2/28/12:

The first few days were pretty tense around here.  Armada (now Vesta) re-homed without batting an eye, but in the 2 weeks that Sabrina was here by herself before Vesta's arrival, she had staked this place out as "hers", and she didn't take to the concept of sharing with anything even remotely resembling grace.  <chuckle>  That was a very brief window of time however, and Sabrina has now decided that having Vesta around is a very good thing – which was the whole point of wanting to adopt a second kitty. 

So the personality issues were resolved when I got your email, but there was and is a health issue that we are still dealing with.  Vesta has had horrible diarrhea since she got here.  At first I thought it might be caused by the abrupt change in her diet.  Given the cool reception she originally got from Sabrina, I also thought it might be caused by emotional upset due to the move, finding herself in a new home, and having a housemate who was less than cordial.  I took her to the vet earlier this month for a checkup, and to have a lab-workup done on her stool.  Her poor little bottom was so sore from the diarrhea that the vet wasn’t even able to take her temperature, but overall he said she appeared to be healthy.  They did the initial part of the lab-work in the clinic while I (we) waited.  The only thing he found was some plant material which turned out to be the leaves of a Peace Lily that was one of the floral arrangements sent to my Mom’s memorial service last November.  In addition to putting the plant where Vesta can’t get at it, he recommended adding cooked white rice to her canned food, but that change went over like a lead brick. 

It’s amazing how expressive a cat’s body language and facial expressions can be at times.  Once I added the rice to her canned food, she sniffed at the dish, once and only once, then looked reproachfully over at me and her whole demeanor clearly said, “You’re kidding – right?”  The vet also recommended adding a teaspoon of pumpkin puree to her canned food, for additional fiber, but she wouldn’t eat that either.  The last change to her diet that he recommended was to stir 2 to 3 tablespoons of warm water into her dry food, to make it easier to digest.  That little addition got the same reception that the rice and the pumpkin puree got.  The final score was Vesta, 3, and the vet, 0. 

He gave me a prescription for Metronidazole that was supposed to be taken twice a day, concurrently with the aforementioned changes to her diet.  That process has been a constant struggle.  Some days Vesta wins, while other days I actually manage to get the pill inside her - rather than all over me and the surrounding room, which is obviously where she thinks the pill belongs.  <chuckle>  I’m feeling more confident that whatever was wrong is being addressed by the pills that she so strenuously resists taking.  I have my fingers crossed, but it wouldn’t hurt if you and Vesta’s other friends at the shelter send a few good thoughts this direction between now and Friday. 

Her health challenge aside, here are a few pictures to let you know how she’s doing:

I’ll tell Vesta that you asked about her and that you said HI.  Thank you for all you did to nurture this wonderful kitty while she was in your care – you did a GREAT job!