4-20-24, heavy sigh. A lot has been going on in my household. My shoulder is healing well but I have some numbness in the forearm, bicep and shoulder blade. The doc said all should get better and that my nerves are aggravated. Hot packs and the tens unit have helped. Time is the therapy.

Pearl Chinchilla developed an eye lesion. A trip to the vets to have it removed on 3/27, but then it didn’t heal. Another trip and it really looks bad. She’s on antibiotic drops and pain meds. Both can be challenging to administer but she’s getting better about being held. She sees an Ophthalmologist this coming week. Praying for the best outcome because Ruby really needs her.

On Easter I noticed the smell of cat urine in the house at the same time I saw Skipper spray the couch. I was mortified! Yes, I have 5 cats but I keep the litter boxes clean. I don’t know how long it had been going on but I made my rounds sniffing everything and ended up scrubbing furniture, walls and washing cushion covers. Evidently, Skipper was stressed and I didn’t know why. I had already put a calming collar on Tigger because he has chronic soft stools. I figured it might help. I even put him on a sensitive stomach dry cat food but then Sam is a bully and would push him aside to eat his special diet. I would then yell at Sam and that scared Tigger and stressed Sam to the point that he began licking his belly bald. So, I put a collar on Sam too. When I saw Skipper spray I thought perhaps he’s stressed because I yell at Burt Parrot for yelling and Sam for bullying. So, Skipper received a calming collar. I also installed two diffusers. I cleaned and cleaned and he continued to spray. Then I saw Theo, his brother, spraying. I nearly lost it. I placed towels all around the base of the couch, my chair, the hedgehog bench and they continued to spray the towels and I would wash them. A collar is now on Theo. I’m stress eating and gaining the weight I lost back. I’m not happy. I haven’t put one on Smokey because he’s 17 and already pretty chilled. I have stopped yelling at the bird and since the special diet didn’t help Tigger, I stopped that which now Sam has no need to bully. Plus I’m giving Sam extra loving so he’ll stop licking his belly. After doing multiple washes in one week, I have progressed to cardboard pieces to protect the furniture. Of course they sprayed that and I sprayed it with enzymes along with other behavioral spray or peppermint essential oil which they pretty much stay clear of. I think it’s slowing down. I think. I hope. I don’t know how much more of this I can handle. I have ordered more collars and diffusers because I read that sometimes it takes a couple months. I look back at the last couple months and perhaps Skipper got stressed because I had surgery and then had my friend, Deb, come in several times a day to help me. BUT he knows her because she use to cat sit for me when him and Theo were kittens. I don’t know. He is back to lying in my lap which is a good sign.

Max is fine! He’s currently at 46 pounds and seems to be stuck at that weight. He really needs to lose more but I’m sure once it gets warmer, he’ll become more active. I continue to comb his winter fur out and that’s going well. I learned that he loves raw shrimp. Spoiled? You know it. When I was in his enclosure the other day, I noticed several severely rusted panels. It will be my priority this summer to clear the grass away from the areas, sand, and treat with Rustoleum.  Several plexiglass sections were either destroyed by Max or the wind. I’m not sure if I’ll purchase more as it can be expensive. I might be able to salvage a few. It’s always something. I think I would drop dead in disbelief if I didn’t have a summer of nothing to do with his enclosure. LOL

Frankie & Frannie are hanging in there for old ferrets. They haven’t lost any more fur since receiving the hormonal implant for adrenal gland disease. Those two are so much fun and sweet!

Burt Parrot, Lil Bun Lop and Porkchop Hedgehog are all well and so is Ruby Chin.

I’m already booking programs for summer and it looks like it’s going to be a busy one too! 

Just one of the panels that need rust removal

4-15-24

3/10/24 – I had my post-op appointment on Friday, 3/8 and I was relieved of my sling. He had me move my arm up to the side and in front of me and it hurt. I got it up a little and was told that was fine. I’ve been so good about wearing the sling and behaving appropriately. I’m pretty headstrong and so this was a challenge to obey the rules. The new instruction is to not do any heavy bicep lifting for a month or I will pop the tendon. When they got in with the camera, they saw that my rotator cuff was beautiful thanks to the surgery I had in 2015. The bicep was frayed and torn. They snipped it and secured it back to the bone. However, they drilled bone out of my clavicle to make anchors. Bone takes 6 months to heal and I’ll have pain for that long. Yesterday was tough but today was better. Sleeping is getting better too. I head back to work on Tuesday but will be taking it slow. At the grocery store I was able to lift the 20 pound bag of kitty litter from the shelf to inside my cart using only my left arm. Dang, I rock! LOL. But I did ask for help at the checkout and a young man loaded my car. I had a friend help me unload the litter and 16 pound bag of dry cat food when I got home. I’m not opposed to asking for help!

I am back interacting with Max for a short time. He got really excited last Tuesday 3/5 and scratched me a good one on my left arm. So, it’s 5 minutes or less with combing or any other type of interaction. Once I get strength back in my right arm, that cat will be getting his nails clipped! OMG, they are razors!

We did a brief video between my work time – Max Canada Lynx – We’re Back!

12/31/23 – I really wanted to post before now but the last few months have been non-stop living. I’m not even sure if I will remember everything that I originally wanted to post but I’ll try.

In August we participated in an Eco-Arts Festival in upstate NY. We volunteered our time to educate visitors about the Canada Lynx. You can view our Eco-Arts Festival. 

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8-5-23 Max was very happy to be home!

