Last Friday evening we booked appointments for Newbie and Cindy Clawford to go to the veterinarian. It had been a couple of years since Newbie had been to the vet. 6 months or so for Cindy.
Both cats have not taken well to the mature cat formula we had been feeding them. We both thought that the food smelled like crap. The cats ate it until the formula was changed in the last couple of months. Since then, the cats have been vomiting it up more than they have been keeping it down. We were worried.
We got home just past 5. It remained to get the cats into their respective carriers. We fed the cats and carefully observed them, waiting for the time to pounce. Newbie seemed to sense what we had in mind, so he hid in the dining room.
We spent the next 25 minutes trying to get Newbie into the carrier. No begging or pleading or cajoling worked. No food bribes worked. Patricia pretended to lunge for him; he just hissed at her and retreated into the next room.
It was 5:30. We had a bit of a drive to get to Clayton Park by 6. We were moments away from leaving him behind and just taking Cindy when he emerged from under a couch and slinked back into the dining room. I went in there and tossed a small book in his direction, scaring him. He sneaked past me somehow and ended up by the doorway leading to the basement. He began to mewl, wanting to get further away from us. Patricia got to him and scooped him up. I got him from her and put him with Cindy in the bathroom and closed the door. Within a moment we had both cats in their carriers. Phew!
We drove to the vet's, arriving just before 6. When the vet saw the cats, he pronounced that both of them seemed fine. We insisted on blood tests, and agreed to pay a premium for that service. Cindy had been losing a lot of weight, and we wanted to know why.
We had an hour to kill, so we went to the Lower Deck, a few doors up from the vet's. Half price appie night. In this case, the quality of the food was proportional to its cost. Half as pricey. Half as good. We're not running back there any time soon.
We got back to the vet's around 7:45. We were led into a waiting room. The doctor joined us and told us that the blood tests came back very well for both cats. A few numbers were on the low side, but they look for numbers that are in the high range, and there was none.
The decision was made to change the cats' diet to a GI dry food in conjunction with corresponding wet food. We bought the appropriate cat victuals. It was past closing time, so they had to let us out. I got to the car ahead of Patricia and waited for her. She came out, carrying the cat food. When I asked her where Cindy was, she yelped and did a 180 and ran back inside. She retrieved Cindy and we drove home.
The new cat food was consumed voraciously by both cats. They were both stressed, especially Newbie. He ate fast, even by his standards. He has been sick twice since we got back home. We are chalking it up to stress and aggravation and the new food. He is at the end of the bed now, quieter than I have seen him in some time.
Patricia has asked me to emphasize something. She loves Cindy. Cindy has helped Patricia get through some tough times over the last nearly 10 years. Patricia feels badly that she inadvertently left her behind. I think Cindy will have a fresh topic to discuss with her therapist next month.
We are home. It is late. Our cats are bushed. And we're stressed from the evening. We spent a lot of money this evening, but it bought us peace of mind. We love our cats. They are our fur kids. We'd do anything for them. They would... well, maybe acknowledge us from time to time in lieu of doing something for us. They might make a bit more eye contact with us over the next day or so, but I am skeptical.
You guys have a good evening. See you tomorrow.
Bevboy
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