Maybe this, maybe that

Penny vomited all day and all night yesterday. Because she was eating easy to digest mixtures of cottage cheese/rice/beef broth, my carpets looked lovely. But who cares? She was not feeling well and she was coughing, too, her eyes were runny and she looked just miserable.

So, this am, I called the vet's office and told them what was happening and they were able to see Penny at 9:30. When I entered, Penny started coughing, and one of the vet techs came running out, asking me to have her wait in the car until they were ready for her. Then, she changed her mind and led us to the new cat examination room where we waited for Dr. Heino.

Dr. Heino looked worried when I told her about the vomiting. He suggested switching antibiotics and giving her antinausea meds. Next step, he thought, was an x-ray.

Well, my beloved has been wondering about an x-ray since this episode started. Penny looks like she's got something caught in her throat and she's trying to hack it up. So, I suggested that we not wait -- that we do it now. So, I left Penny there and went to feed the cat that I am housesitting for and get my hair cut.

As I was entering the salon, Dr. Heino called. The x-rays showed suspicious looking masses in her abdomen. He suggested an ultrasound. I told him I'd call Animal Critical Care and Emergency Service. I then made an appointment at ACCES for tomorrow at 10. Then I went in to get my hair cut.

Once I was back at Rainier Vet, I asked to see the x ray and Dr. Heino led me to the back room to a station set up near the operating table. Reminded me of when I used to volunteer there and when I liked everyone there and called some of them my friends. He showed me these two areas that looked like round circles on the x-ray. A sponge ball? A milk top?

Penny doesn't usually eat anything weird like that. But, I thought maybe she'd done it while she was with Stella or perhaps even at Opa's for her birthday party. But it concerned me enough to call ACCES and ask to be squeezed in today -- which they did.

Penny and I got a special room at ACCES too. We sat in Exam Room 1 and waited for the doctor. Doctor March, a young fast-talking woman who wanted to know when this all started. I explained the best that I could, and she went back to look at the x-ray that I had brought. She and the radiologist weren't sure that the masses weren't anything more than a kidney and an inflated tummy caused by gas.

We talked about whether we should do the ultrasound or not. We agreed to go ahead with it. The ultrasound looked good. But while Penny was back getting her ultrasound, her cough sounded bad enough to be pneumonia, which sometimes happens with severe cases of kennel cough, so they wanted to do another x ray of the chest. In for a penny, in for a pound. I agreed. Thankfully, the chest x rays looked fine.

So, Penny got more drugs, some fluids, and a shot.............