Cats and jewelry at Rmsjewels

Polly

2012-03-07T06:56:00.000-08:00

Polly is a kitty who is up for adoption at the Health Food store we are shopping. She just showed up one very cold fall evening on the porch of a very nice lady. She was brought inside and was fostered for a couple of weeks. During that time she was spayed and got a full physical. After two weeks she came to live at In Good Health. As you probbaly guessed she is a polydactyl and so very cute. She has the sweetest voice and grey tabby markings.

She lives in a large kitty condo and gets to roam freely at night. Joe and I noticed her bed was old and lacked cushion almost completely. We have so many kitty beds all around the house, some get used and some don't.

One of these beds was our RB Gummi Bear Sammy's favorite. It is super soft and plush and has an iglu cover. Since he died it did not get any use at all from the rascals. So this past weekend we took the bed to the store and figured we would ask Polly is she wants it.

She was talking up a storm when we exchanged her old bed for the new one. Nobody likes changes right? Well, we walked away and let her investigate. A few minuted later I went to check on her and guess what. She was all cuddled up in her new bed and LOVING it. As we walked towards the door to leave we were gifted with the most touching eye kisses from Polly. Thank You kisses from Plly's heart!

This made my day:)

Happy Valentines!

2012-02-14T12:32:00.000-08:00

Two years ago our Peatsie our former feral Siamese boy gave me the greatest Valentines gift of all. That morning he allowed me into his world by coming next to me and rubbing his body against my leg. What a fabulous gift he gave me! Two years later it still makes my heart sing. Happy Valentines day Sweatsie Peatsie:)

Frankie is more and more relaxed in the house. He enjoys the living room when the fireplace is; I am so happy to see that Leo and Tubi are allowing him to do that. We still have to watch to make sure nobody is stalking Frankie at the litter box, but that is OK. Taling about the litterbox we always say that when Leo goes potty he digs to China. Well, when Frankie goes potty he diggs to Australia because he literraly empties the boxes by throwing pounds of litter on the floor. He furiously digs and digs and digs, and eventually settles for potty. Kitties!

My prayers go everyday for the stray animals in the European countries affected by this terrible Arctic weather...

January update

2012-01-11T07:12:00.000-08:00

It's winter but it has been quite warm for quite a few days. We only had one snow storm and since the snow melted, it has been almost an early spring like weather.

The kitties sleep more as they usually do in winter time and they seem to be hungrier. The Holidays caused some gain weight for three of our boys so now we must watch those waist lines.

We love to have the fire place on and the fur kids absolutely adore it. It makes me smile to see them scattered in the living room, roasting their bellies and paws. And sleeping, sleeping deeply after working so hard all day...at sleeping:)

Frankie is more and more comfortable every day around the house and with everybody else. Tubi and Leo are getting tons and tons of attention and luvins, mostly when they allow Frankie to be around the house without starring or chasing him. Positive reinforcement and praising speaks volumes for cats and it is what motivates them to be good.

We plan to replace one of the kitty trees since it does not get much use although it is tall and has tons of perches. The problem is the perches are flat. The healtfood store owner where we shop for kitty food has a cat room and I am sure could use this tree. So we will donate it.

Christmas was nice but hard also since we missed deeply our Teddy Bear Sammy. Everytime I look at Frankie I think of Sammy. They just could not be any more different in personality and disposition. But they are bonded forever. I ask Frankie all the time if he thanks Sammy for sending him our way and I would like to know the answer is yes...

Frankie at the vets

2011-12-06T13:58:00.000-08:00

Frankie had his first wellness check with Dr Wendi. He sat quitely in the carrier on the way there, just lookingh up at me and giving me eye kisses, tons and tons of eye kisses. I could not believe it!

He got a little nervous in the waiting room but once we got in the exam room he was fine. Dr Wendi FELL IN LOVE with him. She checked him all over and all is good. But then, she proceeded giving him chin scritchies and telling him several times how handsome he was. He is a big boy, has a long body, big head, long legs and huge ears with very long tufts.

If Dr Wendi said he is handsome then he is very handsome, after all she gets to see thousands of kitties every year.

He is doing much better in the house, and hangs out with the rest of the family in the family room in the evenings. Loves to sleep on the couch next to my leg- he would prefer my lap, but Leo does not think so.

