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August 21, 2006
Solutions in Green
We acquired a "gently used" new green couch this weekend from my friend Cheesebus, former roommate and college friend extraordinaire, who is moving to Seattle for graduate school next week. The couch is great on many levels (now two people can stretch out at the same time!), however my biggest plan for its use was to provide the Trancho cats with a piece of furniture to sit on. Both Irving and Olive are deathly afraid of Olga. The other couch smells like her and as a result, neither Oy nor Little-O will sit on it, let alone set foot in the living room.
To my delight, Irving settled into the new couch within an hour of us installing it. He stayed there most of the day and night and slept more deeply than I have witnessed since he made the move to Red Hook.
Despite this, Irving is taking a trip to the vet again next weekend. We have been increasingly concerned about our little orange cat.
Over the past nine months, he has lost some weight. He has licked an obscene amount of fur off his abdomen, feet and armpits. Until the arrival of green couch, he had also stopped sleeping like normal cats do, instead spending the bulk of his time pacing, violently swishing his tail and, of course, licking himself. Licking, licking and licking like he could not stop. The vet originally diagnosed his actions as part stress but mostly increased allergies. I called her on Saturday to let her know that it seemed, after watching him closely, that it was all stress. Irving is still my little ball of sweetness, but he no longer falls into a comatose sleep, snoring with his mouth open. He rarely cuddles. He does not eat as much. Mostly, he seems to be engaged in some sort of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
The vet agreed. On Sunday, we are bringing him in for blood work and if it all comes back okay, Irving will be trying out a feline antidepressant. The relative of Prozac is supposed to help him forget about the licking and relax for a little while. I am worried that it is also going to radically change his personality, but at Lex pointed out, his personality has changed quite a bit recently, anyway. Let's cross our fingers and hope that this medicine helps.
Posted by callalillie at August 21, 2006 7:05 AM | Feline Musings
You are SUCH a good cat mama--how many kitties can say that they were gifted with their very own sofa?--and what a lovely pic! I've heard positive things about the animal version of Prozac. Fingers crossed for its success with your little orange guy.
Posted by: Beth at August 21, 2006 10:05 AM
I love that his nickname is Oy.
Posted by: Maura at August 21, 2006 10:13 AM
A very hansome couch!
The shape and style are beautiful.
Posted by: PER at August 21, 2006 10:23 AM
Well, I wouldn't say that we ONLY got the couch for the cats :) It's nice to be able to sit together on the couch and not have to contort ourselves to fit in the space!
Maura-- he got the nickname for a number of reasons, but mainly because when he was a kitten I used to say, "Oy vey, Irving!" which morphed into the affectionate Oybean and shorted Oy Oy.
Posted by: corie at August 21, 2006 10:30 AM
Poor Irving. Life would be so much easier if they could just tell you what's wrong... best of luck with everything.
Posted by: jenblossom at August 21, 2006 11:07 AM
Poor kitty - maybe it's still an adjustment to the new "siblings?" When I got Mallow, Cleo did a lot of licking and nipping at herself, but she seems better now. Maybe the Prozac will chill him out.
Posted by: lesterhead at August 21, 2006 11:18 AM
Believe you me, I wouldn't put him on Prozac unless I was pretty convinced/desperate...in the beginning the licking was ok-- he was just kind of bald. But now he's licked himself raw and he bleeds sometimes. It's just so sad. I did some reading online and it said that stress/OCD can cause animals to self-harm. The next thing you know I'm going to be checking him in for a 72 hour safety commitment...
Posted by: corie at August 21, 2006 11:22 AM
Corie, we had some success with an herbal antianxiety supplement called "NutriCalm" after our cat Kali was spayed. She had a major hormonal imbalance which lasted weeks after her surgery, causing her to be extremely aggressive and actually violent toward her brother, and this was the first thing our vet recommended. It worked and we didn't have to go the "kitty Prozac" route... obviously, your vet knows your cats and will certainly prescribe what s/he feels is best, but I did want to mention this as another possible thing to try.
Posted by: jenblossom at August 21, 2006 12:07 PM
I hope the Prozac works for Mr. Irving. The right medication can make a world of difference sometimes. Nice couch too: the green works with his fur and with Miss Olive.
Posted by: Divaah46 at August 21, 2006 12:30 PM
Pete likes to get behind the Kitchenaid, too! Actually, Pete likes everything.
Posted by: Sally at August 21, 2006 1:18 PM
Poor Oy-Oy. Does this mean that it's time to whip out the graduated cylinders? If the cat prozac doesn't work, perhaps you can send him to the Murray & Renfield Retreat for Anxious and Depressed Cats in Mt.Sinai. I hear there's a full time social worker. Heheh.
Posted by: erin at August 21, 2006 2:47 PM
Ah yes, you *think* the cats will share the sofa with the humans . . . !
I just liked that you were incorporating them in your furniture plans. That is a good person, and your cats are very lucky indeed.
Posted by: Beth at August 21, 2006 3:01 PM
Best healing wishes to Irving!
I love the pic of Cat with KitchenAid; I think that sums me up in some ways :-)
Posted by: Liz at August 21, 2006 4:35 PM
I also have an orange cat with similar anxiety/licking issues. He's been on kitty antidepressants for about a month, and the licking has lessened, though not disappeared completely. I hope your Irving finds some relief.
Posted by: Lisa at August 21, 2006 10:14 PM
Poor uncle irving! I hope he feels better soon!
Posted by: nick at August 22, 2006 5:42 AM
My old roommate had an orange cat who went crazy, too! They put him on kitty Prozac and that calmed him down considerably. He remained a little aloof on the drugs (his normal personality, IMHO) but it really stopped his OCD habits. Good luck!
Posted by: Kate at August 22, 2006 10:45 AM
My orange tabby Beavis (Irving's doppleganger) went on some "kitty prozac" after Iko (& Steve) moved into my house. It was a liquid (anchovy flavored! Yum!) that I had to squirt into his mouth with a medicine syringe thingy. He loved that (not). But I do think it helped and we weaned him from it after 9-12 months or so (maybe less, I can't remember....).
Posted by: Carrster at August 22, 2006 12:35 PM
What's up with all of these orange cats on Prozac?
Posted by: corie at August 22, 2006 1:02 PM
My kitty Cody Wyatt did the same for years. The licking and chewing would drive us crazy. He was put on Dextab for 10 days, but the licking would return when the pills stopped. Now for 5 years he takes a Dextab every second day with great success. He has even grown his hair back on belly. But if I forget a pill the licking comes back quickly. Cody is 19 years old and licked in a OCD way from day one until the Dextab. Hope you find the right treatment for your baby!
Posted by: CC at August 28, 2006 1:48 PM
