Jingle Doll.

We were pretty lucky last year to have a ready-made Christmas card thanks to the snow the previous year. The tradition of sending cards, even if we're not quite at the stage where we're getting lots in return is something that I still pride myself in, and I was really proud of last year's cards and the 'milestone' they represented.

This year required a little more thinking but resulted in quite a few gratuitous Dolly photographs, always a good thing, naturally.




Dolly's real 'baffled by life' face. ♥


Every Christmas it seems bokeh 'tips' pop up all over the place and making one of those cut-out shapes has been on my list for a while but I reckon doing with just the macro effect has worked out pretty swell. I had thought about heading down to Hobbycraft and picking glitter and pipecleaners, but Photography is kind of my thing so I guess that might have to wait another year.

As we're kind of on the subject of Doll, or at least looking at her, I'm a bit sad that I had to throw her snazzy sparkley red collar away in favour of a proper prescription flea collar. The fleas just weren't going with the Frontline spot-on treatment and she was so fidgety and unhappy - so a trip the vet was in order and that was the end of that.

PRO-CAT-OWNER TIP: Flea collars you get in any shop without a prescription from your vet don't work, which is why they only cost between £2-5 and this one cost me £40 (IKR, what?!). Apparently the flea poison used on them is also poisonous to cats, which means they use the most minimum amount, making for a pretty collar but an ineffective flea treatment. With the last one I had I even found a family of dancing fleas underneath it when checking her so it clearly did nothing.
It's unlikely that the flat will be completely flea-free for around 3 months but as the collar lasts 8 months PLUS the spot-on treatment of Advocat I got from the vet, Dolly should be well covered and be the flea-killing machine she should have been right from the start in October.

Such a Pretty Kitty...

...and a total fleabag dirtbag(!)

I've been invaded! For the first time in her short 3 year lifespan, my little cat has brought fleas into my home. Call me a bad cat owner or whatever you will but flea collars were doing enough, it wasn't that I hadn't thought of Frontline, it was that it wasn't needed and with other cats that have been in my life, we've never had to use it.

Unfortunately we discovered the infestation while giving Dolly a much-needed Friday-night bath. We're so lucky that we're able to do this, that isn't to say she loves it, but eventually she just gives in and takes it, it's still a two-man job. I think doing it more regularly will help with this but it's pretty time consuming given that it's actually more important (and difficult) to dry her afterwards and overall she doesn't care either way if her tail is pure-white or not.


It was so gross, there were jumping bugs all over her face and because of the 'flea dirt' it looked like her whole head was bleeding - hopefully the bath helped a little with it but I was up first thing and out the door to Pets at Home the following day, initially to pick up some tablets that I read worked immediately in killing adult fleas. As these didn't work on the 'other parts of the flea life cycle' I was going to get some spot-on treatment, as well as spray for our home too.



Discovering that our local Pets at Home had run out of the tablets did send a shiver down my spine, after reading such rave reviews online, I was pretty excited to make Dolly as comfortable as possible and I knew spot-on treatments didn't work as fast. That said, the Deputy Manager of the store was incredibly helpful and talked me through all the preventative measures and what I should do next - I was a little peeved that he implied that the 'infestation' might be my fault, something I view as actually entirely plausible though given that I really like to pet dogs in the street and I cuddled up to some wallabies just a few weeks back. He also insisted on vacuuming as much as possible (as though I don't spend half my week vacuuming anyway, pfft).

It's been a pretty nerve-wracking week of blitzing and hoovering every room in the flat and checking Dolly's fur daily but I think we're out of the woods and I now have in my possession a flea-killing machine. Now that Doll has been treated with Frontline, luckily with no adverse effects, it's been a bit of a nightmare persuading Moon that it's important to still let her go everywhere so she can 'hoover up' fleas and let them die, and it is working, I've seen proof of it. I've also read that as they die, the fleas become more active so if your pet is infested, they're likely to scratch more after they've been treated than they would before.


I think we were lucky that we managed to catch it early, even though every article I've read says that there will still be fleas in the environment, throughout the whole process, even the part where we were less tentative cat parents, we haven't been bitten or had the need to itch. Maybe we're lucky that we just aren't that tasty to fleas when a juicy fluffball is around but naturally this has taught me a lesson in spot-on treatment, particularly as Frontline itself is so much more purse-friendly online than in shops.


I've actually entered this picture into Dahlia's #dahliamonsters competition to win a t-shirt, wouldn't this face look cute printed out and worn?
Cats are cute, and Dolly is especially but sometimes the responsibility of having a pet does creep up on me and apparently escalates into an essay about infestation, flea treatment and Pets at Home - thanks for making it this far ♥.

Dolly @ 3.

If my calculations are correct, Dolly turns 3 this month. It's a bit lame that I can only guess her birthday rather than know it but I figured she deserved another update all the same.

At 3, Dolly now enjoys making herself less white and sleeping on the sofa. She still loves playing with paper bags and string, trying to steal donuts and following me into the bathroom every morning.

She's now really affectionate and as needy as she can be for her, especially if you're first home from work - not something that's going to happen for a little while. Our biggest milestone in our relationship is that she now purrs and comes when she's called (sometimes). She's still breaking Moon's heart by ignoring him when I'm around but I'm now so much more tuned in to her selective hearing.

I wouldn't be without her and it's great to see that she's still maturing and what she's like as a grown up.

