And how is Wii?

For the past 1-2 weeks, Tiger has been helping and supporting Wii.  Tiger goes out to the backyard and keeps Wii company. 

Yesterday, Wii even had the courage to come into the kitchen and eat together with Tiger.

Tiger (left) and Wii.  Tabbies unite!

Here's Tiger, Teddybear and Peanut accompanying Wii as he eats up on his little platform.  Looks like Wii has a friend from each generation!

Oh give me a home, where the buffaloes roam...

And the deer and the antelope played...
Where seldom is heard, a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day...

That's a song from my childhood - Home on the Range.

I wish I had a home on the range.  Then, I wouldn't have to work so hard at looking for adopters for all these rescued kittens on my hands.  I wouldn't have to worry about the dangers of fast vehicles too.    

What is happening on the homefront?

I'll let the pictures tell the story...

Peanut is emulating Teddybear, and loves to copy what the elder one does.

She socialises with all the seniors.  Here she is with Indy Jones.

And with Tiger, too.

She prefers to mingle with Xiao Li and Teddybear.

Jelly prefers the biggest boss of 'em all, Bobby.  I'm convinced it's a colour thingie.

Jelly really had me worried for a few days ever since she had that injury on her paw pads.  Her appetite was badly affected as well.  Perhaps the pain on her paw pads made her lose her appetite.  This evening, she started eating again.  I was much relieved. 

This is Butter, right after a meal.  He hangs out with Xiao Li sometimes, but normally prefers to be on his own.

Teddybear's fungal problem is improving day by day, with the ACV treatment.  Teddybear is the most loving and caring of them all.  He looks after the PBJs.  Whenever they venture out of the room, he would be following right behind.

Here's Xiao Li.  She has a bit of fungal spots on her face, but it's drying up with the ACV. 

If only I had a home on the range, I wouldn't have to put Xiao Li and Teddybear up for adoption, but alas, I don't.  They are still up for adoption, but I would like them BOTH to be adopted together, please.  They have become the best of friends and one would be so lonely without the other. 

Peanut eats with the elders.  Butter and Jelly still have to be hand-fed with moistened food.  When all three of the PBJs can eat on their own, the vet will take them back and put them up for adoption. 

Oh, give me a home, where the buffaloes roam....

A sharing on the ACV treatment

Vivienne Chew wrote to me, to share how ACV worked on her dog, Bear :

BEAR has been suffering from itchy, dry and irritated skin all the time ..is sad to see my dog non-stop scratching and licking his body most of the time!!
The vet i consulted also could not confirmed what kind of eczema it is..DR only give him a medication and injection,i really don't want my dog to take this drugs if possible...so i began to seach for some useful article online,than i see this~which say ACV may help to reduced doggie skin allergies problems,such as itching and rashes..
FYI..i used to mix 1 part of ACV with 2 part plain water to wipe the affected area with a facial cotton pad..twice a day..is always better to follow up with a olive oil or a baby lotion to soothing and calming the affected area.
Also..i only feed my bear a fish(SALMON) kibbles..brand such as..ORIJEN.ADDICTION.
I have been using ACV for about 2 months and i really see much improvement....he is a happy dog now ^^

Here are some photos from Vivienne:

I'm glad to know ACV worked for Bear.  His skin has definitely improved.

Thanks for the sharing, Vivienne. 

Apple Cider Vinegar does work!

It's been almost about five days since I started applying Apple Cider Vinegar on Teddybear's fungal spots, and if my eyes aren't playing tricks on me, it seems to be working quite well.

Many of his fungal spots now appear to be normal.  I still apply ACV three times a day. 

Xiao Li also had a few spots on the forehead, and I've been applying ACV as well.  The spots appear to be drying up too.

The spots are just above the eyes. 

Both of them seem to be fascinated with the TV.

It must be all the interesting movements and the sounds.

Feels good? 

The PBJs

I've been trying to teach the PBJs how to eat on their own, but I guess these things can't be rushed.  Yesterday, the slowest to learn everything, Butter, decided he would be the first to eat dry food on his own...

