Elf Sternberg

As if there weren't enough on my plate already, we have cats. Both are rescue cats. The King County shelter has waived all adoption fees for the month of December, in the hopes of reducing the population at the shelter to something that can be evacuated should the Howard Hanson levee break and flood the entire Kent valley. The levee has been at risk of catastrophic failure for almost a year, and we're expecting heavy rains this year with serious flood potential. So we got two neutered cats in reasonable health for free.

The orange tabby is named Boscoe, and the mackarel is Necco. They were both very skittish when we first got home; Boscoe spent the first day under my bed. But he has come out and started to realize that, yes, he has the run of the place. Necco is female and territorial, so we're still waiting to see how they adapt. Both found their boxes readily enough, so that wasn't a problem.

They're both very skinny, and Boscoe has a problem with oxolate crystal formation, so he's on a C/D diet. We're trying to figure out what diet to put him on to raise his blood's pH to levels that will prevent crystal formation, but he's unimpressed with the C/D food from Science Diet and he really prefers wet food. He doesn't drink much, either, so wet food is essential to keep him properly hydrated.

We'll see how they do in the coming days and weeks. I like Boscoe. He's noisy and boisterous, and he's now getting over his startle at every sound. Necco's okay, but she's much more the girls' cat, as she can leap almost anywhere, even up into Stormy's bunk bed. That is one long cat.

[Edit: Omaha informs me that Kouryou-chan chose Necco, after the flavored communion wafercandy.]