Tell Me Something Tuesday: The one where Figment hogs all the attention...

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. 

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Question: Do you have any pets? Tell us about them (past or present)

Answer: A topic tailored just for me! I had a whole post planned. I figured most of you already know Ripley, Kai, Figgy and Fonzi... and if you've been around even longer - Indy, Beau and Lily. So I was going to deep dive into my pets before blogging.

But then Figment got all dramatic and had an eye injury over the weekend. It was a huge ordeal trying to get into a vet and being exposed to COVID (you can check my Twitter if you want that whole story).

Anyhoo...I thought he had a ruptured/torn cornea but thankfully it's an ulcer caused by a bacterial infection that can be treated with antibiotics. He's an old man with many issues and wouldn't be able to have surgery so even while this is painful and requires a LOT of eye drops and the cone of shame it's a better outcome than it could have been.

Since I don't think I'll be posting for next weeks topic - I'll tell you I got Figgy (& how he got his name) today and do my past pets next Tuesday when I have more time to look for pictures. 

The Figgy story:

16 years ago (almost to the day!) we were walking our dogs and heard a tiny meow. We looked around, didn't see anything and kept going but kept hearing meows. We looked up and this teeny, tiny kitten was about 15 feet up a pine tree.

I had 3 dogs and 3 cats at the time and did NOT want more so we thought to keep an eye on him, ask around if anyone had a cat missing and see if he came down. On our way around the block it started thundering. This is in Florida where summer thunder storms are no joke. So I knew we had to get him down right then. 

I started meowing up to him and over a few minutes he kept talking back to me and crawling down a little further each time until I could scoop him up. He had zero fear of the dogs and stayed in my arms all the way home. 

Again. I did NOT want another pet! So off to the bathroom for isolation from my other cats. And I called my vet (who I worked for at the time) and she did all the testing for diseases and gave him his first shots. He was about 6-8 weeks old. We tried desperately to place him in a new home or find where he belonged but nothing.

Again...I reiterate - we do NOT want another pet. lol

He's happily living in our bathroom 1 week later & I want to name him (should have known where this was going right there lol) but Kevin is NOPE. Not naming him or else we'll keep him (wise man) and he started saying that there was not a cat in our bathroom - it was a figment of our imagination. 

I even took him to the shelter and handed him over to the woman. She had me in back with all the animals (since I worked for a vet I was helping her examine and check him in). She begged me to keep him because it was kitten season and they were full. I hardened my heart and said no! I even started walking out without him.

Then on my way out of the intake room I saw all the other orange kittens. At least 20. Not to mention all the other kittens/cats. I used to work in a shelter and kitten season is brutal. If they don't get adopted (which most don't tbh)  there is always a good chance of euthanizing them because of overcrowding but a BIG problem with cats in shelters is upper respiratory infections. They are very contagious and hard to treat in a group setting like that and can wipe out most of the cat population. 

16 years later... I'm still living with a cat named Figment. 

He's not grateful AT ALL. He complains about everything because nothing is ever enough. He's always hungry, always wants more cuddling, attacked my other cats at the time, wants to sit outside on the deck but never alone or he'll throw himself at the door, he hated Fonzi (but likes Kai & Ripley for some reason), won't use his litter box anymore, drools all over me, hates when I read - but I love him lol

So that's My Pets Part 1....😜