Thankful for: 12 Years with My Cat

Tuesday was a sad, but inevitable day at Casa Greenlee. Our fluffy tuxedo cat, Jinx, saw the end of her days after a string of close calls. When they say cats have nine lives, they were talking about Jinx. We rescued her on her expiration date--after hours--at the pound, and from there began a mostly wonderful dozen years. Jinx wasn't a scairdy-cat, and had little fear of people. She was cool with you rubbing her belly, and you could play with her toes. She could be bitchy, but in a way that was full of personality. She was a vindictive pooper. But always in an easy-to-clean spot. And, she was my buddy. I'm married to a flight attendant, so when The Other Half is away, I always have had someone to talk to.

Now that she's gone, the house is less a home. And I find I'm talking to myself. It's a transition every pet owner makes, especially if it's their only pet, and for such a long time. Honestly, the sadness is bearable, as I know she had her life extended so many times. The hard part is definitely the decision to actually make the call, to end things. We couldn't do it the first day. Or the second. By day three, we knew we were just stalling, and committed. Blubbery messes we were. Jinx was just sort of annoyed, though she enjoyed her treat of beef jerky. She was her same adorable, fluffy, aloof, bitchy self on her last day. Which was kind of perfect.

As essentially an atheist, I can't really go in for mysticism, or spiritualism. But there is a little wistful part of me that hopes if there is anything to any of that stuff, that my cat gets to lounge on fluffy clouds, and eat endless bags of Jack's Links jerky, and piles of Daddy's rugs to poop on. RIP, Jinxy. You'll be a tough act to follow.

What Happens in Vegas: Horrifying Arson at Puppy Store

I'm a cat person, not a dog person. But I can't imagine the stone black heart it would take to plan to burn down your puppy business, while trying intentionally to burn the puppies! Fortunately the little guys survived. But can you imagine any jury not throwing the book at these two?

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Awwwww. Image from source, LVRJ

Puppies safe and happy after surviving pet shop arson

More than two dozen puppies are safe and happy after firefighters rescued them from a burning pet store. Clark County Animal Control officers moved the puppies to The Animal Foundation following the Jan. 27 fire, at Prince and Princess Pet Boutique. . .which authorities say was arson. They say they have surveillance video of shop owner Gloria Lee, 35, allowing a man identified in an arrest report as Kirk Bills into the building. Authorities say Bills is shown on the video splashing kerosene on the puppy cages. . .

Read more at: Las Vegas Review-Journal

What Happens in Vegas: The Sad Story of John Fredericks

I've sort of fallen out of the local news habit. The only time I seem to watch are those nights when The Daily Show is in reruns, or if I just happen to have the TV on at the right time. I catch it often enough to know who the local personalities are for the most part, and to know one station from the other. John Fredericks was--to me--just another of the many locally recognized names. I knew he had a dog named Jordan, and that to his regular viewers, his dog was something of a celebrity.

John Fredericks with Jordan in 2008.
Image from LVRJ.

When his dog died, I was involved in making the grave marker, an elaborate and attractive monument. And after that, I didn't really follow what happened to John Fredericks. Until I caught a snippet about some alleged misconduct, and reported it here on my blog: What Happens in Vegas: Local Weatherman Accused of Stalking. I really only took notice because it seemed so out of character. His persona was rather sunny, the middle-aged reporter with his adorable--but manly--dog.

I knew that Fredericks was breaking in a new dog named LJ ("Little Jordan"), and later that he'd left Las Vegas for a different market. I didn't think about Fredericks after that, except for the odd time that the link to my post would randomly pop up on my page. Then today, there was activity at work about the original Jordan monument. There was going to be an addition to acknowledge the passing of John Fredericks. Huh?

He can't even be out of his fifties, I thought. Again, it just seemed unlikely. But it was true, he'd died. Worse, he was in hospice at the time, suffering from cirrhosis. Apparently, he'd never gotten over Jordan's death. Which is sad enough. But the more you read about it, the sadder it gets.  Here is an excerpt from a local Las Vegas paper, a year before Fredericks died:

[Excerpt]

"When Jordan died in August 2007, Fredericks struggled with depression and alcoholism.
During Christmas week 2008, he left the business shortly after his replacement dog, LJ (for Little Jordan), was banned from the station. . .

