See that face up there? That's the face of a kitty who doesn't feel well.
On Tuesday morning, before I left for work, Thimble was her usual self. She was sauntering around the house like the boss ladycat she is, slurping down moist food, nibbling at her dry food, having conversations with the wall, all that good stuff.
When I came home for lunch on Tuesday, Thimble was a bit quieter than usual. I thought that maybe it had something to do with the construction workers jack-hammering away at the sidewalk outside of our house. Besides, Thimble did indeed get up when I came home, checked the status of the moist food bowls, sat in her usual spot on the rug to make sure none of the other kitties got out of line. By the time I left to go back to work, Thimble was in her usual afternoon snoozie spot. To be honest, though, I didn't like how she was lying. She looked a bit hunched up and puffed out for my comfort. I warned her that if she didn't straighten up, I would schedule her a date with the V-E-T.
Fast forward to Tuesday evening, a couple of hours later when I arrived home from work, and Thimble was about the same. She mostly wanted to rest, not all that unusual for her at that time of day, but more so than I like to see. And she still looked uncomfortable. It was at about 8 pm when she refused her evening baby food treat, instead opting to vomit a bit of bile, and then curled up on the less than cozy seat of my exercise bike, somewhere she rarely if ever snoozes. At that point I knew for certain that she would be taking a trip to the V-E-T.
I know I can't be the only pet parent who stares at your sick furbaby after their primary veterinary office closes, thinking, "Are you hanging in there? Do we need to take a trip to the emergency clinic? Or can you wait until morning?" When Thimble purred and rolled her belly up for me, I decided I would watch her like a hawk, and if she didn't worsen, I would wait until morning.
Indeed, I watched her like a hawk. There wasn't a whole lot to watch, though, as Thimble slept through the night as per usual. She did pass a bit of soft stool on Wednesday morning, and had no interest in food whatsoever (and this is the girl that slaps her mommy across the face if the food bowls are empty past 5:30 am). Soon after, when the V-E-T opened, I called and asked to drop off my sick little ladycat. They're fantastic people there, and they were ready for her.
The PTU was all ready and waiting, and I ushered a reluctant Thimble inside. We arrived at the clinic, and everyone oohed and awwed over her, as per usual. I told the vet tech all of Thimble's symptoms, including how, as of that morning, her pupils were dilated. See there in the picture above? Something was indeed making this girl uncomfortable. Then they took her to the back, and, it being a drop off, I forced myself to leave and go to work.
There's not much more unnerving than waiting for your phone to ring, with hopefully good news on your furbaby's health. When the phone rang, I was in the car on my lunch hour, driving in the pouring rain. I answered immediately and pulled over. The doctor himself called, a war veteran with some serious skills in veterinary medicine (he just so happens to be the one who removed my Angel Rosie's faulty eyeball). The long and short of it? Thimble was being a perfect angel for them, her blood work was all normal, but she does have a urinary tract infection (UTI).
Okay, I can handle that. Thimble had a urinary tract infection as a kitten. Yes, as a tiny kitten, a runt who was malnourished before I met her, tiny Thimble had a UTI even back at 6 weeks of age. She hasn't had one since, which honestly always surprised me. Hopefully I didn't jinx the girl with that thought.
So, Thimble will be on antibiotics for 21 days, and then she'll have herself a recheck urinalysis. I hate forcing medicine in her mouth, the sweet thing she is who wouldn't hurt a fly (okay, I'm lying, she tortures flies with next to no remorse, but you get the idea), but I will do whatever it takes to make her feel better. Sorry, Thimble, that's just how much your mommy loves you.
I'll probably be getting that cold shoulder for a while now. But that's okay. At least Thimble will be feeling better soon enough.
Actually, after arriving back home on Wednesday night, Thimble was already acting exceedingly better. They had given Thimble some electrolytes during her stay at the V-E-T, in large part because she hadn't eaten in a day, and I could tell it made her feel a great deal better. When we got home she even begged for baby food and scarfed it down. Unfortunately, she also vomited it up. She continued to ask for food, the poor, starving girl, and finally was able to keep some down. It sure is comforting to see her acting like herself again, parading around the house, twitching her tail in excitement, and just being purrfect little Thimble that she is.
Now, if I can only convince Eddy that I didn't bring some new, strange cat home from the V-E-T. It's still the same ol' Thimble, Eddy, so you can out from under the bed now.
For Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop, this here mom is thankful for Thimble's health, and that all of her furbabies and all of our furiends.
Of course, as always, we're also thankful for our family and friends, like you!
Wishing everybuddy a wonderful Thursday!
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Our Doodle of the Day:
This is the doodle we already had ready for today. Since she was going to be showing off our recent movie night, Thimble wanted to use this to remind everyone that the book is always better than the movie. It seems a bit out of place now, but Thimble insists that we still share it.
P.S. We asked if anyone could guess the movie we shared in our last Theatrical Thursday post, but we never gave you the answer. It was Coraline. Kudos to Annie Bear and Mary McNeil for guessing it right!
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Our Doodle of the Day:
Always remember that our kitties, and even our pups, can be pros at hiding discomfort and disease. In the wild, displaying weakness can make one easy prey, and our furbabies have transferred that even to their lives with us. This is just one reason why it's important to take your furbaby in for at least their annual exams, so that those hidden diseases can be caught as early as possible. But, prevention of diseases can easily begin at home, even with simple checks of your furbaby and their behaviors. Get in the habit of keeping track of your furbaby's usuals, from how much and when they usually eat, when and where they usually relieve themselves, or how and where they usually sleep. Keep an eye on anything and everything about them, such as their posture – do they look hunched up, uncomfortable? How about their eyes? Are their eyes unusually squinted, their pupils dilated, their third eyelids up? Veterinarians can help treat and cure disease, but preventing it or catching it early is often something best suited for a pet parent. After all, no one knows your furbaby like you do.
