This morning, after breakfast, everyone adjourned to the Clubhouse to lounge. But suddenly, when I was cleaning up their bowls, a huge (and very loud) fight broke out. It was between Cow and Bunny. I don't know who started it, but it was very loud and Bunny's "yowls" were deafening. Pole tried to intervene to stop her two brothers (brave Pole!) by standing in between her two cantankerous brothers. Luckily, she wasn't hurt or dragged into the fight.
By the time I rushed to get the water hose (which was seconds after the fight started), one chair had already been toppled over. The water spray broke up the fight. Through it all, Indy remained at the scene of the activity, unaffected. He was lying on the table but seemed quite nonchalant about it all. Pole stood in between the two warring brothers until the fight ended. She deserves a medal of bravery for this. Previously, Bobby was the one who would break up all the fights, but now that Bobby is no longer here, maybe Pole, being the oldest, has taken over that responsibility?
Of course there was no time to grab the camera, so there are no photos of the big fight, just the aftermath.
The suspected "villain" in this episode, after being sprayed with water.
I'm not involved at all, so no photos, please.
The vanquished.
(Notice the fuzzy fur due to being sprayed with water.)
The brave and wise sister grooming herself after her act of courage and valour.
I was scared...
I was even more scared. Luckily Bunny didn't pick on me today. Do you know, he had been picking on me for so many days. What did I do to deserve it? I'm a good girl minding my own business and I don't fight with anyone. Poor me...don't you pity poor me? I'm so scared, my tail fluffed up like a feather duster. Poor me, right? Sobs...poor me.
I've been protecting Tabs. But I'm scared too. I just close my eyes real tight until everything is over. If I cannot see them, maybe they cannot see me too.
After settling the fight, I went off to work.
When I got back, Bunny was lying on the sofa exactly the way I had left him in the morning. I didn't suspect anything was wrong until I fed everyone. Everybody ate except Bunny. He didn't budge from where he was.
Now, that's NOT normal for Bunny. He would never pass up a chance to eat.
So I brought a bowl of food in for him and placed it right in front of his nose.
He didn't want to eat.
Oh dear, and Bunny was feeling unusually warm. Took his temperature and it was....40.2 degrees.
Gosh...that's very high.
It's off to the vet's.
My friend, Cathy, offered to drive us to her vet. This really helped a lot especially when it was peak hour jam on a Friday.
At the vet's, Bunny's weight was taken. It was 6.8 kg, which is normal for him. The vet took his temperature and would you believe it, despite all the meowing in the car, it was down to 38.9 degrees!
Gosh, what a relief....!!
An ear-prick blood test was done and there was nothing abnormal in his white blood cells. The vet was just a bit concern about Bunny's unusual gait, especially that of his back legs. I was advised to monitor his temperature once daily and check for abscesses, if any. Meanwhile, Bunny was given a shot of antibiotics for today, and I am to continue with 4 more days of Clavomox, twice daily, just to cover any possible infection in case he was bitten. The vet said if the abscess has not appeared yet, the antibiotics might address the problem and prevent it from occurring, which is really good. However, if the abscess has already formed, the antibiotics cannot do much and lancing would have to be done. Tell me about it, I know. Bunny has gone through it once and Cow too. You wouldn't want that happening as they would have to be sedated and with each sedation, there are risks.
Please wish me luck in giving him the antibiotics. Bunny is the "easiest" to pill in the Cow family. Cow is a nightmare, and Pole and Cleo are virtually impossible to pill. Indy, Tabs and Tiger are okay.
After we reached home, Bunny ate two helpings of wetfood. Now, that's a relief.
The (hopefully) repentant brother sits close by.
Here's something Cathy sent me on redirected aggression: http://consciouscat.net/2012/03/12/redirected-aggression-when-good-cats-attack/
9 comments:
That must be Tiger's version of The Art Of War
I find this trick very effective. Wrap the pill with some wet food, open the mouth and drop it in. The tasty wet food will be swallowed together with the pill!
I've tried every trick in the book with Cow, Pole and Cleo. Cow can be pilled with the vertical carrier trick, but Pole and Cleo won't even let you get near once they sense you've got a pill in hand.
Cow show his innocent face.poor cow n bunny.v wont know y till we learned cat language.May All Be Well n Happy
Maybe it's the cats' way of sorting through the "hole" in their lives after Bobby's gone. For Cow, Bunny and Pole, Bobby has been there with them since day 1.
Yes, now that you've mentioned it, it could be. But then again, Bobby's been there for everyone from Day One!
Maybe adopting a puppy would help fill the gap? Just a thought.
Anyway be careful ya, i was a victim of redirected aggression not too long ago (see http://furreverfeline.blogspot.com/2012/07/maori-b-i-t-e.html )
Wow, that foot looks bad. Hope you are better now. I got it once too, from Cow, when I tried to break up a potential fight between he and Bunny. Blood spurted out non-stop for quite a long time too and the wound took month to subside. That's when the vet taught me NEVER to intervene in a brewing catfight. Just spray water, he said. It's harmless and effective.
Adopting a puppy - I think not. With age catching up, I don't know if I can see through the puppy until old age. We're talking about 15 years down the road.
Try not to use the water hose, too many potential problems like water in the ears and nostrils, wetting the fur when one might be sick and end up with a chill and temperature, etc.
I find it more easier and effective to keep a large old curtain/table cloth within easy reach and calmly throw and spread over the cats so that they cannot see each other and the fight will stop immediately.
While the blinded cats are struggling under the cloth, you can calmly and steadily scoop up one of the cats with the cloth wrapped securely around it (still blinding it and protecting you from any of his scratches) and carry it off to safety some distance away, allowing both to cool off.
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