Well, yesterday we finally returned home from a week and a half's vacation. I am happy to be home with the fur kids. While it is nice to get away from the responsibilities, it's nice to come home to them too.
At one point early into our vacation, my friend who was pet sitting for us called me as we were heading into supper one evening. She was worried sick that she couldn't find Yummy and she felt he'd escaped. I told her where his usual hiding place is and even if he did get out, that he'd be fine, and come home to eat. She was worried and scared, but as luck would have it, he was only hiding from her in his usual spot behind the file cabinet in the office.
Nothing else was heard until Sunday the 27th, the evening my brother and his wife were to arrive and stay at our house for the remaining week of our vacation. Then by Monday morning, my friend was texting me to make sure my brother made it ok and did she need to go by and feed the critters? All was well. Then on Thursday the 1st I get a text from my brother that Yummy showed them that he could figure out how to open the unlocked screen door in the back and as Mushy had followed him outside they had a fight. Now, Yummy is a very different cat when he gets out. Cats he cohabitates with every day become strangers outside, and he will turn feral almost and fight with them. And he did to poor old Mushy. And my brother tells me that Mushy is now favoring his left front paw. No swelling yet. Ok, I tell him to watch him, as there is not much I can do right now from Florida.
We finally arrive home yesterday evening, the 2nd. As my brother picks us up, he tells us that Mushy's paw has swollen up, and he isn't walking on it and wasn't interested in eating. I know very well what's going on then, he has developed an abscess. Having spent time working for veterinarians, and having lived far enough out in the country that I had to be my own triage vet till a vet could arrive to me (at least 3 hrs away), I keep a full kit of care and medical items on hand for the fur kids. So, first on my list is to use a very warm wet washcloth to wrap around the foot, and see if it will release on it's own first. I have small clipper/trimmers on hand to shave, plenty of gauze, antibiotic ointment, non-stick tape (vetrap), betadine and hydrogen peroxide. I get it all laid out for him.
Mushy is not the best patient, when he doesn't feel well, he is fussy. But he did like the warm washcloth around the swollen foot. I got very lucky, when I peeled it away to re-warm it, the abscess has let go on it's own and is flowing and draining very very nicely with very little pressure from me. It's the big pad on his foot. So I work on cleaning and draining it with him complaining the whole while. Then soaked it for a minute or two in a bit of betadine mixed in to the hydrogen peroxide. The good thing about this mix is that the hydrogen peroxide will help pull the betadine into the wound and help kill the infection (I learned this trick from an ER doctor in Arizona when I got my hand torn up by a horse lead rope). Then I gently wipe off and dry the rest of the foot. Put a good dollop of Nitrofurazone ointment (this is one of the best I have personally found for wounds) over the area and bandage it with a small bit of pressure from the vetrap to help it drain some more and the swelling go down. And a shot of long acting penicillin.
After all that, I cuddled him and gave him some Ttouch and talked to him and soothed him. However, he was pouting. Scowled at me, and then went and cuddled with everyone else but me.
But by this morning, I am very very pleased to say the swelling is completely gone, the foot is just about back down to normal, he is using it some (due to bandage thought it's a bit awkward) and is ravenous. All very good signs. And the fact that he's drinking more again is good also. However, between the stress of all the changes and the abscess, he has some bladder sand, so with the sore foot he doesn't always make it to the litter box. The sand will clear up quickly with the dose of antibiotics he got last night and today. "Sigh" I have yet to come home from a vacation without a minor situation to care for.
Poor old man, momma goes away, strangers come feed him at hours he isn't used to, no one around all day, then people he knows come to stay and it still isn't like he likes or is used to but now there's someone there all the time, then momma and dad come home and he doesn't feel good because he escaped outside to look for momma and dad and his brother beat him up. He's thinking by now that he's just too old for much more of this.
Ah yes, life is so much less stressful with pets. LOL But I truly wouldn't have it any other way.
It's good to be home and the plus was I got to sleep with my purr generators and had an excellent night's sleep. :)
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