2011-11-08T10:52:00.000-08:00

It was so nice to know that Frankie is safe this Halloween, and we told him that too. He started giving eye kisses lately and he is not so spazy anymore, I am guessing he began to learn from the other kitties how to behave although...at breakfast he has no manners! Talk about Frankie Yankie the New Yorker; "GIVE ME MY FOOD NOW WHILE I AM KNOCKING EVERYBODY DOWN"

We have an appt for his physical for next week. I suspect he has herpes and although he gets lysine everyday I am not sure it does much for him. I have to call Dr Nan, our holistic vet and see what else can we do. The intro process is still going on...He still feels the safest in the kitchen but we make efforts daily to integrate him in the rest of the house and make the others understand that he is our child just like they are.

Tubi scared us terribly this past Friday. He had a dental and had a very bad reaction to the anesthesia. His body temperature rose to 107.5 and they had to give him cold baths and cool off his ears and paws with alcohol. Thank God he remained conscious and did not seize through this ordeal. He recovered fully but he had a swollen and red butt poor little guy from having his temp taken every 15 minutes. He was thrilled to be home that evening. The two teeth they extracted had very bad RLs and must have caused him tremendous pain...

October is here!

2011-10-05T06:55:00.000-07:00

The kitties are enjoying their naps on rainy days and seek the sunlight through the house.

Frankie continues to adjust to his new life and spends his day in the kitchen, most of the time sleeping on my chair at the dining table. In the mornings he ventures up on the windowsill in the laundry room to watch the critters and the leaves. Eventually he runs up to the kitchen. Leo still likes to pester him and corner him and therefore acquired a couple of mild scratches on his forehead and nose. I keep telling him "See, this is what you get if you bother Frankie, he will smack you back!"

I can't wait to begin playing sessions with him but they all need more adjusting to Frankie being in the house. We have some very needy and jealous kitties here...

I have been talking a lot lately to our RB babies. I miss their quietness and peacefullness and can't but cry thinking of how calming Sammy's demeanour was. All I needed was to look in his big loving eyes and all was better suddenly. I will forever hold a very special place in my heart for senior kitties!

Frankie is hanging out in the house!

2011-09-20T12:42:00.000-07:00

Frankie has been out in the house for week. He still sleeps in his room at night with the baby gates up since Leo seems to like to pick on him at night. Frankie spends most of his day in the kitchen! And he is pretty shameless about claiming it his own, so I have to remind him every day the kitchen belongs to Mommy and RB Heidi Ann, but I think he disagrees with me...He loves to sleep on my chair at the kitchen table...

We have to stop some quarrelling when it gets to be too much. Leo is the one who goes after him. Frankie, well Frankie smacks him back and actually he smacks everbody at meal time when they are all gathered in the kitchen. See, I told you he thinks the kitchen is his...

Leo has an appt for a dental on October 14th, and we will find out then if he needs any RL extractions. The tartar is pretty bad and pushing into the gums, making it impossible for Dr. Wendi to figure out if there is any RL bone damage.

Happy Day!

2011-09-09T12:57:00.000-07:00

Today was a happy day: Frankie and Leo spent some time together in the house (20 minutes to be exact) and things went very well. Leo chased him a lot and hissed at him but nothing more. When Frankie had enough he ran to his room all the way up on the third level of his kitty tree. Joe was supervising the two boys and I was with the other kitties in one of the bed rooms.

It looks like we will do a few more short sessions like today over the next few days. All babies were calm and happy after the meeting. Leo received tons of well deserved praisings, pets and kissies:) He needs to go see Dr Wendi on Monday for his physical and for his dragon breath, I am certain he needs a dental again judging by the level of tartar on his teeth - it's incredible how his teeth look like after only nine months...I keep telling him to slow down on the hissing :)

2011-09-01T11:53:00.000-07:00

We decided to slow down the intros so for the past week or so, we have allowed Frankie to spend time in the house on his own (the other kitties spent time in his room while he is up and about). He gets all worked up when he is free in the house and I am guessing that he has a lot of anxiety about it. We hope that if he spends longer periods of time in the house on his own, this anxiey will subside and when he gets to be around the other babies, things will go smoother. It's all a lot of guessing and waiting at this point...He is for sure interested in dominance, we just pray that they will eventually work things up.