Porkchop Hedgehog goes on a run around the backyard and Max watches with interest. – Porkchop on the Run

In September, Max went on a walk and fell in love with a tree – Tree Love. I was forced to put wheels under Max’s travel kennel because he weighed in at 47 pounds. On a Roll shows you exactly how I did it. We participated in a wildlife festival on the 23rd. Max snoozed through most of it but let a few people know they got too close to his kennel to take photos. He bluff charged and growled. At the end of the month, I found an ottoman sitting at the end of one’s driveway which was being tossed. I thought it would be wonderful for Max in his outside enclosure. I hauled it home and it still sits in the workshop because it’s great for me to sit on to interact with Max! Sorry Max, I stole it!

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9-28-23

October was a difficult month for both of us. As you can see Max seemed fine on September 28 but come October 1st, he wasn’t. I noticed it immediately when he refused to come when I called him for mealtime. In fact, when I went into his enclosure, he still would not come to me. I knew something was wrong. He stood when I approached him but his demeanor was subdued. I got the butt greeting but he was slow. When he laid down I noticed his breathing was labored and his stomach moving. He would shift his legs like he was uncomfortable. I couldn’t get him to eat or drink water and therefore trying to get laxative into him was going to be impossible. I called the vet and he suggested giving Max an enema and I was willing to try it. He also prescribed meds for nausea. I let Max lie on the ground and I sat with my back up against the fence with my legs over him. The procedure went quite well but when he realized there was a large amount of liquid up his butt, he immediately stood up and tried to poop it out. No Max no! LOL. I sat with him as much as I could putting heat packs on his back and belly. Massages were welcomed too. He passed the blockage on the 3rd and it wasn’t even loaded with fur or bones. It was just a large stool. Following it was days of diarrhea and lack of appetite. His behavior slowly improved but it took several weeks for him to get his appetite back fully. Now, he’s on a regime of cod liver oil one day and laxative two days later. So, every two days he gets one or the other. I have also decreased his chicken legs from 12 a week to 8 rotating them with his red meat in-between. Although Max was not 100%, we still participated in an outdoor event. He didn’t seem to mind as it was dark and cold but I was cold! Only October but still chilly for this old gal. By the end of October Max was back to normal and I was worry-free.

10-1-23 Max not feeling well

10-1-23 Max leans on my legs

10-2-23 Max getting some rest

10-7-23 Max feeling better to climb but appetite not back totally

10-10-23 Back to not eating, lumping around

10-12-23 Enjoying some catnip

10-14-23 Our outdoor event

10-21-23 Max enjoys fresh straw for his enclosure. He’s very happy!

November starts off well with fun and games with Max. I found an opossum sitting in the middle of the road on my way home from an awards ceremony on the 9th. It was dark but I stopped turning on my flashers praying no other cars came along. She was injured. I grab the towel in my car, picked her up and placed her on the floor. When I got home, I put straw in a kennel and placed her in it. I then called a wildlife rehab organization and they connected me with a rehabber who was willing to take her in. I drove 30 minutes to deliver her. She suffered trauma to her face but no brain damage. She had to have her eye removed and her jaw was broken. Her teeth were too small and not spaced appropriate, so pinning her jaw was not possible but the vet did what he could using stitches. She, Salem, will never be released due to being blind on the one side. So, the rehabber, Linda, will take care of her for the rest of her life. I hear she’s a sweet opossum and is doing quite well. I’m so happy that I saved her.

My cousin, Genevieve came down from Canada to help me finish Max’s wire roofing the weekend of the 11th. We trimmed and trimmed and got it finished… mostly. I worked on the rest by myself and still have the security entry to finish but it’s a huge weight off my shoulder knowing the snow will pass effortlessly through the wire without collecting & collapsing it.

About the same time I discovered good news. Poppy bunny had been licking her knees bald since summer but by increasing her medication, the fur started to grow. She is back to her cranky self! Hey, that’s good news.

We got a little snow on the 21st and Max got to play in it but it melted in no time.

Thanksgiving was nice. I spent a few hours with my best friend. Max got salmon, as always. It’s my special dinner treat for him. To view our video – Happy Thanksgiving

11-4-23 Stink eye from Max

11-4-23 Enjoying his catwalk

11-10-23 Poppy feeling better

11-14-23 Salem resting in her new home before her surgeryme

11-12-23 Wider openings for snow to fall through

11-19-23 Just chilling

11-19-23 Contentment

December started off with a bang! Max needed a new freezer. Ugh! I had just gotten 150 pounds of meat several weeks before. Well, I ordered and it was delivered the first Saturday but I had to wait around for 4 hours. However, we are all set now! The rest of the month was busy organizing my last after-school class at the museum, getting cards out and decorating the house. I was not in a festive mood. I really can’t pinpoint why. I was just not feeling it this year. Christmas was quiet. I did chores. I baked cookies and watched movies. Christmas Eve I gave Max his toys – Christmas 2023. Most recently, we received a gift of a new loading ramp. I liked the old but it had bumps at the top of the ramp and Max’s wheels would get caught on them. Such challenges! I put on our Amazon wish list a new one which didn’t have the bumps and was wide enough but I didn’t realize that it’s fabric covered. Luckily, it works fine and you can see for yourself with Max’s new loading ramp video.

Now we are up to date with our New Year Eve 2023 video. Max has one resolution… to lose 10 pounds by summer. I have two… to lose 10 pounds this year and to get better organized which includes tossing paperwork, selling collectibles and better use of my time.

Whoop, new freezer!

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12-11-23 Yes, snow passing thru the wires!

12-11-23 Lynx angel

12-24-23 Christmas gifts

12-24-23 Hogging the toys

12-24-23 Fluffy toy

12-31-23

12-31-23 Happy New Year!

Lulu Press is offering a 15% discount off your order of their printed products. That’s right, you can save 15% off Max’s book. Shop the bookstore and save 15% when you use promo code PORTFOLIO15 at checkout. Offer is good through July 14.

Our page for Max’s books – I am MAX book versions