I Miss My Cat

My cat is gone. I keep catching him out of the corner of my eye, thinking that he’s about to jump up to get petted. Joey was a large cat, so it was always fairly thunderous when he made that leap onto the couch or bed. Now there’s nothing.

It was rough this morning. Caitlin had a big seizure at 5:40. After she fell asleep from the Diastat. Lynne and I returned to our bed. That was usually the point that Joey would come to us to give comfort. He always did after Caitlin had a big spasm. Cute and purring, he would just rub on you until you petted him and felt better.

We’ve had a lot of death this year. I lost an uncle, a close cousin, the father of a good friend, a couple of the Aicardi girls, and a very dear friend well before her time. I have absolutely nothing profound to add, I just want it stop happening so damn much.

I ended up taking care of Joey by myself yesterday. It was very difficult. I broke down for a minute or two, and then I got back to business. I did the best I could for him.

I miss him terribly.

Thank you, everybody who gave condolences. It did help.

Joey Passed Away

The vet just called. Joseph passed away. They don’t know why. We are devastated. He was the greatest pet that a family could ever want. He was sweet, kind, and funny. Lynne raised him from a kitten, and he was my constant companion as I struggled with Caitlin’s illness. We couldn’t have loved an animal more. He was a magnificent friend and a complete member of our little family.

This is horrible. Please give my wife as many virtual hugs as you can.

Joey Is At The Vet

Well, Joey Cat is at the vet. It looks like we have another cat that is medically confusing. I guess it’s a family tradition around here. Joey is still very weak. Last night he also started to wheeze. We brought him in at 8:30 am. It seems from his x-rays and initial blood work that he perhaps has bronchial pneumonia in his lower lungs. The problem is that he has no fever. They put him on antibiotics to combat this.

The other thing they discovered is a high glucose level. He may have diabetes, but they are waiting on him to pee again to get a ketone level to confirm. They also have blood work that’s gone out to see if something else is causing all of this.

Hopefully, he will be all right. Unfortunately, this means it’s going to be a lean Christmas this year.

On the positive, I finished with the Mad Norwegian Press manuscript only hours before Lars needed my notes. Once Lars is done with that, we will start cranking on the big, unannounced project.

Just finished reading: His Majesty’s Dragon
Currently reading: ?

Joey Is Sick

We has sick kitty.

It’s a little tense around here today. Joey isn’t feeling well. He’s been lethargic since Friday. I made a Monday appointment for him almost as soon as he got lethargic, but he’s now a little bit worse. He’s still eating a little and using the box, but he is really out of it. This morning his breathing started to get a little short and raspy. Of course, we immediately called the vet. The vet says it’s probably an upper-respiratory thing, and we can wait until his Monday appointment. Still, that doesn’t mean that we aren’t really worried.

Lynne and I are very close to Joey Cat. Lynne got him 11 years ago as a kitten back when she was alone in Philadelphia. When I entered the picture, Joseph and I bonded. He is my cat. He checks up on me, sits in my lap, and is generally the most awesome cat ever. It’s been two years since we lost Sarah Cat to diabetes. We just aren’t ready to lose him, too. Of course, who is ever ready to lose somebody that they love.

I’m tired of illness and death.