Mancat Monday: Evan's Urinary Woes Continue

Poor Evan had another rough weekend. I mentioned a couple weeks ago how Evan was seemingly having a flare of his bladder cystitis, as he'd started urinating blood and crying while urinating. I upped his meds related to his urinary issues, and since he has a history of chronic UTIs and he therefore has an ongoing prescription for antibiotics, I also started him on those. Within 2 or 3 doses of his antibiotics, Evan's symptoms all went away and he was his happy self again. He received those antibiotics for a week, until last Tuesday, and starting this Saturday his symptoms returned.

Poor Evan is back to urinating blood, acting painful and restless, and his urine is also quite malodorous. His ears and nose also feel warm to me. So, he's off to the vet this morning. Since he's on long-term antibiotics, his vet is worried he has a UTI that's become resistant to his usual antibiotic. I'm hoping these still work, especially since they actually took all of his symptoms away recently, but that perhaps he needs them for a longer duration of time. Either way, Evan's having his urine checked today, and we'll do a culture that will test any growth for antibiotic susceptibility. While we wait for those results, I'll keep him good and drugged to help him feel as comfortable as possible. Urine cultures can take a couple days to show full growth, and so it could be a few days before we know whether any infection is resistant to his current antibiotic.

Evan is getting lots of rest, in no small part thanks to his increased doses of gabapentin. Lots of naps are happening around here.

Though he's not feeling his best, Evan still hopes you all have a magnificent Monday!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

Today's summer safety tip is all about how to keep your furbaby cool if they are outdoors in the heat. To begin, as we previously mentioned, sometimes the great outdoors is a very dangerous place to be for a pup or dog in the extreme heat of summer. For this reason, please do try to limit time spent outdoors in the heat.

However, if your pup or kitty has to be outdoors for any reason, be sure that they are provided with everything to help them stay as cool as possible. For example, be sure that a sufficient amount of cool, fresh, clean water is available for them to drink. Also ensure that they have somewhere in the shade to stay. A potentially stifling outdoor enclosure, such as a shed, will often be no cooler than the sun. But, shade from trees or a building can enable a furbaby to get out of the sun and stay as cool as possible. For those furbabies who enjoy and take advantage of water, you can also put out a children's pool, with cool, clean water. This way, a pup or even a kitty who likes water for more than just drinking can have another way to cool off.

As we said previously, please do all that you can to keep your pup or kitty out of the heat of summer. If a trip outdoors is necessary for any reason, though, then it is important to know how to keep your furbaby cool and safe, such as by means of water and shade. Summertime is just another example of how you must think and plan ahead for the sake of your furbaby's health and happiness.

Friendly Fill-Ins and Eddy's Window Whiffies

Hello and hi! 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. I think the word or phrase _________ is overused.

2. I am embarrassed to admit that I _________.

3. I wish I could convince _________ to _________.

4. I could _________ even if I were blindfolded.


My answers are below in bold.

1. I think the word "love" is overused.

(I remember hearing someone comment on this way back when I was a young kid. I can't even remember who said it, but the sentiment has always stuck with me. The person was referring to people saying they love things like certain foods, a particular movie, or perhaps an item of clothing. As that person indicated, that lessens the real meaning of the word "love", and how it's truly meant to convey a deep, emotional feeling toward other living beings. I'm guilty of throwing the word "love" around for insignificant things, but I still agree with the general idea that "love" is used far too often for things that lessen the true depth of the word.)

2. I am embarrassed to admit that I often forget to floss my teeth.
(I have floss in my bathroom cabinet, but I often forget to use it. I do brush my teeth three times a day, but I genuinely need to get in a better habit of flossing.)

3. I wish I could convince all legislators to outlaw cat declawing.

(As many of you probably know, declawing a cat does not just remove the claw. It removes part of their actual toe as well. This alters the way they walk, can lead to arthritis due to the altered gait, and can also cause phantom pains that could relate to general discomfort or even aversion to digging in a litter box. I wish declawing was outlawed everywhere.)

4. I could prepare Evan's medications even if I were blindfolded.

(Evan gets around 10 medications every morning and half as many every night. I have fallen into such a routine for organizing and preparing all of them that I'm fairly certain I could get them all ready and administered even if I couldn't see what I was doing.)

