… and now for the rest of the story …

(Warning … the following blog contains a graphic image that some may find disturbing, gross, and nasty.)

If you are a regular reader of my blog then you are aware of the predicament I was left in when last I blogged.  Skipper the cat had swallowed half of an eighteen inch long hair elastic and I was trying to get it to move through him quickly without getting stuck along the way.  The last time he swallowed the same kind of thing he swallowed the whole length and required a costly surgery to unravel his intestines.

My plan was to use this stuff that “cats love the taste” of – a greasy amber goo that comes in a tube.  It lubricates the digestive tract to allow for easy passage of hair balls (and hair ties?).  The directions said to squeeze some on the cats’ paw so that he happily licks the stuff off.  Skipper caught one whiff of that stuff and was running away from me!  I had to sneakily grab him and smear my loaded finger of goo onto his paw.  He hastily did an angry paw shake, causing the amber goo to splatter the kitchen wall – and he was off and running again.  Some of the substance did stay on and I was happy to see him meticulously licking his greased paw while hiding out on the back porch.  He got several doses of paw smeared goo Friday morning.

Early Friday afternoon, I was looking for Skipper so that I could grease his paw once again.  Both Kristen and I called for him.  No Skipper.  We looked upstairs and downstairs, under beds and in closets.  No Skipper.  I had visions of him hiding somewhere, puking bile and slowing dying of strangulated bowels.  With him nowhere to be found, I told Kristen that he must have gotten out.  Out the front door we went with her going one way, and I the other way around the house.  “I found him!” she cried as I rounded the corner.  “But, he must have eaten some grass,” she continued, “Because he’s getting sick.”

Ewww.  Nothing worse than cat puke.

Kristen held him as he hacked and coughed up a frothy, grassy puddle of vomit.  I quickly found a stick and, holding back my own gag reflex, poked at the puddle.  Eureka!  A nine inch length of elastic hair tie!  Hallelujah!  It’s not exactly the way I expected it to exit Skipper’s body, but exorcism by regurgitation is fine with me.  As long as I know that thing is out of him, and there are no costly vet bills on the near horizon – I was gleeful with what Skipper produced.  (Yeah – I took a picture – sorry)

I have learned to keep the drawer holding elastic hair ties closed ALL the way.  I doubt Skipper has learned any lesson, though.  He’s just a cat and his appetite for rubbery things is just one of his quirks.  But perhaps there is a lesson for us?  🙂

If we choose to expose ourselves to the wrong stuff – evil, anger, filthy language, and deceitful people – then it’s going to make us sick and sinful as well.  Fortunately we do not have to literally puke up the bad stuff.  God wants us to have pure hearts and to be sinless – a goal to constantly strive for.  Thank goodness we need only to ask for forgiveness and we can start anew each time we ask.

Ezekiel 18:31 Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit.

Ezekiel 20:7 And I said to them, “Each of you, get rid of the vile images you have set your eyes on, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.”

Colossians 3:8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 

1 Peter 2:1 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.

Skipper was a much happier cat once he got rid of that nasty hair tie.  That hair tie offered nothing good to Skippers’ life.  Perhaps you have something to get rid of – some baggage or sin that you would feel better without?  Better purge yourself of it before it makes you sick!

Thanks for the lesson Skipper!  (Just don’t do it again!)

Just Laurel