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"Pass" meaning that cats don't do the sort of things that human-type children do that scare you half to death.
OK, so it's been pretty hot out, but that doesn't stop D'Artagnan from running around like a chicken with its head cut off. He's still barely more than a kitten* (16 months), a long tall bony 11 1/4 lbs. So much energy that boy has...:shrug:
He finally flopped down on the sidewalk, panting.
*Just to clarify, I consider them 'of age' when they hit 2 years.
Like I said, it's HOT. Figure the boy is overheated, so I bring him inside and he DOES feel pretty warm. "Let's get you cooled down, baby-kitty."
He doesn't want to drink. OK, think fast, wabbit...er...badgerpup. Cats don't have sweat glands like humans do except in their paw pads. Sweat cools humans off by evaporating on the skin. Sweat = water. Right! Let's get the boy damped down.
Don't want to just dunk him, he not only won't like it, it could shock his system...very bad idea.
I took the boar's bristle brush and started brushing water through his fur. Had him soaked in a few minutes. He wasn't really happy, but he seemed a bit more relaxed, and as he gradually dried off he felt cooler.
Yay, crisis averted!...or so I thought.:yoiks:
Went into the computer room to answer email and D'Artagnan came in to hang with me.
Stretched out in his kitty bed and I looked at him.
Short, fast, labored respirations.
HIT THE PANIC BUTTON! :nuke:
Call the emergency vet- "INCOMING!" and we're OFF. Don't have a usable carrier just now, so I carry him in my arms. He's a good boy and doesn't struggle. In the exam room he's alert, prowling around, exploring. Good signs. He growls at the vet. Vet was kind of tired, I guess; because he just reached for him and started the exam. Told him D'Artagnan was used to being talked to and suggested that he TELL D'Artagnan what he was going to do and he'd be more cooperative and wouldn't growl. By golly, it worked. D'Artagnan stopped growling everytime the vet tried to do something.
Note to self: try to remember to bring the Rescue Remedy cream to put in their ears...
it helped Wimsey when he had to see the vet last week for his...er...proctology exam. :hide:
Diagnosis: D'Artagnan was having an asthma attack (and I felt MUCH better about bringing him in).
They gave him a couple hits of albuterol (sp?)...after telling him this would make him feel better...
and he relaxed and settled down. Poor baby had probably worn himself out trying to breathe.
They called in a script for me to my pharmacy...and the pharmacist and technician told me they'd laughed mightily when it had come through. "An inhaler? For your CAT?" :rofl:
Wimsey gets Optive Refresh eyedrops, and now D'Artagnan has an inhaler. Like I said, you don't get a "pass" with cats.
The cute little plastic pediatric chamber (which the vet recommended for kitty use was...wait for it...$60.
:wtf:
Yup, that's SIXTY...DOLLARS.:wow:
The 'adult' chamber wouldn't have done any good because a cat's jaws aren't shaped like that.
Let's think about this. I'm good at solving problems and thinking out of the box...and it's amazing what you can accomplish with a little ingenuity (and duct tape).
The tech offers "Some people have told me they've improvised using a toilet paper roll for this."
PERFECT!:thumbsup:
Just the right size, affordable, disposable...and it won't smell like something out of the vet's office and scare him like the plastic thing might very well do (which would exacerbate the situation).
I forgave them for laughing. :pals:
***
It's July, which means Wimsey and D'Artagnan are due for their yearly distemper/leukemia vaccinations.
I give them myself- saves me about $60. Esme and Riktor are due in November...this saves me from having to shell out for 4 doses of Eclipse 4+FeLvTM at once.
So, uncap the syringe, mix up the dose in the cute little bottles, fill the syringe with said dose and inject the cat.
Does it make sense when I say they break my heart? They PURRED during the process. I told them what I was doing, and why, and apologized for the stick (their neck-scruff is very tough skin)...and they purred.:loveya::cry:
No poop shoes, no shunning, no shredding of anything...just a humble amazement and wondering how I got so lucky. :hug:
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