She doesn't often sit by the door and watch the "outdoors", but lately she has shown an interest in birds (and squirrels). Did she feel so poorly before? Or was it too much competition for space when the other cats were there stalking their prey?

It was a rather uneventful night/early morning here. She is eating, but she has certainly become more picky about what she eats. I've yet to see her drink from either water bubbler, but Don tracks the litter usage, and says her output is consistent with what it was when we were doing the sub-Q. So for now we'll stick with this routine. We still are waiting on delivery of the litter box we ordered. I hope she will accept that because it will make it possible for us to track her need for the insulin should that arise. For now, we are just flying blind here and hoping the blood sugar is not too high.

Happy New Year, kitty. I will admit that this time two weeks ago I was doubtful you'd be around to see 2008!

Nothing new to report

That is a good thing, I suppose.

We slept late (for us) since we stayed up to watch the Patriots/Giants game. Snoopy would have none of that, so she let out a very loud and very uncharacteristic Meow at 7:30 this morning. The nerve of us - sleeping in!

She was ravenous, and at a big breakfast. I've yet to see her drink, so I am monitoring the litter box carefully, and at the first sign that she's not hydrated, will open up that fresh bag of fluids that we have and start that routine again.

She's downstairs sleeping on the futon now. Yesterday she spent most of the day upstairs with us - and not hiding under the bed. I hope she's over the fear of another trip to the vet by now.

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Within normal range

What a nice ring that phrase has!

Our vet from the hospital just called and she said "I am thrilled with Snoopy's results" - one of the tests was .1 above "normal", the others were "normal" - vastly improved from the last set of tests! So we have permission to try to take her off the sub-Q and see if she will continue to urinate, and eat, and, naturally, drink.

We do need to make an appointment ASAP to have a blood sugar curve done at the regular vet, but with the holidays, that may not come until late next week.

For now, we will skip the needle tonight! She is also all done with the Clavamox (evil pills).

The girl is free from torture - at least 'til we see something doesn't appear right.

A scare last night

I was awakened at 3:30 by the sound of a cat gagging. I got up and Snoopy was sitting in the hallway and had thrown up about a teaspoon full of clear foamy saliva. Given the fact that she'd not pooped in days, this scared me badly. So I lay back down and tried to get back to sleep, thinking that this morning we'd need to find a way to get her back to Tufts (of course, on Saturday, it would be considered an "emergency" and the fees would double).

So anyway, when I got up she was in her normal spot and followed me to the kitchen. I hated to feed her more since she was already "full up", so I gave her some PetroMalt and she willingly licked away at that. Then she started moving down the hall, and disappeared downstairs. I followed her and heard the digging noise - she never digs when she pees so this was a positive sign. I hate to be a voyeur and watch her use the box, but that I did and she squatted down and "relieved herself" - whew. She came back upstairs ravenously hungry. I fed her, but I did sneak a small teaspoonful of Metamucil in the cat food.

We still did not get a call from the vet regarding the Thursday blood tests. I am most annoyed. I plan on calling in a few minutes to register my displeasure. Having the test done is worthless if there is not a doctor to review the results and report them to us.

I suspect she needs a small dosage of insulin, but I am not a vet.

I am also annoyed that my Smart Cat Box order does not have any available tracking information. It was ordered on December 19 - but even with the Christmas holidays thrown in, there has been plenty of time for it to be shipped/recieved. I sent off a flaming email there today, too.

WHY do things always crop up on Saturdays?

Outsmarted - by a cat!

I suppose it had to happen. The Pill Pockets no longer fool the cat. She promptly ate the treat around the pill this morning. I picked the pill up off the floor and stuffed it into another pocket and she did the same thing. I buried the pill in her canned food, and you guessed it -- she ate all around the pill.

Pill down the drain. One more to go with dinner tonight. I may try the pill crusher, but if she won't eat her food with that, she will just be minus one day of the Clavamox.

Today we get an update from her bloodwork. I am cautiously optimistic. I think she will need a low dosage of insulin, but I am not a vet so I'm not sure of that. I hope she can get off the sub-Q fluids, but for some reason I don't know if that will happen right now.

She is not back to normal. Her appetite is off or has changed dramatically. She still does not "poop" every day - which alarms me a bit. And I don't see her drinking water, but that does not mean she does not drink. I think if she was not on the sub-Q she might go to the "bubbler" more, but can't be sure of that.

Off today - and she is a bit more skitterish - I suppose the trip to the vet yesterday made her feel less comfy with us. She's found a new hiding spot - under my bed. We'll be out of the house a lot today, so hopeful that when we get home she will welcome us and not be so fearful.

Nice surprise!

When I got home from work Snoopy was sitting at the back door watching the birds! She was so friendly -- but I think we will need to get her to warm up again. She was not appreciative of being put in the blue "cat taxi" and being hauled out in the cold and then having blood drawn.

