Thanks y'all. I hope your cake turned out well, SD!
I did actually fire near -- not at-- one of them a couple days before. And it was bigger than a BB gun! They run when they see me or I scare them like that but -- they come back. A live trap might be an idea. I just don't know what I'd do after I catch them? The closest animal shelter charges I think $35 per cat to drop them off, and they would probably be euthanized anyway. I can't even contact a barn cat rescue about them if they kill chickens -- who would want them? Too bad my dog is not ready so that I could just station him out there. He might chase the chickens or mess with the rabbits too if I left him alone with them for a long time. he's just too young to be reliable. So not sure what I'm gonna do there.
Right now I'm worried about MY kitty. The one with the fragile health that usually gets on my chest to wake me every morning, responds to commands almost like a dog, and has loved me through a couple of the hardest years of my life when I lost just about everything. I didn't even pick her. She picked me. She was a feral rescue kitten from the vet's and I was looking at ANOTHER kitten for my daughter when this tiny thing launched herself from the cage, mewing desperately, and flew to land in my arms. She refused to be put down and has been there often ever since. She's the most affectionate cat I've ever seen.
She's had breathing episodes that look like a hairball, but aren't. It comes and goes, often brought on by exercise. The last time it lasted for days, and it was SUPPOSED to be a viral thing, because of an eye symptom that time too.
Well, when I got home from work yesterday, she was just sitting. She didn't come to me. It soon progressed into abdominal breathing, too fast, her fur is ruffled. I tried the treatment from before, but it didn't help. I took her in the bath and ran a hot shower for steam, which helps a little, but she kept getting worse. I really have no money (having issues with getting paid at work for months now) but if there had been a vet open last night I was tempted to take her in.
Of course I read everything I could online. Her symptoms are exactly consistent with an acute attack (usually requiring hospitalization and always drugs) of asthma. Of course, there are 5 or 6 other things it COULD be, and except for lungworms none of them have a good prognosis. I have to hope it's asthma or lungworms.
I dunno ... I wonder if I can convince the vet to see her in exchange for me working off the bill. This really hurts -- things look like they will be improving as far as work but I don't have it yet -- and my kitty likely can't wait.
She's calmer this morning, but her breathing rate is faster. About 50 resps per minute. It was 45 last night. Her claws get stuck and she has a hard time releasing them so her muscle control isn't as good. She purrs away when I pet her and just looks at me all lovey with those slowly blinking eyes. Which is better than the round scared eyes and crying from last night, but she still can't get air. At least she's not turning blue or doing the profuse drooling they say happens just before collapse.
And no, my cold is worse. It was mild and today is a week into it, so it should be better -- but I got only a couple hours sleep Sun night worrying about work, woke up at 3am after falling into an exhausted sleep after Mon night, and last night hardly slept at all because of my kitty, and cried WAY too much. I sound AWFUL lol. Probably look as bad too.
Vet opens in 1 hour now. And I'm supposed to be at work in 1 hour. I gotta decide what to do now.
Even though I can't easily get my pay -- I do have a responsibility to the kids. If I go in, I can get the important part of my work finished in 3 hours. Then I could leave and talk to the vet.
If I take kitty in, I dunno what they will say. I can only give them about $20, and I don't know if they will accept payments or make some arrangement.
If I don't take her in, I'm afraid she can't make it this time. If it turns out to be something worse after all, she may not make it anyway.
I hate days like this. Thanks for letting me vent, y'all. I know a lot of people would say it's just a cat, but she's been through too much with me.
I used to think it SO important to sit down and have meals as a family. You know what she does? I have a dining table with benches to sit at, and I put my food on the table and sit down to eat. She hops up and sits at "her place" at the table beside me, and just sits there, being at the table, while I eat. She doesn't beg, or nose the table or food, or try to steal it or smell it or anything. It's like she just remembers that dinner time is a time for sitting at the table together, so she does. Somehow that means a lot to me and I really don't want to lose it.
They know where the eggs come from..and like an egg once in a while. 
I have to bake one today so I won't think about that. I don't have all the ingredients I'd like because we are snowed in so I hope I don't repeat your performance.
I'm sure you have given that kitty a wonderful life no matter what happens, cherish the memories, she would not want you to be sad. I hope you get more time with her though. Your kitty is in my prayers.....I know God watches over animals so I think prayers for them are 100 percent appropriate.
