Ringworm

[missy]

I wish it would have the same effect for Fred as it did for my furkids. There are so many factors potentially affecting Fred's quality of life at this point, that he may be the best he can be for as long he's here. He's lucky that whatever happens, he has the very best parents he could hope for and an abundance of love. Who could ask for anything more?

Thanks Matata. I am so sad right now with all that is happening. Fred had a good appetite and was purring despite all of the torture we were putting him through for the RW treatment and taking him off the steroid meds that were giving him relief from his arthritis and asthma. Last night he made a sound that I knew meant he was about to vomit. I don't know if all cats make this sound but all our cats always do. It's a pretty awful; sound they make. I don't know if you are familiar with it. Like a howling. Fred rarely vomits but I knew that sound very well. Not only did he vomit he kept vomiting and I have never seen so much vomit.

Sorry for the TMI but I am describing it to share how concerned I am about him at this very moment. His ribs are sticking out despite his eating and now that he vomited what looks to be many days worth of food (how was it not digested?) I worry this might signal a bigger issue. I know I just have to take another deep breath and just see what happens. One day, one hour at a time and I know we have no choice but to continue.

He isn't suffering just yet -except for moments like when he is vomiting or when we are bathing him (he doesn't like that) so not giving up on him yet. We don't believe in life at all costs but as long as he seems to have some decent quality of life we aren't giving up on Fred. He is an old man but a very lovable old man. Never really a cranky old man. He continues to be a sweet sweet boy. So unlike all the old men I know IRL. But I digress.

Here's an old photo of Fred on the GSP when we were leaving our (original) beach house heading back to Brooklyn. He escaped his carrier and mayhem ensued. LOL. What a rascal.

 

[missy]

Dear missy, just want you to know that I hv been following this thread faithfully without writing in b4 bcos I am clueless & helpless Both you & hubby hv done GREAT!
Sincerely hope all yr babies especially Fred will soon get over this horrible crisis, sigh!

@TooPatient, same goes to you too, be strong!

Thanks very much @lucida818. I appreciate you chiming in with your support and good wishes.

 

[missy]

Missy that is great to get such quick service on those shampoos. I hope they work for your sweet kitties.

Great costumes of your nieces and their friend.

Marcy

Thanks Marcy. My niece (crayon) fell in gym class yesterday and might have a stress fracture of her fibula. She is taking it like a trooper though. Never a dull moment.

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

Healing vibes to Freddie!! I can relate, we've had a horrible stomach bug in the family last week. Keeping fingers crossed it's "just" a stomach flu... And best wishes to the crayon as well

 

[MamaBee]

Oh no @missy! She will be fine but I still feel so bad for her. Her smile is contagious...What a sweet girl..

 

[distracts]

I'm so sorry Fred has had another complication! I am wondering if it might be best for him to take him to your vet at home even though you would have to drive a long ways?

Also lol at Fred the escape artist! Hugo is an escape artist too. The other week the cats were with my parents because we were out of town, and when we got back they came over to dinner and brought the cats back, and when I opened the door, my mom was there just holding Hugo - no carrier - and she just tossed him inside and was like "he got out and was climbing all over us" and went back to the car to get his carrier. He's a naughty child.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Thank you dear Daisy. Everyone but Fred got shampooed yesterday and today we are shampooing Fred. Fred gets washed twice a week and the others once a week. I managed to find Malaseb on eBay and it will be delivered Monday or Tuesday and I just hope it is real and not expired. It cost me 50% more than on the pet online sites but everyone else is out of it and this seller had it so fingers crossed it's worth the premium since it is on backorder til Mid November with the manufacturer.

I swear I see a new area on Bobby's face near his mouth and Greg sees it too when I pointed it out but he doesn't know if its new or not. He says hair is growing in there but I am worried. I cannot imagine how it's possible given they are on Itrafungol (straight now for months and months) and got 12 L-S dips and weekly Malaseb shampoos for months now that Bobby has a new area. So hoping it is not new and that the hair is indeed growing in. But I don't think I would have missed it and so not sure what to think. The saga continues and we are just taking things one day at a time.

