Ok- so, here are my "kids"...
This calico cutie is Autumn- she was found scavenging through a garbage pile on a farm 17 years ago with worms so bad, her little tummy literally touched the ground when she was standing, and an upper respiratory infection that had her face totally crusted in mucus. She was about 4 weeks old. Jay (hubby) & I took her in IMMEDIATELY upon seeing her, got her to the vet, and she has been a spoiled, happy, house cat ever since. She has TERRIBLE balance, as a remnant from the infections she had... and makes the most adorable little snort noises when she plays, or really gets into eating. She's an awesome cat, and we are glad she is with us every day!
This little pistol is Azrael. She came into our lives 16 years ago, when I was working a job at Michael's Craft Store & one of the shift managers walked up to me and said "You're into animals- here's a kitten." She was about 8 weeks old. We weren't supposed to have more than one cat, at that time, so I told this woman that.. her answer was "Well, if you don't take her, I am just going to drop her out back by the dumpster- she's old enough to catch mice and rats, right?". Our kitty crew officially became 2, at that very moment. Az, unfortunately, is nearing the end out our journey together, with Chronic Renal Failure... she has lived a fantastic life with us,and has been a source of joy & entertainment every day. We continue to enjoy our time together- and we are just focusing on that.
And here we have the Brak Attack. Brak was living under my Mother's jeep at her old house in a not very nice neighborhood... She wouldn't let my sister bring him in the house, but told her she could keep him as "an outside cat", without even providing shots for him. Since this was very dangerous for this big goofball... he came to live with me. He is a very difficult cat- and makes every day an adventure. I still love him, though... and am glad he is safe and loved inside, where he belongs.
This handsome gentleman is Raziel- or Ray Ray, as he is most frequently called. We adopted him from the shelter, after he spent the first 10 mos of his life growing up in a 3 ft square cage at a PetSmart adoption center. He was born feral, so, he does not warm up to people easily, and makes the term "scaredy cat" seem to be an understatement. We are perfectly fine with that in our house, though! It is kind of a relief to have one that doesn't require much one on one contact to be happy in a house as full as this one. We love our gorgeous boy, and are glad to have him as part of the family.
This black beauty is out girl Lucy- or more commonly called "Goose". We adopted her from a shelter just because I love black cats, and we wanted to. Her shelter name was "Crashie", and boy does she EVER live up to that! She is always knocking things down, and getting into trouble. Thankfully for her, we LOVE a teeny cat with BIG personality in this house... she is truly awesome!
Here's ZOEY! Don't let the cuteness fool you- this cat is a terror! On one of my evening walks around the neighborhood, I saw a cat crying at a neighbor's house to be let back in... they weren't opening it. She came walking down the driveway to me, and started to snuggle. One of the kids at the house opened the door, and I asked it Zoey was their cat. The reply was "not anymore- my mom put her outside, because she doesn't want to feed her anymore... she can't come back in the house." Zoey came home to live with us! She is a HUGE pain, and a very sassy cat- but, she doesn't deserve to be thrown out. Her antics are kind of funny, and she is just so cute... who could say "no" to that face?
What do the kids like to do on weekends?
CATNIP PARTY ON THE CAT CASTLE!!!
And, just because I can't leave them out... here are the dogs.
Ronin, aka "Bubba"- our shepherd husky mix that we have had since he was a baby. He turns 11 this October, and we love him dearly!
My chihuahua, Rosco P. Coltrane having a little nap in his bed with Brak. I found Rosco on my way home from work one day about 4 years ago. I used to work at a school with special needs kids about 3/4 of a mile from my house... so, I would walk to and from work every day. It was in February, and only about 15 degrees outside, not considering the Chicago wind chill into that. It was COLD. On my way home, I heard something sounding like a puppy screaming/crying coming from behind the Jewel grocery store. I went to check it out, and this little chihuahua was tied to pallets next to a dumpster (it was locked, or I am sure he would have been inside it). He has been there for a while, as he had used the bathroom a few times, and there were no human tracks in the snow anywhere around him (even though it had stopped snowing 6+ hours earlier that day)- He showed signs of trauma and abuse, and was so thin his bones were sticking out, I grabbed him, and shoved him into my coat with me- he felt like a block of ice. We got home, got him some very warm water to drink, and I sat with him curled up under the blankets on my bed... he hasn't left my side since, and never will.
Here's out girl Molly! We adopted her last year from a wonderful rescue woman after living through years of abuse and neglect. We are still working on behavioral rehabilitation with her, but, she is IN LOVE with me & my husband (totally a daddy's girl!), and makes leaps and bounds of progress every day! She is over the most of her fear, and is definitely a sweet, spunky, and generally adorable little cuddle bug. We are so glad to have her, and look forward to spoiling her for many years to come!
We also have an 8 year old guinea pig, technically her name is Punkin- but, I think she is really only called "Pig Pig" when we talk to her. She is about 8 years old, and came to live with us after we went to get supplies for the guinea pigs who were classroom pets at the school I was working with at the time. The check-out lady asked if we would be interested in adopting a pig they had in the back room, as an owner return... I hesitated, until I heard the guy behind me say "If she doesn't want it, I'll take it. I have a 6 ft Burmese at home."... My answer? "I'll take the pig...". Her cage is in the kitchen, so she gets veggies and attention all day long. She's super mellow, and we just adore her. I don't have any pics, at the moment... and she litrally just had a bath, so, she looks a little ridiculous. I will take one and post it over the weekend.
