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vet called me in and showed me the x-ray. I listen only to key words when doctors hit me with information. I only want to know the big picture: good or bad? The cat had a chance. Either he was going to live, or his lungs might fill with fluid, and that meant trouble.

* * *

That was fifteen years ago.

Arlo sits to my right, purring as I write this. Sometimes I feel like he deserves a byline as well for everything I've written, since he's been there for it, faithful as a dog.

His presence generates an atmosphere of calm. More than once, people who have met him have remarked how "charismatic" and "charming" he is, but he doesn't do much different (that I can see) from any other cat. He does have some special quality, though. He fits the mysterious term, "old soul." Every new cat or dog that enters our home is welcomed by Ambassador Arlo.

After the accident that brought us together, Arlo had two metal rods under his skin to repair a broken leg, his lower jaw was wired back into one piece, and one canine tooth (one of the four long sharp ones) had to be filed into a fang again since its point had been broken off.

The first night in our home, he was so doped up on medicine he let out a singular howl that would make a drunk coyote jealous. He then peed all over the bed because he couldn't walk to the litter box. I put out signs, "Black cat found" all around the neighborhood where I found him, reminding myself not to get too attached. He was wearing a collar when I found him. He had to be someone's. After a week of no response, I made a special trip out to tear down all the signs because I was totally mesmerized by this cat.

As he gained strength, he took to running around like any feline, chasing things. The metal rods popped out of his shaved flank, leaving a hole in his side. He had to go back to the vet to get sewn back up.

Arlo's skill at racking up medical bills hasn't changed. His damaged canine eventually had to be removed for several hundred dollars. He recently has developed hyperthyroid, undergoing an expensive radiation treatment (see link below) where he had to be kept in a lead box for a week and his feces was radioactive. We don't have all day, so I can't share them all, but this is just a sampling of the kind of oddball adventures Arlo gets me into.

So yeah, this cat has changed my life, and he's changed my checkbook, but there's no price to be put on a faithful companion. I'm sure other cat lovers have had the experience. A non-cat person whines, "You spent how much? On a cat?" I've heard it plenty. I just smile. Of course they don't understand. They've never met Arlo.

For Reference:
I-131 Radioactive Iodine Therapy for Cats with Feline Hyperthyroidism
http://www.thyr ocat.com/inside/radioactive-io dine.html

Learn more about this author, Larry Nocella.
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