It's the Kittens' 7th Birthday!

Oh!  I can hardly believe my beautiful kittens are 7-years-old now :) Ronan Jameson Fenriz and Pandora Rune celebrated their seventh birthday on Sept. 5th, 2018. 

They make me laugh and live every day I'm with them.  They greet me at the door with wild yowls of excitement, they wake me with paw slaps and aggressive mews for their breakfast, they cuddle with me and hold my fingers with their paws as we go to sleep. 

I have watched them grow from awkward, curious kittens to sleek and sassy (and still awkward and curious) cats whose very presence makes our little apartment a True Home.

Happy Birthday, Ronan.  Happy Birthday, Pandora.
I'm so lucky that you chose me.

Happy Birthday, Kittens <3

Fiesty game fun!

Ronan has a new favourite game.  I call it:
Make It Rain Receipts.

Technique:
1) Remove your massive pile of receipts from your wallet.
2) Enter each item and amount into your household budget app.
3) Toss completed receipt into the air or onto Ronan.
4) Watch him go nuts.
Repeat.

Enjoy.

Holiday Baking at my Apartment

I love to bake most months regardless, but December means lots of breads and cookies for Solstice, Christmas and Hannukah gifts.  The kittens love this because it means lots of spilled oatmeal and flour on the floor.

Ronan discovered the pile of flour before I did.

Sneaky, Ronan... very sneaky...

My Kittens are so SMART!

I like to describe the kittens as ill-behaved puppies:  They know what they are supposed to do, and most of the time they listen.

But the truth is, I have been training them since they were 4-months-old as if they were actually puppies -- same commands, same rewards-system, etc., and it really works.  Cats can absolutely do tricks, but most humans just don't bother to teach them.

The kittens are a bit limited by what "tricks" they can learn as their coordination and balance will always impact their physical ability to perform, but they are very smart and very eager to try.  Yet, people tend not to believe me when I tell them that the kittens know how to SIT upon command.  Here is video proof of their intelligence:

Pandora knows how to sit.

And Ronan knows how to sit.

Smart kitties :)

Blocked video in another country!

So this is interesting.

According to YouTube, one of my kitten videos cannot be streamed in Germany.

Was there kitty nudity?
Kitty cursing?
Nazi-kitty rituals?

No.
I happened to be playing a record by trip-hop artists Alpha while Pandora explored the DJ Kitty Scratch-mat in THIS video (*If you are in Germany, you will not be able to see it!*):

UMG registered a complaint and because of this they can play ads during the video that will benefit them, and I (*gasp!*) am not allowed to earn any money from this video (did i ever??).

So, there you go.
If you are recording a video of your cute kitty having fun with their new kick-ass toy, better not be enjoying any good audio art at the same time.

Sorry, Alpha.  I really wasn't trying to step on your toes.
Not sorry, UMG.  It was Pandora's selection, and on Christmas we all take turns picking out records to play.

Ronan is a Jerk

Well.  Not all the time, but it is springtime, so he's been extra "wild" lately.

Here he is trying to stalk his sister.

My favourite part is when he pounces and lands unceremoniously on the squeaky-squirrel toy at 0:25.

Ronan vs. The Duvet

I like to think that Pandora is the Master of Ideas and Ronan her willing henchman.  Usually, he will try - and fail - at things 10 or 20 times, while she will sit and observe him (judging, if you will), then try - and often succeed! - just once.

I think the Duvet downfall is Ronan's alone, however.  I have woken on many a morning with him buried inside the duvet cover, helplessly trapped and still squealing for breakfast.

I came home this evening to find Pandora at the door, but Ronan nowhere to be found.  Usually, he will make his timely appearance after the second or third time I call his name.  Tonight, I heard him call back, but show not even a whisker.  I went looking in the bedroom and found this:

(*** yes, it looks like there's no video, but trust me, it works)


Lord knows how long he was hanging around and waiting for my return!  I feel grateful he has such strong feelings about proper bathroom behaviour and did not relieve himself in the duvet...

It's the Kittens' 2nd Birthday!

It's the Kittens' 2nd Birthday!  Ronan and Pandora turned 2-years-old on Sept. 4/2013.  I was so busy that week and forgot until the next day :(  Baaaaaaddd.... I felt terrible.  Thus, the really, really super tasty treat to top last year's Wild Sockeye Salmon:

Medi-Cal SO diet canned food cut into triangles ("cake slices") and topped with fresh, organic catnip grown in my very own backyard.  Suck on that, Martha Stewart. 

Dear Dr. Kent, if you are watching this, please do not be mad.  I never, never give them treats, and this has been the only time since last year they have "cheated" on their diet (and by "they" I really mean Ronan, because Pandora is not allowed any treats since Ronan can't have them.  I believe in fairness).

