Showing posts with label cats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cats. Show all posts

Saturday, August 11, 2012

RIP Zadi

Three weeks ago, I started noticing my cat was having irregular breathing. He'd breathe in, have a sort of hiccup, and breathe out. It continued for a few days, and after what appeared to be a sort of asthma attack, I decided to take him in to the vet to have it checked out. In the process of getting there he panicked, and by the time we got him into the examination room he was practically drowning and turning blue in the mouth.

They put him on oxygen and took x-rays, which revealed liquid in the chest cavity completely obscuring the lungs, heart, liver, etc. They ended up draining 10 ounces of liquid out of his chest, and sent me home with diuretics to try and keep the fluids draining until I could raise money for further testing. But the probable diagnoses were grim, including cancer and heart failure.

He was very weak after the procedure, and now sported two shaved patches (one on either side) of fur. He did regain his strength over the next few days, and I continued the diuretics. But after another week or so the hiccup, which I'd now realized was an increased effort of inflating his lungs, was back. After a few more days, I could tell he was losing weight but not changing size due to the liquid in his chest. I knew he wouldn't handle another trip anywhere, and after talking with a home-visit vet, I was pretty sure more procedures might lengthen his life, but it would not fix nor improve it.

We scheduled an at-home euthanasia on Friday, but that morning we found he had already passed on during the night.

Scheherazade "Zadi" S.
August 2003 - August 2012

Thank you for all the love we shared. Those of us left behind will miss you always.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Z is for Zadi

This post will be picture-heavy. If you have problems viewing/loading these, I apologize beforehand.

This is my cat, Zadi.

Zadi is a tad overweight.
But that just means there's more of him to love.

Zadi is often curious about new things
like camera cords.

He also likes stealing my desk chair.
But I can usually please him with a pillow beside the desk.

Or, if all else fails, he likes curling up in my other chair.
And yes, he's that cute all the time.

Zadi and I will have been together for 8 years this October. Why "Zadi"? Well, I didn't want to name him after food (Pumpkin, Reeses, etc.) and I wanted something original (not Tiger or Garfield). So I ended up using Scheherazade, which was the marching show I was performing the year I got him. Cher, Cheri and Hera are all obviously female, so I had to go with the final part of the name...thus Zadi.

Zadi is very vocal. He meows pretty much all the time, whether he wants petted, food, water, or general attention. He's quick to purr, though, and he loves having his chin rubbed. He loves lying on his back, and sometimes allows you to rub his tummy. But if he thinks you're going to pick him up, he's quick to turn over and bolt.

Possibly because of his weight, Zadi does not like being picked up. He digs his claws into you, tenses all his muscles, and tries to bolt whenever he gets a chance. This makes clipping his nails extra fun. Every once in a while, when he's in an especially good mood or there's no one else around, I can coax him into letting me hold him for a bit. Again, he usually does best on his back, his feet sprawled every which way, and me rubbing his belly.

As far as working goes, he doesn't seem to appreciate me being at the computer. As I wrote above, Zadi loves stealing my desk chair when I'm gone. Sometimes it seems like he's attracted to the warmth, other times he jumps up just before I plan on sitting there—like he's warming it up for me. Though he's probably not happy about it, I can get him to move easily enough (usually by threatening to sit on him or pick him up).

He doesn't often jump up on the desk (usually because of lack of space) but when he does brave the leap, he tends to enjoy lying on top of my mouse. With his size, he can easily encompass it. And then he enjoys pawing at my hand and hitting keys. Once again, threatening to pick him up (or actually accomplishing it) tends to get him back on the ground. ...Where his yowling recommences.

All in all, I wouldn't trade my kitty for the world. Sure, he's a little noisy, and doesn't like cuddling on any terms but his own, but he's soft, fluffy, and very loving.

Well? How 'bout your pets? Got any great stories?

A Z Movie I've Seen:

A Song About A Z Topic:

The Z Font: