Mancat Monday

This post is a Harrison birthday recap.  Some of you may have seen these photos on Facebook already.  Harrison had a great couple of days celebrating...we appreciate all the birthday wishes!

Playtime with his favorite feather toy.  On Saturday, he got a new feather to enjoy!  This feather toy is super fragile and doesn't last very long.

He and his brothers got a new puzzle toy.  Everyone loves fishing treats out!

Birthday greetings from my car :)

A nice nap on his favorite pillow...

Lots of time being held up at the door windows to watch the birds.  There is a wreath on this door, and sometimes they will land on it!  Now, please note, there is a double window about three feet to the left of this door for him to watch from, but he prefers to be held up like this!  Auntie bought some ferns for the front porch and the birds have already started building nests in them.  There is a lot of activity on the front porch!

And of course, his birthday wouldn't be complete without a swim in the tub!  

Here it is on YouTube

There you have it...a fun and memorable birthday for Harrison!

Happy Birthday Harrison!

Happy Birthday to my sweet Harrison.  He is a silly boy, that still acts skittish at times, but loves to get snuggles.  He is soft like a rabbit and talks all the time.  Harrison is quite bossy, but his cuteness and round muffin head lets him get away with it!  He is a good brother and a friend to all.  I am so thankful to have him in my life.

Mancat Monday

Flynn had a great birthday!  Thank you all for the well wishes...we felt loved!  

Flynn started his celebration week off with some special treats.  His color is teal/aqua, so those were the package colors I chose for him.  I have assigned each boy a color, and this helps me in choosing Christmas ornaments, toys, scrapbook items, blankets/beds. clothes, and in this case, treats.  Here is a list of everyone's colors.

Oliver = Orange

Harrison = Red

Flynn = Teal

Rusty = Navy 

I set up birthdays in my car, so it helped me remember and celebrate Flynn as well!

Flynn loves to stroll, and it was a beautiful day for a trip around the neighborhood.

Here is a short video of Flynn...he loves to push on this igloo.  Such a goof ball!

Here it is on YouTube

The fish hasn't been mentioned in a while, so he was feeling left out.  The boys have a betta fish and they love to watch him swim.  We like to keep a snail in the tank as well to help keep it clean.  Unfortunately, our last snail died a couple of weeks ago.  I was going to buy a new one, but someone offered me a couple for free...score!  They are just babies...can you see them above?

Here they are...eating on a piece of algae wafer...they are tiny fellas!

Well there you have it...the boys are all doing well.  Flynn had a great birthday.  And the fish has two new tank-mates!

Happy Birthday Flynn!

Happy 3rd Birthday to my big goof Flynn! He is a fun and loving boy.  Flynn is a good brother and has stopped trying to be the boss of everyone!  Flynn is a gentle giant, a very trusting soul.  I am thankful to have him in my life.

Mancat Monday

The boys have had a fun week.  Everyone is doing well now.  Flynn felt puny for a couple of days, but seems to be better now.

Harrison hasn't had a photo posted in a while, so I tried to get one of his this week.  Here he is playing with a string and his igloo.  He has been very frisky lately, asking to play and snuggle daily!

I broke out the laser pointer and the boys have LOVED running up and down the hall!  We added this carpet runner, so Pirate could move around easier.  It was hard for him to walk on the hardwood floor.  The first cat down is Harrison, Flynn runs back and then Oliver takes a turn and attacks the wall!

View here on YouTube

This video shows Rusty running down the hall.  It took him longer to catch on to the idea and understand what you were supposed to do, but he loves it now!

View here on YouTube

Mancat Monday

The boys are returning to normal after their big adventure last week.

Rusty in his favorite spot at night.  This bed has a heated pad under the blanket, so he likes to cook.  I think he is getting a bit warm, since the one leg is sticking out.  

Flynn is asking to play with his strings.  He has quite a few that he likes.  It is a guessing game to pick the right one for each play session!

Rusty helped me with the laundry.  He loves to burrow in the clothes, just like brother Harrison.  He was purring up a storm!

