This morning was Kaida's second trip to the vet since coming home. She was due for one more vaccine, and we also set up the appointment for her spay surgery. Since her last visit Kaida has gained exactly one pound. She's still petite, but at least she is growing. I'm also happy to report that our newly purchased hard carrier works much better than the Petco bag that had a built-in escape route.
Kaida is actually more afraid of the car than she is of the vet's office. She cried the entire drive to the office, and the entire drive home. She was perfectly fine while we were there. Barely flinched when they gave her the shot.
What I failed to account for when I set up this appointment is that tonight was also the annual fireworks display launched over the lake behind our house. I like to refer to this event as our "fake Fourth of July". It's become a tradition for us to have people over (not many, but a few) and watch the display since our lakefront house gives us the perfect view from our dock.
Two weeks ago we had a major thunderstorm roll through the area, and she barely even woke up from her nap. So I didn't think the fireworks would be much of an issue. After all, thunderstorms and fireworks are pretty similar when you think about it.
Since we were spending most of the afternoon outside cleaning up, we also decided to try the leash and harness again. She did better than she did the previous time I tried to put it on her. She tolerated it for a good 1/2 hour before she had finally had enough. Last time, we took her into the front yard. Today was her first foray into the backyard.
We even carried her down and showed her the lake, but that didn't last long. The rough, choppy water was a bit too much for her.
So just to recap, by 5:30 pm this kitten had been in a carrier, been in a car, been to the vet, gotten a shot, been back in the carrier/car, and been taken out into the backyard which for her is brand new territory. Then people started coming. I have to say, she handled this the best out of everything. She wasn't exactly begging anybody to pick her up, but she didn't run away and hide, either.
And then...
For the first time tonight, I saw fireworks through the eyes of an animal. Kaida obviously has no idea that fireworks are a form of celebration and meant to be enjoyed. All she knows is that for half an hour, the world sounded like it was exploding outside. My mom actually went inside during the display to check on her. She was hiding in our downstairs bathroom, hunched over. Then, of course, once it was all over, all the new people (who had arrived in small groups) all came back into the house at once. I could tell she was conflicted. She wanted to investigate, but also wanted to run for the hills.
So yeah, today was pretty much Kaida's worst day ever.
0 comments:
Post a Comment