Lux had been back for only 2 days when he had the outburst. I was in the kitchen and luckily had a cardboard barrier nearby. He ran right up to me and began to growl. I placed the barrier in front of my legs from where I could safely watch the outburst manifest. As I looked down on him, he seemed so small, a tiny fluffy ball of fear and rage. The barrier made him angry and he clawed at it, putting long gouges in the soft paper. I was scared but tried to calm him. He was beyond comforting, in that other world, ears back, eyes wide, fearful and fearsome at the same time.

In spite of the barrier, I was petrified. Too clearly, I remembered the feel of claws and blood and teeth to the bone. The wounds had not yet heeled, and I didn’t want any more. I inched toward the door, thinking I could slip out, but in my panic, I’d forgotten my other cats. Tinkerbelle, little old grandma of a cat, was right there on the other side. When I cracked the door, in she raced like an attack dog.

She was on Lux in a heartbeat, and it took only a few moments before he ran off, away from the mini-beast. She didn’t hurt him, having been declawed long before she was mine, nor did he hurt her. That her attack quelled his outburst was significant, though I didn’t comprehend its meaning.

We had been warned that there might be another outburst; until we got the medication balanced, Lux would still be prone to the fear-seizures. We took it as well as possible, putting Lux in his room and keeping the barriers close. After that incident, he seemed to be through acting out. Though he was still extremely aloof, we were able to spend time with him.

The next day he was extremely hungry. He ate everything we put in front of him and asked for more. We thought it was a good sign because historically his food intake diminished when he was about to have an outburst. This wasn’t the case, however. Later that evening he became more aggressive than ever. He flew at Jim, scratching and yowling, and remained extremely hostile into the next day. We’d got him in his room where he was well supplied with food, water, toys, and litter, but we were unable to slip his meds through the doorway without him going crazy. We tried our best to get him to eat them on his own, using Pill Pockets and food we knew he liked. Doctor had upped the medication, but we couldn’t get him to take it.

It soon became clear we were out of our depth. Doctor came to get Lux and take him back into boarding while they adjusted his meds there. Beautiful woman that she is, she arrived in a crisp white skirt. (Jim and I were wearing flak jackets and boots!) She walked right in, coaxed him into the carrier without a mew, and left with a smile. Cats! Go figure!