I guess not, I haven't even had dinner yet.
Miss D was a workout. A delightful workout, for sure, but she ran my ass ragged from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m., when her Mommy got HOME, THANK GOD!!!
She's a combat-crawling, independent sitting, into everything, non-stop babbling ball of fire. She napped for an hour. Not 60 consecutive minutes, oh no, there was too much to DO for that nonsense! She took 3 20 minute catnaps. She ate fruit for breakfast because Grandma strapped her ass in the highchair, but consumed less than 8 oz. of formula, because pausing to eat is SO BORING! She'd gulp three gulps from the bottle and knock it away, that was enough to keep her going for now, and she had THINGS TO DO, GRANDMA!
She's all smiles and easygoing while not sleeping and not eating - it's not like she's a wired little stress puppy. She's just too damn excited about her new found mobility to want to do anything but explore. She needs a toy or two with wheels, she loves the wheels on her stroller, and it was a bummer that Grandma kept redirecting her to something that wasn't quite so dirty. She also needs a toy that involves putting things into something, because she sat for several minutes engrossed in putting smaller toys into the little Bumbo chair that was a total waste of money because she never used it.
I staggered home exhausted at 4:30, to two dogs who really, really had to pee, where the hell were you all day Mom? They've been spoiled since I've gone self-employed; I seldom have to be gone that many hours without being able to give them a midday pit stop.
And once again, the Cat of the Mixed Messages is off his feed. After my last update about his condition he of course rallied! He cleaned his plate at every meal, slept through the night, and acted social! This evening he didn't touch his dinner - and it's a flavor he loved just yesterday. He's not complaining, he's not eating, he's just asleep on the back of the chair. It's looking like May will be the month of the many vet bills I can ill afford, but his will be the final payment.
Please don't do this. I put a dog down under similar circumstances and I've regretted it ever since.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you have those regrets, but how old was your dog? This cat is somewhere between 17 and nobody knows, and is just winding down in extreme old age. He's been to the vet, and the vet shares this assessment.
ReplyDeleteI am humoring him and giving him a comfortable old age, but if he's at the end of the road I hope to be wise and strong enough to recognize the right time and send him on without endless days or weeks of suffering.
Higgins is slowly sliding down a steep hill, and whenever he seems a bit 'better' he really isn't, he has just paused for a while on a narrow ledge. He just seems 'better' by comparison to the bad bits.
ReplyDeleteI can see exactly that pattern NOW, looking back at our experience with Vegemite, and can just about count the number of times we kidded ourselves that she was 'improving'.
My regret is that we probably hung on to her a bit too long.
Hugs, hugs and more hugs,
Gae, in Callala Bay
Yeah, the old man rose from the back of the chair and is now eating the dinner I offered nearly 4 hours ago. But he really doesn't seem to be in real distress - he has hollered in the night all his damn life, he just got louder and even more strident in his dotage. It's a tough call, and I'm not even sentimental about this cat - I respect him as a very senior ancient cat, and am trying to do right by him.
ReplyDeleteIt's always a tough decision. Cats are difficult because they hide pain. Your only clue is that they stop eating and hide out (more than usual). It is no kindness to keep them alive past the point where they can recover a good quality of life.
ReplyDelete