Pimento Cheese

Ingredients: 
5 large Red Peppers.
1 cup Stuffed Green Olives, finely chopped
1 ¼ pounds Ny Or Vermont White Cheddar Cheese, grated
¼ cup Parmesan Cheese, grated ⅛ -
¼ cups Mayonnaise
1 tbsp Fresh Parsley, chopped
½ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
dash Cayenne Pepper

Directions: 

Roast red peppers in oven. You broil the peppers until all sides are charred black and blistered and then 'sweat' the peppers in a plastic bag or wrap the foil of the baking sheet you roasted them on over them. This will help you peel them. Peel off the skins, remove the cores and seeds. Keep the flesh and retain any moisture on the cutting board, hand chop into small pieces and add to bowl.

It is important to not use peppers that are from a jar, as that will substantially change the flavor and consistency of the cheese.

You can manage with 4 peppers, or use more if you have them. Walmart or BJ's can often be a source for best prices here.

I use a food processor for the remaining items: Grate the white cheddar. My preference is the 3 year NY White cheddar from Costco. Good cheese makes good pimento cheese. Don't skimp here. Stores like BJ's or Costco are honestly going to give you the best price on the cheese. For the parm, you can use pre-grated, or use a block and grate, this just adds some 'bite'. Add all this to the bowl with your peppers.

Add the olives, mince or use the chopping blade on your food processor. You can do the parsley at the same time. (If you forget the parsley it is not the end of the world.)

Mix in the mayonnaise. This is not a heavy mayo cheese.

Pepper and cayenne pepper are to taste.

I mix in the bowl by 'cutting' with a hard side scraper, this cuts the strips of grated cheese from the food processor into smaller pieces as a blend.

If you make the cheese a few days ahead, it actually gets better over a few days and will keep for a while. Ideally make 2-3 days ahead

Recipe - Taco Pie!

I've had a few requests for this one so I'm paying attention to how I make it and posting the recipe as a blog..  It's not fancy, it's tasty, it's easy to throw together in about 20 minutes after work, on the table in an hour and it can be adjusted to your personal taste (spicy or mild).  I refer to it as 'taco pie' as kind of a joke to it's very primitive roots and lack of culinary flair.  But hey, it really does taste good!

Ingredients

The basic principle is that you're taking taco meat, putting some salsa on it, topping it with cornbread and baking.  So let's get started:

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Step one, always step one, make sure your oven is heating up while you throw the rest of this mess together.

You'll also need a baking dish (5 quarts, approximately 15x10 inches), a medium sized mixing bowl and a large skillet.

Ingredients:

Meat Filling:
2 packages ground turkey (I prefer the 93% lean, but you can use any ground meat)
2 packages taco seasoning (you can also make your own, I doctor mine up by adding some garlic and onion)
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion chopped (I prefer sweet or red onions)
3/4 cup of water (or as needed)
optional - 1 can fine diced tomatoes or 1 jar of salsa
optional - 1 can chopped green chili's

1 16 oz jar of salsa

Cornbread:
1 large egg
1 1/3 cups of milk or buttermilk
2 cups of self rising cornmeal
1 14.75 oz can of creamed corn

1 cup shredded cheese (you can use more or less to your taste or skip this step altogether.

Browning the meat

brown meat, breaking apart with a spatula.  Add taco seasoning, chopped onion, chopped garlic and water -cook until onions are softened and seasonings are well mixed.  You can also do this with meat straight out of the freezer as I had to do tonight.  My husband seemed to be of the opinion that the freezer is where you store meat and put the meat that was purchased yesterday in the freezer for safe-keeping.  When I use ground meat straight from the freezer I just flop it in the pan, cover it to help it steam through and keep scraping layer after layer off with a spatula.  The tricky part being to not have meat plains ...but a little chopping action with your spatula can help with this.  Using frozen meat will add about 10 minutes to your prep time.  You can also use veggie meat crumbles or my preference would be some nice black beans for your vegetarian friends - although this really isn't a good choice for vegans with the dairy and eggs.

Spread the meat in the pan

Now, spray some non-stick cooking spray or olive oil in your baking dish.  This isn't required, but will help keep the cornbread from sticking. when it comes time to get it out of the pan, but lightly is enough.

Spread the cooked meat mixture into the bottom of the pan.  I typically don't pack it tightly, I just smooth it so the meat mixture is well distributed.

Salsa on top of the meat, don't mix

Top the meat mixture with the jar of salsa (you can use any type you prefer, I like traditional Salsa Verde, I think the green color is a nice contrast to all the yellow and brown of this dish
 - the hotter your salsa, the spicier your dish)

don't over mix your cornbread

Prepare cornbread.  Don't over mix your cornbread as it will make it dry.  Take the self rising cornmeal, one egg and the milk and mix until just blended.  Then add the can of creamed corn.  This is an ingredient that my mother finds horrifying.  Personally, I would not ever eat plain canned creamed corn - but in cornbread it is awesome.  It adds moisture and the right amount of sweetness.  It's a trick I learned from an ex boyfriend (and honestly the only good thing I got out of that relationship).  So please, trust me.  It will make the cornbread nice stuff.  Just do it.  And if you don't and your cornbread is dry, don't come whining to me.

ready for the oven

lightly spread the cornbread, don't mix

Lightly mix the creamed corn into the cornbread mixture and spread over the meat and salsa gently.

Properly cooked cornbread!

Place it into your preheated oven and set the timer for 20 minutes.  When the timer goes off, you'll want to make sure your cornbread is done.  It should be starting to brown and crack on the top.  You can use a smaller / deeper dish to make this, but it will increase your cooking time if the cornbread is thicker.

Sprinkle the cheese across the top

Once the cornbread is cooked through, sprinkle your shredded cheese across the top and place back in the oven to melt the cheese.  When the cheese is melted you'll want to remove the dish from the oven and let it cool and set-up for about 5-10 minutes.  This will make it easier to scoop and neater to serve.

