Kitty's dangerous night!

Pet's & Scorpions can be a deadly mix south of the border.

Over the weekend a frightening drama played out when our kitty, Katerina was bitten by a scorpion. She swatted at a 1 inch "Escorpión" she saw on the floor & had a rapid fire sting from the venomous tail as a result. Frankly we didn't notice the insect till it had already stung the cat. Mexico has a scorpion species which can be particularly dangerous to both pets & humans. Severe illness or death is caused by a complex neurotoxin which can cause paralysis, severe convulsions & affect heart function. Armed with information, after several phone calls to the veterinarian, late night car trips & rather large pills being shoved down her furry little throat; Katerina is back to normal.
*Of the 1500 or so species of scorpions known to mankind, only about 25 are capable of causing human death, the sting of most scorpions is more or less similar to that of a wasp or bee. Of note: Mexico, as many as 1000 people die from Scorpion sting every year!! Frankly, I've always hated the insects after several dealings with them as a teenager. My respect for the scorpion: large, my dislike of the species: larger than ever!!!


Katerina seems to be back to her normal routines at this point but we seriously watch out for any creepy crawlers which seems to attract her attention in the future!

She's a Good Girl!

Today our Aussie pup, Molly really earned her kibble. Lauren arrived from work at the house there in Texas when she was greeted by 4 Round Rock police officers. Apparently, the door had blown open in the wind & the Brinks Home monitoring system called the Round Rock PD to our home. The officers couldn't go into the house because Molly wouldn't let anyone in her home~open door or not.(this is a dog who has no open door policy!) Molly had every intention of holding the fort down. When Lauren arrived home the men asked her to get the dog & secure her. Molly immediately came when Lauren called & sat at Lauren's feet. The police then did a thorough search of the entire house & pronounced all well & gave Molly much needed kudos. That's our Molly! What a dog.


















As dogs go Molly may look like your average canine but today she's our furry heroine.

As much as we miss her here in Mexico, I know she is best there keeping hearth & home safe in Texas.

A few more fun holiday photos~

While we were home for Christmas Katerina visited the next door neighbors & saw some kitten friends. Those Texas cats know how to celebrate in style. The whole thing is kind of new to our little Mexican import though! She just doesn't get the whole dressing up your animal thing...Molly & Jack certainly didn't get the whole Santa thing from a dog's perspective!!! I think for the pets as with kids it is all about the gifts~


















A fur flying good time was had by all!




Christmas comes but once a year~ Get your hats & scarves ready Zoe & Stella, Katerina will be ready next time!

Katerina & some of the guys in her life!

We took Katerina with us to Torreon, she visited her vet while we were in town. This visit was punctuated with some Rabies shots & the introduction of a new friend. Generally when she visits Dr. Sergio she has the run of his office. She is such a frequent visitor that she is called the Princess around the clinic & sits at his laptop & in his chair. This trip was a little different for her as she is no longer the only cat at the clinic. She met "Diego", an adorable orange Tabby. Sergio explained to us that he recently rescued Diego from an airduct system in a house in Torreon. Now he is a permenent resident at the vet clinic. Diego & Katerina seemed to be on very friendly terms by the time we arrived to pick her up on Saturday morning. The only snag in the friendship came when we put her cute little satin pet carrier in the car & realized that Diego had sprayed her carrier to "mark" his territory...we realized about half way to Saltillo that the strange odor was Katerina's kitty carrier. Needless to say Sunday was spent cleaning the kitty carrier so it is fresh & clean once again! Ahh, the price of kitty friendship.

¡vida de un animal doméstico!

Weekends south of the border are for relaxing & taking the path of least resistance. Our little Persian kitty is no exception. She decided this morning to hang out in the kitchen with us as we read the New York Times~our newly found pleasure or would that be treasure?? We decided to cook some bacon, perk some coffee & as I turned that over to both Katerina & John there were some issues.... Katerina ended up watching the second pot brew as the first one had to be discarded. (Odd how leaving out the filter can make quite the mess!!) Katerina is still distrustful of the burbling noise of the coffee maker!



















