Almost All's Well That Ends Well

Once in a while, coming home makes me want to turn right around again. Yesterday was one of those days.

As soon as I came through the door, I saw bits of feces on the floor around the litter-box in the corridor. That was not a good sign. There were ugly marks on and in the litter-box, indicative of diarrhea. Also, not good. These indications were also found on the litter-box in the cat-room, along with accompanying bits and pieces. Someone had wet on the bed. Someone had tipped over the bedroom rubbish bin and strewn the contents about the floor. This all would not have been so bad if Neville’s bum had not retained much of what should have been all in the litter-boxes.

It took a while, but everything was cleaned up and washed and tidied. Then the Nevsky went to the washroom again. I had to clean his bum again. Then he threw up, twice. My old boy was not having a good day. It was two hours before I was able to sit down to dinner.

But, though it started as one of those days, it ended better. Indigo pooped, which made me feel good; it probably did the same for her; she is eating decently, and on the last day of two of her medicines now. Nev received a dose of Cerenia, which seemed to improve his lot, too: he had little appetite last evening, but ate well this morning and had not made a mess anywhere. I suspect the vomiting and the diarrhea were related: not what had been plaguing him until his new diet, but some bug in the tummy, I think.

So, while it may not be that all is well that ended well, it came close enough. And I’ll see what greets me when I returned home this afternoon.

The Co-operative Kind

Indigo is now eating on her own, and eating more than Recovery. I mix Restoralax into her soft-food (she has not, so far as I can tell, eaten any hard-food since her ordeal), and feed her more often than the others. She has a couple more days on two oral medicines and four more on the third. Then, from her viewpoint, her life should improve. Something that still concerns me is that she has not used the litter-box much, so I hope to see more visits there. Nonetheless, I am pleased with how things are proceeding, especially considering how daunting I felt they would be on Friday, giving two medicines twice a day, one once a day, plus daily fluids and insulin twice a day (and not forgetting Neville’s insulin twice a day, along with his ear-medicine…)

I am grateful that I have cats who are, all things taken into account, co-operative and relatively easy-going, even when they are, in their eyes, being tortured.

Here is one of them at rest. For which I am also grateful.

Slowly Upward

Indigo appears on her way to recovery. Late last night, after a couple of force-feedings, which did not find favour with her, she at last ate again on her own, lapping up a small but decent amount of Recovery soft-food. She also moved about much more than she had during the last few days, wandering out of the bedroom a couple of times. She also drank some water. For breakfast and lunch, she ate more Recovery.

While this is very good, she needs to eat more, and to use the litter-box. I know that she hadn’t taken much in over the previous days, but I worry about the constipation that had her backed up. She has released some of what was inside, but I hope for more.

Indie is taking her medicine with as little enjoyment as her syringe-feeding, but I think it is getting into her. Except for the Restoralax, which can be given in her food, or with a pudding treat, and the fluids, which she accepted a second time with calm, the medicine will be finished by the end of this week.

In the meantime, Indigo is catching up on her sleep, of which her troubles deprived her. If things continue as they are now, she will be well again by next weekend.

A Contrast of Cats

Indigo is still refusing to eat. She will take in a little of chicken- or fish-flavoured pudding treats (the kind that squeeze out from a flattened tube.) I tried flavouring food, particularly Recovery, with it, but I would have to have more treat than food to coax her to consume it, and that isn’t practical, as it would require a huge amount to be worthwhile. I may have to force-feed her, which will not be enjoyable for either of us. I will attempt that tonight.

In the meantime, the progress that is being made is with Sable. She does not hide every time if, to scoop litter or sweep the floor, I come into a room in which she is lying or sitting. As long as I don’t approach her, she will remain where she is, watching me. This is an improvement over the past. The photograph below depicts Sabe when I came home on Friday: I know she has been on the bed during my absences, and caught her once dropping to the floor after lying within a foot of Moxy.

Yesterday, while I was at the computer in the bedroom, Sable was elsewhere. When she returned, she sat on the threshold, in no hurry to hide under the bed again.