To serve:

Use a large spoon to scoop away a portion of the cornbread with the meat.  Scoop any meat left on the bottom of the pan into the dish.

Finished dish!

Suggested toppings:  Sour cream, sliced green onion, chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce, salsa, taco sauce, (and my favorite) Chipotle Tabasco - which has a great smoking flavor, not too thick, not too thin.

I like to plate this, as just plopping the pan on the table with fixings really doesn't make for a pretty dish - and you eat with your eyes first!

Surprisingly, leftovers keep fantastically.  The cornbread doesn't get too soggy and yet maintains enough moisture.  Ultimately this is a casserole.  But it's a tasty twist on a casserole, is pretty good for you if you use ground turkey and don't go crazy with the cheese and sour cream.  Reheat it the next day for an easy meal that doesn't taste of leftovers!

Abdicating Responsibility

This terrible news report ended up on my screen yesterday:

****

http://www.newsnet5.com//dpp/news/local_news/oh_lorain/north-ridgeville-humane-officer-shoots-five-kittens-outside-house-with-residents-nearby

Essentially, a homeowner called animal control to complain about a family of cats living in her woodpile.  She told the humane officer that the feral cats were causing a flea problem in her house and that she wanted them removed for the health of her family.  She then reports that the humane officer told her the shelters were full and the cats would go to "kitty heaven". And then he shot the five, 8-10 week old kittens with the woman standing nearby and her children watching from inside.

The children were screaming and crying, the mother cat ran away and was not killed.

Police said that the woman understood that the cats would be euthanized, but said she didn't expect it to happen in her yard.

The Police confirm that the humane officer's actions were appropriate and he will not be disciplined.

****

As you might imagine, many people are very upset.  Animal lovers are horrified that this would have happened, that these kittens would have been shot with a gun.  Others are horrified that it would happen in the presence of the children.  And still others believe it was the right thing to do.  I've seen comments on the news story threatening the 'humane' officer, but not nearly so many calling out this woman for her role in what happened.

So here are my thoughts:

This woman called animal control to 'take care of' a problem.  She admits freely that she knew the cats would be euthanized (aka, 'killed').  But then, when EXACTLY WHAT SHE KNEW WOULD HAPPEN happens in a way that she didn't like, she is no longer happy.

By talking to the press about how horrible this is and how terrible it was that her children had to see this she is abdicating responsibility for her role in the deaths of these animals.

She has also made it clear that death was her expected outcome and she was okay with that.  She was okay with having someone else solve the problem for her, but then she is unhappy with how that problem is solved.

She feels guilty, but if the officer had taken the cats away and euthanized them somewhere else, that she didn't have to watch it it would have been okay.  If she could have told her children some story about them going to kitty heaven that made it sound like a good thing, if she could have had this happen out of sight and out of mind it still would have been okay that these animals were killed.

And what was her role?  She is entirely responsible.  She called animal control, she called with the intent of having someone else take care of the problem.  She knew the cats would be killed when she called, but she took the easy road.  She didn't contact a rescue group when the kittens were first born or try to socialize them and TNR (Trap Neuter Return) the mom cat so that she wouldn't have any more babies.  She didn't try to TNR the whole family when it got too late.  She also has some bull story about cats in her woodpile getting fleas into her house.  Really?  No other outdoor animals have fleas and live in your woodpile.  Right.

Mind you, I think that shooting animals and calling it 'euthanazia' is wrong.  But we must keep in mind that in this particular county that is legal and acceptable.  The 'humane' officer in this situation did nothing wrong.  I suspect that this guy isn't a very nice guy.  I don't know him but I can tell I wouldn't like him, I can't imagine having a job that required such of me and being okay with it, but again, this is his job and the way in which he carried out HER request followed local guidelines for the extermination of these unwanted animals.  He is simply the messenger.  And we are the crowds that are posting his home address and threatening him and 'killing the messenger'.

I wonder why more people aren't focused on the woman who sent the message?

It disturbs me that she is being portrayed in the news as a victim.  She is not a victim, she's a person who wanted these animals gone, killed if necessary.  She is the person who asked that this be done.

And when the mom cat who got away comes back this fall with a new litter of kittens, what will she do?  Will she call animal control again?  Will this time she demand that they cats and take these cats away before they kill them and solve her problem?  Will someone explain to her that without TNR her problem will never be solved?  Will she ever realize that the blind eye she turns and her unwillingness to accept any sort of responsibility is the bigger part of the problem?

And I wonder if her young children will remember this.  I hope it will make them better stewards of their environment, which yes, does include feral cats.  Perhaps this is the first step to them learning you can't just turn a blind eye, that you have to take responsibility. Responsibility that starts with spaying and neutering the cats and dogs in your care.  I hope, but I doubt it.

If we all made sure our pets were spayed and neutered there would be fewer unwanted pets and fewer killed in shelters.  If we made sure the stray cats in our yard were spayed and neutered there wouldn't be unwanted kittens and we could benefit from some natural pest control and those cats would keep away the wandering ferals.

Volunteering with a rescue I know how people don't take responsibility.  I am now deaf to the strangers that threaten me at adoption events because I tell them I can't take the cats they found and can't keep because they already have two dogs and two cats.  I can't hear them when they tell me that it's MY FAULT that those cats will die, because it's MY FAULT that they have now been forced to take them to the shelter because I wouldn't help.  I just don't hear it anymore, because I know that it's not my fault, it's theirs.

And I will break my back to help the people that help me help them.  The ones that start some vet care, that can bring some kittens inside to a bathroom or dog crate until they can find someone or some rescue group to help out.  The ones that are out there in the rain setting traps to get feral cats spayed and neutered so there will be fewer of these unwanted kittens that plague us all at this time of year.

In 2010 the county I live in, Wake County, NC had the lowest euthanasia rate of any county statewide at a whopping 49%.  But still, that means that almost half of the animals that were surrendered to our local animal shelter died.

