**COURTESY LISTING** Gary

*COURTESY LISTING* Gary is not at HSoP. If you are interested in knowing more about him, please contact his current owner at: (310)795-0131, or by email at: st.margelia@gmail.com.<br/><br/>Gary has been neutered and is up to date on vaccinations, and just had a physical examination in April.<br/><br/>General<br/>GARY CAN NEVER EVER HAVE WET FOOD OR TREATS!<br/><br/>Born May 1, 2019. Affectionately called “Garold,” He took much<br/>longer to learn everything than his brother, and not within the normal variance, but significantly longer. He walked about 10 days later than his brother, and he did not do it well. He didn’t play with toys until he was over a year old, but he enjoyed watching his mom and brother play. To this day his favorite toy is a disposable drinking straw from a fast food cup. He also enjoys playing with those gallon jugs that water come in, with the handle. He carries them around in his<br/>mouth and yowls to announce his conquest. He does play with real toys now, too, though! He likes stuffed ones a lot and he has a favorite stuffed pickle that he carries around, and he will frequently leave it just outside his human’s bedroom door at night, as a gift. He plays with water just like his brother does, but is less destructive with it. He doesn’t take the entire fountain apart like Thrash does, he just splashes it everywhere. Gary utilizes his cardboard scratchers frequently and never claws the carpet, though sometimes he will claw the sofa, he usually uses more appropriate surfaces. He is very consistent about the litter box and has never gone outside of it, though he does sometimes accidentally poop over<br/>the edge of it. (Gary does not have great spatial awareness, which is probably related to his balance issues, and it doesn’t help that he is just a large cat and doesn’t fit in side the litter box well, despite it being the largest one available.) When he does get poop on the floor, he is humiliated beyond measure and desperately tries to cover it up with litter. He is not good at covering his poop but he makes up for it in enthusiasm and persistence. Gary enjoys when his humans have company, and always comes over to greet new people, along with his mother Mishka. (Having Mishka with him makes him braver about a lot of things.)<br/>He follows repairmen as they go about their business and always gets lots of pets from his human’s property management inspectors. When guests stay overnight, he tries to sleep on the bed with them to make them feel welcome (and make sure they behave appropriately.) His favorite thing in the whole world (besides kibble) is to get endless head rubs. His purr is very loud due to his throat issue (see below) and it is, frankly, adorable. Since Gary cannot jump on counters very well, he leaves food on counters alone and relies on Thrash to knock it off for him, at which point he growls fiercely to assert dominance and runs away to enjoy his zucchini slice or whatever. He sometimes take vegetable scraps and just… stares at them? If Gary were a person, he would most likely have some sort of podcast about a niche fandom and harshly critique the most recent Star Wars movies. He would have excelled in community college.<br/><br/>Health<br/>As you may have surmised from the length of this section, Gary’s health history is complicated. He is obese, for one thing, at 22 pounds. He needs to lose about 5 pounds. He is on a diet and has made a little progress (yes, that means he used to weigh even more. We have informed him that he is fat but he does not care) but needs to continue with calorie restriction and increase his physical activity.<br/>He has always had an issue with balance, which was initially suspected to be cerebellar hypoplasia (CH) in origin, but this was later ruled out when he seemed to improve (if only slightly) over several years. He has an irregular gait (he walks goofy) that is unrelated to his obesity, as it has not changed since before he grew overweight. A more thorough background, including the progression of his symptoms, will be provided to adopters in case there is ever a need to look into his issues further. Strangely, Gary himself is completely unconcerned with<br/>finding a cause for his problems, and seems disinclined to pursue any further diagnostics. While his humans quietly judge him for this choice, it is nevertheless his decision and they respect it. A neurological consultation would most likely be needed to get a firm diagnosis anyway. His balance affects his ability to jump onto certain surfaces, especially if they are narrow (like windowsills), and makes him terrified to be picked up or held up in the air. Please don’t do that, he thinks he will die. Gary has a congenital birth defect of the sternum, causing it to come to a point at the end and stick out slightly. The medical term is pectus carinatum and it has been confirmed by x-ray. It can be felt easily and may weird you out if you notice it, but it doesn’t bother him in the least. Like his brother, he has feline herpesvirus in his eyes and they are perpetually a little bit runny. When he has a flare up, he gets conjunctivitis and his third eyelid gets inflamed and can’t<br/>retract, which can be alarming to see. When he has a flare up he needs prescription drops from a compounding pharmacy. Multiple medications were tried when this first happened, and the ones that were effective, and available from the vet, he was allergic to. The one that the vet prescribed through Wedgewood Pharmacy was very effective, though! The last time he needed<br/>them was several years ago, so it isn’t something he needs often. A lysine supplement can keep his flare ups at bay, as long as it is not liquid.<br/>The most serious of Gary’s issues is laryngeal paralysis, or nerve damage in his throat. Gary is a noisy breather, he wheezes sometimes, and he snores when he sleeps… and when he is awake. If Gary ever needs surgery, this is a bonus for the vet, because it makes intubation a breeze! However, Gary routinely chokes on water (telling him “JUST BREATHE, GARY!” When this happens may or may not be helpful? His humans do it anyway.) and he is at extremely high risk for aspiration pneumonia. HE CAN NEVER, EVER, EVER BE GIVEN WET FOOD<br/>OR WET TREATS. PUT DOWN THE CHURU. Wet food (or a Churu-type treat) could quite literally kill him. If he ever needs liquid oral medication his humans absolutely must double check with the vet about this and ensure that it is safe for him. This issue is also part of why it is difficult for him to lose weight, as his breathing gets quite ragged when he gets worked up. (This is not due to his obesity, it was true even as a kitten.) Just in case it was not clear, GARY CAN NEVER, EVER, EVER BE GIVEN WET FOOD OR WET TREATS.<br/><br/>Behavior<br/>Gary really doesn’t have any behavior problems. He just comes with the emotional baggage of being somewhat obtuse and a bit wonky.<br/><br/>Ideal Home<br/>Gary’s most immediate need in terms of a new home would be a family that can accommodate and advocate for his medical needs and keep a watchful eye on them. He needs humans who understand the dangers of wet food and can keep him safe from them, as well as ensure he gets the appropriate eye drops if the need arises. Since he panics when he is picked up, his ideal home would be with children old enough to respect his space, but he does enjoy the company of small humans. He does enjoy attention and he loves to climb in a lap and cuddle,<br/>as long as his feet can reach a stable surface at all times. The tiny human he lives with currently tends to startle him sometimes but he recovers quickly and never stays away from her for very long, he seems to feel a kinship with her. When she was an infant, he always stayed nearby and kept watch over her. Now that she is older he still does, he just stays outside her reach. Gary is upset by a lot of change over a short period of time, and this affects his breathing, but as long<br/>as he has a safe space he can retreat to, he adjusts very well. Gary should not be allowed outside due to his extensive health issues and general obliviousness, he is vulnerable to all sorts of things.<br/><br/>If you are interested in meeting Gary, please reach out to his current care taker at: (310)795-0131, or by email at: st.margelia@gmail.com. His current care taker is asking for a $50 rehoming fee and a vet reference.

