Had a difficult time, yesterday, with Django, our black cat. We took him to the vet for some flea treatment as the store bought one we'd used on him didn't seem to work. The vet explained that those 'over the counter' treatments aren't particularly effective and that Django needed a 'vet strength' treatment. Also that he'd need an injection to treat his skin where the flea bites had caused damage. It's always stressful taking Django to the vet, he gets freaked out by the experience and doesn't like travelling in the car.
Anyhow, we got him home and, apart from seeming a little subdued we thought he was ok. He went out, as is his usual habit, for a stroll around the fields at the back of our house but when he returned he was extremely distressed, running around wildly and biting and scratching nonstop. This behaviour was acommpanied by pitiful cries. I wondered if this might be an allergic reaction to the treatment he'd had that afternoon so decided to telephone the out-of-hours emergency vet. After explaining the situation the vet said we should bring him in so he could examine him. This meant taking Django to a different vet's surgery over the other side of town, a longer journey than the one Django had to endure that afternoon.
When we got there, the vet examined Django and said he couldn't see any signs of a bad reaction on Django's skin but he did say that in some rare cases cats can be allergic to the kind of medication he'd been given. He posited various reasons for the problem but said he would advise giving him a steroid injection which, as a side effect, might make him drowsy. So, that's what happened and we took Django back home where he seemed slightly less agitated. Eventually he fell asleep and this morning, when we got up, he seemed much better and ate some of his food. The constant scratching and crazy behaviour has gone and, as I'm typing these words he's curled up on my lap here in front of the computer. Hopefully yesterday's distressing episode is over.
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