I keep finding myself checking out the rescued cats that the ASPCA places in the local pet stores. Some of them are so appealing but I haven't seen the perfect one yet for Ginger. Also I remember the knot in my stomach when I added up the first bills from the vet and they were over a thousand dollars. I think I will hold off for a little while if possible. Maybe Ginger will get a late Xmas present from the ones that were gifts for some one who decided they were not meant to have pets. I know some of you are dead set against indoor/outdoor cats. I know in most cases it is for the best if they are strictly indoor cats but Ginger was a stray and short of a miracle I don't think I can change that. So far she has observed our property line except for one case recently when she got curious about the noises going on in a neighbor's house. She took only a quick peek and came back quickly. She spends a lot of time lounging on the brick wall in front of the house watching the kids at play across the street. She is always there when the High School a block away lets out for the day and she watches all the big kids go by. Ditto for the runners and dog walkers. She seems to have favorites although she doesn't let them too close. Pookie used to do that. Yesterday, I was watching her waiting for the school bell. She suddenly was looking up in the trees for some reason and it quickly became apparent why when she started ducking the hickory nuts being thrown at her. The squirrels wanted her GONE! She was interrupting their search for food to store for the winter. She tries to ambush them but they are too quick and there are too many to keep watch for her. The number of squirrels, moles, chippers and rabbits is terrible here. They do a lot of damage. Our driveway partly collapsed because the chippers dug out so many tunnels and nurseries under it. I hope they don't all figure out she only wants to play catch and release. Perhaps they will look for less threatening territory. I do keep things as safe as possible for her and the vet is becoming used to my precautions. The worst worry is the raccoons. As amusing as they are, I would wish them gone. They don't have the good manners of the ones in Wisconsin and I worry about diseases. I haven't noticed any sick ones, but they seem to be prime vectors when something is going around.I keep trying to educate the neighbors about the raccoons but they still keep putting their dogs out at night and you can tell when the raccoons go through because of the dogs barking. Sandy

I use a giant plastic container for the litter box. The sides are almost 2 feet high. They can jump over it easy enough (even Stewie when he was a kitten refused to use the little one!)I also have rugs that I get at the thrift store and keep until they get pulled apart by their claws. They wash and vacuum fine. Currently, the boxes are in the cellar so I have a plastic shower curtain taped to the concrete floor then the plastic backed rugs over that. Each litter box has its lid under the box so I can cover it if necessary. When we moved to WV from GA- I just overed one of the boxes and moved it in the back of the pick-up. Made the night at the hotel easier since they had their regular box with their smells (I did clean it before the trip!).

Four indoor cats here -- and one litter box! It is kept in the unused master bathroom bathtub! A hard decision -- but that spot has worked out SO well for us. Our litter box must be lidless because our cats literally outgrew the lid itself! LOL! The best thing of all is that the box cannot be seen because of the high walls of the tub AND the fact the tub is located behind the "swing" of the door so I love it! And the tub is easy to clean too! Our policy is scoop out the box several times during the day -- into a grocery bag, tie it shut, and stash in a tall brass garbage bin (which also has a medium sized plastic bag) that JUST fits in a empty slot between the vanity and the shower. The garbage can is emptied once a day out to the main outside garbage can. We were lucky that a litter container JUST fits in behind the brass bin too! So the extra-large main container of litter sits in the garage -- and the DH fills up the one in the bathroom. The scoop is kept in a pretty garbage bin just under-and-behind the toilet -- so it is out-of-sight too. But still handy! Along with a brush-and-pan to sweep up any scattered litter. And a deodorant spray like Febreeze (which works great BTW!) I would dearly love a better spot -- but this house has no basement nor a laundry room so this system has worked for all of us! Jan

My mom had her first set fitted the same day as having multiple extractions. It turned out her mouth was already badly swollen and those darned teeth never did fit well despite many adjustments. They were expensive enough, she just had to live with them and the tremendous discomfort a few years until she could afford a new set. Luckily, those fit her much better. I guess if it were me, I'd like some kind of assurance that the teeth would fit well afterward or be able to be adjusted satisfactorily.