Request for kitty dust...

[NOYFB]

I appreciate your concern. I did speak to the vet's office to set up another appointment for her and asked that they have the vet call me back to discuss the urination incident. It hasn't happened since, and honestly I don't know if she is losing control of her bladder or if she's just too tired to walk to the other end of the house to use the box. I've talked to DH about putting another litter box in the living room, to see if that will make it easier for her. I think, since it's not happening all the time, that it's not truly incontinence...because wouldn't she be urinating all over herself all the time? She jumped down off the bed early this morning and I'm not sure if she went to eat or use the box. She's resting on our bed now and I don't see any other signs of urine anywhere.

We've got an appointment to see the vet on 12/1. Of course, if things continue to decline in the next few days, we will certainly bring her in earlier. Having another exam and x-rays now wouldn't give us any answers because we have to give the medication time to decrease the inflammation in her pancreas if it truly is pancreatitis. That's the reasoning behind waiting 2-3 weeks to re-check her. As I stated before, if it is cancer, we won't be pursuing any aggressive treatment.

I will keep you guys posted. Thanks again for your concern.

 

[NOYFB]

Update --- talked to the vet about the urinating on the couch blankets. She was in the same mindset that I was, that it's not incontinence, otherwise it'd be happening all the time. It could be a urinary tract infection, so we are planning to check her urine when we bring her back on 12/1. It happened again today. So, the trend seems to be that it happens the day AFTER we give her the fluids, which is odd.

We made her a little kitty apartment in our living room, so she doesn't have to travel to the other end of the house to do her business. We made her a makeshift litter box (made out of a box lid, so it's easy for her to get in/out of), and brought her food and water bowls into the living room, too. She took to the new litter box right away, urinating in it before we even had litter in the box (we had a garbage bag covering it, so no mess). She's gone in it a number of times today and there haven't been any other incidents of her urinating on the couch.

She seems to be eating and drinking a lot more, too. We've given her lots of tuna and yogurt (vanilla Simplait) today and she seems very happy.

Hubby and I did talk about making arrangements to put her down (I hate that phrase!) and he's not ready to commit to it just yet. He wants to give her a little more time and has told me "She'll let us know when she's ready", so I'm following his lead. I've never been in this situation before and he has, with 3 other pets, so I am trusting him. I told him that I don't want to be selfish, keeping her around just for our benefit, and that I don't want her quality of life to suffer. He truly believes that she has a little more time. I was afraid that he was in denial, and we talked about it a lot today. He understands that she is not going to get better, and that she will get worse. So, like I said, I am following his lead and we will make the arrangements when it's necessary.

I do have to say that all of the support that I've been given here and on other forums that I'm on has really helped me deal with what's happening. I'm not ready to say goodbye, but I think I am more prepared for the inevitable than I was a week ago. So, thank you all, for your love and support.

 

[JaneSmith]

I haven't read this thread, and I'm not going to.
But you have truckloads of kitty dust coming your way.

 

[LAJennifer]

I do have to say that all of the support that I've been given here and on other forums that I'm on has really helped me deal with what's happening. I'm not ready to say goodbye, but I think I am more prepared for the inevitable than I was a week ago. So, thank you all, for your love and support.

Lil Misfit, when the time comes to say goodbye, you will be ready. I promise.

 

[justginger]

I think you and your husband are making all of the right choices. Like LAJen said, when it's time, it's time. You'll know, she'll know, the vet will know, it's just a matter of making her comfortable one last time. It's truly a blessing to be able to relieve our furbabies of their pain and suffering.

 

[NOYFB]

I do have to say that all of the support that I've been given here and on other forums that I'm on has really helped me deal with what's happening. I'm not ready to say goodbye, but I think I am more prepared for the inevitable than I was a week ago. So, thank you all, for your love and support.

Lil Misfit, when the time comes to say goodbye, you will be ready. I promise.

Thank you for that.

 

[Enerchi]

{{{{HUGS}}}}

What a hard thing to go thru. We have only had to "put down" 1 beloved family pet and it was painful but also the right thing. You really will know when it is right. You can tell - you know your lovely kitty better than anyone else, you'll be able to see she is just not herself any longer.... trust in that. Sending you lots of dust for you, DH and Eq, but also love and support for the days ahead. We are here for you...

(I agree, "put down" is a terrible phrase, but anything related to *that subject* is...)

 

[stargurl78]

Well it sounds like you are doing everything right and when it's time you'll know. It's great that she is eating more and seems to be doing better. Sending more kitty dust and hugs to you and Eq.

