Price Living With Bad Leg

Price's bad leg is dragging and making it hard for him to lie down.  So I put it up in an old-fashioned sling.

Because he's gotten used to lying around and feeling sorry for himself, we've been noodging him down the hallway to strengthen his good hind leg.  There is much whining and complaining, but now he can actually get to the litter box and the water without the dragging leg slowing him down.  We take the sling off at night, so he won't have a chance of catching it on things, or at least when he's without or supervision.  

Then afterwards there is purring.  Right now it's ling cod season, and I caught my first ling cod ever yesterday.  I have to fish when I can because Price loves fresh fish, and the Old Cat gets what he wants.

Price On The Run

Since people have been asking how Price is feeling, a couple days ago he slipped out the door like a snake.  The neighbor got to laugh at Barr TV as we ran like mad baboons trying to catch him, twice around the truck and then heading him off -- barely -- before he slipped under the house.

Yesterday, when Leo came back from a heavy tooth-cleaning, and was lying half-drugged in front of the stove, Price was the only one not to be afraid because he smelled like the Mad Scientist (kitteh word for "Vet.").  Price stalked over to Leo, rubbed his head with his, and then licked his head.

Dan says Price has been to the Mad Scientist so much lately, his sense of smell has blanked the place out.

Price Walking The Walk

Here's Price after killing the cat-tree and bouncing over in front of the stove and telling Jim he'll be coming back and taking that place in front of the stove, oh, yeah.

"Just keep movin.'  Ain't nothin' to see, here, 'cept Fearless, and that ain't none o' your business."

Price's Burn Healing Properly

The burn is dry, and doesn't smell.  It's beginning to granulate and sluff away.  The vet was quite happy with this photograph of the healing burn.  It's on his white belly, so it probably won't even change his hair color there.  He goes in next week to get the final checkup on his stitches and removal.

His system now rejects extra fat, which means he doesn't need it any more.  He needs protein.  So it's lean meat next.

And I had to chase down his smart-alecky butt today to give him his meds.

Price's Exam and The Fatness

Price went to the vet Monday.  His burn is healing under the scab, which is acting as a bandage.

He was prescribed skin antibiotics, to start as the gut antibiotics are finishing.  We have a little diazapam to encourage appetite and assist with sleep, if need be.  And a little mild opiate, if needed for pain.

Forks Outfitters's butcher gave me a fist-full of beef fat for our boy.  He ate four quarter-size mouthfuls on the way home.  Fat to be converted to vitamin C to heal faster.

The vet said Price would be sloughing the scab.  Today I found him beginning to clean the scab off, revealing bright-pink skin underneath.  Yes, I know the scab is made of himself, but EWWWWW.

Bacon Meets Its Match - The Price Saga

Price and the Sheep (Leo) in the sunshine by the stove.

Price had been in such pain, so miserable, so uncoaxable with his food.  His burns looked like bacon.

Last night, he was standing by the kindling pile, face-marking. Dan later saw him  sink his claws into the cat-tree and dig at it, straining his whole body backwards on his hind legs, in a way that looked painful, but that he obviously wasn't bothered by.

This morning, suddenly -- he got up and followed me around until I fed him.  I made him get out of the way during the wood-loading -- so he cornered Jim (the new/low cat) and smacked him.  Later, when Jim was complaining because now he is House Cat and doesn't get let outside to beat up the neighbors any more, he stopped and hissed at Price.  Price sat down and gave him, his "Yes?  Do you need another one?" look.

Maybe... I don't want to jinx anything, but thank all of you for the Love-Voodoo for Price.

Price Up And At 'Em

Price gobbling up canned catfood and chicken fat.  Oh, how thin!

Now we've eaten, time for Nips!

The boy gets fed every hour on the hour, with anything high calorie, although he wants the canned food with all the added vitamins, minerals, and Taurine.  Fish, chicken, milk, mayonnaise, whatever he'll eat - doesn't matter.  He doesn't get any of the shellfish, in this case mussels, because healthy humans handle those better than sick kitties.

Twice a day, Dan puts on heavy leather gloves, and I wash his belly down with a solution of nettles, dill and catnip, then apply antibiotic ointment.  He gets antibiotics for his gut resection three times a day.

We should all hope we get treated like this when we're sick.

Looking up Chinese herbs for helping with the other tiny tumors that were found in the ultrasound.  Price had a low-level facial tumor removed about 3 years ago.  He was found in a parking lot in 1998, as a half-grown boy.  And we're living in Clallam Bay -- an industrial forestry area.  We might as well be living with pulp mills.