vilakins | Entries tagged with ashley

We've been away at the bach (local word for a little holiday house) by the lagoon in Waikouaiti so I haven't thought about posting. Ashley is 16 years old and on daily meds, so rather than take her to the cattery and ask them to dose her, we took her with us. Most cats hate any change, but she loved it there! The garden was full of interesting new smells and skinks (no, she didn't catch any) and I think she really liked the bach being so small as everything she wanted or needed was in easy reach with no stairs. We saw a lot more of her too as she was always close by instead of sleeping upstairs or under Greg's desk like she does here at home. I was nervous about taking her, but it was such a success, we'll go away again soon.

First Ashley got blood in her urine so we took her in on Sunday (Monday being a holiday - our cats always seem to get ill on weekends) and after getting painkillers and pills for her cystitis, brought her back home. She improved a lot and got her scampery playfulness back. So far, so good.

Then two days ago, after he and Ashley had enjoyed their dinner, Sebastian jumped up on the stool by me as he likes to do when we're watching telly, then suddenly started circling anticlockwise. We were puzzled, but when Greg put him down on the floor, his legs, especially on the left side, were all floppy. I googled and the symptoms indicated vestibular disease which has sudden onset and comes right over a couple of weeks. Sebastian was panicked and panting, but we calmed him down and took him to the vet the nest morning, yesterday. He's still there as they want to know what might have caused it so they're doing tests, and he needed to go on a drip as he lacked the coordination to drink properly here, spilling the water all over the floor. We'll probably get him back tomorrow, but they'll give us a big crate to confine him so he doesn't accidentally hurt himself.

Ashley went back today for more tests as they wanted to be sure there wasn't a kidney problem, so they're both there right now.

Greg, who usually does the pilling, will be away for two weeks from next Monday and I'm so not looking forward to doing them and dealing with poor floppy Seb on my own. Sooo stressed about it all happening at once.

It's Ashley's observed birthday today (we're not sure when she was born, but it's close enough). Here are some photos of her (and occasionally her friend and adopted brother Sebastian) taken over the last year. She's 10, but still looks half-grown, being only 3kg - as light as a silvery-grey cloud.

( Five photos of Ashley Riverstone )

Crossposts: https://vilakins.livejournal.com/712249.html

As some of you were interested in seeing more of our windows and views, here are some more photos taken today.

( Plus added cats! )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/695172.html

... was probably yesterday in this time zone.

But hey, photos of all three taken since Friday here in the Oamaru midwinter.

Sebastian is unimpressed by snow.

( More )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/694559.html

We're not sure when Ashley's birthday is, but we celebrate it on 1 May. She's the oldest of the three by a couple of months, though she seems the youngest, being so small (3kg), soft, playful, and kittenish.

Ashley standing on her tail on a windowsill. She's the only cat I've known who does that. She wraps her tail around herself and deliberately places first one front paw, then the other. I love the stripes between each toe.

( Four more Ashley pics )

We celebrated Ashley's observed birthday on Friday 1 May - she's now seven. She still seems like a teenager, with her smallness (she weighs just over 3kg) and her kitten squeak.

( Three photos )

It's Jasmin's 6th birthday today; it really doesn't seem that long since we got her. It was also Ashley's 6th in May but I never got round to posting, so here are photos of them both, taken over the last few months.

There was tuna for all three. :-)

( Photos )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/668821.html

Once again I've been slack posting, so here's various news.

Ashley's crystals have gone so now she, well, all of them, are on maintenance bladder-health biscuits which are in my opinion far too palatable as Ashley went right off her wet food. However a couple of weeks later she's eating it with her old gusto which is good as they get a lot of water that way and it's far better for them. She knew I was writing about her as she's just come and squeaked at me. :-)

It is spring and the weather is glorious after a very windy week, almost summer-like. The hammock's up, there's washing on the line, and I can hear a distant lawn-mower through all the open doors, the sound of a lazy Sunday.

We saw Planes last week, and because we booked online were given a free toy. I have El Chupacabra, a favourite character. Very cute film, esp for someone who pretended to be a plane (a Spitfire to be exact) as a kid, referring to arms and fingers as wings and ailerons, and coming in for a perfect three-point landing at mealtimes.

And last night at the late showing we saw Gravity. On the biggest screen in the southern hemisphere. Wow. Absolutely stunning graphics and a gripping story. It deserved its 5 stars in spades and we both had Gravity dreams all night.

And Sebastian turned 3 this week. I will do a special picspam in his honour but that will be later as I'm going to read in the hammock now.

Current Mood: relaxed
Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/657892.html

I am so encouraged by the response to my last post; there are a lot more of you still here than I'd feared.

