Starvin' Marvin, The Ethiopian Kitty

So, I have to start this blog with a little history.  Duncan is a cat obsessed with food.  In the mornings, we wake up and he begins howling near his food dish to let us know how hungry he is.  That he is about to collapse from hunger.  And that if he doesn't eat soon, it will rest on our heads when we find his emaciated bones gently spread out by his sadly empty food dish with the smiling kitty cartoon on the bottom.  And it doesn't matter if one of us has already fed him.  As soon as the other person walks by, the Starvin' Marvin routine starts again. Only, of course, he's about 3 pounds too heavy and has a solid pack of extra supplies stored around his waist. 

That's fact #1.  Fact #2 comes from December when Dave and I arrived back from our honeymoon (10 hours flying, 20 hours awake, jet lagged) to find Duncan with a raging urinary tract infection (UTI) peeing blood all over the floor.  We're home for 15 minutes before we rush him to an Emergency Vet Hospital which did come in handy to know about with Savannah's diabetic seizure.  Additionally, UTIs are very bad for male cats and can lead to a quick death if there is blockage.  So we were glad the flight wasn't late and despite being knackered out of our minds, we could take him to a pet hospital.  (Despite it costing out the ying yang.)

So yesterday, I worked at home to keep an eye on Duncan.  One bad pee and I was planning to rush him to the vet---our regular vet and not the emergency one.  ($100 emergency vs. $25 regular office call---Hmmmmm.  Which should I choose?)  Duncan lay about, purring when I pet him, but not responding to any food.  If Scarlett had done this, it would not be anything worth noticing.  But recall Starvin' Marvin.  He looked lethargic and his ears felt hot (the only place I could think to feel a fever) and he threw up.  We decided to call the vet---they weren't worried until I told them about the yakking and they encouraged me to bring him in despite a full schedule and only one vet on duty. 

Unfortunately, I had night class and they could only get him in after 3:00--too late for the various commuting I'd have to do to be ready for class.  Dave to the rescue!  We perform tag team parenting:  I leave, he arrives, he vets, he returns, he goes back across town for another appointment. 

The good news is that Duncan had appaently only eaten something that had upset his stomach.  The vet gave him a cat antacid shot and a cat anti-yakking shot and sent him in his way.  And all for much, much less than an emergency visit, Duncan returned back to the house and immediately started the Starvin' Marivn routine.  YAY!!!

Over-protective parents? Yes!!!  I don't deny it!  ("Our cat didn't eat breakfast this morning, should we bring him in?")  Practicing for baby?! Oh, most definitely!  I have to confess also that there is the ghost of Savannah in my mind that says if we'd taken her in the first time she threw up that morning, she wouldn't have seized that night and she could still be alive today.  And ...well..... two kitties in one year would just be too much. 

Off to work.

8:09:52 AM