Something Happened

Yesterday, around noon, I went to feed Layla before leaving to complete a school assignment with a friend. She jumped up on to the counter where her bowl is kept and I saw that she was stumbling and wobbling.  I thought that maybe she had just needed to regain her balance, but it kept occurring, even while she planted herself at the food bowl.

I had been with her the previous night until nearly 2 AM.  She was fine then; walked down the stairs, jumped up to eat her food, etc. This was very sudden. Alarmed, I cancelled my plans and took her to the vet.  He did bloodwork, which came back today.  It was clean, except for an elevated liver enzyme that the vet doesn't think is related.

He seems to think it's something neurological and wants me to take her to one of the big vet hospitals for tests and to see an internal medicine doctor.  I nearly cried at the thought of bringing her back there - I absolutely hate going to that place; I can't deny the care that they give the animals, but it's just the most heartbreaking environment ever (and this, my friends, is why I wussed out of vet school).  He mentioned the words "brain tumor" as a worst-case scenario.

She's better today; still unsteady, but not falling and stumbling as much.  She's definitely quieter than usual, content with just lying down rather than getting up and demanding food from us like she usually does.  She's eating, but I wouldn't say her appetite's great.  She's walking a bit better than yesterday, but something is definitely not right.  All so suddenly.

I'm scared and I'm upset.  This cat has just had it way too hard in her life. And she's still relatively young - only 12 or so.  It's unfair.  She's been my rock since the 4th freaking grade, since I was only 8 years old; I'd be lost without her.