Partners in Crime

Every now and then, I catch Luna and Bandit pairing up like partners in crime to do something they are not allowed to do. Occasionally I find Bandit standing watch while Luna gets into mischief on top of the refrigerator, other times Luna distracts me while Bandit steals my food. This time, the cats found one of those rubber armbands and they stole it. I found them in the bedroom being mischievous little rascals.

Can’t you just see the silent conversation?…

“La la la, I love to steal Mama’s things. This armband is mine now. Hehehe.”

“Oh no! I pushed it under the door and I can’t reach it!”

“Bandit, help me! My little arms don’t reach that far.”

“See Bandit, its right under the door.”

“Ok, this is what we’re going to do. I’ll keep watch and you get the armband. But be quiet so Mama doesn’t hear us. We aren’t supposed to play with her things!”

“Rawr! I will shred this door to bits so my Luna can have her armband!”

“No, no, no Bandit, you just keep watch and maybe I can reach it if I really try.”

“Just a little further…”

“Got It! Good greif, this armband was not worth the trouble.”

ChristmasKitty is on Etsy!

Big news for the new year folks! ChristmasKitty is now selling items on Etsy! Go check out my shop here. Right now I am only selling knitted items, but I love to sew and do hand embroidery as well. New items will be coming soon 🙂 Until then, check out my shop and let me know what you think. Luna doesn’t care what I make, as long as she gets to sit on my lap while I knit and guard the yarn when I leave.

Merry Christmas!

On this day three years ago, I rescued Luna from one of the worst high kill animal shelters in southern California. There were so many adorable kittens packed like sardines into tiny 2×2 cages, but she was the only one that sat right in front and stared at me. Her big blue eyes just melted my heart and I was hooked. Sure, I played with the other kittens in her jail cell, but I knew from the start that she was my Luna. She was my Christmas Kitty.

Three years later, she has grown so much and her fur has completely changed, but when I look at those big blue eyes, I see her as she was on that rainy Christmas Eve; tiny, scared, beautiful, perfect.

Christmas is always a very special time of year for many reasons, but for me, Christmas will always be the time of year when the hole in my heart was filled with love for the most wonderful kitty in the world. Over the years, new companions have entered the picture. Bandit has become Luna’s very best friend, and another hole I didn’t realize I had was filled again with love for him.

Christmas also happens to be the time of year when Luna and Bandit become extremely mischievous. They like to make a game out of chasing each other around and up (yes, I said up) to the top of the Christmas tree. Broken ornaments are to be expected, and this year, Bandit even ate part of one.

I can’t imagine that a very old dried up starfish covered in paint and glitter would taste very good, but he certainly didn’t want to give up the remaining pieces when I found out what he was up to!

Luna enjoys hiding behind the tree and presents to ambush Bandit as he passes by.

Throughout the year I am reminded how lucky I am to be the mama of such sweet and rascally cats Bandit, and Luna, my Christmas Kitty. Hold your pets close and give them Christmas kisses! There’s no better Christmas gift than love  from your four legged companions.

Merry Christmas!

Luna Likes Watermelon!

I have fond memories of sitting under the fruit trees in my yard as a kid and eating so much watermelon I felt ready to burst. The cool sticky juice would run down my chin and all over my hands, and I didn’t even mind. That’s the beauty of being a kid in the summertime. Well, one summer when I was about ten years old, I ate so much watermelon that I couldn’t bear to eat another bite. That feeling lasted me almost eighteen years!

Just this last month, I started to want watermelon again. Why after so long? I don’t know; maybe because this summer has been hellishly hot, or maybe because the mini watermelons at the market have been on sale and I’ve been craving something light and refreshing. Anyway, I’ve been eating watermelon every day now for the past few weeks. I just can’t get enough!

As I was snacking on a slice a few days ago, Luna came up and started sniffing around. I remember seeing a YouTube video of a cat eating watermelon, and thought maybe Luna would like to eat a little bit. I’m definitely not one of those cat owners who likes to feed their pets human food, but occasionally Luna gets a treat. She especially enjoys crunching on raw green beans! Well, I ate most of the slice of watermelon and then held the last bit out for Luna. She liked it!

I guess human kids aren’t the only ones who need a refreshing summertime treat every now and then.

Check out the video here!

Broken Bandit

Yesterday we had a bit of a scare. Bandit screamed in pain when we tried to pick him up, and we knew something was wrong. After a very long wait for the vet to see him on emergency, we had to leave Bandit at the hospital for radiographs under sedation. Late last night Dr. Roberts called to say that our sweet Bandit has a fractured and displaced sternum, with damage to the surrounding soft tissue. She wanted to keep him overnight for observation, and we couldn’t see him until this morning after the surgeon reviewed his radiographs to see if surgical intervention was necessary. YIKES!