. . .But jobs were scarce and he ended up with a $9-an-hour job cleaning 150 cat litter boxes every morning. The owner allowed him to stay in a trailer. He slept in a sleeping bag, existing without water or heat. . ." Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal

It just gets worse from there, and as I said, that was a year ago. I went into this story just to note the death of a moderate local celebrity, and came out depressed and a bit upset. And ask anyone, I'm all black-hearted and compassion free most of the time. But apparently, this guy led one of the most sad-sack, string-of-bad-luck, depressing lives you can almost imagine, buoyed briefly by a stetch of years where he simultaneously had a wonderful dog and a great job as a local celebrity. The rest is just. . .well, the poor guy. Obviously, a long-term healthy life can't be anchored to the life of an animal that only lives an average of 12-15 years. It's too bad somebody couldn't have helped him before his life took such a sad turn.

[Excerpt]

John Fredericks, 57, dies in hospice

Former Las Vegas weatherman John Fredericks, who never recovered from the 2007 death of his golden Lab, Jordan, his longtime on-air companion, died Friday. He had checked in Nathan Adelson Hospice on Tuesday. . .

Read more at: LVRJ

Don't Roof Rack Me, Bro! (Seamus Unleashed) by Devo

You know that story about Mitt Romney strapping his dog to the roof of the car, and then speeding off down the highway for hundreds of miles? Yeah, it never really went away. There's a whole movement of dog lovers out there who won't drop it. But did you know that the band Devo feels the same way? Wrote a song about it. Like to hear it? Here it go!

Pit Bull Hero

Image from DogFiles

Now here's something you don't see every day. Pit bulls usually get spectacularly bad press. But they're not all bad. My friend Stupid Monkey Planet has had a couple, and they're wonderful. My mom had one that was bug-ass crazy, but it wasn't her fault that someone had raised her for fighting (not Mom). Anyway, it's nice to see the breed--which some communities have actually outlawed--get a good story.

[Excerpt]

Stray Pit Bull Saves Woman, Child From Attacker



The wandering 65-pound Pit Bull mix might have seemed menacing to some passerby, but one woman will always remember him as her “guardian angel. . .”


Read more at: DogFiles (via @KaleyCuoco on Twitter)

Ziggy Marley & Me

The Other Half and I spent some time with our good friends on New Year's Day, at an annual dinner of crown roast of pork. It's become more of an event than New Year's Eve in our circle of friends. This year, there is a new addition to the group, a dog named Mr. Ziggy.

Ziggy is one of a couple of dozen dogs used in the movie Marley & Me. Apparently, his specialty is jumping into water on command, and taking himself for a walk. He's a gangly, rambunctious fellow, and cute as can be. But he is a chewer. Oddly enough, he picked a hardback copy of Marley & Me to chew up! And the book is subtitled "Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog." Funnily enough, when they opened the book to see if the spine was intact, it was opened to Chapter 11: The Things He Ate.

Welcome to the family, Mr. Ziggy!

Frivolity Break: Malfunctioning Dog

I'm having another of those "hard to blog" days. There's an unusual (for Las Vegas) blanket of snow on the ground. I have a stack of Christmas cards I have to fill out or I'll never get them out in time. And nothing I'm finding online is striking my fancy for the blog. I haven't given up yet, but this disclaimer will have to suffice if I can't find something soon! So, for now, here's some frivolity. . .

Dog Malfunction

Clinton Cat, Socks, Near Death

Image from source, US News

Poor kitty. When the Republicans went after the Clintons, they didn't stop with the human members of the Administration and family. The even went after the Clinton's cat, Socks. Something to do with the Christmas card list, or something, who cares. As a cat lover, it was nice to see a White House pet other than a dog.

But Socks' lives are running out, as unfortunately happens to all pets sooner than we'd like. As I often say, a pet is just a little tragedy waiting to happen.

[Excerpt]

Clinton's Socks the Cat Near Death

We have some bad news today on the presidential pet front. Socks the cat, probably the most photographed presidential kitty in history, has cancer and isn't expected to live. "His days are numbered," says Barry Landau, a friend of Socks' master, Betty Currie. Landau, a presidential historian and author of The President's Table, tells our Suzi Parker that the Currie family could have put Socks on feeding tubes, but decided against it. "They fear he is too old," adds Landau, who is writing a book on presidential inaugurations. And a second source told us that Socks is gravely ill. . .

