The Brochure on Midnight Vet Runs & $1600 Hairballs

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Motherhood comes in many forms, and for some of us, our furry companions become the children we nurture and protect with fierce devotion. This Mother's Day weekend took an unexpected turn when my diabetic cat Bubbie began experiencing concerning episodes of vomiting that sparked an all-night adventure at the emergency veterinary clinic. Again. We're regular visitors there.  

For pet parents with special needs animals, these moments carry extra weight as symptoms could signal more complicated underlying situations. The diagnostic journey involved sedating my notoriously uncooperative cat (a diplomatic way of saying he transforms into a whirlwind of claws and fangs during vet visits), resulting in inconclusive findings but supportive treatment for his inflamed GI tract.

The comedic yet exhausting finale to our 4:30 AM homecoming involved donning protective gear—yes, actual jackets and gloves—to remove persistent vet wrap from Bubbie's back leg while he expressed his feline opinions on the matter. Though my middle-aged body no longer handles sunrise bedtimes with grace, seeing Bubbie recover brings the kind of relief only fellow pet parents will truly understand. Whether you're responsible for human children or furry companions, the emotional investment, sleepless nights, and unwavering dedication reflect a form of parenthood that deserves recognition. Share your own pet parenting war stories with me on Instagram  @OnlyChildDiaries—and maybe send some coffee my way while I recover from this adventure!

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Episode Transcript

Tracy (00:00):
The days when I used to go to sleep as the sun was
coming up are long gone.
Welcome to the Only ChildDiaries podcast.
I'm your host, Tracy Wallace.
Have you ever felt like youdidn't receive the how-to
brochure on life, that youdidn't get enough guidance about

(00:20):
major life issues?
So did I.
You don't have to be an onlychild to feel this way.
In my podcast, we'll exploresome of the best ways to better
navigate adulting, while doingso with humor and light.
Welcome everyone to the OnlyChild Diaries podcast.

(00:41):
Child Diaries podcast.
Today I'm going to talk aboutMother's Day even though this is
dropping after Mother's Dayhere in the US and also our
recent vet visit experience.

(01:03):
Our recent vet visit experience.
Yes, I'm a mother, but a motherto my animals, our pets.
I take that very seriously andI have a series, a host of
friends who are also mothers toanimals.
Mothers to animals, notchildren.

(01:30):
It's a different category, butwhen you have animals and not
children, you do well, you takeit very seriously, and all my
animals have been very special,especially our cat, bubby.
This week he had two episodestwo days worth of episodes of
vomiting and, yes, cats tend tothrow up right, they have

(01:54):
hairballs or whatever.
But being a diabetic it becomesa little bit tricky because it
could signal a high glucose,reading a very high glucose, and
that could cause trouble forhim.
Now, bubby is not what youwould call a good or compliant

(02:15):
patient, and so taking him intothe vet is somewhat problematic.
If he was a compliant patientor happy to go along with
whatever anybody wanted to dowith him, I wouldn't even think
twice.
But he causes himself andeveryone else a lot of

(02:35):
aggravation.
So the first day this happenedI watched him.
He was fine.
Otherwise, he had a lot ofenergy, he wanted to play.
He also wanted to eat, whichcreated its own issue, because
he'd eat and then he'd throw up,and then he'd eat and then he'd

(02:56):
throw up.
So much to his dismay, I tookhis food away and then, after oh
gosh, I guess three or fourhours, I let him eat a little
bit.
I had given him his regularinsulin shot and he seemed to be
better.
Two days later, last night, hestarted throwing up again.

(03:19):
He started throwing up hair,not food, but he threw up at
least five or six times, andthat worried me because
something might be wrong.
Right, he doesn't usually throwup hairballs because he's on a
medication that stops his desireto throw up.

(03:44):
It has a secondary benefit tohis asthma.
So off to the emergency that wewent last night.
They didn't find anythingconclusive.
His GI tract looked inflamed onthe x-ray and they gave him
supportive fluids which, if hehad a hairball that was not

(04:10):
coming up or hard to pass, wouldhelp.
We finally came home last nightat 4.30 in the morning and he
wanted to eat.
He felt pretty good but he waspretty ticked off.
Like I said, he's not acompliant patient and in order

(04:33):
to get blood work and x-raysthey had to sedate him.
But he woke up pretty quicklyand he was ready to fight
anybody who.
He came home and I asked themspecifically to take the vet
wrap off his legs where they didthe supportive care, the IV

(04:57):
fluids, and took the blood, andthey did get one of them off the
front.
But then I noticed, as I wastrying desperately just to lay
down, that he had a lightlavender vet wrap on his back
leg and so we had to get thatoff.

(05:18):
I put on a jacket and I put ongloves and I picked him up and
Bill was trying to cut it off,pull it off, and Bubby was
pretty mad.
Anyway, we got it off.
I'm happy to report that Bubbyis, or seems to be, feeling

(05:39):
better today.
He's eaten, he's used hislitter box, he laid in the sun
for a while even though it'spretty warm here again today and
this animal mom's heart feels alittle bit better.
But I'm completely exhausted.
The days when I used to go tosleep as the sun was coming up

(06:03):
are long gone, and it's prettydisorienting to my whole system.
So, folks, that's all I've gotfor today.
I'm going to go take a nap now.
I wish that everybody's had agood Mother's Day week weekend

(06:23):
and we'll look forward toFather's Day, and next week
we'll tackle another topictogether.
I hope you'll join me.
If you like this episode,please follow the Only Child
Diaries podcast on ApplePodcasts or other platforms you
might listen on and considerrating Only Child Diaries and

(06:46):
writing a review.
It helps others to find us.
Please share it with a friendyou think might like it as well.
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Child Diaries Podcast.
Thanks for listening.
I'm Tracy Wallace and these arethe Only Child Diaries.