Scraps the cat is ill.
"She may have simply a hyperthyroid or she may have cancer," said the kind vet who came to our home.
"The only way to determine the exact cause of her weight loss and dehydration," he said, "would be to take her to a specialist in Orange County."
"If the diagnosis is simply a hyperthyroid," the vet said, "we would just carry on tricking her every day into taking a pill."
"However," he continued, "if she has cancer we could choose a long and invasive chemotherapy and radiation treatment which would ultimately destroy her thyroid and perhaps cure her."
The treatment would keep her away from home for several weeks. However, the web site of the Orange County specialist encouraged, we could watch her on a 24 hour live feed video. All of this was a few weeks ago.
Since then Scraps indulges us enough to take her daily pill. She eats. She sleeps. She grooms herself and her soul mate Rudy. She plays. And she gives us her usual piece of mind, complaining and correcting about this, that, and the other. She has gained weight and no longer appears dehydrated.
We're not taking her to Orange County. Only the most desperate of situations should motivate anyone to go to Orange County and right now Scraps does not seem desperate. I don't think this situation will ever get that desperate.
To celebrate life and life's possibilities, we gave Scraps a tiny saucer of caviar New Year's morning. In an orgy of delight, she purred and licked the saucer clean and then rolled in it and then rolled on the carpet and then scolded us for not giving her more.
I suspect that Scraps has been reading the book archy and mehitabel by Don Marquis and has adopted the philosophy embraced and expounded by Mehitabel the Cat. Mehitabel is living her ninth life with no regrets.
Mehitabel says, "toujours gai toujours gai -- wotthehell wotthehell -- there's a dance in the old dame yet."
I think Scraps is a lot like Mehitabel the Cat and there is definitely a dance or two in the old dame yet.
Same breakfast next year? You got it, Scraps.
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2 comments:
My wonderful cat, Silky, was with me for twenty very happy years. She, too, took those pills. She, too, had hyperthyroid. And she, too, danced like Mehitabel the Cat!
Wishing you and Scraps well.
I'm sure Scraps believes she'd get a lot more well if she could have caviar every day. So therefore ...
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