How Does She Know?

How do cats know when their humans are planning to leave them and go on a trip? 

Three years ago, on the Sunday (yes, a weekend) prior to Malice Domestic, my beloved fur baby Kensi Kitty had some sort of episode. She gakked and immediately collapsed. I thought it was a stroke and rushed her to the emergency vet clinic. I thought I was going to have to cancel my trip to Bethesda, regardless of the fact that I was nominated for an Agatha. Turned out to be good news (???) and bad news. The good news was that she'd fainted because of a vagal incident caused by throwing up. Not life-threatening, I was assured. 

The bad news was that they discovered, during her exam, that she had mild hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy. 

In hindsight, this was good news, too, because we caught it. She's been on lisinopril ever since and has been doing well. It does mean I have to stuff a tiny pill down her throat twice a day, but she's remarkably cooperative. For me. When I go on the road, she's stuck with the Spare Human, AKA my husband, with whom she's less cooperative.  

Kensi, reading my mind?

I've noticed since then, on the rare occasions I travel, she decides to become ill. Last fall, she started with the gakking on an almost daily basis before I left for my annual writing retreat. Eventually, we got her tummy straightened out once I returned home. 

Now, I'm less than a week away from leaving for Bethesda for Malice, and the little sweetheart's tummy is once again revolting. (So far, not today... knock on wood). This is after going for months with only a rare hairball. 

I haven't really started packing in earnest. What few things I've sneaked into the suitcase has been accomplished while she was deep asleep. 

So HOW THE HECK DOES SHE KNOW?

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