(no subject)

Today, I'm grateful for the umpteenth time that I have wonderful neighbors.  My cat had surgery Sat. night for this giant lump I discovered on his flank while petting him. It's from the fight on the night of the 18th, I'm sure of it. I tended to most of his other wounds, but didn't find this one.

So he's been locked in the house with an E. collar on. I take him out on a leash, in a harness, in the E. collar, with the drain tube hanging out of his flank (he's quite a sight)  morning and evening so he can patrol the perimeter; it's been interesting to see what he claims as his  beat. I'm at work too far away to go home, so neighbor S. looks in on him mid-day for me.  Today, she took him outside on the leash and all he wanted to do was sit in the sun and watch the birds flit around in the trees. He's a lucky cat.  I'm sooo lucky to have such great neighbors.

We don't know if our cats are doing this to each other or if a new bully is in the 'hood. Their cat had 3 eye surgeries last month, the last one to remove his eye since it wasn't getting better. Two cats (down the street, and across the other way) were badly beaten up in the last 2 months. We suspect a new tabby glimpsed twice might be the culprit. If it was a raccoon, bobcat, or coyote, they'd simply have been eaten!