*COURTESY LISTING* Gary is not at HSoP. If you are interested in knowing more about him, please contact his current owner at: (310)795-0131, or by email at: st.margelia@gmail.com.

Gary has been neutered and is up to date on vaccinations, and just had a physical examination in April.

General
GARY CAN NEVER EVER HAVE WET FOOD OR TREATS!

Born May 1, 2019. Affectionately called “Garold,” He took much
longer to learn everything than his brother, and not within the normal variance, but significantly longer. He walked about 10 days later than his brother, and he did not do it well. He didn’t play with toys until he was over a year old, but he enjoyed watching his mom and brother play. To this day his favorite toy is a disposable drinking straw from a fast food cup. He also enjoys playing with those gallon jugs that water come in, with the handle. He carries them around in his
mouth and yowls to announce his conquest. He does play with real toys now, too, though! He likes stuffed ones a lot and

*COURTESY LISTING* Gary is not at HSoP. If you are interested in knowing more about him, please contact his current owner at: (310)795-0131, or by email at: st.margelia@gmail.com.

Gary has been neutered and is up to date on vaccinations, and just had a physical examination in April.

General
GARY CAN NEVER EVER HAVE WET FOOD OR TREATS!

Born May 1, 2019. Affectionately called “Garold,” He took much
longer to learn everything than his brother, and not within the normal variance, but significantly longer. He walked about 10 days later than his brother, and he did not do it well. He didn’t play with toys until he was over a year old, but he enjoyed watching his mom and brother play. To this day his favorite toy is a disposable drinking straw from a fast food cup. He also enjoys playing with those gallon jugs that water come in, with the handle. He carries them around in his
mouth and yowls to announce his conquest. He does play with real toys now, too, though! He likes stuffed ones a lot and he has a favorite stuffed pickle that he carries around, and he will frequently leave it just outside his human’s bedroom door at night, as a gift. He plays with water just like his brother does, but is less destructive with it. He doesn’t take the entire fountain apart like Thrash does, he just splashes it everywhere. Gary utilizes his cardboard scratchers frequently and never claws the carpet,