ZOZO’S PETALS

When you don’t know what is wrong, you suffer. When the injured party can’t tell you what is wrong, you both are miserable. Such is the plight of an ill feline. She can’t use human words to articulate the problem, and the veterinarian can only make an educated guess. Zozo appeared to have a sinus infection and breathing returned to almost normal after consuming the Clavamox medication for a few days. Unfortunately, a couple days after ceasing the medicine her breathing became labored again. I called the veterinarian and procured another round of antibiotics. The new meds, Zeniquin 25mg (Marboflocacin) is a stronger formula that has been approved for dogs but the vet said that there have been good results with cats. It cost $27 for two weeks since the pills are cut in half.

Because she is intelligent, I learned to show Zozo the pill, pry open her mouth, and set the pill on the back of her tongue. When she is obliging, she swallows, I praise her, and Zozo purrs. Better than trying to trick her to eat it, which usually did not work or forcing it into her mouth. The logical approach reduced her bitter and resentful reaction to an irritated scowl. Placing a dab of butter on the pill seems to make her more compliant but she knows enough to avoid me when she hears the pill bottle being opened.

Tillie is excited because I have continued to give Zozo a daily dose of L-lysine. The 500 mg pill is huge so I crush it in my mortar bowl with a pestle. I scoop out about a tablespoon of wet cat food, mix in the crushed amino-acid, and place it on a small plate. Tillie gets about a teaspoon on her own plate. I have to watch to make certain that Zozo consumes her portion or else Tillie will body-check Zozo and gobble down the doctored food. Tillie is a bully even though she weighs less and is younger than Zozo. I have been taking a pill too since I’ve been dealing with the whiplash and a cold. The vet copied a page from a medical book to support the use of lysine for me to read. I should have asked for the title of the book.

Zozo was better after only two doses of the stronger antibiotic. The vet told me to give her the entire two-week dose to make certain that the infection is cleared. She has been throwing up more than usual and I wonder if it is related to the medication. Veterinarians should provide the same reference sheet as human-treating doctors do when administering prescriptions. I would have a better understanding of what to watch for regarding adverse reactions. The stress of having an ill animal makes it difficult to remember conversations at the vet office; I’m lucky that I don’t collapse from worry. I adore my cats and have a responsibility to make certain that they are healthy and happy. They rely upon me to be a good caretaker. I take that responsibility seriously.

Love my felixes.
© 2013 Ima B. Musing

HERE COMES TROUBLE

A forlorn sound is heard. What could it be? “Yeeaawwhh? Yeeaawwhh?” Alas, poor Zoë, she has once again become trapped behind a door. Pickles aka Ms. Trouble! I rescue her from the guest room. She snuck in there when I ventured in to retrieve an item. She must have been content for a while because she did not start mewing for an hour. No worse for the wear, she waltzes out as if nothing out of the ordinary has occurred.

Her curiosity has caused her to get shut up into cabinets, closets and boxes. Thankfully, someone always heard her forlorn pleas and let her out. Her worst mishap was gashing her left hind leg at the hock (knee). Zoë was just over a year old. I arrived home from work to find her bleeding on the kitchen floor. The gash must have just occurred because there was not much blood but she had ripped the skin through to the bone. It was unsettling to see the tissue and sinew around her hock joint. The veterinarian speculated that she was chewing an itchy spot and accidentally ripped the skin since there were no other abrasions to her skin.

Unfortunately, my veterinarian’s office was closed. I rushed her over to the emergency vet’s office and they performed an operation to close the wound. I nearly had a heart attack when I received the bill of nearly $500 but she was alive. I asked what I needed to do and they said that I should leave on the bandage and take her to my regular vet in a couple days. We were both exhausted so I put her into the bathroom (for safety) with a clean litter box, food, water, toys and a blanket and went to bed.

I arose the next morning to check on her. Much to my dismay, her foot was quadrupled in size; it looked like Sylvester The Cat’s foot whenever he damaged it. I tore off the bandage and she was crying in pain. Of course, I had an important meeting at work, which I could not cancel. I called my vet and they said that I should drop her off. I took Zoë in and went to work. I was distracted throughout the meeting and called the vet as soon as it was finished. They said that the emergency vet had not removed the restriction bandage and that is why Zoë’s leg swelled – literally called “cartoon foot.” The removal of the bandage allowed circulation to return and she was doing okay. They didn’t even charge me for watching her for a couple hours and checking the wound. Yes, I used sick leave to tend to the ill cat.

Critters are a responsibility. TO BE CONTINUED
(c) 2010