Archive for the ‘The Cats & Other Pets’ Category
Sending a Message the Old Fashioned Way
A few nights ago a little after midnight, as I was getting ready for bed I heard a faint “meow” coming from outside. Now, if you know me, you know that I have two cats who are strictly indoor cats. I never ever let them outside. So when I heard this meow from outside, the first thing I did was make sure my cats hadn’t pulled some sort of miraculous escape. I found both of them sleeping peacefully indoors, thankfully.
But the meowing continued, and got louder. So I decided to investigate.
I opened my front door and stepped out onto my front porch, only to be greeted by a long-haired little siamese kitty. She sat there right on my doorstep, as if she were home, and just waiting for her human to let her in the damn house already. As soon as I came out she meowed and got excited and started rubbing up against my leg. Bug and Sooki (my cats) were sitting in the window looking out, and as soon as they saw the “intruder” cat, they got mad. Well, Sooki did anyway. And “mad” is an understatement. There was much hissing and growling and territory-claiming coming from that little angelic mouth.
I checked the “intruder” cat for a collar or tags, but there were none. She didn’t look like a stray, though, so I figured it was just a neighborhood cat who was lost. I shooed her away, and went back inside.
But that little cat was sure she was home. She camped out on my doorstep and meowed for at least 30-40 minutes. I felt horrible. Poor little kitty just wanted to be home, and thought my house was the place she was supposed to be! She was lost. This is where I become infuriated at irresponsible cat owners who (a) let their cats roam free at night unsupervised and (b) do not put identification on their pets. A less animal-loving neighbor probably would have called Animal Control, which is basically a death sentence for the cat.
Eventually I fell asleep, and the kitty was gone by morning. I didn’t see her again until today.
This afternoon I got a knock on the door. I opened it to see my next door neighbor, with the long-haired siamese cat in his arms, struggling to get free.
“Is this your cat?” he asked. This neighbor knew we had cats, and so when this little kitty performed the meowing routine on his porch, his first instinct was to check with us, for which I am very grateful. (If my cats ever DID find an escape, it’s nice to know I have neighbors who would look out for them!)
I told my neighbor no, that is not my cat, but I knew of this cat. He’s obviously not a cat person, and didn’t know how to “hold” a kitty, and she was squirming uncomfortably in his arms. So I stepped outside and took the cat from him, relieving him of his cat-rescuing duties.
Fed up at whoever owns this cat, I decided I was going to do my best to find her home. I proceeded to walk with the cat in my arms from door to door, knocking on every door in my little area trying to find the kitties home. Of course, on a Tuesday afternoon, everyone was at work and I got no answers. About halfway through my journey the cat struggled out of my arms, so I hope that meant I was near her house. But she then proceeded to follow me like a puppy to every following house, and then all the way home back to my house. I knocked on at least 10 doors.
Unsuccessful in my pursuit for the cats home, I just left it on my porch again and came inside, frustrated and sad for the little kitty.
Then I got a crazy idea.
I went and found one of my cats old collars. Then I wrote the following note:
“Dear neighbor,
Is this your cat? I know she lives in this area, because a few times this week she has showed up on my porch thinking she is home. She seems Lost. I feel bad, because she has no tag and I have no way to help her find her way home. Here is a free cat collar. PLEASE go buy a pet ID tag at Petco for her to wear, so next time she is lost, she can find her way home. Thanks! 
”
Then, just like they did with pigeons in ancient European times, I wrapped the note around the collar, with “READ ME” on the outside, and went and tied my message to the mystery cat.
I couldn’t help but laugh. I mean, who does that?! A crazy concerned cat lady, that’s who.
The mystery cat didn’t seem to mind the collar much. After I snapped it on, she proceeded to roll around in my hydrangea bush and under my day-lilies.
Hopefully next time I see her, she’s donning a fancy shiny name tag.
The Sooki Results Are In
You may have read the whole debacle about Sooki and her little teeth. We recently went through massive amounts of stress and cash to clean her teeth and test her for Stomatisis, which we suspected she had due to her highly red and inflamed gums.
Well, we finally got the results of her gum biopsy and….
she doesn’t have Stomatisis!
This is fabulous news! No medication or intervention will be needed! We just need to keep her teeth extra clean. *whew!* Now she can just go back to being cute and a total stinker.
A Sooki Update
This morning I woke up hours earlier than normal, so I could get Sooki to the Vet before 8:00 a.m. to have her Dental Cleaning and Gum Biopsy done. I always wake up much easier when I’m anticipating something – good or bad. So this morning, waking up early didn’t affect me much.
Bug woke me by almost throwing up on my pillow. Then Sooki said good morning by peeing on the blanket. Lovely.
That right there told me that it was definitely going to be a cat-day. I anticipated a day of stress and waiting much like I’ve had before. Little did I know that the day would go much smoother than the puke-and-pee morning.
I made an attempt to tame my hair, made no attempt to put on makeup, packed Sooki in her carrier and got on our way to the Vet. I got stuck in traffic (whoa, traveling during rush hour? That’s so not normal for me.) but finally made it there after a 30+ minute drive. On the way, I talked to Sooki the whole time telling her she’s a good girl and that I love her. Yeah, I cried. I was so nervous for her to be under anesthesia.
They checked Sooki in, and went over all the specifics with me again of what they were going to do. They moved her to the first appointment of the day, and assured me they’d call me very soon. I left there, driving sort of aimlessly along some random route on my way to work. But I noticed something… I wasn’t feeling that sinking worried feeling. I felt reassured and confident. I didn’t feel too worried anymore – I really had a feeling that everything was going to be just fine. This took me by surprise – usually I’m all “dooms day worst case scenario worrier.” I got to work, sat at my desk, and actually was able to begin working.
Not 2 hours later it was all over. I barely had put a dent into my work day when I talked to the Vet and she told me that everything had gone smoothly, and that Sooki was done and just about to wake up. An hour after that, she told me she was awake and alert and doing perfect.
What a relief! It was only 11:00 a.m. and I didn’t need to worry any more. Woo hoo!
They only had her under anesthesia for an hour. They took some Xrays of her little teeth, and everything actually looks great. They cleaned her teeth, took some gum biopsies (that are being sent to a lab) and that was pretty much it!
So, the scary part is over! We’ll find out more about if/how badly she has Stomatisis next week… but that’s not something I’m stressing about. Whatever the results, there will be a simple treatment.
I went to pick her up at 4:00 p.m., and that’s when they told me she had been waiting for me all day by hissing and growling at everyone there. SOOKI! She’s like any girl… anxiety and attitude. But the minute I got her into the car with me she was all purrs and meows and head-bumps against my hand. Awww.
When we got home, she bounded out of her carrier, hardly wobbly at all, and was bright eyed and alert. This is the REAL relief. (That’s what Tap wasn’t able to do.) She immediately took interest in the little kitty “band-aid” on her arm (from where her IV was) and was annoyed with it.
She plopped down and spent some time trying to lick it off…
Eventually she gave up (it needed to stay on another hour or so) and instead spent a good long while licking that icky Vet smell off her body. Here, I interrupt her to take a photo.
After that she ran up and down the stairs a few times, jumped up on the counter to troll for food, and jumped on the couch to sniff around.
Yeah, I think she’s just fiiiiine.
