I have a sick kitty

Last night I noticed Mr. Comet wasn't hanging out with us, which he normally does. He'll lay on my arms while I'm trying to type, and there is probably massive amounts of his orange hair in between the keys on my keyboard. So it was strange that he was missing from the family relaxation time in front of the tv. So I went looking for him only to find him laying under the bed. I thought, "odd, this cat is normally on top of the bed." Well, I tried to move him, and the poor guy made the most horrendous noise I've heard. It was kind of a cross between a growl and a yelp and a low gutteral meow. What was this? Is my guy sick?

So I kept checking on him last night, and then when I put his food in his bowl, he didn't come running. That's definitely an oddity. This cat will headbutt me endlessly until I put his food in a bowl. For him to miss a meal is crazy, but I thought, "well, he's not feeling good so he must be resting."

Then this morning, where did I find him? He was in the closet laying on top of my pile of shoes. For some reason my fat furball likes to lay on my shoes. As soon as I take them off he rubs his face all over them. Odd, I know, but he seems to like the smell of my stinky shoes. I reached down to pet him on the head this morning, and he let out another one of those awful noises. As I got ready, he made these groans/moans a few more times. There also was not a single piece of food missing from his bowl. Now, I was worried.

So I call the vet, and tomorrow my poor little orange furball is heading in to find out what's wrong with him. Hopefully everything turns out okay, and it's just something we can take care of easily.