Ludo is HOME

okay, he came home Wednesday night, but was weak from not eating... i started force feeding him kitten formula, which he was not very happy with, but too bad. We humans can rationalize "sure i feel like crap, but to feel better and get better i have to eat soup/drink juice/take these vitamins etc. Animals just know what they are feeling RIGHT NOW. so it is easy for an animal to just not eat because they feel crappy.

when he came home, his bladder was still a bit leaky... he was CHOOSING to use the litter box, it's not that he was just randomly wetting himself. he was just... leaky... so my bed still smells a little like cat pee. so is life.

he took up a spot right by the radiator, to keep himself warm and possibly also to dry his fur when he would "leak". for the first couple days he would just curl up and sleep and only get up to pee. he was anti social and mopey.

but after a couple days of his meds and getting force fed, he started to perk up, gain back his joy, and his appetite started to come back. as soon as he was eating on his own, i stopped the force feeding.

and he is purring again. my baby is gonna be OK

Ludo is in the Hospital

when i came home from Southwest Leather Conference Sunday night (actually Monday morning at 1:30 am) Ludo did NOT run out to greet me, which itself was abnormal. i called for him; when he finally came out of hiding, he was lethargic and confused. i picked him up; his belly and legs were covered with urine and crusted cat litter (some of you will remember that i added Ludo to the family after Koshka died in 2003)

i cleaned him up and rushed him to the Emergency vet. His urinary tract was blocked with crystals to the point if i was gone for one day more i might have come home to dead kitty.

He is doing well but could be doing better. they are HOPING that he can come home tonight (Wednesday night) but they can't be sure (it is only 5:30 am Wednesday; they just called me) but the bill is already $1000. the $700 deposit maxed out my credit card, and i don't know if they will do a payment plan for the rest.

so, yes, this is the fundraiser part of the story.

on my website (http://www.izzythebootblack.com) you will see my PET YOUR BOOTBLACK logo. i made this into a travel fund pin during my International Ms. Bootblack year, but now since i have a bunch left i am going to use them to try to raise money. go to the main page of my website for more information if you want to donate money to get a pin (or you just want to flat out donate money)

Attack of the Clones

The FDA might be on the verge of approving cloned animals for agricutural use; breeding, meat, and milk, but the public is confused, concerned, and just plain weirded out by this possibility. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel just had a short article about it within the last few days. Of course scientists involved with the develpoment of cloning feel that yes, the FDA will approve cloned animals with a hearty "WHY NOT?" One was quoted saying something along the lines of "If the FDA says its safe, then the public should jutst accept it." But i think that we can ALL think of products that were originally approved by the FDA and then pulled from the market when said product turned dangerous. years ago i was on a prescription drug that was eventually pulled from the market because it was killing people. obviously it didn't kill me too, but it did cause me severe side effects in the time that i took it.

I think that science is going to push so hard for the agricultural application of cloned animals to justify that the work that they have done is not "evil" or "creepy". But do we even NEED these cloned animals? Do we actually have a shortage of quality dairy and meat cows? The article mentioned that even scientists admit that cloning is expensive, so we won't be in fear of whole herds of cloned cows. What's wrong with letting cattle just do it themselves?

I think that science has other reasons for developing and improving cloning, and pushing agricultural use is a smokescreen so to speak. I don't care if it is "safe". I just don't want it happening.