What is interesting is the fact that Frankie, Tubi and Leo can eat together with no problems; we take the baby gates down, Frankie comes out in the hallway and waits for me to come up the steps with the food bowls followed by Tubi and Leo. So, food brings them together...It's the meeting "outside" eating time that has been a problem...

I am also hoping that time and patience will pay off, the same way they did when we worked with Sweet Pea.

2011-08-17T10:42:00.000-07:00

We managed to trim Frankie's nails, YAAAAY!!! Both Joe and I went into his room. Joe picked him up and I wrapped him in a towel. Joe held his paw and pressed on the toe to extend claw, while I petted Frankie's head with my left hand and trimmed the claws with my right hand. We will have to do this every two weeks for him since he is young and his nails grow very fast.

The introduction process is slow, but we continue to work diligently at it. So far he has met everybody except Leo face to face. Frankie is definitely a dominant kitty and I am a bit concerned because he overwhelms everybody with dominance poses and behavior. Chloe, Peatsie and Tubi are all uneasy around him and don't know what to make of his manners. Tonight we will have a longer intor session and see how it goes. Frankie is very rambunctious and full of energy, definitely behaves like a trouble maker. What happens is that he walks to the other kitties, body all tall, looking down at them with the "I am in power look" and jumps on them; I know this is common in kitties, but it's the way and the frequency that he does it, that are of concern. He is a completley different kitty in his room behind the baby gates compared to when he is in the house with the other kitties. I pray that all will work out...

Kitties and a rainy day

2011-08-03T12:11:00.000-07:00

It has been a dark, rainy day, reminescent of November. The kitties are sleeping all scattered through the house. They seem to come eat and then they just go take naps. Life is pretty exhausting, right?

We have to figure out how to trim Frankie's nails, he has got some weapons of mass destruction. He doe not like being held, so that is out and we really need his nails trimmed before he starts meeting everybody face to face. So, I am thinking to wrap him in a towel, and trim his nails while my husband holds him. The trick is how to wrap him so that we leave his paws exposed. Probably best to do it this one morning weekend so that I can see his nails; some of them have a dark pigment and I have to be careful with the quick. He is snoozing right now in his doughnut bed:)

I will buy Bach Essence for them, perhaps this time will work and will keep them all calm and relaxed as we go through the intros. Two years ago we tried quite a few herbal remedies when we introduced Sweet Pea to the household, but I am not convinced they helped.

Middle name is "Spoiled"

2011-07-25T13:38:00.000-07:00

I have come to the conclusion a long time ago that all cats have a "I am spoiled gene". Here is a perfect example.

We buy our cat food at a local health food store. The owner of the store rescues and raises kitties in her store, which by the way is kept immaculate. She is a major cat lady:) Back in 2010 she agreed to allow a local cat rescue group to place two kitties for adoption in the store. The kitties live in large condo crates during the day and are let out free in the grooming room at night. The rescue group has adopted out four kitties from the store.

In Dec 2010 they brought in for adoption two wonderful unrelated boys, a black long hair Puma and a gray shorthair Malroy. Puma is a happy go lucky kind of kitty, always happy, just happy. Malroy on the other hand became depressed in his condo. So, one Saturday when we went to pick up food we saw how sad he was and decided to sponsor some good wet food for them to brighten up their days. The owner of the store started them on Solid Gold Tuna. They loved it and ate it happily until last week when they said "NO MORE".

When I called this past Sunday to buy more Solid Gold for them I was told they do not like it anymore....Now they are eating Merrick Cowboy Cookout. And of course we are sponsoring it for them...

I guess all kitties have a "spoiled" gene and that is OK. Enjoy your yummies Puma and Malroy, I pray everyday that you will get happy homes soon!!!

2011-07-21T09:55:00.000-07:00

We are working day in and day out at establishing a calming happy routine for the four resident kitties to assocaite with the newcomer Frankie. All play sessions happen in the spaces adjacent to the baby gates, Frankie inside of the room and the other four kitties outside in the hallway. They get as many meals as possible at the gates also, and they get rewarded with treats at the gates. So, it's all about "Party Time" at the gates with Frankie. I ended up plugging the Feliway difusers and when necessary I also use the Feliway spray.

