Foreign Exchange Student

My Dear Princess and Dear Fellow,

Punky is an odd fish for a cat. Caro calls him her "foreign exchange student" because it's like he kind of knows how to cat? But not really?

"Je ne comprend pas," I will sometimes say sadly of him.

But he seems to enjoy his odd little cat life. He has always been our dancing kitty, who can spin around on his hind legs for love. And if he's not cuddly exactly, he does like to sit nearby with one front leg out. He purrs happily. It makes sense in Punky-world.

Today Caro took Punky to the vet. She had noticed an odd lump in his fur, on his right side hip. 

The vet was surprised it had not been noticed by his colleagues when Punky was in for dental treatment in September. But we hadn't noticed it either. It seemed to be a very fast-growing lump.

And indeed, after tests, it turns out to be cancer. The vet was hopeful that it could be removed without too much trauma and that Punky would recover. But it is a sign of aging in cats. 

I suppose what I'm saying is that I'm not sure how much time Punky has left. Hopefully the lump is removed and the cancer does not recur too quickly. But in the interim, we shall spoil him and treat him and love him. 

And hopefully Dancing Kitty will be with us for a little longer yet.

S.