I am going to preface this entire post by saying everyone is all right. Last night Gannon and I were watching tv and eating dinner. I decided to feed the the cats and go to the bathroom. Assuming the cats were eating and knowing I needed privacy because I had a guest, I swung the bathroom door shut. The door hit something and Albert went flying into the living room.
I ran out to find him and saw him hiding in the corner. Trying not to scare him I got his treats and he came running over to me. It's at that point I saw his tail and the last quarter tip of it was drooping. Instead of his proud tall straight tail, it was more of a question mark shape. Sitting on the edge of a panic attick and holding back a million tears I think I've broken Albert's tail. I didn't know if I should take him to the ER or what.
Fortunately, he didn't seem to be in any pain. He started eating dinner, then playing with his brother and 30 minutes after the accident, had brought me his little green rat which is what he does when he wants to play fetch. He was fine except the end of his tail was stil sagging. Gannon mentioned that when a kid catches his finger in a door he doesn't start moving it right away. That maybe Albert had bruised his tail. Sure enough he started holding his tail straighter with only a little bend.
He obviously didn't hate me as much as I hated myself because he snuggled into his nighttime sleeing spot next to my pillow and went right to bed. His tail is looking much better today though I am still taking him to the vet tomorrow to make sure everything is ok. I know this post is way to long, but i just wanted to get all of this off of my chest. Honestly, I felt so horrible for accidentally hurting my cat that I have NO idea how people can intentionally hurt an animal. Anyway, the long post is over now. I realized that Albert is just as precocious today as he was as a kitten,(Sigh), and that I still need to keep one eye on him at all times. OK. Bye.
13 comments:
Yikes! I'll bet you were more upset than he was. I'm so glad Albert and his gorgeous tail are OK.
He looks and sounds like he is doing great.
When my Bailey was a baby (about nine weeks) I had put him in a room with my mom so she could watch him for a bit that evening. He was (and still is) very tiny and was only about a pound at that point. He hoppped up on the piano bench and on the edge of the piano were some books that he decided to get on. Well he had just gained enough weight to tip the thing over and the books landed on top of him. My mom got the books off of him and he was freaked out but alive (it could have killed him actually). We made a trip to the vet the next day, and since they weren't sure if he had broken it or not they wanted to wait the weekend before x-raying him.
My mom felt really bad but I didn't blame her because I knew it was an accident, but I felt like a horrible mommy when I didn't get his food and water down from hop on the bookshelf (he could still reach it and it was so low to me that it just didn't occur). That saturday he got up and had some water and when he hopped down and made the most pathetic meow at me, and I felt terrible.
That Monday he got a cast and we eventually lost pity for him when the stinker learned that by placing said cast into his water bowl he could loosen it (we made like three trips in that six week period for him to get rebandaged and I he would wake me up in the middle of the night so I could put down his water for him and watch him drink so he wouldn't try to get the darn thing wet again :)
We all have stories like this. Bailey completely recovered and is just as close to me as ever. You are very good mom to these boys and I know how you feel. We need more pet owners like you in the world!
ps - sorry my reply is so long :)
Anna's right. We do all have these stories. Accidents sometimes happen where kitties are concerned. Which is exactly why they are blessed with nine lives.
No worries, Cori! Albert understands and has already forgiven you.
You're a great mama to your boys. All pets should be so lucky.
He looks fine (and beautiful) to me! But I'm glad you are going to take him to the vet -- just for your own peace of mind.
You are a great cat-mom!!!! They are both very lucky boys to have you!
Don't worry, Cori. I'm sure everything is going to be fine. I have two anecdotes for ya:
My older kitty, Daltrey, lived with her father in an old, pleasant apartment. Well, she was sitting in the window one day, and the window was jostled by the wind or something, and next thing I know, her dad is calling me in a panic. The window had fallen unexpectedly and caught her little tail! I was working at a vet clinic at the time, so I very rationally calmed him down and brought her to work the next day. (she, by the way, was acting completely normal, even though her little tail was bleeding and swollen). X-rays showed nothing unusual, and she had to have her tail shaved and 3 little stitches put in. Plus one of my friends, a vet, made me cry when he told me straight-faced that he was going to have to amputate. I later hit him. Well, she's all fine, and it was definitely a worse experience for me and her dad than it was for her! Although, we still laugh at pictures of her and her little rat tail.
My younger kitty, Jonah, has a permanent shepherd's crook in his tail. When he's trotting around the house, showing off his tom-cat tail, he has the little crook at the very tip. I think something must have happened before the animal shelter got him. But it's never bothered him (although he is a permanent scaredy-cat, but that's probably unrelated).
Sorry for the long response. In short: your baby is probably fine, and you did fine by waiting to bring him in. Most likely he just had some bruising. He's also a young chap yet, so if there happens to be something broken, it'll heal in no time! :-)
Oh, it sounds like you're suffering much more than he did! It sounds like he's forgiven and probably even forgotten.
But anyway, *hug* to you and scritches to him.
I HEAR ya loud and clear on the worry front. I have had to deal the found bumps on Enid and Hester, stepped on toes and tails. Breaks my heart when they lift their little paw to tell me that "Owie, that hurt." BUT they are typically running crazy in the next 2 minutes. Going to the vet and paying for peace of mind is sometimes the only way to go. *Slides over an extra treat to Albert*
Years ago I accidentally stepped on my cat's back legs while he was lying down. I didn't see him. He made this heartbreaking meow and I was certain I had really hurt him. He did, however, run off to my bedroom and jump up on the bed so I knew it wasn't all that bad. Of course I felt horrible. I went into my room cooing at him and generally acting like I was addled or had been hit in the head too many times. I put my face up to his and apologized profusely.
He looked at me right in the eye, mid-apology, and calmly put his paw on the top of my head and gave me one quick shot of his claws. It hurt like hell although it didn't seem to break the skin. After that, he was fine.
We haven't spoken of that evening since.
PLease don´t blame yourself for this! You didn´t do it on purpose, and Albert knows that for sure! Cat´s know if you hurt them deliberately or not! :-)
Hope he´ll be allright! Sending you all the best!
That's a sad one, for sure. But remember - you only feel bad because you're such a good mom to them and you love your boys so much. He's OK, and that means that things went well.
And - your post wasn't overly long, at all. I loved the pics of floofy Bert.
Aaww, glad you told us from the start that everyone was okay. I agree with the others, Albert seems to have forgotten all about it already - he knows you didn't do it on purpose.
Hugs to you, Cori. I know the guilt that you feel. Albert loves you still and forgives you, I'm sure of it.
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