20 September 2008

Back Together Again


What a week! Jordan & the hopsital, Devon & his citizenship, Devon & 3 days in SoCal, and the biggie: The return of Mojave & Sierra!!! As they say, I guess, If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you, it's yours, if not, it was never meant to be.

Mojave took his leave on 23 August while Avery & I were at the Pend Oreille County Fair, and was out & about the neighborhood for 27 days. Sierra took off 15 days later, and was gone for a total of 11 days. Then, on Wednesday night, Sierra waltzed back in the house, stinky (pew!) and skinny, but acting like she'd been gone for ~10 minutes. Avery & I were down at the blackberry patch, but nurse Robin quickly shut the doors & gave us the great news a few minutes later when we got back to the house. Did I mention how bad she smelled!? I don't know how to explain it, but not even the cat (flea & tick) shampoo completely got rid of the smell.

So, she got a bath after the girls were asleep, and spent the night in the bathroom drying out. She's down to 6.2 pounds (from a high of 10.5 pounds, but more recently ~8.5 pounds), so I'm trying to keep her eating, and actually bought kitten food today (higher calories). Most cat foods are focused on making cats lose weight (there's even a fat cat epidemic in this country)!

On Thursday morning, after she was dry, I locked her downstairs, then opened the door to the back deck. Within 1 minute Mojave walked in, like he'd been gone for ~10 minutes, too! He had the same stink, and got the same bath. He was down to 8.2 pounds (from 11.8 pounds), so he's not quite as gaunt as his sister, but skinny nonetheless. He seems to have quite a few cuts and scratches (Sierra didn't), but none of them were serious, which was a relief. By evening he was all snuggled up on the bed with me, just like he hadn't missed a beat. Oh what I'd give for a talking cat -- I'm dying to know what little adventure they were on for 27 & 11 days. One neighbor thought he saw Mojave down in the blackberry patch a few times, which could easily explain the scratches.

We're just so glad & relieved to have them back. We're going to have to keep the doors closed for a few weeks, while everyone recovers, both physically & mentally. I guess we were meant to be.

Sierra straight out of the bath, feasting on a can of tuna.
Sierra snuggled under the sink all night as she dried out
Dry, and back to her reclusive self, acting as a bookkend on the built-ins downstairs (one of the last things in this house that hasn't been remodeled yet -- soon!). She's a little "wacky" since her big adventure -- she even let Avery walk up to her and pet her on Friday, which has never happened before. A soggy Mojave, right after his bath, resting in the mini-litterbox (I'm glad it was clean & isn't clumping clay litter!)
Mojave snuggled up in his usual spot on the loveseat
and hanging out in the playroom

2 comments:

Astrid said...

YEAH! I am so glad to hear they are back! Losing furry friends is no fun at all. But not surprizing they knew where to find a nice can of tuna! ... I am surprized you were able to bath them!

Julie, Jeff, Jack, WIll and Jasper said...

That is really a crazy story. Dogs would never behave in such a crazy manner. I like how they just come back as if they rule the house. What do you think the smell was? It isn't as if the outside smells that bad! Can't wait to hear any other news you get on the subject!!