So I called the vet on Monday, and she said Shanti might have a urinary tract infection that just wasn't showing up in the tests. Worth a shot, I said, so I stopped overe there after work and picked up the antibiotics. I chose pill form; I haven't given Shanti medicine before so I went with what I'm good at. (Yes, I seem to have a talent for getting pills into cats. Available for your cat for a modest fee! No guarantees.)
Got home, got the pill into her with no troubles, let her out. She ran about for an hour or so while I got things done at my place -- made pasta to go with the spaghetti sauce I made last week and packed that up for lunches at work, made two tuna sandwiches for Tuesday lunch, did dishes, filled the crockpot insert with beans to soak overnight so I could start them in the morning.
One of the neighborhood kids apparently rescued Shanti out of a tree, or so I learned when she was precipitously deposited on my porch. (Shanti, not the kid.) I use the word 'rescue' advisedly, but it was amusing, anyway. I brought her in (about which she was not thrilled) and eased her annoyance with some tuna juice, then spent the next half-hour or so in the bedroom with her, cleaning the carpet and keeping an eye on her. She demanded attention, spent some time running from one window to the other, and eventually plopped down on the bed for a nap.
All of which helped me begin to realize that for the last couple of months, when she's in my bedroom alone, she's mostly been slinking about under the bed or otherwise acting schizoid. And also gave me confidence to leave her in the bedroom alone for a bit while I sat down for a well-deserved bowl of popcorn.
When I eventually went to bed my pillow was dry and Shanti was waiting for me. I woke up pretty often, just to check on her, but she spent most of the night lying next to my pillow, perfectly content. Tuesday morning I gave her her pill and let her out, then went to work. Yesterday was the first time I'd let her out and left the apartment, so I spent the day kinda scared. I walked around looking for her when I got home, but with no luck; she showed up before I left for fighter practice, though. I saw her across the field, and called her; she galloped towards me and leapt into my arms, purring.
I left her alone in the bedroom for several hours while I was at fighter practice, with no problems; she slept next to me all night, waking early in the morning to pace and await being allowed outside. She's a whole new cat. I feel like I've got my Shanti back, and I love it. If all I have to do is let her outside and keep the boys out of the bedroom, I can deal with this.
Edit: Of course, I just got a call from the apartment complex telling me I couldn't let her outside. *growl* Not sure what I'm going to do, though 'let her out in the evening after work' and 'check my damn lease and make sure they're not making it up' are high on my list.
We shall see. Only three months until I can move, and I am going to.
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7 comments:
Of course, I just got a call from the apartment complex telling me I couldn't let her outside.
Umm ... what? What business is it of theirs? I would definitely check your lease and make sure they aren't being JBTs (jack-booted thugs).
I'm glad to hear that things with Shanti are looking up.
Kate,
It'll be my pleasure to interview you. Just a head's up, though-- probably won't get put together until Monday.
-Mrs. M
Here we go Kate! Are you ready? (I'm glad you asked, I'm looking forward to reading your responses.)
1. Where does the name of your blog come from? What does it mean to you?
2. Where do you find God most easily?
3. If you could write a perfect-for-you job description, what would it include?
4. Tell us about a time you felt deeply loved or cherished.
5. Tell us about the outfit (clothes) that make you feel most like you.
Thanks for playing! And here are the rules to post with your answers:
1. If you are interested in being interviewed, leave me a comment saying “Interview me.”
2. I will respond by posting five questions for you. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with a post containing your answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.
That was quick! I was halfway through writing a 'don't worry about it, get there when you get there' and poof! Questions. I hope to get to them this weekend -- thank you so much! Excellent questions, too.
Rae, alas, they _are_ JBT but they've got the lease on their side. I'm going to depend on Oops The Cat Got Out and letting her out after they're closed, I do believe. And then, I'm going to move.
Kate, I hope you can work something out for Shanti until you can get the hell out of that place. It sounds as though she wants space and time outside, when the weather permits.
I live in the South where the winters are mild. Whenever it got really cold we'd put the cats in the brick shed with a heater and boxes lined with old towels, and they'd snuggle up two, sometimes three in a box. You couldn't call them luxury quarters, but it worked. The cats were not coddled indoor pets, but they had good lives and were saved from the gas chamber.
We did have two who were coddled, inside pets.
So far it's going well with letting her out when the apartment office isn't open, but I couldn't find her this morning -- we'll see if I get another call from them. It was raining, so I suspect she was hunkered under a bush somewhere trying to stay dry.
With luck my next place will have a more sheltered porch or something where I can give her a warm spot.
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