IIt has been an incredibly busy week here at Maystar HQ.  Year end is nearly finished so time in the office is less and less, although Momma has sold a few things so we have been playing in the boxes and wrappings and crimping the edges of things before they leave the office.  

Last week I was piddling everywhere again and holding my wee inside for a day or more.  I had a terrible accident and couldn't hold it in anymore and spilled myself all over the stair carpet and finally came to rest in the hallway and then again under the chair.  ManSlave dashed out and stood in my piddle in his socks.  I hid myself feeling terribly guilty whilst ManSlave ranted about how disgusting it was.  Momma was there to my aid, saving me from a telling off and was sucking up my widdle into a sterile syringe and into a jam jar, minus the jam!  This was whisked off to the vets for crystal testing and it was negative...hoorah.  So, why am I widdling?  Well, it's stress. So, Momma had to give me a loading dose of Cystease and remove my stress triggers.  Easier said than done. 

So, to the stress triggers.  Here they are. Tyga is no.1 with her incessant need to be around Momma 24/7.  She has taken over my bed spot next to Momma's head and I am sleeping curled up, shivering in a kitten bed and should anyone try to touch me I snarl at them, then Tyga wants my love, squeaking like a sick kitten, PFFT.  Then closely follow that with Ikon and his thumping me and launching himself on me, and tripping me up all the time.  Couple that with his son, Magnus, and his raging hormones, I just can't cope.  In some ways I think I echo Momma's feelings on the whole subject of stinky boy cats strutting their smell in our home!  So, I have been relegated to the kitchen at night with Flaire and Pearl, who are also very stressed with the whole boy thing.  Flaire and Pearl have been given the cat pill which has calmed them down too and all three of us are enjoying our quiet evening sleeping in comfy beds and not being harassed in the early hours by youngans.   

The stinky boys spent a few nights out in the House of Fun which gave everyone a break too, including them and they love running on the wheel and they too have slept all night.  Tyga, SaBreena, Robyn and Filly are in bed with Momma, only she is awake at all hours with Filly licking her eyelashes and nibbling her nose, pressing her body over her throat and washing her chin and purring so loudly that the night is alive with her rumble.  SaBreena then sneaks into bed and lays tightly to Momma's side, grumbling at anyone who tries to wash her and also purring like a train.  Tyga, still in her KittyTitty jacket, is snuggled in tightly under her arm, where I used to sleep btw, and so too is rumbling away.   Robyn sleeps long and thin, stretched out like drying leather at her knees and any movement starts a purrfest.  Pinned down and gasping for a drink in a vibrating bed, Momma lays there heating up and burning all over from roasting fuzzy purring bodies.  Then early morning brings a lone Robyn the need to be higher up and stands squarely on her bladder and that's the final straw....Hot, thirsty and bothered, Momma bumbles to the bathroom with her entourage.  Filly the torch barer and guide cat, skipping about with excitement. Robyn the tripper upper, making sure Momma's feet don't stand on our toys, SaBreena stands in the sink purring so Momma knows where she is and Tyga is the great loo inspector, peering down waiting for the water to run.  She has always been daft and is then joined by Robyn. They stand side by side, paws over the seat with expectant faces, the lid is soft close, they have 30seconds of fun!  Momma removes SaBreena from the sink to wash her hands and get a much needed drink and Filly is there to guide her back to bed, galloping ahead onto the bed causing static to light up the darkness and back to bed they all go.  There was no wonder I was stressed with all that going on every night! 

Ikon and Magnus are out in the house of fun permanently now and are coping very well.  It has been a long slow progress putting them out for a few hours a day, then once Ikon couldn't stop marking his territory and making our home stinky.  But once in the HOF neither of them mark at all.  Well, OK, Ikon did on day one and two then never again. I haven't been over the skybridge since unlike SaBreena and Robyn, who venture over there regularly.  The doors are opened and closed behind them and off they trot to play on the wheel or watch squirrels.  They tell those feisty boys off if they try and rude stuff! They are there to enjoy themselves, not be raped! 