But when I think about the 49% that died - the 8,200 dogs and 15,600 cats (more than 7,000 of those feral) euthanized from January 2008 to June 2011, I don't blame the animal control officers that were doing their jobs.  I blame the people that didn't spay and neuter their pets and then looked to someone else (often people like me, volunteers with full time regular jobs) to solve the problem.  I blame the people that want an instant fix, the people that have yelled at me and then said to onlookers that it's my fault they now have to take these cats to the shelter where there's a 49% chance that they will be killed.

Those are the people that need to shoulder this blame.  Not the people our cities and counties have been hired and trained to take care of these 'problems' that most people want a quick fix for.  And if that quick fix comes with a high price, like the death of those unwanted animals, they will pay that price as long as they don't have to bear witness to that death.

So I implore you.  Let's give credit where credit is due.  It's not the messenger.  It's this woman who sent the message (and the hundreds of thousands like her).  These lives were in her hands and she's the one that threw them away.

This weekend we received an adoption application that ended with this comment:

"I apologize but I am not going to have you call my family and friends to see what kind of person I am in order to provide a kitty with a home. This application already asks for to much as it is!"

And while she was pleasant about it, I cannot agree that our application asks for too much as it is.

We ask for:

1. Contact Info
2. List of pets you've owned in the last 10 years 
3. Do you want indoor or outdoor cat?
4. What is the reason for your this lifestyle choice (indoor / outdoor)?
5. Why do you want a cat?
6. What are the ages of the members of your household
7. Who will be responsible for the care of the cat?
8. Do you have a vet and if so, their name and contact info
9. Do you rent or own, if you rent do you have your landlords permission?
10. Do you plan to move in the next 12 months?
11. How much time do you have to spend with a new pet?
12. Are you prepared to provide a home to this cat for 15+ years?
13. Are there any other animals in the home?
14. Where will your new cat stay?
15. Why would you give up your new pet?
16. How will your pet be cared for when you are out of town?
17. Would you ever consider declawing your cat, if so under what circumstances?
18. How much time do you estimate spending with your new cat?
19. How much do you estimate caring for your new cat will cost?
20. How often do you think a cat should go to the vet for routine care?
21. Please provide 3 references

This was the email response I just sent:

Hi XXXX,

Thank you for your application to adopt a cat with us.  Unfortunately we are unable to process or approve your application as submitted.

As you may know, Alley Cats and Angels is an all volunteer rescue.  We believe strongly in our policies and our programs as all of us have full time jobs and spend our nights and weekends working for the rescue.  The references we ask for we do so for everyone and this is standard practice in the rescue community.  In addition to giving us additional insight into people we do not know, these references have provided us a way to get in touch with people that have lost the cat they adopted from us in the past.  References more often than not have resulted in us approving an application that would have otherwise been denied as questions on a piece of paper really can't accurately summarize a person's character.  

Sometimes the references we have received are friends and family, but sometimes they are simply the family vet.

And while I might understand that you would be uncomfortable providing references unless we needed them to approve the application, your comment that you feel that our application already asks too much as it is leads me to believe that don't understand or respect the time and effort that we put into this 'job' that pays nothing in rewards except the satisfaction of a good home.  And the adoption application and our adoption contract is the best tool we have to determine whether people we meet for maybe an hour would be a good home for the cats and kittens that we invest so much in emotionally.  

Please understand that beyond that comment about references you have a very good application and it saddens me that this is an issue to you.  But our adoption contract itself includes requirements that you keep your address updated with us, that you agree to always return the cat to us, not to a shelter or give to another person and that if you violate the contract we have the right to demand the immediate return of the cat.  If you object to providing the information requested on the application I fear that these additional requirements in the contract would also be objectionable to you.

I'm sure you'll provide a great home for a kitty that needs one, but there are many options available to you that do not require an application or adoption contract including the animal shelter and craigslist.  We are emailed about cats and kittens daily that we cannot help because our foster home capability exceeds our requests, but we do the best we can.  With a core group of approximately 25 volunteers we managed to take in 329 needy cats and kittens to our adoption and barn / garden program last year while adopting out 278 and relocating 29 to barn and garden homes.  That's almost 6 cats / kittens placed a weekend.

So that you can perhaps better understand what kind of a commitment our volunteers have made to Alley Cats and Angels and why we don't feel that we ask for too much on our adoption applications I want to tell you about a typical week for me:

My typical week includes two adoption events, scheduled for 1-4 on weekends (we arrive early to set up and often have to stay until 5 or 6 cleaning up from the event or getting through the paperwork of last minute adoptions) in addition to planning the event - which involves contacting each foster home to make sure they bring their kitties to events, getting additional volunteers to sign up for these events, preparing cage cards and making sure the medical records and other supplies are there.  Yesterday after the adoption event we drew blood, ran FeLV/FIV tests and vaccinated 8 kittens after those events.  I respond to several emails about getting cats or kittens  on our waiting list, or about getting cats or kittens brought to us for intake to the program.  I respond to online adoption applications during the week when I can make time at work, I call the Rollins Lab in Raleigh to get necropsy reports on cats and kittens that we took in from terrible situations that died despite our care.  I get to run kittens to the emergency vet at 3am or call with a credit card number when one of our volunteers is stuck in such a heartbreaking situation.  My husband and I scoop the litter pans in our house 3 times a day and administer medicine 2 times a day to kitties that need it.  I track medical supplies and order what we need weekly either online or by calling the manufacturer.  Often once a week I leave work after 7pm and drive to Apex to pick up supplies or drop off adoption paperwork with a volunteer there before returning to my home in North Raleigh and tending to my nightly cat care duties.  At least once a week I end up at a foster home administering vaccines to cats and kittens that need boosters.  I get the right meds to fosters with sick cats and also coordinate with adopters who adopted a cat but need antibiotics for a cat with a cold per our 21 day health guarantee.  On Friday mornings before work I assist one of our partner vets with spay / neuter by filling out rabies vaccines, vaccinating cats, prepping them for surgery and arranging for another volunteer to pick them up prior to the vet closing - and then I head to work for the day.  I figure out which cats need/can be spayed and neutered early in the week and I make those appointments.  I respond to requests for assistance and advice on a daily basis from other volunteers, former adopters and people that have been referred to us for help.