For some levity here is my niece dressed up last night as a vampire cat. My other niece is a crayon.
I don't know what their friend's costume is though...

looks like you had some Halloween fun
im glad you did
poor Bobby, please don't make it be more, this is just too unfair
sending love, prayers, healing thoughts, but it is genuine
everybody get healthy !
its all i can do for you
,

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Thanks Matata. I am so sad right now with all that is happening. Fred had a good appetite and was purring despite all of the torture we were putting him through for the RW treatment and taking him off the steroid meds that were giving him relief from his arthritis and asthma. Last night he made a sound that I knew meant he was about to vomit. I don't know if all cats make this sound but all our cats always do. It's a pretty awful; sound they make. I don't know if you are familiar with it. Like a howling. Fred rarely vomits but I knew that sound very well. Not only did he vomit he kept vomiting and I have never seen so much vomit.

Sorry for the TMI but I am describing it to share how concerned I am about him at this very moment. His ribs are sticking out despite his eating and now that he vomited what looks to be many days worth of food (how was it not digested?) I worry this might signal a bigger issue. I know I just have to take another deep breath and just see what happens. One day, one hour at a time and I know we have no choice but to continue.

He isn't suffering just yet -except for moments like when he is vomiting or when we are bathing him (he doesn't like that) so not giving up on him yet. We don't believe in life at all costs but as long as he seems to have some decent quality of life we aren't giving up on Fred. He is an old man but a very lovable old man. Never really a cranky old man. He continues to be a sweet sweet boy. So unlike all the old men I know IRL. But I digress.

Here's an old photo of Fred on the GSP when we were leaving our (original) beach house heading back to Brooklyn. He escaped his carrier and mayhem ensued. LOL. What a rascal.

oh poor Fred
yes i kniw that sound well
Tinky was a puker from way back
when he got really old he was still eatting good but so much puking
he kept his apatite to the end and was still pooping so he was digesting something
Is Fred still pooping ok?

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Thanks Marcy. My niece (crayon) fell in gym class yesterday and might have a stress fracture of her fibula. She is taking it like a trooper though. Never a dull moment.

lucky still haopened after Halloween
hope she heals up fast and its not too painful

 

[missy]

oh poor Fred
yes i kniw that sound well
Tinky was a puker from way back
when he got really old he was still eatting good but so much puking
he kept his apatite to the end and was still pooping so he was digesting something
Is Fred still pooping ok?

No, unfortunately Fred is not pooping OK but that has been an issue for the past few months now IIRC. I am still giving him Lactulose (an RX laxative) every day and he has a BM every 3-4 days. Not ideal but the vet says as long as it is helping him at his age we are just going to continue giving him the med. Poor Fred. Fred was never a puker though. Sorry Tinky was.

 

[missy]

looks like you had some Halloween fun
im glad you did
poor Bobby, please don't make it be more, this is just too unfair
sending love, prayers, healing thoughts, but it is genuine
everybody get healthy !
its all i can do for you
,

Aww thanks Dear Daisy. I appreciate your kindness and warm support. More than I can say. XOXO.

 

[missy]

I'm so sorry Fred has had another complication! I am wondering if it might be best for him to take him to your vet at home even though you would have to drive a long ways?

Also lol at Fred the escape artist! Hugo is an escape artist too. The other week the cats were with my parents because we were out of town, and when we got back they came over to dinner and brought the cats back, and when I opened the door, my mom was there just holding Hugo - no carrier - and she just tossed him inside and was like "he got out and was climbing all over us" and went back to the car to get his carrier. He's a naughty child.

LOL that Hugo. Yes naughty child indeed. Why do they look so precious when they are being so bad?

 

[Tekate]

@missy jeezus.. this has been RW gate for sure. I am hoping your niece is doing a okay.. I've been off pretty much packing etc. I send you love of course and truly I send you peace because I hope you can just be able to just for one evening be Missy and Greg.. you are my heroes.

