However it wasn’t just an ordinary fishing rod toy, it had a sucker on the end of the stick so that it could be attached to units to dangle freely for the kittens to play. I set it up and stepped back as Dylan started to sniff it. He got his claws on to the toy and started to gnaw on the string. In less than a minute he gnawed through the string and the toy was broke.

I watched in amazement. That’s weird they’ve done that to loads of their fishing rod toys recently. Do cats teeth? I thought. A quick Google search revealed the answer.

Kitten’s teeth between 6-12 months (this is when they loose their kitten teeth and get their adult teeth). This varies from kitten to kitten as they are all individuals and develop at different times. So give or take a month either side. Full marks to me for sussing out what was going on! To help any new kitten owners out and make it easier on the babbies…ahem…kittens I’ve given some signs and symtoms of teething along with ideas to help them teeth below:

Signs and Symptoms

• Inflamed gums (if they’ll let you get close enough to check).
• Rubbing gums on hard surfaces (such as kitchen draw handles).
• Gnawing through the string on fishing rod toys.
• Chewing on electrical wires or anything similar (remember to switch off the electricals when you go out and if possible remove them from the environment).
• Finding small, sharp kitten teeth around the house (I found one after the fishing rod incident).
• Reduction in eating hard food (this must be carefully monitored and remember that if in doubt take to the vets).

Helping your Kittens Teeth

• Give them a cardboard box – Something for them to chew on, relieving the pressure off the gums.
• Give them Whiskas Sticks – A meaty treat but also allows them to chew on this rather than furniture, etc. My kittens love them.
• Provide straws for them to play with/bite (my kittens also love these!)
• Provide wet (or soft) food a few times a week to ensure they are eating and keep an eye on how fast the dry food is being eaten or not.
• Provide a kitten-friendly environment. Move all wires out of the way possible. Those wires that you can’t remove remember to switch off at the plug before you go out (to avoid kitten electrocution) and discourage kittens from going near.
• Consider buying special kitten chew toys. Some people swear by baby teething rings (can’t say that I’ve tried these yet).
• Finally have a read on the Internet for further ideas a good site is All About Cute Kittens and I found this Yahoo Answers site useful.

Blog Soon,

Antony

(Click on image for full size image, Trevor was decorated by me at some point in the week!)

I manged to spend time with my Grandma on Wednesday, leaving time for mum on Thursday evening and Saturday. I caught up with my good friend Simon on Thursday as well. In between times, I crammed in my assignment for my Leadership module (see A general update). Finally finishing it yesterday (Friday). So now I can relax, well apart from the last minute Christmas shopping.

My poor laptop is starting to die though, so I had to buy a new one online. Hopefully once it arrives and is up and running I will get back to normal blogging and facebook habits.

Take care all,

Antony

(Where the work happens)

(The wardrobe and door)

(Where the magic happens, by that I mean sleep)

So what have I done this weekend at home? I’ve been all domesticated, tidying up, cleaning and done plenty of home cooking using my slow cooker:

But I’m most proud of my Shepard’s Pie with cheese:

Think before I went to Benidorm I couldn’t cook, look at me now. Nothings better than a home cooked meal.

Take care,

Antony

Boyfriend-W and I split up, things just didn’t work out and I returned to the UK. We have remained good friends. I learn’t so much being in Benidorm and being with him, more than I could write here (see A new design and a new beginning). So since I’ve been back what’s new?

New Car
I have got a Citroen C1 Splash in electra blue, which I’ve named Sam. I need a car for work and will be paying for Sam for the next five years. See:

New Work Image
In these difficult times in the public sector I decided to smarten up. Image is very important, not to me but to other people. Gone are the days of baggy jeans and t-shirts, come the shirts, waist coats, skinny jeans and shoes. A smarter look.

Cooking
I bought a cook book and have cooked a few meals from it. They haven’t tasted half bad, if I do say so myself. I have got great satisfaction from actually cooking something myself rather than popping frozen boxed food in the freezer. It’s called The Classic 1000 Beginners’ Recipes by Carolyn Humphries and I highly recommend it if like me you can’t cook a thing. It’s simple step recipes are so easy to follow.

Work
I’ve gone back to work with a renewed enthusiasm and some life experience.

So…What’s next?
I am moving back in to my apartment (see The Move) at the end of the month and will be glad to be home. I would like to say a MASSIVE THANK YOU to my family and friends, who have been a huge support to me. Especially to my mum and Simon who continue to house me until I move back to my apartment.

Once I’ve moved back in to my apartment I intend to get a housemate to pay off some of my debts as well as continuing to try and live frugally (see Living Frugally).

In the end of September I am going back to University (see Back to University, Six NOT Four, ———–Transcript————– and Promoting and Influencing Health module results) to do a further two modules, one on leadership and the second a dissertation module.

October I am going seeing John Barrowman and have Samhain (see Pagan Festivals).

The last month or so I have been having a quiet reflective time which has mean’t a lack of blog posts. Rest assured normal blogging will now resume, whatever normal is.

Write soon,

Antony