Longer version (in less words): dad has Pasteurella Multicida (or Multocida). It seems he came down with some sort of flu or cold in the waning days of January. When I saw him on the 2nd and 3rd, he was pretty sick, enough to go to the Urgent Care clinic on Sunday. His tests came back relatively normal, and so they didn't think anything too bad. Well, on Tuesday (the 5th) he was really bad, and so went to the emergency room. They thought he had appendicitis, so did an immediate exploratory surgery, but didn't find anything. He was really fighting the infection at that point, so they kept him sedated on Tuesday and Wednesday. They weren't able to identify the specific bacteria that had gotten into his blood until this week. P. multocida is carried by something like 90% of cats, and it's in their saliva and feces. My friend Josh (more on him later this week), who's finishing up veterinary school, says that it really only affects people with weakened immune systems. In any case, however he got it, it really did a number. I was down there last night (the 14th), and he might be in the hospital for another week or more, possibly up to three, depending on his recovery.
So there's the update for the handful of people reading. Thanks for all your thoughts, I'm sure my dad appreciates them!
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