In the latest cat news, Jasmin now has a small notch out of one ear, the result of a fight (though with one of the other two or an invading cat, I don't know). It gives her a certain toughness so we decided that her Mafia name was Jasmin "Notchy" Zampetta (her surname meaning "little paw"). It then struck me that "Notchy" sounds just like "noci", the Italian for "walnuts"--fans of The Sopranos will enjoy that one--so Jasmin's now Jazzy Walnuts.

On to Ashley.

Ashley started having difficulty peeing so I took her to the vet and they found her bladder was like a hard little, yes, walnut due to the pain making her think she had to pee all the time, which of course only made it worse. They put her on painkillers which made a huge difference, then did a test on her urine which had crystals in it. So she's now meant to eat a special dry food which will dissolve them, then go onto a maintenance diet.

Actually she should be eating a lot more wet food than she does, but she's always been a kibble-grazer which has probably caused the problem. Jasmin and Sebastian get almost all their nutrition and water from wet food, but finding one Ashley will eat is a major source of stress and frustration: what she'll like one day she won't touch the next--you'd think she was the pedigree, not a rescue cat. But she's already vastly improved, so much happier and more playful and even cuddlier than before. She's almost like a kitten again, full of joie de vivre (if not wet food).

( Some photos )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/656615.html

We don't know when Ashley was born, but we figured that 1 May is close enough, so yesterday was her fifth birthday. All three shared in the feast of tuna. :-)

( Two almost black-and-white photos of the birthday girl )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/650370.html

I haven't posted for a while, mainly because I haven't really had much to say. However, have some news about three cats.

( Ashley )

( Garfilly the No-Longer-So-Tiny Kitten )

( Xena the Library Cat )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/616673.html

Ashley came home yesterday afternoon, complete with a bright pink bandage where the IV had been. She was delighted to be back and straight away ate some soft food which was very encouraging. Her mouth is still swollen and she has an incipient abscess under her chin which they thought might go away due to the antibiotics we're dosing her with, but I think I'll be taking her in tomorrow for them to look at it.

She was in our bedroom this morning eager to look out the window which showed how much better she was feeling. I took a photo of her last night in her pink bandage and two today to show how much better she's feeling.

( Three photos )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/613339.html

Yesterday Greg called me into the kitchen with my camera because he could see Sebastian outside on the deck sitting by the sundial and the Roman and Best[et] statues as if posed. So I got a good photo of him through the window, and sure enough, when I went out the back door, he rushed straight over to me.

And because I took one of Ashley actually on the sundial a while back, here's that one too. :-)

( Cats with sundial and statues )

I am horribly behind with photos, not just of cats but also some gorgeous ones taken on holiday (mosaic garden, art deco etc) and I must get round to resizing and posting them.

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/610829.html

I didn't see Ashley all day on Friday which bothered me as it wasn't like her, and when I went out and called her, she cried and came running to be picked up. She wasn't at all happy and I could see she'd been in a fight so we took her to the vet. She had several scratches, but the worst was inside her right ear which had healed over the injury and would have abscessed. The vet (who called her doll and said she was a pretty little thing) washed it out and gave her some pain-killer and antibiotic injections, and some pills we have to dose her with.

Then we went back out to reception and that was where the tiny kitten was: a ginger one sitting on the counter beside the receptionist who said she brings it to work every day and carries it around in her pocket when she's not at her desk. So how could I resist? I played with the little ginger girl for a while, and she was just adorable, grabbing my fingers and biting them gently. She's older then she looks: she has hypothyroidism and should be twice the size by now. Someone brought her in to have her put down, but the receptionist decided to keep her (as I would have) and apparently she's growing now she's on some new tablets.

I want to go back and play with her again.

As for Ashley, she was much happier after the cleaning and injection and stayed inside for several hours on the heatpad. Today she's her normal self again, running around outside and rolling over with joy for a scritch when she sees me. :-)

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/588079.html

I suppose I should post at some point, and this is it. So here's an assortment of things.

Birthday
My sister Jenni came up from Hamilton for the day (also to look at some French doors she saw on TradeMe) and we had lunch with Greg at the local Mexican (as in run by Mexicans) cafe where I was greeted with a hug as we haven't been there for a while. Jenni gave me a scarf she bought in Israel, and Greg's present hasn't arrived yet (this week, I hope): a new computer. We also went out for dinner at a local Malaysian place (run by Malays, yay) and we will be back. NUM!

