SJV's stomach bugged him all night. And, unfortunately, he wasn't alone.

A little background: SJV has two gorgeous siamese cats. He inherited them from a couple he had befriended (and perhaps treated -- I can't remember the details) when they were a few years old. So Romeo and Cosmo have been part of the SJV family for over 10 years -- they're 15 now, and in excellent shape (they moisturize). Romeo is a blue-point siamese, and is the kind of cat who loves to be picked up, and when you pick him up, he goes all limp and paws the air with his little feet. Cosmo is a traditional chocolate/tan color, is very tough (for a pure-bred siamese cat who's never lived on the mean streets), and is no-nonsense. He will be held for 30 seconds or less, please, and only on his terms. He's the more robust and muscular of the two, as well. SJV has promised to send me photos to post -- these guys could have been models.

Back to this weekend. While SJV's tummy was bothering him, Cosmo showed signs that he, too, was having some ... issues. He'd jump into the litter box, walk around, then walk back out. A few minutes later, he'd do the same thing. He was walking, walking, walking all over the place. Very un-Cosmo-like. All of this, of course, on the 4th of July (when all babies and pets have Emergency Issues That Must Be Addressed).

And so, off we went to the Kitty E.R. (After assessing whether we needed to put Romeo through the trauma of also going to the Kitty E.R. because, after all, Coz and Rome haven't been separated -- and would Romeo "freak out" at home alone? Ahh - the trials of parenting.)

We get to the E.R., Cozzie in tow (looking very worried, and perplexed, and as though this was Not the way he expected to spend his holiday). I'm happy to see that the E.R. is totally empty -- there's one woman coddling and soothing a very, very tiny pit-bull puppy, who we later learn is 18 days old (and looking even smaller than an 18 day old puppy should look - hence the visit, I imagine). But other than that one woman and infant canine, that's it.

We get into an exam room right away, and it takes some effort to get Coz out of the carrier, and then once he's out of the carrier, it takes some effort to get him weighed and examined. The vet tech, whose arms are covered in very interesting tattoos (I tried not to stare, but it's hard sometimes, you know?) said he didn't think it was a bladder issue because he couldn't even feel little Cozzie's bladder. So, that was a relief. I was beginning to wonder whether we had overreacted.

Then the vet comes in -- a tall, sortof goofy looking guy with a big smile. He says that they're going to need to take an X-ray, and that it seems that Cozzie might be constipated. Like, severely constipated.

This is where I should make an observation, which I first realized about a year and a half ago when two friends of mine had their first child. I went to their house to meet the new addition, and as I was holding the little pumpkin, they had a very interesting exchange about whether the little muffin had had a b.m. -- and they discussed it in the same tone of voice that you would discuss what you had for lunch. "So, what did you have for lunch, honey?" "Great sandwich at PotBellys -- love that place. Oh, and I may have mentioned that at 11:25 when I changed the baby's diaper, she had a b.m., and it was [insert descriptor here]." Apparently they felt perfectly normal talking about the new baby's digestive issues etc. in front of a newcomer (a single newcomer, at the time): me. This may be uncommon (I have never encountered it) but it does bring me to the observation: parents and pet owners really don't have too much of an issue discussing poo and puke, or poo and puke related issues. I suppose we have to get over the "ick" factor pretty quickly, because like it or not, there are poo and puke related issues with both babies and animals, and babies and animals don't really care if you like to talk about it or not.

Back to the E.R. X-rays are taken of the Cozzie-cat, and as it turns out, he's Super Constipated. He's backed up all the way to his small intestine (yikes!). And so, they begin with trying to flush the poor guy out... which takes about 10 hours, once all is said and done. I will spare you the details on this one...

And so, Cozzie cat is now at home, eating a new diet that's fortified with canned pumpkin (who knew that would help!) and enjoying some newfound regularity (we hope). So, over the weekend we had lots of "outs" -- less "ins." But everyone came out okay on the ... ahem ... "other end." (Couldn't help it.)

Off I go to get on the trainer and try to get in a workout. :) See you tomorrow.

Belly