u/ceruleanraindrops

Hi y’all! I’m a tutor in the Katy area and I have a student who I STRONGLYYYY suspect has dyslexia (and potentially ADHD or another neurodevelopmental condition as well). The student mixes up letters and sounds while writing like nothing I’ve encountered before and cannot hold spellings and grammar rules in their head no matter what I try. They’re a smart kid in other areas; it’s just writing and spelling with issues. And they’re far too old for this to be a regular developmental stage of learning—this student has been thoroughly failed by the system for years.

I really care about this student and want them to succeed in life. I’d like to give their family some resources to get more professional support beyond what I’m qualified to do. Has anybody (parent, teacher, or otherwise) found a service/center/program in the Katy or Houston area that’s genuinely helped a kid with dyslexia (in a supportive, not abusive, way)? Any recommendations are welcome, as I’m out of my depth.

This may be very long, I’m so sorry. My [26F] brother [24M] adopted a female kitten when he was in college. She’s around 2.5-3 years old now.

I’m very worried about this cat and have been for a good while.

My brother, my sister [22F] and I live at home with our parents right now to save money with the economy the way it is. Because our parents have a dog (small) who’s aggressive towards other animals, the cat is kept upstairs where our bedrooms are with a gate/fence at the top of the stairs to keep the two separated. The upstairs is NOT large, so she has a very small living space/territory.

He leaves for work around 7:30am and comes back around 5pm most weekdays. Sometimes he doesn’t come home until quite late in the evening (coworkers, maybe? his girlfriend? idk). He barely plays with her; when he’s home, he spends most of his time gaming with headphones on or getting sleep. On weekends, he sometimes will leave her alone for 3 days straight. He has an automatic feeder, so she’s not starving, but she’s alone unless someone else in the family goes to spend time with her (usually me because she trusts me the most). She doesn’t have any other cats to play or socialize with.

She’ll cry at the gate when he comes home (and doesn’t go see her first thing) and it’s the saddest, loneliest sound I’ve ever heard. It breaks my heart. I spend as much time as I can with her, but I need to be downstairs for much of the day so she can’t follow me. She’s alone for like 90-95% of the day, every day. I think he’s annoyed by her wanting attention/stimulation, because he’ll close her out of his room sometimes, or close her IN his room (her litter box and food/water are in there) and go sleep on the couch instead. Like, no kidding she wants attention, you’re basically her DAD and she’s ALONE all the time!!!!! She has little interest in toys, treats, etc, and shows signs of depression.

He doesn’t brush her (she’s a medium-hair, I think? she noticeably sheds, at least), he doesn’t change out her water often enough, or her litter box (like at least a week or two between scoops, let alone changing it entirely) and he procrastinates her vet visits.

He’s also, get this, planning on getting dogs when he eventually moves out to live with his girlfriend. MULTIPLE DOGS. Like??? As if she doesn’t have to put up with enough with my parents’ dog scaring the daylights out of her!! I don’t know what the plan is for the cat when that happens.

My partner loves cats. She has a cat of her own [~1F] and she treats her like she’s her own daughter. When I move out to live with her in a year or two, I’m really tempted to ask if I can take my brother’s cat with me. This precious poor cat loves me because I actually try to spend time with her and treat her with affection. She cries when she sees me at the stairs now too, she rolls over onto my feet, rubs her head into my hands, aaaaaaaa. I adore her and I’ve adored her since she was a baby. I want her to have the best life possible.

How do I approach this with my brother, though? He gets defensive and irritated when anyone brings up cat care and suggests ways to improve her quality of life. I don’t want to scare him off and lose the chance to help her. If he wants dogs and a different lifestyle, that’s completely fine!!! But the cat doesn’t deserve to suffer because of that. She’d have a wonderful, loved life with me and my partner (and I’ve gotten my partner’s enthusiastic consent if this ever happens!).

Has anybody had a similar situation before?

Dyslexia support recommendations?

JJK: Junpei goes to Jujutsu High

How do I convince my brother to let me take care of his cat?