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Last Updated: 12/14/11

Photos
Story

Photos

Photos are listed from newest to oldest.

These photos from 5/5/11 were taken to show the new pond overflow but GK showed up in them too.
Overflow - facing east from below with GK on the rock
Overflow - facing northeast, just a piece of it with GK on the rock

GK on the couch on 2/13/10.
GK with Tinkie on the couch on 2/16/08.
GK with Tinkie on the couch on 2/16/08.
GK on the couch, 1/13/08.
GK on 6/23/07.
GK on 5/6/06.
GK on 2/19/05 at Gino and Doodally's food bowl.
GK on 1/31/04 with two Furr Real fake cats on a dog bed.
GK on 3/26/03.
GK on 9/29/01.

Story

GK is another shy cat that may be feral or may belong to a neighbor. GK is short for Gray Kitty. She is a generic gray cat. She used to run at first sight of any human but started to come around after Tippy ate. Then, she and Tippy became buddies, and she all of a sudden on 3/1/01, came to eat as soon as I put the bowl down. She then let me pet her and even pick her up. I verified that she is a female. She was quiet and ignored me but let me pet her while she ate. Tippy lets her eat the best food first before he eats. On 3/10/01, I felt GK's front paws, and she is declawed. For an indoor cat, declawing is cruel but for an outdoor cat, I believe it to be unconscionable. By April of 2001, she hangs around a lot and runs up to me for food and attention. If I pet her when she is not eating, she nips at me. That is pretty common in declawed cats. Finally, in May of 2001, I brought her to the vet. She said that GK is 3 to 4 years old, spayed, and declawed. She got her shots. Now, she does come to me some times and likes attention. She is actually very sweet most of the time! Samantha does not like her though, and they have stare downs. GK is now pretty much my cat! I have put collars on her but she keeps losing them. By 10/8/01, GK is around most of the time and likes me (purring and rubbing) but she gets stalked by Samantha most of the time. In the winter of 2002, GK now spends cold nights in the basement. Saman is then locked up in a dog crate because they fight. GK has turned into a sweetie. She sometimes nips for no reason but my cousin picked her up in March of 2002 when I was not around and GK did not try to hurt her at all. She even played with a necklace with her even though she had never seemed interested in playing with me. I guess it is just something about kids (my cousin is 16 years younger than I)!

Here is another photo of GK in June of 2001.

I wrote this stupid poem about GK one day that jumped into my head. I have never seen her catch a mouse in reality! I know the poem does not follow official rules for poem writing.

One day she came
A sweet, little dame
A kitty gray, blue, and tame.
But what do you name
A kitty so tame?
Gray kitty is her name!

A mousy appeared, GK had to aim.
I shouted, "No, please don't maim!"
GK thought it was a game
But the mousy was now lame
The cat, proud of her fame.

Each day I call
It's always the same,
She runs away.
I guess she's not tame after all!
It's a shame!

During the worst winter in 100 years, 2002-2003, GK became a partially indoor cat, spending most of her time inside during the heavy snows and bitter cold. At first it was just the basement but then she got to explore some more. She was happy inside and eventually all four of my cats were getting along! Then, it got warm again, and GK felt the calling to spend her time all outside again. If it were up to me, all my cats would be inside all the time so they do not kill any more small animals but the rest of the family wants her outside.

GK had her yearly appointment on 5/25/04. She was 7.3 pounds up from 7.0 on 5/15/03. By the winter of 2005, GK is an "inny-outey" cat meaning she wants in and out 100 times a day!! But, she loves being inside. She plays with things like a kitten. Unfortunately, she also does not find using a litter pan to be an important thing to do.

I had GK microchipped on 3/13/05 at a clinic.

GK had her yearly checkup on 5/24/05. She was down to 6.2 pounds. GK had distemper and rabies shots. She had blood work done just to be safe even though she is young. No problems were found.

GK had her yearly checkup on 5/17/06. She was 6.3 pounds. She got a distemper shot. They extracted some feces to check for worms and found none.

GK had her yearly checkup on 6/27/07. She was down to 6.1 pounds. They weighed her three times to be sure. The vet thought it might just be because it is later in the summer than previous years. I decided to wait another year before doing blood work again. She got a distemper shot. I brought in a fecal sample, and they found nothing. She seems fine.

GK had her yearly checkup on 5/14/08. Her weight was still 6.1 pounds. She got distemper and rabies shots. I had blood work done (blood panel and also feline leukemia and AIDS). The only thing that came back abnormal was her T4 (thyroid) which was 2.6 (should be <2.5). He suggested re-testing in 6 to 12 months.

GK went for a T4 re-check on 11/11/08. She was still 6.1 pounds. Her T4 was 2.7. Normal is 0.8 to 4 with 2.5 to 4 being borderline and possibly early hyperthyrodism. Since her result was the same, we will just re-test in another 6 months.

GK had her yearly checkup on 5/6/09. Her weight was up to 6.3 pounds. The vet heard a mild heart murmur. She got a distemper shot. Her T4 was only 2 which is normal!

GK had her yearly checkup on 5/4/10. Her weight was down to 5.9 pounds. The vet did not hear a heart murmur. She got a distemper shot. She had a senior blood profile for T4, kidney, liver functions, etc. I told them to call me at home the next day (which they normally do when I am at work) since I had the day off so they called me at work and left a message! Luckily, they said everything was fine but they did not leave details on her results which I would have liked to have known for the hundreds of dollars I paid.

GK had a senior exam, blood work for T4, and fecal test on 11/16/10. She was up to 6.1 pounds. The T4 result was 1.8. The vet always wants to test feces but my cats are always negative. Since GK is outdoors, and the vet said it has been three years since she was tested, I had it checked, and it was negative for parasites.

GK went to the vet on 5/11/11 for her yearly check up. Her weight was down to 5.9 pounds. She got her rabies and distemper shots. The vet found nothing wrong. She had full geriatric blood work which all came back normal (again, I got a message and no actual results).

GK went to the vet on 11/29/11. Her weight was the same at 5.9 pounds. Her T4 result was okay at 1.6 ug/dL (normal is 0.8 to 4.0 ug/dL). It was fortuitous that she went to the vet this day because when I chased her down, I noticed she was tilting her head. At the vet, we found her right ear full of dried blood. It was bleeding down in the ear canal. The vet said she did not think it was a bite wound but I would later find at home that there were two puncture wounds on the outside of her head down from the ear. The area is slightly swollen and red. The vet gave me an ear drop that treats for bacteria, fungus, and swelling. She actually got the twice-a-day dose for the first three days so far. I will keep an eye on it. The vet will re-check after a few weeks.

GK had a re-check on 12/13/11. The vet agreed her ear is healed. She was 5.88 pounds. Strangely, while waiting on the examining table, GK's right ear (that was the one that was bitten) turned more red than her left.

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