The trip to Tufts was not too bad - 45 minutes max. Sad scene there tonight as a young couple had brought their kitten in who had swallowed a needle two days ago. After consulting with the vet, they were both distraught and I must assume the prognosis was not good. It made me sad to pick up my mangy looking - but very alive - cat and leave them sitting there consoling each other.

So now we wait til tomorrow for the results of the tests. I am so hoping her kidneys are more normal and that we can stop giving her those darned fluids.

Which may be hard tonight - she's moved back under the bed after returning from the vet.

Appointment at 4 today

Today we bring Snoopy to Tufts to have some blood drawn to check the status of her kidneys. It is possible we can stop doing the sub-Q, and if we can stop that, it is a good sign that she does not have CRF. So fingers are crossed here.

We are taking her to Tufts because they obviously do not encounter the same issues drawing blood that Dr. K does - namely, biting and scratching! At least up until now that has been the case. She has always been feeling poorly when she goes there, so who knows how she will react when she feels better.

Last night she actually jumped up into our bed and got down under the covers and slept there until 2:30 a.m. Jumping on the high bed is quite a feat for her - she's not been able to do that for months and months.

She has lost weight and she obviously feels stronger. I am concerned about the weight loss, however, and about her appetite. Hoping it will all come together soon and she will start to eat a little more.

She was under the bed when I left for work. I'll leave work early to go with Don to Tufts. Still hoping for some good news!

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Back to work

I needed a day out of here, so I went in to the office today. So when I got home, Miss Snoopy emerged from the bedroom, just like she did in the "old days". She was a bit stubborn with her Pill Pocket, but finally ate two of them (one with a pill in it!). I warmed her cat food in the microwave - she seemed to like that. Spoiled, rotten cat!

Now we are toying with the idea of bringing the fluid bag upstairs so we don't have to move her off the sofa tonight.

She has a 4 p.m. appointment tomorrow to have blood drawn to check the renal values - fingers crossed that she's improved and we can stop the sub-Q. She tolerates it, but neither of us likes it.

Oh, and for the record, she had some diarrhea this morning. I was wondering why she'd not had any side effects of the Clavamox. Only have 2-3 more days of that. Yay!

Christmas Morning

Our 2007 Christmas Gift
Initial visit to Dr. K - $110.00
4 days hospitalization - $1,756.85
New Smart Cat Box (on order) - $50.16
Misc. cat treats, foods, etc. - $$$$$

Seeing this face today - PRICELESS


Seriously, we have put a lot of effort into making this cat feel better. She is really not a lovey dovey huggable kitty. She is what our vet, Dr. K, refers to as "fractious". But she is our cat. A cat with attitude, and perhaps a bit of fortitude.

So Merry Christmas, Miss Snoopy - let's hope for a Happy New Year for us all.

Christmas Eve

Only two pills (in their neat little disguises) and the sub-Q. I will be happy to be done with that last part. She's almost acting "normal" again. We just hauled her down to our "clinic" in the basement, and that did not set well with her at all.

I also discovered today that she would not poop in the crystal cat litter. I brought the old litterbox out and she got in and dug a little hole and did her business. It had been a couple of days and that is distressing to me. So I changed back to the old flushable clumping cat litter.

Still no testing of the urine - I know the vet is going to fuss at us for that. But I believe she is much better. We are still feeding her only canned food. I am sort of afraid to go back to dry. I guess we will see what is recommended after her blood tests midweek.

For now, I'm glad to be done being cat nurse for the day.

Another day in the books

I must confess that while Snoopy was eating her dinner, shut up in the bathroom (she prefers this), I took a look at the vile pink medicine all drawn up in the syringe, and I squeezed it down the drain in the kitchen sink. If that 1.5 ML of medicine stands between her and health, I am sorry. I think the stress to both of us of forcing it down is certainly not making either of us healthier.

Then she slept contentedly on the sofa all through the football game. We finally carried her downstairs for the sub-Q. Don's rigged up a place near the futon to leave the fluid bag hanging, so we can administer the stuff quickly before she gets all riled up. We had one incident where she lost the needle tonight, but I put it back and we got the 100 ML of fluids in.

Tomorrow we only have one small pill twice, and the fluids in the evening. It's like the work is cut in half!

Socializing

She is becoming a bit more social. Either she is bored with always being under the bed, or she feels better and a bit more comfy around us. She actually is sleeping on TOP of the bed now. I took the liberty of putting a stuffed animal by her and taking a picture - the look on her face says "Oh brother. What next?"

Still not testing her urine. She is, however, not exhibiting any symptoms of uncontrolled blood sugar. Tomorrow she has not liquid medicines, so I will once again try to get the urine tests done.