Because the boys now have the HOF and the older ladies like to have a run on the wheel, Momma invested in a cheapie plastic one that other wheel manufacturers moan about. Well, I can tell you that the One Fast Cat wheel is fine for outside use and us girls love it.  Pearl sets off on a jog to nowhere and away it trundles like a train, vibrating the decking and scaring all the mousies that live under there away.  She trots on there when she has the need for some escape time. I am much happier too, playing more with my toys again with no big lump coming to pound me into the ground.  Tyga has even been playing fetch again and Lillibet is venturing from the office a bit more too.   The boys have lots to entertain them and often come in the kitchen for some inside time as well as a good belt around the garden.  It is important they don't get too bored or over excited and over stimulated as this can lead to anxious yawping when locked up.  better calm and fun things to keep them active and tire them out.  What tired Magnus out yesterday was escaping the catflap at 5am out into the frosty morning. Shivering, he lay in the heated outside bed yelling for anyone that might help him. He was most upset when Momma went out at 7am and screaming his annoyance, he pointed to the catflap and said "Broken". walked off in a cross legged huff and dashed for the cat tray for a much needed wee. His ears took two hours to defrost, his face took longer!  His Dad Thwakked him and told him off for being so stooopid and he was never to attack the cat flap again.

There is one sad subject to touch on too this week, our Uncle Paul has passed away quite unexpectedly.  He had a bad fall and that was that. Game over.  He was so lovely with us all when he was fit and well.  He cared for us and visited so often when Momma had her spine surgery.  He looked after us at hollibob time and although not related to us at all, King Slinky gave him the royal title of 'Uncle' and it stuck.  When UP went to hospital, KS followers sent messages of good health to him and made him feel very humble and he never forgot that.  He said it made him a nicer person to believe all those folks cared so much.  Now he is gone to be with King Slinky and TomFun. Rest in Peace old friend. 

To that end, we are celebrating his life with a lovely piece of Welsh lamb. It was one of his favourite meats and with not being able to eat anything solid these last few months, he said just on Tuesday, how much he missed his juicy lamb.  ManSlave has bound it in garlic and rosemary and it slowly roasts away.  I can just see it if I squint into the darkness of the oven.  Ikon, Magnus and Flaire all got a sliver and I got nuffin.  NUFFIN I tell yer! Pfft. Some celebration of life!!! 

Long Live Uncle Paul  =^..^=   Your Queen Vee, The Maystar Pride & doting followers.

We thought this week we might look at one of our pride members who is about to leave home after lockdown to pastures new, it is of course my own Daughter, the stripey chocolate Tyga. 

Tyga was born to me just two years ago here at Maystar along with Sister Freya.  She had many names at first as she was going to live with a friend of Momma's to start a new breeding programme, but unfortunately things went wrong their end and little Tyga stayed here. Momma changed her name to MAYSTAREX QUEEN-OF-PRUSSIA which is quite clever as I am named after Queen Victoria (MAYSTAREX EMPRESS OF INDIA) and Tyga named after QV Daughter too!  I really love my special children and was, in my opinion, a great Mum.  Loving and caring for them so closely.  I loved being on Momma's bed until they were four weeks old, snuggled in every night in the safety of our kitten pen.  Those two ran Momma and I ragged, we couldn't wait to get them into the big kitten pen and some freedom from all the suckling.  

Tyga grew beautifully and we were the best of friends and I even thought about helping her out when it was her time to have babies, but when the time came, I didn't fancy it at all and left Momma to hand feed them and teach Tyga how to clean them.  Tyga was a better Mother than me in many ways but just didn't have the milk supply and was a little possessive of her children to the extremes of pinching everyone else's kittens in the house too and then protecting the whole lot as if her own.  This year she had the pyometra and that made her think she had babies and has brought in more milk and caring for her own daughter, Robyn, like a kitten and taken on our new kitten, Filly too.

