Shelter me!

An Interview with Dr. Nicholas Dodman, BVMS, MRCVS, one of the great animal behavioralists, about his new book. If you have ever wondered, as we have done, how to select a dog that matches your personal lifestyle and personality, this is superb reading.

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Here is another one that comes very highly recommended…

Sara and Woody visiting with Corey

Woody is now 13 1/2 years old, and we have been privileged to have him

as a barn cat for the last 7 1/2 years.  Our former neighbor was moving

to Georgia.  She was going to put Woody down because he had always been

their outdoor cat and she couldn’t take an outdoor cat with her.

Luckily, I met her for lunch and she told me about Woody.  He just

happened to be hiding under a car when I pulled up in the driveway to

drop my neighbor off after our lunch.  When I saw that he was orange, I

knew I had to save him! (We have a thing for orange cats).

 

Woody was a mess when we got him in early December, 2000.  He was very

matted and terrified. But he loved people and loved being in the heated

feed room.  He had previously lived in an unheated garage. Although we

would carry him all over the barn, into the hay loft and up to the

horses, Woody did not leave the feed room for 6 months.  Tricia, our

barn manager, finally enticed him out with treats.  He is one of the

most food motivated creature in the world.  And yes, he is a great

mouser!

 

We always joked that Woody looked like a bowling ball on legs, but in

2002, Tricia noticed that he was drinking and urinating an inordinate

amount.  She suspected he had diabetes, so we had him tested. He had

indeed developed diabetes so we started him on shots.  All of us have

learned to give sub-cutaneous shots, which are actually very easy to

give.  After a period of close monitoring (blood tests, which Tricia

could draw) we settled into a routine of one morning shot each day and

special DM food for diabetic cats.  The DM food is high protein, low

carb, and is available at any vet’s office.

 

Woody is not only a fixture at our barn, but is beloved by many of the

neighborhood walkers who walk by our farm each day, and stop to pet him.

He is the friendliest of cats, with an extremely soft coat, that he

keeps very clean.  He is fearless around the horses, and follows Tricia

out to the paddocks when she turns the horses out in the morning.  He

comes out to keep our daughter Sara company when she is teaching a

lesson and if there are people sitting on the viewing stand, he will

come and join them. The Minuteman ARC crew who cleans the stalls on

weekdays dote over Woody and give him lots of love and pets.  Our horse

vet has privately told me that Woody is one of his top 5 favorite cats.

 

At first I thought I was doing a good deed by rescuing Woody, but it

turns out that we were the lucky ones, because he is one of the best

creatures who lives on our farm!