Important Information Regarding Photo Contest

[andromedaslove]

I wanted to let everyone know that I am not going to be updating the photo contests this week. Unforunately, this week has been pretty bad. Tuesday I had to put my kitten (she was 4) to sleep for Kidney problems, I am trying to get caught up on Christmas stuff, I just don't have time this week. Here is my plan. I will allow the Walter E. Disney contest to continue until Sunday evening. At 10 pm I will shut that contest down and post as usual. The contests for the rest of the year will be as follows.

Monorail
Christmas in the Parks/Resorts
Water

The second thing I need to let everyone know is that I just can NOT continue to do the contests after this year. I have truly enjoyed doing this for the past 2 years, but it has just become too much for me to keep up with. I mean with training for my Marathon, the time spent at my son's school, life in general... I have just run out of time. I will keep my photobucket account that has all of the previous winners up and running, and I would love to assist someone else if they chose to keep the contests running. I just have to bow out for now. I hope everyone understands.

Dana

Since this is a photography board... I thought I would share a couple of pics of Trouble McFurry (with her fat old self)!! Thank you guys for all of your well wishes and condolences (sp?)

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b34/andromedaslove/IMG_4751.jpg
http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b34/andromedaslove/IMG_4754.jpg

[AndrewWG]

I wanted to let everyone know that I am not going to be updating the photo contests this week. Unforunately, this week has been pretty bad. Tuesday I had to put my kitten (she was 4) to sleep for Kidney problems, I am trying to get caught up on Christmas stuff, I just don't have time this week. Here is my plan. I will allow the Walter E. Disney contest to continue until Sunday evening. At 10 pm I will shut that contest down and post as usual. The contests for the rest of the year will be as follows.

Monorail
Christmas in the Parks/Resorts
Water

The second thing I need to let everyone know is that I just can NOT continue to do the contests after this year. I have truly enjoyed doing this for the past 2 years, but it has just become too much for me to keep up with. I mean with training for my Marathon, the time spent at my son's school, life in general... I have just run out of time. I will keep my photobucket account that has all of the previous winners up and running, and I would love to assist someone else if they chose to keep the contests running. I just have to bow out for now. I hope everyone understands.

Dana

Dana,

Let me say that you have my thanks for all your efforts. Although I am still rather a newbie to the boards, I have enjoyed these contests whether or not I had a photo in them. You have done a great job. Unfortunately, I don't have the time to keep them going either, but perhaps someone does. That would be great.

Sorry to hear about your kitten. I had to do that 2 years ago with our cat (much older) but it was hard on us. Well, we then went out and got 3 more! Yep, 3. :eek: They were stray kittens from the woods near my work. All brothers and sisters. I decided to keep them together. Could have given one away, but DD wanted them all.

Anyways, thanks again for all you have done with the contest. Your efforts are and will be always appreciated!

[SharonLowe]

Dana - thank you for all your hard work and I am sure everyone understands. The contest is so popular and I could never imagine being able to keep up with it on a weekly basis.

So sorry to hear about your kitten but know that you did the right thing. Know that he/she is up in kitty heaven with some wonderful other cats, eating all the fish and chicken it wants, playing with all the toys it loves, and taking those long luxurious cat naps for which cats are famous. We lost 2 of our beloved cats last year, one on Christmas Eve, and it is still painful to think about it. We do have 2 wonderful replacements however that bring joy to me every day. I hope that you will find another to love as I am sure you did this one.

[boBQuincy]

I am really sorry to hear about your kitten. We lost one to kidney failure years ago and we still miss her.

The contests will wait, you have more important things to do. Thanks for all you have done already!

[jann1033]

Dana, you have done so much work i don't know how you kept it up this long! they were fun to view but i appreciate all you did.

we lost 2 cats to kidney problems about 5 yrs ago, then last yr 2 more died with in a month of each other from nobody knew what and i know it's a hard loss to deal with...right now we have one left, who was abandoned but now finally after 4 yrs is getting to be pet like and realizing having "people" isn't so bad after all ;) ..the only thing i know about what the vet told me with the kidney is never change their food, even going to another flavor can damage their urinary tract and if possible use one that is good for that( i think it's low in ash???)...i have to put little miss tubby on a diet ( i think the infanthood of being in the wild made her have the "eat as much as she can" philosophy so now she's overweight) so i hope nothing happens when she goes to low cal food.

[andromedaslove]

i have to put little miss tubby on a diet ( i think the infanthood of being in the wild made her have the "eat as much as she can" philosophy so now she's overweight) so i hope nothing happens when she goes to low cal food.

