Show us your pets!

[albe]

my heart melts when ever I see a dalmatian. Yours are super cute! They are so inteligent aren't they! Kaylee is def my best friend :-)

[dakay]

my heart melts when ever I see a dalmatian. Yours are super cute! They are so inteligent aren't they! Kaylee is def my best friend :-)

They are smart. The way I have heard them described is that where a golden retriever takes a while to learn something then does it all the time, a dal learns things quickly and then figures out other ways to do them. They can be a challenge. My old boy is my obedience, agility, tracking dog and the puppy is starting to learn all of those things.

How old is Kaylee? She's a cutie.

Kathy

[Selkie]

They are smart. The way I have heard them described is that where a golden retriever takes a while to learn something then does it all the time, a dal learns things quickly and then figures out other ways to do them. ...
Kathy

Hey, hey, hey, Kathy. Owner of multiple "mensa" Goldens here. Them's fightin' words! You'd better take it back!!!

Seriously, trust me, my goldens have figured out all sorts of ways to do things. The only problem is that they are things they shouldn't be doing!!

[bmccasland]

Sometimes life just sucks. I happened to take today off, and finally got my porch kitty, Patches, to the Vet to get her shots. I've been feeding her for several months, slowly making friends. My vet said that I could bring her in without an appointment and they'd work her in for shots if I dropped her off. Since she's semi-feral, they tested her for feline HIV, and she was positive. And since she's was a sweet cooperative kitty, they drew more blood and tested her again, still positive.

Patches is (was) a neighborhood kitty that a neighbor started feeding after Hurricane Katrina. Near as we can tell she was probably someone's cat that got turned out when they evacuated and then lost in the storm, and she found her way to Vicki's house, and then eventually to mine. Amazingly she absolutely loved dogs. Somewhere along the way Patches was spayed (her ear was clipped). She got named "Patches" because when Vicki started feeding her, she was missing a lot of fur and her white under coat was showing in big patches.

So today, she had to be put to sleep, but she was petted and loved on to the end. Then I brought her home and buried her in the garden like a kitty with a proper home should be. But she died well fed, with a satiny coat. I just couldn't fix everything.

Her she is on one of her rare visits to the inside, back when the weather was cooler and I had the back door open. Obviously making herself at home, albeit briefly. She never would stay inside for very long. I just couldn't convince her life is better inside:

[sbctwin]

Thank you Beth for sharing Patches story with us. She was well loved in the end and hopefully she knew it. I am sorry for your loss....

[mtbdarby]

Beth - sorry to hear about Patches, but glad that you took her under your wing and loved her. ((Hugs)) to you!

[lph]

Aw, Patches is lovely in that photo. You can see how relaxed and happy she is, look at those paws. You gave her a great ending to her life, you couldn't do better than that.

[Selkie]

My stick! No it's MY stick.

Look how big Margot has gotten.

[Selkie]

Beth, I posted my picture without looking through the thread.

So sorry to hear about Patches. She sounds like a special soul and now will be your sweet guardian angel kitty.

[nancielle]

So sorry to hear about Patches. She does look very content and peaceful in the photo.

[bmccasland]

Thanks everyone. I still find myself looking out the kitchen window for her. Stilly little kitty.


Mickchick - Margot is getting big! And I appreciate happy puppy doggies playing STICK!!!

[bambu101]

Sorry about Patches. I can definitely relate, as I had to make the difficult decision to have our Kitty put to sleep yesterday.

She showed up 4 years ago after a bear had gotten into the garbage, and I looked out the window to see this beautiful gray cat surveying the buffet spread out around her. Our neighbors had moved away about 10 days prior to her showing up, and we believe they cruelly abandoned her to starve to death. She was very skittish and her ribs were sticking out. I fed her, and she was here to stay. My SO hates cats, so it was difficult at times for him to tolerate all her normal kitty behaviors, like walking on his freshly washed car and hunting mice and chipmunks.

Kitty followed me everywhere outside, and spent hours sitting on the stone wall, just waiting for a juicy chipmunk to poke his head out. She would sit in the shade of some plant in my garden while I weeded away. She also loved to bound over the top of deep snow, leaving these bizarre "belly prints" behind.

About a week ago, I noticed she was pretty lethargic, and then she was digging at one ear. It seemed to be infected by Sunday, and I didn't see her eat or drink. By Monday, her eye and nose was runny, and she kept swallowing. She would still purr like crazy when I petted her. I took her to the vet, thinking ahe had an ear /respiratory infection, and was shocked to hear that she had a malignant tumor on the side of her head under her ear, a high fever, and was dehydrated. The tumor was inoperable, and she was in pain and suffering, so we helped her to pass on and leave the pain behind.

Pete will make her a beautiful casket today, and she will rest at the edge of the woods near our departed birds.

Even though she was discarded like a piece of cast-off trash, she was loved and had a good home with us for the last 4 years. I will miss her terribly.

Rest in peace, Kitty.

[NoNo]

I'm so sorry to hear about Patches and Kitty. You can both take solace in knowing you made the last few years of their lives far better than they would have been. Hugs to you both.

[bmccasland]

Bambu101 - so sorry to hear about Kitty. At least you were able to find her, and get her to the Vet, and her suffering was put to an end gently. Cast off kitties do worm their ways into our souls. I'm certain Kitty and Patches have special places at the Rainbow Bridge.

I still look for Patches to come for breakfast, and listen for her to call to me. Silly little cat.

[emily_in_nc]

Rest in peace, Kitty.

So sorry bambu101. We had a sweet cat when I was a child, also named Kitty. She died of Feline Leukemia. So very sad...

You gave your Kitty a wonderful home, and helped her again in the end instead of allowing her to suffer. Hugs to you at this tough time...