General Penguin Shepherd

Take a moment to think back to an earlier post, involving this fine feline, my dance partner, the furry boulder. Perhaps you recall she has a bit of an attitude? She can be a tad snotty and demanding, and is very vocal with her wishes. (To my credit I have only fallen short of giving her all her requests because they all sound the same (you would think that too if you heard them). So her being deprived of anything is NOT my fault. My 20 pound bundle of awesome standoffishness almost looks sweet in this picture, would you agree?

About 4 months ago while Zoe was laying in her usual spot on top of the dryer basking in the warmth of the sun and occasionally the heat of the current cycle. I made the mistake of asking her a question of which she replied in her usual "too hard to understand" manner and nearly bowled me over with a serious case of halitosis. Um.... TIC TAC! It was foolish of me of course as I was eye level with her at her current position thus allowing me a direct hit!

Fish and chicken flavored vittles my a**!!

Rather than run and retch, I did what all good cat owners do, commented loudly on how repulsive she was, swore a little (or a lot), questioned why we even have this purposeless cat amongst us, and then (naturally) checked her mouth to see if she was decaying from the inside out.

As it happens, she had a bad tooth, which then made me retract all the name calling and show a level of sympathy unknown to anyone from the likes of me. I figured the tooth was the culprit and since I have never taken the time to brush the cat's teeth I am somewhat at fault for her poor hygiene. So I decided it was my duty to get her fixed up (which come to think of it made the senseless meowing at all hours of the night a little more understandable, not TOLERABLE, but understandable).

So before I went for my pliers with the sure knowledge that yanking that from it's gum would do the trick I called the vet. Guess what! They frowned on me taking her dental needs into my own hands and requested I bring her in. THIS act in itself is easier said than done as THIS cat, gets car sick, resulting in vomiting, urinating, dry heaving, and a pathetic show of panting the minute the door shuts. So of course I couldn't deny my beloved the need of medical assistance, could I? NO!!! That would be cruel and heartless and save me $400.00.....

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So I did what any good cat owner would do, I had the kids take and drop her off.

My dental assessment of the situation was correct and she did have the tooth pulled, one of the long ones right in front, the ones that allow her to resemble her ancestors the SABER TOOTHED TIGER... Now look at her, you see how she gets her top lip stuck on her bottom tooth? So she looks like she is always snarling? It's ridiculous, AND funny, which brings me back to my earlier question, why do we even have this purposeless cat amongst us? and well it's because she is a good laugh!

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So now you are asking what does this have to do with the title General Penguin Shepherd? Well ya see Zoe was a fine name, it was her name for many years. However the other day we were in the process of lugging her somewhere and during the "pick her up" process we came across this stance.

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And this one too!

And if that doesn't make you think of a penguin, then you are not watching enough Animal Planet. Because I can totally picture an egg nestled under that soft chunk of blubber resting on her feet being kept safe and warm till it was her time to pass it off to the male penguin. (Morgan Freeman said it so much better, but it is what it is)

Luckily for me MY cat comes to any name I give her.. especially if you follow it with a "kitty kitty".

"General" I threw in there for 2 reasons, 1. She does command THAT much respect in the house, or at least she tries (even if it is ignored), and 2. I watched the new and old version of True Grit in a matter of a couple of days and thought my kitty deserved a movie role title like General as well. So, "soooooo long Zoe" (unless we forget and call her that still) and "Hello PENGUIN!!"

*For those animal lovers: No pets (or children) were harmed in the taking of these photos.

As for Penguin's overall oral health, we discovered she is closer to 10 than 7 as originally thought and that she has had dental work prior and is now the proud owner of only 6 teeth, 3 of which are in the front. Don't worry she hasn't lost an ounce due to her lack. I was informed by the vet that cat's only bite their food once and swallow. Penguin has never missed a meal. I don't even think she bothers to bite her vittles once sometimes, it hampers the scarfing process.