Thoroughly Poetic Thankful Thimble Thursday...and a Request for Purrs and Prayers

Sorry for posting so late, friends. My parents and I have been trying to help my uncles with one of their kitties. My uncles are twins who live together, they have four kitties whom they love, they are not well off, and so they often need help. That's fine, and I won't dwell on that side of things.

The kitty in question is named Oleander, and he currently has a urinary obstruction. He is at our local emergency vet clinic, where he is hospitalized. Worrying about him has gotten me a bit off track. We'll get to our usual Thursday post in just a moment, but can we first please ask for some purrs and prayers for my uncles' kitty Oleander? A blocked tom is no joke, Oleander's renal values are a mess, and he's simply in need of lots of help, purrs, and prayers. Thank you all for your friendship and support!

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So, happy Thursday! Let's get right to it with Angel Sammy's Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge.

Each week our host shares a photo prompt to help get our creative juices flowing. This week's prompt is this vintage one here:

I am a huge fan of anything Western, so I was excited to see this prompt. There is also an adorable dog in that photo, snoozing on the floor to the left of the bar, which I was happy to see. But, I actually ended up going in a different direction with my poem. It's still a Western-style tale, and there's a saloon involved, but I added a silly little twist to it. If you'd like to see what I ended up with, you're welcome to read my poem below.

Maeve

There once was a traveling cowboy named Pete,
And one day he approached a new town looking for something to eat.
On the edge of that town he met a farmer,
Who greeted Pete with, "Howdy, partner!"

The two men exchanged greetings and names,
And then Pete looked around and did state,
"Could you point me in the direction of some food?
And, well, perhaps even just a tad bit of booze?"

"I can tell you just the place," the farmer did reply.
He added, "Head to the saloon, which is north another two miles."
"Does this saloon have a lot to offer?" Pete couldn't help but ask.
He didn't mean to sound picky, but in truth he was just that.

The farmer said, "The saloon offers any food you might crave.
There's also drinks of all kinds, and a pretty lady name Maeve."
Pete liked the sound of that, he could not lie.
"Who, exactly, is this Maeve you mentioned?" was his reply.

"Maeve?" the farmer said. "She's a rare and gorgeous ginger.
Really, I've never seen another lady like her.
She greets everyone who shows up at the saloon,
And she always wears a ribbon in her hair, usually maroon."

After thanking the farmer, Pete headed north.
He had eaten nothing all day, and it was approaching four.
Pete looked forward to some food, a drink or two, and meeting this Maeve.
In truth, he thought that would certainly make his day.

With only two miles to go, the trip wouldn't take terribly long,
And soon Pete began hearing a piano's song.
Squinting ahead, he realized the noise came from none other than the saloon.
It was just up ahead, and Pete would happily be arriving at it soon.

When he stood at the base of the saloon's front steps,
A cat shot outside with a purr, a meow, and lots of pep.
"Hello, kitty," Pete said and gave it a scratch.
And then, scratching his own head, he stepped back.

The cat pranced around at his feet,
And as he watched it there was something he began to see.
The cat had long fur of orange, like fire.
Around its neck it wore a maroon ribbon as its attire.

Pete chuckled and then said, "Come on, kitty. Let's go inside."
The two entered the saloon together, the cat matching his stride.
Immediately, he was greeted by a man behind the bar.
Pete ordered a mountain of food, being hungry after traveling far.

The ginger cat sat on the stool beside Pete,
And he gave it another pet as it pranced its little feet.
Pete simply had to ask the man behind the bar, "What's this cat's name?"
"Oh," the man replied, "that's Maeve."

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Now, of course, we're ready for Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

On Tuesday, Tonks shared some bloopers that were snapped when we were putting together our newest cat tree. Now, Thimble wants to make sure that all of you know how grateful she is to be adorable even in her own bloopers. We're all about the bloopers these days, aren't we? Perhaps that's because we have so many of them.

So, Thimble is sharing some of her outtakes snapped during the recent cat tree construction. Let's start with the least bloopery of the bloopers, shall we?

After that photo, though, things got way more blurry and way less quality. Here you go. Have a look for yourselves.

Now, for the last blooper from Thimble, how about one that is perhaps Thimble's most classic type of blooper.

Thimble loves attention, and she loves the camera, and so she very often walks right up to the camera to make sure it sees her. That's why I have so many bloopers of her that look exactly like the one above. I should gather up all of Thimble's close-up bloopers like this one and share them all in one post. That would be a really long post.

Anyway. Isn't Thimble adorable even in bloopers? Thimble is thankful that she is indeed cute no matter what. This here mom of hers agrees, and it's not even remotely because I'm biased.

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It's now time to share the fill-in statements for tomorrow's Friendly Fill-Ins challenge. My co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing crafted up the first two, and I came up with the second two.

1. February is the perfect month to _________.

2. I have a subscription to _________.

3. _________ is my kind of humor.

4. I shouldn't _________, but I do anyway.

We'll see you tomorrow, friends!

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Tip of the Day

For today's Spay/Neuter Awareness Month tip, we're discussing how it is important to be aware of your cat or dog's age and size, and to have them spayed or neutered at an appropriate, safe, effective time of their kittenhood or puppyhood. This is important, for one, because cats can potentially become pregnant as early as 4 or so months of age. Dogs fall not far behind that, with the potential for becoming pregnant at 5 or so months old. Should your kitten or puppy get loose, this means they could come back pregnant even at such a young age.

In addition, spaying or neutering your furbaby before they go through their first estrus or pregnancy will give them the best chance of remaining free from related health issues later in life, such as mammary cancer. Spaying or neutering before their first cycle can also help to potentially reduce the display of certain behaviors, such as spraying. Though certain such health or behavioral issues can still arise even if a furbaby is spayed or neutered, having this surgery performed before their first cycle can reduce the risk.

So, then, when should you have your cat or dog spayed or neutered? The short answer is to discuss this with your veterinarian. Ultimately, it depends on the individual animal's overall health and development. For typical, healthy kittens and puppies, the AVMA has endorsed spaying and neutering as early as two month of age, and/or when the kitten or puppy has reached two pounds. Many shelters and rescues follow this practice. Some veterinarians will prefer to wait a little longer, such as when the kitten or puppy has reached 3, 4, or even 5 months of age. Essentially, a veterinarian will best be able to determine when is the best time for your furbaby to be safely and effectively spayed or neutered, so of course discuss this with a professional.