The Villain is Unmasked

Sable hasn’t been feeling her best over the past few days though, surprisingly, she has continued to eat. I thought a hairball might be the culprit, but I wasn’t convinced, simply because there was no evidence of it in the vomit she would bring up. But, of course, that is hardly conclusive, since a well-packed hairball doesn’t always give up any of itself to the puke it causes. This was, it appears, the case here.

Sable deposited this on the floor yesterday evening.

I hope that is all there is of it. I suspect it is. If this was her problem lately, then it has resolved itself; I can’t depend on every difficulty having a similarly happy ending but, perhaps, by the time another, more serious issue surfaces, Sabe will be much more formerly the feral she still is.

The News Continues

When I came home yesterday, I couldn’t see anything that Sable may have brought up during my absence. I fed her a reduced amount of soft-food, she ate everything in her dish, and then I discovered that she had indeed regurgitated a pile of food during the day.

This one pile seems to have been the total of her upchuck, which would be an improvement on the previous day’s results, which kept coming. Part of me regretted feeding her; on the other hand, she has to eat, and when there is no way to medicate a cat, the only way to tell if she will continue to throw up is to allow her to eat. She is also drinking water.

In case Sabe is fighting a hairball - there is no sign of her deposits containing fur, but she does leave quite a bit behind when she sits or lies - I will add Restoralax, a gentle laxative, to some of her food. I give that to Indigo regularly now, in a small portion of Recovery, which is much like a pudding in consistency. The Restoralax dissolves in it and does not seem to contribute a taste to the mixture. In any case, Indie eats it without complaint, and she is staying regular. This should help Sable and, in fact, is about the only substance I can safely add that I am confident won’t change her attitude toward her food.

Otherwise, my hopefully-soon-to-be-feral cat is doing well. As may be seen by previous photographs, she is unbothered by the other beasts and doesn’t bother them. She is also allowing me slightly greater proximity: she will sit still or drink water while I sweep floors and scoop litter-boxes within a few feet. I can also approach with food to within a yard.

When dealing with a wary erstwhile outsider, everything is gradual, even treating an illness.

An Unfortunately Newsworthy Event

Early yesterday, I stated to a friend that I didn’t have anything to relate on my blog that day; the cats had been less than newsworthy. That changed after feeding them dinner.

Sable threw up, which is a first for her. It is something I have feared since taking her in, since there is no way to medicate her without physically capturing her and causing far too much stress to justify the reason. And, as she spends much of her time when upstairs under the bed, that’s where she threw up. It was very soon after dinner, and gave no sign of being caused by a hairball. I had to move the bed to clean the carpet, so Sabe hurried downstairs. There, she barfed up more on the couch, though most of the food in her stomach had already been brought up.

She did not move much during the evening, but I saw no new signs of vomiting this morning. I fed her a small breakfast; it was the only way to determine if she was still sick; she felt well enough to eat it all. As she did not bring up anything during the night - it would have been just watery bile, I suspect - I hope that it was simply a matter of the food served her for dinner, though a couple of the other beasts received smaller portions from the same tin, and suffered not at all for them. Furthermore, it was a variety of food that Sable has eaten with success and apparent enjoyment numerous times in the past.

There is, unfortunately, not much to be done for her. She and I waited out the night, and I will see what today produces. Other than that, a semi-feral cat offers no options for health care, unless the issue is vital. Later, the more sociable cats came to keep Sable company, and she drank some water just a few feet away from where I was sweeping the floor and scooping litter-boxes.

Even so, I would have preferred another newsless day.

Trusting That She Will Trust

I am constantly surprised at how animals can come to trust people. That usually must occur whenever a cat comes into a new situation: Brazil, Moxy, even Imogen, had to be won over to various extents. Last night, I wanted to cut Indigo’s claws. She was a little wary, having just had a course of daily medicine which she hated. But I situated her and myself on the floor and took up the trimmers. With a few feeble, protesting retractions of her paws, she allowed me to cut the sharper swords.

I think back to when Indie first arrived. I was afraid even to check her gender (you may recall that I thought initially she was a mancat), so ready to be combative was she. Allowing me to inject her with insulin was a big step. She now lets me cut her claws, give her medicine (though it’s only her opening her mouth in protest that permits me success in that endeavour), and push her into a carrier. Lately, she has been coming up onto the bed at night; she has been doing that for a while, but the change is that she lies down next to me - her face so close to mine that her whiskers tickle my nose - will stay there for much of the night. Also, for the first time, yesterday, she curled up on my lap, instead of accepting pets in a nearly straight position.

I think most cats want to be friends with people. I think in this, they are more like dogs than they may appear. They do not display their affection in the same way, of course, but the desire for it is usually there. A cat like Indigo, abandoned, uncertain of her future, wanted a home, a friend. Often, it’s just a matter of a human proving that he can provide that home, and be that friend, that will give a cat everything she wants.

Slow Dough

Different cats knead in different ways. Moxy will grasp as much as he can with one paw’s claws while lifting the other and curling the toes. Valkyrie kneads by flexing her toes as far apart as she can, then pulling inward, using her claws to pick up any stray bits, such as skin and tissue.

Imogen makes her biscuits slowly, like a tired baker at the end of the day, needing to put one more loaf in the oven before he starts cleaning up. This is her, deciding that my stomach is just doughy enough for bread.

Sleeping However

Valkyrie demonstrates the fact that cats, like human infants, can sleep anywhere, at any time, in any position - while her fellow felines, Moxy and Indigo, show the more conventional positions.

The Sundial

The first day of March here is sunny and warm. It was frosty this morning, but already had a vernal feel to it. There will probably be more chilly days - certainly more chilly nights - but the Earth is turning its northern hemisphere toward the sun again, and it feels like it today.

The cats are taking advantage of the light that is flowing more and more into the Cosy Cabin. Moxy in particular likes the sunshine; he, like my late housekeeper, Josie, is a sun-cat, and will follow the rays. That big, dense body runs on solar power, it seems, and needs re-charging.