A Doctor for Neville

While Astrid recuperates from her appointment with destiny – she and her offspring are all doing well – Neville had another kind of appointment.

I noticed on Friday that the Nevsky’s chin had expanded rather alarmingly in size, stretching his lower lip with it. This, of course, occurred on a weekend, after the closure of the veterinary hospitals for the week. I was certain that the chin was not of this size in the morning; it was quite noticeable. If it had been, I would have taken him to the doctor then.

He didn’t eat anything for dinner, and I thought he was in some pain; he was also drooling excessively and his blep was constant. I gave him an injection of Cerenia, and that appeared to help. He ate later that evening, though he could not keep kernels of hard-food in his mouth. Fortunately, his preferred soft-food is Recovery, packed with nutrients and rather creamy in texture, so it is easy for a cat to lap up.

Nev was better over the weekend, but there was still something amiss, so I took him to the doctor this morning. Sure enough, there was an infection in his mouth. It might have something to do with the resorption of the small teeth left behind after his last dental surgery, in November. They had been too small to pull without damaging the jaw, so they were left to nature to deal with. Unfortunately, one did not coöperate as it should. Now, Neville is on anti-biotics for several days.

I thought at first acromegaly might be to blame for the Former Thin Man’s increase of chin. I still think that that may be the cause of his resistance to insulin. However, that he might be suffering an infection  - either in place of the acromegaly or concurrent with it – is a strong possibility. We will know by the end of the week, though it may require another hospital visit to determine the results.

For now, though, Neville is eating and seems at ease.