Chloe is still hiding as soon as she hears the contractor pulling in the driveway. And she stays hidden until he leaves, no matter how hungry she is. Last night after they left, she came out (always cautiously) and she was so hungry that she had a look of desperation on her face...Poor little baby girl! We will have a week of vacation from the noise and work since the contractor leaves for vacation this evening...I am sure our little darling Chloe will be very happy:)

Wheather got very hot here and I am worried about the feral and stray kitties out there, the hard life they have to face. It just breaks my heart!

Roofing work!

2011-07-12T12:50:00.000-07:00

We have been having roof work done for the past three days. Tubi, Leo, Sweatsie and Frankie have figured out that noise is just noise and is not going to hurt them but Chloe is hiding even today. The moment she hears the crew outside she runs under the bed in the small bedroom and I don't see her until the men leave. Poor little girl, when she comes out she is hungry, thirsty and must use the litterbox. The thing is the bedrooms are on the third lever of our house, right under the roof, where the noise is the loudest. I guess she is trading this for the safe spot under the bed...

We have done a few room exchanges with the babies. Frankie has checked out the rest of the house and the other kitties checked out his room, but we are no where near having Frankie free in the house. Not only that Leo needs time to accept him, but Sweatsie is a little worried about him. Tubi, well Tubi is worried about his status and started some dominance moves on Chloe and Sweatsie. I can't plug in the Feliways because we do air out the house a lot when it's not too hot outside and this would completely defeat the purpose of the Feliway.

I keep asking the kitties, why must you be soooooo complicated?

Gates are up!

2011-07-06T11:41:00.000-07:00

The baby gates have been up for five days. Tubi, Chloe and Sweetsie are fine and Leo is exercising his topcat position as we expected. He is hissing and vocalizing and ocasionally doing a charge on the gate just like he did with Sweetsie. When both Joe and I are home at meal time, we feed Frankie, Tubi and Leo at the gate. Chloe and Sweetsie want to eat at their regular spots in the kitchen, they will not come up to the gate.

I also give them treats at the gates so that they associate good things with each other.

On Sunday we did a room exchange, we let Frankie explore the house and allowed Leo to explore Frankie's room. Frankie was soooo happy to be out and about and now he is crying to come out but Leo is not ready. So, tonight we will do another room exchange and tomorrow evening we will try a play session with the bird at the gate; I will be with Frankie in his room and Joe will be in the hallway on the other side of the gate with the other babies.

Choices, choices, choices!

2011-06-28T12:59:00.000-07:00

We have such finicky babies...I am running out of wetfood flavors that I can serve without getting bad looks such as "And what is this mom?" They hate Wellness. Sweet Pea used to eat the turkey but then he developed acne from it and we stopped giving it to him. They do like NB but only three flavors Ultra, salmon and Turkey and Gibblet. They do like the Weruva fish but I am reluctant to feed them fish on a regular basis. Chloe will not touch Weruva Chicken. And since they get 2/3 of their diet in wet food, this gets a bit challenging.

Leo will eat anything I put in front of him:)

Frankie too...This little boy licks his plate so clean that I could put it right back in the cupboard and forget the washing:) He finally knows that all his needs are met and he feels safe in his room. His nails are long and we have to start working with him so that he gets used to have his paws and claws handled.

This morning when I left his room I let him touch noses with Chloe, it was so sweet to watch them. He managed to put his paw out and touched Chloe. She did not like it becuase he had his claws extended and they are sharp. So, we definitely need to get them trimmed.

Digging and more...

2011-06-24T11:39:00.000-07:00

Frankie makes a mess with the litter. He has a covered box and an uncovered box in his room and he uses them both. Our other kitties have covered boxes and we wanted to see if Frankie does OK with covered boxes too. Well, whether he is using the covered or uncovered box, he digs to China and back and throws piles of litter outside the box. Somehow we need to teach him to keep the litter in the box!

I know some people use big storage bins as litter boxes since one can control the height of the entry, so that might be an option, we will see. The problem is they are so bulky...

We have also been talking about switching to natural litter (wheat or corn). I need to do some research on it and find out how kitties and hoomans like it. Will keep you posted.

Lap time!

