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08 January 2007

I am an over-protective cat dad. My wife, Nikki, and I are the proud parents of two incredibly awesome cats, Daeva and Daksha. They are brother and sister.[More:] They've been a part of our little family since 2003. We adopted them from a local shelter after meeting them entirely by accident at a local pet shop. We had no pets at the time, but the "pets adoptions today" sign beckoned. There they were and we were slain. Our first few months with them were trying, as both were unwell with various tummy issues. Daeva recovered quicker than her brother, but Daksha's illness bewildered just about every vet we saw. It was only after a very gracious Christmas Eve office visit with one more vet that we started seeing progress. Basically, he has the cat equivalent of IBS. To keep his tummy happy, we filter his water with a fountain and feed him what is essentially cat tofu. I guess it is pretty bland stuff, but he and his sister seem cool with it.

Since then, he's been doing quite well. He's got a great personality and spends his days either sleeping in his mom's lap, sitting with me at the computer, watching squirrels in the yard through the window, or chasing his sister up and down the stairs.

The only remaining issue has to do with his teeth. His stomach condition makes him salivate more than the average cat, and while he's not a drooler, this does leave his gums very irritated. And his breath, poor boy, is practically toxic to behold. Or besmell. Whatever. We've tried brushing his teeth, but that only seems to frustrate him.

So on Thursday morning, we're taking him down to the good vet for a teeth cleaning. Now, Daksha hates any trip outside the house. He is an indoor cat and he wants to forever be so. So the trip over will be bad enough. But we have to leave him for the morning, so he'll be on his own for a bit. And to do the actual cleaning, he'll have to be sedated.

I shouldn't be worried, because Dr Lafferty is a great vet, but still ... I'm nervous for Daksha. So if you have a moment on Thursday morning, send a positive thought or two to our sweet boy.

(And if you've known a cat to go through the dental thing, share how it went. Thanks.)
They're so gorgeous, grabbingsand! I will definitely be sending "happy cat" vibes your cat's way.

I haven't taken a cat for a dental cleaning, but I'm thinking of doing it with our Kayla. I'll be curious to hear how it goes for Daksha.
posted by BoringPostcards 08 January | 12:49
My cat was sedated for dental surgery -- pulling a tooth I believe it was. Didn't seem to faze her a bit. I expected her to be bothered afterwards when eating but she wasn't. She bitched in the car, of course -- whenever my cats are in the car they sound like they're composing an opera that I have named Chorale Pathetique.

My sister's very tiny cat (only 5 pounds) gets "zoo breath" and goes in for dental cleaning about once a year. Never any problems, and she's pretty old now (the cat, I mean, not my sister).

And your cats are indeed most sweet.

posted by JanetLand 08 January | 12:53
Beautiful cats! Mine are brother and sister too. They were feral and rescued at about 7 weeks old; in the past year and a half, they've evolved from completely terrified of humans to the two most sweet, affectionate cats I've ever known. They send their best to Daksha.
posted by mike9322 08 January | 12:59
I have a tragi-comic story about my (dearly departed) 25 lb cat Hunter's teeth cleaning, but I don't want to scare you. I'll tell it if you promise to keep in mind that Hunter was a very special cat, and I don't think your little guy would ever react the same way.
posted by Twiggy 08 January | 13:13
Oliver and Abigail (brother and sister as well) will be sending their best wishes to Daksha as will the rest of the family.

They'll be four in April. I keep an eye on their teeth health but no problems so far.
*knock wood*
posted by deborah 08 January | 14:08
P.S. Hunter lived a long and happy life after his cleaning. The tragedy part was experienced by the vet tech.
posted by Twiggy 08 January | 14:26
Thanks, all of you. I'll pass on your well wishes to Daksha. I'm sure he will drowsily appreciate it, then fall asleep.

Or hop on his sister's head.
posted by grabbingsand 08 January | 14:39
Jasmine and Storm (my adopted brother and sister kitties) are sending kitty vibes. They're sending them now, as they'll forget in five minutes, never mind Thursday.

If Daeva and Dashka ever curl up together head to butt, like mine do, they would look like the yin/yang symbol. (Mine just look like a tabby-striped cushion.)
posted by found dog one eye 08 January | 17:52
Our cats are also siblings and resemble your two to an amusing extent. The boy is dark and the girl is white with markings.

Hope everything goes okay.

Man, everyone loves a cat post.
posted by hugsnkisses 08 January | 21:51
Best of luck to you and your guy - hope he sails through. Two of my three are going in for cleanings next week, one of whom needs a big back tooth taken out. I'm a little concerned because he's diabetic and will be 15 this year,* but the vets think it'll be okay. He has had his teeth cleaned twice before (although both times were before he was on insulin) and was back to his old self by the evening. Hard not to worry about the little buggers, though - I know where you're coming from.

*He also had to have his left arm amputated five years ago (cancer). Oddly, his name is NOT 'Lucky.'
posted by hangashore 08 January | 23:18
Adding my good wishes (and the good wishes of my three cats - two previously strays and one abandoned). I'm sure he'll do fine!
posted by redvixen 09 January | 19:37
Thanks to everyone for the well-wishes. It's probably silly to be worried but he had such a hard time of it as a youngster, we hate to stress him out. But, it is for the best.
posted by Medieval Maven 09 January | 23:00
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