I don't mean to threadjack, but how was Eq diagnosed with pancreatitis and did she have symptoms that led your vet to believe she has this? We had some problems with our cat Peanut (who is a petite girl like Eq) last year and after many tests and expensive visits to the vet, the vet suspected that she may have pancreatitis. After subcutaneous fluids, an anti-acid, an anti-nausea, and some appetite stimulants, she greatly improved but lately she has started licking her lower abdomen again and is starting to lose fur because of it. Otherwise, she seems ok but I can't help but worry.

 

[NOYFB]

Well it sounds like you are doing everything right and when it's time you'll know. It's great that she is eating more and seems to be doing better. Sending more kitty dust and hugs to you and Eq.

I don't mean to threadjack, but how was Eq diagnosed with pancreatitis and did she have symptoms that led your vet to believe she has this? We had some problems with our cat Peanut (who is a petite girl like Eq) last year and after many tests and expensive visits to the vet, the vet suspected that she may have pancreatitis. After subcutaneous fluids, an anti-acid, an anti-nausea, and some appetite stimulants, she greatly improved but lately she has started licking her lower abdomen again and is starting to lose fur because of it. Otherwise, she seems ok but I can't help but worry.

She was diagnosed via a GI panel in which her pancreatic level was elevated (I believe it was 7-something and normal is under 5). She has all of the classic symptoms as well - lethargy, loss of appetite, etc.

She seems to be doing ok. We built her a little ramp out of pillows to make it easier for her to get up onto the couch, where she likes to sleep, and are considering a set of pet stairs for our bed. She normally climbs up DH's mound of laundry onto his nightstand, but she slipped last night and fell, luckily onto the laundry and not the hardwood floor. I'm more concerned her possibly jumping down off of the bed and potentially breaking her hip. For now, I've been picking her up when I get out of bed and taking her with me.

Her appetite seems ok for now, and she's using the makeshift litter box. No more accidents on the couch. So, we'll see what happens...

 

[stargurl78]

Thanks for the info Lil Misfit. The vet doesn't seem to know much about pancreatitis in cats and all of the previous tests were normal so I'm probably going to have to try a new vet if Peanut starts having issues again. Did Eq lick the fur off her abdomen or have any issues with throwing up liquidy vomit? Sorry to be gross but these were the main issues we were having last year...

Well at least it sounds like things are ok with Eq for now, glad to hear that she hasn't had any more accidents. Hopefully she is comfortable and happy.

 

[NOYFB]

Thanks for the info Lil Misfit. The vet doesn't seem to know much about pancreatitis in cats and all of the previous tests were normal so I'm probably going to have to try a new vet if Peanut starts having issues again. Did Eq lick the fur off her abdomen or have any issues with throwing up liquidy vomit? Sorry to be gross but these were the main issues we were having last year...

Well at least it sounds like things are ok with Eq for now, glad to hear that she hasn't had any more accidents. Hopefully she is comfortable and happy.

She has not been licking her fur, in fact, she's stopped groomng altogether, which makes me sad. And truth be told, she's always been kind of a puker, which is how we discovered the IBD years ago. Looking back on the past few weeks I can say that there have been vomiting episodes, but they were not necessarily liquid, more like undigested dry food. Sorry, I'm not much help. I would definitely find another vet who knows more about pancreatitis. Did they do a GI panel on Peanut?

 

[stargurl78]

She has not been licking her fur, in fact, she's stopped groomng altogether, which makes me sad. And truth be told, she's always been kind of a puker, which is how we discovered the IBD years ago. Looking back on the past few weeks I can say that there have been vomiting episodes, but they were not necessarily liquid, more like undigested dry food. Sorry, I'm not much help. I would definitely find another vet who knows more about pancreatitis. Did they do a GI panel on Peanut?

I have heard that pancreatitis and IBD often occur simultaneously in cats for some reason but I'm not sure why. I am sorry that Eq is not grooming. Maybe once she adjusts more to all of the medications she will start to feel better and be more herself (still sending lots of kitty dust!). And don't be sorry! You are a help - based on your comments, it makes me wonder if pancreatitis is not the issue. She has not had a GI panel though. It seems like every time she gets sick, they do the same blood test, urine test, and ultrasound and the results always show that she is perfectly healthy. I want to try a new vet but I just can't afford to keep wasting my money on all these tests and getting no results. Not to mention the fact that I have never seen an animal freak out so much about going to the vet and it breaks my heart to keep doing that to her. She seems healthy for the most part right now, but the constant licking worries me and I think she has lost a little bit of weight. So I'll be watching her closely for now and see what happens... (Again, sorry for the threadjack!)