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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We recently had some lovely days that allowed for some window whiffies. Eddy always has a mixed reaction to her favorite window being open. She's always intrigued and sometimes even excited, but she's also a bit skittish and so any and every sound puts her a bit on edge.

See Eddy's ears pulled back there? The poor skittish girl so badly wants to watch out the window, but all the sounds are so much for her.

Don't worry, because I never leave the window that far open if I'm not sitting right there with Eddy, or any of the kitties. I don't even like to leave the window cracked a tiny bit if I'm not right there. And I never leave it open for very long if Eddy gets nervous about it. Sometimes she loves it, and other times she's my little scaredy cat. And that's perfectly fine.

Happy Friday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

 

Given the summer-like weather we're finally experiencing, we're doing a series of tips all about summer safety for our furbabies. Yesterday we discussed how to recognize the signs of overheating in cats and dogs. Today we're here to remind you that, to avoid potentially fatal heat stroke in your furbaby, never leave them alone in a car. In the heat of summer, the inside of a car can reach temperatures well above 100°F within a matter of minutes. Even with the windows open, the inside of a car can still become not only stifling, but also incredibly dangerous.

Also keep in mind that the car is not the only location that can pose the risk of overheating. Garages, sheds, and of course even the great outdoors can be dangerous places on hot summer days. In short, as you all certainly know, never leave your furbaby in a car or anywhere that can easily overheat on summer days. Just like us, kitties and pups can indeed suffer from heat stroke if left in overheated conditions, and this can be fatal.

Cute Thimble on Thankful Thursday

You better believe Thimble is here and ready for Angel Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

Today, Thimble wanted to share a simple gratitude, and that is how thankful she is for her cuteness. Because, honestly, just look at her.

That face gets Thimble pretty much anything and everything she wants. I know, shocking.

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Last but not least, we have the fill-in statements for tomorrow's Friendly Fill-Ins challenge. My amazing co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two, and I came up with the second two.

1. I think the word or phrase _________ is overused.

2. I am embarrassed to admit that I _________.

3. I wish I could convince _________ to _________.

4. I could _________ even if I were blindfolded.

We'll see you tomorrow, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

Today's flashback doodle is nothing like Thimble, as she's a happy and social little lady. Well, I guess that means she's like the orange kitty rather than the grey one in this case. That said, I was going through old drawings and found this one I scribbled up on an especially introverted day, so here you go.

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Tip of the Day

 

Not too long ago, we shared a series of tips all about pet safety in the season of spring. We were going to wait a while before we got into the details of summer safety. However, given the summer-like days we'll be having this weekend, we thought we'd go ahead and offer some of these important tips now.

In many areas, summer can mean extreme heat. For this reason, it is important to know the signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke in your cat or dog. Signs of overheating in our furbabies can include excessive panting, difficulty breathing, increased heart rate and respiration rate, excessive drooling, weakness, or even vomiting and diarrhea. If your furbaby begins to show any of these signs, especially if they have been in the heat, do not hesitate to seek veterinary assistance. Tomorrow, we'll start diving a little deeper into how to keep your kitties and pups safe from overheating and other summer concerns.

Adventures with Angel Astrid

Today's memories with sweet angel pup Astrid are from one of the times we took her to meet up with some family at an outdoor gathering. We did this a couple of times with her, and it allowed for some rather majestic photos of the sweet girl.

Though she was never the most outwardly social dog, Astrid did enjoy being included in things. Her face would light up and she'd smile so big when she realized she was going on an adventure with her people. She loved to "go for a ride", which was one of her favorite phrases to hear.

When we were around others, Astrid would never opt to walk around asking people to pet her. That said, she was far from aggressive and would happily just hang out with myself, my sister, and my parents. She also absolutely adored my grandma and her husband, as well as a couple of my uncles and one of my cousins. Oh, and she always wanted petted by one of my neighbors. She was a very particular dog and only had a select few people she truly liked, but when she did like someone, they were her best friend. And if she didn't particularly like someone, she just ignored them.

Happy Wednesday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

The final tip in our wildlife series involves some additional things you can do to help keep the wildlife safe in their environment. First, as you all surely already know, please refrain from littering. Do not toss trash willy-nilly, but instead place it in a secure trash bin, or a recycling bin if relevant. This includes any and all items, as any variety of things can lead to dangers for wildlife. For example, the handles of plastic or paper bags can get stuck around the necks of wildlife critters, or any variety of items could be swallowed and lead to a choking hazard. And that's just naming two potential examples.

