Wow, everyone is so welcoming and wonderful here. thank you so much. More about my kittyman...His name is Brooklyn P. O'Malley officially. LOL. My boyfriend named him Brooklyn because it's a very very special place to us, the P stands for Putty tat (doh) and O'Malley because he's got orange fur...makes me think of an irish red-head. LOL. I found him outside my office on Thursday and he very willingly came into my arms and into my life. He walked into my house like he owned the place. lol. Went right up to the dogs and marked them as his rubbing his face all over them. My dog Lucy didn't know what to make of it, she kind of looked as if she were saying "ohmygod what is this!!" she kind of had a "help me mom!" look in her eyes. My boy Linus wanted to play with Brooklyn and started doing the doggy play bow at him and barking at him to instigate him to play. Brooklyn wasn't startled by him in the least and just looked at Linus as if to say "And that means what exactly? How silly you look". LOL. He is absolutely FAN-tastic. Beautiful, sweet, personable, smart, vocal aannnnd hysterically funny. He rolls around, acts silly (a big personality plus for me, I LOVE silly...lol) he even played with a toy I made him...all it is, is a string with a bell tied to the end, he loves it! So cute the way they bat it with their paws.
I'm so excited about him because I have never lived with a cat before or known any very intimately. This is an experience for me and a wonderful one at that. I am sad to know he is sick but he is doing so well. Looking at him and observing his behavior, he appears as a perfectly healthy and normal cat. He has a RAVENOUS appetite and has gained some weight already. His belly looks nice and full. lol. His age has been guesstimated at about 5. He is not a kitten. I would definitely like to know more about feeding him. Right now I have him on feline a/d by hill's science diet (which isn't one of my favorite food companies but...the vets office gave it to me to fatten him up) and some kibble which they told me to have out all day for him. Is that right? I am a VERY serious guardian (don't use the word owner either Nina...I just can't...lol) about my animals. They are my children, my family and my life. It's just us here in my cozy apartment and we live very happily together. (my goodness I love animals...lol) I also have 2 rabbits, which Brooklyn hasn't bothered at all. I do all my research and have always found that having others to talk with has been one of the greatest helps. I'm so glad I joined here. I read up on everything and always take my animals to the vet at the sign of even a sniffle. My animals are VERY important to me and no less so than any human's life (in fact more so thatn SOME humans I know...lol) This is a hot topic whenever I bring it up, and I always hesitate to do so, but I want to put it out there. I am a vegan and my dogs are also on a vegan diet for almost 4 years now, vet supervised and are doing fantastically. I am always open for discussion on it, as long as it's not offensive. I don't push others to my ideas, I do it for my own reasons, so I'll never discuss it here other than mentioning it in this email. I however, I want to stress that I do NOT intend to try and change Brooklyn to such a diet at any point. He is too fragile for that, and cats, being obligate carnivores to begin with are very difficult to adjust to that kind of diet. (Most vegans would disagree with my decision, but I'm a whole different breed. LOL). So, he's the only meat eater in this house, and his health comes first. SO, that being said, please offer me any suggestions on diets, foods what I should feed him, supplements and what dosages I should be giving him. I will do whatever I must to get him healthy, boost and keep his immune system up and give him the best and healthiest life possible. More about Brooklyn's personality. He's a trip. He lets me know when he wants something and is usually pretty clear about what it is. The dogs keep trying to eat his food and get to his litterbox, so I built a shelf above their food area where he can jump up and have his food safe from the dogs trying to steal it. He got used to it in no time. I put his litterbox in a private place for him and have to get a cover for it before lucy starts thinking "bon bons!". Ew. He has had no accidents since his diarrhea cleared up. Other than that, he has his own collar now which he will soon proudly wear with his name on it and NO he will not be an outdoor cat at all. That would be my decision regardless of whether he was FeLV+ or not. Knowing all the dangers and hazards to a cat's health and well being that exist outside when I can't be there to care for a cat is more than I want to think about. I've seen more than my share of cats and other animals that meet their fate along the roads. He lives here with me now so I can give him the best care. He sleeps in bed with us, snuggled up to my side and wakes me every morning with loud purring and brushing his face up against mine. How can you not love that? Again I repeat...HOW CAN YOU NOT LOVE THAT! So....thank you SO much for listening, for helping me to give my new family member a better life and for being so welcoming and kind. I am glad to be here. Looking forward to diet recommendations! Best, Rebecca, Brooklyn, Linus & Lucy pugs, and Casey & Baxter Rabbit (and a few nameless spiders about...lol) Can I attach pictures here? I have some of all the kids if I'm able to share them. Thanks!
