Merry Christmas- Please Spay and Neuter

So this seems like an odd title to some, but it narrows down the story for those wanting the clear, concise truth of this post. And from memory, that's what they told me to do in Journalism, get to the point. However, this is my blog and I can be a chick giving you all the details you may or may not care about. Please forgive me as I just worked 16 hours. And I work another 8 tomorrow so I decided since everyone is having Christmas more miles than I want to commute, I would hang at the empty house and chill with said relatives lonely cat.

My loving aunt whose name I choose to leave off this blog for privacy reasons, has a tabby cat that she adores. She got said cat, called A for short here, from a trip to her brothers in the country. A road in her tail pipe and by some miracle survived the trip. She was an infant and my aunts baby. She still is 10 years later. But the one thing she didn't do was get her spayed saying it was surgery and something she wasn't interested in putting A through. Except over the past week A has a very large stomach. She was acting fine, just seemed gassy and was eating way more. I figured false pregnancy but suggested a vet visit just to be sure as A is much older. The vet diagnosed her with pyometra (pyo for short in the cat community) which is a cats ovaries filled with puss. 3 days after being at the vet office and an emergency spay, she is now at home. Furthermore, they found a tumor in her throat that had to be removed and had it not, she had days to live. So I don't know if A developed said tumor because of her stress levels and hormones affecting her immune system or if its a blessing she had one problem as they wouldn't have found the other until far later.

However, A has constantly been in heat for most of her life, dealing with the stress of hormones and moodiness and it nearly took her life. Let me break it down: the infection gets in the ovaries and eventually the rest of the body when the vulva of the cat is expanded while they are in heat, bacteria gets in and the rest, as they say, is history. Cats are induced ovulators meaning they continue to go into heat until they are bred. And trust me when I say there is nothing pretty about cats breeding, they don't need to become mothers for the sake of motherhood like humans are taught to do. Lets just say a female screams in pain during the process, the males are rough the majority of the time and then 9 weeks later, the mom has a risk of c section (2000 + in vet bills), the risk of loss of life, besides lethargy and if she wasn't mature enough for kittens she may sit on them or other things I won't talk about here. Then there are blood type differences, rare but do happen, transmitable diseases and the daunting task of finding homes for the kittens. And lets just say, there is no shortage of kittens in this world.

So unless you are showing a pedigree (papers from a registering body like TICA, CFA, CFF, ACFA or some other show registering body) cat that has exeptional type and has proven it in the show hall, a cat in excellent health and KNOW for a MATTER OF FACT  that the pedigree is sound and without defect (meaing you need to know how to read a pedigree, score a show and have someone to coach you for starters) and have the MONEY, emotional stability, network and time to dedicate, please do us all a favor and spay or neuter your cat. Your cat is unique to you, is loved by you and yours and that's great, they all need a home, but kittens and the risk to your beloved pet or explaining to your kids why they lost their cherished family member just aren't worth the risk. And for the ferals, visit a shelter and see how that ends up. I guarantee you if you are feeding ferals and not getting them fixed or seeking help, those cats are bound to be road kill or death row at the shelter.  And if you rescue a feral, congrats, you did a good thing, but get it fixed and stop the cycle of useless killings, wasted tax payer dollars, and humans that see their cats are nothing more than an object.

And now that A needs a million meds, 4 to be exact, is battling for her life and my aunt has 3000 in vet bills, I will spend my Christmas worrying over A and coaching her on how to mix meds in food, spend every evening for the next 10 days helping her pill her cat as she doesn't have the demeanor to pull it off, teaching her how to take temps and help her babysit A while she gets anything else done so she doesn't rip out her sutres.

So to you and your loved ones, hold them close, be thankful you can be together and pray for those you can't so that you can in spirit. Be thankful everyone is safe and keep the Poinsettas away from kitty, they are deadly.

Now that Saturnalia is over, it was December 17-23, I would like to wish everyone a Happy Holidays whatever your spiritual flavor. Until we meet again....