Happy Birthday, Ronan!
Happy Birthday, Pandora!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Kittens!

Din-din.

The kittens are messy and creative eaters.  Ronan in particular has gone through a ridiculous transition in terms of his eating habits (see previous posts), but one thing has always remained:  A passion for food!

This is what dinnertime is like at our household every night... Note how Ronan holds the bowl (and himself) in place with one firmly planted paw...

A new toy!

My mother likes to describe Ronan and Pandora as her "Grand-kitties", and every time she sends a parcel to me there is usually a small gift or two for the kittens, too.  Easter saw two toys: The Neverending Chirping Bird, and the Sassy Squirrel.  I saved the Squirrel until her Mother's Day visit this month.

Enjoy!

Happy Spring Equinox, Everyone!

As an Easter/Spring gift from my Mom and Dad, I was sent a huge box of Cadbury's Mini Eggs (my favourite easter treat) and two special toys for the kittens.  Here are Pandora and Ronan enjoying the first: The Eternally Chirping Canary!

With only the slightest touch this stuffed canary will chirp and tweet to its heart's content.  Witness two predatory styles:

1) Ronan:  Throw a wide net.  Chase, scratch, thrash and otherwise scramble until you strike or capture something.

2) Pandora:  Patient Spear-wielder.  She is a huntress, this one.  She will wait until the opportune moment, then seize her prey with hardly a muscle moved. 

Also, I can tell already this Canary is going to drive me nuts.  I am going to keep it in the toybox for special occasions only.

Adventures in Laundry Land

Pandora is sneaky.  She is far more stealthy than her brother.   This week she was a Laundry Ninja.

Enjoy.

DJ Kitty Scratch Mat...!

Have I mentioned I have the greatest Landlord and Landlady in the world??

They bought THIS for the kittens this past Christmas.  best. gift. EVER.

NOTE:  This video is 3-and-a-half minutes long.  I realize this.  But it's so full of cuteness I couldn't help myself.  If you get bored, skip to 3:08 and watch the kittens come up with a new way of playing with the Scratchmat together.  Hooray!

Ronan was sick :(

Several weeks ago, Ronan starting `spotting` in the washroom (ie. leaving small drops of urine) which is usually a sign of urinary tract issues.  I was worried We had him checked out a few days before I had to leave town again (visiting family over Thanksgiving) and Dr. Kent took a urine sample just to be sure.  When we got home Ronan peed bloody urine all over the bathroom floor.  Awww... I felt so badly for him.

Results came in two days later (just in time, too, because I was about to leave town for the weekend). As suspected, there was definitely something amiss, but it wasn`t what I had suspected... Ronan had urine crystals!  :(  Poor little guy.  This was really surprising for me to discover, because he`s still so young and I`m very careful about what I feed the kittens.  They are on a Hill`s Science Diet recommended by the Vet, and the might get one small treat every other week.  What could he possibly have reacted to?

Unfortunately, i don't have a clear answer on that.  All we could do was switch his food to something designed to help eliminate and prevent crystals, and be vigilant towards it occuring in the future.  Ronan was not pleased.  He likes his T/D food because the kibble is large and fun to play with.  Plus, I started giving him some cranberry juice as a supplement to help flush out any crystals that are left.  He's not stoked on the cranberry - it's way too sour for him -but he doesn't mind it when i mix it in with his new wet food (which, of course, he loves).

Here is a video from the Vet Clinic...
** WARNING:  IF YOU ARE SQUEAMISH ABOUT MEDICAL PROCEDURES, DO NOT WATCH**

Happy 1st Birthday, Kittens!!!

Yes, it's true.  My tipsy twosome are now one full year old as of Sept. 4th :)

Here is a special birthday video I took of them on their special day.
Happy Birthday, Ronan.  Happy Birthday, Pandora.

Ronan the Film Critic

Last night I was watching the experimental French documentary Koyaanisqatsi and noticed Ronan was very intrigued by the sights and sounds coming from the T.V.  He spent a good 20 minutes just gazing at the screen, twitching his ears at every crescendo in the soundtrack, leaning forward during the multiple explosions sequences.

Pandora seemed less impressed by Godfrey Reggio's 1982 masterpiece than she was with Ronan's reactions to it.

Enjoy.

Ronan is a weirdo.

This is why there is kibble all over my apartment.

This is how Ronan eats.  You can't make this stuff up.  Pandora chases kibble, too, but Ronan's method has two exceptions to hers:

1) He lays on his side, scoots the kibble piece under his jaw and quickly licks it up.  Because of his cerebellar hypoplasia, his head has a consistent wobble and he gets "intention tremors" where his body jerks or shakes in anticipation of trying to execute a movement.

