This Week in Libertyland

Good Thing We Didn't Name Her Lucky

So vets are like doctors? 
They make you wait on the cold table.

Little Liberty, AKA Kittysaurs Rex, has taken our home by storm.  She has been a flash.  Dashing around our home like it was kitty Disneyland.  We live in a two story house so there are stairs and a strange landing we call the perch.  My son use to love sit up there to do homework.  Well, we are going on Liberty's fourth month with us.  Now we are getting to the point in all cat's lives, the "visit".  You know that time we take them for the fist trip to the veterinarian to be spade or neutered depending on their gender.  We call it being Bob Barkered.  As the long time host of the Price Is Right Bob Barker would sign off his show with, "To decrease the excess pet population, have your pets spade and neutered." 

 However, as it turned out her first visit would be more traumatic for her and us too.  At about 9:00 at night, I was going down the stairs and Liberty chased after me.  She stopped on the perch, and I talked to her about her wildness.  I continued to go into the familyroom and watch the end of the ballgame.  Then, I heard a bang.  The kitten had fallen or tried to jump off the perch.  

The Perch

As a result, she came up severely limping.  The symptoms seem dire.  I thought, "Oh no, she broke her left front leg."  Now came the problem we needed to find an after hours veterinary clinic.  There was one across town, so I had my son go out into the garage and get down the dust covered cat carrier.  We threw a towel down in the bottom and loaded her into the carrier and into my truck.  We drove to the all night veterinary clinic.  The people were nice and sympathetic but who would know they were bandits.  Okay, they weren't really bandits.  The price of animal care has gone up a lot since I last had a pet.  They weighed the kitten, four pounds.  Wow!  Then came the paperwork and I had to sign that the examination fee was $92.50.  It was necessary to ex-ray the kitten's arm, two different angles.  That was added to the bill.

Ouch it is clearly broken!

Now, like a stupid fool I asked,  "What should we do?"  They said, "She would probably need surgery."

I took the bait and asked, "And how much would that cost?"

The responded, "$1000.00."

I said, "She is going to limp."

They said that they could splint it and it could heal up successfully in about six weeks.  I told them to splint it.  I should have known this was going to cost.  I could almost here them calling their yacht broker telling them that they would be able to make their payment this month.  Here came the papers to sign authorizing services to be done on poor Liberty.  The cost would be $438.00.  Soon our kitten emerged from the back room with her newly splinted arm.  

$438 of desert camo.

You're kidding me!  it's not my style.

We were given some medicine that was for pain and were told that it would make her drowsy.  Everything seemed cool and the cat slept with our son.  He said that he would sleep on the futon in the game room.  This way the cat didn't have to go upstairs.  About 1:00 in the morning it sounded like we had a cat fight going on downstairs.  We came rushing downstairs thinking maybe he rolled over on poor Liberty.  She wasn't on the futon.  She was under it howling and hissing and rolling and kicking.  She was fighting that wrapping.  Biting and tearing at it. Even though it was not time, we gave her some more of the medicine to calm her down.  Things seemed to calm down.  At about 3:00 in the morning, here came the kitten to the upstairs master bedroom.  Clawing her way up on the bed she cuddled up with my wife and we all got some sleep.  Then all hell broke loose.  She started the rolling, hissing ball of cat fighting with herself.  Well, not herself but the bandage holding the splint.  By the time it was actually time to get up and go to school, she had succeeded to remove almost all the bandage and chewed the plastic splint till it had sharp saw-toothed scars that tormented her even more.  We couldn't leave this hanging so it would catch on something, so we clipped it off.  Can you say goodbye to $438.00?  Once I got home, Liberty was all too happy to climb up on her favorite spot, my laptop, and be cuddled and petted.  

This laptop was bigger two months ago.

What's left is very expensive gauze that is not helping at all.

What is this stuff on my leg?  Get it off!

OK, so you say I'm stuck with it?

Well, at least it's not some neon color.

Trying to get the lower wrapping off was hurting her so we left that on.  It gave no support to the broken humerus.  She was now an arithmetic cat, putting down three and carrying one.  Cannot beat a bad teacher joke.  There was one thing to be done take her to the vet again.  This time we went to our regular doctor.  They needed to readdress the broken arm.  Also, the time was right for that Bob Barker surgery.  And it was only going to cost us $500.00.  We explained how she ripped the splint out.  The doctor said that the a splint would be best.  We picked up little Liberty the next day.  The doctor chose to place a cast on instead of the splint.  It was the wrapping around her she struggled against.  The cast might not cause her too much irritation.  

A new bandage in the form of a cast.  Maybe this will work.

Pink, really, that's going to help?

Liberty came into our lives at a transition time.  We had twins that just graduated high school and both would be starting college or university in the fall.  So the kitten kind of becomes the new baby in our home.  My wife and I have had several cats in our lives over the years.  We know each one has its own personality.  That is why we enjoy having cats share our home and our lives.  Some of our readers are new to us, and want to catch up on the continuing story of This Week in Libertyland.  I decided to give you easy links to catch up to the entire adventure.

