Friendly Fill-Ins

Sorry for showing up so late again, friends. Evan had some issues yesterday that I mention in the fill-ins below. Dealing with that and cuddling with him thereafter, I ended up forgetting to schedule this post. But, here we are! We're ready for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, and we'd love for you to join us. My amazing co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two fill-in statements, and I came up with the second two.


1. Never underestimate _________.

2. _________ makes me _________.

3. I need to _________ so that I can _________.

4. I didn't realize _________ until _________.

My answers are below in bold.

1. Never underestimate my desire to go home.

(This answer was purely inspired by a comment or meme I recently saw online, which said something along the lines of, "Whoever said 'go big or go home' severely underestimates my desire to go home." As a homebody who just wants to be home with her kitties and pup, I felt that sentiment to my bones.)

2. Knowing Evan was suffering with constipation while I was at work yesterday makes me feel absolutely terrible.

(I have security cameras in my house so as to keep an eye on my kitties and pup. I checked on them a couple hours before I left work for the day, and at that time Evan was comfortably sleeping in his favorite kitty bed. When I got home, though, Evan did not greet me at the door like he usually does. I found him lying on the floor with his usual constipation symptoms, clearly exhausted from his efforts to empty his bowel. I gave him the abdominal massage that usually at least somewhat helps him empty his bowels when he's constipated, and luckily within a few minutes of me getting home he'd evacuated everything he needed to. He was very tired and very quiet for the rest of the night, but I gave him his various medications and got him to settle in and sleep pretty comfortably. It still made me feel horrible that he was home alone trying to deal with that and exhausting himself in the process. There's a bit more on that in #3 below.)

3. I need to feed Evan his new GI food so that I can see if he'll eat it and if it helps his intestinal issues.

(I've mentioned both above and in previous posts how Evan has been having some intestinal issues, which have recently turned into some major constipation that also somehow simultaneously involves diarrhea. His vet ordered a prescription food that includes prebiotics and probiotics that she thinks could help him. That food finally came in, and so this weekend I'm going to see if he likes it, if it ultimately helps him, and all that jazz. Since this food isn't for urinary tract health, and Evan also has some urinary tract issues, I'll probably see if Evan benefits from having a mixture of this food with his usual urinary tract food. Pretty much, I need to experiment to find food that helps helps his intestinal issues while also keeping his urinary tract issues in check.)

4. I didn't realize Eddy would eat treats until the wrong flavor was once accidentally sent to us.

(I've mentioned this before, but Eddy's heightened love for treats these days has reminded me of how this all began. Eddy never used to like any treats I purchased. I had never really given my kitties many fishy flavors, but then an online vendor sent me fish flavored treats instead of the chicken flavor I purchased. I went ahead and offered those to my kitties, and turns out, Eddy loves those fishy flavored treats. Years later, that exact flavor that was sent to us in error is still her favorite thing in the world to eat.)

Now it's your turn!

To add your link to the Friendly Fill-Ins Linky list, just click HERE!

You can also click on the badge below to add your link.

You are also welcome to complete the fill-ins in the comments below,

or in the comments on Ellen's blog, 15andmeowing.

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Ready for your Eddy fix? Today, this tabby girl is a bit tired, but she still can't help but snoopervise out her favorite window. It's tough being such a good watch kitty.

Happy Friday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

This doodle was one I scribbled up after seeing a sign that said, "Coffee. Because murder is wrong." For me it would be hot cocoa, but either way, sometimes you just need a cup of your favorite beverage to keep you out of jail. That may or may not also be why there's a random little knife on the table behind the kitty. 

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Tip of the Day

We're continuing on with our tips on summer safety for outdoor strays and ferals. Today we're moving on to the topic of food. When feeding furbabies outdoors, you of course have to take into consideration the heat of summer. Food can spoil in extreme heat, as you all surely know. Dry food is often the best one to feed strays and ferals on hot days. After all, moist food will spoil far more quickly, and will also quickly dry out in the sun and heat. You can try adding additional water to moist food to keep it from drying out too quickly, but even this method won't be able to combat the heat for long. No matter what type of food you feed to strays and ferals, do try to keep it in a shaded area or under a shaded shelter. What's more, remove old food and offer fresh food as often as is possible and needed.

It's also worth noting that though dry food is easier and safer to feed to outdoor cats in the heat, you still have to take precautions. Not only can dry food lose its freshness and safe status in the heat, but also think of instances such as rainy days. Dry food that gets wet will swell, become unappetizing, and can easily spoil if not cleaned up. So, when feeding dry or even moist food, of course keep in mind not only the heat, but other environmental factors such as rain. All in all, keep those strays and ferals healthy this summer with fresh food that is in the shade and protected from spoilage and other issues as best as possible.