The Noxie-kitty was laying in the kitchen while I was preparing The Phooka's salad this evening.  I stepped over her when I went to carry his bowl out to his Place Of Eating, and realized that he wasn't following.

When I turned to see why, it was because he was standing on the other side of the sprawled-out Nox.  She's wary of him because of his size (and his really really rotton brakes), but is gentle and docile, much like Tiki was. And apparently, he didn't want to rush by her and startle her, which is always how he was with Tiki.

He stayed there until I called Nox away, and once she stood up and moved into the room with me giving him more space to get by her, he bounded for his salad with his usual enthusiasm.

However, if it had been the Smidgeon-kitten (or in the past, Jazzi) in similar circumstances, I've seen him bowl her over.

Nox, however, is a Lady Cat, and is given Honor.

Tags: jazzi, nox, smidgeon, the phooka, tiki
Current Mood: amused

Here are pictures and a video of Jazzi on her walkies. You can see how much she loved to go on these, even though she had to stop and rest so often.




Watching for grasshoppers. She discovered these fascinating creatures very recently when one took off right from under her nose! She chased! She pounced! There was frantic pattings. Then peekings under her paws. Then pouncing again when it escaped! Then pattings! Then munchings.

Apparently grasshoppers taste MUCH better than caterpillers.




And here is a video of Jazzi marching along!

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Tags: jazzi, videos
Current Mood: nostalgic

My Jazzi-kitty was put to sleep this week, on Thursday. Her pain grew too great - she has had a history of chronic pain in her hips for several years - and it was causing progressive aggression.

( The following is a mixture - some very sad, and some very beautiful. I'm putting it behind the cut, so you may read at your own discretion. )

Tags: jazzi, pet communicator, the phooka
Current Mood: hopeful

Jazzi's new Important Lesson Of The Day.

Acorns make GREAT toys.

Tags: jazzi
Current Mood: amused

Deer Mom,

When I am laying in grass, is NOT good time to tell me to show the Pretty Tummy! I has important smellings and watchings to do. Evil chippermunkers are about! I has no time to show you the Pretty Tummy.

Remember this!

Love.  Usually.

Jazzi

PS: I likes new  nommy gushy-fuds. No more yucky vets food! Makes me slink with tail to tummy. Yuck-ptooey! Remember this!

Tags: jazzi
Current Mood: amused

Dear Jazzi,

Going for walks is a PRIVILEGE!

Throwing yourself down on the ground in a pout when it is time to go in is not going to endear me to you.  Even less will snarling at me when I try to pick you up. Or grabbing my wrist, biting me, and pummeling my arm with your feet, even if it is with "soft paws". And certainly once when I have you picked up, SCREAMING, HISSING, and FLAILING all limbs all the way back to the house as if I were taking you in to a stew pot or something is not going to increase my desire to take you out again.

I am NOT abusing you, so please don't make it sound like I am to everyone in the neighborhood!

 I could certainly enjoy my time indoors by the air conditioner instead of out in the sticky heat being devoured by mosquitoes. And not to mention aching every time you have to stop for five minutes to watch a bug walk across someone's driveway.

Oh, and throwing the same type of tantrum because I won't let you walk into someone's yard falls under this category, too.

Therefore, kindly rethink your attitude, my dear, or you will be grounded.

By the way... nice stalk and chase on that chipmunk! Six more inches, and you would have had him! Although, my poor wrist has been yanked around enough in the last two days....

Tags: jazzi
Current Mood: sore

Deer Mom -

Next time I chase a skwrl, drop the leesh, ok?  Yur too heevy too drag up the tree too.

Plus, yuu no run fast enuf. Need to xersize more. kthx.

Luv. Well.... usually...

Jazzi


*Mom - ow.  My wrist...*

Tags: jazzi
Current Mood: breathless

Dear Jazzi,

You have taken to your leash and harness like a real champion. I got such a kick on your first outing, that you marched right down to the corner and back, then to the opposite corner and back, right at my heel, like you had been doing it all of your life. I think perhaps we did too much that day, though, on your poor sore hips, since you didn't seem to want to do marchies after that, but instead to stay in our yard. And today, your fourth outing, when you felt better and wanted to march... well, I feel crummy, so instead I sat on the porch and let you rummage around as far as your stretchy leash would let you. Marching up and down four steps over and over again and then coming to me and rubbing and purring to make sure that I saw everything you did so that I could tell you how proud I was of you was a very nice touch.  I know it's still a bit hard for you to jump straight down off the porch, but I was very proud of you when you instead walked down the steps, marched yourself around and jumped UP onto the porch. Just to prove that you could do THAT much. My silly goof with her bulldog-swagger.

On your first outing, you learned a very important lesson.

Caterpillers taste AWFUL.

And then you stepped on it.

So there.

On your second outing, you learned another very important lesson.

Caterpillers STILL taste AWFUL.

On your third outing... you remembered that caterpillers taste awful ... but boy, did you stalk the dickens out of that fast running one!

