Saturday night after a quiet day at home (I was away all day) Jed began to "wince" (small yelp) when he got up. I couldn't figure where he hurt after poking & prodding. He didn't do it every time, ate dinner well, pooped & peed okay, so I said a little prayer & took ourselves upstairs to bed.
Coming downstairs on Sunday he did it again, "wincing" 3-4 times as he hopped from stair to stair. He doesn't step down each stair ... he's always hopped. So I blocked off the stairs & kept him quiet all day. No walks, no visits with the neighborhood dogs. Still eating & doing his business okay, too.
No wincing all day so we went back upstairs to bed that night. He slept well so I thought we'd dodged a bullet, but going down the stairs, about 3 from the bottom I hear that wince again. So I called the vet and made an appointment for today. I didn't want to be an alarmist, and since he was eating I wasn't particularly concerned about something internally amiss.
Monday night he slept downstairs & was restricted to the downstairs area until I got home on Tuesday. Again, he seemed fine, so when I went up to change my clothes I took him with me. No problem going up, but just before the bottom he did it again, confirming for me that there's something not right.
He's been a bit subdued, but is still eating and everything else. I'm hopeful that it's just a strained something and more time off the stairs will remedy it. I sure hope it's nothing big like a slipped disc or blown knee. I think I'd know if it was big, but when Brandy hurt her back it wasn't particularly evident.
So I'm trying to stay positive and hope for the best. But we both sure would appreciate your prayers.
On the feline front, Belle's labwork came back just fine. The iodine treatment did what it was supposed to, and he thyroid is functioning just fine now.
Thanks everyone!
Laura -- and Jed
So his scoops of food have gone from 1 cup to .75 cups 2X/day. Good thing he's not a beggar. 
