Shiva Lullaby weighs efficiency of new furnace

 

I haven't written about Shiva Lullaby for awhile and this video I took last week will serve as an update. She is, um...shall we say, a big girl. Her annual exam and shots are due in March, at which time she will be weighed. A ballpark guess is that Shiva must weigh about 17 pounds. Since she shares the same food bowls as Feather (who is only 6.5 pounds at age 15) and Willow it is difficult to adjust her diet. I do feed them mostly Science Diet Light. It is just that Shiva spends much more time at the food bowl than the others. Obviously, I will discuss the problem of her obesity with the vet because it can lead to all sorts of future problems that I want to avoid. She is so unique and extremely special, and we want her around for a long, long time. 

In this clip she is in the same spot as she was when I took her sleeping-kitten-portrait (there is also a shot of her at one-year-old at the link). Our old heat exchanger recently gave way, requiring our purchase of a new furnace. It is more efficient than the old one, by far. The heated forced air coming out of the vent is powerful and as you can see it is a big hit with Shiva.....

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cool cats chillin' on a sizzling weekend

 

When it is 95 degrees outside and you are an inside cat what's fun is to sleep in a sunbeam on the floor upstairs for awhile and then, when you get good and toasty, to head downstairs where the air conditioning is working superbly.

Here they are: Willow on top showing off her wispy tiny beard, Shiva Lullaby being...well..Shiva, and Feather -- seemingly lit from within -- who has experienced so many summers that she cuddles into my grandmother's wool afghan whenever I'm in the office...day or night, summer or winter.

:::

Meanwhile, here is a mini-video that shows some adults who should be fined for not stopping this future sociopath from tossing a cat in the pool and risking the safety of both child and cat. I hope kitty kept on running until well out of the neighborhood where it found a safe, cool, loving home. There's not much hope for that kid unless a good foster family is in the future.





Video via Tiny.pic


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my cats get a jump on spring with some video catnip

Here are all three of my cats (the pampered indoor-only gang as opposed to the pampered outside-garage three) in one short video clip that warms my heart because it shows their personalities and why I love them so much.

Pure white Feather (14 years old) and Willow (one year+) sit together in front of the tv to watch a VHS tape titled Video Catnip, while Shiva Lullaby (two years+) watches the scene from a favorite chair.....

~

Shiva Lullaby has a birthday

What is the source of the love she bears me? ... She has the modesty that belongs to perfect lovers, and their dread of too insistent contacts. I shall not say much more about her. All the rest is silence, faithfulness, impacts of soul, the shadow of an azure shape on the blue paper that receives everything I write, the silent passage of paws silvered with moisture.

Colette (1873-1954)
French Novelist

What a blessing she is in my life, and a blessing to Mike also. Shiva Lullaby is the softest cat I've ever had, and the most demonstrative cuddler. She announces her intentions and needs with a tiny mew that sounds like she's saying blrip. Playful with the other cats, she is gentle and snuggly with the dogs. Her shape is not like any other cat I've known, either, as nearly all her 8 lbs. are concentrated in her tummy. When we pick her up she goes all dead-weight and it feels like hefting a beanbag instead of a cat. She is indeed a bit overweight and I need to address that, but there's something in the way she goes limp while being lifted that makes her very vulnerable as she gives herself over to the experience. She displays a similar offering of self by appearing out of nowhere and plopping herself on her side near my feet. I'm getting used to looking for her before I take a step, lest that step land on her tail or paw, in which case she doesn't move but registers her complaint with a series of staccato nya-nya-nyas that sound more like a miniature goat than a kitty.

I'm smitten with this kitten who is no longer a kitten now but a year-old cat. Not smitten, I'm in love. As I told Shiva's vet: think of her as the 20-year cat and make all health care decisions accordingly.


(More about Shiva Lullaby: this is a link to a short video of her first night home with us, and post explaining her double name. The clip doesn't always load and I can't figure out why.)