When I Am Dictator...

Humans filing tax returns will be able to declare their pets as dependents. Why such an odd thing, you might ask? Because pets cost nearly as much as kids (hyperbole, I know but still!).

Pele has a tooth issue. She needs to go in for x rays, which in cats, require sedation, and while she is knocked out, they insist on doing a dental cleaning. Just to knock her out and look at what is happening is $350. Depending on what the x ray shows, it could be a cavity. The tooth might need to be pulled. That, right there, is going to be another $400. $400 to pull a damn tooth! And it could go much higher, if cancer or some other long-term debilitating illness is involved. Who has that kind of cash in hand? Not I! When I asked the vet if I could do a payment plan, they faxed me a copy of a credit card application. Just what I need ...

I just spent four years of going through this with Leo. Thousands of dollars in medical bills, some of which I am still paying. Hell, I have three cavities myself that need filling that are going untreated due to lack of money.

I am so tired of struggling financially. Every time it looks like there is light at the end of the tunnel, I get hammered again. I feel like no matter how hard I work and how much money I make (and I make well above minimum wage), I feel like I can't earn enough to cover costs. I am so tempted to say, "Screw it," and just walk away from everything, drag Boxer off to Mexico, and become a beach bum....

Let's Get Ready to Rumble!

So Boxer took Kali to the vet yesterday so she could get her Feline Leukemia test and we could begin the process of fully integrating her into the house. We were going to wait until she went back to the shelter for her final shots and spaying and all that, but she cries at night when she is isolated - cries loudly like unto a banesidhe - and was driving me bonkers.

And so, in she went. She is Feline Leukemia negative, by the way, so yeah Kali! She is about six months old as she has her permanent canines. But she is also incredibly tiny, only 4 pounds 3 ounces. And the vet does not think she will get much bigger. She must have been the runt of the litter!

When I got home, we put the boxer out in the sunroom and decided to let Kali and Pele get to know each other face to face, rather than through the door, as they had been (kinda sorta). Pele was in her hidey hole behind the couch and Kali, aka Lil Bit, jumped down near her and Pele started grooming her. I was shocked. Was it going to be that easy!? Was there going to be no hissing, no grumbling, no being offended? Not likely. Apparently, Pele had started the grooming out of some sort of involuntary response to being startled out of sleep and, once she was fully awake and realized she was snoorgling an intruder, went all hissy, and remind hissy and crabby for much of the rest of the evening. We brought Kali in to sleep by us, so she wouldn't cry, and at one point Pele came in to snuggle with me and realized the kitten was in the room, and proceeded to spend about an hour making the most displeased groaning moaning near-growls ever and finally left for kitten-free climes.

I imagine the bitching and moaning will continue for a while. I asked Boxer to give Pele some special loving today so she knows we still love her. Maybe that will help a bit, but really, I think it is just a matter of time....

Dogs and Cats Living Together! Mass Hysteria!


So, the getting adjusted to the new household arrangement continues. Over the weekend, Boxer and I got a lot of stuff moved, rearranged, and put away. I will freely admit that the adjusting has been difficult. We have both lived alone for a long time. But I think we are doing fairly well, although there was that hilarious incident where I forgot to poke holes in the taters before sticking them in the oven and one exploded and I cried from shame.

I think the sharing sleeping space with another person is the hardest part. I find myself very conscious of the fact that he is there, and so my sleep isn't as restful as it might be. But as the days go by, I am getting used to it. Besides, Pele annoys him far more than she annoys me during the night, because she is madly in love with him and can't leave him alone. That or she is totally jealous, because she does like being between us.

OK, sleeping is getting better. And stuff is getting put away. And no major horribly irritating habits have raised their ugly head yet, or at least nothing I wasn't already expecting. And the one thing that I was most worried about seems to be a non-issue.

The boxer has not yet eaten the cat. In fact, they are now almost entirely tolerant - if not friendly - with each other.

We started out by having them totally apart. The door in the middle hallway was closed. The boxer got the living areas and Pele got the sleeping areas. We introduced them to each other once while the boxer was leashed. He was mostly curious; his little stub tail was just a wagging. Pele was unimpressed and whomped him on the snout several times and hissed and complained in her granny voice. She is a little afraid of him because he is so big and very playful. On Tuesday, I found a babygate at a thrift sale, and we opened the hall door and put the babygate there while we were awake, taking it down and closing the door at night while we were sleeping. We wanted no unsupervised visitation. Pele refused to come out and mostly stayed on the bed, while the boxer gazed at her with longing from his side of the great divide.

And then, Friday night, Boxer pokes me while we are watching tv and goes, "Look at that!" And there was Pele, perched on top of the babygate preparing to make an incursion into the living area. And - POP! - down she comes. The boxer is very curious. He just wants to sniff her. Pele is still unimpressed, and she makes her way over to the couch, where she again hisses and complains and whomps him over and over(Pele has no front claws, which might be a good thing in this situation). The boxer follows her around. He tries to sniff her while she hides under the kitchen table. But, he learns quickly that if she hisses, he should just back away. But we spent several hours of the boxer just sleeping on the floor and Pele sleeping on her princess and the pea cushion on the couch amid the great peace that only comes through ignoring THAT THING over there.

Last night we took the next step. We moved the babygate back even further, so that Pele's food and litterbox are inaccessible but there is freedom for both in the entire house, and then we went to sleep. Pele slept on the bed, and the boxer slept on the floor. There were maybe three moments of sniffing boxer and complaining Pele, once when she had to walk by him to get to the babygate and a couple of times in the morning when we were all waking up, but in general, a calm and peaceful night was had by all.

In fact, if she is sleeping somewhere beyond the babygate at any point in time, the boxer stands at the babygate and whimpers a little bit because she isn't there. It is both pathetic and endearing.

We still won't leave them entirely alone together while we are gone during the day. The boxer has a little sunroom in which to spend his time. And they may never be friends. I don't really care about that. But it does not appear that there is going to be any major issues (Please, Ceiling Cat!). Which is good, because I have a recipe for BBQ dog that I would prefer to never have to use.

The HaHa House is ready for visitors!

So I finished unpacking Monday night and except for the need to print out some of my own photos and hang them on the wall, the house is set. I will be taking and posting pictures soon. My new washer and dryer will be delivered this upcoming weekend, and I hope the minor gas leak problem with the dryer is fixed with the addition of the new appliance. If not, i will have to have someone come out and install a new gas pipe. Which is not such a big deal, I guess, except that I do need to do laundry and would prefer to not go to the local lavandaria.

In other house news, I have ordered a new vinyl shower window curtain that will hopefully handle my water problem. See, the house was built before showers became popular, and, as a result, has an unfortunately placed window in the path of the shower spray. The water goes under the window, into the frame, and sprays out into the driveway. Eventually, I will have to have the window removed, but until then, the specially designed Vermont Country Store vinyl curtain should sufice.

I have also got my bird feeders up and I have at least two cardinals and three orioles. And a million squirrels who have figured out how to open the bird feeder. My little herb garden is in and growing well, and I am about to do major outdoor landscaping. I have at least two whole summers' worth of projects.

I am hoping that Leo's hypoallergenic food will come back on the market soon. His loose poops are becoming problematic, what with Pele's huge belly that drags where it shouldn't be dragging. God, I had to give her a bath last night at 3 am because she must have gone into the box right after Leo-kins was finished. Yuck yuck yuck! I am sad to say that when these two kittehs pass on, I am going to be done with pets for a while.....