‘The Most Unaffectionate Cat In The World’?!

Big Buddy has cat scratch fever and Little Buddy’s reputation has been besmirched!

So I’ve got cat scratch fever from a nasty Bud-inflicted cut on my right foot.

I take full responsibility. I woke a few nights ago to Bud mmmmmmrrrrrp-ing and realized I’d been acting out my dreams and had kicked him. Of course I felt terrible, apologized with some gentle head scratches and he forgave me in a few seconds because he knows it wasn’t intentional.

And because it’s happened two or three times before. There’s something wrong with whichever brain mechanism regulates my motor function shutdown, and it goes both ways, from terrifying bouts of sleep paralysis to the aforementioned acting out of dreams.

I fell asleep again after the unfortunate kicking incident, then realized Bud had already paid me back earlier with a skin-shredding, blood-drawing scratch on the top of the offending foot, when I woke up scratching the painful and itchy cut.

I applied antibiotic ointment and have continued to do so, but my foot’s swollen and I feel a little funky. Health sites advise watching it closely and if redness spreads out, or if it’s accompanied by certain other symptoms, I should seek medical attention.

So far I’m okay.

Buddy gazes upon his meowgnificent reflection.

In the meantime this has not helped Bud’s reputation with people in my immediate orbit, including my family.

As regular readers know, Bud has an unfortunate habit of engaging in some light mauling of his cat-sitters. My friend Sue, who has my eternal gratitude for watching him many times, will no longer play with him or interact with him. She slips in, presumably with armor and a heavy oaken shield, then feeds him and makes a rapid egress.

Anyway, Bud has been dubbed “the most unaffectionate cat in the world” because of his hostility toward cat-sitters and his quick-to-the-draw paw-slapping tendencies. It hasn’t helped that other people I know have adopted cats who’ve turned out to be perfectly behaved, grateful, sweet little furballs who don’t slap people for petting them too long.

Which I think is a bit unfair considering Bud’s a very friendly cat while I am present and the majority of retaliatory slappings by Bud have occurred when people unfamiliar with feline interaction etiquette try to pet him as if he’s a dog. He gets overstimulated easily, has a low tolerance for repeated petting in the same area, and does not play nice if anyone goes for his belly or tries to pick him up.

That’s just his personality. He’s absolutely affectionate and can be a little love bug with me. He loves my brother. He’s cool with my nieces even though he knows they’re kids and can be a bit unpredictable. Of course I don’t pick him up unless absolutely necessary, I don’t rub his tummy and I know the signs when he’s close to overstimulation. There’s also years of trust between us, and I’ve been told I am an adequate servant.

I’ll be keeping a close eye on my swollen foot and jokingly told Bud I’m going to defenestrate him if I have to go to the emergency clinic, which is fine because he doesn’t know what that means! (And of course I would do no such thing. My little Buddy is an absolute angel, even when the claws come out. Obviously.)

18 thoughts on “‘The Most Unaffectionate Cat In The World’?!”

  1. I’d go to the nearest emergency clinic but I’d pack a portable peroxide bag with a bunch of wipes for frequent application in case of long wait times. I did that with a Cranky Frankie bite once, it doesn’t sound as deep; got by without the clinic but I shouldn’t have. Should have gone.

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    1. You think I should go even if it’s not spreading and I don’t have other symptoms besides the swollen foot? I felt funky yesterday but I’m fine today.

      The long wait times you mentioned is why I hesitate to go. I know I will have to if I see worse symptoms, but I figured I could take a wait and see approach. If I went to the clinic every time Bud scratched me, accidentally or intentionally, they’d know me on a first name basis.

      Another reason why he will ALWAYS stay with me and a relative must take him if anything happens to me. I worry that he will be put down if he ends up in a shelter, because that environment will not be his finest moment, behavior-wise, and they’re likely to deem him an unadoptable cat.

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      1. Well it’s hard to know … If it could possibly be a bite, cats do have mouth germs that can cause some serious infections. With a scratch I’d assume it would be different.

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      2. Definitely a scratch, it’s a line down the top of my foot. You’re right, if it was a bite I’d be more concerned. Right now I feel fine but if that changes I’ll get it checked out.

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  2. I hope you heal up soon and without medical intervention.

    Buddy’s a CAT! This is what cats do.

    Buddy’s reflecting pool is what the other reflecting pool should look like.

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    1. That they do, plus I kicked him unintentionally so I don’t hold it against him. I’m sure he was as surprised as I was.

      Buddy’s reflecting pool shows him as he truly is, a magnificent big cat!

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  4. I wonder what causes a scratch to get infected. I mean, my cats have scratched me (mostly just superficially while playing) but on a couple of occasions when I had to take them to the vet, they scratched and bit me pretty hard, and even though the bite was painful, the pain went away after a few minutes and it healed normally. I’m sorry you had that reaction to the scratch, and I hope you get better soon. Best wishes for you Big Buddy.

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    1. There’s a bacteria from cat saliva that can transfer even if it’s a scratch because when they groom themselves the bacteria is transferred to their paws.

      That’s how cat scratch fever happens, but scratches can get itchy and infected even if there’s no bacteria. It’s part of the natural healing process but it also can happen if the scratch becomes infected from something else while it’s an open wound and something gets into it.

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  5. Big Buddy, I think you’ll be alright. You know best when to get professional help and you’re monitoring your symptoms.

    And you’re right, if you went to the ER every time little Bud bites and/or scratches you the staff would remember you.

    Right now I’m nursing a scratch on my chest, administered by our new cat. She’s a bit flighty and doesn’t like being picked up. So that scratch really is my fault, I should have known better.

    Some cats aren’t cuddly. Some cats are cuddly only on their terms. It’s part of what makes them cats!

    PS: I got our new litter plus mother cat spayed/neutered! Four tom kittens in the litter – never seen that before!

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    1. That’s awesome. That’s the same family you said you were adopting and keeping together, yeah? It’ll be interesting to see how the kittens and mom do as time passes. Please keep us posted.

      As for the scratches, indeed. Comes with the territory. “Cuddly on their terms” is a perfect way to describe Bud.

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      1. Yes, that’s the litter I mentioned earlier. They’re staying here for good! The kittens are growing like weeds and the queen is very friendly. I’m sure someone threw her out when she fell pregnant.

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  6. Sorry to hear about your problem. Hope you’re now in recovery. It’s four days since you wrote this, and I see from my WordPress feed that you’re still posting, so I’m guessing that the worst is now over?

    Incidentally, I don’t know what app you’ve used to create the image of Buddy reflected as a tiger – that kind of tech is way beyond my capabilities! – but I love it.

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    1. It’s really simple. I took a photo of Bud, found a photo of a tiger sitting in a similar position, asked Gemini to make the tiger look like a reflection in the puddle, then made minor edits like cropping and lighting/color balancing.

      I tried several times to do it in Pixlr/Photoshop, but I couldn’t get the reflection quite right.

      Since Gemini and its ilk are designed to parse human language, anyone can use it. You just have to write clear, precise prompts.

      I have mixed feelings about AI and have been trying to limit its use in favor of photographs and photoshop.

      Anyway, yes, thank you. I did not have to go to the emergency clinic and all is well here. Bud did not go sailing through an open window!

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