Animals

The Saga of the Toes, Part Two

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Took pictures of Monkey’s paw today and sent them off to the vet so she can decide whether we need to come back for a check-up or it’s going well enough that we can just go on with the antibiotics and wait it out. I love living in the future 😀

The picture taking was an adventure on itself. I was wrestling the cat into not moving in my lap with one arm, all the while holding his paw out and spreading the toes with the other arm. Nienke then took some pictures. They’re not the best quality, but I hope they’ll do.

His paw looks much better already, I think it was indeed the soaking that was slowing down the healing process. While the stuff disinfects the infection, it also made Monkey lick and clean the paw even more. And with the rough tongue cats have, he was continually making it worse again.

Over the past week I’ve noticed him cleaning the paw much less, and the sore has diminished in size considerably. On the top of his foot, where you could see the edges of the sore at first, almost all the hair has come back. I’m hoping the vet will not have us come back, my bank account would be grateful, but if we must, we go.

The Saga of the Toes, Part One

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So Monkey’s been having a wound/infection kinda thing between the middle toes of his back leg for a while now. I took him to the vet in early December to have it looked at, and she gave me some antibiotics and told me to soak the paw in sodium carbonate.

So I soaked his paw every day, and finished the antibiotics treatment (about a week), but the wound didn’t really change. So I gave it some more time, kept soaking the paw once every day and then the holiday preparations hit and I got distracted. But last week, as excitement ebbed away, I took notice again, and saw that there were still barely any changes.

So today I took him back to the vet, and just like last time he’s turning out to be quite medical marvel. The vet was surprised it hadn’t healed yet and took a swab to have it checked out to see what kind of infection it is. She also said to stop the soaking, it seems as if the wetness isn’t helping, so we’re trying keeping it dry. She also gave me another antibiotics treatment, this time ten days worth. We probably have to come back, like last time, on a weekly basis, unless I manage to get good pictures of the paw to send to her. Will have to try doing that.

I know the cat will be pleased that there’s no more soaking. He absolutely hated it! The first few times, as I was trying out how best to do it, I got scratched all over. Then I figured out how to roll him in a towel tight enough that he would stay confined, and calm enough, to soak the paw for a minute or so. But as the days went on, he started realising what it meant when I put the bow with the solution on the floor and came at him with the towel so he’d hide in corners 😀

And today he decided he really didn’t want to go to the vet, so as we (Nienke drove us) were just a couple hundred yards away from the vet’s office, he decided to poop in the carrier…

The smell was horrible, and as he was squirming about in the carrier, trying to get out, and away from the poop, he managed to spread it over the bottom, and into the towel, and some on himself too. The vet was heroic, in that she cleaned out the worst in the carrier while I held the cat in a stranglehold. The carrier got at least cleanish enough to take Mr. Poop home without making it worse.

Back home I cleaned the cat, which he did not like. But serves him well for the crap he gave me (pun intended). Then spent fifteen minutes minutely scrubbing the carrier since poop had been in all the corners and crannies. Joy.

Weekly Four: week 52

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I’m grateful for renewed inspiration.

I’m happy with the book I’m reading, it’s awesome!

I’m sad the cat’s paw infection is turning out to be something quite alike the Saga of the Spots a few months ago.

I learned, for the nth time, that cat claws are sharp *glares at kitty* and the angrier the kitty, the sharper they seem to get 😀

No killage!

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I’m babysitting Tessa tonight, and when I let her inside after my parents dropped her off, the cat had no time to run and hide. So I let him be, and let Tessa in the living room. And from then on they both have been on their best behavior.

Tessa has been neglecting Monkey to such a degree I really have wondered whether she even saw him.

Monkey on the other hand definitely saw Tessa. He growled the first time Tessa walked past, but kept quiet after that. He’s now starting to relax and sleep,while Tessa sleeps beside or behind the sofa.