Gateway from twig to pig

It does sound good, doesn't it? I know catnip is an annual plant, but it will come up every year in the same spot only if you let it go to seed................it reseeds itself that way. Some people think it's a perennial, but it's not.

If your kitties like catnip, if you make a really mild version of mint ice cream they should love it.

if it was an old catnip plant it might do that....i know that i had an avacado plant that went fine for years then one year all its leaves and branches fell off! my parents put it on a back porch and i'd sneak out there and water if now and then...and in the spring it started to get little leaves. so catnip might do the same thing!

My plant is definitely old -- at least 5 years. It goes to seed every year and I get a new plant every spring, so whatever it does, it succeeds. I am harvesting mint now to make tabouli, so I can put a little on the side to make very mild mint ice cream. I don't like super powerful mint stuff, so the kitties and I can share.

Let us know how it turns out! If it's good I'll want to know how much mint you used, so I can try to make a batch for Bijoux and me (mom isn't too crazy about mint ice cream but I am).

hm....i can imagine lightly minted vanilla ice cream.....though i don't mind any taste of mint. (just depends on what its in...the only thing i can think of right away i don't like mint in is root beer...some root beers put spearmint in their brew).
mint leaves in brewing iced tea is good too:)

I do like mint in tea. But things like candy canes are right out. I think it's overwhelming. I think my thing is that I enjoy mint as a flavor not as THE flavor.

Gateway says to heck with the mint. Just bring on the ice cream. He was practically in my lap for spaghetti last night. I guess he wants dessert too.

hehehehehehe...............Gateway sure isn't shy about asking for what he wants!

He is looking GREAT. He has been playing hard, and is putting on muscle. His chest is broader than it's been in years. I think he feels terrific too. He's garbage gutting, and actually ate some hamburger today. He has been taking lessons from Bijoux. He now burps after he eats.

oh gateway you're bulking up! sounds good to me!

He burps because he's eating it so fast! At least it's coming up and not going down and out--if you know what I mean................

So glad to hear he's feeling so wonderful, like the old Gateway before all the heart troubles started.

Oh yea... He wolfs his dinner down. He's more polite with his breakfast, but he must be STARVING at dinner time. Yesterday, he wasn't so hungry because he caught something (mouse? bird?) outside and was snacking between meals. He tends to eat when he's hungry, so the fresh snack took up space and he wasn't in the mood to bolt dinner down and then belch his way around the house. He did sleep a lot though. I guess catching and eating wore him out.

Oh yes, and a full tummy makes for a sleepy kitty too. I imagine the chase tired him out, but it does my heart good to know he feels so much better he's up for the chase. And successful at it too.

I've noticed Bij burps more when he wolfs his dinner down too. Not so much when he takes his time and several trips to finish it off.

Gateway got a new scratchy/swatty toy yesterday. It is a little curved thing covered in different kinds of carpet for scratching. He can sit on it, lean into it, go under it, whatever. There is a dangle toy with FEATHERS on the bottom, so he has had tons of fun pouncing and running. I hope he decides that scratching the toy is better than tearing up my oriental rug. He has been using that as a toy and I'm not very pleased with that. I can't replace it.

I hope Gateway enjoys his new toy for a long time to come. And that he leaves the rug alone in favor of the new fascinating toy.

Both kitties are LOVING the toy. Gateway sleeps on it.

He was kind of a bad boy today, but stuff happens. He yacked on the bed. YUCK!!! We got home from work and got grossed out. He doesn't seem sick, so he probably just ate too much and barfed it back up. But why on the bed? Ugh. Oh well... It's all cleaned up now.

Probably got up there to take a bath after eating and had the urge to urp before he could get down. Maybe smaller meals more frequently would help?

How on earth could Gateway be comfy sleeping ON the new toy?

The more frequent meal thing isn't really an option. We're gone about 14 hours/day between commuting and working, so we have to hope he can control himself. He doesn't usually eat a lot at one sitting. He nibbles all day long and rarely finishes a whole bowl while we're gone. I think he probably just had a hair ball and urped it up when he got on the bed to sleep. That's his usual daytime spot.

That could be the problem. It IS starting to be fall shedding season. The strain of jumping up probably did made that hairball come up faster.

Bij has been having them more often now too.

The little piggy actually chowed down about 2 human-sized bites of chicken tonight. I was bad and kept giving him treats. So, he just kept eating. I had to cut him off. Didn't want to upset his tummy. He's sleeping it off now -- face down on his little toy.

Awwww!

Awwwwwwww, I bet that's a cute sight! Did you happen to take a pic of that?

I did try, but the flash woke him up a bit and it was all blurry. He was sure he was going to get another big snack tonight, but I don't share sausage with the kitties. I'm not sure if it's because I worry about the kitties eating the spices or if it's because I love sausage so much.

You didn't share because you were concerned for the
health. {{{{{{EYEROLL}}}}}}}}}

Gateway's new toy sure doesn't sound comfortable...!

Of course you did it for his health, the spices and the fat aren't good for kitties.