Happy Friday!

Whew. We made it to Friday! As per usual, we're going to go right into the always fun and fantastic Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, hosted by the one and only 15andmeowing and McGuffy's Reader.

As always, we were given some clever as ever fill-ins.

1. A recurring dream I have is _________.
2. Turn _________ into _________.
3. _________ is driving me crazy!
4. Lately, I have been _________.

Here's how I fared:

1. A recurring dream I have is....none?
(I either rarely dream, or just rarely remember my dreams. I'm not sure which one. I can easily count on one hand the number of dreams I remember having so far this year.)

2. Turn lemons into lemonade.
(When life throws you lemons, make lemonade! I have always liked this saying. If things seem sour, just add a little sugar.)

3. The heat is driving me crazy!
(I'm not the kind of person who likes hot and humid, yet that's what Mother Nature has been doling out to us these days. And I'm not the only one, either. My furbabies, even with the air and fans on in the house, are a bit cranky some days. Especially pup Astrid. Even a simple trip outside to empty her little bladder these days seems like the ugliest form of torture for the heat intolerant pooch.)

4. Lately, I have been worried about one of the longtime neighborhood ferals.
(Does anyone remember me mentioning Hicks before? He's a feral cat who has been living in my neighborhood for years and years, and I have been feeding him and have a shelter in my yard for him. I had even been trying to think up a plan for trapping him, without instead getting the neighbor's cat or any of the other nearby family's kitties who love my yard, and at least having him neutered. But, Hicks has disappeared. In general, this is not all that unusual for him, but he's been gone for weeks and weeks now, and this time I know there were two events that precipitated his disappearance. First, construction workers began tearing up the street outside our house, making lots of racket as well as a giant canyon out front. Second, an aggressive, territorial brown tabby suddenly started showing up in my yard, and it took an immediate disliking to Hicks. Now, I pray every day that Hicks returns. I feel like I failed him, and I want nothing more than to remedy that.)


Now, as is the case every Friday, it's Eddy's turn to show off her shots of the week. These past couple of weeks, she's actually given you all some lovely views of her. She's even sat still for some of them, so that you could see her cute little face and pretty profile. Today, though, she's back to old habits.

There's my blurry girl. I was wondering where you've been.

Eddy didn't want you all to forget how she looks, though, so she requested that I doodle up a version of her that's not quite as blurry.

Now, changing topics yet again, if you saw our post yesterday, you'll know that Thimble was at the V-E-T for a recheck urinalysis after being treated for a UTI. She and I are both happy that there is no longer any sign of infection!

The not so great news is that, despite my attempts to prevent this, Eddy is yet again showing some non-recognition aggression towards Thimble since her return from the V-E-T. Since Eddy doesn't travel well I didn't take her along with Thimble, but instead gave Thimble a thorough wipe down and rubbed her up and down with a blanket that smelled like her when she got home. Eddy is not fooled, and clearly has a great nose. At least this time it is a far more mild of a reaction from Eddy. Well, that is, until Thimble decides to play it up and chase the hissing and growling Eddy around the house. Oh, my girls, you sure are giving your mommy a run for her money. Don't worry, it only took a week of hair-pulling last time to get the girls back to being friends. We'll survive.


That all being said, we wish everybuddy a happy Friday!

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Our Tip of the Day:

Don't forget that cats, and even dogs, can be prone to urinary issues, such as UTIs or blockages. When it comes to UTIs, they often stem from the fact that cats' and dog's urogenital tracts are in such close proximity to the anus. This is why it is important that these furry rear ends remain clean, and that any fuzzy and shaggy furbabies are kept groomed back there so that fecal matter cannot get trapped and lead to a UTI. As for issues such as urinary blockages, this often relates to the fact that in the wild, cats and dogs don't go around feasting on dry kibble. Rather, they eat prey, which is composed heavily of moisture. So, furbabies on highly dry diets might find themselves with crystals or other reasons for blockages. For this reason, offer plenty of fresh, enticing water to your kitty or pup. Moist food is obviously another great way to add moisture to their diet. Sometimes you can get creative to get your furbaby to drink more, such as by using ice cubes. Some dogs like to chew on and eat ice cubes, for example, while some cats can be enticed to drink water from a bowl in which fun ice cubes are floating around. If you are concerned about your furbaby's urinary health or water intake for any reason, of course talk to your veterinarian.