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My cat is sick. I wish I didn't have to write this, and I suppose I really don't, but I need some place to put my thoughts. I feel like the people who would care about this already know, but I'm still so worried, that talking about it is the only thing I feel I can do. Where do I even begin? Well, one October day back in 2013, I adopted a cat from the local Humane Society. Best decision I ever made.
The cat I adopted was a girl, estimated to be around 8 years of age, and her name was Jynx. The moment I saw her, I knew. I know that sounds corny, and sometimes people don't believe you when you say that, but she was the one. I also highly recommend adopting adult cats, and maybe overlook the kittens a bit (they always find homes. Adult cats... sometimes not so much. Jynx was there for over 6 months before I found her and others, even longer). Fast forward a bit to the current day and here we are.
She recently had her 9th/10th birthday (like I said, we don't know for sure), and seemed to be doing perfectly. Sprightly and loud, expressive and a purr like a motor. Then, a few days ago, I noticed that she didn't wake me up with her usual crazy meowing so that I'd feed her. I called it a stroke of luck and chalked it up to feeding her a bit later the night before. She eats that afternoon, no issue. Same thing the next day. She seems to have picked a new spot to nap, but again, didn't question it too much. I noticed she did start meowing a me a bit more, but when I go to her and give her attention, she'd calm down.
So, the night before last, my boyfriend and I are up watching a movie and it must have been around 3am. Jynx starts meowing from across the room, staring at me. I say something to her, but she doesn't calm down. I listen and she sounds distressed. I instantly jump up and go to her, but she looks fine.
"What's wrong, Jynx? Huh?" She still is meowing strangely, so I gingerly hold her and she stops. I sit back down and lay her down on my chest where she is just sprawled. Normal Jynx would at least shift to get comfortable. Something's wrong, but I don't know what. I'm trying not to freak out, and that's when I notice her walking to go to the couch arm to perk. She can't even make it to the spot before she sinks down, defeated.
I suppose to some, this might not seem odd, but when you know your cats personality so much, you just know when they're acting weird. I show my boyfriend, and we think maybe she's hurt her back legs since she's staying low to the ground, only walking a few steps before laying down. She just has no energy. It was so early in the morning, the only thing we could do was wait until a vet opened, and I absolutely hated we couldn't go then and there.
I take her to the bedroom, and lay her next to me so I can keep an eye on her. We doze off and I wake up to hearing a meow. Not too strong, but definitely wrong. Jynx isn't next to me. I discover that she had jumped down and tried to crawl to the closet but had collapsed on the way. That's not a normal place she goes, and being paranoid like I am, I assume she's trying to go off to die. I start crying, because I don't know what's wrong and it's still hours before any animal hospital opens. I grab a blanket and pillow and lay right next to her for the rest of the night, even getting her to drink some water in the mean time.
So, yesterday morning rolls around, and I'm instantly up, calling vets, getting there as soon as I can with my boyfriend. Jynx is even weaker now, so I carry her and her bed with me into the vet's office. The vet was an older gentleman with white hair and a thick mustache. He looks at Jynx and is all business. Heartbeat, eye check, mouth check, feels for any masses or issues with her spine or legs. Nothing obvious. He is holding her up as he is doing this because she won't stay up on her own. He sets her on the ground to see what she can do. Jynx walks a few inches. Lays down.
"Good," he says, "That's good." At least she can move a little. They run some blood tests and discover she has severe anemia and it is possible she could die. This can be caused by a parasite, bone marrow issues, cancer, any number of things. We couldn't afford a blood transplant so they gave her fluids and some Doxycycline and Perdnisone. Of course, I cried some more. I was really scared and this cat is my best friend. Even her temperature had dropped and we had to keep her on a heating pad. The vet said to give her whatever she wanted to eat, something like tuna and to keep an eye on her.
That's exactly what I did. Didn't leave her side. She tried to go to the litter box three times after we got back to the vet, and every time she didn't have the energy. Climbed inside and laid down. Peed a little. I would have to pick her up and carry her back to bed.
Today, she's doing a bit better. Her purring is no longer as weak, she's eating more, a bit more vocal. Moves with more ease, and hasn't had trouble going to the bathroom too much. I'm still cautious and stressing over her constantly, but I'm feeling much more hopeful than yesterday. I'm hoping that she pulls through.
