Spike

Meredith Estep writes:

Spike, a long-haired tabby cat, was born on June 19,1992.  About 8 weeks later, I adopted him.  Spike offered me companionship that I will always cherish.  He knew when I needed his love and attention, and would jump in my lap, rub up against me and purr as loudly as he possibly could.  He slept on top of my pillow with me each night, and was he was cordial to other people and accepted other pets that we brought into the family over the years.

When he was about two, Spike started missing the litter box and having trouble eliminating.  I rushed him to my local vet who determined that he had a bladder infection, provided us with antibiotics and put Spike on a special diet.  Sadly, that didn’t resolve the problem.  He continued to experience problems when needing to use the litterbox, so back to the vet we went.  Again, the problem returned after only a few days.

Finally, my vet diagnosed a complete urinary blockage and recommended that I take Spike to the University of Georgia Teaching Hospital for emergency surgery.  When we arrived, the staff warmly welcomed us and took Spike under their wing.  I immediately knew he was in good hands, both during the urethrostomy surgery and his 10-day stay afterwards.  The staff and students took the time to educate me on what was going on, they kept me updated regularly on Spike’s status, and they encouraged us to visit Spike during his stay after he was out of the ICU.

Although Spike is no longer with us, I will forever remember and appreciate the University of Georgia’s Teaching Hospital for taking such good care of Spike (and me) during our time of need!