2011-06-21T10:23:00.000-07:00

Last night when I went to visit Frankie I was too tired to play with him. So I gave him his snack and told him I would just hang out in his room, so I just sat on the sofa. He started eating but as soon as he saw me sit down, he stopped eating, chirped something and came running to my lap. He is long and lanky and does not fully fit on my lap since he does not want to curl up, so his bum kept falling off my thigh. I ended up supporting it with my hand and he eventually found a comfortable position and stretched out his front paws and neck and rested his face on my thigh. So cute and so loving! Then he nibbled at my hand for a while and we just sat quietly together enjoying the closeness...

This weekend we are putting the baby gates up to start the introduction process. Dear Universe and Angels of all Cats please help us so that things work out and everybody can coexist in peace! We will take it very slow, after all everything is at their pace not ours.

Sleek and slender Frankie

2011-06-17T12:16:00.000-07:00

Frankie is doing very well settling in his new life. I just went to clean his litter boxes and brought him two new toys, a wolly bully and a mouse with catnip (the kind that has a pocket you can refill). He went crazy over the catnip mouse, a good crazy and he must be exhausted now...I have been hearing him for the past 20 min running through the room, twirling and kicking the poor toy. He is hilarious:)

Last night I was on the patio checking the flower pots and guess who started talking to me from his kitty tree? Yep, it was Frankie Frankie saying "when are going to come and play with me already?"...

In a couple of weeks we are going to have roof work done and I have been concerned about all our kids and noise. Is going to be difficult but the work needs to be done and it will take approx. 3 days. We talked about boarding at the vets everybody except Sweet Pea who is our former feral, and then we decided against it - we figured the stress of change in the environment they know is far less than the stress of a completely new environment...

Cuddle kitty boy!

2011-06-13T15:33:00.000-07:00

Frankie is a cuddler! Yesterday I rested on the sofa in his room and he thoughtfully watched me from the distance, then promptly jumped up and settled on my chest. It was such a sweet and unexpected gift! He stayed on my chest for a few minutes, purring and nudging my hand for pets, then moved up on his kitty tree. He continued to look at me with big round inquisitive eyes from the top condo.

I wish we could spend more time with him ever day, but we can't. When we socialized our former feral Sweet Pea, I spent a great deal of time with him every day and Leo was very upset about it. This made the intros more difficult. We have to take baby steps with introducing new kitties in our family. I am jealous of those households where people just bring new kitties in and expose them right away to the resident cats with no problems.

We will wait for a couple of weeks to put the baby gates up, and meanwhile we will work on the scent swapping and reassuring the rest of the gang that all is well and their life is as wonderful as ever.

Time to go and play a little with Frankie!

Frankie and Da Bird

2011-06-10T09:26:00.000-07:00

Last night after dinner I took a new Da Bird up for Frankie. His hunting instinct kicked in right away. He hissed a couple of times at the feathers (I used the original feather toy) and he was all worked up about catching the bird. I had him run through the room, up and down the kitty tree and jump in the air (he can leap almost as good as Tubi). After about 10 min he was panting and breathing heavy. So, I stopped for the night although he was dissapointed...

I too was dissapointed in the quality of the feathers. Da Bird usually uses quail feathers in their toys, but this one had the heavy turkey feathers just like the immitators of Da Bird are using. I bought the entire toy (stick and refill) at our local pet store since I wanted to play with him right away. We usually order their toys online. Hopefully, our regular vendor has the traditional qualiry feather refills which fly much better in the air.

Of course, once a very excited kitty chews or grabs the feathers, the toy is pretty much done but what can one do about? Just buy some more...

Update on Frankie

2011-06-09T09:08:00.000-07:00

Frankie is doing very well. He seems to be adjusting well to his room and he is very quiet, with the occasional vocalizing when he looks out side the window or gets very lonely. He loves his food! And he loved his doughnut bed, and spends most of his time in it. This concerns me a little, because I am not sure if he is a bit depressed or just a very laid back little boy.

He enjoys petting and started to reciprocate to my affection. I don't think I have ever met or handled a more docile and sweet kitty. After he eats he comes and headbumps my hand and rubs his cheeks on it. I guess "I am his":). I introduced him to some toys but he does not play much on his own. So tonight I will entice him with Da Bird and see how he reacts. While I am playing with him in his room, Joe will be playing with the other four babies so that nobody gets jealous.

Tubi wants so badly to meet Frankie...He hangs out at Frankie's door. He did the same thing when we socialized and introduced Sweet Pea.