All this and the adoption program is the only one of our 4 programs that I volunteer with.

I also work a 40+ hour a week job where I am the VP of Sales for a small, successful software company.

So, I hope you now have a better understanding of why I don't believe that we ask for too much on our adoption applications and why with the huge investment of time and emotions that goes into each one of our kittens we want to adopt our cats and kittens out to forever homes where we feel 100% secure that we have partnered with someone on a new pet and that the adoption from us is taken very seriously and they respect and understand how very important each and every one of these animals is to us.  And again, in the very brief time we get with each potential adopter we do our best to feel comfortable that we are honoring the commitment we made to each cat or kitten to get them a loving home for their entire life.

The questions we ask are multifaceted.  They help us get an idea of what kind of cat or kitten would be best suited for that particular adopter, we get an idea of the level of commitment they are able and willing to make to that pet (and understand we are under no delusion that most people do not have the commitment level that we do, but we do want them to respect our level of commitment), and finally to get them to think about what it really takes to have a pet and what the costs (emotional and financial) might be and at what point they would no longer be able to keep that pet (I believe that we all have a breaking point, for some people it's urination, for some it's aggression, for some it's some unforeseen life changing event, but we all have them).  

We want to know that if you would call us if you had a behavioral issue before you reached that breaking point so we could instruct you to take the cat to the vet or help with advice on how to make your kitty happier, we want to know that if you developed severe allergies or had to leave the country that you would honor the agreement to return the cat to us instead of surrendering it to the shelter.  

We want to KNOW, to the best of our ability that the cat you adopted from us will live the rest of it's life with someone who would love it as much or more as we do.  And despite the applications and contracts this doesn't always happen.  But those were applications that were complete, with people we approved, talked to, that agreed to our terms.  And if that can happen with an application that was reviewed by our team and approved, we cannot in good conscience approve an application that was incomplete because a potential adopter felt that we were asking too much.

This is a commitment we make to the cats and kittens in our care, to give them no less than 100%, but also to the volunteers that work with us and give us their nights and weekends and the people that come to us asking for help finding a safe and happy home for a kitty they found in a feral colony they are working to TNR or the kitten they rescued after someone tossed it from a car window.

So I hope you can respect our position here and understand why after discussion we have decided that we cannot approve an application where someone had declined to provide references while also indicating that they feel we ask too much already, as we feel we ask far less of our adopters than is asked of us.

Thank you for your interest and your understanding,

Jill Walters

Adoption Counselor | Medical Coordinator | Volunteer

Neglect is abuse.

While I understand on a superficial level that animal hoarders come from a place of goodness rather than a place of abuse (they hold on to the animals, not to hurt them but because they don't think anyone else can take care of them), it's still painful and frustrating to be one of the people that works to clean up that mess.


Last week the rescue I volunteer with (www.alleycatsandangels.org) took in 7 kittens that were supposed to be between 7 and 9 weeks old.  The smallest one weighed only 7 ounces. The largest was only just over a pound.  Most were around 12 ounces.  Mind you, a typical 8 week old kitten should be around 2 pounds.  They were so malnourished, dehydrated and underweight I couldn't get blood from them.  They had crusty eyes, some sort of upper respiratory thing going on and felt like tiny, fragile, delicate little cats.  Like little glass cats, with frail bones. Not like the roustabout kittens I'm expecting at 7 weeks.

'little man'

This little guy was the smallest.  When kittens like this come in, I don't move them out to foster homes. I can't risk losing foster homes because something painful and horrible happens.  I can't risk spreading whatever they have to other kitties in the program.  I can't put the burden of care on another foster that signed up for fun and cute.

So into the double decker ferret cage they went.  The three that weighed the most on the top, the four smallest on the bottom - in hopes of cutting down on the food competition.  I haven't seen these kittens drink water.  I'm not sure they know what to do with it.  So a week later I'm still adding lots of water to the food I give them.

The little man pictured above ate like a beast at first.  In this picture his sad face is smeared with food.  He was all 'munch munch munch' so I was kind of hoping he would make it, even as frail as he was.  He jumped a whopping 3 ounces in 3 days.  And then he plateaued.  He still ate some, but not as well as before.  I was concerned.  But he held on, yet I was worried.

tiny cadbury

So last Thursday, when I got home from work and rescue errands later one night, I was shocked and alarmed to find this guy (tiny cadbury), from the larger group, the monkey that had climbed the bars and been meowing at me an awful lot, lying in the litter box, unable to lift his head, gums white, surrounded by mucus diarrhea.  So we went to the emergency vet.

Things didn't work out.  I was hoping for some supportive care that would get him through whatever.  But it didn't work out that way.  His heart gave out before I had been gone two hours.  It was a sad, sad night.  But I went home and checked on the remaining 6 and weighed everyone and tried to encourage them to eat some food, made sure they were warm, no one was dehydrated.  All those things.

But Friday night I got home and my little man still wasn't eating.  His head wasn't limp, but his gums were white.  I tried some of the things I had learned from the emergency vet on Thursday, a little Karo syrup on the gums to boost his blood sugar.  A little bit of sub-cutaneous fluids to hydrate him.  A little love.  But when he used the litter box I knew there was a problem.  His stool was solid, but black.

the lower level of the ferret cage, these are great for kittens

Foster homes call me a lot worried about blood in the stool.  I always tell them that in general, blood you can see isn't blood to worry about.  It can be stress, poop too hard, all kinds of things.  But those things are not things that kill kittens.  When you see red blood it's lower intestine, on the way out.  When the stool is black, it means there's bleeding in the gut and / or small intestine.  This is the bad blood.  And little man's gums were white, he was anemic and he was loosing blood in his intestines.

