When the House is Half Empty...or Half Full

It was one thing to have Gracie become so ill, with so many ailments: Bartonella, Miliary Dermatitis and an Upper Respiratory Infection. I don't know how or what caused her illnesses, but it was right after her getting a dental procedure that her skin got inflamed and her nose stuffed up. It may have been a coincidence or Gracie had stress and got a rash and cold from it. Who knows?

Over the past 4 weeks of her confinement, she's improved greatly, though she looks worse for wear. Her once beautiful charcoal gray plush coat is tattered by large shaved zones (to promote her skin healing and to allow me access to apply twice daily medication to those bad patches). Her ears still have bald spots, but her sneezing is gone and she has gained back some of the weight she lost. Sadly, she still has to be confined. I thought it would only be a few more days, but as of yesterday, it will be another 10 days before I can free her from the quarantine room.

File under: "Learn from Your Mistakes"

Last Saturday we took Gracie in for a re-check. Since our cat, Nora needed her semi-regular "butt shave," I thought it would be a GREAT idea to bring her with us and have the Vet get her rear end trimmed since she can't clean "back there." Nora weighs over 22 lbs and I can't handle her in the carrier myself. Since Sam was available to help, this would be a good thing, right?

WRONG!

While we were in the car, Gracie sneezed a few times. That was all it took. By the next day, shaved butt and all, Nora began sneezing, too.

Anyone who knows me, knows I'm a Nervous Nelly about my cat's well being. I take them to the Vet as soon as they even look at me funny. This said, I've been trying NOT to run them to the Vet for every little thing. I've been learning to wait it out a bit and see if I can deal with it myself. With Bob it has worked well and with a case of Upper Respiratory going around the house, I figured Nora would be fine in a few days. I know that if it's viral, there's nothing we can do. I sat tight and waited...meanwhile Nora started to sneeze more violently and I started to worry that not only would she get sicker, but the remaining five cats would be sick soon, too.

Sure enough, in a few days, Petunia began to sneeze. Nora was looking worse, but no discharge, so no Vet. Friday night I picked Gracie up from her weekly antifungal bath and told super-Debbie, the Vet Tech, that I was worried but not going to bring Nora to the Vet. Of course, later that night I changed my mind when I saw Nora's nose running and Petunia, normally a vibrant cat, was limp on her cat bed with her eyes looking puffy.

The next morning we go to the Vet. Nora and Petunia cried and whined the entire 15 minute drive there. Nora sneezed up a storm. I had them both in separate carriers, covered, promising myself I would make sure they stayed covered as to keep them from spreading things at the Vet's office.

Once there Nora behaved like a champ. She was running a fever and her head was stuffed up. Her lungs were in good shape.

Next on the exam table was Petunia. Petunia overreacts to everything, so they covered her to keep her quiet.

Needless to say, the rectal exam was not her favorite part of her visit, but even worse, to her, was the insult of having her claws trimmed. She SCREAMED BLOODY MURDER. You would think she was having her legs amputated without sedation.

At the end of the exam, we decided to put Nora and Petunia on Baytril and also watch Bob for any signs of disease. If Bob got sick, it might kill him. Being FIV+, Bob cannot be near sick cats. We decided to quarantine Nora and Petunia in the same room with Gracie. It's all we have, other than a bathroom, that can be shut away from the rest of the house. Nora and Petunia hate each other's guts, so I knew this would be extra shitty for all concerned.

The Baytril set us back $150!!!!!!!!!...between injections and the gallon sized bottle. They have to be on meds for 10 days. This means all three cats in one small room and all the others are wondering where the heck they went. The change in the house is dramatic. We are all cranky and sad and it's strangely quiet.

I'm going to wish that for Christmas I have a house full of healthy cats, once again. I thought I was doing right by not rushing Nora to the Vet when she first started sneezing. After all, Gracie was fine in a few days, but she was also on zithromax for Bartonella, so she would fare better, right?

I keep thinking I know so much about cat wellness and behavior, but I keep being reminded I have so much more to learn.