Take Two Cats and Call Me in the Morning

Have you ever had a 揷at?nurse? No, I抦 not talking about Halloween fun at the hospital. A 揷at?nurse is the best name I can use to describe an amazing feline phenomenon that I have personally witnessed. They can抰 do CPR or take your temperature, but make no mistake your cat loves you unconditionally and it shows. It抯 one medicine that you won抰 need a prescription for.

It was almost a year ago to the date, my wife Natercia had to have ankle reconstruction surgery after a series of painful falls. The surgery was a success, however, it required my wife to be off her feet for several weeks. Just one day after the surgery I agreed to welcome 2 new family members into our home. We named them Sassy and Shadow. They were 2 of the cutest little kitties I had ever seen. As the kittens started to feel welcome in our home, and my wife adjusted to her new life of staying in bed, I noticed something truly amazing.

Sassy, the female kitten could always be found at my wife抯 side. I would take Sassy to another room for feeding, but soon after she was right back in bed with my wife. I asked myself, 揅ould this kitten know that my wife is hurt??Sassy would not only stay by her side, but she would always know when to give that little bit of loving that she needed. Though at times it seemed like Sassy new more, almost as if she was protecting her or watching over her.

Sassy抯 brother Shadow also shares this magic. I had been sick with a very bad infection. The doctor had prescribed a very strong anti-biotic that caused me to sleep more than usual. Shadow never left my side, only to visit the litter box and to fulfill his craving for salmon. Having him there with me gave me a sense of security. I had been thinking that cats had this hidden nurse like tendency, but I still wasn抰 sure if it was just my kittens being extra loving, until my close friend Sharon had a heart attack.

Sharon is a diabetic. After having some difficulties with her sugar and insulin balance she had an episode that put her into a coma for 3 days. Doctors still aren抰 sure if she had a stroke or heart attack. Though once she had recovered enough to return home she was greeted by 4 of the most concerned little creatures. That first night back at home Sharon could not believe it. All 4 of her cats, which normally wouldn抰 go near her room at night, slept on her bed with her. She had one at her head, one at her feet and one on each side of her. They did not leave her side all night.

The next morning when Sharon抯 daughter stopped by to check in on her the nursing didn抰 stop. When Sharon抯 daughter sat on the bed to talk with her mother, the 4 cats stood up and acted almost as to say, 揇on抰 get too close to our patient.?They put themselves between the mother and daughter.

It has taken me some time to come to some understanding of this, but I can only say that pets communicate on a totally different level. This can also be seen in dogs that protect their owners or run to get help when their owner is hurt. I抦 sure that someday science will find a way to communicate with animals. At which time a plethora of questions will be answered. In the mean time we leave it up to faith. You see, all of the cats in this story knew that their owners needed them. That is why it never hurts to have a pet or two in the family. If you too have experienced a 揷at?nurse house call please tell me about it. I would be delighted to know that the Order of the Cat Nurse is alive and well in a bedroom near you.