oberon, actually I do see several products with test strength tables provided, and in some cases certified by independent entities (ASTM, ASCE, etc.)... but that's less than half the time. Guess I need to find a heavy-duty pull-scale, put the truck in 4WD-low, and try to pull one out, LOL. brick, thanks for the link. "Thunderstud", now there's a name for your boat, LOL! Those look great, but they go DEEP. The fundamental problem with CBS walls is most of the time you're over a hollow space, with only the wall thickness of the cinder block (1.25-1.50"), and maybe .50-.75" of non-structural stucco coating to work with. Getting custom-sized panels, so I'm always over the poured sills, headers, etc. is just not an option. Also not clear whether Thunderstuds are weather proof enough. That's a definite virtue of the lead-zinc-brass systems, they're not degraded by rain and humidity. More research needed. Got some time, no storms yet. The main type being pushed high and low in So-Fla is this sleeve-cone "machine screw" type--LINKED BELOW--tapped into a 1/2" dia. hole, and rated for approx. 1300-2300 lbs. each... I guess 4(*) of these holding down each 12" wide panel is supposed to do the job. On the taller panels over bigger windows, you still have the same amount. (* I say 4 because only the middle 2 are dedicated to that panel, while the 4 corners are shared with the adjacent panels, hence 4 halves and 2 whole = 4, or 5* on the end panels. ;') Here is a link that might be useful: Light-to-Medium duty... hmmm...

I do feral cat rescue; my most recent aquisition (more than two years ago) had been severely injured by an animal (possibly a raccoon) in addition to having acquired a tumor in his inner ear by the time he appeared, half-dead, in my barn. I had the ear surgically debrided and was thinking he might eventually be a candidate for adopotion when one day I went out to the holding room and noticed what at first I thought was a rat-sized black animal one the floor. (Newly rescued ferals can't live inside with my permanent cats until they are tamed-down and ready for adoption, so they live in a special, heated, space in the former bulk-tank room.) I was stunned when I discovered that the black furry thing was actually two-thirds of his tail that had simply been so badly injured that it lost circulation and died and finally fell off. The stump required a bit more surgery to clean and close up, but he healed quite nicely and now he's my all-black, chatterbox "bob" cat. I hope your cat was previously vaccinated for rabies and that the vet has given him a booster if there's any chance he might have been injured in a fight with a wild animal. If you can figure out how to turn Ralphie into an indoor cat, you will be doing him - and yourself and your wallet - a big favor. You can also consider having the cats out every day, but under your supervision. They will adapt quite well to a regimen like that. Some of mine go out like that. I live on a farm, way off the road, but there are still too many dangerous things about to allow complete freedom, even for these formerly wild-living cats. When I first moved out here almost 25 years ago I inherited a gang of about 30 barn cats who lived outdoors in the dairy barns. The attrition for even spayed/neutered, well looked-after, quite beloved outdoor barn cats was too high for me. I lost several to coyotes, one to an owl, all of the remainder became FIV+ from exposure to feral cats, some simply disappeared and only a few of those, even after weeks of desperate searching, were ever found alive again, and then there was a steady run of fights with raccoons, porcupines, stray dogs, etc. Not to mention the constant need for Frontline to ward off ticks being brought into the house. After few years of regular tragedies - and huge vet bills - I switched the remaining ones to all-indoor living and for that reason even though they had FIV, they lived to be 15-18 years old. After all of the first lot had died I decided that I wouldn't consider keeping any more outdoor cats. I have contemplated fencing off about 6 or 8 acres immediately around the house and barns, but even then I think that letting them out w/o observation would always be a risk as cats are so agile and a fence would be little barrier unless it was capped. Now I walk with them in smaller groups, or have a couple out with me when I'm in the gardens or barns. But I no longer just turn 'em loose to go where they will. Cats are also very hard on the native populations of wild birds and small mammals and reptiles and amphibians. While it's a benefit to me, an avid gardener, to have them catch voles all day long, it comes at the price of them also killing snakes, frogs, birds, etc., which is too much by-catch for me. Cats, after all, are a human-modulated, non-native species. I'm sorry everyones' tempers were frayed during the vet visit. However I think your assumption is incorrect that anyone with more than a few cats is by definition a hoarder. I happen to have 10 indoor cats at present, all excellently cared-for, well-vetted, all spayed or neutered, etc. In my case I will take animals that can't be adopted for physical or behavioral reasons (for instance I have an inveterate and serious biter who wouldn't be alive today if I wasn't willing to handle him, albeit very carefully). I am definitely NOT a hoarder, which to me is someone who takes in more cats than they can care for, particularly when they allow them to breed unchecked. Cats who appear here are always neutered or spayed straight away. I hope your cat will continue to recover with no setbacks. Lack of a tail has not slowed down my guy. One of the things pets teach us is to see beyond the surface of things. Ralphie is still Ralphie; you'll see. L.

Reporting in. After a crazy, very scary several days, Joe n I are back home in Rockledge. We finished securing the house on Thursday afternoon, had his 94 year old mom safely tucked in here. Our plan was to stay and ride out the storm, but after prompting from our kids and families to leave, we suddenly made the decision to not sit in the path of a Cat 4 storm and left for my sister's house in Ocala. Clear roads going and coming...got back home on Saturday morning to a solid and secure house. TONS of broken branches, limbs and green debris. The pool, of course, was compromised. Nothing that can't be removed, replaced or will grow back. (Yep..I'm a plant freak!) We are extremely thankful. From the news reports, our area was the hardest hit. My daughter's house in Satellite Beach took water but the roof is ok. Floors are all solid, but she has no power and the biggest concern will be getting power so that the drywall will dry out quickly before mold. But no injuries to any person or pet! We are counting our blessings! No word yet on Joe's office at the Cape...he normally sits out on the very tippy point of Cape Canaveral - took the hardest hit of any point in the US with this storm.

Still picking up debris here. A lot of stuff is battered and broken. We had a tree fall on a chicken coop..amazingly the chickens are ok. The door even broke off but they stayed in on the one side that wasnt smashed lol. All my plants seem to have made it except this little group of 3 gal pots of antique roses. 3 just totally disappeared. I looked everywhere for them. They were more in the open than other stuff. The roots were rooted way into the ground whhch is why I didnt move them. Other 3 gals that were rooted in the ground are still fine. Its kinda crazy.