Tyga is the most loving of cats, so much so that she urks me so much trying to kiss me and act like a baby and want me to groom her.  I like my space, I thwak and spit at her, she doesn't care, just hunkers down and waits patiently, I feel bad and lick her head, then thwak her and and walk away huffing so she doesn't follow.  She will seek out Momma then and try to climb into her skin. Laying back presenting her cute little sniffer to be kissed.  She is soft and pliable in Momma's arms and just loves cuddles and shoulder rides.  She is sensitive and won't tolerate any telling off, even if she deserved it.  Her reaction is to stand stock still, those eyes go arched and she stares.  Momma will say "Come here." pointing to a spot on the floor.  Tyga edges forwards, tail up, back arched, tiptoeing with each command and squeaking silently.  Momma can't help but laugh and the whisks Tyga up in her arms forgetting what naughty thing she has just done.   

There is one naughty thing she does do and we have not found a way out of it. When she was huge and fat with kittens and couldn't wash her self properly, she started to wipe her fairy on the carpet after a wee.  She hasn't washed her fairy since and Robyn is nearly a year old.  She is quick too and taught Robyn the trick of which Momma has stopped Robyn doing it, but Tyga has never stopped.  Grrr.  Such a bad habit and one we hope her new family won't mind too much?  She may not do it with a change of scenery? Who knows?  

She is comical and very playful. Loves those feather toys and wriggly worms.  She will also move about the house tidying up fluff and bits from the carpet and will thieve anything plastic and swallow it down as quick as lightening.  She will chew plastic bags and pinch all sorts of small items. She is quite a hoot with her finds and will play happily with a plastic spring or pen lid.  The most fun she has is interactive fun where Momma plays hard and fast with her.  She loves to run and jump for the toys and will kick and bite catnip toys. 

It will be hard to say goodbye to such a special girl who loves and dotes on Momma.  She may be very sad at first but we are sure her new family will love and enjoy her and spoil her rotten and being the only cat she will enjoy the one on one friendship she loves with Momma.  Here, we know she will begin to stress when Momma's time will become split with new kittens and she begins to fight with the the other Mummy cats.  It has to be the best thing for her and also the family are so desperate to love her after losing their own Rex recently. Tyga is young enough to begin a relaxed and doted on young lady. 

As for today, she is mooching about with her kittytitty cover on to stop the pretend babies from feeding, it is now off and she is keeping me company in the kitchen as i started to stress pee again and now not allowed upstairs. Pfft.  It's Tyga that's stressing me out Momma, she sleeps on MY PILLOW and lays NEXT TO YOU and I am the one who gets dumped in the kitchen... pfft.  Well, whilst i am here I shall keep an eye on the Sunday roast of which ManSlave found half a chicken in the wilds of the freezer.  He is making room for our bronze turkey arriving on Tuesday.  That won't take long to cook and we won't get a sniff of that!  Doesn't mean i can't beg and hope to have a little lick when no one is looking!

Have a great Sunday all, from your widdly, piddly Queen Vee  =^..^=

Well, this is no good...Gardners World has finished for the season, what are Momma and I to snuggle up and type away to this morning?  Rain and Horraces jumping through the orange leaves of the new baby oak who is the last one out in the wilderness to lose her clothes. 

It has been a bit of a strange week, Momma woke up Tuesday morning quite poorly and by Wednesday she couldn't move?  Then Friday it was all gone as quick as it came? Ah well... that gave me lots of time to snuggle in bed with her and wipe her soggy brow.  It was nice as our new member, Fillycat, we found makes a jolly good nurse too which is very important role in the house and she even took a short turn in the office at the beginning of the week and was found to be a very sensible  Junior and even sat next to Lillibet who's low elephant growls went unnoticed. 