We have exchanged scents and are now feeding Leo and Sweet Pea on a towel that carries Frankie's scent and so far so good. I can't believe we have five kitties again, and it all happened so fast!

Frankie, the new kitty in the Isaac residence

2011-06-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of months we have been feeding a stray black kitty boy in our backyard. He is very very chatty, skinny and very subdued. The plan was to catch him or trap him and have him TNR. Well, plans have changed. A week and a half ago he stopped coming in for food for two days. When we saw him again he was sick; was not chatting at all, looked letargic and just picked at his food. So, we got him in at the vets for a physical and neuter. They confirmed he was running a fever and boarded him until he was OK for the neuter. He is approx. 1 1/2 years old.

I contacted every cat rescue group in our area and offered a donation, but nobody would take him in. They are all over capacity with kittens and adult cats. As we all know, black cats are not easy to adopt out.

We just did not have the heart to put him out so...he is ours. He has been recovering in his room from the viral infection. Thank God that he eats very well, drinks his water and uses his litter box like a champ. He does vocalize sometimes, missing the outdoors and I know he is stressed from this major change in his life.

We will take it very slow with him, letting him getting used to his room and new life etc and later on we will start the intros with the other babies. For now, I started the scent exchange process.

Oh, and his name is Frankie and I am certain that our sweet RB Sammy told him there is a vacancy at the Isaac Hotel:)

Summer is here!

2011-06-01T11:49:00.000-07:00

For the past three days the temperatures have been in the 90's. Even with the AC on, the kitties have been sluggish and did nothing but slept all day long. I can totally understand, all that fur must keep them so warm. They have been hanging out in front of the vents, exposing their bellies to the cool air, so cute.

Chloe who is our long hair baby must be the warmest of them all.

Last night we took Da Bird and The Kittenator out for some interactive playing, and they played for just a few minutes and then looked at us " But we are tireeeeeeed" and plopped themselves on the floor. Usually they run themselves exhausted when we have these toys out.

Tubi is already feeling better

2011-05-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

Tubsie is on his fourth day of Baytril and homeopathic sore throat medicine and he is feeling better. His voice is back to normal. On Sat. I made a very concentrated chicken broth and he loves taking his homeopathic medicine with it. Of course, everybody gets some broth :) It's good for them anyway, the more liquids they get, the better.

This Wed we are going to have an animal communicator do a reading on everybody and I can't wait to hear the results. We already talked to them and told them they have permission to open up and pour their hearts to Ellen. Hopefully we will get some insight on why Tubi has been upset and how to help Chloe gain confidence and stand up to leo and Tubi.

Gosh, kitties are complicated!!!

2011-05-22T06:29:00.000-07:00

OK, we took Tubi to see Dr Nan yesterday. It was his first visit with her and he loved her and was a total lovebug with her. He is usually very scared and quiet, very wiggly when handled. She loved on him and kissed him and talked to him before examination so he just fell in love with her. It takes us about 20 min to get to her office and we stopped at the health food store to stock up on kitty food so poor little Tubsie was thrilled when we got home an hour and a half later.

Diagnosis was laringitis and a bacterial infection. So we have to administer Baytril tabs and a homeopathic sore throat mixture. The Baytril must not taste too bad because he does not mind them in pill pockets and the homeopathic mix is tastelles and he takes it in chicken soup.

After we brought him home we wnet out to run errands and we stopped at a few sales. Found an incredible pair of 1995 Brenda Schoenfeld taxco sterling door knocker earrings which I will be posting soon on my http://www.rmsjewels.com/ store.

End of the week

2011-05-20T08:47:00.000-07:00

It is Friday and Tubi is under the weather. He has a hoarse voice and a sore throat. Eats very well, has no fever and no other worrysome signs. He just devoured his Solid Gold Tuna:) His voice sounds funny and when he tries to purr he starts coughing. We will see how he feels tomorrow morning and if he is getting worse, we will take him in to Dr. Wendi.

I am guessing is either a viral infection or allergy. Poor little boy! I would hate for him to take antibiotics, because I am not sure they would do any help. We already started him on the L-lysine, hopefully it will help some. I made a note to call our holistic vet and see what we can get from her and have in the house for situations like this.

