As I mentioned in Wednesday's post, our 12 year old cat, Petey, passed away on Monday. We also have a two year old cat named Somebody. Somebody is missing Petey intensely. He walks around looking for Petey, crying for him. He's barely eating or drinking. He has been spending a lot of time in the basement sleeping near the spot where Petey used to lay on the carpet.
I called our veterinarian and asked what I should do. The vet said some animals barely notice the other pet is missing while others do mourn the loss of a companion deeply to the point where they become so depressed, medication is needed to help them so that they don't become ill themselves. He said because Somebody has never been alone, coming directly from a litter of 4 to our house with Petey, he might not only be missing Petey, but feeling lost and lonely without another cat in the household. He said that if I thought I might get another cat in the future, it might be better to get one now as it will help Somebody with the grieving process and also provide a distraction for him, keeping him from feeling lonely.
I'm not sure I'm ready to adopt another cat/kitten so soon after losing Petey, but I'm very worried about Somebody. The vet did say that if Somebody hasn't shown any type of improvement by today to make an appointment and he would administer an appetite stimulant and could prescribe a short term anti-depressant. I made an appointment to take him in tomorrow morning. I really don't want to medicate him with anti-depressants if I don't have to so after work today I'm going to go to a local animal shelter to see what cats/kittens are available for adoption. I'm really ambivalent about getting a new pet right now, but if it helps Somebody get back to his old self it might be for the best.
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