The Pet Page

The Guga Page (Updated October 1999)
B.G. and Rusty | See Who Guga's Named After!

Guga in Action I (220K) | Guga in Action II (950K)
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Cat Scratch Fever JULY 1998 -- Note to self: let Guga know that you're going to pick him up off your desk BEFORE laying a hand on him, or else the consequences could be dire....

NOV. 1997 -- It was a few weeks after Guga arrived on the scene; we noticed that Gordie was gagging when he tried to eat (an event which in and of itself was becoming alarmingly rare). After further surveillance, we also determined that Gordie had ceased to visit the litter box.

After a one-day delay when our vet called in sick, Gordie was subjected to a lovely barium series of x-rays. The results seemed clear--a large mass in the lower third of Gord's intestine was not allowing anything through. The vet deemed it highly serious--he recommended an immediate surgical consultation, and told us to anticipate surgery that night (to both remove the blockage and, most likely, that portion of Gordie's intestine). The source of the blockage? Unknown, but fingers were quickly pointed at the various strings and twist-ties that had been laying around the house since Guga's arrival.

The vet called Jacqueline with a referral to their surgeon of choice--who had indicated that the cost for this procedure would run between $1,600 and $2,000. Hearing her immediately burst into uncontrollable sobs, he gently gave the "humane euthanasia" speech. So that was the choice: bankruptcy or putting Gordie to sleep, perhaps without even giving Bill (who was at work) a chance to say goodbye to his own cat.

But wait! The vet, after listening to a 31-year-old woman cry like a baby, decided to do some calling around to other surgical offices, and found that Friendship Animal Hospital quoted the same surgery at between $650 and $800. Sold! And so, in the pouring rain, Jacqueline drove Gordie the 30 minutes to Tenleytown and into the arms of Dr. Amy Fauth. After a quick check, she said that they would monitor him for a few hours, but that the surgery would happen either late that night or early the next morning.

At midnight, the phone call came. And it was a miracle! The doc reported that Gordie had passed some, uh, barium-coated material. And, at 7:00 am, another call, with the same report! The big guy was on the mend!

So, after only $600 in office visits and diagnostics, Cat #1 recovered without ever going under the knife.