dear abby

We are all full of cuddles and purrs and head scratches now.

But yesterday was another story.

I came home and woke the cat up to shift her off the middle of the bed and instead of climbing off in a snit, she staggered around, could barely open her eyes and I was convinced she could not see. Poor thing was as limp as a dishrag.

A couple of hours later, I came back from an appointment and a fruitless search for a veterinary clinic that could see her immediately and she seemed to have gained at least enough strength to get to the litter box for a pee. Which wasn't as much of a good thing as I'd thought when the vet at the emergency hospital later couldn't get a 'sample'.

And, as I knew would be necessary, she had to be sedated before anything could be even thought of being done. Because, my sweet little cat turns into a howling, hissing, spitting monster whenever she gets to a vet's office. Or feels her personal space is being invaded. Or sometimes when she just doesn't like you any more.

But, really, she is the nicest, most friendly cat - she will be the first to greet you at the door and will do that floppy thing all over your feet that cats are wont to do. She will purr loudly and smile when you give her a scratch behind the ears or under the chin. She will later be the perfect hostess and come from wherever she has gone to nap to say goodbye and see you off when you are ready to leave. She may even go out into the hall and walk you to the elevator and hang about for a final head scratch. But, without any warning she can suddenly turn nasty. Of course, the vet's visit is enough warning, even if she did quite happily crawl into the wicker James Herriot style carrier for the journey.

She looked a little pathetic, really, once the sedation had kicked in. And I felt like such a bad mummy for not realizing until then just how skinny she had become. I knew she wasn't quite as hefty as she once was - she was never fat exactly, but she was sturdy; chunky I would say. There was no slender leg above her thick ankles and big paws. But, as the vet says, it is hard to notice these changes with a cat who sleeps 23 hours a day....

Anyway, a few hundred dollars later and a small vial of appetite stimulant and she is sprightlier than ever and certainly ready for lots (lots!) of lovin'. But, Abby, you have had nearly 16 years of vet avoidance and now you will have to get used to more visits (and more sedation) if you are diabetic and having kidney problems.