Chocolate, cat food, and books

[vilakins]

Today I got paid $40 for 30 minutes of chocolate tasting; a good deal if it hadn't been on the North Shore which meant having to cross the harbour bridge and taking 45 minutes to get home afterwards due to an accident on the bridge. The chocolate research is confidential, but suffice it to say it was for a certain Australian chocolate manufacturer which has been putting palm oil in its products.

I also got an e-mail from Foodtown, the local supermarket, telling me about some new products (though I'd actually like them to keep stocking the old ones, like the Zone bars they're totally out of). One new thing is a gourmet "restaurant-inspired" cat food. (Greg said not to let the cats see the site, or they'll want to eat out with us.) I know it's aimed at the owner rather than the cat, but do furry carnivores really need their food complemented by garden greens and accented with spinach? That said, I'll buy some to see if my lot like it, if it's a reasonable price. They actually live on Hills's Science Diet dry food so I only give them tinned food as a treat, one tin divided between three of them as a little enticement to come in at night, and lately they've been a bit bored with the basic Fancy Feast stuff.

What else? I ordered some more books from the library (I've see I've had 71 this year already), but was disappointed that after reading and enjoying "A Million Open Doors" by John Barnes, I can't read the sequel because they don't have it. Bah. Oh well, I have Mieville and Pratchett and the next book in the Dark is Rising series coming.

Comments

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

An inability to jump is not directly related to old age, but has more to do with stiff and painful joints (which do admittedly tend to be more common in the elderly). If you go see a vet about it, she could get quite a lot of relief from simple pain killers. Also, Hill's has a special diet for this now: J/D prescription diet. I've seen it work miracles for my Mogley in just a month.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

My Claudia got regular injections for her joints too, which kept her jumping (though not very confidently) till almost the end. She used to eat K/D Hills though for her kidneys. I wish I'd known about the other one; I could have maybe mixed it.

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

J/D is pretty new, I think it became available sometime last year. And your vet may have considered the kidney's to be more important than joints which apparently worked just fine with some injections.

The J/D diet doesn't cure every single joint problem, just the most common kind in elderly cats.

Have an icon of Moos with his favorite diet. He just doesn't get it very often, which means I don't, either.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I wondered if it was new. It will be years before I need any anyway, and Vic will be the next.

Awww. Does Moos mean "moose"? I had a cat in Israel I inherited from a Dutch girl and she had called the kitten Buffel (buffalo) because she was so tiny. She was about 9 months old when I got her, and I renamed her Bissel (a little bit/bite in Yiddish). I had to leave her behind when I left, and a lovely French girl took her. I so wish I could have kept her. She was a sweet light grey tabby.

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

It's a fairly normal name among Jewish males over here (at least around Amsterdam) and I think it's short for Mozes.

I don't think I could ever bear to leave a cat behind. But then I never go away for a vacation or even a weekend, either, because I'd only worry too much about my cats. But that's just me being a crazy cat lady.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Ah! It's Moshe / Moize! I'd never have guessed!

I hate leaving them and always cry, and the best part of coming back is seeing them again. I like a holiday now and then though.

[thetisonline.livejournal.com]

She's 25 years old. The vet x-rayed her when she stopped jumping and found arthritis. I have booked her in to see the vet again tomorrow.

Thanks for the info. I have a friend who uses Hill's for his elderly dogs. Will ask about it too.

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

I am properly impressed, that is an amazing age for a cat. My oldest boy is 18 and he's the oldest cat I've ever served. I guess you could say she's earned her creaky joints. I hope the vet can help make 'em a little less painful, though.