Update for Arlo

Update for Arlo

Arlo has been on his new anti-aggression medication for a couple of weeks now. It’s slightly too soon to tell if it’s working, so, for the present, Arlo continues to live in a large crate within the FIV+ suite. We’re hoping that, by leaving him in his suite, he’ll be more relaxed in familiar surroundings and around his suite-mates when we do let him out (under close supervision, of course). Familiarity, combined with the new medication, might make him less prone to attack suite-mate Lucky, which is what started all of this trouble in the first place.

And staying in a crate isn’t as bad as it might sound; Arlo has plenty of admirers at Tabby’s Place, and he’s frequently taken out of his crate by volunteers who want to spend some quality time with our handsome boy. On warmer days, and when his suite is being thoroughly cleaned, we’ve sometimes put him in the solarium for a while to get some fresh air and exercise. He gets the fresh air, but it being Arlo, he’s more likely to snooze or bask in the sun than he is to run around!

Incidentally, Lucky clearly approves of Arlo not being able to attack her any more. She’s still timid, but she’s become demonstrably more confident. Even Penelope, another FIV+ suite-mate Arlo was prone to pick on, has begun to emerge from her cubbyhole far more frequently. If this makes Arlo sound like some sort of feline super-bully, he’s really not. Remember that a few of the other males in the FIV+ suite had been beating him up; we continue to believe that, lacking options, he simply took out his frustration where he could.

We’ve noticed that Arlo is drinking a lot of water and urinating frequently. We believe that this is probably caused by the new medication. We’re not worried about his renal values, but we’ll do a urinalysis on him, just to be on the safe side.

Fortunately, Arlo remains a devoted fan of human company, so those of us who do spend time with him see nothing but his sweet side. As always, thanks to you for helping us care for our very special orange-and-white boy.