So at 2:40 am, we went to the emergency vet.  It was a different doctor from the previous night, and he quickly found a sore on the kitten's tongue that explained the loss of appetite.  It also explained the bleeding, as there were likely other sores from his tongue on down and at least one of them was bleeding.  The options included blood transfusions (that would need to be repeated and might not work) or euthanasia.  Since he was only 9 ounces at this point, and having been through similar situations with tiny cats, I reminded myself that death is a human issue, not a cat issue.  As in, I am the one that's afraid, I am the one that doesn't want to have to make that decision.  For the cat or kitten, the pain and suffering is theirs to endure.  And I could let this guy's suffering stop.  So, the decision was made, and I stayed there and stroked his tiny head as the doctor administered the injection.

this little girl doesn't have a name but is now the smallest

Based on the observations of the sores, we think these guys all have Calicivirus (the bodies have been sent for confirmation).  And the doctor also felt that the virus had been transmitted to the kittens, by the mother, before they were born.

All of my personal cats and all of our rescue cats are vaccinated against this disease (and several others) when they get their 'distemper' or FVRCP vaccine.  I suspect that since the mom's in this situation hadn't had proper medical care the mom's were able to pass this onto these tiny kittens that just didn't have what they needed to fight disease.

Over the past week, during treatment and care of these kitties someone said to me that hoarding was at least not an 'evil' crime.  But watching this and another litter a volunteer poured her soul into pass away slowly from pneumonia and herpes virus complications, my thought is that neglect is very much evil.

No, you didn't beat or break an animal, you didn't set them on fire or shoot them with guns or drown them in a river.  But you neglected a LIVING THING.  Misguided or not, it's neglect.  Neglect is why the adult cats that had these unwanted kittens were not spayed or neutered.  Neglect is why those same cats were not vaccinated.  Neglect is why there was no food or water these kittens could eat.

Neglect is still abuse.

this larger, medium haired calico seems to be doing well

In our human world, laws are such that when people don't take their children to the doctor because they don't believe in treating disease and they die, charges are pressed.  If you left your baby in a pile of filth and didn't feed it while you were smoking meth, you would be arrested and charged.  You might get a manslaughter charge instead of murder, but it would still be wrong, there would still be a penalty.  No one would say 'well, he/she only kept the child home with because he/she is mentally unstable and thought home was the best place for it'.  People would quickly recognize it for the horrible event it was.

So when you look at these photos: These crusty eyes, dirty ears, cats weighing ounces that should have weighed pounds...  and so far, two kittens that didn't survive a week in my (and vet) care.  I only wish you could feel how brittle they are.  They have fat full bellies now, but their ribs and bones and tiny toes still don't have enough flesh to cover them.  They get stuck as they walk because they don't have the toe flesh to retract the claw into.

When you read this, when you look at these pictures, know that this is not simply sad.  It's not just neglect.

This is abuse.

Unsolicited Comments

Below is a response to some snippy comments made on a post that the rescue I volunteer with, Alley Cats and Angels, made about a cat we had pulled from the shelter about a week before having kittens.

Comment #1 "So . . . they had a week to spay/abort and prevent another unwanted litter of "27"? Awesome."

Comment #2 "I'm so happy that the 6 kittens, who are so cute & cuddly will find loving homes. But I can't stop thinking of the 6 shelter cats that won't get a home because they cannot compete with cute & cuddly. There are times that hard decisions have to be made. The overpopulation of cats/dogs will never be solved unless people are willing to step up and do the hard things that need to be done."

These comments from people that don't volunteer or work with our rescue kind of set me off.  I work REALLY hard and this criticism from strangers really hurt and disgusted me.  And this was my response.  And I'm proud of it, so I didn't want it to get lost in the world of FB comments.  I'm adding it here as a blog.

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I'm a volunteer with Alley Cats and Angels and I find it alarming that a 'fun' post about a cat in labor has received the negative comments that it has. Especially with the HUGE amount of work we do spaying and neutering cats in our community with the Alter voucher program, our TNR & Barn Cat programs and our 100% spay / neuter before adoption policy.

And by the way, the cat was so huge because her belly and intestines were full of food that she had been unable to poop out, there weren't 27 kittens in there. Lighten up people.

This particular mother cat was actually a shelter pull - AT THE SHELTER'S REQUEST because she AND her babies would have been killed. And she was far enough along that she had the babies within days of being pulled from the shelter. Alley Cats and Angels is a no kill rescue, so when spaying a female cat involves 'euthanizing' each individual kitten as part of the spay, we feel we must draw the line. 

I would like the people making negative comments here to understand that with this mother and babies we also pulled a 6+ year old declawed male that is currently in treatment for a severe bladder infection that resulted in a blockage. His owner had dumped him at the shelter. Certainly those funds could be put to use to save only healthy cats- would the folks making the negative comments have wanted us to leave him there too? Our mandate is to be the 'Advocates for Forgotten Felines'. So please, before you make negative comments about our decisions, look at the sum of our good works. And please, before you criticize our difficult decisions, go make a few of those difficult decisions for yourself. 

Alley Cats and Angels is a 100% volunteer organization and we all do what we do in the time we make around our full time jobs. I've had people CURSE and YELL at me in PetSmart at adoption events because I didn't have room in our rescue for the kittens they let their unspayed cat have. I've had people threaten to take them to the animal shelter and tell me it was "my fault that they were going to die" but they couldn't keep them because they already had '3 cats' ...or their dog 'doesn't like cats' or their husband "wouldn't let them". 

Personally, My husband and I have 6 cats. We also foster for Alley Cats and Angels and have had dog crates with unsocial cats on our dining room table because there was no one else available that was comfortable socializing, we scoop our litter boxes 3x a day to make sure that they are clean, our house is clean and our cats stay healthy. We step up and take the cats that we feel need help because if we don't, they might end up in a shelter and/or killed. We would like to have fewer foster cats in our home, it's a lot of work. But if we didn't do it, there would be no place to go. That's our level of commitment and I hate hearing criticism from people that I seriously doubt make the same commitment I do.