To further protect wildlife, please cut the aforementioned handles on plastic and paper bags before tossing them into the trash or recycling. This ensures that wildlife won't get their heads or limbs stuck in the handles. This also goes for milk jug lid rings, plastic or other rings that multipacks of soda come in, and anything else of that sort. Please simply cut such things before tossing them out in order to prevent strangulation or other injuries to wildlife.

In addition, before tossing them in a bin, do your best to rinse out cans and other food or drink containers. For one, this can perhaps help reduce the likelihood of wildlife eating food that is potentially unhealthy for them. Also, rinsing food containers can help reduce the likelihood of wildlife sniffing out leftover debris and therefore breaking into and going through trash and recycling bins, something that we surely all wish to avoid.

We share this land with a great many critters, and it's important that we keep this land safe for all of its inhabitants. So, please refrain from littering or otherwise contributing to situations that can be dangerous to wildlife.

Perturbed Tonks Tuesday

On this Tonks Tuesday, the calico wants to remind you all how cute she is. Even when she's a bit perturbed at her human of a mom for waking her up.

Sorry, Tonks. I didn't mean to interrupt your nap. You're just so adorable, so can you really blame me?

Happy Tuesday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

Today is the release day of my most anticipated book of the year, and that is the 8th book in the wild and chaotic fantasy series I've mentioned more than a few times on here. That would be the Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman. It stars a man named Carl with magical heart boxers, and of course his talking Persian tortie cat, Princess Donut. When the 7th book came out about a year and a half ago, I scribbled up this here doodle, which seems like a good one to share again today.

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Tip of the Day

Today's wildlife tip involves ways you can make your yard more wildlife-friendly. Of course, before you start making changes to your yard, ensure that the yard is still safe for any outdoor furbabies, and that your yard's attributes do not infringe on your neighbors. That being said, what are some ways you can make your yard more wildlife-friendly? You can of course add bird feeders, and areas where squirrels are fed. A bird bath is also very beneficial for both birds and squirrels, as long as you keep it clean and well tended. Bird houses are another possibility. You can also use the help of nature to make your yard a lovely place for wildlife to spend their time. Not only can you plant flowers for birds and insects to enjoy, but you can also maintain trees and bushes as areas where wildlife can seek refuge and nest.

Of course, we will again note that you must take the safety of both your furbabies and wildlife into consideration. Do not plant any flowers toxic to dogs or cats where your furbabies can reach. Also be cognizant of the location of bushes and trees. Why? For multiple reasons. Birds and other wildlife will not want to spend time in bushes or trees where dogs and cats frequent, as our furbabies are seen as predators. This also goes for the placement of bird feeders, bird baths, and bird houses. In addition, our furbabies can possibly be infected or injured by some wildlife. Our kitties and pups can acquire certain parasites from wildlife or in areas where wildlife frequent, and they could also be injured if they startle certain critters. These are also reasons why it's important to be aware of possible interactions between our furbabies and wildlife.

In short, there are ways that you can make your yard more wildlife-friendly. After all, this makes for great Bird TV and Squirrel TV. But, of course, you must also take into consideration the safety of your furbabies as well as that of the wildlife.

Mancat Monday with Evan and...Barney the Dinosaur?

I can't remember if I shared the image below when I created it last year, but I just stumbled upon it and wanted to share it. As a preface, when I was a kid, Barney the purple dinosaur was very popular. Though I find him creepy now, as a kid I loved Barney. My parents got me a sleeping bag with Barney on it when I was perhaps 4 years old, and I ended up passing it on to my blanket-loving Evan over 10 years ago. He has loved that Barney sleeping bag ever since then. Evan is a bit of a messy little guy, and so it's been cleaned many, many times over the years. Which led to this...

It ended up so ratty that my mom sewed it up inside some other fabric in order to create Evan a new sort of bed. So now, in 2026, this is Evan on his beloved Barney the dinosaur sleeping bag:

Evan still loves it. He's so grateful that his grandma fixed it so that, even after years of use and abuse, his beloved Barney the dinosaur sleeping bag is still around.

Happy Monday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

I've shared this doodle below multiple times over the years. I got the idea from other art I'd seen with similar concepts, and I just love the message it sends. I eventually want to recreate it with my slightly updated color palette, but for now here's this version again.

