Hi, my name is Emily!

by Blayne West
(Rockmart, GA)

Hello everyone!

My name is Emily, and I am five years old! I live in a small town in Georgia, but I do not go outside very much. In fact, I am very content inside with my mommy and daddy. Sometimes, I put my pretty pink leash on and go outside, but that is not my favorite thing to do unless everyone is outside without me. My favorite things to do are to ask for treats, sleep under the covers at night, and nap on comfy blankets. Oh, and I sound like a small horse running up and down the hallways playing with my parent's feet!

My mommy found Dr. Neely online a few weeks ago because she found a rash on my belly, but she was not worried enough to take me to my doctor (although I think it was Daddy who talked her out of taking me). The rash is brown, flat, and doesn't appear to be irritated, although my hair seems to be a little thin in the area.

Dr. Neely took a look at my belly via internet photo, and she told my mommy that I had probably been licking too much because of an allergy, or because I might be under some kind of stress. Mommy and Daddy really started thinking about any changes, and they realized maybe I had been scratching and chewing at my fur on my belly a little more than usual. It turns out that on a visit to see my grandparents last week, I picked up a flea or two on the way from the car to the house! I'm pretty sensitive to flea medication (one trip to the kitty ER taught us our lesson), so I got two baths with Dawn detergent, and now I'm feeling better! Not only did I start feeling less itchy, Mommy realized that since she started back to work (she is a high school teacher) and she went back to school (at JSU to get her masters degree), she hasn't been spending as much time with me. So she didn't leave the house all weekend!

Boy oh boy, did we have a fun weekend. After my two baths in the kitchen sink, which I love, my mommy used her warm blow dryer to dry my fur (my least favorite part). I snuggled up to her to get warm, and I didn't leave her side all weekend. Well, except to play fetch with my mouse, chase my sparkler toy, and drag my string around for a while with Daddy.

Mommy and Daddy had a few friends over to watch football, so I showed off a bit for them by chasing my mouse, sniffing their feet, legs, and hair. Oh, and I sat on the refrigerator for a while when they ate dinner. It's warm up there close to the lights, and everybody talks about how cute I am up there!

I'm sending a picture of me helping Mommy grade papers at the kitchen table. I know it's going to be a good time when she goes in there because she spreads all of her papers out for me to play with!

I'll check back in later! I think my Mommy is also going to put a picture of me in my dress and hat on here as well. Please don't think I'm uncomfortable, I could easily take my hat off with one swipe of my paw. My mommy wouldn't dress me if I got upset about getting dressed up. I don't mind it too much, and she always takes it off when I'm ready to give myself a bath!

Thank you, Dr. Neely! Mommy said she couldn't have imagined you would take so much time to write back to us with such detail! I really felt better after my bath, and I think it was the flea (or two) all of the time making my belly itch. I've never had a many fleas before, and I didn't know how to tell my parents. Especially since the last time I told them when I was a kitten, I almost wasted one of my nine lives on over-the-counter flea medicine that went on my neck, and I had to spend the night at the hospital! I'm so glad you helped my parents figure out my problem because even though I like to do things most cats meow at, going to the doctor is not one of them!

Love,

Emily Coley West