So when I make a decision to let a cat that is estimated to be at 55+ days gestation carry her litter to full term, I am making that decision knowing full well that she and those babies will be my responsibility until after they are fully vetted and spayed. And if they have to stay in my home, they'll stay in my home. A responsibility and commitment that I take seriously, the cats we foster stay with us through busy work, illness, travel (we pay a pet sitter to come take care of cats that we don't even own!) - no excuses. 

All of my personal cats have been spayed and neutered with annual checkups my whole life. I can thank my parents for raising me to be a responsible steward of companion animals. Several of the cats we have considered family over the years came to us as adults. And even with behavioral difficulties we've loved them as much as someone might love a tiny kitten. And since we foster, we make the extra financial commitment to have them vaccinated against FeLV annually. And as volunteers, when we're at adoption events, we help people understand the value of the 'teen' cat as well as the adult and the kitten and do our best to match the right kitty to their family.

So, when I see these negative comments about the decisions that Alley Cats and Angels has made, that don't take into account the variety of cats that we helped in the last 4 years - Cats with prolapsed rectums, cats with deformities, cats that lost eyes, cats that lost legs, cats that had been chucked out of cars or attacked by wild animals - cats that got a little older and just weren't so cute, cats that were dumped at a shelter instead of taken to a vet because they were urinating inappropriately when all they had was a bladder infection that cleared up with antibiotics....

Honestly, it depresses me. 

It makes me wonder what's wrong with people that it's okay to criticize someone for making a different decision than you THINK you would make. Well, here's the thing. If that's the case, start your own rescue just like our President did. And then you can do it your way and make all the hard decisions yourself. 

And you can get home at night after 9pm and start returning emails to people that need your help but you have no space. And you can stay up until 3am putting together the stuff you need for a week in the adoption center. And you can drive around nights and weekends making sure the cats in your foster homes are vaccinated. And you can spend your weekend days screening people at adoption events and trying not to be so jaded that you come across as negative. And you can constantly wonder if you made the right decision when the time came. 

But that will be your decision, because it will be YOUR rescue. And maybe 3 months from now when one of those kittens is getting bigger and it snuggles up to me and sighs, I won't remember how these negative comments made me feel like I wasn't doing my volunteer job the way that someone who may or may not volunteer themselves thinks I should. Or maybe when a happy family finally comes along and knows it's the kitty they've always wanted and commits to loving it forever I'll think to myself "they would love any cat that much, we made the wrong decision".

But I doubt it. I'll just be happy for the kitty, for them and for me. 

Charleston, SC - Friday's Agenda

Our first full day in Charleston starts with the Chef's Kitchen Culinary Tour. It's a 2 1/2 hour walking tour that begins with coffee and pastries and we'll visit 'several great restaurants' and get to visit the kitchens!

The tour is only on Friday mornings and has been featured in Southern Living, Bon Appetit, Cooking Light and the Michelin Guide among others.

Since no food except those early pastries is provided on the tour we plan to Lunch at Blossom after the tour. Turns out Blossom is owned by the same restaurant group as Magnolia's - where will will have lunch the day before.

Blossom's menu has tasty offerings like 'Buttermilk Fried Artichoke Hearts with red pepper remoulade' and a number of wood oven pizza options. Their sandwiches come with rosemary fries - and they mention daily lunch specials served with soup or house salad for only $9. An inexpensive way to try a great restaurant.

After lunch, we are planning for a bit of shopping (likely mostly window shopping considering my budget) on King Street. Upper King Street is the 'Design and Dining District', the Fashion District falls in the middle and the Antiques District is found on lower King Street.

We'll wander around the residential Historic District (perhaps seeing up close some of the things we saw on Thursday during our carriage tour) and according to Pamela's research there are 3 excellent cemeteries near St. Philips Episcopal Church.

Starting near the cemetery at the Unitarian Church, the Gateway Garden Walk opened in 1930 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of Charleston. The three block walk connects Archdale Street and Philadelphia Alley.

The idea of the walk came from Clelia Peronneau McGowan who found that a garden walk in the busy city of Paris was refreshing. As the president of the Garden Club, she suggested the idea to members upon her return to Charleston.

I'm also told that while we're there we need to check out 28 South Battery (see picture). This house was built by George S. Cook, a noted photographer in 1860. George S. Cook is an ancestor of my husband, Dan's - and I suspect also the source of his middle name 'Cook'.

After all that wandering around, we'll need a drink. So Friday's Sunset drink will be at Pavilion Rooftop Bar (assuming they don't have a table minimum, a packed house and no heaters in case there is a chill).

After a drink, it's time to stroll the cobbled streets and gas lit alleys for the French Quarter Art Walk (is this starting to sound a little like our last trip? New Orleans?). The art walk is free and open to the public but only happens a few days each year.

Participating galleries on Meeting, Church, State, East Bay, Broad, Cumberland, Queen, Chalmers and Tradd Streets will be open with artists on hand and refreshments. The French Quarter is located within the original walled city of Charleston and the art walk is from 5 to 8 pm the first Friday in March, May, October and December.

Food. Is. Good. Dinner at F.I.G might include some of the following tasty menu items: "Capers Blades" on the half shell with cabernet mignonette, lemon agrumato and pickled garlic. Or Pan Roasted Scamp Grouper with braised fennel, roasted tomatoes, cerignola olives and lemon. Perhaps the Suckling Pig Confit with sauteed young greens, roasted beets, mustard jus and smoked bacon.

I'm glad to see FIG described as 'laid-back, eclectic and unpretentious' as some of the bars we've researched seem to think quite a bit of themselves. FIG is another Charleston eatery that uses local source products and their menu changes daily. Yum.

That evening, before turning in we have several bars on our 'to do' list: Enoteca, Torch, Chai's, Bin 152. The first 3 are about 7 blocks north of our hotel, Bin 152 is about 4 blocks south. I'm not sure of their proximity to dinner at this point. I'd be lying if I didn't admit that some of these were selected purely based on pictures.

