It's Tough Being a Pet "Mom" (or "Dad")

I don't need comments to this, just rambling. No emerg vet visit, thank goodness. I slept in clothes (comfy) last night, just in case, had his medical history at hand, etc. Will do the same tonight.

Derry has been in and out of various litter boxes at least a dozen times today, sometimes not doing anything, sometimes just a tiny dribble. Three times more substantial clumps:  3cm around 10AM, 4.5 cm around 2PM, and 4 cm around 4PM. He did, or tried to do something in the garden too, but I haven't any way of measuring that. I had the outdoor litter box covered up because of the forecast rain, otherwise I could have seen whether he really did anything.

So tomorrow afternoon he'll go to the vet, something neither of us will want to endure. The vet is not a proponent of alternate medicine, of course. I've got two bloggers sending me calming treats: One is made by Vetri-Science ("Compose") and the other is Pet Naturals calming treats. Same ingredients, slightly different amounts. I hope one or the other works because I just don't want to go the route of an anti-depressant. It's not a good long term solution, given that (a) getting a pill into Derry would be challenging and stressful in and of itself, (b) he'd require regular follow-up blood work, also stressful and of course costly, and (c) I know from personal experience the effect that an anti-depressant can have on the body and don't want to put Derry through that unless I've exhausted every other option.

But of course I'm second-guessing myself. Am I being stupid and stubborn in wanting to exhaust every other option before a pharmaceutical? I have no way of knowing if I'm making the right decision for Derry. But he's not yet five years old; drugs just don't seem to be the right way to go, if I can help it.

Anyway, I hope for some sleep tonight, because I certainly didn't get much last night and couldn't fall asleep when I went back to bed this morning. Kept drifting off and jolting awake, as I did all night. I'm not sure if I'll go to work--perhaps slightly later than normal. I'll have to leave early anyway, to get Derry to his appointment. Fun, fun, fun. I'll see how I feel in the morning, it will depend on whether I get sleep tonight and how many times Derry is in and out of one of the litter boxes in the morning. In the meantime, at least he's drugged. LOL.

Poor baby!

Universal Blessings, Light and Mercy to All Beings.