My cat was almost back like she was on Sunday when I took her to the Emergency Hospital last night when I got home. I couldn’t believe it. Richard had been with her all day! Apparently she had been acting normal until an hour before I got home. Frantic, I canceled our dinner plans. I needed to keep an eye on her. She got worse within the next hour. I was about to take her back to the ER, when her regular Doctor called to check on her. After talking with her we thought forcing water down her throat to keep her hydrated would be fine till morning. Then I was going to drop her off at the vet, and skip the expensive ER. So we gave her about 2 ounces of water, and let her sleep a bit. She woke up around 9 and was obviously feeling better. She ate and drank on her own, her fur looked normal, and she was alert again. Relieved, we all got on the couch and watched TV before bed. This morning she seemed fine too. She drank water as soon as she was up and about. She ate breakfast. I called the vet and let them know I was going to watch her at home, and not drop her off since she still seemed okay.

Later in the afternoon I became concerned. I hadn’t seen her drink anything. I tried to give her water, but she turned away. So I tried her moist food. She went for that, so I mixed it with more water and hand fed her. After a few more hours she still hadn’t drank on her own and was starting to look gaunt again. Dehydrated again. I gave her more canned food with water and called the vet again. She said we should bring her in. We just dropped her off. I hope to hear something by 5:15. That’s when they said I should return. I just hope she’s okay. I thought this “spaying” was a Routine Procedure. I thought there were rarely complications. I thought most cats were feeling normal after 24 - 48 hours. It’s been nearly 5 days. The ER vet thought she was fine. My cat isn’t acting fine. Is she in pain, tear a stitch, or just a drama queen? Hopefully I’ll know in an hour.

I am so afraid I am going to lose her. For something I elected to have done. I cannot explain the guilt and remorse I already feel. If this gets worse… I am going to be a mess.

tagged: cat versace kitten spay

daniel · mid-afternoon · 5 comments · ping it

Well, I just returned from the Emergency Pet Hospital.

After a day and a half of feeling fine and being far too active Versace was feeling the effects of her spaying this morning. She didn’t want to get out of bed, and when she did she was moving slow. I noticed right away that she was shivering. I figured she was cold so I popped on the heat and went about my morning routine. I started by putting down cat food. Coco of course came running. Versace did not. Odd, but I had figured she was finally feeling all the jumping around she had been doing. I felt bad so made her food a special treat by mixing in some cottage cheese (loves it, and good for her coat… they say). I even brought it up to her. She didn’t want it. She wasn’t even interested. Worried, I went and got the other treats she really *REALLY* likes. She sniffed at it a bit but only ate it after I tore it up small. Scared, but still thinking she was hurting I gave her the pain medication. She slept for a bit, but was clearly feeling and looking worse when she woke up. That’s when we went to the Emergency Room.

I hadn’t been there since Chanel died, and panic really hit when I dove into the driveway. By the time I walked in the door I was feeling waves of emotion combined with my worry over Versace. They took her to the back right away. I had to fill out forms. Then I was sent to the waiting area. After what felt like forever a young man came out with my Portable Pet Home that we use as a carrier. It was empty. I think my heart stopped, but he quickly explained that Versace was with the doctor, and someone would take me back shortly. They really shouldn’t come out with empty pet carriers. It’s just cruel. After another eternity I was finally led to the exam room. No it wasn’t exam room 3, luckily. Still, as soon as I got inside it was all too much. It looked the same. Smelled the same. In my mind I could see Richard bent over the exam table with Chanel. I lost it. I cried. I cried for Richard’s loss, for Chanel, and out of fear for my new little Versace. I hadn’t pulled it together by the time the doctor came in. I think I startled her. She had to think I was crazy. So I explained my last visit to that particular hospital. Which got me teary again. She assured me that Versace was fine, and not going to die. Once I had relaxed a bit she explained what she thought was going on and we talked about how it happened.

She thinks my cat is in extreme pain from the surgery, and her activity since. She doesn’t think Versacec was shivering from cold, but fear and pain. After talking we established that I was administering the medicine incorrectly and she wasn’t getting enough. It wore off. Once in so much pain she stopped eating and drinking, and got dehydrated too. I feel awful about that, but I am relieved that my kitten is okay. If the doctor was right my baby should be feeling better and continue healing just fine. She thought that the incision looked clean and good. Nothing was torn open, the swelling there was normal. All of that looked fine. They helped administer the medicine correctly and we went home.

Since then Versace looks better, still sleepy and not moving, but responsive. She also ate a kibble. Yay!

tagged: cat versace kitten emergency surgery spay

daniel · early afternoon · 2 comments · ping it

*Read no further if you are sick of Cat Blogging*

So as it turns out, my kitten has an amazing threshold for pain. Or she’s insane. Or both. I went to pick her up at the vet at 4. She had been out of surgery for about 4 hours from what I was told, and she was just waking up from the drugs. Groggy. And all dolled up in one of those e-collars. Poor thing. The tech told me she had chosen a soft collar for comfort. Comfort. In an e-collar? Right. So I pay my 3 billion dollars and off we go. She was in her Portable Pet Home in the seat next to me. As soon as I got the car out into traffic she started thrashing about and screaming in there. By thrashing, I do mean just that. Throwing herself about in there like an insane cat. I am lucky I didn’t get into an accident on the way to the house with all that going on.