Enoteca is a new 'wine bar' in Charleston. It's tiny, only about 24 seats, and some bar stools. Self described as a 'sexy little space at night with the soft lighting giving the woodsy interior a warm glow". The focus is Italian wine, beer and cheese (they're owned by Trattoria Lucca just down the street).

Torch is another on our list, certainly more of a 'lounge' feel and they also seem to be following the 'hooka bar' trend. Chai's is Asian inspired, but describes 'fusion tapas'. Too bad we will already have eaten...

Bin 152 is in the French Quarter and fairly close to our hotel. They are also a wine bar, feature 35 different cheeses and have freshly baked bread. Sounds like dessert to me! Bin 152 has a very Country French look. Maybe we'll have some room left for a cheese and wine pairing.

So that's the agenda for our first full day in Charleston. I'm tired and full just thinking about it!

Eating, drinking and walking through Charleston, SC - Thursday

Pamela and I are off to Charleston, SC for a 5 day / 4 night trip in early December.

(Thank you American Express points for making this trip possible!)

I found us a hotel at a great price (we'll be staying at the Renaissance in the Historic District), but Pamela has been working hard on the itinerary and researching restaurants and bars - so all this detail and deliciousness is thanks to her.

Here is the plan so far:

Thursday we'll leave Raleigh in the AM, check in at our hotel and walk to Magnolia's for lunch. Magnolia's is known for 'upscale' Southern cuisine. Their lunch menu includes a number of enticing menu items including salt and pepper buttermilk fried shrimp with a jezebel sauce, fried green tomatoes with white cheddar and caramelized onion grits, country ham and tomato chutney and blue crab, sweet corn and smoked bacon ravioli. mmm...

After lunch we'll start some walking (going to have to get some exercise at some point, we're shooting for between meals).

Our first planned stop is Rainbow Row. I last saw Rainbow Row as a kid visiting Charleston with my parents. Rainbow Row is a series of colorfully painted historic houses on East Bay Street.

They were first painted these colors in the early 1900s. After the Civil War, this particular area of Charleston had become rather 'slummy'. They were purchased by a woman, Dorothy Porcher Legge, as part of a renovation plan. The houses she purchased were painted pink, like the colonial Caribbean color scheme. Other owners followed the trend creating the Rainbow Row of today.

The coloring helps the houses stay cool inside during the hot, Southern summers - and has given the area a name and made it a popular tourist destination.

Next stop will be the Waterfront Park to view the often described pineapple fountain. The park and pier run along the Charleston Harbor entry. There is talk of intimate garden "rooms" and spacious lawns, and it should be quite lovely. The pineapple is a symbol of hospitality, for which the South is well known.

From there we'll be off to enjoy a Classic Carriage Tour. The tours go through a residential portion of Charleston's historic district. After the tour, it's off to City Market. City Market consists of four blocks of open-air buildings - I personally hope to see some of the traditional Gullah style sweetgrass baskets. I bought a small one as a kid that I still covet, but I understand the prices are a lot higher than they were 30 years ago - so a new purchase is not likely. But hopefully they'll still be making the baskets there in the market.

The baskets are coil-sewn; typically using needlegrass bound with strips of saw palmetto stem. They are decorative and unique to the South Carolina Low Country. A true Gullah style sweetgrass basket will retain its pale green and brown color, it will not be gray. They are flexible, they don't crack and fray. Mine looks as it did the day I bought it at least 25 years ago!

At Sunset we plan to have drinks at Vendue Rooftop Bar. Vendue advertises itself as having "perhaps the finest harbor view of any Charleston restaurant, as well as dramatic views within the historic district". So we'll do as they suggest and sip a cocktail as we take in Charleston from the hotel's rooftop bar. I'm happy to report that they have heaters in case the weather is chilly!

McCrady’s is our stop for dinner. They were the recipient of the 2010 James Beard Best Chef Southeast award and they're known for using local ingredients. On their website they also state that they specialize in pre-Prohibition cocktails.

The location itself is beautiful (see picture). Built in 1788, the four-story Georgian manse served as a collective retreat for notable Charlestonians after the Revolutionary War. A 'manse' is a term for a house inhabited or formerly inhabited by a minister.

What is now the bar was once horse and buggy stalls. Arched brick frames small rooms, a gas lantern marks the entry way. Certainly we expect the ambiance to add to the quality of our meal.

Our plan, pending reservations, is to do the Chef's tasting menu at McCrady's. (I hope I can still get bi-valves if they are part of the menu even though Pamela has an allergy - but if not, oh well!) With chef's tasting menus it is typically required that the whole table participate. I'm hoping for some wine pairings as well. Since the menu changes daily, we'll wait to decide until we see what is offered. Right now it lists 'Stone Crab, Orange, Coconut, Sour Mix' and 'Scallop with Courgettes, Cucumber and Bonito'....but i'm not sure I'm as into the lamb heart... organ meat is not one of my favorites.

They also have a market menu for $39 that has three courses made of products indigenous to the region. The first course selections are "A Salad of Beets, Watercress, Goat Cheese and Almonds" or "White Gazpacho with Smoked Sunburst Trout".

Their current menu has some wonderful food: Summer Fruit Gazpacho with Stone Crab and Summer Herbs, Grouper with Chanterelles, Corn and Bay Shrimp, Beef Tenderloin with Allium, Potatoes, Duxelles and Foie Gras Hollandaise, Corn Soup with Shrimp Spaetzle and Basil Puree!

I wonder what exciting changes Fall and Winter will bring to the menu?

After seeing and hearing so much about it watching Food Network, it will be one of my first experiences with molecular gastronomy and I'm looking forward to it!

After Dinner, we will be off to some of the bars on the Market. Mercato is an Italian Restaurant that (oddly?) has Jazz at night.

There's also Henry's House, a relatively new restaurant and bar that describes itself as 'Bohemian style with a French low country flair". They are reported to have a 'double-tiered rooftop deck' (see picture above) that we plan to enjoy a few drinks up there prior to retiring for the night so we can be ready for the Chef's Table Culinary Tour on Friday morning!

