Pet Tails

Yes, with the pending Hurricane Irene getting ready to hit the Philadelphia area, here are some more tips for you and your pets.  Always be prepared for the worst!  Though we won’t need to be evacuated, we do need to be prepared for heavy rains, wind and possible power outages.

Everyone Stay Safe this Weekend!  Take care of yourself and your pets!

http://www.miainc.com/majorstormsmallanimals

http://www.miainc.com/horsecaremajorstorm

This posting is dedicated to Inky, my black cat.  I have written about him in previous posts, but this will be the last one about him.  Because tomorrow at this time, Inky will have crossed the Rainbow Bridge and have left this physical world and will only exist in a spiritual sense.

I find myself lacking words to describe how I feel.  My emotions are all over the place when it comes to making that “decision” to end my pet’s life.  When I find myself in this position sometimes it is best to just write what is on my mind and filter it later.

Inky came to me because he was unwanted.  He had issues when I got him 8 years ago and I have dealt with all them as best as I could; emotionally and financially.

If I didn’t take Inky he would have ended up at a shelter and would have probably been euthanized than because of his physical ailments.  But I took him anyway.

Inky came from California and had been the only cat in his previous home.  He had never seen another cat or dog and had never been outside.  I gave Inky all that and more.  He learned to live with 6 other cats when I got him and with my dog which eventually became two.  I gave him wet food which he had never had and he learned to enjoy the outdoors and to feel grass under his paws and fresh air and sunshine on his face. 

Inky has shown me patience with animals by dealing with his digestive issues and his quirkiness that he had about himself.  I nicknamed him my Green Eyed Monster, because he has very green eyes.  Inky wasn’t an original name, but that was the one he came with.

Inky is declawed and I wish he wasn’t.  Why people do that I don’t know, but it has always really bothered me.

I will miss feeling his cold nose on the back my calf when I’m getting the cats food ready, or him standing on my chest to get my attention to pet him at night while I lay in bed trying to watch TV through his body.  I will miss feeling his whiskers against my face when I am half asleep and he brushes up against me on the bed trying to get attention or just get closer to me.  There are many things I will miss about him.

I know it feels as if he is already gone and that is because he has declined physically so much in the last couple of weeks that I can’t bare to see him struggle anymore.  He is having a hard time walking and keeping his balance.  He weighs only about 8 to 9 pounds and when he was in his prime he weighed closer to 18.  His appetite has decreased but he is still eating.  But each day I see him wasting away in front of me and I can no longer see him suffer.  He is uncomfortable and cries when I pick him up to hold him.  He must ache all over.

Tonight he is spending his last night in the house; sleeping comfortable on a soft feather bed in my spare room.  He has been bathed and brushed and petted for the last time tonight and fed his favorite food.

Tomorrow at 6:45 I will arrive at the vets, cat carrier in hand with Inky inside.  She will have me sign a waiver on allowing her to end his life.  I will hold him one last time and kiss him on the head and begin to cry.  She will shave one of his front legs.  She will place a tourniquet on his leg.  She will inject him with sodium phenobarbital, the same compound given to operate on animals, but it is a lethal overdose this time.  She will check for a heartbeat to make sure he is gone. He will loose control of his bladder and bowels.  And I will cry some more.  I will walk out of my vet’s office carrying an empty cat carrier and cry the whole way home.

I will ask myself over and over again, “Did I do the right thing?  Was there anything else I could have done?”  When deep down inside there was nothing else I could do for him but end his suffering.

Inky will cross the Rainbow Bridge and I know that Tucker, Spunky, Rio, Melvin, Cecil and Autumn will be waiting for him.  I hope they greet him and let him know that everything is OK. 

I will have him cremated and when I receive his box with his ashes, I will place it on the shelf with his picture to join all the others I have had to say goodbye to in the last 10 years.

The black cat that no one wanted, I hope I gave him a good life while I had him.  I will miss him dearly.  And than there is five.

Hug you pet tonight or today whenever you read this.  Let them know you love them and treasure all those moments you have with them.  They don’t live as long as we would like them to, but they teach us so much while we have them with us.

I may not be as bright eyed as I used to be
Because now my eyes have grown clouded and hazy.
But I still recognize your voice and hear you call my name.

My fur may not be as shiny as it used to be
And now there are many gray hairs on my muzzle where it used to be all black
But still you kiss me and give me rubs.

I may be stiff and have a hard time standing at times
Because now my joints ache and are swollen
But I will still come when you call me.

I may not be able to run as fast as the other dogs
Because now my muscles grow tired quickly
But I will always keep up with you and follow you wherever you go

I may not play with my toys like I used to
Because I spend most of my days sleeping or resting
But it doesn’t mean I don’t like them so don’t stop bringing me new ones.

I may not be able to chew on that bone like I used too
Because now my teeth ache from time to time,
But don’t stop bringing me one and asking me if I would like a “chewie”

I will always follow you
I will always come when you call my name
I will always go for that ride in the car with you
And I will always nuzzle your hand to comfort you and for you to comfort me.
I will never leave your side.
So don’t give up on me until it is time.
You will know when it is
And it isn’t today or even tomorrow, but that day will come
And you will have to make that decision to let me go.

I will miss you and I know you will miss me too.

But for today, let’s comfort each other and tell me you love me.
Just because I can’t say it, doesn’t mean I don’t love you too.
You see it in those cloudy eyes
And when I place my paw on your leg.

Thanks for being my owner and caring for me in all these years.

Recently I have had a number of pet owners talk to me about the type of water they are giving their pets.  You may think it doesn’t matter, but it is funny how so many pets I have taken care of and still care for have digestive issues that can’t seem to be resolved.  The only factor that the owners and I can think of is their water.

A number of people don’t think about whether they give their pet(s) tap water, whether it is well or public, but the problem is there are so many particles and impurities in water that you can’t taste or even smell and we are drinking it and also giving it to our pets.

If you do have public water, you may notice that when you turn your faucet on, you may get a strong chlorine odor.  This is from the amount of chemicals used to kill the bacteria in the “purifying” process that waste water goes through before it is piped into your home from the processing plant.  Sometimes public water can also turn colors.  I have seen water turn a yellowish color from sitting too long in pipes while people are away and the pets won’t drink it.  It has no odor, just the color is odd.

Some of my clients have gone as far a purchasing an undersink purifying system for their drinking water and also for their pets.

Even if you have well water you can still have particles and bacteria in it.  Even if you use a Brita or a Pur water filter system it doesn’t trap all the “nasties” in your water or at least the ones you may want to filter out.  So before you buy an attachment for your sink, you may want to see what it will or won’t trap or remove from your water.

A number of my clients actually use bottled water for their pets.  Either bottled spring water or distilled water.  Of the two, distilled water is the best to use for your pets.

I often purchase water for my pets.  I purchase spring water at a water station in Exton, PA where it is $0.25 a gallon, and it is amazing the number of people that go there to buy water.

If you want to get your water tested, there is a place in Downingtown, PA that you can have it done for $35.00 and you get the results back in about 48 hours.  This business is called Cedar Grove Environmental.  I use them frequently to have the water tested at my rental unit.

Keep in mind, if the impurities are in your water you are digesting it too along with bathing in it.  And what’s the largest organ we have?  Our skin!

So if your pet has or develops a digestive issue, you may want to consider the water they are digesting along with other characteristics such as food, environmental, cleaning products and other health issues.  Water is absorbed into their entire system along with yours.

Have a Happy Pet Day Everyone!

Adopt Don’t Shop! And support your local shelters and rescues, those that can’t speak for themselves, depend upon us who can.