A Stressful Day With Some Good News
Since Hermes died of FeLV, we made an appointment to test Katrina for the same illness. She had it yesterday.
The good news: She doesn't have FeLV. Or heartworms, or some other things outdoor cats are at risk for. Nor does she have any abnormal physical signs apart from mild obesity - for a 10 year old cat, she's in excellent condition. And now, she's been vaccinated against FeLV, rabies and a bunch of other things, and they made us give her a de-worming pill just in case. (Though if she does have worms, I wonder how fat she'd be without them!)
I also found out several other things. The recent cold spell is enough to make a double-coated cat shiver, even in a heated car. Katrina sometimes drools when she's extremely upset. She doesn't like car rides, she doesn't like unfamiliar places, and she absolutely hates our cat carrier.
She also has a very strong hatred of vetrinary exams. Rectal thermometers and palpating kidneys appear to be her two least favorite parts of it, and she's willing to threaten biting to get the vet to stop. (It didn't work, though I got to see how good that vet is at dodging.) She's also leery of unfamiliar dogs, even if they are fellow patients.
But if you don't do anything weird to her, she's perfectly fine with a stranger petting her, even when she's very stressed out. And clinging to my shoulder gives her a lot of comfort, though her stress-related shedding really sets off my allergies. She doesn't try to bolt when in an unfamiliar place, instead she cautiously explores while keeping near me.
I also found out how stressful it can be, for someone as close to cats as I am, to spend most of the day with a stressed out, very expressive cat they've formed a strong bond with.
She needs a booster shot in 4 weeks. That'll be interesting.
The good news: She doesn't have FeLV. Or heartworms, or some other things outdoor cats are at risk for. Nor does she have any abnormal physical signs apart from mild obesity - for a 10 year old cat, she's in excellent condition. And now, she's been vaccinated against FeLV, rabies and a bunch of other things, and they made us give her a de-worming pill just in case. (Though if she does have worms, I wonder how fat she'd be without them!)
I also found out several other things. The recent cold spell is enough to make a double-coated cat shiver, even in a heated car. Katrina sometimes drools when she's extremely upset. She doesn't like car rides, she doesn't like unfamiliar places, and she absolutely hates our cat carrier.
She also has a very strong hatred of vetrinary exams. Rectal thermometers and palpating kidneys appear to be her two least favorite parts of it, and she's willing to threaten biting to get the vet to stop. (It didn't work, though I got to see how good that vet is at dodging.) She's also leery of unfamiliar dogs, even if they are fellow patients.
But if you don't do anything weird to her, she's perfectly fine with a stranger petting her, even when she's very stressed out. And clinging to my shoulder gives her a lot of comfort, though her stress-related shedding really sets off my allergies. She doesn't try to bolt when in an unfamiliar place, instead she cautiously explores while keeping near me.
I also found out how stressful it can be, for someone as close to cats as I am, to spend most of the day with a stressed out, very expressive cat they've formed a strong bond with.
She needs a booster shot in 4 weeks. That'll be interesting.
posted by Ettina at 7:43 AM
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