Coming home to Spanky
Got up this morning, did some housekeeping and helped run errands with/for jaylake and then hit the road to Seattle. I had thought to stop at either the Factory Outlets at Centralia or at Southgate Mall to buy new jeans, but found myself anxious to get home to Spanky. I arrived home at about 2:30 PM.
My cat sitter had left me voice mail about Spanky, that he seemed blue without me here. She suggested I try feeding him baby food, that it might be easier for him to eat. When I got home, I discovered that he hasn't been cleaning himself--and though at first I thought that the sitter hadn't done anything to help him out, the roll of paper towels I'd left out for the purpose had been nearly finished. When I got home, I found his chest, front paws, and his cheeks all covered with brown goo. I cleaned him up, gave him his subcutaneous fluid for the day, and made sure he ate a little bit. He napped by the balcony doors for a couple of hours, then went back to his bed. Tonight, he ate some wet food and is now in his bed again.
As long as he's interested in food, I figure he's okay. I'm happy to clean him as needed and to make sure he's comfortable. It's not the life he had, but he seems copacetic with just resting in his bed and looking out the balcony doors before a nap. As e_bourne said a few days ago, "That's pretty standard for old age no matter what the species. . . . He's enjoying being an old cat in the way old cats do." Must remember this.
After I took care of Spank, I pooped out and ended up napping for two hours. This was not part of my plan, but I think that I needed the rest, it came upon me so suddenly. I have a busy work week ahead of me, so I'm going to take the evening to unwind, prep for the days to come, and then hit the ground running in the morning.
My cat sitter had left me voice mail about Spanky, that he seemed blue without me here. She suggested I try feeding him baby food, that it might be easier for him to eat. When I got home, I discovered that he hasn't been cleaning himself--and though at first I thought that the sitter hadn't done anything to help him out, the roll of paper towels I'd left out for the purpose had been nearly finished. When I got home, I found his chest, front paws, and his cheeks all covered with brown goo. I cleaned him up, gave him his subcutaneous fluid for the day, and made sure he ate a little bit. He napped by the balcony doors for a couple of hours, then went back to his bed. Tonight, he ate some wet food and is now in his bed again.
As long as he's interested in food, I figure he's okay. I'm happy to clean him as needed and to make sure he's comfortable. It's not the life he had, but he seems copacetic with just resting in his bed and looking out the balcony doors before a nap. As e_bourne said a few days ago, "That's pretty standard for old age no matter what the species. . . . He's enjoying being an old cat in the way old cats do." Must remember this.
After I took care of Spank, I pooped out and ended up napping for two hours. This was not part of my plan, but I think that I needed the rest, it came upon me so suddenly. I have a busy work week ahead of me, so I'm going to take the evening to unwind, prep for the days to come, and then hit the ground running in the morning.