We may as well start with Fillycat then and how she arrived at Maystar HQ.  two Sundays ago the Parentals drove to Devon to collect Flaire from stud who incidentally hasn't mated.  She came straight off call.  During Momma's original visit to drop Flaire off, she met Fillycat (then called Bliss) and looked her over for a new Breeder in Scotland.  Momma loved her and said she would be a good little cat to start with with nice original English lines similar to the original lines we have here and Fillycat's Grand Dad, Manuel, is my Gt gt gt Grand Dad and Fillycat's other Grand Dad is Pearl Father!  Maystar were going to bring Fillycat home to go onto Scotland to the new family.  However, something bad happened to the family the day before so Fillycat wasn't paid for at the time of collection but they mooted they still wanted the kitten. So Momma paid for her and brought her home giving the family time to gather their thoughts and emotions but they didn't contact Filly's breeder or Momma again so we now have a crazy new kitten to add to our growing collection.  It doesn't matter, Momma would have been daft to leave Fillycat there during lockdown as she could fit in here if necessary.  

So, we can officially announce that Fillycat will definitely be staying here now and we would like to thank Jane Rowden for our sweet baby who has slotted into Maystar HQ with gusto.  She has a fancy Sunday name, ITZAPROMISE QUEEN PHILLIPA, named after Philippa of Hainault who was Queen of England for 40years as the wife and political adviser of King Edward III. She acted as regent in 1346, when her husband was away for the Hundred Years' War and had fourteen children, many who went onto be Kings. She is a lovely colour too being chocolate tabby like Dad Fawlty and bicolour like Mum Beetle as well as carrying Colourpoint she will make a lovely colour combination to the chocolates we already have as well as replacing the tabby in the breedline we have lost with Tyga.  A bit of fun for the future hopefully.  

Fillycat has been taken under Tyga's wing and Tyga brought even more milk in despite being neutered now.  Filly would suckle and so would Robyn making them friends by scent.  Then at night time, SaBreena has been joining us on the bed for cuddles and has been seen washing and playing with Fillycat.  Ikon loves her to bits and was the first to wash her all over and make her smell like all of us.  I like her too, she enjoys a good hard game of chase and smack.  Magnus was terrified for days but after some one on one time together with treats and toys he now enjoys thuggery play and she isn't shy at giving it back.  Faith has sat next to her and she has sat next to Lillibet. Flaire and Pearl can't stand her. They hate everyone anyway.   She has fallen down the loo, broken a blind, climbed curtains, knocked over a full bottle of red wine, ManSlave was seen sucking it all up through a straw, sobbing!  She went on to get stuck behind the fridge and microwave twice.  Since these escapades, she has calmed down a bit and slotted in very well with the routines.  She eats well now after a slow start and enjoys a bit of kibble with her raw.  She has been fun and got everyone quite excited and playful.  

As much as Tyga loves the babies and me very much, despite my thwakking her before a wash, she is a bit over kill and protects her Daughter, Robyn, all the time and now Fillycat has arrived to a maternal Tyga, she is now protecting her too.  Full of milky and hormones it doen't help the dynamics of the house if she is chasing and pasting everyone who comes near.  She drags the kittens too if they don't come to her.  It's a funny sight at ten month old Robyn curls into a ball moaning.  As funny and cute as it is, it really needs to stop.  We have tried separating her and she screams and cries like any Mother would and it's more distressing to her. That's just not fair, she doesn't understand.  So we resorted to a KittyTittyCover as both Robyn and Fillycat have a slight upset tummy.  Our lovely vets have put up some horemone tablets Momma can collect tomorrow to stop the milk flow and return her to a neutered cat again.  It will fall just in time as a few weeks back, Momma decided on a home for Tyga.  She will be off to Durham where their family Devon has passed away leaving them bereft and Tyga will leave in December to fill an awful void in their hearts and they will also take her into bed at night too which is a must for her.   Tyga has done a wonderful job of bonding the youngsters together and as much as Momma loves her to the moon and back, she knows there will be trouble when the other girls have their babies as she pinches them all, like she did with Pearl and Flaire's litters and fought daily with the both girls. 

