Next on Lifetime: "She's Too Thin"

Guy has been saying that Maddy looks thin. I have only paid moderate attention to Guy’s kitteh observations, as he doesn’t look at/snuggle/cater to the cats as much as I do. However, I looked down at Maddy one afternoon and realized her stomach (or bibbin, as we call it around here), was nonexistent. I put a finger on each side of her tummy, and they touched in the middle, only skin between them. A quick test on the household scale revealed that my big girl had lost 3 lbs in 7 months. This would be like me going from my healthy 121 to 81 in the same amount of time.

Not cool.

My friend Moira mentioned that her kitty Gabe had a similar problem, which turned out to be hyperthyroidism. “It’s treatable,” she said, “but you need to get Maddy diagnosed so you can help her.” So, off to the vet for blood work, thermometers up the back side, a return visit in the morning for a urine sample.

Two days and $250 later, Maddy’s thyroid is fine. She also tested clear for diabetes and a host of other illnesses, but her white blood cell counts were elevated. “She’s fighting off an inflammation or an infection,” said the vet. “Given her increased appetite and energy along with the extreme weight loss, she may have some kind of intestinal parasite.”

So, off to the vet again for some intestinal-parasite-killing powder to mix into her food. Her recheck will be in three weeks. Guy met this news with surprise, mild disgust, and some actual concern.

Surprise: WORMS?!
Disgust: Don’t let her on the bed, and don’t let her rub her ass on you like she does.
Concern: Did they give us anything to treat Hazel? Are the worms gonna get to her too?

I met his parry with my own.

Surprise: I know. Maybe she could have gotten them from a bug she ate?
Disgust: I don’t let the cats put their asses on me. It’s you who’s poking your finger in their butts all the time.
Concern: Thing is, in order to feed her the powder, I’m gonna have to increase her wet food intake so I can mix it in.


Some of us are really enjoying this medicine thing.