Hooray! 

Next was Peanut, but she will only do it when an "elder" does it.  She likes to imitate what the elders do.

Jelly is still the baby and refuses the eat on her own.

I still hand-feed the whole gang, but Peanut and Butter are beginning to explore the possibility of eating on their own...slowly, in their own time.

I was down and out with a bad flu since Saturday, and it's been a great challenge looking after these three, along with Xiao Li and Teddybear. 

This morning, Jelly gave me a fright as she starting limping.  She could not put down her left leg.  I took the whole gang to the vet this afternoon and upon checking, Jelly's paw pads appeared to be sore, especilly the left one.  The vet applied some cream and bandaged it. 

I've removed the bandage now, and she seems a little better, but being "sick", she hasn't been eating much.  I guess the excitement at the vet's has tired her out.

Visiting Bandit

On Saturday, I went to collect the cage from Wani since Bandit doesn't need it anymore.  Bandit has a new "security hide-out" now - inside Wani's sofa.

Hi, Bandit! 

Bandit is very at home with Joned.  This is their hide-out.

According to Wani, Joned seems very happy to have a new brother and playmate.  In fact, Joned looks after Bandit very well.  He is always watching out for Bandit.  What a good "big brother"!

Bandit's appetite is also very good.  And the two of them share the litter box and food bowls. 

Have fun, Bandit and Joned! 

And be happy! 

Apple Cider Vinegar dabs for Teddybear

Thank you everyone for sharing ideas on how to treat Teddybear's fungal problem.   I've asked Dr Susanna Brida and she concurs that ACV is the safest and one of the best methods.  She also agrees that the problem surfaced probably due to a dip in Teddybear's immunity. 

Here's what Dr Susanna says:

I fully agree with what your vet said – it’s currently an immunity dip of which the little guy should be able to recover fairly soon!

Your apple cider treatment is by far the best that can be done (considering his age but ALSO generally for cats!) and together with just supporting his general recovery this health problem will soon be history.

Best wishes to little Teddy and you.
 
I've been dabbing ACV three times daily now, and I hope I'm not imagining things, but the spots look a little better (not so pinkish anymore).  Teddy also enjoys the massage! 

Apple Cider Vinegar for fungus in cats?

Thank you, everyone, for helping me with home remedies for Teddy's fungal problem.  I think the safest I can find so far is Apple Cider Vinegar, so I will try this first. 

Right now, Teddy and Xiao Li has fever, due to the vaccination, and are both asleep.  Earlier on, I managed to dab some diluted ACV onto Teddy's spots.  He didn't like it much!

I'm told garlic works as well.  Just rub it onto the spots. 

If you have any time-tested and proven method specifically for fungus, please do share.

The vet did tell me to be very careful with home remedies for humans.  Sometimes what works for humans may not work on animals, or may prove to be detrimental to their health.  For eg, sulphur is highly toxic, but some anti-fungal creams contain sulphur.  And the cat might lick the cream. 

Xiao Li and Teddybear's visit to the vet

I brought Xiao Li and Teddybear for their first vaccination today, plus a check-up.  They are both in good health. 

However, Teddybear has a fungal problem, which the vet thinks came up because of the suppressed immune system during the time when he was severely malnourished (before I took him back to nurse).  Being so young, the vet prefers not to give any drugs as all the drugs available are toxic and very harmful to the liver.  The only thing I can give which is safe would be Vetri DMG, to boost his own immune system.  

Both have been vaccinated and dewormed today.   

The vet says it is likely Teddybear's own immune system will kick in and combat the fungal problem.  Very often, it goes off as the animal grows stronger and older. 

Let's hope for the best. 

If you know of any safe and natural remedy for fungal problems in young kittens, please do share. 

I would have to isolate Teddybear from the PBJs now.  Poor thing...

Teddybear, the caregiver

Teddybear has really taken the PBJs under his wing....

Licking the mouth.

