Frenchie's Misfortune

So it was last Thursday. I had just returned home from visiting a friend.  I am usually happily greeted by my two kittens, Frenchie & Sedona. But this day was different.  I called out to Frenchie, and she was nowhere to be found.  "Frenchie? Where are you, baby?"  I pleaded over and over again.  I checked the windows and all the screens were intact, so she didn't fall out accidentally.  I looked in all her favorite places:  under my bed and in the crevice behind my computer. Nothing.  I started to get nervous, so I began checking places I would never think of: the closets, the bathtub, the cabinets...wait...oh, my God, please tell me she's not in the refrigerator. Oh, the horror.  I opened the door, and was relieved that she wasn't being suffocated to death.  Now panic began to set ...did she run out when I had left this morning?  I didn't think so...she's such a shy and overly cautious thing...there's now way.
I began to write letters to post in my building:
LOST MY KITTEN, FRENCHIE
SHE'S A CALICO: GREY, WHITE AND LIGHT BEIGE. VERY SHY AND HER SISTER, SEDONA MISSES HER..IF FOUND PLEASE CALL....ASAP. THANK YOU.
It was deja vu all over again...years ago, I lost my Mooshka that way, and by 2am, I'd received a call from a neighbor stating that she ran into his apartment and was hiding under his bed...yea, sure, she is...But it was the truth and this neighbor is now my friend.  Anyway, I posted the letters, contacted my super, and began pacing.  I searched anther room...and there were spatters of droplets, and a small puddle of what looked like either blood or dark vomit.  I looked for a source, but found nothing.  All of a sudden, Frenchie magically appeared.  Oh, NOOOOOO!

Her tongue was hanging out, this gook dangling from her mouth.  When I approached her, Frenchie ran under the bed.  I pushed the bed with all my might, and there was blood EVERYWHERE!!!  I called the vet, told them her status, grabbed her, placed her in a towel because she DESPISES carriers, and got in my car - at 5:30pm  in the heart of rush hour traffic.  It couldn't have moved any slower, as Murphy's Law would have it, and the vet was an half-hour away at least.  She was motionless, and she was breathing very hard.  Her tongue began to turn blue and I lost my mind!  Called the vet again.  "Is there something I can do until I get her to you?"  "No," replied the vet, "Just get her here QUICKLY!" Please, God, don't let her die, please God, don't let her die...became my mantra.  Oh, my God...so much traffic.  I didn't want road rage to take over, so I took a detour and blew 2 lights...yes, I blew two whole red lights...So what!!!

Got her to the vet.  Frenchie had 106 fever, was having trouble breathing and was almost motionless.  The vet came back, told me that they'd given her oxygen and fluids and asked me all the right questions, but we didn't know what happened.  She sent me home with Frenchie, and told me to bring her back tomorrow after the results from the blood test returned.  That night Frenchie appeared a bit better. She was no longer hiding, and slept on the bed next to me.  So the next day we returned to the vet, where I was told she had a very bad infection...possibly an allergic reaction, etc.  So I was sent home with Frenchie after she was given a large dose of antibiotics via injection.  We went home, and all was well...until suddenly, I couldn't find her again...when I did, her tongue was out, and she was different.  So I took her to an emergency hospital. I sat there like a very concerned parent as I waited almost 2 hours before I could even see the vet.  When they finally took Frenchie for an exam, I still had to wait.  They decided to hospitalize her, give her serious pain meds, put her on oxygen and told me they wouldn't know anything until the morning.  Whew...it was 2:30am when I went home.

So it turned out that she had serious trauma to the back of her throat, back of her tongue and under it.  They believe she ate something sharp, and tried to spit it out.  I searched that house for the source, but found nothing.  Either way, guilt set in...did I neglect to sweep a piece of glass at some time?  Did I leave anything around?  Hm, I don't think so, but I still feel bad.

Over $2000 dollars later, Frenchie is home now, and in my opinion, you cannot place a price on a life.  She is her sweet, friendly, affectionate self.  She's also bumping into walls because she's go one of those UFO-looking  neck things...too funny.  She's purring and she's fighting me to the death to be fed on her feeding tube as she still is unable to swallow.   And that is just fine, because it means she's got the FIGHT in her.  Lessons learned?  Pet Insurance is a must...and to anyone else, she's just a cat, but to me, she's my "child."  She has a soul that is sweet, and as I rescued her, I knew deep down she needed some healing...she needed a touch, a smile, a home and she needed love...just like we all do.