 

[OboeGal]

@missy, I'm so sorry that this is continuing for you all. I really hope there is improvement and resolution soon. And that your sweet niece heals quickly! (Which they usually do at that age, luckily.)

I had a thought about Fred. Although his vomiting certainly could be something more serious, I wonder if another possibility is his constipation, especially if his appetite has picked up a bit. If his intestinal tract is moving things along a little too slowly for his appetite and intake, it could have the same effect as a blockage. If food sits in his tummy and the upper portion of his small intestine too long because things are not moving out fast enough to make space in the latter small intestine and large intestine, the body's natural response is to bring it back up. (I've known elderly people that have struggled with this.) Just a thought......

 

[MamaBee]

@missy, I'm so sorry that this is continuing for you all. I really hope there is improvement and resolution soon. And that your sweet niece heals quickly! (Which they usually do at that age, luckily.)

I had a thought about Fred. Although his vomiting certainly could be something more serious, I wonder if another possibility is his constipation, especially if his appetite has picked up a bit. If his intestinal tract is moving things along a little too slowly for his appetite and intake, it could have the same effect as a blockage. If food sits in his tummy and the upper portion of his small intestine too long because things are not moving out fast enough to make space in the latter small intestine and large intestine, the body's natural response is to bring it back up. (I've known elderly people that have struggled with this.) Just a thought......

Yes...@missy...@oboeGal makes a lot of sense. Bailey now needs Metoclopramide because the food just sits there..and needs help to move it along his intestinal tract. I don’t know if this drug works for cats but it really helps Bailey.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

how are you all doing today Missy ?

 

[missy]

@missy jeezus.. this has been RW gate for sure. I am hoping your niece is doing a okay.. I've been off pretty much packing etc. I send you love of course and truly I send you peace because I hope you can just be able to just for one evening be Missy and Greg.. you are my heroes.

Thanks Kate. And you are my hero! You are such a wonderful person. A source of support and comfort in what often feels like a cold and cruel world. Thank you for being here for me. XOXO.

 

[missy]

@missy, I'm so sorry that this is continuing for you all. I really hope there is improvement and resolution soon. And that your sweet niece heals quickly! (Which they usually do at that age, luckily.)

I had a thought about Fred. Although his vomiting certainly could be something more serious, I wonder if another possibility is his constipation, especially if his appetite has picked up a bit. If his intestinal tract is moving things along a little too slowly for his appetite and intake, it could have the same effect as a blockage. If food sits in his tummy and the upper portion of his small intestine too long because things are not moving out fast enough to make space in the latter small intestine and large intestine, the body's natural response is to bring it back up. (I've known elderly people that have struggled with this.) Just a thought......

Yes...@missy...@oboeGal makes a lot of sense. Bailey now needs Metoclopramide because the food just sits there..and needs help to move it along his intestinal tract. I don’t know if this drug works for cats but it really helps Bailey.

Thanks @OboeGal and @Mamabean . I so appreciate your input and support. Yeah IDK. We are giving him Lactulose and he is having BMs every few days which is better than before. He hasn't had a big vomit again since that day but little bits of bile spit up. I don't know if he is going to pull through and we are just enjoying the time we can with him right now despite all that we are still dealing with re the other cats too. It's truly a nightmare but I compartmentalize and can forge ahead doing it like this. It's one day, one hour, one minute at a time.

 

[missy]

how are you all doing today Missy ?

Hanging in there Daisy, thanks for asking. We are shampooing all of them today so not a fun morning. But first we have to clean and disinfect. We got up late as Oliver was very naughty overnight and kept us awake for hours so we slept in and now we have lots to do.

Ollie says good morning to everyone.



His paws are huge. He is going to be one big kitty. Scratch that. He is one big kitty and getting bigger all the time.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Hanging in there Daisy, thanks for asking. We are shampooing all of them today so not a fun morning. But first we have to clean and disinfect. We got up late as Oliver was very naughty overnight and kept us awake for hours so we slept in and now we have lots to do.

Ollie says good morning to everyone.



