A Slightly Less Wobbly Woof Woof Wednesday

Astrid's current vestibular disease flare is slowly but surely improving. She has days and times when she moves around pretty well, having only minimal signs of dizziness and unsteadiness. Other times, especially if she's moved around a lot and is tired, she has to be helped quite a bit when walking. But, for about three mornings in a row now, she's woken up and has been able to make it all over the house on her own without falling over. That's a huge improvement from last week. It gives me hope that perhaps we're finally approaching the end of this vestibular episode, and hopefully Astrid continues to improve and return to her version of normal. Hopefully.

Oh, and despite us having placed rugs all over the hardwood and other slick floors in the house, Astrid still has far less confidence when inside. But when you get her onto the concrete outside, which she knows she won't slip and slide on, she walks far more normally. See?

Astrid isn't always so great on feet in uneven grass right now, but when she gets on cement, she's unstoppable. Well, usually.

Happy Wednesday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

I honestly have a significant number of new doodles that I still need to scan and share here, going all the way back to some I scribbled up in the first couple months of the year. I finally got my laptop back from the repair shop for the fourth time this year, though, and so I will soon scan those new doodles. In the meantime, I've been going back in the archives and finding doodles I completely forgot about, like this one here.

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Tip of the Day

Today's tip on taking that kitty of yours to the vet is about selecting the best kind of carrier for your cat. There are a number of considerations to make when it comes to carrier type. The size of your cat, the size of the carrier, how willing your kitty is to enter a carrier, your cat's behavior while in a carrier, and the material out of which a carrier is made can all play a role in the kind of carrier you might want to use.

To go into a bit more detail, let's start with the size of your kitty. For example, take into consideration the comfort of a large cat when selecting a carrier. A small carrier will of course be less than cozy for a large cat, not to mention that it might not be easy to get a large cat into a small carrier in the first place. At the same time, though, it is important to make sure that you can carry your cat's carrier with relative ease. This is especially crucial for emergency cases, when you might need to move quickly and therefore won't want to have difficulty transporting a cat-filled carrier.

Another consideration to make is how easy it is to get your cat into the carrier. Yesterday, we mentioned some tips on getting your cat used to the carrier. Those all being said, some cats may simply not be the easiest to coax into a carrier. With this in mind, consider what type of carrier will be easiest for you, your kitty, and your particular situation. If your cat is difficult to get into a carrier, for example, a top-loading one might be easier than a front-loading one. Then again, if it's possible and safe, you could set a front-loading carrier on its back end in order to load your kitty in through the door while it's standing up in that manner. Also keep in mind how sturdy a carrier is and how easily this might make it to load a kitty inside. Mesh or other flimsy carriers, for example, could collapse as you try to load a difficult cat inside, making the task even more challenging.

Yet another consideration to make is how your cat acts inside a carrier, and how details such as carrier material might be affected. For example, is your cat a digger while in their carrier? If so, a mesh carrier may not be the best option for them, especially if they are an insistent digger who might tear a hole in the mesh or dig at the zipper and escape. Also take into consideration if your kitty has a nervous bladder or nervous bowels. If your cat is known to urinate or defecate in the carrier, consider what type of carrier might be best able to withstand this and be cleaned afterwards. A plastic carrier might be a good option in this case.

There can be a great many considerations to make when selecting a carrier for your kitty. Those we mentioned above are just some considerations you might need to make. It all depends on your particular furbaby, their personality and behavior, as well as on you and your capabilities or preferences.