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November 24, 2003
VET TIME FOR OYBEAN
This weekend was packed. If I'd actually had an internet connection (guess which corporate media conglomerate fucked up again?) I would have posted frequently. But this morning, staring at my office computer, I'm just too tired to upload it all. Maybe in increments throughout the week.
Here are the highlights:
It was a beautiful weekend! Walking in Park Slope, I almost forgot that I lived in an urban area. Irving soaked up the sun, which was good, as he was in for an adventure yesterday afternoon.
Mission: Get cat into cat carrier, lug him 7 blocks to the vet, and figure out what the frig was wrong with his skin, as he'd taken to viciously scratching his eyebrows and ears to the point of drawing blood.
It took me 20 minutes, three sprigs of baby spinach, a tightly wrapped towel, and several bloody back scratches (my back, not his) to get him into the carrier. When we got to the vet, Irving defied gravity when the assistant tried to shake him out of it. I finally had to dismantle it and take off the top.
Diagnosis: As suspected, bad allergies to things like dust and mold, as well as bad chin acne. Both incurable, but manageable through various cleaners and scrubs. Irving also had a bacterial ear infection, which was causing him to scratch his ears so much. I left with the following medication: Prednisone (2x day), this pink liquid that looks suspiciously like Amoxicillin (3x day), Ear drops (2x day), special ear cleaner (1x week), chin cleaner (2x day).
Translation: Torture can 2 - 3x day for 2 weeks or until he hates you so much that he never leaves the closet.
In other news, I got the cutest pressie from giannatrumpet. The address on the package made my morning. I also had my first AM shift at the Coop, met Cheesebus' new roommate's bunny, Grandma, and finally purchased homeowner's insurance.
Details to come, if I have time.
Posted by callalillie at November 24, 2003 8:47 AM | Feline Musings
oh mi gawd! i just had the exact same experience! sort of. what vet did you go to? you seem to have gotten better care than we did. our baby, henry, is scratching horribly but we got no creme, medicines or the like. basically, we were told to clean our apartment. the vet was nice, but i don't feel like the ear scabs were taken seriously. we go to animal kind, how about you?
Posted by: jamie at November 24, 2003 12:20 PM
Actually, that's I think where I went-- on 12th and 7th Ave?
Hmm...does he have a lot of earwax-y stuff? The vet that I saw (I can' remember her name) gave me a lot of stuff. I think she was most concerned with the ear infection, though. The rest (acne, sensitive skin) she said would continue, but probably a bit less. I spent about 15 minutes explaining all of the things that I'd already tried-- ceramic food bowls, chin cleanings, dusting/cleaning frequently, special food. I think she thought I was nuts.
Posted by: callalillie at November 24, 2003 12:26 PM
yup, that's the place. we had a new girl, fairly young. she was very sweet but her basic line was "skin stuff is hard to diagnos so let's just watch him for a few weeks." he doesn't have an ear infections, it's mostly just the scratching and scabbing of the ears that concern us. oh well, i guess maybe i will dust more often. at least we know he doesn't have ear mites, which is what we were really worried about.
and a note on getting the cats into the carriers - henry is 8lbs, mae is 16lbs! they are brother and sister, same age, but oppposite in every way. mae you just sort of have to shove into the box, but henry FREAKS out. he is very very strong for a little wire-y boy and we often joke that it's a good thing there are not pet police because he would be charged with resisting arrest every time!
Posted by: jamie at November 24, 2003 12:46 PM
the whole cat-with-allegies thing is so weird. you could call the vet and ask about ear cleaner. they gave me this vet-only kind that i'm supposed to use once a week. the cat hates it, though.
henry's a really cute name for a cat.
Posted by: callalillie at November 24, 2003 1:41 PM
i used to dogsit in manhattan for a large dog named henry. i love that name. i've never met a person named henry, though.
Posted by: rachelle at November 24, 2003 6:15 PM
our henry was born in a lot in our neighborhood near henry street, so that's how he got his name. his sister is named Mae, which is actually short for Maijorca, but nobody, not even me, calls her that. i'm glad you all think henry is a good pet name because he is the cutest pet!
Posted by: jamie at November 25, 2003 11:11 AM