You know.... that is exactly what we did. I found her at a McDonald's when she was less than 6 weeks old. She was starving and tiny. Well..... let me tell you she didn't stay that way for long. About 6 weeks ago we noticed that she was REALLY fat (I mean her little fat pouch actually swung almost to the ground when she ran). So we decided to put her on a lower calorie cat food. It was Purina one: hairball and healthy weight formula. My other cat seems to be fine, and i don't know if it was the food that hurt her, but I thought you might want to know.

Dana

[jann1033]

You know.... that is exactly what we did. I found her at a McDonald's when she was less than 6 weeks old. She was starving and tiny. Well..... let me tell you she didn't stay that way for long. About 6 weeks ago we noticed that she was REALLY fat (I mean her little fat pouch actually swung almost to the ground when she ran). So we decided to put her on a lower calorie cat food. It was Purina one: hairball and healthy weight formula. My other cat seems to be fine, and i don't know if it was the food that hurt her, but I thought you might want to know.

Dana
thanks, i might try just giving her the minimum food for longer and see if that helps...so far all it's done is make her constantly meow for more but we'll see if she gets used to her smaller portions...it's weird but when we were on vacation and used her self feeder she ate less but once we got home went back to eating more:confused3

[sk8belle]

Yikes, the Purina is what I use for my kitty. Thanks for the warning, Dana. I am sorry to hear about your cat.

Also, thanks for the time and effort you put in to these contests. They've been loads of fun, and a great opportunity to see everyone's work.

[NostalgicDad]

I appreciate all the hard work you put into running the contests, Dana. I don't know how you managed to keep up with it all in the first place.

[SharonLowe]

Ask your vets what he recommends. Over the years, my cats have been on various prescription diets depending on their kidney/weight/thyroid problems. One had issues with crystals in her kidneys so she was on a certain prescription food that worked for years - she died at 18 from a tumor in her throat, not the kidney problems she had since she was a kitten. Right now, our current eldest is on Science Diet Advance Protection for Seniors due to her kidney issues (she's 10 YO). Yes, the prescription food is more expensive but I firmly believe it is the best for them. And, the SD AP has a frequent buyer card - buy 4 get one free, which is a better deal than what Petco offers.

There are several things that can cause problems with the kidneys so it is important that the vet is involved in their diet. We're lucky to have a cat only vet, which I think is also a great thing since he focuses entirely on one animal.

[Amy]

Dana - first off, I am so sorry to hear about your cat. It's hard to lose one of your furry family members - we had to put our one dog down mid-December last year (cancer) and I still miss her so much.

And I just want to thank you for running the photo contest for as long as you did. It was an enormous job! I learned so much from seeing the photos that everyone would post, and I know it helped improve my own photography skills. Hopefully someone else will have enough time to continue the contest, but if not, I enjoyed it while it lasted and I applaud your efforts. Well done!

[Master Mason]

Dana,

Sorry about your cat, losing a pet is just like losing any part of your family.

As for the contests, if others are interested, I would be willing to help keep them going if/untill you find you have some more time.

If we could get a few of us to divide it up then no single person would have to carry the whole load. Split it by months or weeks or something...

just something to think about if some others are intersted.

[handicap18]

Sorry to hear about your cat Dana. Pets are family and losing a member of the family is very hard.

I would also like thank you for all the work you've put in over the last 2 years with the contest. You have done a tremendous job and it has very much appreciated.

Best wishes for a happy holiday and a happy New Year.

[Gdad]

Very sory to hear about your kitty. I would hate to see the photo contest go away- I would certainly also be willing to help out for a while.

Maybe we should just pick someone to do it for the year and then switch up? It does sound like kind of a lot to sign up for indeffinately.

[Sha]

Dana

I am so sorry to hear about your Kitten. It is never easy at any age, as they become family. I lost George 2 1/2 months ago (he had bladder stones) and I still look for him from time to time.

Thank you for all your time and effort when doing the photo contests. You are awesome! Good luck on your marathon!

[klmall]

Dana - Thank you so much for your work with the contests. And so sorry about your little kitty; these furbabies are such a part of your heart and soul. We appreciate what you have done and know that your family comes first as it does for all of us. We know we will continue to see you around on this board!

[andromedaslove]

Updated with some pics of trouble... hey it's the photography board, right?!

Thank you guys again so much for everything!!

Dana

[Sha]

:grouphug: She is a pretty cat... maybe she is saying Hi to George :goodvibes Thanks for sharing the pics. I love how cats tuck their paws up under like that first one. :grouphug:

[tiggr33]

I am very sorry to hear of your loss. I've been there myself and it really is a lousy thing.

I have time too help if need be.

[Tigger1221]

I am sorry to hear about you cat.:sad1: Please remember also, never feed your cat onion or garlic, it also causes kidney failure. :grouphug:

[MarkBarbieri]

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your cat. Four years is far to short a time to enjoy a treasured pet.

