Cat Tales

Posted by Jen on Friday, August 14th, 2009 @ 1:49 pm

Get it? Cat Tails…

Okay, pretty lame, I know. Anyway, I don’t usually talk about my cats on my blog because there are already plenty of blogs dedicated to cats without me getting involved. But, lately, my cat, Kiki, has been having some problems.

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I adopted Kiki four years ago this month. I was told by the woman I adopted her from that she was eight years old at the time. So, that makes her pretty old now. But, she hasn’t changed much. She still likes climbing inside cardboard boxes, perching on the window sill, sitting on my lap, rolling around in catnip and chomping on kitty treats.

Lately, she’s lost some weight and can’t keep dry cat food down. And then when I gave her a bath the other night because her hair has been a little oily, I noticed just how skinny she is. And I got worried. So, she got to go in her least favorite thing ever–the cat carrier–to the vet yesterday. They did some tests, and it turns out she has an infection.

We have some antibiotics now, and it sounds like this will probably clear up the problem. But, it turns out, that medicine is Kiki’s second least favorite thing in the world. Or at least the dropper is. If I so much as get it within a few inches of her mouth, she tries to run away. And since I have only two hands, this creates a very difficult scenario. Just imagine me doing the cooing baby voice thing with a dropper of milky medicine, taking a single step toward Kiki before she darts away and flies over the couch like a furry bullet.

And this was just the first dose. I have to give her two doses a day until Thursday. I’ve been trying to come up with some alternate solution, but the only idea I keep coming up with is the addition of an extra arm.

Comments

By Michelle on August 14th, 2009 at 2:50 pm

What (mostly) worked for me:

Wrap the kitty in a large bath towel so only her little face is showing. Hold her on the kitchen counter (so the counter supports her weight, freeing up your hands a little). Hover the dropper near her mouth and wait for a big, angry meow. Fire. Ideally near the back of her throat. I think I got it in the kitties mouth at least 70% of the time with this technique.

Best of luck!

By Chandler on August 14th, 2009 at 3:53 pm

I always think of this as a two person job. Utilize boyfriend.

By Dan on August 14th, 2009 at 5:19 pm

Aww, poor Kiki.

Would it be wrong to suggest dosing her with catnip first?

By B.E. Sanderson on August 15th, 2009 at 7:45 am

What Michelle said was what I was going to suggest. Get Kiki wrapped up before you get anywhere near the dropper, and she’ll never know what’s happening. (Of course, after the first couple times, you’ll have to sneak up on her with the towel.) I hope your boo-kitty feels better soon.

:hugs: