Still All About The Cats
Well it’s been all about the cats here at the beast headquarters these past few days, so that’s what you’re gonna get…at least for one more post. Both cats made it through their big dentals with the added bonus that there were only 2 mini-extractions (= can we say cheap, oh yeah!) needed this year. So our budget breathed a huge sigh in relief and we put the dough aside for next year.
The only other gotcha (there’s always one, you know) was that Taggart had a suspicious mass that needed removal on her thigh. The removal went fine, but while we wait nervously for the results we’ve got to deal with the cat-with-stitches phenomenon. That means some kind of restraint to keep kitty from ripping out the stitches before they can heal.
The traditional vet product which is rather elegantly called the Elizabethan Collar (E-collar for short) is really none of the sort. In our house we call it the MFTD (Medieval Feline Torture Device) and our cats agree with us. It’s an uncomfortable stiff plastic cone that is the perfect size to prevent all normal activity -> so if you want your cat bumping into doors, not able to eat or sleep properly, meowing uncontrollably, not able to see the litterbox…etc then this is your device of choice. Taggart went literally bananas when we tried it. She emitted a looong screaming wail-of-a-meow, streaked in a mad rush to the bedroom (getting caught several times along the way) and then pawed like crazy until the thing came off. Short of tightening the device around her neck to strangulation point this clearly wasn’t gonna work.
So bring creative RVers we improvised. A handy sweater-sleeve, some expert cutting & basic thread-work and we got ourselves a full-body cover. So far the contraption is working and kitty is waaay more comfortable. It boggles my mind that nothing like this is sold for pet owners, but there you go. A free start-up idea for all my blog readers 🙂
For those poor pet owners looking for other alternatives there are inflatable collars (ProCollar), soft e-collars (Comfy Cone) and something called Lick Strips. None of the products get stellar reviews, but as far as we’re concerned if it works it works. And anything is better than the MFTD.
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Love the sweater sleeve fix — you sure were thinking on that one!! Hope your kitties feel better ASAP. Charlie says hi to Polly and Merry Christmas to you all if we do not chat before then!! — Martha
Right back to Charlie on the “hi”. Hope you have a Merry Christmas too!
Nina
Cats sure are different than dogs, aren’t they…but I guess that’s why we have to have both. I feel your and your wallets pain, been there got the receipts but we wouldn’t change it, would we? Just a thought, is there such a thing as getting vet work done in Mexico? You’re not far away and we have friends that have their own dental work done there. When our kids were young, I always preferred them being sick than the pets, at least they could tell us whats wrong and they had good insurance. Good luck!
You know I’ve never really looked into it. One of the nice things about doing dental work in mexico is that most of the dentists are trained in the US. I’m not sure that applies to the vets. My experience with vets in various countries (especially Asia) is very mixed. Most times they do not have the kind of training and equipment they do here in the States. Also we have the added problem of travelling cross-border w/ the pets too. Still, it may be worth looking into. I wonder if anyone else does that.
Nina
Hey! That’s a great idea! Now if you can come up with a eeeeeasy way to give a cat a pill….
Emjay
IF I could do that I’d become an instant billionaire…haha! We use all the “tricks” in this house from pill pockets to smelly treats. Pill time is always an “interesting” event. Taggart’s on antibiotics for the next week….argh!
Nina
Glad it all worked out well and good thinking on the “sweater”…have a Merry Christmas ….a Healthy and Happy New Year to you all…
So far so good. We just need to last the week and then we should be OK on the stiches healing!
Nina
Great idea with the sweater sleeve! How cleaver you are! Boy I hope those two poor little things feel better real soon. We wish you all a very Blessed and Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy (especially the furkids) New Year!
She’s getting better daily, so on the way to recovery. Thanks for the lovely wishes! Nina
Wonderful solution! I hope someone picks up on it an markets it. They should make a fortune.
I hope the test results are benign.
Linda,
Thanks…turns out the tests showed a Mast cell tumor. The good news is the operation got the whole tumor removed, so it was lucky we had it done.
Nina
Great idea about the sweater. We’ve also been the route of the e-collar and I agree completely.
What a good looking boy you have there!