Cat Genie Resolved

Cat Genie support delivered!

I called about the problem, mentioned that it was trying to dry at the same time it was still filling.

The man I spoke to decided it was a computer problem, I didn't have to do any trouble shooting with him. Since I had purchased from Amazon, I had my receipt. He emailed me a form, I returned it to him with my receipt and a few days later a new processing unit arrived on the doorstep!

I plugged it in and immediately all my problems were fixed.

I cleaned and packed the other one, the hubby dropped it off at FedEx and all was good!

So I still love the Cat Genie and it's been working like a charm for the last month. It's like a brand new machine.

And support exceeded my expectations. I had heard it was good, but I was very surprised. It was excellent and no hassle. KEEP THOSE RECEIPTS!

CatGenie Diagnostic Mode

How To Enter Diagnostic Mode:

Unplug the CG. Push and hold both buttons on the control panel. Plug the unit back in, holding both buttons. Hold both buttons about six seconds - until you see the lights on the control panel finish the normal power up sequence that you always get when you plug it in, it will then go dark and then start a new sequence of flashing and beeping. Then the "4" will light up, go out and then the "1" will light up. All other lights will be off.

Selecting a Test:

Press and release the Auto Setup ("AS") button. This will advance to the next test. Test numbers are designated by the 1 - 4 lights across the top. More than one light might be on at a time.

To Start/Stop a Test:

Press and release the Start Cycle/Pause ("SCP") button. Pressing once will start a test. NOTE: You have to press it again to stop the test - pay special attention to the arm retraction, it seems that it will continue to try to pull back on the arm until you stop. I always hit stop just in case!

To Exit Diagnostic Mode:

Simply unplug the unit and plug it back in without holding the buttons - or pick up the processor and reseat it on the unit.

About The Tests:

Tests are referred to by the lights that illuminate (1 thru 4) for each test. Press the AS button until the right lights are lit up.

Test 1: Extending and Retracting the Arm

Pressing the SCP button the first time retracts the arm. Press it again to stop. Press again to extend the arm into the bowl. Press again to stop. Press again to retract. Press again to stop.

Test 2: Turning the Bowl

Pressing the SCP button rotates the bowl clockwise, press again to stop, again to go anti-/counterclockwise and again to stop.

CatGenie support says that counter-clockwise is the best direction to rotate for manual drying.

Test 3: Running the Water

Press SCP to start water flow, press again to stop.

Test 4: Dispensing Solution

Press SCP to start the cartridge, again to stop.

Test 1 + 4: Draining The Bowl

Press SCP to start the impeller, press it again when empty. (you can use this to drain a bowl that didn’t drain completely, just make sure you remove any clogs first)

For a messy bowl where you don’t want to use up the cartridge use the Clean-Up Mode (read further down the page)

Test 2 + 4: Blow Drying

Press SCP to start the blower and heater, again to stop. Put your hand in the airflow to see if it's getting warm or not.

Test 3 + 4: Clean-Up Mode
This mode does not require supervision. It will drain, fill, drain again and then dry. Just press SCP.

Test 1 + 3 + 4: Sensor Test

Press the SCP button and then pass your hand slowly in front of the sensors. If the sensors are working the 3 and 4 lights will come on quickly and then go out. Light 2 will stay on for one minute, then go out to indicate the sensors are working.

Multiple Mode You can select multiple modes, one after another to get your desired results.

The one I’ve learned recently is ‘drying granules’. I advance the arm into the granules, start the bowl test so the bowl rotates (hitting SCP a few times so the bowl is running counter-clockwise) and then select the dry cycle, and hit SCP to start the blower. Then just keep an eye on it until it’s dry. Don’t forget to turn it off after 5 to 10 minutes and move the arm back.I hope this helps people, this info was hard for me to find and I wish I had found this when I got the CatGenie - it would have saved a lot of extra cycles!

The CatGenie Drains Me

For a year and a half we've loved the CatGenie and the CatGenie has loved us too.

Lately that has changed and I've placed my first call to technical support. I got a recording that told me to leave a message with my contact number, which I did. We'll see how

long it takes to get a return call.

Basically it started having problems with draining. Or so it seemed. I've cleaned it, checked for clogs and still, water stands in the bottom of the pan. It's frustrating. I learned a trick from You Tube about using a drill (with no drill bit) to drain the pan. (see pictures)

The part that's perplexing me is that it seems to drain just fine - but water runs when the drying cycle starts. Call me crazy but that seems counter productive. I'm suspicious that this is the problem.

I wish there was a way to 'reboot' the CatGenie. I feel like it's just confused. And Dexter and Trilly -and maybe one of the new fosters prefer it as their potty place. Who can blame them? It's clean! (not that the Tidy Cat Breeze pans aren't clean - I scoop twice a day - but they don't get washed like the CatGenie does!!

So, every night I've been starting a cycle - and then I go in there about the time drying starts - wait for the water to stop running - drain the unit and then plug it back in and let it dry. It's a pain. It also gets pretty stinky between cycles since there's only really one now.

Dexter has longer hair, so I know he gets some clogs in there, but I've flushed out the hose and it appears to be clear.

This morning I ran it too, but I basically need to be there after 15 minutes to keep an eye on things which kind of defeats the purpose of the 'self washing litter pan'.

I've left a message with tech support for them to call me back. I had heard that support was good, but I guess I'll find out soon enough and update you. I feel like the purchase price was worth it, but if it only lasts two years - maybe not. I consider my CatGenie to be an appliance and therefore to have an appliance life-span.

The good news is that I've learned all about the maintenance mode while going through all this. I'll post those codes soon to help other owners that want to do a little maintenance or just drain or dry their genie after a mishap.

I've recently been told these codes are in the manual for people who own the CatGenie 120 - which I do not - but the codes are the same. So if you own an older model like I do - that's the next post. Those codes are a great help!