After what seemed like an eternity we finally get home. I let her out of the carrier, expecting her to settle down a bit. She was clearly still drugged after all, and was quite wobbly on her feet. She didn’t care. She was all over the living room. Circling. Then she went down the stairs. Then she came up. Then down. Then up. Stairs are to be avoided! The instructions upon discharge made that very clear! She was not “settling down” so I tried the recommended “isolating her in one room” method. I even brought up her box! She could be in there, avoid stairs, and recover in peace. She didn’t want no peace. She was up and down on the bed, circling around, NOT holding still. I was panicking at this point. She’s just stitched and glued shut from the operation. All this activity and she’s gonna pop her seam!

So I call the vet. They say to put her in her carrier to limit her movement, and that at 7 when we give her the pain medicine it’ll make her sleepy. Okaaay. So I pop her back into the Portable Pet Home.

That’s when she really went wild. She thrashed and rolled and body slammed herself in that thing. It was like one of those cartoon cat fights in there! She also worked her way out of her e-collar. (I really don’t think those work for cats…) after about a half an hour we decided that was no good either. We let her out, put the collar back on her and just let her be. She still jumped, and climbed, and took off the damn collar again, but was at least calm. That had to be better for her recovery than the confinement. So we just watched her close, ready to take her to the Emergency Clinic if she tore her incision. She didn’t.

Now it’s 10AM the next day. We are all up and about. She lasted the night without tearing or picking. I think I might survive this.

tagged: cat versace kitten emergency surgery vet recovery

daniel · at some point · say it · ping it

I just heard back from the vet. Versace’s surgery went fine. I can pick her up at four. *phew* I am relieved. I am sure I had no reason to worry, but I was. I had looked up what a “spaying” entailed the other day and it freaked me out. They pretty much remove all her stuff. The whole “area” gets deleted. Ew. On boys it’s a lot less invasive I think. I didn’t look, but one assumes. Anyhoo. She’s fine. No more “Heat”, and with any luck no more big vet bills for a while. I swear, all this has literally cost me more than the actual cat!

Okay. Enough about that. Back to my dinner preparations. I am making salad, and since I hate doing it, I do the whole head of lettuce. We get a few days out of it that way. One less thing to make each day.. Ta!

tagged: versace surgery vet spay

daniel · lunch time · say it · ping it

What? Thursday? Well, for most folk, I am sure it is. However it is a three day weekend for me! A much needed one. work has been totally sucky this week. I need a short escape! But it won’t be all fun times on the 3-dayer. My kitten, using the term loosely since The Heat, is going in for her spay tomorrow. It is something we need to do as responsible pet owners. Sure she is purebred, but we have no intention of breeding her. In fact, we didn’t even purchase her with breeding rights. But all that aside… I am worried about it. She is a bit young as far as normal spaying age. She is also a bit small. Siamese are narrow mid-sized cats and she is nowhere near full grown. So as easy and common as a spaying is I am concerned about my baby.

So Friday morning I drop her off. I plan to then do my errands around town so that when I pick her up later I can stay home and observe… Like a good cat-dad. If all goes well and there are no issues with healing or getting picked at by Coco we are going to a Game Night (yet to be confirmed tho, where’s the official email?) on Saturday. Sunday I’d like to Geocache or rollerblade if the weather holds.

Hmm. Sounds basic. I need to throw in bacon somewhere in these plans…

*this entry posted while not wearing pants

tagged: pets versace siamese coco spay 3 day weekend

daniel · lunch time · say it · ping it

I knew the Siamese, as a breed could be vocal and distinct. I was totally prepared. When things are normal I get a lot of joy from little Versace. However, last night things weren’t normal. She clearly was not herself.

She started acting a bit off in the afternoon, a bit moody, a bit nervous and distracted even. As we neared bedtime she seemed a bit clingy, and still distracted. Not even interested in her “bedtime toy”. (Yes, “bedtime toy”. It’s totally not weird if you have had a kitten. 20 minutes before bed she gets to play with a toy that only comes out at that time to burn off that last bit of energy so she’ll sleep through the night.) Anyhoo, so no-go with playtime. So I shut out the light and we attempt to sleep. Versace placed her self on my chest, which is totally not where she normally sleeps. She purred and was still for about 20 minutes. I know this because she purrs really loudly. Then she was up and about the room crying, then down the hall, then down stairs. Crying. All night. Of course on the night before Richard and I were due back to work.

Now I know you have all heard about a Siamese cat’s cry. It is often compared to a crying infant. Only louder. And, as Randy Jackson would say, “pitchy”. So I got no sleep, and I am sure Richard only got about an hour or 2 during those brief times I was able to get her calm. When morning came I got on the net. (Sounds exciting when you say it like that! I also leapt into action!) I researched her symptoms and came up with a lot of sources regarding “cats in heat”. Erm. I thought she was a bit young for that, but apparently Siamese will go into “heat” as early as 5 months. Sometimes as early as 4! I freaked out a bit. I mean, talk about an abrupt end to Kittendom! Also, she didn’t quite have all the symptoms… but her constant cleaning of her kitty-zone had me really worried. So I called in sick so I could watch her, just in case. I also put a call in to the vet. Since I had no appointment I had to wait for a doctor to call me back between appointments. Hours later I spoke to a doctor who felt she had an infection in her urinary tract, not an early “heat”. He advised I bring her right in. I did.

200 bucks later and we have a diagnosis, a prescription, and hopefully a cat that will sleep tonight. (Thank gawd for pet insurance!!)

UPDATE: Things have escalated! Gotten louder! And it’s odd how my cat can walk in reverse with her ass poking out like that… I think we have been miss-diagnosed.  This heat thing, if that’s what it is, can go on for 2 weeks, only to start up again a week later… Ugh. I hope I am wrong.

tagged: cat loud versace kitten siamese

daniel · mid-afternoon · say it · ping it