His paws are huge. He is going to be one big kitty. Scratch that. He is one big kitty and getting bigger all the time.

you certainly deserved to sleep in !
Ollie is very beautiful
i hope the shampooing went well

 

[facetgirl]

Hey @missy, just checking into this thread to see how you and your boys are all doing.

 

[missy]

you certainly deserved to sleep in !
Ollie is very beautiful
i hope the shampooing went well

Thank you Daisy. The cats loathe being bathed and we loathe it too. They all shiver (with fear) and the 10 plus minute wait with the shampoo on them is tough to take for all involved. I am keeping the house super warm and hoping they aren't cold. I literally have it at 88 degrees F. I am sweating buckets but want the cats to be comfortable.

We have a big problem now as our washing machine upstairs keeps tripping the electrical circuits and yesterday we had to reset the breakers twice to get the washing machine to finish the load. I am super worried as we dont have the luxury of time waiting for new machines. Takes weeks to months here to get delivery and installation. Plus we don't really know what is wrong with the current machines upstairs. Just keeps tripping the system. A month or more ago Greg had issues with the dryer in the basement. He fixed it by ordering a part. This however won't be as easy as it is an LG and those parts are hard to get plus we don't know what the issue is. I just hope and pray our washing machine and dryer downstairs continues to work. Or else we will be in deep doo doo. Sigh.


How is Gary doing? How is his DD? How are you?

 

[missy]

Hey @missy, just checking into this thread to see how you and your boys are all doing.

Thanks facetgirl. I am anxiously waiting for the culture results. Every time the phone rings I jump out of my skin. If the vet office calls in the next week or 2 it is bad news so praying they do not call us and that the cats cultures are negative. In my heart I don't think it will be but I am hoping and praying very hard the cats will be clear. This is one of the most challenging things we have ever been through and the reason is the sheer length of time. It's almost been 16 weeks? Of administering Itrafungol oral meds to the cats, topical meds, trying to coax them to eat multiple times a day, bathing them, lime dipping them (on hold for now) and generally torturing them. And then there's the daily vacuuming, dusting, mopping and disinfecting and multiple loads of laundry on super hot 2 hour cycles round the clock. No wonder our machines are breaking down. Sorry just getting it out and venting.

We continue taking it one day at a time.
Thank you for checking in and asking.
Hope you are doing well.

 

[marcy]

Hi Missy. Just checking in to see the latest on RW gate. I hate to hear about the washer problem. Hoping this is all,over for you soon.

 

[missy]

Hi Missy. Just checking in to see the latest on RW gate. I hate to hear about the washer problem. Hoping this is all,over for you soon.

Thanks Marcy. I am using the washer on hot/cold cycle vs the very hot very cold cycle hoping it won't trip the electrical system like it was doing. So far so good but I have a feeling there is a bigger problem that will rear its ugly head soon with the washer/dryer so fingers crossed it keeps working at least through RW gate. Once this RW gate is over I can deal with getting a new washer dryer but right now I am hoping hard it continues to work. It's a hassle getting new appliances and won't be a quick fix.

Oliver this AM. He's helping me (rather hindering me from lol) post on PS






What a little rascal. And he woke me at midnight and at 3AM (when I finally just got out of bed and gave the cats their breakfast and meds and got our coffee) with his paw on my face.

 

[facetgirl]

When this is all behind you @missy you should write a childrens book about all of this. It probably seems odd that I would say a children's book but I think there are a lot of lessons to be learned by your experience about how to love and cherish while protecting and healing at the same time. It could be from Ollie's perspective . Maybe this flu I have is going to my head but you have such a positive outlook even while facing the day to day challenges of it all. You could probably write a manual on how to get through a situation like this.

 

[distracts]

Missy I so wish this would be over soon for you and your family (both DH and cats). I don't know how you're bearing up at all other than that you just have to. When you get through this you deserve to sleep for a month! I am hoping every day that you don't hear from the vet about the cultures until six weeks have passed. From my experience, I could not imagine that ringworm would be THIS prolonged.

Oliver sure is growing up. He's a handsome little fellow and even though he poses perfectly, I can see a mischievous glint in those eyes.

