My sister, Jess, helped me take the boys to the vet today. Jack went first, and during his physical the vet said I got a "gold star" because he is in peak condition; 10.5 pounds of pure muscle, excellent health & temperament. He got all of his vaccines.
Patches went next and the vet was very impressed with his health. She said that she'd seen that type of injury before and that it's what happens when cats go under a hot car and hot oil leak on them, which is quite logical since we found him in a car junk yard. He tested negative for FIV, leukemia, heart worms, and all of the other dangerous conditions for which they can test. The vet said that other than the injury and him being under weight, they wouldn't have guessed that he'd ever been outside. The rest of him was in such good shape that he had probably been abandoned quite recently.
He got all of his vaccines and a heart worm preventative and both of them got parasite repellent. We need to go back to check and treat/prevent heart worms for Jack and to supply stool samples to check for intestinal worms and such, but the they are both negative of anything incurable and have been vaccinated against contracting anything.
The vet also told me that Patches, now 7 pounds, could still grow up to Jack's weight. He's being fed now, of course, and we're starting him on a high-fat kitten diet, but we also need to watch his thyroid. The glands are slightly enlarged, but maybe not enough to actually make a difference. If he can gain weight just by eating, we're fine, but if he can't, then he has thyroid problems and would be at risk for high blood pressure. If that's the case, he'd need pills and/or surgery and/or regular injections, so here's hoping that all he needs to gain weight is people that feed him!
Also, his wounds are healing up very nicely, and some of the follicles are still intact, so he may regrow some of his hair, which would make it more comfy to put a collar on him. Despite them both being indoor cats, we're going to get them collared and chipped just in case. While Patches is under to be chipped (we'll wait until he's healed and at a better weight) we shall probably get him fixed.
The vet expressed surprise when she saw Patches's face after looking over Jack. "They're both part Siamese! I guess you like that bone structure in cats." I hadn't known, and, in truth, both cats picked me. She said that that's part of the reason that they're both so chatty and it also bodes well, since Siamese cats usually live in to their 20s.
She confirmed that once Patches finishes his 10 day observation (even though it is very unlikely that a cat that shows no rabies symptoms after 5 days and has no other communicable diseases will develop any) we can start doing the introduction process between the cats. Christopher and I would both prefer to keep Patches, rather than rehome him, but how the boys interact will determine that. the fact that they can sit calmly near each other (each in their own carrier or on their own side of the Plexiglas) makes me hopeful that they'll come to appreciate the other's company.
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