Prescription Cat Food

A few months after Julie’s first health scare, back in 2015, she had a second — persistent urinary tract issues. 

Since then, it’s been an unfortunate clockwork: Every six months or so, give or take, I see Julie marking outside the box and licking her privates. Once you see that, you know — she’s got something going on down there. It’s either a UTI or a blockage. The former is treatable, the latter can be fatal, and the former often precedes the latter. While it seems minor, you just can’t wait. If she can’t pee for a few days, it can cause all kinds of problems that could kill her. 


So I’ll rush her to the ER for something I know is minor, but still has to be treated. At the veterinary ER, the clerks will say something dramatic like, “Triage for a cat,” and then ask me what the problem is. I always feel rather silly saying that my cat can’t pee, and it’s probably a UTI. 


They treat her with a painkiller designed to lessen irritation to the area, and within a day or two, she’s always fine. (I try to keep this medication in my fridge all the time, to save a trip.) 


After a few of these rendezvouses, a veterinarian prescribed Royal Canin Urinary SO, a cat food designed to prevent urinary tract problems. It’s all Julie ate for about five years — until her cancer diagnosis, when she stopped eating it, and I replaced it with various treats designed to help her take her Gabapentin and Palladia. 


This was a recent decision, and it rendered moot a quandary I had been worrying about.


On May 11, I was told that Julie likely has cancer. The next week, this would be confirmed. 


On May 13, her prescription to Royal Canin Urinary SO expired. This occurrence was the least of my concerns in mid-May. As it happened, I purchased a large amount of food with this scrip in April, so the concern wasn’t a pressing one. 


In July, the food supply began to dwindle, and I began to worry that, somehow, amid Julie’s cancer diagnosis, I would have to renew her UTI food prescription. 


I have an elaborate history of cons to get Julie’s food. I never remember to get her prescription renewed until it’s a week too late. I’ve convinced the veterinary staff at PetsMart to give her a new card multiple times without seeing her — and every single time they lecture me about how they’re not supposed to do this, it can get them in trouble, and all that. 


This, I will never understand. Why would I try to buy insanely expensive prescription cat food if she didn’t need it? Do they think I am going to sell it on the black market, or hype it up on eBay like a Beanie Baby in 1998? 

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