As for the contest, don't worry about it. It is one of the central pieces on this forum and your work has been appreciated by many here. I think you've set such a great standard with the contest that others here will feel compelled to continue the tradition. It may take a few weeks for the details get worked out, but I'm sure that the tradition you have started will survive your "retirement".

Please remember also, never feed your cat onion or garlic, it also causes kidney failure.
While I agree that one should not feed onions (especially) or garlic to your pets, I think that the reason is because it causes hemolytic anemia (loss of red blood cells) rather than kidney failure. I also think that cat/dog breath is, well, interesting enough on its own without the need of onions or garlic added.

[Tigger1221]

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your cat. Four years is far to short a time to enjoy a treasured pet.

As for the contest, don't worry about it. It is one of the central pieces on this forum and your work has been appreciated by many here. I think you've set such a great standard with the contest that others here will feel compelled to continue the tradition. It may take a few weeks for the details get worked out, but I'm sure that the tradition you have started will survive your "retirement".


While I agree that one should not feed onions (especially) or garlic to your pets, I think that the reason is because it causes hemolytic anemia (loss of red blood cells) rather than kidney failure. I also think that cat/dog breath is, well, interesting enough on its own without the need of onions or garlic added.

Sorry, for the mis-information. I just found out that recently and wanted to warn other pet lovers.

[willis37862]

Sorry about your kitty andromedaslove :grouphug:

And as others have said thank you so much for running the contests up until now, I am sure they are lots of work and can certainly understand you needing a break from them.

[Groucho]

Sorry about the cat - we put our cat (12+ years old) to sleep earlier this year and it was a rough decision, even knowing that she'd led a pretty good life and was having health issues (I'd been giving her pills at least once a day for the past several years), it's still no fun.

As for the contest - like the others, I'd probably be willing to help out for some part of it. I don't want them to go away before I've at least won one of them! :lmao: Let's see, maybe I can fix it somehow and throw in a few extra votes my way...... :scratchin

[DebºoºS]

Dana, so sorry to hear of your loss and my condolences. The pics are gorgeous what beautiful eyes, mezmerizing. We lost our Piper after 15yrs to kidney failure. Very difficult on everyone for a long time.:hug:

Your dedication to the photo contest over the years is so greatly appreciated. It's grown and been such a success all due to your hard work.
After I've settled in to my new job I'd like to help out.

Good luck with the marathons:cheer2:

[alan]

I'd just like to echo what everyone else has said - thank you for all your hard work!

regards,
/alan

[Suburbanmom]

I'd like to offer my condolences too. Your kitten was just beautiful and I can tell, she was loved. Thank you for the time you put into the photo contests. I have only been participating for about 6 months, and I very much enjoy the friendly competition. I appreciate it so much. Take time to take care of yourself. {{hug}}

[jann1033]

]Yikes, the Purina is what I use for my kitty.[/B] Thanks for the warning, Dana. I am sorry to hear about your cat.

Also, thanks for the time and effort you put in to these contests. They've been loads of fun, and a great opportunity to see everyone's work.
i changed from iams to purina one urinary tract ( or words to that effect:rotfl2: )after the 2 died from kidney problems and had only eaten iams their whole lives...so i started this one with purina and except for the extra plumpness, ours has been fine with it...the only problem i see with purina is for some reason with iams they had less feces so the litter box was nicer...but that is hubby's job anyway:rotfl:

[cazzie]

Sorry about your kitty it's awful when you loose a pet. :hug:

Thanks for all your hard work with the photo competition I have really enjoyed them. :thumbsup2

[Pea-n-Me]

Dana, I'm so sorry about your cat. She was beautiful. :hug:

I also would like to say thank you for all your efforts with the Weekly Contests. Photography is something I always wanted to get more serious about. This board has helped me do that, and the contests added that special something to look forward to every week. Don't laugh, but winning one was one of the highlights of my year! It was extra special because I happened to be on Disney Wonder (which holds a special place in my heart anyway - but that's for another thread) on voting week and when I logged on to see my picture as a front runner, I was just on :cloud9:

I took some pictures (of course) to preserve that great memory:

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69/paulandlinda/Img7772_f.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69/paulandlinda/IMG_7773_f.jpg

I would also be willing to help out with the contests somehow. Maybe a group of us can work something out. :thanks: again!!

[willis37862]

I wanted to add that I would be more than happy to help with the contests also...I will need help figuring out what to do but I am more than willing to try :)

[mikamah]

So sorry to hear about your cat. She was beautiful. It's so hard to lose a beloved pet.

Thank you so much for all your hard work and effort you put into the contests. I have thoroughly enjoyed them since I found this part of the boards. I've hardly had time to come on here lately to enter the contest, and can't imagine how you are able to run them all. Hope you have a wonderful holiday season.