"Stay away from me, doctor! I'll KILL you!"

[thistlechaser]

So my cat had to go to the vet today. With each visit, she acts worse and worse. (This is understandable, as usually Very Bad Things happen to her there. Ultrasounds and cutting her belly open and drawing blood and all that.) From the moment I took her out of the carrying case, even when it was just me and her in the room, she was growling loudly and hissing and trying to hide in the crook of my arm. If she hadn't been really distressed, it would have been sort of funny. Even with the doors to the room closed, all the techs and doctors could hear her, and kept poking their heads in to make sure she wasn't being killed or something.

So then the doctor came in. She's a really great person, and I'll use her as a vet as long as she practices and remains in this general area. (She did the operation that saved her from cancer, the worst sort of cancer cats can get and which is almost never successfully removed. Most cats die very quickly of it.) She took all the hissing and growling in stride, but had to take her elsewhere to draw blood. (They needed a couple techs to restrain her to do that. Imagine! Three people holding one little cat down so the doctor could get blood. Poor kitty, but I'm glad she didn't bite or scratch anyone.)

Alas (for her), she has to go on a diet. She gained a pound and a half in a year, which is apparently a lot for a kitty. She'll have to go in to get her teeth cleaned sometime in December, which will really upset her as I have to leave her there all day. (Heck, that'll upset me, too! My poor kitty.) Because she has heart problems (thus the ultrasounds every six months), things like teeth cleanings are harder for her -- anything where they have to put her under has to be done with gas instead of the usual kitty sedatives.

Now you're all up to date on the life of my cat! Aren't you glad you read this post?

Bonus photo: Distressed kitty, hiding from the world.

Comments

[tersa.livejournal.com]

Poor Daxie. But, at least she's feeling better! Gaining weight is better than before.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Sure is! Now I just have to control her food instead of keeping her bowl full of dry kibble.

:)

[metron-ariston.livejournal.com]

Poor kitty! But she's adorable! =^_^=

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Aw, thanks!

[aretina.livejournal.com]

My cat has similar markings and very similar behavior. His first visit to the vet ever he was so bad that they had to knock him out for his de-nutting with a shot to the muscle instead of one into a vein, which meant he had to stay overnight. (Luckily they were like "silly us, couldn't put an IV into your kitty, overnite on us." We knew better.) The second time the fur was flying before the doctor even got into the room, and he went straight out like a pencil and started screaming (like a human scream) at the top of his lungs-- took two techs to hold him then, and this clinic specializes in feral felines.

Now he is 1 year old. Took him to the vet and they tried to put a little "hat" on him, like a cone-shaped muzzle. He took it to the ground (escapting the vet and a tech) and nearly destroyed it. The vet gave us some Ace-promethazine and instructions to drug the cat and come back another day.

Drugged cat. Drugged cat to nearly no effect at all. Two techs were needed to put the (new) hat on him. He screamed the entire time, waking a litter of puppies in the next room.

Next year they're going to put him in the little aquarium and gas him so he'll be knocked out for enough time for them to check his eyes and teeth, at least.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Wow, that's something! Had he been a feral cat? Poor fellow, he must be really scared of the vet!

[aretina.livejournal.com]

His mom was a stray, and pretty stand-offish, but she was taken care of during her pregnancy and weening, so we don't know how he could have picked up any of the feral vibe from her. It's just him. He's very very energetic, and easily overstimulated. But we love him.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Ah, I see. Well, good luck with him next time you go!

[sileas.livejournal.com]

Awwww. She looks so sweet! My biggest looks like her. Does she 'talk' a lot to you? My biggest cat is a talker, my smallest cat never opens her mouth to say hello.

My biggest cat is okay with vets but we've had trouble with her in the car. She kept wailing as a baby. Terrifying sound, really.
At the vet, we put her near the heating system and turned her away from the room so that she wouldn't see anything. We thought she might calm down from that. She didn't stop wailing, however. My sister rearranged her so that she could see the room and suddenly she was all quiet and good. The vet said afterwards that she placed the cat so that she could look outside the car. The cat didn't make a sound. :-)
Very curious cat. :-)

I like hearing about cats.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Yep! Mine talks a lot, too! Uusally just meows and mrrs and other little catty noises -- she only growls and hisses while at the vet.

At the vet, we put her near the heating system...

Huh, interesting! I like hearing about them, too. Have you heard of the notetocat community? It's interesting reading!

[sileas.livejournal.com]

Yep! Mine talks a lot, too! Uusally just meows and mrrs and other little catty noises --

Sweet little kitty. :-) Does she respond to her name? My bigger one (the one that talks) does, while the other one just ignores us. We often spent up to a half hour looking for her while she's just sleeping on a padded chair.

I think I've read that community a while ago, but forgot to save the link. But the link seems to be non-functioning now. Or is that just my computer again? Livejournal has a habit of not showing me communities.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Oops, no! I typed the name wrong. Try this: note_to_cat.

Does she respond to her name?

Well, I mostly only use her name when she's done something wrong, so either she does or she's responding to my firm/angry tone... Otherwise I call her things like 'my little kitty girl' and 'pretty kitty' and 'little kitty girl' and silly things like that. ...but I think it's mostly my tone she listens to, not the words.

[sileas.livejournal.com]

Wee! Thanks for the link. :-) Some of those notes are hilarious.

Otherwise I call her things like 'my little kitty girl' and 'pretty kitty' and 'little kitty girl' and silly things like that.

*giggle* I have a few of those sentences too.

but I think it's mostly my tone she listens to, not the words.

*nods* That's probably what my cat does too. I have certain ways of saying certain words (like namnamnam = food) , that maybe she doesn't recognize what I'm saying but understands the inflection of my voice. I'd have to test it. :-)

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

that maybe she doesn't recognize what I'm saying but understands the inflection of my voice.

Seems like a cat-y thing to listen to the tone instead of the words. Why should they be bothered to recognize words? It's up to us to use the right tones with them!