Wanting to play this morning, but Oliver was on top of the condo, and Harrison was in the room.  Rusty doesn't like to play in front of others.  He prefers the room to himself!

I haven't looked at their gums yet to see if the redness has gone.  I think they will all need their nails trimmed this coming up weekend, so I'll look then.

Flynn and Rusty Update

Well, yesterday was the big day for Flynn and Rusty.  We headed over to the vet bright and early.  They were both starving!  Rusty sang the entire trip, and continued until we were placed in a room.

There was no window in this room, so Flynn wasn't sure how he would escape!

The schedule was pretty light, so the tech thought they would start early on them.  Rusty went first and did great...no extractions needed!!

Flynn was next, and he also did great!  No extractions for him either!!  He does have a little bit of bone recession so they did a gel sealant under his gums to try and help.  Otherwise, they both looked great!

Rusty sang all the way home, and they both bolted out of their carriers and headed to the breakfast plates.  I let them eat that, and then waited about 45 minutes before giving anything else, just to make sure they didn't have an upset tummy from the anesthesia.  They were both just fine, and came back for dinner when I offered it.

Flynn was super loving and high as a kite from his meds!  He just wanted to be snuggled and talked to.  Rusty was suspicious and didn't want to have anything to do with me!  He wasn't about to caught and shoved in that carrier again.

Flynn is still pretty tired acting this morning so I'm hoping by this afternoon he will feel more like himself.  He should be able to rest while we are at work.

Rusty was watching his birds, and his eyes are back to normal...no more large pupils.  He hid when I started to leave, again, not taking any chances on getting snatched up!

Thank you all for your kind words, positive thoughts and purrs.  The POTP helped my boys and my pocketbook :)

Mancat Monday

The mancats have had a nice week.  It stopped raining on Sunday afternoon and we were able to open the windows for a bit.

Since Rusty and Flynn have been such good boys about taking their medicine, they got a new tent to play in.  Rusty took right to it!

Playtime with a blue feather is always fun.  Rusty is very particular about his feathers.  I have tried other colors, and I don't know if he doesn't see them as well, but this dark blue is by far his favorite.

I do with Target would come out with another cat scratcher, so we can take down the Christmas Cafe in the background.

Flynn (left) and Oliver are waiting to see if I will share my ice cream with them.  Oliver is really the only one that likes it, and he got a few licks.  Flynn just doesn't want to be left out!

No pics of Harrison this week, but he is doing fine.

Thursday is the big day for Flynn and Rusty...purrs would be appreciated.

Mancat Monday

The mancats continue to do well.  We have the dental scheduled for February 28th for Flynn and Rusty.  They are currently on two weeks of antibiotics getting ready for the big day!

Rusty, Oliver and Flynn hanging out waiting to play!

Rusty didn't know what to think when he got his first dose of Doxycycline...poor boy was wiped out!  Thankfully, he has improved with taking his meds and doesn't struggle as much now! 

Flynn is the one we swabbed, and he came back positive for something called Mycoplasma Felis.  This is a bacteria that can cause chronic URI's, although isn't known to cause dental issues.  The vet thinks Flynn is a carrier, so we are treating him and Rusty for it.

As far as viruses that can cause dental problems, he was negative for everything else.  He was tested for Herpes, Calici, Bartonella, several different Flu strains, and Chlamydia.  This is all good news.

Oliver is thankful he isn't taking meds, although I will ask if the rest of the boys need to be treated for that bacteria.  We seem to pass sneezing around a lot.  It goes away without intervention, but it would be nice if we could get rid of it!

There you have it.  I hope a good cleaning will be all the boys need.

Mancat Monday

So Rusty and Flynn went to the vet last Thursday to have their gums checked out.

Rusty sang the entire trip over and announced his presence to the receptionist when we arrived!

Flynn jumped right out of his carrier, once we were in our room, and tried to find an escape route.  Sorry bud, that window doesn't open!

Both boys were walking around when the vet came in.  He asked, who wants to go first, and right on cue, Rusty went back into his carrier!  So Flynn went first.  He is not a good patient, so he had to be wrapped in a towel.

