+ 4 Ramsey - Ginger Ninja
This is Ramsey, by special request.
@press1 here you go, buddy, this one is Ramsey, a Legend in the New Forest! This was his last summer with us as his liver packed up on him with test results 5x worse than lethal, no chances for improvement. His ears both had Aurel Hematoma's, twice in one, so the were cauliflowered. In this picture, he is riding with me as a relief courier for Hermes, when they get absolutely desperate, they give me between £2.50 and £4.00 per stop, billed whether the customer is home or not, so at 200 stops per day, you can see why I never decline. Sadly, that only lasts 10-12 weeks before they get routes sorted, but that summer they called when Ramsey needed liquid feeds every two hours, so he got front seat while I ran through the New Forrest, Winchester, Romsey, Kings Somber and all the hard to deliver locations in the greater Southampton area. Never really been asked to show the cats before, but the missus has rescued well over 100 in our years together and sometimes we have as many as a dozen with us while awaiting forever homes for them. This guy was a pet, picked up as a Kitten when we came to England from the States over a decade ago. He lasted three months on liquid feeds, a constant companion in my lap, following me to the garden to lay down with his rabbit companions (pair of Netherland Dwarf rabbits). He was barely above 2kg those last few months and while he gained almost half a kilo, which vets called a miracle, he ultimately started to lose again and nothing could support him, so we did the humane thing and let him have peace. He was one awesome companion!
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C'mon Saint - give us another!!
I'm lookin', boss, I'm lookin' too bad I can't link the missus' social, she must have a thousand videos.... trying to figure out how to post my Blue & Gold roughing off the cats for their food... is awesome... about six cats at a food dish and in struts the parrot, takes their food and they all scatter. Rascal was free, never in a cage except to go outside and sometimes even then on a tether. The cats tried him on 'once' and the poor cat ended up with a pretty good scar... they never messed with that bird again.
Dude that empty fuel tank giving me anxiety
Ignition off, I had to stop every 2-hours for feeding and let him out of his box for a piss (liquid feeding makes for a lot of pissing). With absolute kidney failure, his interest in food was barely more than -0- so it was 10ml by syringe every 2-hours. He had to stay in a carry case for safety most of the journey, plus all the in and out, if he jumped out of the car. I am a FIRM believer that at 1/4 tank, it is empty and time to fill up. You brothers never miss a thing, however.
Poor thing - Do you know why his kidneys and liver were so bad?
It is evidently quite common in cats, we used to feed them all Go-Cat, but have switched to Applause for morning feed and then Purina 1 biscuits throughout the day. Ramsey's last summer was 2-hourly feeds, pain medication when needed, usually when I awoke and at bedtime to help him sleep, and anti-nausea medication, along with weekly vet visits to determine if he was actually happy or not. We let them do a sub-q hydration one time, but that seemed pretty brutal and we decided not to put him through that twice. He followed me everywhere and I am convinced he enjoyed the summer, he actually gained about a pound the first 12-weeks, which vets said was an absolute miracle, but then it started to drop and he dehydrated that last weekend so badly that even petting him seemed painful to him and I had to make the choice that was fair for him. I met a lot of people who went through that with a cat and most pushed it too far, only to find their loved one died cold and alone hidden away, I was determined not to do that to him.
