cat's tale, part 4

The poor cat has had such a hard time. Traumatized by going to the vet, when just being put in the car is more stress than she wanted in her low-key, normally localized, never-leaving-home life. Being prodded and poked, have personal parts inspected repeatedly.

Forced to take meds she doesn't want, for reasons she cannot understand (since I don't speak cat, and she doesn't comprehend English). Having terrible matted up places all over her fur that make her miserable when the hair gets tangled and constantly pulling on her skin. Plus looking totally neglected and possibly mistreated (not at all true, but really pitiful in appearance: almost moth-eaten.) I called the expert who works at the pet supply store, to ask what to do. She said to find a groomer  who would probably want to shave all the tangled up stuff off.

So I got out the yellow pages and called this morning. Talked to someone who said I could bring her in (more trauma in the car), but to wait until afternoon, when most of the bark-y dogs were gone. I called back around lunch time, and was told to bring her at 1;30. I'd asked if I could stay with her, so she would at least have someone familiar close by. The groomer had me hold her while she started shaving all the hair off her back, then started on her back legs and belly. She's pretty funny looking now, but I have not said that out loud.

I've actually spent most of the day with her. She is sleeping on the end of the bed now. Which is a marked improvement from a couple of weeks ago, when she would not even invest the effort to get up on the bed from the floor. I hope we are mostly through with cold weather, as I know as lean as she has gotten she is probably cold all the time, and with practically no fur, will have to stay inside until it is warm enough to be outdoors.

Though it will take sometime for her to adjust to the feeling that she is walking around in her underwear, hopefully she will get accustomed to feeling lots of cool breezes and soon not notice that she is so 'air-conditioned'. She had to be really uncomfortable with all that tangled up fur, like someone pulling on your head hair unceasingly, so thought she looks sort of scalped, I am hoping I did the right thing.