Kittens and Stones

The last couple of weeks have been more eventful than we would have liked. First we had an unexpected trip to the emergency room one evening when Jason was suddenly down on the floor screaming in pain. We raced to the ER and made quite the dramatic entrance. I had Jason on one hand who was bent over and walking like Lurch while he moaned and involuntarily screamed. I had a traumatized and crying Carter on the other hand. The three of us made quite the picture as we burst through the doors of the emergency room. Thankfully, the staff took one look at Jason and took him to triage immediately. A short while later he had the surprising diagnosis of kidney stones. Given that no one in his family has a history of kidney stones this was unexpected. We were sent home with various medications and a strainer for Jason to urinate in so he could catch the stones.

Jason proceeded to spend the next few days in anything from agony to discomfort. Thus, he wasn't thrilled when I called him one morning saying I needed help. He probably assumed it was a horse problem and I didn't say otherwise until he arrived on the scene. I then told him to stop moaning for a a minute and listen. And then he heard it as well, the scared meowing of a kitten. The kitten was trapped between the wood interior and metal exterior of one of the run-in sheds.

There was an opening where the kitten had clearly squeezed in, but I couldn't reach in far enough to grab it. I told Jason to make noise on the inside to flush the kitten out, while I waited on the outside to grab the kitten. Jason had no issues making noise with his involuntary screams of pain, and shortly the kitten came bursting out, undoubtedly terrified by the screaming man. Unfortunately I wasn't able to grab it as it came out too fast, and since it was terrified it of course started running.

I screamed at Jason to run, it was coming his way. Jason attempted to lurch along after it, and then I got around to the other side of the shed and started running. The kitten made it under the fence and decided to hide in the pile of feedbags I had dropped. I was able to quietly creep through the gate, reach down and grab the kitten. Success!!

Then we had the dilemma of what to do with the kitten? We are already supporting four rescue cats (Jingle, Joy, Igor, Oscar) and we were in agreement that we were not going to support another one. I sent a text to Kate informing her we had captured a kitten. Miraculously she produced a home for our scared, sad kitten in about 15 minutes. We were thrilled, grateful and amazed.

The kitten is a girl, and has been pronounced healthy by her new home's veterinarian. She is being doted on by a family. Like Igor, she will have her own barn complete with a heated and cooled office to call home. The hope is that one day she might catch a few mice. Igor has turned out to be quite effective in this department so maybe she will follow in his footsteps.

A few days later, Jason passed his kidney stones. We had successfully caught and re-homed a kitten, and Jason had rid himself of his kidney stones. We do love happy endings!

Jason holding our recently captured, very frightened, kitten

standing are Happy and Taco; the nappers are Paramount, Miel, B-Rad, Mick

Chance and Convey

Rip and Grand

Cisco and Homer

Elfin, Apollo and Hemi

Trigger, Levendi and Thomas

Hemi and Moe

Revy, King and Thomas

Baby

a cute line-up of horses; Art,  Hesse, Cino, Duesy, Fabrizzio

Johnny found a puddle to splash in

Squirrel and Gus also found a puddle for splashing . . . 

. . . Squirrel decided he wanted to do more than splash . . . 

. . . he wallowed in the puddle but Gus decided to stick with splashing . . . 

. . . I don't see the appeal . . . 

. . . Squirrel ended with the big shake, and Gus decided to shake with him

Horse Show Debut

Timbit and Carter made their horse show debut together this past weekend. It was most likely their first and last show together since Carter has outgrown Timbit. They did a walk only dressage test and scored a respectable 72%.

I will give Timbit credit and say that he acted like a seasoned pro from start to finish. He self loaded on the trailer, didn't peek at anything all day, confidently ate hay in his palatial horse show stall, paraded around the arena like a star, and generally acted as if he owned the show, the facility and life itself. His horse show behavior did, by a very tiny amount, make up for the countless times he has bitten or kicked at me, Jason, Kate, the farrier, the vet and generally any full sized person.

Congratulations to Carter and Timbit on a first and last successful horse show.

Carter and Timbit heading to the show ring

We almost had a stowaway come along for the ride; Igor was very interested as I was putting tack in the trailer.

Nothing was escaping Igor's notice

He thoroughly inspected the horse area of the trailer as well

We could have longed Timbit in his horse show stall

trainer Kate assisting Carter with his tie

Last minute preparations; the expressions of both Timbit and Carter say, "I've got this"

I'm not sure if Timbit or Carter has the bigger smile

 they stole the show on cuteness alone

Magic and Ripley

Dawn and MyLight

Calimba and Dawn

Renatta and Maisie

Cuffie and Lily

 It was hard to tell who was enjoying their hay so much . . . 

. . . it was Hemi

 Walon and Johnny

Elfin and Grand

Rocky, Johnny and Toledo

  

Alfie, Remmy and Duesy

Baner, Hesse and Bruno

Gibson

Cocomo and Donneur

Sunday Stills

Cuffie and Norman

Trigger and Levendi

Mick and Lighty were staring at something but Sebastian was unimpressed

Cuffie on the run

Renatta and Charlotte

Sushi, Rubrico and Squirrel

Sabrina and Sparky

Walon and Wilson

Paramount and Happy

Remmy and Hesse

Quigly and Mick

Lily and Dawn