Somedays you're the bug...

Our "fur kids" are Indoor-Outdoor kitties. They have a cat door and use it anytime night or day - It used to be magnetically operated, but after Neelix disappeared for a week about 4 years ago, I could never get him to wear a collar again, and Sinda is the mistress of escape when it comes to wearing a colar - so, they pretty much have freedom to come and go as they please, and they go out at night, which worries me, but after 17 yhears, what can you do? And our place is fenced and the gate is closed at night, so we don't have to worry too much about dogs or coyotes getting them .

Early on, I tried locking them in only to have Neelix tear the plastic frame and cover off the mechanism that ran the magnet - so it stays open (unless it freezes shut in a snow storm - not likely to happen this time of the year...)

Well, last night, our little girl got "mugged" - I'm not sure if it was the new cat next door, or if it was Neelix. (the two of them have been known to have a few knock down-drag out fights in their time.) The fight woke The Shepherd up from his sleep so much that he came out, rambling about a cat fight, and opened the back door to call her - he went back to bed, and she didn't come back in the house for about 5 or 10 minutes. When she came in, I could tell that she was in a little bit of distress, she was covered in dirt, but there wasn't any blood or anything - just walking like an 80 year old lady who had been mugged - with a pitiful meow if I touched her.

I did pick her up and make sure that she didn't have any lacerations - and kind of "pushed & prodded" a little - with no screaming on her part - she did have some water before I went to bed about 1/2 hour later and spend the rest of the night being "velcro kitty" - snuggling up as close to me in bed as she could.

The good news is that today at one point or another, she has had water, "stinky goodness" (that's cat speak for "canned food"), crunchies, she has peed and pooped, and by this evening she was looking a lot more chipper and moving around a little bit better. Yesterday when I picked up their flea medicine, I made an appointment for this Thursday a.m. with the V-E-T for vaccinations, etc. so I'll have the good Dr. give her a more thorough going over than I would have had ordinarily, but I think she's going to be OK.