FMS Photo A Day | July

Can you believe that it's August already? I would say this year has flown by but it does feel like August should be here, it's just that summer is flying by so quickly!
August's arrival means that my birthday is just around the corner, plus we have quite a few other fun things planned - like that trip to Bruges that I mentioned yesterday, visiting friends and my sister leaving to study in Hong Kong.

July felt like quite a long month and I'm not sure as much heart went into these FMS Photo A Day photos as last month's, but there are a few here that I quite like. I think I might give August's a miss, just because I'll be snapping lots for other reasons, but I've enjoyed actually finishing two Photo A Day challenges in a row.


1 // Red + White :: I hate that red chair but it matched the theme well.
2 // Something Beginning with 'K'


3 // Match :: Probably my least favourite photo of the whole set.
4 // Star :: Giving the monkey praise where it's due, on that evening she brought us a mouse :(


5 // On the Table :: White Cherries from Marlborough fruit market
6 // View :: Walking across the green to the pub.


7 // First :: Coffee saves the morning!
8 // I've Never... :: First batch of proper brownies, courtesy of Cider with Rosie's lovely recipe.


9 // Alive :: Our various veg patches are coming on strong.
10 // Sharp :: From my second batch of brownies of the week - this time for the office.


11 // Gold
12 // Interior :: I'll never tire of my Cable & Cotton lights.


13 // Look Up
14 // Old School


15 // Torn
16 // Listening To...


17 // Sunshine
18 // Admire


19 // Curly :: Much less frizzy than it could be.
20 // Moment :: Chilling in a wigwam at the Shaw House summer fête


21 // Basic
22 // I Wore This! :: Instant after work PJs.


23 // Macro :: The lavender in bloom outside our offices.
24 // Water :: Taking care of our thirsty plants.


25 // Home
26 // Fun :: Fish taco night.


27 // Ten :: My ma brought us gyozas when she came to visit ♥.
28 // Cool :: The coolest cat.


29 // Repeat :: Time for a change of toes.
30 // Lost


31 // Rise :: feat. cat butt ♥.
I'd really like to see your efforts if you took part in this month's FMS Photo A Day, or if you're planning on doing Augusts. Leave your links in the comments, I'm kind of nosey like that.

Follow me on Instagram :: intoruth

My Furry Friend Tag :: Reintroducing Dolly

There's not nearly enough Doll-talk on here recently and although her face crops up occasionally, I wouldn't blame you if you didn't know I even had a cat.

When I first got Dolly, I feel like I talked about her constantly but as time has gone on and she's become more free to roam outside and I've become more busy, I guess we just spend less time together than we did. That isn't to say we don't spend quite a bit of time together, I'm just not unemployed any more. Coming home have her nuzzle me for a good 15 minutes before she realises she's supposed to be indifferent to me is pretty nice and most weekends when we're at home, she's usually hovering somewhere so we're definitely still buds.

I just think she needs her presence brought back here a little more, she's a big part of my life, right? So when I saw Jen from Bows, Bangles and Bakes had done something called a My Furry Friend Tag, I thought it was perfect. Naturally, it fell by the wayside as it was a few months ago now but it's stuck with me and as I'm trying to make a bit more of an effort to be more varied recently, now seems like as good a time as any.

---

What is your pet’s name?
Dolly

What kind of pet are they and what breed?
She's a cat and there might be some kind of Turkish Van in her but the vet is pretty sure she's just a moggie.

How long have you had your pet?
2 Years 7 Months.

How did you get your pet?
My mum called me up and said the chefs for her restaurant had had a little cat come into their house and it was scraggly and gross but if I met it and wanted it I could have it - otherwise it would be going to the RSPCA. When I got to their house, it was love at first sight, she even came up to shake my hand, something she still does occasionally with new visitors.


How old are they?
We think Doll was around 4 months when we found her so she's probably 3 years old in September. I usually celebrate her 'Gotcha Day' as I actually know when that is.

What are some quirky things about your pet’s personality?
She's aloof and needy all at the same time. She wants to be near you but just out of arm's reach - so you know, like how most people think cats are really. She can be sweet though and she is pretty simple I guess, she has also never ever scratched me or anyone she's met.


What does your relationship with your pet mean to you?
There's no doubt about it that she knows I'm the one who takes care of her and I'm a pretty darn good cat mum if I do say so myself. Obviously she means a lot, I like being her favourite human in the house and even if she's recently discovered another way to show her affection is to bring us mice and baby birds, it's just nice to have her around.

What are some of your favourite past times with your pet?
We play chase quite a bit, and she loves this laser pointer we got her. A bit of string will easily amuse our Doll, but having her there when I wake up on one of those rare occasions I've sneaked an afternoon nap and find her napping with me is the sweetest.


What are nicknames that you call your pet?
Doll, Little Doll, Little Cat, Little Owl, Goose, Gross Girl.

Favourite toy?
It changes all the time, as most things do with cats. She has an old troll doll that she likes to throw around, and one of Moon's softballs. Like I said, she loves string. What usually happens is she'll play with something for ages and then hide it somewhere so we can't play with it with her, then she finds it again and repeats. Life as a cat is simple and good.

---

If you're interested in seeing a bit more of Doll's little owl face, she definitely features a lot more over on my Instagram (@intoruth), usually in great sleeping positions. ♥