weather, Ts, and Annie

Monday it was 92--a record for the date. Tuesday a storm front came through--we didn't get much; I think they said 14/100ths of an inch (so it's good I watered saturday)--and the temp dropped like a rock; it was about 61 when we left the office yesterday afternoon. 40s overnight. Ts were very happy doggies. They raced around the puppy pen at top speed last night, and this morning they played their cool-weather-morning game: starting in the bedroom, they run across the back hall, through the kitchen, into the living room, jump onto the futon, have 10 noisy seconds of shark-face, then jump down onto the floor, through the living room, through the kitchen, across the back hall, into the bedroom, up on the bed, 10 seconds of shark face--all at top speed. Repeat until participants are out of breath. It's very cute to watch, as long as I'm careful to stay out of the way. Annie has also learned to find shelter, cause they'll just trample right over the poor cat. Taenzer likes to get to the bed first, because it's easier for her to give way to Timber as he comes up than to try to bump him out of the way--he's like a little brick wall. There's actually only about 7 or 8 pounds difference in their weight, but their builds are so different--the ballet dancer and the linebacker.

I'm more convinced than ever that he had some kind of pelvic injury as a puppy. Lately I've been noticing that Taenzer wags her tail all the time--she's a happy girl and it's always going. Timber doesn't. Even if he's happy and excited, he doesn't wag. He raises and lowers his tail, but the only time I see him wag is if he's lying down and I come into the room, and he gives me that thump-thump using the bottom half of the tail dogs use when they want to be polite and acknowledge your presence. I'm spending so much money on drs. for me and on the van that I'm about to just throw up my hands and go for broke (more or less literally) on the credit cards, and take him in for x-rays so I can find out what, if anything, is going on back there and whether it may lead to serious problems in the future; also a stomach tack because he has a very deep midsection that's normal width at his back but extremely narrow at the bottom where the ribs join, what would be the sternum in us, and that's classic bloat structure. I'm worried about Taenzer, too, since she has it in her lines, but at the moment I'm most worried about Timber, so I want to go ahead and get him done. That would be a load off my mind, despite the cost.

Annie needs to go in, too. Sheer mom-paranoia. She's eating fine, her weight is pretty good--she may need her meds adjusted again--I don't think she's dehydrated (the "pinch test" doesn't indicate it). Ever since I read that cats are engineered to get most of their fluid needs from their food, I've been trying to feed her mostly canned (although she really likes crunchies, so I give her some a couple of times a week), and mixing a lot of water into the canned to make it kind of soupy, trying to be sure she gets plenty of fluid that way, and I think it's helping. But her coat is just a mess, and I haven't been able to find any good information about it--Anitra Frazier in the New Natural Cat says it's detox, and to increase their lecithin and all kinds of supplements. :-P It may be connected with kidney problems, and of course kidneys are part of the detox process. I'm wondering if it might help to get her a gentle herbal detox, or if I should get a solution of milk thistle and dandelion for liver support. I want to take her in and have Karen take a look at her, but I think I may also try to find a holistic vet who does phone consultations. I'm clearly going to have to increase her "sponge baths" from once weekly to 2 or 3 times a week. She enjoys them so much and you know how cats are--I bet she feels better when she looks tidier.

*sigh* Kids.

Oh, and I got my drs. appt. rescheduled for tomorrow, so that's okay.