 

[Haven]

I'm so sorry for what's happening with Eq, LilMisfit. As others have said, you'll be ready when it's time to say goodbye because she will let you know, and you'll look at her and realize that you have to do what is best for her. We've had to make that choice for so many pets over the years, and it is never easy, but we have always known when the time had come. Oh! I'm crying just thinking about it. Big hugs to you, honey, this is the hardest part of being an animal guardian--saying goodbye.

Gosh, I wish I had some comforting words to share. I'm at a loss, so I'm just going to send you loads and loads of hugs and healthy, comforting dust for your sweet Eq.

 

[VRBeauty]

LMF, your post brings back memories of kitties I've ferried to bed at night, and down in the morning. Definitely get some bed steps if you can... Eq and any kitties you get in the future will thank you for it. I also found it helped (me!) to have a waterproof crib sheet and/or puppy training pads under my cat's bedding places. They weren't used much, but it helped keep me from freaking out when it looked like there might be a problem. (BTW the piddle pads were a great find - I use them to cover the cushion in the cat carrier anytime I transport Maya anywhere. Much nicer and more effective than the newspaper I used to use.)

 

[NOYFB]

Thanks everyone. I did order a set of pet stairs for her, so those should be delivered early next week. Since she's not grooming herself, we brushed her and used a mat rake to get some of the mats off her chest from the lactulose. We're also cleaning her ears every night, to make sure that all of the transdermal meds are being absorbed effectively, and cleaning off her mouth/whiskers after she eats (especially tuna). It really does feel like having a baby....

She seems pretty much the same, maybe a little more alert. She doesn't seem to be in pain and is getting around a little better.

So, we shall see...thanks again for your continued support. I think the dust has been working!

 

[stargurl78]

Well that's good news and she is lucky to have such loving parents to take such good care of her! We'll keep the dust coming

 

[NOYFB]

Just wanted to update again. Not much has changed. She seems to be feeling a little bit better, but still very lethargic. She did groom her bottom this morning, which is something she hasn't been doing, so that's a good thing. We are pretty much status quo, with her little kitty hospice set up in the living room. I'll be sure to let you know if/when things change. We have the follow up appointment at the vent in one week.

Took this pic yesterday, as she was laying on me in bed. She's been very snuggly lately.

 

[NOYFB]

And took this one today...she's laying on one of DH's shirts.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

She is so pretty. Sending lots of kitty dust and bonus dust because she is a black cat and that holds a special place in my heart as the owner of a black kitty! Hugs!

 

[NOYFB]

She is so pretty. Sending lots of kitty dust and bonus dust because she is a black cat and that holds a special place in my heart as the owner of a black kitty! Hugs!

Actually, MC, she is not truly a black cat, but Shhh...don't tell her! Her momma was a calico and in the right light, we can see brown stripes/splotches on her, indicating her true calico-ishness. But, like I said, don't tell her. She's convinced she's a black cat and therefore bad ass!

 

[HollyS]

I've been in your position just this past September. All you can do is what you've been doing, and let her know how much she's loved. She will let you know when it is 'her time'.

 

[NOYFB]

Thanks Holly. We have been giving her a lot of love. I know she feels it. And we feel it in return.

 

[Phoenix]

Ongoing prayers for your kitty (she's absolutely gorgeous btw) and big hugs to you and yr DH.

 

[NOYFB]

I think it's going to be any day now... The urinating on the couch has increased, and she has even urinated on our bed now. This morning she was having a difficult time passing stool and ended up just laying on her side (I think she was tired) with the stool half in/half out for a few minutes (she did eventually pass it a few minutes later). She's very emaciated and can hardly walk because she is so weak. I think she's got some kitty dementia happening too. I talked to DH again last night about my fears of her dying alone while we're not home. He still insists that she's not quite ready. He keeps saying "We'll know..." He says he's not in denial, that he knows it's going to happen, but I can't seem to convince him that it might be time to say goodbye. We have our follow up appointment with the vet on Saturday, if she makes it until then. I think at that point, with the vet's assistance, we may be able to convince him to let go.

In the meantime, I am leaving work early (my boss insisted) to go home and spend some quality time with her. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do...

 

[lulu]

The thing about cats is- you don't really know when they're in pain. And I can't stand the idea of a loved one in pain.

 

[purplesparklies]

So sorry.

 

[stepcutnut]

Sending lots of kitty dust and hugs your way!

 

[MyDiamondSparkles]

I'm so saddened to hear this. Please know you are in my thoughts, dustings and prayers. Big hugs coming your way.

 

[missy]

Oh I'm so sorry Lil Misfit! My heart goes out to all of you. Sending strength, hugs and love your way.

 

[Phoenix]

I am soooo soooo sorry, LM. I can feel your pain...sending you, DH and your beautiful kitty lots of hugs...I know it's hard...I sure kitty knows you have loved her soooo very much...