The Vent and Rant Thread

[ownedbycats]

One of my cats managed to sneak out of the apartment. Thankfully the doors shut for fire safety which meant she only got as far as the stairwell.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

One of my cats managed to sneak out of the apartment. Thankfully the doors shut for fire safety which meant she only got as far as the stairwell.

WHEW! I live in dread of that--out here (in the Sonoran Desert) an outside cat is a dead cat. I'm loony-paranoid about it.

Hitch

[BetterRed]

The Outdoor Cat: Neighborhood Mascot or Menace? - NYT

[DNSB]

101 Uses for a Dead Cat.

[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by BetterRed

The Outdoor Cat: Neighborhood Mascot or Menace? - NYT

Thankfully, both of my cats are indoor ones. They just like to sneak out into the apartment hallway sometimes.

[Deskisamess]

People who let their cats roam are a serious pet peeve of mine. They get hit by cars, kill the songbirds and bunnies, use flower beds as litter boxes, etc. Not to mention having a seriously shortened life span of 4 years, compared to indoor cats which live 10-18 years.

I think cats should have to be licensed just like dogs. We love cats, and up until a few years ago, always had at least one cat. But they can be a real nuisance, especially when left un-neutered and allowed to roam.

Can't read the article at the link, it's behind a pay wall.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Thankfully, both of my cats are indoor ones. They just like to sneak out into the apartment hallway sometimes.

Both of mine are fascinated by the Giant TV (the portals that lead outside). My male once "escaped" when I was outside and I managed to catch him, when he was yet a kitten, about 5-6 mos old. The female has never seriously tried to get out.

Here, there's just no going out. We considered building a Catio--we have a large paver-stone patio (70-75' end to end and 12' deep), covered and we thought about enclosing part of it for them, as an outdoor spot, but even then, you can't keep out the rattlers and other poisonous or harmful critters. It's just how it is. (And there's no "just" going out without something protected; between coyotes and death-from-above [Great Horneds and other raptors), it just ain't the thang to do.]

It's hard enough going on scorpion patrol nightly, just to try to keep them (the cats) from being stung and suffering. (Allegedly, cats "deal well" with scorpion stings, but lemme just say this--I've been scorpion stung. It ain't a party, trust me, and the ratio of venom to body weight for one of my cats, even if they ARE Maine Coons, versus the ratio of venom to body weight, for me, is pretty damn drastically different, even if I am not a very large person, weight-wise.)

Hitch

[PeterT]

Our cats managed to escape from our townhouse a few times. It was always fun trying to catch them, but what we found worked well was shaking a bag of Temptations! No idea what's in them but boy, did our cats love them.

Of course there was one morning that I came downstairs and looked through the sliding door and screen and saw a cat on the balcony. I thought it looked just like Missie and was amazed at the fact she had a twin. Then took a second look and ..... it WAS Missie! She had clawed through the screen and was just resting on the balcony.

Luckily when I opened the screen she was happy to come back into the house.

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[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by PeterT

Our cats managed to escape from our townhouse a few times. It was always fun trying to catch them, but what we found worked well was shaking a bag of Temptations! No idea what's in them but boy, did our cats love them.

The main trick I've heard is to put the cat's litterbox on your front porch. Thankfully I've never had to test whether it works (and I don't actually have a front porch...)

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

The main trick I've heard is to put the cat's litterbox on your front porch. Thankfully I've never had to test whether it works (and I don't actually have a front porch...)

We had a cat that managed to get out, get away and get LOST, 2x, in the 90's and early aughts, when we lived in Scottsdale. The first time was bad enough--he was MIA for three days. (Both times, mind you, he disappeared on Thanksgiving day. I have NO idea why. Never disappeared during July 4th or the like. We had a larger enclosed yard, inside which they [normally] remained, but in both instances, something happened, or startled him or whatever, and he lost his balance and went over the wall--and then couldn't find his way home, the moron.)

The second time, he was gone for over a week and I was...well. Not great. I mention this due to the bizarre method I used, to get him home--I was told by an "expert" in this that when it's DRY and cold, as it was both Thanksgiving days, the cats can't pick up their scent trails, from their pads, to get home--to backtrack, IOW. So...(this was back before clumping litter), I took dirty catbox, filled pantyhose with dirty gravel and poop, and then I walked around the neighborhood, every single night, creating multiple stinky trails home. Dragged the nasty hose on the ground, over everything--walkways, grass (such as it was), street, you-name-it. Did that for 3 nights in a row...and on the morning of the 7th day, sure as s**t, I woke to find him sitting on my chest. Traumatized, lemme say, too. He was not (intentionally) an adventurous soul.

Today, with the godsend that is clumping litter, I have a "poop bucket" that is the clumps, poop, etc. that we gather 2x daily and then put out weekly in the disposal dumpster. So, except for one day/week, I always have some to-hand, "Just in case." I refuse to throw it out, pretty much, on most days for that reason.

"Used" catbox seconded as a good helper, in other words.

Hitch

[Rumpelteazer]

I just came back from an expedition from our back yard. Which is overgrown with ivy that the museum (which is now gone) planted in their yard and promised they would keep in check, which they didn't. It has now overgrown all the of the inside of the block. It has been joined with a thorny plant, not sure how that came in our back yard.

In the door from the yard to the basement my father installed a fan, the prevent the air getting damp in the basement. The last couple of weeks I heard a soft rattle, soft enough to ignore. But last night it had suddenly gotten a lot noisier. I had to sleep with my earplugs in. The same thing happened last year and it turned out a plant had grown up against the fan.

So I had to get to that door, from the outside. So I put on my thickest pair of jeans, my jeans jacket. Put the plant cutters in a pocket and took a broom handle with me. Because it isn't just overgrown with plant, it seems our yard is a haven for big (for Dutch standards) spiders. So the stick was to get rid of any spiders and webs on my way.

Luckily a plant had grown against the fan again and I was able to remove it. I removed all plants in the area, hopefully it'll take a while before they grow back.

[PeterT]

Well it's that time again; another followup post eye surgery.

I still have the gas bubble in the eye, and if I lean forward with my eye horizontal, I can see the bubble in the center of the eye.

Unfortunately still no real vision from the eye; just a massive blur.

It's been over 3 months since I developed the infection in the eye, and over 2 months since the vitrectomy and retinal tear repair.

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[CRussel]

@PeterT: This is seriously tough, and I hope that the word at the followup is hopeful.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by PeterT

Well it's that time again; another followup post eye surgery.

I still have the gas bubble in the eye, and if I lean forward with my eye horizontal, I can see the bubble in the center of the eye.

Unfortunately still no real vision from the eye; just a massive blur.

It's been over 3 months since I developed the infection in the eye, and over 2 months since the vitrectomy and retinal tear repair.

FWIW, it took a long time for the gas bubbles to dissipate for me after a couple of detached retinas and they left a colossal cataract behind which occluded most of my vision. The upshot was that it was a protracted siege, but after the cataract surgery all was well. So fingers crossed you’re on the same trajectory, even though it stinks to be limited for so long.

[PeterT]

I've already had cataract surgery on both eyes, and that was a cakewalk!

Thanks though for the comments

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