Vets and Their Pets

Vets and Their Pets

Every day my colleagues and I see many pets, old and young, sick and healthy, cats and dogs. We examine your pets and make our recommendations to keep them well or help them get better. It is easy to see us as your pet’s doctor, but remember that we are pet owners too.  We are happy when they are well and anxious when they are sick. We’ve been in your shoes and we understand how stressful it can be when they are not well. Like everyone else,  we love to talk about our pets! Feel free to ask us about our own “fur babies”!

I would like to tell you about my first cat, Napoleon.

In January 2000, Napoleon walked into the clinic in Malton where I was working at the time. He was a nice looking, lean and unneutered male shorthaired brown tabby, who had clearly been living on the streets for a bit. We fed him and sent him on his way, but of course he came back.

I had been married for about 6 years at that time; neither David nor I had had pets growing up (unless you count the Bassett Hound puppy that was David’s for about 5 minutes when he was 5 years old and his brand new baby sister was brought home from the hospital; as you might expect, that didn’t last long; and he is not bitter at all....). Our only personal pet experience had been a series of rats that we owned in the early days of our marriage (which, by the way, are wonderful sweet, clean and friendly pets). David had always wanted a dog, but the timing wasn’t right for us and he had always told me he didn’t like cats. David’s grandfather had recently passed away and his grandmother had said on several occasions that she had always wanted a cat, so I called David and said, “there’s this lovely cat that has wandered in...do you think your grandma would like him?”.  Instead, David said, “Oh, bring him home”.

One year later, David said, “I think we need another cat....”

So we went to the shelter in Brampton, and adopted Jackson.

Napoleon was a wonderful cat; a big muscular cat (because he was neutered in adulthood) who quickly grew into a big, chubby cat.  His principal love in life was FOOD. He would try just about anything going but one of his favorite treats was cantaloupe melon! I don’t remember exactly how we figured that out but I do remember that he would start to meow as soon as we came in the door with grocery bags if there was a cantaloupe in there somewhere and if we were cutting one up on the counter he would not leave us alone until he got his plateful. He was also rather fond of smoked salmon, a bit of chicken, a little shrimp.....

Napoleon owned us for about the next 16 years; he went through surgery for bladder stones once and, having successfully knocked off some pounds before the surgery, one of my associates was kind enough to give him a “tummy tuck” to help tighten up his loose skin folds. Unfortunately, as so often happens, the weight came back.....

Napoleon was an apartment cat for most of the time he spent with us, but when we moved into our house in 2012, he seemed genuinely grateful that we had provided him with a backyard to explore and roll in. He was also sincerely offended when it would rain or snow and by the looks he would give us I really think he felt it was our fault and we should do something about it!

In the last year and a half of his life Napoleon developed intestinal cancer, kidney problems and a thyroid problem.  He went through abdominal surgery, 2 visits to the emergency hospital and a blood transfusion. I remember going to pick him up at the emergency clinic after his transfusion and making sure we stopped at the grocery store first for some cantaloupe for him. Then there were daily medications, which he always took willingly as long as there was a treat to follow. He would come to get me in the evening to remind me and quickly our dog Lizzie learned that this was “treat time”.  In his last year, as often happens, Napoleon became quite snuggly and liked to sit with us when we would watch TV.

We put Napoleon to sleep in January of this year, when he wasn’t having any fun anymore.

David and I miss our big brown boy.

Sooo....

We started thinking about getting another cat to keep Jackson company. Having never had kittens, I told David I’d keep my eyes open for a kitten that needed a home....

Now we are owned by Beauregard and Sherman (and Jackson and Lizzie). and I am wondering what have we gotten ourselves into. More about the kittens to come...

RIP Napoleon.

___________________

During Napoleons lifetime, there were many times where I had to prescribe him medications. When we recommend medication for our feline patients we are met with one of two reactions; the uninitiated take the medication with no questions asked; the more experienced among you will look at us in horror, knowing how challenging it can be to get a cat to take a pill.

We always strive to make the best possible recommendations for medication for your pet.  Where possible, we will try to give you options for giving your cat (or dog) medications or at least some tips for how to give the medicine. Some cats (like Napoleon) can be trained to take pills by following with a yummy treat. Sometimes pills  can be hidden inside something tasty. Often we can find other formulations  (like liquids or gels that can be rubbed into the ear) to make it easier to give medicines if needed. If you are struggling with the medication we send home, please don’t hesitate to call and discuss it with one of our doctors or technicians.  We are here to help and we know what you are going through.

Dr Jennifer Portch