We’ve survived another week in Catland. It’s chilly outside (low 30s), so the inside cats are hugging registers and finding other warm places to snuggle.

We humans have been challenged to keep the temperature in the house balanced. The downstairs heat pump is particularly problematic. The thermostat is in the entry hall, and the heat tends to go upstairs, so the entry hall is always cool. We don’t have a problem with that, but the kitchen and parlor tend to either be too hot or too cold.  In previous years, it seemed to work better to close the back stairs door in the winter to keep kitchen heat from escaping up it.  Over the summer, Mr. L performed some maintenance on the back door, so it doesn’t leak as much of the north wind through it as it used to, which helps the kitchen stay warmer. Trying to find better balance, we opened the stairway door the other night, and that does seem to be working. The downstairs heat pump thermostat is programmed to vary between 59 and 63F.  That seems low, but that keeps the inhabited areas of the downstairs (parlor and kitchen) in the mid-to high 70s.

The cats love having the back stairs door open, because they can run up the front stairs, down the hall, down the back stairs and through the house to the front stairs again.  Sometimes, it becomes quite the game.  At least they get exercise.

Mr. L also is considering replacing the hanging light at the top of the stairs with a directional ceiling fan which can be used to force warm air downstairs.  Eventually, we’ll figure out how to get things balanced.  Part of our problem could result from keeping the living room and dining room closed to cats, which also reduces air circulation downstairs, but that isn’t going to change.

Outside kitties have been scarce over the last few days.  I attribute that to the cold weather.  They’re holed up in their warm spaces and only come out for brief periods to eat and do what they need to do, so we tend not to see them.

Ajax and Natasha went in for annual exams and vaccinations yesterday.  Ajax has some antibiotics for some gum inflammation.  Dr. Val doesn’t want to do a dental procedure because she’s afraid the tooth will shatter, which causes other problems, so we’re going to see if the antibiotic will clear up his irritation. Natasha’s cough has begun to return, so we tried another injection to see if that will help.

Next month, Lady and Tarzan go in for their exams. Our wonderful vet tech, Mary, found a liquid form of Reconcile for Lady that looks like it’s much cheaper than the pill form, so we’re going to try that. I love the way the staff looks for ways we can take good care of our kitties for less money. We are so blessed to have this vet clinic here.