From commentor Starfish:
This is Casey. He has been living with me and my husband for the past 7.5 years. The trouble is that my son has been living with me, my husband, and the cat for the past 14 months.
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When my son was seven months old, the allergist told us that the sensible thing to do was to get rid of the cat because the boy was allergic. However, we are not sensible people when it comes to our pets so we decided to wait and see what happened. I asked my friends if they needed a cat, and most of them offered to take the boy after seeing the photographic evidence of Casey’s disdain for me.
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But for the past month, the boy has had a runny nose and a cough that haven’t gone away. He hasn’t been able to sleep, and he hasn’t been able to hold down a lot of food because he chokes from all the coughing.
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Casey is an alpha cat. He enjoys the company of men and opera singers, but he does not like the company of other cats. When we lived in a garden level apartment in Colorado, he was allowed outside and would frequently follow people home. We would get phone calls from people that he had followed home. The funniest was the time that he walked through an open door and perched himself atop someone’s hamster cage.
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Neighbors in that area would decorate him for Christmas.
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Since we moved to Maryland, he has been an indoor cat. Occasionally, we open the window, and he tells the world how tormented he is with his free access to food, his electric water fountain, a little box that is cleaned twice a day, and a variety of snacks.
Anyone interested, contact me at [email protected] (or click on my name near the top of the right-hand column) and I’ll forward your email.
Carnacki
Have they thought of getting rid of their son? I’m not allowed pets, but I’ve got three children and the landlord allows me to keep them.
Carnacki
@carpeduum: In this sense, it would be a combination of blog and beg, I believe.
TheMightyTrowel
I’ve forwarded this to opera loving family in the B’more area.
Amir Khalid
@Carnacki:
Carpeduum likes the definition he found much, much better. don’t you, derf?
Starfish
@Carnacki: People have already offered to take the boy.
Culture of Truth
If Newt had made his comments about our nation’s cats he would have a point.
Yutsano
@Amir Khalid: Fucking portmanteaus, how do they work?
Starfish
@Culture of Truth: Newt would only make a comment about our nation’s cats if he received a generous fee for his intellectual services as a cat historian.
Paul in KY
If the poor cat is messing with the boy’s sinuses & breathing this bad, I’d have to send the kitty to the pound if someone didn’t take hum toute suite.
Mnemosyne
As an emergency measure while you’re trying to find a new home, try bathing the cat. That should reduce the amount of allergens he’s pushing out and make the baby more comfortable for now. If you don’t think you can do it yourself, you should be able to find a pet groomer who can.
Starfish
@Paul in KY: Once we realized what the problem was, we put the boy on allergy medicine. There is still the runny nose and coughing, but it is not as severe as it was earlier this week.
My husband has lived with cats for a long time and is very attached to them.
Starfish
@Mnemosyne: Ok. Ritualistic bloodletting is an option we shall consider to improve things for the time being.
Paul in KY
@Starfish: Glad he’s on medicine for that. I understand about the cats, I would be heartbroken if I had to give up mine.
MrCA
@Mnemosyne:
Let’s see…I know I have an armorer in my contacts list somewhere…will add it to the thread when I find it, in case the OP wants to follow your advice.
Paul in KY
@Paul in KY: Will say that he has a stare that Tunch would envy.
Mnemosyne
@Starfish:
I can speak from experience when I say, for God’s sake, don’t try to immerse the cat. Wash it in the kitchen sink where you can use the sprayer and give him something at the bottom to dig his claws into to keep his balance, like a rubber mat or a mesh screen. Trying to immerse the cat is the best way to get yourself a lovely trip to the emergency room.
satby
@Starfish: hey, don’t know if your son’s Dr tried putting him on Singulair? I’m allergic to all animals, cats and horses especially (I know, and I do rescue, go figure) and since I got a Singulair Rx it’s like a whole new world for me. Now the only allergy reactions I get are when I’m scratched by the cats or in an enclosed space (like a car) too long with the animals. It really let me keep on with rescue when I otherwise would have had to quit.
satby
And I should say I don’t tout pharmaceuticals too often, but I went from an asthma attack (or 2) a day to less than 1 every few months. OTC allergy medicine quit working for me more than 20 years ago.
