I mentioned in my blog on Wednesday that Neville was going to the veterinary ‘tomorrow’; that is, Thursday. I was incorrect. He is going on Friday; Renn had the appointment today. I was lucky I sorted it out before I took the wrong cat to the wrong doctor on the wrong day, or any permutation thereof.
Neville will still be having the blood-glucose sensor implanted tomorrow, but today was about my big boy. I had decided to take him for an appointment because I noticed that he was having trouble jumping up onto furniture. He was using the stairs to ascend to the bed, and would sometimes struggle to leap up to the couch. He also had not been for a general examination for a couple of years.
It turns out that Renn has arthritis. He has suffered some loss of muscle mass in his hind quarters. I have some tablets to give him that the doctor says should help; the tablets are more like treats than medicine, and my big boy eats them readily enough. When they run out (they are, of course, expensive), I will resort to the joint-medicine that I had given Josie for a time, and see how Renn takes it.
He has also been coughing a great deal, as if trying to bring up a hairball. None ever comes out, however, and the doctor theorised that this could be the beginnings of asthma. I am to watch for my cat having to work to breath after such episodes.
Last but not least expensive is Renn’s need for a dental. He has some bad gingivitis. This will be seen to in the next couple of weeks.
Blood and urine samples were taken for a full set of tests; I likely will not have the results until Monday, though I don’t expect anything bad to be revealed. Even so, I think the examinations are a wise precaution, and, as he will be having dental work soon, the tests would need to be performed anyway.
After the appointment, during which my big boy behaved very well, his tail almost up while in the examination room, he came home, had a good meal and a rapidly-paced play session. He is now snoozing the evening away on my bed. We have passed our days and nights together now for ten years; I’ve felt new aches and pains just as he has; I’ve found it harder to get up in the mornings, as I know he has. He doesn’t seem even middle-aged to me. Perhaps he is kind enough to think the same of me.
Ah! Bless! I think arthritis is the most
ReplyDeletecommon problem, for all of us..I was
diagnosed with it 12yrs ago..it has since
turned neurological..not life threatening,
not nice either..life goes on..hopefully!
Bless him..little (((hug))) and a little x..!
I feel all those aches and pains too and understand Poppy slowing down, as I am happy with the quiet life too.
ReplyDeleteHe is...and Renn, you have the best Dad in Canada. You two understand one another. I will wager you both have conversations with one another as well as both pithy and satisfying in resolution.
ReplyDeleteRenn's always been a support in taking care of the others.
DeleteHopefully Renn's issues can be managed easily with meds. Regarding the asthma, though: If it is allowed to progress, it can lead to lung-scarring. It's not something that should be ignored or left untreated. Diagnosis can be made via x-ray, and Prednisolone can help treat it if it's mild enough. Otherwise, if it progressed, you'd be looking at Ventolin (or some other emerg-use bronchodilator) and of course Flovent via the Aerokat inhaler. I will say, though, that if Nicki hadn't been so young when diagnosed (he had it a long time before I/we realized what was going on, and it became quite bad), I probably would have opted just for the Pred, being the much cheaper option than the Flovent. Never mind training Nicki (or any cat) to accept the mask over the nose and breathe in the meds. There are pill form bronchodilators, btw, but keep in mind that they do not halt the progression of asthma, and so are only for emerg use. There was something about the scent or taste of Ventolin that Nicki wouldn't accept, so I did try an oral bronchodilator for him when needed. They can make the cat edgy/nervous, make them pace--this happened with Nicki, so I didn't use them often, especially since he was on the max daily dose of Flovent anyway. The trouble with asthma is that not many vets know a lot about it (at least in cats), so it's up to the human to do the research. If Renn is coughing a lot (before I got Nicki on the Flovent he was coughing 6 - 7 times a day), please at least get him on Prednisolone while you decide how to treat him, don't let it continue. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI was thinking of you and Nicki as I wrote the entry. I will talk further with Renn's doctor about this, and see if an x-ray should be taken when he goes for his dental. Thank you for this.
DeleteAging, there's a story of it's own. But I hope Renn does not have asthma. Good thing you got the appointments sorted out in time. The dr. would have been examining you for forgetfulness. And now today, Neville's turn. Keeps you on the move.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear Renn had his exam. I do hope he doesn't have asthma but if does, I hope it's manageable. He is such a handsome guy!
ReplyDeleteWill be thinking of Nev today and hope his visit goes well too!
Yep, that aging stuff is no fun, regardless of species. Purrs to Renn and Neville.
ReplyDeletemum iz de werd renn ...ore az de catfather wood say....OMERTA...
ReplyDeleteon what we noe... bout what ewe said... bout dad ;)
we due hope yur dental goez smooth lee and hope ta cod az maw iz KNOT on yur chart ♥♥
It's not surprising to hear that Renn has arthritis. Unfortunately, it happens to all of us - both to cats and their humans. Alex has it and I've tried several medications that just didn't help. I finally had to start him on CBD, which has made him more comfortable. As for aging - I started to count backwards years ago, so I just reached my 18th birthday. :-) Kea was quite correct - please keep monitoring Renn for asthma. The earlier it's diagnosed and treatment started, the better. Meanwhile please keep us posted about how Neville does with his glucose monitor.
ReplyDeleteGosh, it's never a dull day at your home John. I'm hoping that Renn doesn't have asthma and that his arthritis is eased with medication.
ReplyDeleteAs for aging...we're all doing that especially these days. Take care, stay well!
I had no idea cats could even get asthma! Here’s hoping his coughing is from some unimportant cause.
ReplyDeleteI also hope Nev’s visit today went well.
I hope the meds help with Renn's arthritis. Whoever said ageing is not for sissies was right! I hope the cause of his coughing is found, and that it is not asthma. I hope Nev's implant visit today went well too.
ReplyDeleteWe really wish Renn the best of everything. We have been fighting Rumpy's asthma for some time but his is rather advanced and difficult to control. Being a RN and having a cat with asthma it seems very different between people vs cats. Cats seem to have an episode of "coughing" and then are fine where we people cannot catch our breath. Rumpy does respond with steroids only the past few months I have seen the dosage creep up. Tell Renn no more knocking a few catnip cigs off behind the dresser.
ReplyDeleteI laughed at the catnip cigarettes. I really can’t see my Renn doing that, if they had such things - but what an image!
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