One more time...

After the dose of antibiotics we did this morning there is only one remaining time we will need to wrap the cat up like a burrito and force the vile pink fluid into her mouth. Today's first dose went amazingly well, with about 90% actually going into her.

Of course, right after, she had to show her extreme displeasure and run downstairs to pout. We have just ignored her, and about half an hour later she came up and actually came into the room with us. I thought it was to be social, but soon realized that it was to complain the door to "her bedroom hiding place" was closed and she wanted to go in there. She is under our bed right now (second choice), and I'll be happy to just let her be.

I opened the second flavor of Pill Pockets today, and she liked those just as well as the others. She had her last dose of the antiacid pill, so now it is just the twice daily Clavamox. And the once daily sub-Q. She tolerates that amazingly well. So I think we are on the upswing here.

Done for another day!

We have one more day - two more doses of the icky pink medicine. Tonight I held her mouth open and got Don to shoot the stuff into her. I think we got about 90% - a little bit more than last time. No problem at all with the nighttime pill. We have salmon flavored Pill Pockets just in case she tires of the chicken flavor. And we are still giving her beloved PetroMalt as an incentive/treat.

We waited until after our dinner and then did the sub-Q. Don held her and I manned the needle. No problem with that at all. It still freaks me out to stick that big needle in her, but as long as she doesn't flinch, I don't suppose it even bothers her. It hurts me more than it hurts her I am sure.

We had no luck with the urine testing. We put out an almost empty litter box. She did go into it and looked so lost. So I felt bad and pulled out her regular box with the crystal litter. I know we need to have a reading of her sugar levels, but what can I do. She will not pee on command or in an empty container.

We've ordered a Smart Cat Box but likely will not get it til late next week. I know the vet is not going to be happy with us, but it is what it is. I am hoping that if her sugar is up she will at least show some signs - like increased thirst, or something. Otherwise, we just don't know and probably won't until we can either bring her in for testing or get the new box.

I have a terrible back ache - I think I've twisted it with some of the contortions I have had to perform in order to wrestle this cat. I'm taking an Advil and going to bed early.

Good News Saturday

Today, I had two nice surprises. First, both pills will fit into one Pill Pocket, and Snoopy took them both at one time with no protesting. Second, as I was drawing up the liquid medication, I realized that I was confused on which one the pill had replaced, and that last night she got a double dose of the Clavamox. But the nice surprise was that when I got the bottle of the "pink stuff" out I read on the label that is to be given for 5 days only. Which means tomorrow is the last day to struggle with that.

Administering the pink liquid was a fight but I think she got most of it down. I really is easier only having to fight once morning and evening, even if it is only one more day.

Now she is in her favorite hiding place. Technically, I suppose it is not a hiding place, since we both know where she is when we do not see her out in the open. Maybe this is her "safe place" which is not very safe at all these days.

Poor kitty! Today we need to find a way to check her urine. So we will be bothering her for that.

Life as she knew it may never be the same. But then again, maybe she is becoming adjusted to the new life, and we can all relax a bit and watch her get well.

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Success!

I got the antibiotic pill down with the Pill Pocket. Then I ambushed Snoopy as she was coming out of the bathroom after eating her dinner, shoved the syringe with the vile liquid antibiotic in her mouth and got that done.

We then let her lie there on the sofa and sleep for over an hour. Don carried her downstairs and he held her in his lap, petting her while I put the needle in and started the fluids. I don't think she even knew it was there.

So today is in the books as pretty decent. We still have not been able to test her urine. Maybe we will figure out that part of the puzzle tomorrow.

This is major

On her own, she came into the living room and jumped up on the sofa by Don just like she used to do. This is AFTER we gave her the icky medicine - maybe she is finally getting it. At least I see this as a big improvement.

We still have to do the sub-Q. Wish I could just let her lie there all night.

Great news (I think)

The Tufts veterinarian just returned our call from yesterday. And I related the difficulty with the liquid antibiotics. Fortunately, one of the medicines (the PINK clavamox) comes in a pill form. We will pick up pills to finish out this round of medicine. Hope that those Pill Pockets continue to work.

We also must figure a way to use the test strips for her urine. We are not giving insulin, and we need to monitor her sugar closely.

Maybe one day we will have it all together. A friend just posted this: "she has no idea how much you love her to torture her so." How true that is! If we didn't care about her we'd just let her go.

Cat Wrangling - Day Three

Cat came home on Monday night with lots of medicine and sub-Q fluids to be administered daily. I’ve hoped to get into some sort of routine. I think we are getting there but something always falls through the cracks.

Day one was heck with the liquid medicines but the fluid went well. Day two we did a decent job with the liquid meds, but she jerked the needle out and only got half the fluids.