I can tell you exactly how he felt bud in terms of the swelled Liver as I know what it was like when mine was enflamed (hepatitis but not virus) from not running any liver protection with tren and DBol - Absolutely awful! What happens is you still get hunger urges but just not as often, but when you eat as soon as it starts to get processed by the stomach and liver you literally get this blunt pain emanating from your intestines right up through to your lungs - its horrendous. It hurts so much even when you drink something then you feel like being sick for 10 minutes after. The pain is that bad that it simply puts you off wanting to eat, or should I say you can't eat because of the pain. I got to that point and first went to the Doctors in agony, virtually collapsed because it was that bad and I was panicking so they rang a bloody ambulance as they thought I was having a heart attack. Drove me straight to ER where they did bloods and it showed up straight away in my AST which was over 200 and albumin which was around 27!! The Liver specialist said if it was much more I would have been in liver failure. Amazingly enough all I did was just go onto Test and in 4 weeks it recovered itself and I was back in normal range again. I guess if his kidneys were also packed in though it was just too much for him - Pal you did the right thing seriously for him as I could not of handled another day feeling the way I did when I went in. His pain will have been way worse than that too coupled with no food and drink I cannot imagine how he felt. God Bless Him
Taking in so many animals, we often have to face this question, and it is not always easy. Animals don't really complain, they give out affection and crave the same, usually. We often get animals that are at the end, vet bills can be crippling, but the wife thinks any animal without a home needs ours. Had a cat with a swollen mouth one time and took her to a vet to have it treated, they estimated she was 19-22 years old (Matilda we named her) and we had her for six months of that. I was very proud of the weight she had gained in the time we had her, only to learn from the vet that it was from a massive tumour growing in her stomach. Vet warned me that she would not appear ill when I came in, but said that if I chose to pick her up and take her home, he would report us to the RSPCA, said that if I let him put her down, he would do that part for no cost. That cat purred in my arms while the medicine put her out and I cried like a little girl... I always do.
I have to always be thankful for the great times that these little critters bring, like one time in the States I helped with a bird rescue of more than 200 exotic birds from a collapsed breeder and my house was like a jungle for a few months while we nursed them to health. Often rescued pets bond with me and are just on me like glue and when they get a new, forever home, that can be pretty hard too. But a lot of good times. With Matilda, here, we found her in such horrid shape, vet figured owners knew she was sick and abandoned her for lack of want to address the cost, many won't even give a pet a fair send off. Then.... some rescued pets can just be spastic and make me wonder why in the hell I would ever do such a thing to myself!
Mate you should be extremely proud of what you do to help these poor animals, I doubt if I've ever personally known anyone as kind as you are for doing what you do when you don't even have to. All of your time and money you invest in them when many of them are at the end of their lives and ultimately die with you is commendable beyond words. Without you I bet most of them would suffer for a long time before eventually dying out in the wild of starvation or ill health, or get run over. Just think that with so many of them although it sounds like a lot of their life they were abused or not cared for - with you even 6 months of love and happiness is more than they have ever had
He sounded like a pretty remarkable vet to say that to you - he obviously cares a lot about an animals well being and doesn't just do it for the money.
Haha I adore the name
Dylan44Cute pussy brother,
That is such a cute cat mate - I didn't realise you pretty much run a rescue centre :-))
I always feel so sorry for animals that are suffering and they don't know whats wrong with them but we do. When my gineau pigs have died in the past they always lose a tonne of weight first and lose the ability to eat and drink over time, they normally have gotten stomach cancer and things like that and it was heart breaking to watch. We are so lucky we have the ability to go to a doctor straight away and diagnose the situation where as they are unable to communicate their problems.
I'd love to get a cat but unfortunately I am allergic to their fur and I live in an apartment complex so it isn't ideal for it to be able to go out and stalk! Lol
Stick some more up mate - do you have any more of that kitten in your avatar?
Yeah, I got pics of him... Jasper... he is actually polydactel (known for extra toes) though he only has five toe beans up front and four in the back. His brothers all had the extra toe, but him being ginger and all, just after Ramsey passed, it was a no brainer... plus he crawled all over us. I will post pictures of our hairless too.... sadly, they are NOT less allergenic, they are actually worse. Where a haired cat's dead skin gets caught in the oils of the hair and such, hairless do not, they shed skin worse, which is where the actual irritation comes from ... they are very high maintenance, from attention to feeding and bathing... especially the ears... leave the ears more than a weak and you can grow potatoes out of them!
Love him! I've 2 of these assholes at home plus two dogs. Ramsey was lucky to have you!
Thanks, BFG! These guys do grow on a family!