Well, I have caught you all up finally and are quite surprised how fate plays it's paw. I am off now to stalk the pork joint that ManSlave wrestled to the ground yesterday when it fell out of the freezer, nearly taking Magnus out and slipped across the kitchen floor and smartly came to a stop under the table.  It's a wild piece that's for sure.  Flaire and I do like a bit of raw pork, but it is not really good for us and means we have to have wormers if we eat that, so I doubt we will get a taste raw.  Providing ManSlave doesn't go crazy with flavourings, we might get a taste cooked instead.  Until then, I am keeping a keen eye on it defrosting and making sure it doesn't make good it's escape again.  It make me jump when it slipped in it's own meltings.... I am on it!

Until next week folks, from all us Kings and Queens here at Maystar HQ. 
​Tarrarrr! =^..^=
​

Those pesky Horraces have been at our garden once more.  They have cached one and a half tonnes of blue slate.  They steal it and bury it all around the garden and neighbour's gardens as well as our potato pots.  Not to mention adding to the squirrel mansions in the wilderness.  There are now seventeen of them as thy don't all live in this area, some come from the lakes woods across the estate from us. You can see them running along the middle of the road with their sweet bounding, tails all loose and flowing.  They have to climb the massive twelve food railway fencing too.  There is nothing like a flying Sciuridae to keep our brains busy.  Momma had a bright idea to add and widen the pathways to help reduce the amount of slate needed and scrape all the leftover slate and put it into a circle of sorts and maybe find a way to stick the last bits down?  Then have a wooden pathway going to the bottom of the garden and use hardwood chippings instead of slate, which is hard to lay and expensive to have to keep buying as they steal it.  

Yesterday, we all raced about the communal area in the cool twelve degrees.  It was magical scooting about among the leaves whilst Momma laid a new pathway.  There were wiggly worms to look at an frogs and newts.  Don't they know it's time to hide for winter?  The best find was a huge garden spider.  She was galloping about around the pots and kept us all busy for a few minutes.  Pearl escaped only once, she enjoyed it out there under the trees.  We have also had a garden cat visitor.  his name is Bolo. We are not sure if he has a APB out on his huge bulk as he carries a large knife whilst yelling in his unique language.  Really though, he is a good cat and enjoys watching and trying to catch the odd Horrace.  They are far too quick for him and tease and berate him, cha cha cha they shout down at him.  He wags his tail in annoyance then skulks back over the side gate. 

There is much ado a bout Hedgehogs and we have noticed the summer has been quiet and the last one Momma saw was the one she accidentally booted up the bum as it balled itself on the pathway in the dark.  He was fine and carried on under the fence into the wilderness never to return.  You can hear them noisily snuffling about in the leaves outside the fence line.  We have some unusual sounds at night here too.  Momma says it's owls.  They are Little Owls and for such tiny birds they have quite a screech.  You never see them. Just hear them.  The foxes are the same, we don't see them anymore.  Once we had tiny little  Chinese Deer and Woodcocks but as more people moved in around the area, they retreated to the deeper woodland. However, this year the noisy Jays have returned after a fifteen year break.  Secretly, I think the Horraces have taken over!  Even though we don't have any Oak trees close by, somehow we have a huge Oak tree growing in the wilderness.  Those pesky squirrels. 

Being very busy last Sunday we missed out on a roast dinner so ManSlave decided to hunt down a piece of Welsh lamb.  It i shard stuff to find now.  It all comes from Ireland or New Zealand.  It's ok, but we find it a bit tough. It's not that buttery flavour you get with Welsh.  We have already had a small piece each which was so yummy. It drove us all bonkers before the garlic went on, then one sniff of that and we were off. I am back now though, watching it cook slowly in the oven.  ManSLave still hasn't managed to get a new light for the oven. The glass won't come off.  In fact, the oven is slowly crumbling and heating very oddly. So long as it cooks today, who cares if it's racks have dropped off?