Liberty's adventure started as part of the This Week in Education on July 7th.

Who knew that there would be anyone wanting cute kitten photos but I got many requests so I posted Liberty Not Again on July 30th.

Then the first This Week in Libertyland was put up on August 9th.

And then the kitten on the computer in This Week in Libertyland on September 4th.

So enjoy reading or rereading about the cutest kitten on the Internet.

This Week in Libertyland 9/4/2012

Kittysaurus Rex at Two Months

"What's that sound, cellophane?"

We got Liberty on July 4th when my daughter's friends found this poor abandoned two week old kitten.  She was not weaned so it meant midnight feedings.  We were constantly entertained by her energy and actions.  The last two cats we had were both older when we rescued them.  It has been years since we had a very young kitten.  We are older too which means that while Liberty's action is adorable it isn't as easy to accept when your tired and wanting to relax after a long day.  We found that we needed to tire her out first.  We employed many well known kitty toy methods to accomplish this.  We made a cellophane kitty lure on a belt.  To see Liberty in action click on the above link.

"Did that bear move?"

Of course, we bought cat toys.  The toy mentioned above was made out of the cellophane that was packaging off one of those plastic balls with a bell inside.  Liberty found a victim to attack.  A small Beanie Baby toy from a McDonald's Happy Meal.  To see Liberty in action with the poor tortured bear click on the above link.

However no matter how many toys we provide, the thing that attracts her the most are my fingers flashing over the keyboard of my laptop while I'm playing Tetris.  Okay, those who know me know my fingers don't flash.  Soon after forcing me to quit playing, she settles in on the keyboard stopping my play.  I think she wants me to watch her.  

Kittens grow up fast, so what was once a little two week old kitten is now two months old kittysaursrex.  

So this is a tale of a kitten and a laptop.  When she was two weeks old, she needed to keep warm.  Kittens that small are kept warm cuddling with their litter mates and mother cat.  We were becoming the mother cat so we not only took over feeding duties but we were providing the warmth.  Kittens that small can lose body heat rapidly.  My laptop gives off heat and since it is on my lap it is close to me.  Therefore, I allowed Liberty to stretch out on the keyboard.  Because this plopping down on the keyboard was permitted when she was young she has continued the behavior.  This fact has given us a progression of pictures which allows us to see Liberty's growth during her two months with us.  

"Now I push this pad. It's the mouse"

What can a Tetris player do?

"Just try to play!"

"This is my computer."

"This is my domain."

Going through my iPhoto I noticed that oddly I had pictures of Liberty that I took on and shortly before August 4th, a month after she arrived into our lives.  I knew that she had grown, who doesn't.  We are on that side of the Universe.  Liberty's health was getting better and she was getting stronger.  Anyone who had a kitty knows that they are energy squared.  However everytime when I was plying Tetris,  she made a bee line for the computer stopping the play and then settling down sprawl on the laptop. 

There are no team games anyway. I give up.

"Do you think this pose is cute?"

"Guess again.  This is soooo cute."

"What, did someone call me?"

"Look, someone wants me but I choose to be with you."

"You are so lucky I would rather be here."

"Wait, did I just see your hand move?"

Over he Labor Day Weeke, I was sneaking in some Tetris playing time.  I was on a mission.  I was trying to reach 26,000 first place finishes by my birthday.  The kitten, who is starving for attention, getting only twenty hours of attention a day.  To tell you the truth I'm typing this right now one handed because she is laying on my lap.  I looked a her on my lap and she was so darn cute I grabbed  iPhone and snapped some new pictures.  It was awkward. I had to use both the front facing camera and the rear facing camera.  So what I ended up was some really cool camera angles.  Then it hit me, on September 4th Liberty will be with us two entire months.  With that I knew I had the perfect blog post. 

"Where's my crown?" 

Shhhhhh, the Queen is sleeping.

"Do I smell shrimp?"

"No, it was just canned cat food. The Queen will not have any of that!"

This is total trust.

I am sure that next month Liberty will still want to sit on the keyboard.  How big will she be then?  Check back I'm sure we will see Liberty has grown.

This Week in Libertyland 8/6/12

A Strange Creature in Our Home

I'm a ferocious bear.

Most people think cats are possessed.  Now that Liberty is getting to a normal age when you would get a kitten, we are finding we have a bundle of dynamite.  Since, we first got this poor abandoned kitten on the 4th of July as blogged about on July 7th's post.  Liberty has had a place not only in our family's life but in my blog.  She is at that stage where she will attack everything that moves.  Fingers, hands and feet are often favorites of hers. These attacks prevented me from playing Tetris on Tetris Friends.  Check out the "Liberty, Not Again."  When she was that small kitten it wasn't too bad but she is getting lethal now.  We now try everything to divert her attention to different objects.  Objects like the cellophane kitty lure in which Liberty showed her stuff in "Libertyland." 

