Here Kitty, Kitty

I know I blog about my cats quite a bit, but you have to bare with me. I'm not married. I have no children, so my cats are my kids. I am the crazy cat lady. I understand this. I've come to accept it. I've always loved cats. Actually, I've just always loved animals of any kind. I didn't get the nickname "EllieMae" for nothin' afterall.

Right now though, I only have cats. Well...I have a cow but she doesn't count as a real pet because she was actually one of our milking cows that I begged Daddy not to sell because she was the oldest and toughest one in the herd and quite frankly, that gave me a tremendous amount of respect for the old hag. And I do take care of other people's animals as well. I tend to Dad's chickens and dog and my brother's dogs and all that jazz. For me though, I only have cats. Which is strange...cause I've always had a LOT of animals. In fact I've called a variety of critters "pets" through the years (pigs, deer, possums, rabbits, etc....). For now though I am stuck on cats.

Ya'll already know the story of me and my cat family. How I rescued them from our dairy five years ago when their Mom abandanoned them when they were only two weeks old. How I got up every two hours that summer to feed four kittens. So on and so forth...I'll spare you those details. Needless to say, I was the best cat Mommy I could be for a human.

Sadly, my kitty-kiddos were born with Feline Leukemia, something that they contracted from their biological Mommy cat. Nothing I could do about it and by the time I found out, I was already attached. So I decided to let them live out their remaining years with me and I would do whatever I could to keep them safe, healthy, and happy during the time I had them.

Last year I lost Poop. She got a cold and as is the case with Leukemia, it progressed into something worse. She didn't make it to Christmas. :-( And this week I lost Oliver to a damn spider bite of all things. Said spider also bit my Emmie, but she has been slowly recovering. She's still not her usual self, but she is continuing to drink some liquids and keeps her wound clean on her own. But she is very sick still and very weak. So I stay worried about her.

And now I'm worried about my other remaining kitty, Bart. Usually Bart is the picture of perfect kitty cat health. He's never been diagnosed with Feline Leukemia but I always assumed he had it because he was a litter mate to the others that were diagnosed. Truth is though, even though this particular cat disease is very contagious (and NO, Daniel Clemmons, this is NOT the same thing as Feline AIDS), sometimes cats don't get it. So far, I've been lucky with Bart. I did have a scare once when he got a urinary tract infection and had to spend a week at the Vet's office, but he came out of that okay, and I've not had a single problem since then.

But he's been acting strange lately. I worry its another UTI, but the truth is, the only symptom of that he is showing is lethargy...and that could be a symptom of just about anything. According to my research he could be sick to his stomach. He could have an infection or virus. He could be too hot. He could have a disease. Hell, it could just be that he doesn't like his cat food (because he's not been eating properly for about a day now). And yes, even cats can suffer from anorexia, so it could even be that.

But I've checked him. No fever. No wounds. No teeth problems. No lumps in his tummy. No visible problems in his hind quarters. So I just can't figure it out. I even broke down and finally bought an air conditioner tonight and plugged it in, thinking maybe he was too hot.

I've been giving him Pedialyte as well as Emmie. She doesn't mind sharing I don't think. And so far, Bart is still urinating pretty regularly...he just isn't going number two because he's not eaten since Thursday night.

It stresses me out when I don't know what is wrong! I want to fix everything and I don't like it when I can't. So tomorrow I'm going to try to call the vet and make an appointment for Bart. He needs a check up whether he likes it or not.

In the meantime, my theory on what is ailing him may be far fetched, but it is also quite logical. So here it is...I think my Bartticus is depressed. I know, I know. Seriously though, animals can get depressed too. And he is in fact exhibiting all the signs of depression. But the thing that makes me think its that, is because he was fine up until a few days ago when Oliver died.

On the day Oliver and Emmie got bit, Bart was fine. He went  outside and climbed trees and played around like normal. That evening when it got time to put him back in the house, he had a little kitty breakdown. He came through the front yard meowing at the top of his lungs (Bart is a quiet kitty, he NEVER makes a sound) and when I tried to comfort him, he wouldn't have any of it. You see, Bart was looking for the other cats. By that time Emmie was in bed sick and Oliver had already passed away. That night, well after I had put them back in the house, I could hear Bart at the bedroom window meowing into the night.

The very next day he started acting strange. He sleeps in the same room that Oliver always slept in (eventhough Bart never slept with Oliver when he was alive). He even sleeps in the box that Oliver used to sleep in sometimes.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I've tried everything I can think of and the only conclusion I can come up with is that Bart is depressed. Apparently cats will do that. If your kitty cat has recently suffered a loss of another pet or human family member, they can become depressed. Go figure. And since all this started the day Oliver died and Emmie got really sick, and since I'm not finding any other symptoms, it only leaves me to conclude it is Bart's way of grieving the loss of his brother.

But until I know for sure, its off to the vet I go yet again. Keep your fingers crossed for me and my furry children.