This week we lost one of our kitties. Sissy, the one on the right became very sick last Saturday. I noticed her hanging around in the bathroom of all places. She was laying in front of the toilet. As I got ready for church on Sunday morning she was still there in front of the toilet. I noticed a small puddle on the bare floor next to the rug. I cleaned it up and knew I had to take her to the vet. Only they were closed on Sunday and we were on our way to church. When we got back from church she was still there in the bathroom. She did move around a little and she was wobbly on her back legs. I thought maybe she had been injured somehow. I couldn't imagine how since she was an indoor cat and there wasn't much inside that could injure her. As the day went on I recalled how early Saturday morning I found a leaf on the floor that one of the cats had chewed from a Chrysanthemum plant that my brother in law purchased for me a few days before. I got to thinking, maybe the plant is poisonous to cats. I can never have fresh flowers in the house without having to place them somewhere high up that the cats won't get into them. These were not up high. In fact my sister in law placed them on the floor next to the television for a splash of color. They were so pretty and instantly made the room look like fall. As soon as I got home from church I looked on Google to see if it could be the plant. There it was, high toxicity to cats. Oh, no. Monday morning I picked her up and she felt cold so I placed her on my lap to warm her. She stayed there for a long time (not like her at all) The Vet's office opens at 8am so I called them as soon as I could and they said to bring her right in. I did, when they took her temperature it was below normal and they placed a hot water bottle next to her. The doctor came in and looked her over. I told her I suspected it was the plant and she wasn't entirely convinced that was the cause of her illness. She was 12 years old and that is pretty old for a cat I guess. I thought they lived to be 20 or so. Anyway, she said that they would keep her and hydrate her through an I.V. and do a blood test. I left and about an hour later the doctor called and said her kidneys had shut down which wasn't good. She said why not keep her on the fluids and see if the kidneys started to work again. I agreed. First thing Tuesday morning I got another call from the vet's office. They said she was no better and that in all honesty if she hasn't responded by now, she most likely wouldn't.
Well, this isn't how I expected my week to start. So sad. We all are missing her little face. Molly, our other cat keeps looking in closets and around doorways for her. But I think she has stopped now. She seems to know she is gone and isn't looking anymore. We aren't going to get another cat to replace her. Needless to say, the chrysanthemum is outside now where it isn't a temptation to our other cat Molly.
