Twmff is depressed...

chilling on a sunny afternoon

Meet Twmff. Yes, you read  right it's not a typo - this is Twmff, pronounced Too-mf.

Twmff has a welsh name and in Welsh 'w' is a vowel and 'ff' is pronounced 'f'. Anyhow, this is not a blog post about Welsh lessons, this is a blog post about Twmff.

chilling on another sunny afternoon

Twmff has been part of this family for a little while and will be about 5 1/2 years old by now. He was a rescue cat in pretty bad shape when we got him, and for the first few months of coming to live with us I would be lucky to catch a glimpse of his tail when he ventured from under the sofa to grab some food. He needed lots of medication and a few vet visits and eventually he became stronger and more adventurous  He came to us with a sister....although I have always doubted the family tie and I think the RSPCA lady saw a bit of an opportunity to home 2 cats at once!

I interrupted their play time here hence the stares! 

So Twmff and his 'sister' Modlen soon began to settle with us and over time have brought much amusement, love and a few challenges thrown in. Twmff has always fancied himself as a bit of a dog which has been quite funny over the years. He will come when called, sit and listen to a story, let Sibs dress him up - that kind of thing. He learnt how to open the locked cat flap story here which has necessitated a complex bedtime ritual but overall though they are great little cats and are loved dearly. I think we give them a very comfortable home - they more or less have the run of the house.They can go outside in the daytime and come home for tea. Now Twmff has probably been a little more challenging than Modlen... Nothing extraordinary really, just a few more trips to the vet due to a scratch here and there or a sore paw or leg. He can be pretty vocal and will tell us if things aren't quite right. If you can't find Modlen you just ask Twmff and he will direct you to the shut room where she will be sitting quietly waiting for her brother to rescue her.. Just last night he himself got shut in the under-stairs cupboard by accident and I'm sure his miaow would have been heard down the street!

Just recently though Twmff hasn't been himself. He's been a bit more demanding. His cries for us to open the cat flap in the morning have been a bit louder and longer. He has been spending time in boxes and we have 'lost' him a few times and after a long hunt and calling his name he's been found hiding under a bed or in a cupboard.

hiding

At first I put this down to not liking the rain (there was quite a bit for a few week). Then it would be because we had some visitors staying (there's always quite a bit of that too!) After a while I noticed that he wasn't really eating very much and then he wasn't using his litter tray. He became a bit withdrawn and I rang the vet. She was pretty concerned with this change in behaviour so off we went for a check up.

Some separation anxiety!

After a thorough check and the ruling out of any more serious medical conditions the vet came to the conclusion that Twmff was depressed...

Should I have seen it....?

In hindsight, maybe....

'please don't go without me"

When we went away over Christmas and the New Year Twmff missed us. The housitters mentioned that he took a few weeks to respond to them. Then we were home for a few days before taking off again up the coast. It seems that most weekends since January we have been busy. People staying, us away. Just general life really, but for Twmff...well, little Twmff has felt more than a bit left out. In cat world, one way of showing this is to withdraw (nothing unusual there), but apparently another common sign is refusing to use a litter tray or just to go to the toilet. Due to the male cat anatomy this can be fatal within 3 days! Pretty serious stuff.

So dosed up with an antibiotic and anti inflammatory shot, a special prescription diet to ensure his system keeps working (for all that read having spent $$$ at the vets!) Twmff is at home getting lots of special attention. 

allowed on the bed for a two minute cuddle

We can't stay in forever with him, but we can ensure that he has somewhere safe and secure to hide should he need to. If it happens again the vet told me about a spray that I can buy that mimics feline pheromones that will provide comfort to a distressed cat. Who knew? 

Here's hoping that Twmff feels the love this week!

Happy Monday.