I will miss the Hodgepodge this week. I'm leaving for a couple days and won't be taking my laptop along.
While we were away for a week and a half in March, our kitty was taken care of by our son who visited her every other day and took care of the necessaries. But, when we returned, we noticed that Tuppence has not been eating well. I tried giving her straight tuna from a can, and she seemed to like it, but the excitement didn't last too long. When I gave her a wee can of moist cat food, she lapped up all the broth and I later found the bits of food-like-substance strewn on the floor like a four foot minefield. She obviously was not impressed with it.
While we were away for a week and a half in March, our kitty was taken care of by our son who visited her every other day and took care of the necessaries. But, when we returned, we noticed that Tuppence has not been eating well. I tried giving her straight tuna from a can, and she seemed to like it, but the excitement didn't last too long. When I gave her a wee can of moist cat food, she lapped up all the broth and I later found the bits of food-like-substance strewn on the floor like a four foot minefield. She obviously was not impressed with it.
She's also been really whiny and scolding.
'Hurry up and get in bed so I can lie next to your head and sneeze on you!'
'And give me a break! I'm an old cat!!'
I made an appointment for Tuppence to visit the vet. We had her there at 11:30, as scheduled, and met the new vet. It's pretty hard to beat our own James Herriot who is selfishly thinking of retiring, but I'll have to say this new guy made a good impression on both Mr. C. and me. He was kind, thorough, and didn't seem to want to rush the cat out of there to get on with more important things. Evidently he's learning a lot from our usual vet. This was an auspicious beginning, as far as we were concerned.
It's true - Cats struggle to get near the person who least wants them there.
The vet had a hard time trying to hear her lungs, because Tuppence kept purring so loudly. He thought it was possible that she has a slightly enlarged thyroid, but not sure, her temp was normal, her ears good, she wasn't lethargic, and she checked out in every other way. She just isn't eating...much.
Verdict: Most likely, she was simply missing her people. And, because she's a 15+ year old cat, she's now going to be getting a good quality moist cat food most often and dry cat food (her usual special-diet food), now and then. Basically, she'll be offered a smorgasbord. Let's hope she likes it. (When I'm an old cat, I'm pretty sure I'll still be wanting crunchy food.)
AND, we won't be leaving her alone, even with someone coming in every other day to tend to her. We have to be gone Tuesday through Thursday of this week, but a sweet family will be staying here with her - pals she's known for a long time.
Tuppence's happier days - when Lionel was still with us.
Bonus info: I hadn't known, until the vet told me, that calico cats are ALWAYS female, and are usually more hyper than cats like Lionel. So genetics had everything to do with Lionel being a laid-back, mellow dude, whereas Tuppence is just the opposite.
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How's your kitty doing?
Check Carla's cat, Catsby. She gives us an update each Monday.