Rusty went next, and doesn't mind being examined.

Once Flynn was done, he was just as friendly as normal, hanging out waiting on brother to be done.

All of the results are not in yet, but I expect to hear this week.  They both need dentals because their guns are very irritated and painful around some teeth.

They will get x-rays while under to check the roots of their teeth.

They are doing quite a bit of blood work looking for possible causes of this early gingivitis, because they don't have any tartar or calculus on their teeth.  The vet wonders if it is a virus or bacteria causing the inflammation.  He also took some swabs of Flynn's gums to see if anything shows up.

I imagine they will go on the 21st for their cleanings and possible extractions.

Well, there you have it.  Two young boys with dental issues :)

What age did your cats start showing signs of dental problems?

Mancat Monday

We are back to our regularly scheduled program featuring the mancats...They are all doing well and living life to the fullest!

Strings became the new favorite this week...

Flynn chirps every time you walk by him to play with his string!  It's nice to have found something he loves.

Oliver still enjoys this wool and yak fur mat...

This cute chicken toy lasted about 5 minutes!  Harrison chewed the end off and all the catnip spilled out.

Rusty and Flynn enjoying the spoils...

Rusty ended up being a little territorial over the pile and would slap anyone that came near!  We had to have a lesson on sharing. 

Auntie, with Flynn and Rusty helping mixed up some more hard food.

Flynn in his hole on the couch...look at those cute toes!

Harrison in his hole...he sits so funny!

Flynn and Rusty will be going to the vet on Thursday.  They both have a red line around their gums and I want to make sure we don't need to be doing something about it.

Mancats Interrupted Monday

 I haven't posted in a few weeks because I've been in Kenya again.  This post has a lot of photos.  

Our team went to a new village this year, called Irigithathi.  It sits at the base of Mount Kenya, near the equator.  The area is arid and water is scarce most of the year.  The community was recently able, due to the partnership with 410 Bridge, to install a bore hole (or well).  

Our job was to help them get started on laying pipe to connect the homes to this water supply.

We were all digging and shoveling dirt.  The trench needed to be 2 feet deep.

Finally, a section was complete and the pipe was going down.  We helped get 10 pipe lengths laid, and the villagers were going to need to dig for another 140 pipes for this first line!  They gave themselves 10 days to finish.  Everyone in the town helps to install the pipes, or they will have to pay more for the water down the road. 

Another day in the village, we divided into groups and visited homes.  In my home we were able to hold the baby bunnies, feed chickens, and helped cook and work in the garden some.

Peeling potatoes...

Stirring the finished dish...mashed potatoes, with corn, beans, and greens.

Digging in the garden...trying to get the bed ready for planting.

Our home visit group...this trip was fun because our church teamed up with some members of our Kenyan church and we went together to help. 

We stopped on the equator for a photo op!

Later, back in Thika, we visited a ministry called Street Hope.  This is one our church started and it helps rescue women from survival prostitution and gives them a job, or helps them start a business.  At the center, we helped cook lunch.

Later, we went to the former Ark Orphanage.  The Ark has moved to another town and we missed seeing the children.  The property belongs to our church though, so we were working to convert it to a community center.  Starting with a fresh coat of paint.

A highlight of the trip was meeting my Compassion child, Peter.  He was quite shy, and wasn't sure about me, but I know he will remember this day.

Here's Auntie with Peter and her girl, Veronica.

If you zoom in, you can see Peter smiling!  He enjoyed jumping on the trampoline.

We took a quick trip through Kibera slums.  This was overlooking the slum.  Once inside and walking around you can't take photos. 

Lastly, we went to the Elephant Orphanage.  We were able to see them feeding the elephants before they went to bed.  It was nice because this was a private event for people with sponsorships.  There were very few people, and we could talk to the keepers, pet the elephants, and spend time just enjoying their beauty.

The youngest elephants wear blankets to keep warm.

Here is a video of the babies running in for the night...

Click here to view on YouTube

That's our trip in a nutshell.  The boys are doing well, and will be back to posting next week.