Cleaning the privates...

Ha ha ha....this is so ticklish!!

Butter and Jelly have also learnt to use the litter-box now.  But none of them has learnt how to pick up food yet.  I still have to hand-feed them. 

Bandit, the "bandit"!

Here's happy updates from Wani:

Bandit today was a real bandit.  i came home from work and wanted to give them raw chicken that you provided so i put them in 2 seperate bowls, one for Bandit one for Joned.  I turned around to call for Joned to come eat his chicken but when I turned back at the bowls, both were empty!
He's getting along better with Joned but still haven't gotten the courage to pounce back at him. Bandit will paw at Joned if he is in the cage or if he is outside and Joned is inside the cage.  I don't know how to tell Joned to be more gentle, if only they understood us!


When you said rough horsing games is it like one cat on top of the other?  that's basically what they do now.  Joned will pounce on Bandit but Bandit is learning to paw him off.  There is still the occasional hissing when Joned is too rough.  But Joned is learning to be gentler.  So far I think the bravest he's done is playing and biting Joned's tail.  Of course he got pounced on for that..


They're playing hide and seek now.  Bandit will hide and joned will look for him.  When Joned finds Bandit, Bandit will run 2 the next hiding place.  Sometimes he will paw Joned first! but if joned bullies him too much he will run into the cage or into my lap as he knows I will save him from Joned.

I will upload some pics tomorrow i have some new ones but the camera wire is suddenly missing. I can think of 2 suspects. :)
 
It is indeed so heart-warming to hear happy news about Bandit.  I am so thankful and comforted knowing Bandit has adjusted well in Wani's house.  I thought it might take Bandit a week to socialise, but it's only been four days, and he is already playing confidently. 
 
What a wonderful way to start the morning!

Bandit and Joned's updates

For the past two days, I have been waking up every morning and the first thing I do is to think of Bandit and visualise him being very happy and adjusting well in Wani's house.  And I silently tell him that he is very much loved and thought about, and that I will always wish him well. 

I miss Bandit terribly, but I'm happy that he is adjusting well in Wani's house and Wani really takes very good care of him. 

Getting updates from Wani is truly heaven-sent. 

Here's today's:

Guess what? Bandit is letting Joned closer to him!  But he will still hiss if Joned is a bit too rough which he usually is. Joned is the one who doesn't eat much now because he's more interested in Bandit so now I have too keep Bandit out of sight and let Joned eat first!  I think they'll be able to play rougher games by end of this week.



I'm torn between buying the big cage and this playpen for the kittens.  It's actually those scratching posts with boxes and platforms and hammocks for kitties to play and sleep in.


I got some pics for you.  I'm home from work already since i only work part time but fortunately my housemate is taking the day off so she can look after them when I'm going to class later.  Hopefully tonight I can catch them playing more games together! I think Bandit is just still shy because last night when Joned was tired of getting Bandit to play with him he played by himself and I saw Bandit just watching joned playing the ball.  He really looked like he wanted to join in but I guess he's still too scared.
 
I hope Bandit will gain more confidence soon.  He is actually very lucky that Joned is such a sweet cat and is willing to share his house with Bandit. 
 
I'm really close to tears knowing how lucky I am in having found a good home for Bandit.
 
Here are the pictures:
 

"Makan time"

Playtime!!

That's MY litterbox.  You can't catch me when I'm in it!

Wani also says Bandit pee-ed on her bed today!  And he now sleeps in a sprawling position, so this indicates he is much more relaxed. 

 

Bandit's updates

Rehoming an animal after being fostered for some time is a great challenge.  We wish we could adopt all of them, yet our resources and space are limited, so the next best option is to find them a good and loving home. 

So, we advertise and pray very hard that a good and loving person will come along and give our fostered animals a home. 

For Bandit, Wani came along and she is indeed heaven-sent. 