Cats (and another birthday)
Ashley is now three if you go by her notional have-a-stab-at-it birthday of 1 May. All three enjoyed tuna in celebration. She's asleep on our bed now but earlier she was dong her squeaky "chase me" act for Sebastian and they were rocketing all over the house. I do love the sound of little scampering paws. Sebastian fits in really well, playing with both cats. I have yet to see actual snuggling but this may yet happen. There will be photos of all three when I have my own computer again.
I wish he'd learn to use the cat door though. It has a magnet to stop it being blown open by the wind and he thinks it won't open when he feels the resistance. I've tied it open when I'm here, but that means he's effectively locked in at night and when I'm out which means I have to keep buying litter.

Teleporting
I am glad to see that China Mieville is with me on teleporting/beaming killing the person and copying them. Not that I choose to believe this happens in Star Trek or Blake's 7.

I'm sure there were other things but I can't think of them now.

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/584487.html

The PC is definitely dead, probably a fried motherboard. It was 7 years old so it lasted pretty well. I'll be getting a small new one (all I really need) with Windows 7 (which is heaps better than that bloated monstrosity Vista; I've been on XP) and then we'll have to bring all my data and software across.

It's better news about the cats. Sebastian is much better and eats his probiotic mixed in with his breakfast with gusto, and enjoys yogurt too (another form of probiotic) so I now have two flag-tailed yogurt cats. It takes two of us to pill him but he doesn't bear a grudge; he's straight into his special soft food afterwards. I doubt he'll need any more treatment once this is finished.

He's a really friendly, happy, smoochy playful little guy, and Ashley liked him from the start. Jasmin, the cat who protested so (too?) much, is getting on well with him now. They were sitting in the sun upstairs before, and I just saw them both outside on the deck and managed to get a photo of Jasmin going for Sebastian's tail. :-) I think he's brought back some of the girls' kittenhood.

I have lots of cat-related photos to post once I have a PC. :-)

It's Saturday so I went down to Spotlight to buy the makings of a crocheted Totoro. While I was there I saw a nice selection of felt which I could use to make sewn plushies, but I'll have to cost it to see if knitted/crocheted ones are cheaper. I also saw a notice that next Saturday is a knitting day when they'll show off new yarns and patterns so I'll turn up for that; could be fun (and expensive). I resisted some beautiful thick-and-thin Italian yarn but if I think of something that would show it off well, I may go back and get it.

Current Mood: delighted with the cats
Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/583554.html

Greg has gone off to the US for two weeks. [is bereft] He's going to Atlanta for a conference, then to New York to train some people. Of course as soon as he left the UPS starting making weird beeps; I think the battery needs replacing. Sigh.

However I am very encouraged by the cats: Ashley and Sebastian ate some treats right next to each other and have been playing (with the occasional Ashley hiss), and Jasmin, who had been glowering at Sebastian from high places, is happily asleep in her snuggler not far from him on the couch. Maybe it's one he hasn't yet sullied with his smell. :-P I'm going to let them all have the run of the house tonight.

Current Mood: lonely
Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/581798.html

I haven't posted any cat photos for a while, so it's time for some picspam. These have been taken over the last three months.

( Photos of all three )

Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/566324.html

Last week Greg's car was damaged so badly it was written off. The driver in front of him braked suddenly because the car in front of her did. Greg braked too and stopped in time... but the driver behind him didn't. As it wasn't Greg's fault, the insurance paid out on the value of the car (not much as it was fairly old) and he's been going to work by bus since I need mine for the 50kms round trip to work. I think he actually went through a period of mourning for that car, he'd had it so long. It's odd how things with motors or some form of power often have personalities.

Yesterday we went to a Japanese import car yard and looked at some Hondas, and Greg bought the same model Integra as mine, but a year older, and in the same colour (the ubiquitous silver). So we'll have a matched pair in the carport. Pity we can't breed from them. I shall take photos. :-P

Anyway, because my car was very dusty from the commuting, I decided to wash it today so it won't look bad next to Greg's one when he picks it up on Tuesday. Ashley was absolutely fascinated. She sat in the driveway and watched intently the whole time. The LIBR8R looks extremely shiny now. I could see Ashley reflected in it.

In other Ashley news, she's known as the Dairy Queen because of her passion for yogurt. She knows when I'm getting it out of the fridge before I even have the container open, and the other day when I was eating a piece of lemon cake, she was all over me. I was puzzled till I remembered it was lemon yogurt cake. OK, that's impressive that she can detect an ingredient.

Oh yes, yesterday morning she was trying to get in the bedroom window from the sloping wet roof of the lower floor. She lost her purchase and slid down to the gutter, paws splayed out and green eyes fixed on us in sad surprise. I rushed downstairs and talked her along to the fence and she jumped down and chased Jasmin happily about the garden.

