Sunday Selfie

This Sunday is so much better than last Sunday! Last Sunday Morning, Mom Paula received a phone call from the vet at the Emergency Animal Hospital and Brulee was still running a fever and not eating. Brulee is home now and finished her last antibiotic last night. She's not as clingy as she was when she first came home, but she is staying near Mom Paula. The hissing and growling have stopped from Truffle and we hope she is finally on the mend. Mom Paula wants to break out in song, singing "Oh What a Beautiful Morning!" because she feels her little family is slowly getting back to normal. Speaking of a beautiful morning, look how well Brulee is looking this weekend compared to last weekend.

Brulee posing for her Sunday Selfie one week after being in the emergency animal hospital

Brulee came home surprisingly clean from the emergency animal hospital. Mom Paula mentioned this to the vet assistant who was checking her out and the assistant told Mom Paula they always try to clean up the animals; even giving them baths, if needed. 

Mom Paula: I'll be very honest about the condition Brulee was in when I picked her up. She really did look good compared to when I saw her on Saturday afternoon last week or Friday night when I left her there. I've left veterinary hospitals in the past where remnants of diarrhea was still clinging to the back end; drainage from URI still on the face, chin, and chest; and even blood from an injury. I didn't take a photo when Brulee looked so bad Friday night, but her drainage from her nose included blood and she had vomited several times and it was on her face, neck and chest. She also had a dirty bottom and tail. Looking back on that rough day last Saturday afternoon, they really had taken care of Brulee and she looked so much better than she did Friday night and considering all she'd been through during the night.

A cute little story from one of the assistants at the front desk about Brulee. When I went there to take her some food and was waiting to see Brulee, the girl looked at her computer (they must have a video into the back) and made a comment, "She is so cute when she's in the oxygen cage. There is a metal bar at the bottom and when she's laying in it, all you can see are her eyes looking up from behind the bar." I so wished I could have had a picture of this.

Brulee one week ago - still running a fever, not eating, and labored breathing

The only photos I took of Brulee on Monday when I brought her home were in her Sleepypod® carrier. It had only been less than 24 hours since her last fever, so I was still a little concerned about her, but she did look better.

Brulee coming home in her Sleepypod® Mobile Pet Bed

Brulee desperately needed some grooming when she got home. I didn't want to stress her too much by doing everything all at once, but I had to work on her fur coat because I felt so many mats under her arms, on her belly, and near her back legs. This was the one time I was tempted to shave her stomach because there were so many mats. Her eyes needed to be cleaned because of all of the drainage from the URI and Rhinitis and her claws needed trimming. I've worked on her very slowly in order to not stress her and cause her breathing to get worse. I slowly worked on her eyes and combing her back, front, and sides. There were a few mats I was able to get out with little difficulty. However, the mats under her arms and legs and on her belly were thick and close to the fur. I've worked on them a little bit at a time. First, trying to work my fingernails underneath the mat and then trying to separate it. When it gets to a certain point, I use some small blunt-nosed grooming scissors to clip upwards to continue to separate the mat. Unfortunately, some of her fur had gotten so tangled with the tubes, wires, etc., while in the hospital that I had to cut them out very carefully. I still made sure I could work my fingernail between the mat and the fur. Saturday morning, I almost completed removing the mats from her stomach. I was also able to trim her front claws because they were needle-sharp and were cutting me when she reached out for a treat. She began to get stressed with this more intense grooming session, so I stopped for the day. One more day and I hope to have the mats removed so I can focus on a basic comb through and eye cleaning each day. As you can tell from the first photo, Brulee is looking so much more like herself.

You can see more Sunday Selfie photographs by visiting The Cat on My Head and joining the Sunday Selfie Blog Hop.