And today on your fourth outing... you learned that caterpillers STILL taste awful.  Even when you lick them over and over and over and over. Sweetie, you kept spitting and making faces, but you wouldn't stop licking that 'piller to death. Literally. It never moved again. And five minutes later, you were STILL sticking out your tongue every so often and making BLECH-PTOOEY faces.  And then after you came indoors,  you threw up everything in your tummy all over the studio carpet. Twice.

So can today be the final lesson on caterpillers? 

Tags: jazzi
Current Mood: indescribable

The Phooka jumped up on the window bin, dug at the pillow, and flopped. There was BUNNY TUMMY! and he slept the sleep of the happy bunny.

Jazzi was on the other window bin.  And she streeeeeeetched a front paw out towards his nose. Just streeeeetchin' here, Mom. Nope, not gonna bat that bunny nose at all. Nope, just streeeetching. Even if it is soooooo tempting.

TP's eyes never opened, but his nose suddenly started moving fastsuperfast.

Jazzi withdrew her paw.

Nope. Was just stretchin'.

Tags: jazzi, the phooka
Current Mood: amused

Dearest Tiki

You are... simply awesome.

And I don't mean that in the cool lingo way.

I am simply in awe of you.

Here you are, with a cancerous mass on your shoulder, due to go in for surgery next week, and you are worried about ME. (we spoke with our pet communicator this morning, as I wanted to make sure my 13+ year old Tiki was strong enough to want to go through the surgery. Her answer was quick and firm. Yes.)  You told me that I don't laugh enough, and that when you do cross over, that you will send me someone who will make me laugh more.

And then your brat of a sister got into an arguement with me (via the pet communicator) about wanting to go outdoors. It was clearly explained to her WHY she can't go out, she was pouty, and then when I was still on the phone, she pushed the screen out of the window and went anyway.

I spent over four hours in a crisis panic. You watched as I paced the yard, the neighborhood, the back field over and over again, calling, whistling, shaking the treat bag, clanging a spoon on Jazzi's bowl, and crying. Jazzi hasn't been out on her own in eight years. Her health isn't good. MY health isn't good. (Not to mention that I have friends who have driven hundreds - one of them a thousand! - miles to spend the weekend with me, and I was spending the first day searching for my bratty cat), and I was in complete panic crisis, health crisis, emotional crisis... EVERYTHING crisis.

When she didn't come back in time for her afternoon meal, you sat up and looked into my eyes, and I knew you knew what to do. I had debated this, but you have trouble walking on that one leg, and I didn't know if this was too much to ask of you, but your eyes held so much confidence and wisdom, that I decided to try. Normally, you squirm when I put your harness on, but you simply stood up and held very still, head held high, even though the harness goes right over the lump on your shoulder.  I picked you up as gently as I could and took you out and placed you on the ground under the window.  "Find Jazzi," I said. "Find your sister."

You sniffed around for a moment, then confidently limped around the corner of the house. Again, a brief stop to sniff, and then limped along the house a little further until you reached a spot where the skirting had a hole in it (We live in a mobile home), and you peered in.

And then, you took me to the porch, climbed the steps, sat in front of the door and meowed, as if saying "My work here is done."

I didn't know what to think. Were you too uncomfortable walking and giving up? Were you too scared to be out? Was I hoping for too much?  I asked you a few more times to find Jazzi, and each time, you looked up at the door and meowed.

I sat on the steps and nearly burst into tears again.

I heard some rustling from under the house, but each time, there wasn't any bell ringing or meowing, so I thought it must be one of the chipmunks or squirrels.... until a white Jazzi-paw poked out from one of the holes in the skirting and flailed wildly.

I quickly tied your leash to the porch and ran to pull aside the skirting, and out crawled Jazzi. I figure she ran in after a chipmunk and couldn't get back out again. She was filthy, with dirt even hanging off her whiskers, but she couldn't wait to get inside and EAT.

And so, my precious Tiki... I am in awe of you. Fighting cancer... and yet you find your brat of a sister for me, walking in a harness that chaffed right over the cancer-lump... heck, when even just WALKING is uncomfortable.

You are a hero-kitty. You can do anything.  You never stop amazing me. Fifty pounds of awesome in a seven pound package.

*

Dear Jazzi

And after that, you DARE to try and slip out the door again? You damn well BET that I'll throw a bucket of water at you for trying! And just because I was so pissed at you, you damn well BET that I not only threw that bucket of water at you, but hell YEAH I took you out on the porch and dumped ANOTHER bucket of wet stuff ON TOP OF YOU.  OUTDOORS IS NOT FOR YOU! TOUGH LOVE!  No more open window for you! Not until that screen is BOLTED IN. You've lost all open-window privileges, unless I am sitting right on top of you, and I might just mean the ON top of you part.

TOUGH LOVE, cat. TOUGH LOVE.

Tags: jazzi, tiki
Current Mood: indescribable