Current Mood: off to bed
Crossposts: http://vilakins.livejournal.com/565479.html

I meant to post these photos a lot earlier than this earlier, but today was a bit fraught: I had to study, take Jasmin to the vet with a slight ear infection, and found that some bastard in a 4WD, going by the position of the dent, bashed his door into my passenger one. Greg thinks it was when he took my car to get Indian takeaways last week because a 4WD was parked by the car when he came out; we always avoid parking by those things. I only found out now because I put the cat carrier in that side. Sigh.

Yesterday was a beautiful cloudless winter day and I decided to take photos of the winter flowers in our garden because I noticed some new pink ones I hadn't seen before. As usual, the girls followed me everywhere I went. :-)

( Flowers and cats )

Jasmin and Ashley have some strange little quirks. Jasmin likes to sleep on her back or all twisted, and Ashley stands on her own tail. It's very cute: she wraps her tail neatly around her, then deliberately lifts one paw then the other and places them on her tail. Her paws are cute in themselves, with dark fur between her toes as if she's been drawn, and the undersides are completely black.

( Three photos )

I took some great photos today--one of those lovely cloudless winter days we don't get enough of--but I'll post those tomorrow. I need to draw a cat now.

Today is horrible: grey, wet, and with the rain clouds extending to the ground, the horizon is all strangely blurred like London in Sherlock. However it's been fine enough for me to get photos of my camellias which brighten up winter for me, with a bonus Ashley who does the same (along with Jasmin and Vic)

( Three photos of camellias and one striped cat )

It's Jasmin's birthday today, and she's two years old. It really doesn't seem that long since we got her at three months.

There's only a half-hour to go here so I suppose I should post the photos of her and Ashley which I took today while it's still actually her birthday.

( Jasmin's day )

Good night!

YAY! Viva Espana! I'm very glad they won though I doubted they would for most of the game, they muffed so many attempts at goal. [dances] They're a lovely team who play a nice clean game, though this one wasn't. We will be having some of our chocolate World Cup tonight in celebration, though it seems a pity to break it.

Most of the game was very lack-lustre so I took pictures of the cats.

( Two photos of unimpressed cats and a feline goalie )

[Edit] Iker Casillas got Golden Gloves as best goalie, David Villa got Silver Boot and Bronze Ball as striker and player, and the whole team got the Fair Play award. I'm very pleased with "my" team whom I've supported since they did so well in 2008.

Current Mood: happy

Ashley turned two in the weekend; at least 1st May is the day we chose for her official birthday.

( Three photos taken on her birthday )

( Seven assorted others taken in the last few weeks )

Since others are doing it:

The Teenager Audio Test - Can you hear this sound?

Created by Oatmeal

In other news, Ashley has a love for yogurt that is almost as great as that for tuna. She cried piteously when I had some this morning and I put a spoonful in her bowl instead of just letting her lick my plate on the floor afterwards as usual. She cleaned it up completely.

She also likes the small of tea (I take it black) and has already nosed over a full cup, but she's not getting any of that in case it's bad for her.

And here are some cat photos taken in the last couple of weeks

( Cats in bag, mid-lick, and igloo )

Thank you to all of those who sent me cards by email or post: imhilien, san_valentine, jhall1, spacefall, zoefruitcake, vjezkova, and also to zoefruitcake for the Terry's chocolate orange bars, and vjezkova for the berry beads and gingerbread decoration (see photo below). I do apologise if I've missed anyone.

Here are photos of our tree (with bonus Ashley), what Greg gave me this year, and me with shiny hair just after a salon visit this week, since kalypso_v asked to see one last time. I am slack at dealing with photos, but I finally got round to it today. There will be another post of cat photos to follow.

( Tree, Ashley, and me )

I didn't post about the annual "garage sale" in a local church hall. I didn't get anything terribly exciting, the biggest purchase being one of my canvas tote bags packed with books for $20. These included several Stanislaw Lems, some early Flashmans, which I'll read again, and assorted other stuff like a guy's description of hitch-hiking round Ireland with a small fridge and some weird stuff Greg chose, like an Austrian professor's opinion of England written in the 1930s.

Oh yes, and two ancient Jerrard Tickel books because Greg was amused at the title of one, Villa Mimosa. The other one's Appointment with Venus which I remember reading when I was about 13 and thinking it was both funny and exciting (kidnapping a pregnant cow in the wartime Channel Islands) but which turned out to be more serious than I remembered--and a lot more sexist and racist.

Apart from that, I got a green and blue "looking" cat which was displayed uncomfortably perched on its ends instead of over the edge of a shelf, a hand-painted Italian plate for 50 cents, and a yummy crepe with brown sugar and lemon, a welcome addition to the usual sausage sizzles they have at these things and which I avoid.

( Looking cat with Vic, plate, and bonus cubs )

Klaatu barada Nico

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