Today is Day Three. So far we gave her a pill with a PillPocket - great invention! She took the pill without even realizing it. She ate a pretty decent breakfast and a half an hour or so later, I tried to give her the two liquid meds. I guess she got more than half of each of them down - lots of drooling and spitting and fighting us.

Immediately after the meds, she went back to the food bowl so I gave her treats. She’s hiding under the bed today - yesterday I blocked that off so she slept downstairs on the futon all day. More medicine tonight and the dreaded sub-Q.

And I am instituting a new rule - NO treats except at medicine time - I want her to make that association. Let’s hope it works.

This will be Snoopy's Tale for now

Snoopy is our 14+ year old Ragdoll who we purchased in Manchester, New Hampshire, when we lived there. She is not a registered Rag, and I seriously doubt her bloodlines. She has none of the characteristics of a Ragdoll, temperament wise. She does look like one though.

She has some health issues now and I am going to chronicle them here. We may consider getting another cat once we have figured out how to deal with treating Snoopy. But for now it's just her and she is "the family cat".

I'd done some random posts prior to starting this blog, so I've copied them here. I want to make a point of keeping a log of how things are going. It will help us give information needed by the vet, and it will jog my memory and I hope I can read this one day and be able to laugh about it all.

Cat's home!

So she is home. With a bag of medicine - two liquids and 1 pill, for 10 long days. Worse yet - subcutaneous fluids administered daily for a week - by me. I was successful at the hospital, with the vet tech helping hold her but I do not know how we will fare with just me and Don and the cat.

In a week we bring her somewhere (vet's office or back to the hospital) to have blood tests and maybe we can get off the fluids - I hope so for sure.

She immediately went and hid under the bed - back to her favorite spot.

Still Waiting

The latest on the cat is that they feel they need to do an ultrasound of her kidneys, and it was to be done sometime today. I do not understand why they had to “work her in”, but that is what I was told yesterday. After they get done with that, we are supposed to be contacted and discuss the outcome and her possible return home.

I am getting weary of all this. I want the cat home, but not until she is eating and drinking on her own. I guess I am asking this old cat to get well too quickly. If a cat year compared to a human year is 7:1, then she must be 98 years old.

Lord, Rusty and Pepper both lived to be 119.

Missing Snoopy

Snoopy
Originally uploaded by fbruehl.

Snoopy is still at Tufts.
We are waiting for a phone update on her condition this morning.
Yesterday we had bad news early but better news later one.
I hope she will be able to come home soon - it is too quiet here without her (even though she rarely ever makes noise).

Snoopy is hospitalized

So Snoopy is the only cat now and she is in the hospital still. We miss her and hope to hear some positive report later today when her doctor calls with an update.

She was admitted to The Foster Hospital for Small Animals at Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine late Friday afternoon.

First she was suffering from "obstipation" and then it reversed in the other direction. Yesterday her bloodwork was all skewed, but later in the day it was a bit more normal.

It is quiet here with no pets. Even though Snoopy hardly made a sound, other than some obnoxiously loud purring when she wanted our attention, we miss having a cat under foot. I do hope she can come home tomorrow.

Today is not a good day to be going out to get her - snow and icy mix out there. The roads are a real mess today.

Why me, Mom?

So Snoopy is constipated. The trip to the vet yesterday was not very productive. Snow had begun to fall and they were in a rush to close shop and go home for the day. I can't fault them for that - it was horrid on the roads.

Anyway, we had to go out and get Metamucil and baby food and fed her that, dosed her with mineral oil, and late in the afternoon she threw the entire mess up. The litter box remained unused this morning, but the cat is hungry. I am taking that as a positive sign, but what do I know?

I gave her a tiny bit of food - she turned her nose up at the baby food/Metamucil/mineral oil mixture though. Since she's not drinking water at all, I poured her a small bowl of skim milk which she drank.

Now she is back under the bed - she goes back to the vet in a half hour or so. I hope they can relieve her and we can get her back home and well again.

She kept her breakfast down

Snoopy got a very small breakfast, and her insulin, and she kept the food down. I think maybe she just overate the too rich chicken on Sunday.

Not Snoopy - it's way too soon!

What is wrong with our cats. Last night Snoopy threw up. She never throws up, but I’d given her some chicken skin, so thought perhaps it had been too rich for her. But today Don emails that she has thrown up again from eating her cat food this morning.

He was concerned because of her insulin dosage. I told him to call the vet. I wonder if we will lose her, too. I am not ready to say good-bye to another cat so quickly.

Rusty

Deja vu? We again visited West Virginia in the fall and returned home to an ailing cat. This time the decline was immediate, and we had to make the very hard decision to put Rusty down on Tuesday, November 27, 2007.

He was such a good cat. He was Don's walking buddy. We miss him.