Catch Me When I Fall

Many of you know that a few hours ago, my dear cat, Bob Dole, accidently slipped and fell about 15 feet off the deck, into some brambles and small rocks in the back yard. It all happened so quickly and so horribly. One second Bob was on the deck railing-which I HATE seeing him do, for obvious reasons. The next, he was gone.

I was making some lunch when I looked out and saw Bob drinking out of the bird bath. That water can be so dirty and filled with weird organisms that I quickly ran to the deck door to shoo Bob away from the water. He knows he's not supposed to do that. I didn't scream at him, but it was enough to startle him, which made him step back from the bird bath, slip, then, drop like a rock, off the deck. In that flash I saw the look on Bob's face-surprised and scared, while I simply screamed.

I ranl I ran down the stairs, into the basement. There's a room down there with a door to the back yard. I was barefoot, but I didn't care. I ran out, leaving the door slightly ajar in my haste, all the while being terrified of what I was going to see next-would I see Bob's lifeless body? I had no time to prepare myself. I burst out of the back door to catch a glimpse of Bob as he RAN around the back side of the house, up a big hill!

In a way I was glad to see him moving, but terrified that I would not be able to get him back home. He was very scared and just ran and ran!

I kept calling after him, begging him to come back, while my feet were feeling the ravages of all the rocks and thorny brush. Eventually, Bob took shelter under the smallest deck that's at ground level. I tried to cajole him into coming inside, but he sat there, frozen. I was afraid to startle him by trying to touch him, but I had no choice. I got down under the deck and pulled him out. He dug his claws into me, but I tried to be calm and get him into the house.

I got as far as the screen room that connects to the house and who do I see? Spencer. The little pouffball had squeezed through the opening in the door and got into the room. Had I gotten there one second later and he would have gotten outside, too. Then I realized, since I'd been chasing Bob for a good 10 minutes, that any number of cats could now be outside and I wouldn't know. I couldn't waste time looking for them. I had to get Bob some help, fast.

Poor Bob has a bloody lip!

Bob walked up the stairs on his own, great! I hobbled. Not so great. I called out to the cats. Shook the bag of dry food to get their attention and Bob came over, wanting to eat-another good sign. I put down a tiny bit of food for him while I washed my feet and tried to steady my nerves. I knew pretty soon I'd be a hurting unit, but for now all that mattered was Bob.

I was lucky today. I called my Vet and they could see us right away. I got Bob into the cat carrier, when I felt my back go out. I loaded him into the car, stiff with pain. I made it to the Clinic in good time. Not only that, but Dr. Larry was actually there! He normally has Monday's off. Also, Bob's best friend, Aunt Debbie (the super Vet Tech) was there! If I had to pick the two people I would want to look after Bob-they would be the ones.

While we waited to see Dr. Larry, I cried some more. I had called our Director sobbing about what to do and if I needed to get Bob somewhere that was open 24/7. I told her I couldn't account for 3 of the cats. She told me not to worry and was very calm when I couldn't be. She promised to help me find the cats when I got home, if I needed her. Then I started replaying the image of Bob falling off the deck. I felt so sick.

Bob was a good sport. He sat there and purred, just like he always does. He rested his head on my hand and laid down. I don't know if he was tired from the stressful experience or something worse. Dr. Larry came in and gave me a hug and proceeded to look at Bob. He was worried that Bob broke his jaw, a common injury after a big fall. Although his mouth was bloody, the jaw felt OKAY. Dr. Larry listened to Bob's heart and lungs and checked the function of each leg. Everything was all right, but that didn't mean Bob was out of the woods. Next, Bob would get a full body x-ray, they'd run a blood panel to make sure his organ function was all right and observe him for a few hours. I gave Bob a kiss and headed home to wait.

I'm in a lot of pain right now. I must have twisted my knee, thrown out my back and neck and have lots of cuts and scratches. I'm also terribly worried about Bob-that something will be missed, that this is the beginning of the end of his life. It wouldn't take much for him to have an internal injury and that is what I fear, because that is the toughest to detect. I don't even let Bob jump down from my own BED because I think it's too high off the floor. Bob is an old cat, but he IS a tough cookie, too.

When I got home, it took awhile, but I did manage to find ALL of my cats. Everyone was fine and looked at me like I was nuts. I suppose they are a better judge of my own character than I am.

I didn't expect I had the stamina to write all this down. I'm just wiped out. All I intended to say was a BIG THANK YOU to all the folks on Twitter, who have been so very kind to Bob and myself. Once I put out the word that Bob needed support, they rallied around us by including us in what they call, a "Pawcircle." They joined together to send their love and support to Bob when he needs it most.

I live a very quiet life. My parents are gone. I don't have lots of friends who live close by. When Bob fell, I had no one to catch me, too. I came home and went online and found that I was wrong. There were SO MANY good wishes for us that it's making me cry right now. I felt SO ALONE when this first happened and so scared. Your support and compassion is such a GREAT GIFT and means SO MUCH to me. I wish I could give all of you a big HUG and tell you to your faces how you not only helped Bob today, you helped me, too.

Thank you for doing for me, what I could not do for Bob today-catch him when he fell.