Our children taught us to passionately dislike a couple of things as they were growing up.  Okay let's call it extreme irritation.  One was McDonald's Happy Meals.  Mostly because of the toys.  They had to have those toys.  Toys were strewn about our cars and house.  Most of them were scooped up years ago and sent to storage making way for newer toys.  A second thing that many parents hated were Beanie Babies.  These under stuffed dolls were all the rage at one time.  Small replicas were even given out as McDonald's Happy Meal toys.  When my daughter graduated from high school a friend gave her an old McDonald Beanie Baby bear.  This has become Liberty's newest victim.  

Flashing in before it gets away.

Don't move you're mine.

A three second pin.

The poor little bear is over matched.  But he never complains and every time he is attacked we aren't.  Just watching Liberty is entertaining.  She bats, pounces, and chews that bear.  

Don't try to escape silly bear!

Why are you still smiling?

T-Rex eat your heart out.

555yhhh, that was typed by the kitten who dived at my fingers while I was typing.  She can manage to play with the bear for an hour at a time before losing interest in it.

Now you will be a pillow

Liberty, found on the 4th of July, is a firecracker.  She is active and cute doing it.  Then once she is done and played out she finds a place to relax and take a cat nap.

Who is she attacking in her dreams?

Thank you wondering how Liberty has been doing.  I will try to get a few more pictures which I can keep satisfying your Liberty interest.  

This Week In Libertyland

So Many Kitten Requests


Who would of thought that I would be writing about a pet.  I thought that only weird old ladies and strange shut-ins did that.  However, I have had people actually request that I post more pictures of our new kitten, Liberty.  

MMS this ones for you

I could just put up some pictures and a lot of you would probably like that, but I have to put down some words or I don't feel like a blogger.  I have had many cats over the years and each one has had its own distinctive personality.  Challenger was called that because the first day we got him as a kitten he got up on the bed challenged our other cat by hissing and spitting at her.  Dickens was not named because we were watching A Christmas Carol, but because he was a mischievous little dickens.  I got a Siamese cat when my dad moved to Oregon that he named Gully Cat.  My dad and brother were big Snoopy fans and in the Peanuts comic strip Snoopy feared not mountain lions but gully cats.  My Gully had a specific talent that not all cats do.  She would retrieve thrown objects.  When she was playing fetch her favorite thing to bring back to you was my dad's crumpled up cigarette wrapper.  That crackly sound of cellophane was irresistible to Gully.  More than one of my cats have succumb to that noise.  My wife also had cat that loved that cellophane sound.  It was a black cat with white paws that they called Lucifer, after the kitty in Cinderella.  My wife would tie a string to a celophane wrapper from a pack of cigarettes and hang it from a doorway.  Lucifer would play for hours.  As an aside, I bet you guessed that we both grew up in households of smokers.  In our house we would tie a string around the empty pack and also suspend it in a doorway.  Our cat loved to play with it.  Now Liberty, who was found on the 4th of July, is becoming a hyperactive kitten.  She gets what we have called for years the night time friskies.  Taking advantage of the nightly burst of energy is important for a couple reasons. First, it tires her out.  Getting her to play has the benefit of a good nights sleep.  The kitten won't be up all night attacking your hands and feet.  
Secondly, it is fun to watch her play and attack everything.  She loves to bat around a Sharpe pen that has been dropped into kitty territory.  I placed some beads into an empty water bottle but this only gets minor attention.  The Velcro on the computer charging cord gets major play.  Throw an empty toilet paper tube down and watch her go. With all these toys we brought out the tried and true, cellophane.  Now no one in our family smokes so we needed to find another source.  At the store one day, I bought a package of three small plastic balls that had a bell inside.  We opened the package an rolled one of the balls across the floor.  Liberty lowered herself into a crouch ready to pounce and turned away.  She could care less that the toy called itself a cat toy on the package.  The packaging was the answer.  Like a child that gets more entertainment from the box than the toy on Christmas Morning, the package would serve as more entertainment than the toy to Liberty.  The clear bag that the three kitty balls were wrapped was cellophane.  Now we have been dragging around an old polka dotted fabric belt for her to chase.  By adding the newly found cellophane tied to it, we have a delux kitten toy.  

Liberty look here.

Now, we will see some kitty antics as Liberty attacks her new lure.

What is this something new?

What did you do to my polka dot thingy?

I got it.

This is my captured prey.

It's trying to get away.

I got a bead on it.

Don't even try to get away.

My claw got it, now I bite it.

Get it bright eyes!

I am Libertysaurus Rex

Now, we have her played out. The Ant, my daughter, has done her job well. Liberty needs to get something to eat and she will be ready for bed.  Lately, the kitten has taken a liking to the comforter that was in Ant's crib when she was a baby. We recently were unpacking some boxes and threw it on the sofa.  The theme was Teddy Bear's Picnic.  Now almost eighteen years later, it is being slept on again.

Dreaming that she is Queen of the Beasts.

So if  I get more requests for Liberty pictures, I will try to keep my friends happy.  Thank you for reading.