After a long night of fitful sleep, I woke up, got myself together and went to get my baby. Dr. Robbins, the vet on staff this morning, showed me Bandit’s radiographs. Here’s what I saw.

You can see that the last sternovertebrae  is protruding due to the fracture just above it. What is more concerning is what she showed me next.

The left side of his chest appears to show a pulmonary contusion. We are waiting for the radiologist to confirm this,  but that type of injury is consistent with a severe fall. Bandit is such a rough and tumble cat, always running, jumping and crashing into things. Unfortunately, there isn’t anything we can do for Bandit except give him his pain medication and keep him separated from Luna for a few weeks to limit his activity level. We also have to monitor him closely to make sure his breathing is not abnormal and his gum color is pink.

We hope for a speedy recovery, and appreciate your kind thoughts and prayers!

Cowgirl Lu

When I received this picture message from Waseem today, my mundane afternoon at work was suddenly made brighter.

And this from a guy who is against dressing up our cats! He-Haw! Lu is the cutest cowgirl in town.

Bandit the Brave

Today my sweet Bandit did a very brave deed. He saved a kitten’s life.

This tiny kitten “Byrd” was in desperate need of a blood transfusion. She was extremely anemic, malnourished and dehydrated. Byrd was so weak that she could barely hold up her own head. The vet said that if she didn’t have a blood transfusion fast she probably wouldn’t make it. 

After testing our hospital cat Odie and our adoption cat Klaus, and discovering that they both had Type B blood, they came to me. Byrd needed Type A, and we were out of options. They asked if I would consider testing Bandit for a blood match. I went home to pick up Bandit, and blood type testing and cross matching showed he was a perfect donor. Bandit was the hero of the day. The blood transfusion went very well and now Byrd has a chance at life. 

I’m so proud of Bandit for doing such a good deed. Now he is relaxing after an extra special Hero’s dinner. 

 

Let’s hear it for Bandit the Brave!

Meet Odie

This is Odie. Odie is about two years old, and sweet as the come. Odie is no ordinary cat. He is the office cat at my work. Some people might think that having a cat roaming around an animal hospital is miserable, but Odie doesn’t seem to mind. He loves to hang out in the fax room and snoop in my purse. You can also find Odie upstairs in the food storage room sniffing the bags of food and hiding behind boxes of purged medical records. Every day Odie gets lots of love and playtime, and unlimited food and treats!  Pretty good life if you ask me.

Oh Odie, you are a handsome beast!

Happy 1st Birthday Bandit!

Today is Bandit’s 1st birthday.”Wait a minute, he is only one?!” is the comment I’ve heard the most. “But he is sooooo big!” Yes, Bandit is 12 pounds of pure muscle, which is why I like to call him my Big Bubba. Well, his first birthday is a big deal to me and I figured we would celebrate accordingly. Bandit got  a new cat nip mouse, and was a pretty good sport about wearing his birthday hat. No, there wasn’t any tuna flavored cake, but he did get lots of treats and extra cuddles.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BANDIT!!!

Luna’s First Bath

I’m not one of those cat owners who believes it is necessary to bathe their cats, although I do wipe my cats down with hypoallergenic kitty wipes. Today however, Luna had a huge litter box blow out on my lunch break from work and wound up with a very nasty mess all over her body. How on Earth did that happen?! Needless to say, the wipes just didn’t cut it. Fortunately, I work at an animal hospital and the doctor on staff today offered to bathe her for me.

Although Luna is a sweet angel at home (most of the time), she is an entirely different beast at the vet. I was absolutely certain that they would need to sedate her to give her a bath, and so, very nervously, I handed her over to be tortured…I mean…bathed. They kindly asked me to leave the room so as not to make her more nervous, and I went back to the front desk to finish my work. I listened closely for screams, both feline and human, and half expected the doctor and technicians to come out with bloody scratch marks all over their arms. I was shocked when they came out with Luna all wrapped in a towel to dry only a few minutes later.

Was that all?! Why was I so sure it was going to be a disaster? Luna was trembling with fear and not at all happy, but she remained calm wrapped like a kitty burrito. They said she was a perfect angel during her bath and only meowed once. I gratefully held my sweet Luna and gave her lots of kisses on her nose, and she quickly stopped trembling and even fell asleep in my arms. I’m so proud of my little Lu on her very first bath day! She was so well behaved, smells so fresh and looks so fluffy. Well that wasn’t so bad after all. Maybe bathing my cats is a good idea.

Ohhhh Bandit….!