Tubi is upset

2011-05-18T05:14:00.000-07:00

Tubi has been having behavior problems, more so since Sammy died. He has always been a very anxious kitty and the major food begger in our house, but things are getting worse. He is obsessed with food and when he is frustrated about something he takes his frustration on his sister Chloe. And this makes me sad...

We had him checked by our vet and there is nothing medically wrong with him. I suspect he is worried about his status in their new hierarchy, and his anxious gene is all worked up. We will have to do a reading on him with Nancy.

We don't free feed them because Leo and Tubi would gorge, and talk about weight issues then. They eat five times a day, both dry and wet, all grain free food and get tons of attention and love. We play with them with Da Bird and The Kittenator and rotate the toy at every play session. Can you say spoiled kitties?

2011-05-16T12:42:00.000-07:00

I have been collecting vintage costume jewelry for many years. My best seller and my big teddybear has been Sammy Bo. We adopted Sammy from our local Humane Society in August 2004. His name was Goober but he did not seem to like it at all...The name Sammy came to me within a couple of days and it was a perfect match. He was the sweetest teddy bear ever and has always got along will all other kitties in our household. He was quiet and loving and was always there to provide comfort and joy. Our sweet furry child loved vintage costume jewelry and when he saw a piece that called to him he squeaked in delight and sat down next to it. He also announced to me when an item got sold. So you see, his personal business involvement has always been very intensive. Sammy went to the rainbow bridge on March 22nd, 2011, we lost him to bone cancer. I dedicate this blog to him and to my jewelry business, the two of them being bonded forever. We love you gummi bear forever and ever!

I have had my http://stores.ebay.com/RMSjewels and my http://www.rmsjewels.com/ stores for almost eight years and take a great pride in making my customers very happy. Recently I opened my etsy store at http://www.etsy.com/shop/RMSjewels.

In our stores you will find Victorian, Art Deco, Art Nouveau, Modernist vintage, Egyptian Revival and Christmas costume jewelry made of celluloid, lucite, bakelite, crystals, rhinestones, glass, sterling, pewter, copper, brass, wood, jade, pearls, ivory, enamel, and porcelain. Our collections include vintage costume jewelry and antique costume jewelry such as chatelaine pins, brooches, bib necklaces, brooches, bracelets, earrings by designers such as Art, Bogoff, Boucher, Carnegie, Coro, Denicola, Florenza, Har, Hollycraft, Haskell, KJL, Kramer, Krementz, Jomaz, Juliana, Marvella, Monet, Renoir, Robert, Sarah Coventry, Schiaparelli, Schreiner, Selro, Swoboda, Trifari, Warner, Weiss and more.

Don't forget all items are being sold by Sammy Bo, his spirit is with me forever!

Feral no more!

2011-05-16T12:16:00.000-07:00

Sweet Pea is the latest addition to our cat family. He is a former feral (and I mean feral not stray) who joined our family on Dec 22^nd, 2009. We fed him in our backyard for about 6mos before trapping him on Dec 22^nd when we took him to the vet and had him checked out, neutered etc. The first five months felt like eternity, because these were the months when we first socialized him and then introduced him to the rest of our crew. I shed a lot of tears and had so much fear that he would not allow us into his world but he did and he is a blessing and a wonderful soul. Leo did not accept him for a while and was very angry, but after a rigorous introduction process, they are now best of friends. They chortle, and play tag, and wrestle and then play some more…Truly a miracle.

I met some unbelievable feral cat rescuers and animal communicators who gave us tremendous advice on how to handle Sweet Pea. Today he is fully integrated in the house and acts like a regular "house" cat. We can pick him up and handle him to a certain extent, and all this came with a lot of work and patience. Three weeks ago he had a full physical including blood work and a dental (with three extractions). I was so worried about this vet visit, but it all worked out well. I could tell his breath was getting bad and the supplements from the holistic vet did not help much. We knew he needed a dental, the issue was how to get him to Dr Wendi. We had to sedate him because there was no way we would attempt to just put him in a carrier. Poor thing had three teeth extracted due to resorptive lessions and one of them was in horrible shape. I can imagine the pain that he was in, but he never showed any signs of it. Cats are masters at hiding pain...

He was happy before but now he is thrilled and shows us every day how great his mouth feels!

Give feral cats a chance, the love and bond you will experience is like no other!