Read more at: US News

My Cat Hates Me

We rescued our cat from the late but not lamented Dewey Animal Shelter here in Las Vegas. We weren't told that 85% of the cats from Dewey were ill with severe upper respiratory infections. Not until after we had adopted her, of course. We saved her on her last day before termination, and it wouldn't be the last time we saved her life.

After a week of ownership, it became clear that the cat was very ill, and not just shy. She spent all of her time under the bed, and wouldn't eat or drink. So, we took her to the animal hospital, and $400 later, and three weeks of force-feedings, she was on the road to health. A relapse occurred after she was declawed a month later (necessary, because she'd taken a shine to our brand new furniture). She got through that with antibiotics (ever give a cat a series of pills? Not. Fun.).

Because of all of this trauma, and because she plumped up nicely, and isn't allowed outside or around other cats, we let her skip the vet for the past six years. But over the last few months, Jinx has developed a lump right between her eyes. It might just be a wart or a mole or something, but it was getting bigger, and started to show through her fur. So, back to the vet.

I was not scolded for her chubitude, which was nice. Nor was I reprimanded for the skipped visits. But I was presented with a $430 vet bill. And a cone around the cat's head. And one very pissed off cat. And I haven't even mentioned the car ride to and fro. Mercy. She's going to wear herself out squalling, and/or in the attempt to remove the cone. And the damned thing has to stay on for two weeks! It's going to be a very long 14 days. . .

Frivolity Break: What Your Cat Does at Night

I love this video! I know from experience that my cat is "up to stuff" in the middle of the night. But I never thought of catching her on video! This cat is unperturbed by her owner's tossing and turning, and likes to climb on him. I get this same attitude in the early morning. It means, give me breakfast now!

Goodbye to a Friend: Pepper the Wonderdog

I don't have much time for blogging today, since we are spending time with some friends with a very sick doggie. Sadly, it may be the last time we get to visit their dog, Pepper. She's had a medically rough life, but has provided them with an outstanding companionship over the last ten or eleven years. Luckily for her, her owners are gourmet cooks, and plan on making her last days as enjoyable (and fattening) as possible!

We're gonna miss her (even if our cat won't). We know going in, when we get a pet, that they're a little tragedy waiting to happen. And we always want to forestall that day as long as possible. I'm sure when our kitty's days are winding down, we're going to go through much the same thing, so I want to express my warmest wishes to my friends. You guys gave her the best life she could have had--indeed rescuing her from an awful animal shelter--quite possibly extending her lifetime by a decade. Good on you both!

Look, Ma! I Shouldn't Exist!: Hybrid Puppies

Photo of elk-brador and elk-bull puppies by author

And I don't mean they're good for the environment when I say "hybrid." I mean the original definition, the mixing of two gene pools, often pools that don't occur naturally.

People are apparently becoming more interested in "designer doggies," mixing poodles with golden retrievers, and the like. I think it's kind of weird, but there's no denying that some of these combos are very cute.

We once had two female dogs ("bitches" just seems rude), a pit bull terrier and a Labrador retriever; both of which made sweet love down by the fire with a Norwegian elk hound, who really got around. Most of the resultant elk-bull puppies died (their mother crushed them), but the Labrador took care of her elk-bradors, who were very cute but strangely repelled by and attracted to water. They wanted in sooo bad, but then got frightened when they got wet. Labby (that was really her name) took care of her own pups, as well as the elk-bulls.

Now, what I really want to see is a Labrador retriever crossed with a Chihuahua, which would undoubtedly be called a "Lab Rat."

Hot Hybrids

Goldendoodle




Source: Portfolio

Cute With Chris: Are You a Crazy Cat Lady?

Cute With Chris is a quirky internet show that almost always makes me laugh. I occasionally like to punctuate my overly-serious blog with some fun stuff, and Chris fits the bill.

In this episode, Chris' topic is crazy cat ladies. Are you one? Find out here. And if you are, don't worry about it too much. My brother is a crazy cat dude, and he's still invited to (most) family functions.