Pet concerns

When we returned from the Berkshires on Mon it was apparent that Pouncer had not eaten much, if at all, within the 3 days, which is very unlike him. Pouncer is not a finicky eater, and would likely eat until he was plump and fat like Garfield if allowed. He's been eating the same brand of food for years and never leaves a crumb or morsel behind, so it concerned us to find most of his food still in his bowl on Mon afternoon.

Then we started discovering small 'messes' where Pouncer had had diarrhea. Oddly, he chose two specific places to do it: on the floor mats in front of the front and side doors, and in front of the windows in the living room and dining room. I think this is odd because he didn't do it in front of a wall or in the middle of the room, but only in front of a door or window.

We figured he must have gotten a bug or virus, and concluded that he'd start eating again when he thought his stomach could take it. But he didn't eat on Tues or Wed either.

Meanwhile, Jordan started having diarrhea (not in the house) on Tues and Wed, too. Of course it didn't effect her desire or ability to eat. Jordan will eat any and everything, and continued her regular diet despite her gastroentrological protests. This really got us to wondering what might have caused both pets to suddenly start having diarrhea.

We're not positive, but we think it might be the new lavender scented Febreze. Having a dog and a cat for many years, we've used Febreze products before, with no ill side effects. However, I noticed the lavender scented one I just bought advertized it was a "new" scent, and I'm sure we'd never used it before. Just before we left for the Berkshires on Sat morning, Spouse spritzed the main floor of the house with the new lavender Febreze. Then on Mon when I cleaned up Pouncer's messes, I used the Febreze again.

Pouncer stopped eating and started having diarrhea sometime on Sat, but Jordan was fine until Tues, because Jordan was at the pet hotel. When Jordan returned home on Mon she started having diarrhea on Tues, so that's why we think the Febreze is the culprit.

So we've thrown away the lavender Febreze and are hoping that as the scent dissipates our pets will return to normal.

I think Pouncer believed his food was making him sick because he still would not eat his regular food on Thurs, despite the fact that we threw away the food in the bowl and gave him fresh. I felt so bad, as I calculated he hadn't eaten any food (except for treats) in 6 days. So on Thurs evening Spouse bought another cat food that looks completely different, we gave it to Pouncer, and he eagerly devoured it. He ate it without protest again this morning, so that's good. We're going to continue giving him the new food for a few days, then gradually start mixing his old food in with the new food so he'll get used to eating his old food again.

Hopefully both of our furry family members will return to normal soon.

Drag Queen name of the day: Olive Eweforever