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Tip of the Day

Today's wildlife tips is about those bright-eyed, bushy-tailed rodents we so often seen running about. That is, squirrels. As we've all certainly witnessed, squirrels are not all that particular when it comes to what they'll put in their mouths. They are pretty resilient, but that doesn't mean we should throw any and every food out there for them. For example, bread and starchy foods are not the best diet choice for squirrels, especially when moldy. Even peanuts and corn are not all that ideal for them, again, especially when moldy. Of course, human junk food is also not a great option.

So, if you want to throw some snacks out for the squirrels, such as to enhance that Squirrel TV, try to offer them some foods that are a bit healthier for them. What, then, are some potential foods you can offer squirrels as healthy snacks? Tree nuts are one option, such as walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, and hickory nuts. Vegetables can also be just as healthy for squirrels as they are for us, and some good options for squirrels include carrots, broccoli, and zucchini. Another option is fruit, such as apple, strawberries, and grapes. So, while squirrels may not be picky when it comes to food, if you wish to offer them some choices, there are some healthy ones you can try. Then, you and your furbabies can enjoy a healthy episode of Squirrel TV.

Happy Birthday, Thimble, Toby, Trapper, and Angel Talon! (And Happy Mother's Day!)

Today is a very special day. The post's title probably gave it away, but it's my girl Thimble's 12th birthday!

This little lady is one of the sweetest, happiest, and just generally amazing creatures I have ever met in my life. Not to mention, just look at how cute she is. Honestly, just look.

Nearly 12 years ago, my grandma discovered that her neighbor had found a litter of 4 kittens and had placed them, for some reason, in a bucket. And then he'd just left them there. They were no more than 3 weeks old, and ever since then we've referred to them as the "bucket babies". My grandma rescued these little kitties, and then my parents, my sister, and myself took them in to bottle feed them. The intention was to adopt them out when they were old enough. Guess how that went.

So, it's not just Thimble's birthday, but the birthday of all the bucket babies. That includes her three brothers. There's of course handsome Toby, who owns my sister.

Then there's Thimble's much larger twin, that being dapper Trapper. He owns my parents.

Sadly, Thimble's third brother, sweet Talon, passed away last April because of the horrible thing that is cancer. He was one of the most intelligent and social kitties I've ever met. He owned my parents and was very close to his brother Trapper, and we all miss him so very much.

Happy Birthday, Thimble, Toby, Trapper, and sweet angel Talon! I hope you all have the most amazing, blessed day. I'll be giving the three earthside birthday babies lots of cuddles and toys, and I'll be thinking about Talon all day.

Last year, I scribbled up Harry Potter-esque birthday drawings for all of my furry babies. When I was looking in my archives for the one I created for these four last year, I realized I never even shared it here on our blog. I ended up finishing it about a week after their birthday, in part because I started it before Talon passed and then couldn't bring myself to finish it any sooner. So, here's their magical birthday celebration.

The scarves they're wearing relate to the "houses" that kids are sorted into at the magical school in the Harry Potter books. I would consider Thimble and Toby to be in the Hufflepuff house, as that one is for those are who are kind and calm. Thimble and Toby are indeed laidback like most Hufflepuffs. Trapper belongs to the same house as Harry Potter himself, that being Gryffindor. That's the house for those who are brave and bold, and that is indeed Trapper. Talon belongs to Ravenclaw, which is the house for those with great intelligence.

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It's Mother's Day in the United States (and I believe also in Canada), so we also want to wish all the mothers out there an extra special day! Whether your children are human and two-legged or furry and four-legged, mothers make this world go round. 

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Tip of the Day

Today's wildlife tip is another about birds. Hummingbirds, that is. These majestic little creatures love them a sweet drink. To make some sugar water for hummingbirds, you can mix 1 cup of cane sugar with 3 to 4 cups of water (extra mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for up to roughly one week). Despite popular belief, though, please do NOT add red food coloring to the sugar water. Adding a chemical dye can potentially be harmful to hummingbirds. Rather than lace their drink with artificial colors, you can simply use a bright (such as red) hummingbird feeder to attract them. There are indeed feeders specifically designed for hummingbirds and their preferred sweet drink. Of course, don't forget to clean said feeder in between fillings, as the sugar water mixture can potentially lead to mold if the hummingbird feeder is not maintained properly. Hummingbirds can make for grand Bird TV, just as long as you take the right precautions.