into the dining room all by itself ...
Mine had a ball the other day with a bag of dried lentils I'd left on the counter...that was a fun little mess for mommy to clean, and they DO look like they're enjoying themselves when they watch me clean their messes, the little stinkers !
I was REALLY looking forward to eating those lentils, too...they were organic!
Blaliko looks - at least to me - like the product of some "whoopee" between a black cat and a calico. So I put "black" and "calico" together. In Japan many girls' names have "ko" at the end. [To simplify translation, it's roughly equivalent to tacking "ette" onto a name (such as Juliette, Antoinette, etc.)] You also see those letters crop up in Scandinavian and West African names. So as a nod to my years in Kobe, and since I'm American but consider myself a citizen of the world, the "c" before the "o" was changed to "k." You asked.
For a couple of years in elementary school I had a classmate named Seteria (se-TEER-ee-yuh.) I'd never heard that name since. Far be it from me to call a cat something predictable like "Kitty." There was a short list of names I'd compiled for a successor to Weasie, and that happened to be on it for a female.
It took a minute or so this morning at the vet for the spelling of their patient's name to be made clear for the record. For the rest of both these cats' lives I'm sure I'll be doing a lot of that. This makes us more bonded as a feline/human family in a way - their two-legged stepdad has to spell out his last name all the time!
Nice story. Well, of all the names we tried to call the cat we adopted, Kitty Katty is the only thing he has ever responded to.
Everybody gets a laugh out of his teeth. But be glad he's not human 'cause that would've meant thousand$ in orthodontist's bills!
I'm glad Blaliko is a cat, along the same lines. She had her vet visit yesterday not only to get microchipped, but also due to her having favored her right hind leg for some weeks. Walking, jumping, and running are not a problem for her. However, it's noticeable when she negotiates stairs or seats herself to bathe at certain angles. The vet said it was "probably a sprain" and that it'd heal itself over time - which was about what I'd figured the message would be. Contrast that with the costs of an orthopedist, "durable medical equipment," and possible physical therapy.
This morning, when I made my first pit stop of the day, I found that one or both of the gurrls had been attacking the big scrub sponge again. It was in the tub with more small pieces torn out and scattered around. Up to a high place it went.
And - another "baby step" with Seteria! She was lying down doing her typical vigilant observation from a foot or so away while I petted and talked to her mom. I slowly moved my right hand along the floor toward her, keeping it visible as she watched intently. When it was close enough I extended the index finger - got several short rubs in on her right front paw before she withdrew it. And when she did, it was unhurriedly rather than in a panic.
Neither of them seemed fazed in the least after being confined to the house for several hours during the afternoon while I was away yesterday, either.
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That will have to come to pass sometime later, because I'd left the window to the back porch open while we were away and Seteria was nowhere to be found when we got home. 
Some small pieces and strips of plastic-y red paper had also been turning up on the kitchen floor. They were clearly from the bulk bag of dry Wellness food that stays propped against one end of the table for lack of better storage space. Yesterday the ladies attained their goal. Tearing into the sack from the side was achieved. Now, following the forbidden-fruit principle, they pretty much only consume their dry food from that ripped-open bag. 
Why should she go into the carrier any farther than she has to? 
!
