rule62

My 22-yr-old neighbor wants a relationship with me. I'm 46. We are just getting to know each other as friends, and now he wants more. He is attractive and smart. I am not ugly, but guys don't go chasing me around either - typical, overweight middle-aged suburban woman. I can understand why he finds me interesting as a friend. He might also be interested in the "older woman" thing, and we are of different races, which is sexy to a lot of people. But frankly, it's pretty weird that he'd be attracted to me as a lover.

So my question is, if he's not genuine, what else could it be? Money? I'm not rich.

I just bought a Cuisinart automatic ice cream maker. I want to make fat-free, sugar-free ice cream to limit the damage I do to myself (lol). Does anyone have a tip on how to get the ice cream creamy? So far I've made some pretty tasty stuff, but it's the consistency of a Slushy.

I have a 55-lb german shepherd mix. He has ongoing problems with diarrhea and (among other efforts, including the vet) I have been supplementing his diet with fiber. I'm currently adding either oat bran or Benefiber, both of which have 3 gm soluble fiber and 3 gm insoluble in a tablespoon. I used to use coconut flour, which has 9 gm, but it's all insoluble and I think the soluble will help take the liquid out of his colon.

His condition seems to be somewhat better and I'm thinking of increasing the amount. Any suggestions?

The rest of his diet is a decent-quality dry (trying to upgrade but he doesn't like it), Pet Promise bison and rice canned, and either yogurt or cottage cheese spiked with probiotics and fiber. I give him Iams lamb and rice treats.

Meanwhile, I live on 25-cent mac and cheese...

My upstairs neighbor's dog cornered my cat last night and got hold of him. I intervened before it got serious. He has fur missing in three spots and a fingernail-sized wound. The wound is not deep and I put peroxide on it.

The cat lay with me for awhile after the attack and let me pet him, but has been hiding under the sofa ever since. I understand he's been badly frightened and hiding is normal. My worry is that since I haven't been able to give him a thorough going-over, there could be other wounds, even internal. I don't think so because he jumped up on top of the fridge before going into hiding. The question is how long I should let him hide and chill out before calling the vet. I don't want to further traumatize him by dragging him out and taking him to the vet unnecessarily.

I left food and water under the sofa this morning. I think he's just frightened, understandably, but how long do I give him before getting worried?

I found this site about the dangers of the BARF (raw) diet. It is very opinionated, but please disregard that and try to read it objectively. I'm interested in people's experience with this diet. Intelligent, non-rabid (pun intended) answers only, please.

http://www.woodhavenlabs.com/barf-myth.html

I live in the Chicago area and lately have been smelling skunks all over the place. Either there are a lot more of them or the local drivers have developed better aim. Anyone know?

My dog has had diarrhea for years. The vets found nothing and I did a million different diets. I just started him on probiotics and the difference has been immediate and amazing. My only question now is how much he should poop? His stool yesterday was beautiful :) but there was very little of it. The probiotics should be helping him digest more, but isn't it healthy to have a good-size stool to clean out the colon?

I add oat bran to his diet, and he's eating Iams dry food, cottage cheese with the oat bran and supplement, and bison and rice canned.

I'm 45. My mom started pausing at around 52. My periods have started to get lighter and longer - I'll spot for a couple days, have a rest, have one heavy day, one light day, and spotting for maybe three more. I'm not getting flashes or hormonal symptoms except for the period changes.

Has anyone had experience with this? My dog has chronic digestive problems and the vet thinks it might be pancreatic insufficiency. I'm waiting for the test results, but am really hoping it's positive since there is apparently a medicine that completely treats the problem.

My cat gets irritated eyes from time to time. The vet says her eyesight isn't affected, but I'm wondering if there is anything I can do to make her more comfortable. It happens about once a month, one eye at a time, can be either eye. The eye seems to be sensitive to light - her pupil is contracted and she opens the eye as little as possible. It passes in a few days. Sometimes the lid is a little red.

Can I give her human artificial tears, or something else that might soothe the eye?

She is a 4-year-old female calico, spayed, healthy. Other cats in the house, has happened with different litters (including low-dust). Could she be allergic to my dog? :)

Sometimes I open IE, Outlook or another app and it comes up maximized, sometimes not. I want them to always be maximized. Also when you click on links on a page - can you set them to always come up maximized?

I know how to get the total combinations in a group: e.g. how many combinations of three in a group of 12 = 12!/(12-3)! But I don't know how to factor in limitations.

12 people, of whom two are teachers. How many groups of three can you have that have at least one teacher?

Can you give me a formula and/or explain it so I can make logical sense of it? Thx...

One of my 5 cats consistently pees on my bed. I have 6 boxes, and they are clean. I put #6, brand new, at the foot of my bed and put Cat Attract litter in it. She peed next to it. I bought Feliway diffusers for the BR and LR. I spray citrus freshener on the bed. I've cleaned the urine and there is no smell. I've taken her to the vet and there's no UTI. The other cats don't bully her, but she's shy and definitely low on the totem pole. I've tried to keep the door shut, but she'll catch me when my guard is down. I even put wee-wee pads on the spot she normally hits, and she peed next to them. I spend extra time with her and don't punish. I know she loves me and isn't afraid of me or the other cats (well, except one, but that one spends most of her time outside).

My next step is to get that dye to make 100% sure it's her (I'm certain, but need absolute proof). Then if I can't find a way to stop this, I will put her down. It'll break my heart, but I've poured hundreds of dollars and a ton of work into this problem.

Any ideas? It's definitely behavioral, and I'm at my wits' end.

This isn't a question, just wanted to pass on some info. A lot of you will know this but I didn't. My dog has chronic diarrhea, and we're trying to find out why. The vet says dry dog food tends to mold. You shouldn't buy more than a month's supply, should only buy at a place with good product turnover, and keep the food in its bag, not in a bin. Bulk foods at the pet store tend to be exposed to mold, and rawhides too. Stay away from anything that has peanut butter in it, because pet-grade peanut butter is godawful. Use human grade and make your own treats if you want to.

I thought I'd pass this on because my first vet, who I thought was really good, never once asked me about how I store the food or warned me about mold. So I might not be the only responsible pet owner who somehow missed out on all this...

I'd rather not buy the Cat Attract litter itself because it's clay and I prefer the bio-degradable. Is there just an additive you can sprinkle in your own litter?