Then, today, she did the same thing, though when I spoke to her and told her to come over and see me, rubbing my fingers together at floor level (because this is the irresistible way of inducing a cat to bend to a human’s will…), she crouched for several minutes facing me, as if actually considering coming closer. She decided against it.

Sable is well used to the cats here. I think the only problem is her being chased periodically - probably by Brazil - though even this seems rare. It is certainly not often enough to prevent her from roaming about the house when she has a mind to. Sable’s only real difficulty is with me. And time is on our side in that instance, unlike the case with Indigo.

The Long Road Starts Here

Indigo came home yesterday with a case of pancreatitis. This will affect her permanently. Among the problems it causes is dehydration, which means that Indie will be on fluids for the foreseeable future. She will also need Restoralax to soften her stools and keep her regular. In the short-term, she will be taking Clavamox twice a day to fight a possible infection, Gabapentin twice a day for pain, and Cerenia once a day to reduce nausea, which is an effect of pancreatitis, even without visible vomiting. She will also continue her insulin treatments, of course.

As you can imagine, her days will not be pleasant for the next week, filled with medicine and various procedures that she won’t like. The Restoralax I have successfully mixed in with a pudding-like treat; whether she will continue to eat that, I don’t know, but it is the only thing she has wanted to consume since returning from the hospital, and it isn’t enough in terms of nutrition. Nor is it enough for her insulin, which needs to go with food. The Cerenia will, hopefully, make her feel better.

The difficulty is putting the medicine into her. I have the three in liquid form, but Indie resists being given even this, especially the Gabapentin, the taste of which every cat loathes. I think I was able to give these medicines to her this morning, but she jinked and jerked so much, I can’t be sure.

I was surprised that she put up no fuss over receiving subcutaneous fluids. This was no small blessing, especially in its unexpectedness. Another improvement is that she seems in less discomfort. Though she is shunning her favourite chair, she is not moving or changing position every few minutes, and is actually resting, if not sleeping.

The pancreatitis and its treatment, even after the immediate medicines are finished, will probably reduce her chances of adoption to nil. Few people seeking to bring cats into their homes will choose a diabetic, never mind one who has another condition which will require, at the least, daily fluids. I was hoping she would find a home without other cats to cause her annoyance, but that will likely not be.

Indigo will of course stay with me for as long as she needs a home. It may not be what she dreams of, but it will keep her safe and warm.

Our Long Weekend Tradition

Indigo has been withdrawn over the last few days, not wanting to spend time on my lap, not showing interest even in telling the other beasts where to get off. I made an appointment for next week to have a fructosamine test conducted, to measure her blood sugar over the past fortnight, since she has been most reluctant to allow me to jab her ears for a glucose reading. I thought her insulin allowance might need adjusting. Then, I decided on an examination. Afterward, in consideration of the long weekend coming, and her possibly feeling poorly over the three days, I moved the appointment up to Thursday. Nothing conclusive found.

Last night, though, Indie was clearly in discomfort, moving about throughout the night, never seeming to find a comfortable position. This morning, she didn’t touch her breakfast. Though she had eaten well on Wednesday, and consumed a decent amount Thursday, her food this morning was left untouched. I called the hospital to have her fit in for another appointment, with possibly an x-ray.

The fuller examination today, along with an x-ray, revealed that Indigo is badly constipated. Though a friend suggested this as a cause of her problem, I would not have thought it so. I saw her having no difficulty in the litter-box, though, to be honest, while I can distinguish some of the cats’ crap - Sable’s in particular is unique among the gang - I cannot determine how well or often Indigo performs the deed.

Now, she is at the hospital, staying for the day. She will receive fluids, an enema and painkillers. When she comes homes this afternoon, she will have more painkillers in case she needs them over the weekend. As well, she will come with fluids. It’s been a while since I’ve given those, and never to Indigo, who likely won’t take them easily. But, all this is better than it could have been, and my friend will be home, safe and warm for the long, cold weekend.

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