Mancat Monday: A Sick Boy and His Hematoma

Hello, friends! We're sorry for falling off the face of the earth the past couple of days. As is the case in many areas right now, we've been having some wild weather. We're currently in an ice storm.

What's more, my poor boy Evan has not been feeling well. A kitty cold has been making its way through my house as well as my parents' house. All of the kitties who have ended up with the sneezes and all that jazz have gotten over it relatively quickly and easily. Except for my boy Evan. He is a sneezing fiend and has been for nearly 2 weeks now, and his eyes are very pink, watery, and sometimes squinted. He's also pretty lethargic, and is simply much quieter and more tired than usual. Then, yesterday, I noticed that Evan had developed a hematoma in his right ear. This can happen when a cat scratches or shakes their head a lot. Evan is hind limb paralyzed and so isn't doing a whole lot of scratching at his ear, but he has been shaking his head a lot while sick. There's also a chance the hematoma came about during one of his sneezing fits.

That photo was taken this morning. Do you see how poor, tired Evan's right ear is a bit lumpy and at an odd angle? That's because of the hematoma. I saw and helped drain a number of these while working at a cat clinic a little over decade ago, but none of my cats have ever had one before.

So, after an especially tough weekend of Evan not feeling well, I called the vet first thing this morning and was able to get him in to be seen. Everything is covered in ice in our town right now, so my amazing dad drove Evan and myself to the vet in his 4-wheel drive truck. I had scheduled to drop Evan off at the vet since he wasn't on the schedule for today, but since the weather caused so many cancellations, the vet was able to see Evan right then and there, without me having to drop him off.

Unsurprisingly, the vet officially diagnosed Evan with an upper respiratory infection. He is now on antibiotics. In case those don't work within the next 24 to 48 hours, the vet gave me a prescription for an antiviral that I can go pick up at any local pharmacy.

As for the aural hematoma, Evan's vet is pretty sure this one will resolve on its own. Some cats will get hematomas that fill nearly the entire pinna of the ear. Evan's is relatively small, though, all things considered. If it doesn't start to shrink in the next week or two, then we'll proceed with some form of treatment for it.

Sorry for rambling, friends. And for being such a terrible blogger. I've been a worried cat mom lately, but I know you all can relate to that.

Warm wishes to all!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

As you all certainly know, cats often seek out heat. Those pups out there sometimes do, too. For this reason, when it's cold this winter, monitor your furbaby around any sort of heat source. This of course goes for fireplaces, which should be sufficiently blocked so that kitties and pups can't directly access it or end up with burns. But, this also goes for various space heaters, radiators, and even floor or wall registers for the furnace. Especially if your cat or dog is known to park themselves incredibly close to, or even on top of, such heat sources, be sure to keep a very close eye on them when heaters are being used, or when the furnace is running. If they are near a heat source, check on them regularly, and feel them to make sure that they, and their fur, are not getting dangerously hot. Depending on the kind of heat produced by various heat sources, burns and other injuries can occur if a kitty or pup sleeps on or near it. If needed, such as if your kitty or pup insists on keeping a heater or furnace register company, consider blocking direct access to them. For example, there are safe, fire-proof covers for furnace registers on the floor or wall. When it comes to space heaters, if needed, place them in areas where your kitty or pup does not have access. In other cases, you might be able to find a way to safely block direct access to heaters and radiators, so that your furbaby can enjoy the heat without the risk of burns. Of course we want our furbabies to stay warm in the winter, but it is also important to ensure that your kitty or pup does not end up with burns or other injuries.