News from our house

This post is long overdue, but I haven't had the energy or desire to write it. This year has been full of ups and downs. My mom's cancer journey has been difficult and ongoing, my job has changed and we moved into a new office. My new employer is, essentially a start up, so many things are in a state of chaos. My job is secure, however; I've had good interactions with new coworkers so far and they've been supportive.

This summer, our street was under construction from mid February until late August. All utilities were upgraded and the street was repaved with concrete. It looks great now but was a giant hassle, and it put Sadie under a lot of stress. During that time, she started to decline, but we chalked it up to stress from the construction (we had a number of loud days with noisy trucks). . .but now I realize it was more than that.

She aged a lot this year. In July, I took her in for a checkup when I realized she'd lost a lot of weight. Her kidneys had declined a lot since her blood work from May. I had a checkup appointment for her on the 23rd, but decided not to take her in because we considered her "in hospice."

This morning she told us she was ready to fly. I made "that call" with the vet and we're letting her go this afternoon.

She turned 16 on August 23. She's always been more of a daddy's girl, but I'm thankful she chose to spend more time with me the past few weeks. She could be difficult to love at times, but when she did, it was extra special. We will sure miss her. I'm not sure Lucy or Ringo will care that she will be gone, as they didn't interact much with her, especially lately.

I'll miss you, you sassy girl. I'll always remember you as the tiny 8 ounce kitten I rescued all those years ago. I have a photo of my grandma holding you when you were a kitten. Perhaps she'll be there to greet you at the Bridge.

She was so tiny and loved to sleep near my neck.

From happier times in 2020

A Sadie while I work from home

 I could hardly believe my eyes a couple of weeks ago. Sadie came and sat on the futon behind me as I worked from home one day. She'd never done that before.

I'm trying to sleep, but. . .

 Mom keeps waking me up by taking photos!

Mom wanted me to let you know that Sadie didn't feel too well last week. She had vomiting, diarrhea, and wasn't very interested in eating. Then she developed a URI and was sneezing a lot. She messaged her cat friend Connie, who suggested taking her off the Fancy Feast food. There have been a lot of complains about cats/dogs getting sick from Purina food.

We stopped both the FF and the raw she'd been eating and bought other brands, like Wellness and Tiki Cat (non seafood flavors). It worked! It took a few days, but she started improving. We're relieved. Oddly, neither Ringo nor Lucy have reacted to the food. Our mom did file a report with both the FDA and Purina.

Lucy and Ringo share the heated bed

Sadie doesn't really like sharing the heated bed, but Ringo really wants to share and keeps trying. Sometimes he gets lucky. These photos are of two different times when they shared the space.

Mom, stop staring at my drool

 Sadie: Mom, I know I drool when I'm happy but you don't have to take a photo of it to show the world!

Pretty Sadie loves this blanket too

 It was time to put away the beloved Halloween blanket, but Sadie likes this blanket too. It was a gift from our friend Susan.

Ringo and Sadie: Frenemies

 I was quite surprised to see Ringo and Sadie so close to one another. Usually Sadie growls up a storm if he's nearby, but perhaps the sunbeam united them for a little while.

Sadie, the fall-time cuddles

 Sadie wants to you know that she loves to cuddle when the weather is cooler, especially on a soft Halloween blanket.

Mom has a secret

 This is Sadie. Mom hasn't been very good about updating the blog lately. But she has a good reason. She has some good news, but she can't post it right now. NO, we are not getting another kitty, and I'm sure glad for that! But, she's been very busy and away from home a little more often lately. I have to get in my cuddles when I can.

When we get the ok, we will share the news with you all.

Open windows make friends?

 We were quite surprised to see Lucy and Sadie sitting this close together one recent afternoon. Perhaps open windows invite peace, even if for one afternoon?

Sadie gets a ride

 Jim injured his knee and needs to use a walker for a while to see if it will heal. To my surprise, he's been giving Sadie rides on the walker. She doesn't seem to mind and will sit there as he wheels around. Here she is getting off the walker toward the couch, so she can sit on my lap.

I thought it was the cutest thing. Our older girl is getting spoiled, but that's ok with us!

Hey, quit waking me up!

 Sadie was sleeping so cutely on the couch. . .

HEY you woke me up!

Don't forget to recharge your kitty

Don't forget to recharge your kitty every day. This will ensure middle-of-the-night antics and daily zoomies.

Sharing the heated cat bed

 Sadie isn't a fan of Ringo in general, but to our surprise they have shared the heated cat bed a couple of times lately!

Sadie and her faceplant

 Sadie did a faceplant the other night in my lap. She was sleeping pretty hard!

Sadie thyroid checkup

 Sadie had a four-week checkup to see how her thyroid levels were doing. I'm pleased to say that her numbers are much improved. She even gained 4 ounces! We can reduce the medication a bit. She'll get rechecked in three months.

An interesting note: I asked the vet to check her ears, because she had been scratching them a lot. She tends to get semi-regular yeast infections in her ears, so I'd started some ointment she'd been given before. Turns out, the scratching is a side effect of the medication. I'm hoping the reduced dosage, in addition to time, will help with that.

Here's a selfie I took of her on Friday night. Despite her looking grumpy, she was quite happy at the time.

Ringo and the rainbow ball

Every night, Ringo carries around toy and will caterwaul. It's rare that I actually see the toy in his mouth, but I caught him in mid-caterwaul with this photo.

Update on Sadie: She needed some anti-nausea medication for a few days, as the high dose of thyroid meds upset her stomach and she wasn't eating much. She seems to have leveled out a little, and has gone two days without any Cerenia, so we're hoping she's feeling a little better. She gets re-checked on the 27th.

Sadie and the vet visit

 It's hard for me to comprehend that Sadie is now 14 years old. I keep seeing that 8 ounce kitten we picked up from my parents' house.

She sees the vet a little more often now that she's older. She was last there in late June for a dental and blood work.

Ringo and her went in for checks ups yesterday. I'd noticed that Sadie had been vomiting more than usual, and she was bothering me more for food. We did thyroid blood work and she is off the charts high for hyperthyroidism. We already started medication and will recheck her in a month.

In the meantime, I hope she starts feeling better.

Hello Monday

 Sadie says hello on this Monday. She was being curious when I was using my camera.

Friday zen from Sadie

 Sadie finds her zen on the Halloween blanket.