I grabbed Butterscotch and we went to bed. I got all comfy under the sheets, with him on top of my in his usual pose. Oh! I forgot his meds! *sigh* So, I got his meds out of my fanny pack (I took them to the hospital just in case), and we did what is now becoming a ritual: I set him on the bathroom counter and give him both pills, one at a time. Since the small Dexamethasone tablet is so easy to give him, I do the Cyclosporin first. I thought it was a shame to do this after we both were so relaxed, but he came back to bed with me without seeming irritated.
* * *
You'll never guess - another poor night's sleep. I seem to wake frequently between 5 and 5:30, as I turn on the radio and As It Happens, a show broadcast by CBC, is on. I listened to the show, then I fell asleep again, waking up later in the morning. Butterscotch is sneezing again - those dang allergies. At least since Dr. Wagner told me there aren't many bugs that can pass between the species, I don't get so yucked out when he sneezes on me (although a wet cat sneeze directly in the face isn't my favorite thing).I got up and we sat out back while I ate breakfast. His desire to go outside is getting stronger and stronger. His pulse is great this morning - still around 100 bpm. He wasn't to pleased with his short visit out back, yet I needed to work, and I can't leave him unattended - he gets all tangled, and it's not safe, as he doesn't have an adequate hiding place. Besides - if the evil, orange-eyed kitty came around, that would be bad. Butterscotch is immunodeficient now - will be for some time - and he can't afford to catch something, or get in a fight with that evil, orange-eyed kitty. They are pretty much the same color, although the other cat has shorter fur. Oh - he's evil because Butterscotch is mine, and that cat is on HIS turf! They have goaded each other pretty seriously over the last couple of years. But I won't get into those stories now...
OK, it's medicine time again. I think I had some beginner's luck with this, as it seems to be getting more challenging now. I started again with the Cyclosporin. I didn't get it far back enough in his mouth - I can tell because if I get it back far enough, he just sits there while I hold his mouth shut and rub his throat. When I don't, he sits and fights to open his mouth. And there you go - he produces a little capsule from between his lips. Amazing. I grabbed it and tried to get it in again. I don't remember how it happened - it was very fast - I somehow got him to bite down on the capsule, splitting it in two! Oh, that's bad - the stuff tastes horrible. I quickly grabbed one half of the capsule, and shoved it in his mouth - that much worked. I recovered the other half, which was empty, so I tossed it. I think about half of the dose got in him, the rest on my hand. He definitely wasn't liking the taste, although it certainly wasn't as bad as the Doxycycline. I then gave him the other pill without incident. He really is patient having to go through all this stuff. I loved him up in gratitude.
A short while after I started working, he went back between my computer stand and the wall, and slept. He stayed there for hours! Actually until around 4:30. He's doing so well right now, I didn't get concerned that he was going downhill - he'll be good for another couple of days with this blood. That's straight from Dr. Edgar, so you know it's true.
I worked with Tony this afternoon - me on my computer at home, and him on my computer at work, via pcAnywhere. Very efficient use of technology. And kinda fun to boot. I also finished implementing the big stats page I've been working on this week; none too soon, as Rick has been getting lots of requests for it. I also fixed a weird problem with the database. Did you know if you add 1 day to August 31 you get September 2? Yeah - weird. I got around it though.
At about 5 or so, I heard him stirring back there. I stood up and looked down, and he was kinda hunkered down. Hmmm, that looks kinda like - HEY!! He's peeing on the floor! I gave a yelp, and pushed him out of there. Besides the fact that he's peeing on the floor - there's electricity back there for cryin' out loud! He ran out and stopped, just sitting there. I picked him up and put him in his litter box. I then shut down my computer and unplugged the power strip. Sheesh - the cat coulda fried himself. I moved stuff out, and cleaned up with paper towels and Nature's Miracle (great stuff!). Luckily it wasn't too bad. I wonder what that was about. He'd been sleeping there for hours, but he wasn't that tired, was he? Is this a sign of things to come now that he's gonna be an indoor cat? I certainly hope not. He was still hunkered down in his litter box - not doing anything. I picked him up and petted him; I guess I scared him. I sat with him a while in the bay window.
I called Dr. Wagner to talk about canceling our appointment tomorrow and a few other issues. I asked, and she agreed to be available during the weekend if he needed blood. I also asked about giving pills. She described it over the phone, and since I was coming down in a few minutes to get the additional Cyclosporin anyway, she said to page her, and she'd show me.
I drove to the hospital, heading DIRECTLY into the setting sun, which was about 5° above the horizon. Hmmmm. Why have I been turning on Charter? I can keep going down to the next turn... I got the meds and had Dr. Wagner paged. I waited a while in the waiting room. Boy, am I tired! Hmmm. It's more than tired - it's worn to the point of getting sick if I don't watch it. She brought a big, beautiful white cat into an exam room, and showed me how to pill. Ah, that will be easier. This cat is one of the donor cats that live there for a year. She was a bit stressed. I petted her, and thanked her for helping keep my boy alive. She was a sweetie. Dr. Wagner was surprised and really pleased that his pulse was still as low as 100 bpm, and respiration at 28. I told her not to stay too late - it was already 7 - that she should go home. She laughed. I said I knew it wasn't her job right now, and she nodded.
I then went to the co-op to get some food, then off to Target (read: tar ZHAY) to get a plastic file drawer - mine are overflowing in my office. My cell phone range. Karen. Damn. I was supposed to go to her house at 7 to help her with her computer. *sigh* Reschedule.
By the time I got home I felt really wiped. I had planned on doing a thorough cleaning. I started, and after 10 minutes knew it'd be a bad thing to do. I sat and watched TV with Butterscotch sleeping on my lap. Very sweet.
Medicine time again. Time to practice my new technique. This time, the capsule went down just fine, but he produced the tablet from between his lips. Take two on that one. Better.
Now I sit typing this. Pooped. The boy is sitting on my desk in his sphinx pose. Two days without drama and crisis. Very nice. Now he stepped down to my lap. Even nicer.
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