My cats have had dentals this week - Hugo earlier in the week and T is in his right now. I'm hoping T has nothing wrong - he had to get five teeth removed when I first got him because several had exposed roots and were causing him tremendous amounts of pain. No clue why they were so bad since he hasn't had anything like that any other year, so hoping it's all normal this year too, I just worry because of that history. I do try to brush his teeth but he hates it so much. Hugo had to have all 12 of his tiny little front teeth out - they grew in crooked and immediately had root decay. I felt so terrible about it but he doesn't seem to have noticed! Fortunately all his other teeth were great. I don't think cats use those tiny little front teeth for much anyway. I asked the vet if it's the breed but she thinks in her experience ragdolls don't have teeth problems more than other cats and it's just random luck that both of mine have had tooth issues.

 

[Tekate]

Thanks Marcy. I am using the washer on hot/cold cycle vs the very hot very cold cycle hoping it won't trip the electrical system like it was doing. So far so good but I have a feeling there is a bigger problem that will rear its ugly head soon with the washer/dryer so fingers crossed it keeps working at least through RW gate. Once this RW gate is over I can deal with getting a new washer dryer but right now I am hoping hard it continues to work. It's a hassle getting new appliances and won't be a quick fix.

Oliver this AM. He's helping me (rather hindering me from lol) post on PS






What a little rascal. And he woke me at midnight and at 3AM (when I finally just got out of bed and gave the cats their breakfast and meds and got our coffee) with his paw on my face.

Mommy! no no PC today, PLAY!

He's gorgeous.. just simply the cutest ...

 

[Tekate]

@missy Jeez, the washing machine keeps tripping... PLEASE don't mess around, I know you need to wash maybe turn the heat down? there's no leaks right? I'm sure you and Greg would've seen, but honestly I didn't see the mold in the linen closet in the master bath, but I did say water that my hubster told me was condensation probably... did I look up? did he look up? nope.. anyway please dear girl be careful.. I know you know safety first.. I understand about staying at the shore I would too..(wish I did have a shore house actually but no RWgate if possible ) xoxoxo

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Thank you Daisy. The cats loathe being bathed and we loathe it too. They all shiver (with fear) and the 10 plus minute wait with the shampoo on them is tough to take for all involved. I am keeping the house super warm and hoping they aren't cold. I literally have it at 88 degrees F. I am sweating buckets but want the cats to be comfortable.

We have a big problem now as our washing machine upstairs keeps tripping the electrical circuits and yesterday we had to reset the breakers twice to get the washing machine to finish the load. I am super worried as we dont have the luxury of time waiting for new machines. Takes weeks to months here to get delivery and installation. Plus we don't really know what is wrong with the current machines upstairs. Just keeps tripping the system. A month or more ago Greg had issues with the dryer in the basement. He fixed it by ordering a part. This however won't be as easy as it is an LG and those parts are hard to get plus we don't know what the issue is. I just hope and pray our washing machine and dryer downstairs continues to work. Or else we will be in deep doo doo. Sigh.


How is Gary doing? How is his DD? How are you?

in all seriousness and with genuine carring and love in my heart
thoughts and prayers for the washing machine (poor thing is probably exhausted like everyone else)
they just don't make them to last like the old days
my previous machine was 25 years old but this one is fancy and beeps and flashes its lights and sences the load and wishes me a happy day ....hmmmmm just wash the dirt out !!
can you get a repair man out to have a look ? maybe a 2nd hand part till a new one arrives (why does it take so long ? when you live in the most important part of the world)

id almost be temptered to go and buy a cheap display model or anything in the meantime but i know once you have a really good brand its not nice going back ...which is why im dreading the day we have to replace 'Mrs have a nice day' because her kind arnt even made in NZ any more, they might be relatively cheaper but they are no where near as well made or made to last as when they were made here


now back to the kitties ...
poor babies getting the shampoo
our Tinky used to go out in the rain just so he could come back in and be dried off - he even let Gary dry him
Borris isnt so sure
Tibby has really really short fur

anyway i know your busy
but here's a wee story from a simpler time

Stuff

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