Sick Kitty and Kidneys

I will probably be off my blog for a couple of more days.  My cat just came back from the vet after having cancerous tumors removed from her mammary glands.  I myself have been feeling terrible due to a chronic kidney infection.

Really, this post is more for me, my daughter, and anyone else that cares to read it.  

So…Marcelle.  I’ve had Marcelle for ten years.  My sister gave her to me during the hardest time of my life, on my 19th birthday.  I was going through something pretty bad that I’m not comfortable discussing here…but she was my angel disguised in fur.  Through the years, she has been my constant companion.  To me, she is much more than just a pet.   We were able to get through that time together and go on to new adventures. 

My cat is a good judge of character.  Over the years I’ve been amazed by her character judgment skills.  Generally, if you are a good person she’ll let you in the house.  If she doesn’t like you, you are not getting in.  Now, some people she just plays with.  If you know me in real life and are concerned because she hisses at you when you visit, don’t worry you’ve actually passed her test.  If she really doesn’t like you, I doubt you are brave enough to venture a second visit.  My cat doesn’t just scratch you. If she doesn’t like you, she crawls up your body and attacks you with biting and scratching at the same time.  She doesn’t give up easily and will puncture through your clothing.  I’ve never seen ANY cat as vicious as her when she feels she is protecting me. 

My little watch cat let me know an ex-landlord was going in my apartment during the day without my consent. Apparently, he’d been using my apartment to show other tenants the floor plan without my consent.  After she attacked him and the other prospects, that didn’t happen again.  A male neighbor that had befriended me somewhat once came to visit.  During the visit, I excused myself to the bathroom.  Looking back, he’d said some things that were rather strange.  He had no reason whatsoever to be in the hallway headed toward the bathroom where I was.  I can’t say he was going to do anything bad like rape me, but I am suspicious of why he was in that part of the house. My cat attacked him worse than she has ever attacked anyone.  She literally crawled up his body to his face and was biting at it.  Again, it’s likely nothing bad was going to happen…but at the same time I never let him in my house again.  My cat seems to feel the same way about people that I do.  My husband used to have a friend that I did not like…luckily my cat couldn’t stand him either, so he didn’t come around often.  The list goes on.  Now, there are other people she is very lovey dovey to.  Generally, she will not hurt children.  There have been a few mild scratching occasions but generally only after numerous tail pulling.  She’s never hurt a child the way she has adults.  If you are someone that loves animals and me, she senses that and might even curl up on your lap.  This is pretty rare, she’s a bit picky in the people she likes to that level but I have seen it a few times.  99% of people, she likes to have fun with.  She’ll stand in a corner, hiss a few times, and may even swat her paw.  If you ignore her, she’ll stop and maybe even become your friend.  If you act scared, however, she is having a blast!! She loves feeling like a little tiger.  Still, most people like to know she’s put up before coming in my house. 

Now, with me, it is a different story.  Most nights, she sleeps right beside me in bed.  Usually, she takes her paw and strokes my face until I fall asleep.  With me, she reserves a tenderness that no one else gets to see.  However, that doesn’t mean she hasn’t “ordered” me around a bit as well.  If her food is coming a little too slowly, I might get a little warning that she is getting impatient. 

Several years ago, I was told that she was positive for feline leukemia.  My heart sang and I was devastated.  My cat has always been a strict inside only cat and I’ve never had her around another cat.  I was completely shocked because this is a disease that passes cat to cat.  The only explanation the vet could come up with was that either she had been born with it from her mother or another cat has hissed on her through the screen window she used to sit in.  What I didn’t know at the time is that 1/3 die quickly, 1/3 after a period of time, and 1/3 show no symptoms.  This has been a while now and she hadn’t got sick and every year her blood work was perfect. 

A few months ago I found a lump on her tummy.  I thought it was an ingrown hair.  Finally, I took her to the vet. The diagnosis? Feline mammary cancer.  Today, she had 2 of the lumps removed. There is a good chance it will come back but I’m going to be hoping for the best.  She’s very sore and has been getting a little extra TLC. 

The second reason I’ve been away is my own health reasons.  I apparently get chronic kidney infections. I’ve had several over the past year that last months on end. I have no symptoms of kidney infections until I get so tired I can barely do anything at all. It took me 8 hours to clean the kitchen the other day.  I told my husband I was 98% sure I probably had another kidney infection and I was right.  Sooo….I’ve been extremely tired.  All of my energy has been used to chase after a 2 year old and try to pick up somewhat.  [Hey do you guys remember before having little ones what it was like to be sick? When you could just lay in bed and whine to yourself? Now, even if you are sick our duties go on.] 

So, for this reason please excuse my absence for a bit.  The writing of the blog doesn’t take much energy but the activities that go into writing for the blog are a little draining, lol.