Hyperion
On Saturday we noticed Hyperion wasn't feeling too well. He tried to go to the litter box, then came out and laid under the end table yowling loudly. He's done this before and it usually passes after an hour or so. This time, not so much. I looked up the name and information of an emergency vet in our area and then I had to go to work. Nathan felt that if we watched Hyperion on Saturday and he wasn't better the next day, we could take him to the vet.
I wasn't at work an hour when a co-worker told me Nathan was on the phone. He was at the e-vet in Aurora with Hyperion (having dropped Elijah off at his parents' house). He told me he had watched Hyperion try to use the litter box again, and the poor little guy fell over. We found out Hyperion had a blocked urinary system, which apparently is common in male cats. Unfortunately, the sure-fire fix cost much more than we were comfortable spending on the cat. Instead, they catheterized him and sent Nathan home with a bunch of medications for this week including an IV bag for subcutaneous fluid injections.
It's been kind of dicey on whether or not we thought he was going to make it through the week. On Monday night, Nathan even made the comment "If he makes it to tomorrow..." But today he seems much better. He's been walking around with his tail up and eating and even got into a little trouble.
Hecate
One of the only family members having a good week is Hecate. Hyperion's illness means we've been leaving canned food out for him to try to get some fluid into him. They have also been accessible to her. Also, we felt bad that we've been keeping them closed downstairs for the summer so we could keep the nursery door open. So on Saturday night, we closed the nursery door and opened the stair door. She has been enjoying the opportunity to sleep on our bed again.
Me
Last Monday Nathan and I woke up bright and early and drove down to Chicago. Unfortunately, we were not going there to enjoy ourselves. I was scheduled to have a cardiac catheterization. Basically, the doctors make small incisions in the femoral artery and slip a tube in and run it up to the heart so they can watch the blood flow around and measure pressures and things. I've had this procedure many, many times before and it is probably my least favorite.
To make it worse, everyone at the hospital seemed confused about what kind of cath I was having. They kept saying "right heart cath" but all my paperwork said "bilateral," meaning they were going in on both sides and not just the right. After the procedure I had to stay flat for six hours so I didn't rupture the closures over the incision sites.
We got home around 9 pm Monday night. Thankfully Tuesday my mother and in-laws were all free. I was so sick I had to spend the whole day in bed. And someone had to look after Elijah. Poor Elijah, I was not allowed to pick him up for three days after the procedure. It was fine on Tuesday, because the grandparents were there. Wednesday and Thursday were not so fun...
Elijah
Really, he was kind of a lucky little guy because he got to spend a lot of time with his grandparents. My dad and mom watched him while we were in Chicago, and then of course he had everyone's attention on Tuesday. Wednesday I took the day off work, and since wasn't allowed to carry him around we spent the whole day playing on the floor in the nursery. Eventually, he got very bored. Thursday he was having teething pain from his second tooth. All he wants when his gums hurt is for Mama to hold him and walk around, but of course, I couldn't do that. It was the most heart-breaking thing ever to stand up and have him reach up his little arms, screaming to be picked up and cuddled, and know I couldn't do it. Friday, and every day since then have been better.
Nathan
Probably the busiest of all of us has been Nathan. First he had to sit with me in that boring cath lab waiting/recovery room, then he had to take care of me. Then he was the one home when Hyperion got sick. On Monday he had to come home at lunch and help me give Hyperion his medications, because medicating a cat is not easy.
Hopefully this coming week will be easier/less stressful/healthier.
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