This is his way of steadying his head while eating.  I have tried to explain to him that it is not wise to eat lying down, but i don't think he's listening.

2) Ronan does not like to chew.  This is why he still has minor gingivitis while Pandora's is all but cleared up.  The kittens were put on Hill's Science Diet t/d Dental Care a few months back to help clean and condition their teeth and gums.  Dr. J is completely shocked that Ronan can get that whole kibble piece down in one gulp.  He has suggested we think about mixing this kibble with some canine t/d Diet as it is even larger.  I am worried it might not make one iota of difference to Ronan.

Meanwhile, I have to put an antiseptic oral gel on the kittens gums, and brush their teeth as regularly as they will allow.

And yes, he really does do this every day.

Occupational Therapy

"A profession concerned with promoting health and well being through engagement in occupation" -- World Federation of Occupational Therapy

Essentially, Occupational Therapy (OT) is a holistic approach to healthy living that takes mental, emotional and physical well-being into consideration when making recommendations and finding long-term solutions for out-patients' living situations.

This is the career path chosen by my younger sister Jane.  She spends her days meeting with patients, finding out how they are doing overall -- mentally, physically, and emotionally -- and determining how best they can return to living "normal" lives.  Often she meets people who have had accidents, illnesses, mental breakdowns, broken bones, and other afflictions that have landed them under the care of health professionals.  Every case is a person and she sees them as such.  She learns who they are, what they need, and works to figure out what way she can help them receive long- or short-term care to live happily and healthily.

I am truly proud of Jane.  She works really hard to help relative strangers, and she approaches each of them as individuals, not just patients.  I was both surprised and pleased when she met Ronan and Pandora last week and heard her take on their condition.

"They just don't know when to quit, do they?"

Nope.  They will keep trying to do whatever it is they want or need to do.  I showed her a few things in my apartment that I had added as aids for the kittens to go about their normal business, including the water fountain.  I explained my reasons for purchasing it, and how it has not only reduced spills and puddles, but also eliminated their getting splashed up the nose.

"You're an occupational therapist," she told me.  "And you didn't even know it.  You found a solution that fits what they need for their disability."

BONUS:
 One of Ronan's quirks: Forgetting to put his tongue back inside his mouth, especially when he is excited!

Fountain!

I may have found a solution to the Messy Kitten Problem.  The kittens have problems eating and drinking without making messes.  Just feeding them often results in:

- Chasing of food kibble
- Playing in puddles
- Crumbs found under carpets, in corners, and under furniture
- Sticky wet food tracked across the floor
- Food in the water dish and vice versa
- Moldy kibble found under carpets, in corners, and under furniture

The above is a direct result of several kitten habits including, but not limited to:

- Falling in water dish
- Aiming at water/food dish and missing
- Pouncing on food dish
- Fighting for first access to wet food dish
- Chasing kibble inside water dish
- Chasing of food kibble across floor and crashing into water dish


Long before I even adopted Ronan and Pandora, I was busy mentally compiling ideas for how to care for two kittens with Cerebellar Hypoplasia.  It occurred to me while at a pet store one day that a water fountain might be just the solution to help them with their drinking problem (haha).

When I first met Ronan, I noticed he "pecked" at his food and water dishes because he lacked the control to simply lower his head to the bowl and hold it there until he was finished eating or drinking.  More often than not he wound up getting water up his nose.  Using a water fountain seemed a natural solution as it provided a gentle slope of running water that was much shallower than the dish itself and was therefore less likely to submerge his nostrils.

Unfortunately, a good quality, stainless-steel fountain is pricey (I don't believe in using plastic if it can be avoided), so I had to wait a few months until finances were sorted.  After finding a pile of moldy crumbs and kibble stretching more than a foot under a cupboard, however, I decided this would be the Week of the Fountain.

Behold!  Fresh running water for my favourite feline friends.  It didn't take long to fully set up (though it would have taken even less time had I not had two very curious and over-eager helpers at my side trying to tackle every bag or bubble wrap pouch), and only a couple minutes to get the water pumping.  The kittens heard the motor start up, wobbled over and explored the new toy. 

And verdict is.....

Uhmmm.... maybe the jury is still out on this one.

This is by far my favourite video of the kittens.  It was shot the first night they came home with me -- January, 21st, 2012.

Ronan and Pandora always try everything with their full hearts.  They have no reason to believe they shouldn't.  They have the most ridiculous, hilarious time trying to chase the ball (and the slippery tile floors are not helping matters), but they are obviously having a blast together.

Did I mention it was hilarious?