At times I swear she can read my mind...


Our busy feline does get her opportunities to relax & kick back regardless of what schedules the rest of the family keeps. The Kincke "Vida Loca" includes yet another road trip for Katerina to Torreon this week! Ah, the things a cat has to do!!

Understanding us & our pets???

What's to understand? They have been aloof creatures of habit for centuries & I doubt that we are changing them anytime soon. Do they signal something about us? Okay, so I am not the crazy cat lady (you hear about those on the 6pm news) since I only have 2 & they both live in different countries but they are like "family".


On my birthday the girls gave me a book which makes me ponder much. The title of the book?? "How to understand women through their cats." Pets mimic personalities for sure. Look at our canine buddies. I am not sure what the whole thing really says about me since I have one black & white variety who seems to rule the house & dogs back home in Texas. Her yin & yang are totally together in her bossy personality. But true to the profile creatively written by Wendy Diamond our Persian cat does jump on an opportunity to travel. At the end of our journey south of the border she will be a very well traveled kitty! Poor baby, she seems to take all the coming & going in stride.
The bigger question is, do my daughters think I am like my cats??



What does this say? Hmmm, woman & cat have too much time on their hands! Highly possible.

Coach is for the dogs. Some dogs have all the luck!

If people like Coach then why not do the same for your pets?




Jack the dog graduated to a big boy collar finally!! He has been trying really hard to get over his puppy ways...still some developing to do in that area. He has had the same little blue nylon type collar since he was a few months old. His old Valhoma collar grew & grew with him until there was no more room for his lengthy neck.
So, long story short: he is finally trusted to wear a "big dog" Coach collar just like his Doggie Mom~ Molly! I am sure now he will walk with pride through Oakbluff on his evening jaunts with Molly & Lauren. Jack does after all have a sense of fashion & is quite style worthy these days. I think it was a good purchase at that RRNN silent auction!
I think most would agree he really looks so handsome in his new red collar. Going to far for a pet~I think not.
"Good Boy, Jack, Good Boy!"

The Newest Family Member!

Along with our move to Monterrey we have another change here in Mexico, one little fluffy Pomeranian Pooch! She is too cute for words & loves to pretend she is not too fearful of a certain Feline Princess in the family! They both proceed with relative caution at this point!


She is a very perky playmate for Katerina~although Katerina generally thinks Dogs are far beneath her!!!

¡Katerina ama hoteles finos! ~Katerina loves fine hotels!

When the moving truck shows up this pint sized cat can hit the road with the finest! Won't mention where but she knows how to travel in style!!! She has a very hip little pet carrier she stows away in & has recently stayed one well rated hotel in Torreon! No one actually knew she was a guest...but this kitty likes fine things & is a very quiet & polite little guest. There is the popular star rating for hotels, maybe there should be a pet rating for hotels!!! This little furball would give her stay 4 stars****


Some cats just know how to travel!!

Thanks for asking & yes, she is that smart!

This Persian cat may have bloodlines that originate in Mesopotamia but our little Mexican kitty is muy intelegente & loves to get wrapped up in t.v. drama.



















There are hieroglyphic references as early as 1684 B.C. to Katerina's Persian origins. While this is a lofty ancestry, she is a very smart kitty & certainly has kept us entertained down here south of the Rio Grande. Katerina has made her interest in television known for some time now. Sunday evenings she will position herself at the t.v. & watch Animal Planet non stop. She doesn't restrict her shows to Animal Planet though. She is quite fond of Desperate Housewives & seems to like Dr. McDreamy on our favorite Dr. show. Katerina has great taste but tends to drift off if the commercial interludes aren't to her taste!


...and she is bilingual too, Spanish language novelas aren't out of the question!