Breaking News! Tux and Sam Are Back Together!

They didn't know they were observed. Even Kaku was sitting out of sight of them. But a casual passerby snapped this shot of Tux and Sam and told this reporter that the cats were canoodling like a romantic couple. The grooming, the nuzzling, the licking, the looks of absolute bliss (see Sam). Oh they're definitely back!

What could have brought this pair back? Just last year they were fighting like cats and dogs, never in each other's company. They were broken up for sure after a loving 4 year relationship. Was it the sadness of Boy's sudden passing that drew them back together? Perhaps. But whatever the reason, we are happy they're together again.

Reintegrating Cats Into the Home

Maybe I haven't looked hard enough, but I can't seem to find any information on this topic.

Basically, the cats who had free run of the home have been living in our courtyard and their own room for the last 3 years. Attempts to have them come in supervised for the weekend have led to Tuxie and Buffy howling to be let in full-time and worse, the last outing led to marking on my (or was it hubby's pillow). So we had to put in place a strict no-entry rule. Amazingly, after 3 years they still remember "the good life" indoors, sleeping on our couches and beds.

Boy's death changed me. For a long time I blamed myself for the events that led to him being put outside with the rest (outside, meaning the courtyard, not outside outside). As the 3 Naughties fought a lot, he got stressed and maybe that was what caused his heart attack.

Then I realised I missed all the cats so much. Yearned to pet them and hug them in this fugue of exhaustion from looking after 2 kids. I can barely bend down to pick stuff up let alone bend down to pet a cat (there is nowhere to sit in the cat room or courtyard) while carrying the baby and watching a very active toddler now.

Boy still got petted at night when he lived in the kitchen. It was our special time. But since I got pregnant the second time, the kids had only got a cursory pet while I fed them. And now with another child, it is even harder to go out just to pet them. Hubby still plays with them some but he's tired from work and helping out with the kids. So really, the best way to spend time with them is to have them in the home too.

So the last few weeks, on and off, I have been researching ways of letting them in again so that they won't mark the place (as they did when Jack turned 4 months and started crying a lot more) but haven't found any specific information for reintegrating cats into a previously lived home, plus handling their indignation (trust me, Tuxie has a lot).

Any advice out there?

Missing Boy

When will it pass? Even with the stress of a new baby and a perpetually restless toddler, I miss my Boy so much.

Healthy Pure Food

I'm always about feeding my family about pure organic food, how synthetic hormones and certain chemicals are bad for our bodies, but the food options for our feline family have been rather limited. I've stuck to brands which contain no by-products but true holistic cat food as well as holistic dog food is pretty hard to find at your neighbourhood pet store or downtown pet store chain. Some people make their own pet food but to be honest, most folk don't have the time, and even those who do, worry about the cons of feeding raw food (but there are many pros too).

Hence many people have started looking online. One great option is www.HealthyPetFoodToYourDoor.com, which not only sells a range of holistic pet foods, primarily Life's Abundance, but also gives you a home based pet food opportunity for you to start out in the pet food business.

I remember when Boy was exclusively fed commercial dry biscuits. Despite him being a voracious drinker of water, he still got kidney troubles at the young age of 6. Right after, we switched him to Science Diet, which improved his condition some, but it was only after we switched to more holistic brands which did not include by-products and corn, plus added natural canned cat food, did he improve.

From gently lifting up the skin around his neck, we could ascertain he was well-hydrated and his skin tone stayed this way till the day he died. The food certainly was a factor.