Amir Khalid
@Mnemosyne:
Concur. Cats aren’t all that fond of bathtime (unless they happen to be Turkish Vans), still less if they think you’re trying to drown them.
Starfish
@satby: Isn’t Singulair a pill? The issue with medicating his allergies is that he is under two. Explain swallowing to someone under two. Now look at all medication and tell me what the dosage for anything for anyone under two is. Only your doctors can tell you these things. I can only assume that this is because drug companies want some sort of lawsuit protection.
The other issue is that I have some colorful words to describe my prescription drug plan that wants a prior authorization for an allergy medicine that I have taken for the past four years and has created so many hurdles that they have successfully left me unmedicated for my allergies for the past four months.
satby
@Starfish: The pediatric Singulair is a chewable cherry tablet. And no argument from me about how sucky health insurance Rx plans are, I’m right there with you. But it might be worth trying if you can’t find a home for the cat quickly. Night and day difference for me anyway. My respiratory allergies improved so much I now only need to take the meds during hayfever season, when the addition of pollen to all my other allergies hits a threshold. After 20 years of increasingly worse symptoms and daily asthma attacks this was really a lifesaver. For the record, I don’t own stock and generally hate to medicate for most things that can be handled by diet and lifestyle changes.
Michele
@Starfish: @Starfish:
For the interim, find Allerpet at your local pet shop. Put this on a towel (get the towel pretty wet with it) and wipe Casey down. This is not quite as risky as dousing the cat with water, and the Allerpet helps remove the dander that is probably causing your baby’s allergies. Casey may even tolerate it more easily because you’re giving him a little rub. Put some scratching in there and Casey may even like it. That may help in the time it takes to find a better living option.
Matt Mangels
Man, these people sound like child abusers. Your son isn’t able to sleep and he’s coughing all the time because of the cat? Get rid of your fucking cat ASAP, who cares where it goes. I love cats too, but you have to decide whether they are more important than your kid.
JoJo
Your son is having trouble eating and breathing and you’re worried about a cat’s welfare? Get rid of that cat before your son has a fatal asthma attack!
kc
Handsome kitty, beautiful eyes. It’s a shame your son is so allergic. Does Casey really hate other cats all that much?
Starfish
@kc: We had another cat, and Casey would chase her around all the time. She hated that she lost her status as a single cat. After her death, he became more hostile toward other cats.
Starfish
@JoJo: The son was having trouble breathing because he was coughing all the time. He was not wheezing or having other asthma-like symptoms. Once we started giving him a proper allergy medicine, the coughing became somewhat less severe. Because of the time of year it is, we were not aware that it was just allergies. We thought he had a cold.
CatHairEverywhere
He looks and acts so much like my Onyx!
So glad you are trying to find him a good home and not just dumping him like some a-holes have suggested. You are a good person for looking for allergy solutions and doing the best you can for your furry family member. I hope he finds a wonderful home.
Death Panel Truck
Anyone besides me notice that the cat is referred to by name, but her son is referred to only as “the boy”?
Starfish
@Death Panel Truck: Ever notice how some parents are reluctant to share identifying details about their children on the internet because they do not want their counter tops inspected by Republicans?
kc
@Death Panel Truck:
Anyone else notice that you’re an asshole?
kc
@Starfish:
I think he’s beautiful, and I’m not THAT far away (just a few states, heh), but I have four kitties. If Anne-Laurie’s bleg doesn’t help you place Casey, maybe you could find a local rescue org. that could arrange to have him fostered until he’s adopted.
I know it’s hard to find a home for a cat, even a terrific one. That’s why I have four . . .