Chat-chat on suicide watch

Maybe he's getting antsy about bébé's arrival. My husband did use his stern voice on him yesterday when we were putting the crib together so he wouldn't jump in it. And maybe the Chat can tell there's something in my belly that will one day pull his tail with glee. At any rate, he has been jumping to the neighbor's balcony quite often lately. We got so tired of it so my husband put a filled watering can between our balconies to deter this bad habit.

But what do I see out of the corner of my eye as I'm putting up my laundry to dry today? Chat-chat trying to jump around the watering can and his paws finding nothing to land on. And like a cartoon with the Road Runner and Coyote, he's free-falling from the fourth floor. Or fifth floor we would call it in the US. I seriously hear the instructions in my head to scream. And I do, one worthy of a horror film. Not that it would have brought him vertically back to me or anything, but it seemed the right thing to do. I bend my head down over the railing expecting the worst, but he's on the grass below, still moving. Thank god the grass and not the concrete barrier near the little parking lot.

I hear this wailing and think it's the cats on the first floor (second floor US) who are upset about Chat-chat in their territory. I see their owner, a nice little guy in his 50s with silvery hair and moustache bending over too. I explain the situation to him and ask him if his cats are meowing, but in fact it's Chat-chat. Meanwhile I've screamed to my husband to go get the cat. Which he dutifully does, having to chase the shaken kitty out of the bushes and getting a nice scratch for his efforts.

Back in the apartment Chat-chat seems to be walking ok but is a bit quieter than usual, mind you. But later he goes hiding under the bed, and you cat owners know that can mean sick kitty. I debate on calling the vet but finally do, who advises me to bring him in. So after chasing him out of the bed (with the broom handle, hubby's idea), we take him in for "observation." Two hours later we go to get him and he's had a dose of antibiotics and pain meds. Now he's hiding behind the couch (easier to access for us than the bed), and will be getting a dose of pain medicine for the next five days. He's still rather quiet, but considering the height of his fall, it's no wonder!

My husband thinks this experience will "teach" the cat not to jump again. I know better. I think we'll just have to remove that watering can and let him land stably on the concrete post between our balconies. Or NEVER open the balcony again and suffocate on the hotter days. It's the price to pay to keep kitty from using up those 8 remaining lives!