Wednesday, September 12, 2012

What Happened to Our Longfellow?

He showed up one afternoon with a limp, and a badly torn belly – near the “lion’s pouch” area. He was in obvious and extreme distress. He was rushed to the vet. We are presuming it was a dog attack, but our vet is noncommittal. Since then, he has been back twice to the vet – he is not doing well, although he is eating and grooming himself. X-rays showed a fracture in the leg, which is making his mobility a problem – but there may be other issues “inside”, but the vet is gambling that he will be ok, since going into major surgery at his age could be very risky. Our Longfellow is just sleeping – a lot – and it seems he is incontinent, although perhaps due to his leg, he cannot move fast enough when he gets the urge. I feel summer ended on August 10th with Bandito’s passing, and now, so soon after and with almost no time to grieve, all I feel is stress and worry. I am anxious about these dogs in the neighborhood – many are off-leash, and run after any cat they see. Although our immediate neighbor swears his dog, a Doberman, does not “eat cats” – how can we know for sure?  The peace in my garden sanctuary has been has been shattered, and it seems I now am continually in a state of alert and trepidation. I now long for winter, with its blanket of snow wrapped around the house, keeping my babies safe and warm inside. That is the only time I have real peace.

4 comments:

  1. Oh we are so sorry to hear about Longfellow. We are purring that he will be okay and heals quickly.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Purrrring for Longfellow. We hope he is feeling better by now.

    As for the dogs, it might be safest to start keeping everyone in the house, if possible. If you have the resources, maybe you could add an enclosure to the house, or screen a porch or patio so the kitties can get the outside experience, without actually going 'out'.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I feel your pain. It's been a sad summer here too, with the death of first my father (expected) and then Mousie (totally out of the blue, a real blow). Like you, I like it when all the cats are inside for the winter and safe. I hope Longfellow heals. Hugs.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Just checking in. Purrrrrring that Longfellow is feeling better by now.

    ReplyDelete