Surgery and Recovery

Just chillin' on the steps

Early on I heard the humans talking about whether or not I was "fixed." I wasn't sure what that meant, but I would find out rather quickly.

I officially became a house cat on May 4th, 2019.  Jen said that was an important day, called “Star Wars Day,” and would also be celebrated as my birthday going forward.  She said I went from being “patio cat” to “basement cat” to “house cat” within two weeks’ time.  I heard discussions about whether or not I was spayed, and that it wasn't too much of a concern because both Loki and DiNozzo were already neutered.  Jen was a little worried I was maybe pregnant because I ate a lot.  She said there are enough homeless cats in the world, and I certainly agree.

After just a couple weeks I went to the vet again about the scabs I had on my back from the fleas when I lived outside.  The vet gave me a shot of steroids and I started to feel better.  Soon after, I started to feel weird and wanted a lot of attention.  I was meowing A LOT.  Jordan, who was still new to cats, wasn't sure what was wrong with me, but Jen knew.  I was in heat, whatever that meant.  Jen and her mom said it would last up to two weeks and then I'd be back to normal.

During this heat cycle, the other two cats kept looking at me like I was crazy.  They avoided me as much as possible, but I wanted to be around them.  DiNozzo even came up and smacked me on my head when I was meowing because I guess I was disturbing him, or Loki.  DiNozzo always treats Loki like he is the most amazing cat in the world.  Loki is cool, but I don't think he's THAT great.  I suffered through my cycle and everyone was very glad when it was over.

About a week or two after my heat cycle ended, I was put in a carrier and taken back to the vet.  This time they left me there.  I was sad at first, but things were happening to keep me busy.  The nice vet lady took me into a room and gave me some sort of gas.  I guess it was supposed to make me sleepy, but it didn't.  She tried some more and I was still awake, curiously awaiting what would happen next.  I heard later that she laughed about it with Jen on the phone and said it was extremely rare for this to happen.  I always knew I was special.  I had to spend the night at the vet without my family, but at least they gave me good food.

The next day they took me into the room again.  This time they stuck a needle in me and I fell asleep.  When I woke up later, I was in pain.  They had cut into my belly!  I spent the night at the vet again, but that time I was really tired and groggy from the surgery and the pain medication.

Jen came to pick me up the following day and took me home.  I was extremely glad to go back to my family, even though I was still in pain.  The entire time they kept saying that Jen was going to have the same thing done in a few days.  She had early signs of cancer and would have something called a “total hysterectomy.” From what they said, I understood what that meant: neither of us would ever have babies.  Jen was okay with that because she had us and didn't want human children, saying that helping to raise her brothers was enough, and I was okay with it because there are too many homeless cats in the world.  I would never want a kitten to go through what I did.  What if they never found a nice family like mine?  That would be so sad.  Plus I already have to share food and toys with Loki and DiNozzo, and that’s enough.

Top: frozen in place
Bottom: trying to eat

A few days later, Jen spent the night somewhere else and returned home the next day in pain.  They had cut into her belly, too!  She told me we could recover together and scratched my head.  I was already feeling a lot better and wanted to play with my toys.  Jen just needed rest.

About two days later Jen and Jordan took me to the vet again.  I had been cleaning my stitches and apparently that was a bad thing to do.  The vet put some cream on my belly and a cone-shaped thing on my head.  How was I supposed to clean myself now?  She told Jen not to lick her stitches and laughed.  When we got home, I was so upset that I just froze in place.  Jen felt sorry for me.  I couldn't really move and it was awfully hard to eat.  Just a day or two later she took off the cone and put me in a pink jumpsuit she had bought on Amazon.  I didn't like it at first, but it was better than wearing that cone!  I could actually move in it and eat out of my bowl.

 

Top: eating next to Loki in my pink suit
Bottom: resting with Jen after her surgery

Not long later I went back to the vet to have my stitches removed.  I felt so much better after that, especially since I didn't have to wear my pink suit anymore.  Jen had her stitches for a few more weeks and it took her much longer to recover, but she's a lot bigger than me, so it probably took longer for her muscles to heal.  We both felt much better after our surgeries.  I didn't have to go through another heat cycle and Jen wasn't in pain anymore.  We were both grouchy now and then and probably ate more than we should while dealing with the changes in our bodies.  Jen became quick to anger at times with other humans and got more irritated the closer it came to the time for her to return to work.  She seemed to hate that place and I never understood why she spent so much time there.  I heard her say she had discovered the secret to mood swings was chocolate, but I know I can’t have any of that because it’s only safe for humans. 

Eventually I started to calm down and became more relaxed, enjoying the simple things in life again, like an open window and a cool breeze.  I am just glad that I didn't have to go through such a change all by myself and that I could recover alongside my favorite person in the world: my mom, Jen.

Napping on the couch