Here's Wani's updates on Bandit:

I understand your concern.  Bandit has started to eat his dry food so I'm relieved. And yes he eats alot! He doesn't need the towel over the cage anymore and is more brave to walk around the living room without having me to call him out.  He's also starting too play and scratch my couch but haven't started playing with Joned.  He still hisses but will let Joned stay inside the cage with him as long as Joned stays still and keeps his distance.  I think thats a good start.  I'm glad you brought his litter box I think it gives him comfort.  When he's walking around the living room and Joned gets a bit too close he will run straight to the litter box and hide.  So i had to stand by a few newspaper just incase he poops in his box and has nowhere else to hide.  I think I'll get him one of the paper boxes like yours tomorrow for him.


Bandit has also become manja with my housemate but everyone is so afraid to pick him up because he's so small and delicate.He really likes asking for tummy rubs.


He's sleeping now and Joned is sleeping right infront of the cage watching him.  Bandit doesn't mind now so I hope in a few days they'll be friends.
 
Thank you very much, Wani.  I'm so grateful Bandit is under your loving care now.  The next milestone would be making friends with dear little Joned.  Joned is such a sweet kitten.  Maybe the box would prompt Bandit to play.  And they can create their own games and have a ball.  
 
It took Bandit a week before he warmed up to his own brother, Teddybear, when I first brought Teddy back from the hospital.  And that's on his homeground where he was "boss". 
   

More milestones for Bandit

It's almost midnight now, and I've been waiting for this news - Bandit has regained his appetite and has eaten his dry food.  He has also pee-ed (hooray!) and poo-ed in his cage.  Wani will still let him have the bedroom as he feels safer in there. 

Last night, Wani kept Bandit in the bedroom so that she could monitor him and poor little Joned had to sleep outside. 

The next step now is to make friends with Joned. 

Joned is really such a lovely little kitten (he's six months old). 

I hope Bandit and Joned will become friends soon.  It took Bandit one week before he socialised with Teddybear, and that was on his own homeground too.  Guess Bandit needs time. 

At least Bandit has pee-ed and I am so, so relieved.

I can go to bed now. 

Gosh, this is such difficult work!  It's easier to rehome a human child! 

All for one and one for all....!!

When it rained heavily this evening, Xiao Li and Teddybear were scared.  Of course, the PBJs were not as they are too young to know fear.  Both Xiao Li and Teddy climbed up and sat on my lap for comfort. 

Then I had to go out and while I was away....

The whole gang went into the baby cage for safety....

They were still sleeping when I got home.

Wii's story continues

I have not managed to achieve much success in trying to help Wii gain some confidence. 

Today, he came back for food many times, but even the presence of Xiao Li and Teddybear stresses him.

Here's poor Wii about to eat his food.

Xiao Li and Teddybear came out to see him, and he gets frightened and stops eating.

It did not help that Bunny had quietly come to the closed window to stalk and intimidate him. 

Wii is so scared he jumps into the back alley and hides in the plants.

We have to pacify him and call him back.

 

He sits outside the little gate and waits for us to open it.

Xiao Li welcomes him back.

Meanwhile, I had scolded Bunny and told him off for stalking poor Wii.

Bunny sulks and walks away, with typical feline arrogance and aloofness.

So, Wii didn't get to eat this round.

But he came back again later, and this time, I got him to finish his food.

The things we have to do....

The box game

I brought home this box with little holes at the bottom and Bandit created this "box game" yesterday.  They all had a ball before I took Bandit to Wani's house. 

It was all quiet last night when I came home after rehoming Bandit, but this morning, Xiao Li and Teddybear played the game again. 

Here's how the game is played:

One cat goes into the box.

The other waits patiently for "something to happen"...

Here it comes, here it comes....it's the paw coming through the hole.  

Grab the paw as it comes out!

Grab it!  Don't let it go.

Or, you can jump up and grab the whole cat instead of the paw!

Now you come down, it's my turn to get into the box...

It never fails to amaze me how intelligent cats can be.  They create their own rules and play their own games by using the simplest things around the house.  Who needs expensive toys when you can have so much fun with just an old discarded box with holes in it!