This calico cutie is Autumn- she was found scavenging through a garbage pile on a farm 17 years ago with worms so bad, her little tummy literally touched the ground when she was standing, and an upper respiratory infection that had her face totally crusted in mucus. She was about 4 weeks old. Jay (hubby) & I took her in IMMEDIATELY upon seeing her, got her to the vet, and she has been a spoiled, happy, house cat ever since. She has TERRIBLE balance, as a remnant from the infections she had... and makes the most adorable little snort noises when she plays, or really gets into eating. She's an awesome cat, and we are glad she is with us every day!
This little pistol is Azrael. She came into our lives 16 years ago, when I was working a job at Michael's Craft Store & one of the shift managers walked up to me and said "You're into animals- here's a kitten." She was about 8 weeks old. We weren't supposed to have more than one cat, at that time, so I told this woman that.. her answer was "Well, if you don't take her, I am just going to drop her out back by the dumpster- she's old enough to catch mice and rats, right?". Our kitty crew officially became 2, at that very moment. Az, unfortunately, is nearing the end out our journey together, with Chronic Renal Failure... she has lived a fantastic life with us,and has been a source of joy & entertainment every day. We continue to enjoy our time together- and we are just focusing on that.
And here we have the Brak Attack. Brak was living under my Mother's jeep at her old house in a not very nice neighborhood... She wouldn't let my sister bring him in the house, but told her she could keep him as "an outside cat", without even providing shots for him. Since this was very dangerous for this big goofball... he came to live with me. He is a very difficult cat- and makes every day an adventure. I still love him, though... and am glad he is safe and loved inside, where he belongs.
This handsome gentleman is Raziel- or Ray Ray, as he is most frequently called. We adopted him from the shelter, after he spent the first 10 mos of his life growing up in a 3 ft square cage at a PetSmart adoption center. He was born feral, so, he does not warm up to people easily, and makes the term "scaredy cat" seem to be an understatement. We are perfectly fine with that in our house, though! It is kind of a relief to have one that doesn't require much one on one contact to be happy in a house as full as this one. We love our gorgeous boy, and are glad to have him as part of the family.
This black beauty is out girl Lucy- or more commonly called "Goose". We adopted her from a shelter just because I love black cats, and we wanted to. Her shelter name was "Crashie", and boy does she EVER live up to that! She is always knocking things down, and getting into trouble. Thankfully for her, we LOVE a teeny cat with BIG personality in this house... she is truly awesome!
Here's ZOEY! Don't let the cuteness fool you- this cat is a terror! On one of my evening walks around the neighborhood, I saw a cat crying at a neighbor's house to be let back in... they weren't opening it. She came walking down the driveway to me, and started to snuggle. One of the kids at the house opened the door, and I asked it Zoey was their cat. The reply was "not anymore- my mom put her outside, because she doesn't want to feed her anymore... she can't come back in the house." Zoey came home to live with us! She is a HUGE pain, and a very sassy cat- but, she doesn't deserve to be thrown out. Her antics are kind of funny, and she is just so cute... who could say "no" to that face?
What do the kids like to do on weekends?
CATNIP PARTY ON THE CAT CASTLE!!!
And, just because I can't leave them out... here are the dogs.
Ronin, aka "Bubba"- our shepherd husky mix that we have had since he was a baby. He turns 11 this October, and we love him dearly!
My chihuahua, Rosco P. Coltrane having a little nap in his bed with Brak. I found Rosco on my way home from work one day about 4 years ago. I used to work at a school with special needs kids about 3/4 of a mile from my house... so, I would walk to and from work every day. It was in February, and only about 15 degrees outside, not considering the Chicago wind chill into that. It was COLD. On my way home, I heard something sounding like a puppy screaming/crying coming from behind the Jewel grocery store. I went to check it out, and this little chihuahua was tied to pallets next to a dumpster (it was locked, or I am sure he would have been inside it). He has been there for a while, as he had used the bathroom a few times, and there were no human tracks in the snow anywhere around him (even though it had stopped snowing 6+ hours earlier that day)- He showed signs of trauma and abuse, and was so thin his bones were sticking out, I grabbed him, and shoved him into my coat with me- he felt like a block of ice. We got home, got him some very warm water to drink, and I sat with him curled up under the blankets on my bed... he hasn't left my side since, and never will.
Here's out girl Molly! We adopted her last year from a wonderful rescue woman after living through years of abuse and neglect. We are still working on behavioral rehabilitation with her, but, she is IN LOVE with me & my husband (totally a daddy's girl!), and makes leaps and bounds of progress every day! She is over the most of her fear, and is definitely a sweet, spunky, and generally adorable little cuddle bug. We are so glad to have her, and look forward to spoiling her for many years to come!
We also have an 8 year old guinea pig, technically her name is Punkin- but, I think she is really only called "Pig Pig" when we talk to her. She is about 8 years old, and came to live with us after we went to get supplies for the guinea pigs who were classroom pets at the school I was working with at the time. The check-out lady asked if we would be interested in adopting a pig they had in the back room, as an owner return... I hesitated, until I heard the guy behind me say "If she doesn't want it, I'll take it. I have a 6 ft Burmese at home."... My answer? "I'll take the pig...". Her cage is in the kitchen, so she gets veggies and attention all day long. She's super mellow, and we just adore her. I don't have any pics, at the moment... and she litrally just had a bath, so, she looks a little ridiculous. I will take one and post it over the weekend.
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