We’ll know more tomorrow, but the initial information is promising and the new Vets are FANTASTIC~! I believe we have found our long term association. If you will excuse a bit of deviation–with four cats and the tendency to invite more over, I/we get in a relationship with our vets that is much like a relationship with a pediatrician (and fie on those who refuse to associate the love of children and the love of cats, they are akin). We require that they be competent, learning all the time, willing to discuss, caring to first the kitty then the parent and patient. Dr. Bryan in San Francisco was one in a million as was Dr. Rovner in Chicago. We never really got comfortable with the Barrington vets (or Barrington for that matter) and All cats clinic here, while competent, was cold and didn’t seem to get how much I love these furry fools. So I’m much happier.
We were there for two hours and $350. Ahem, but totally worth it. When it was over we were both exhausted. Poor little Nin yelled in her basso profundo voice (I kid you not–some of you know) while they took xrays, drew blood for several tests, took urine by ultrasound (?!) and some other tests. She’s holding steady at 9 lbs, but she has had some trouble walking steadily lately and some confusion (I think and the doctor agrees) from potassium loss. We got a new supplement to try and the blood and urine tests will be back tomorrow, The good things–Her liver looks just fine and she’s a bit well, voluptuous, not bad for a diabetic kitty. She’s low on potassium so we have new meds. NO cancer (Thank you Bast)and her kidneys do not look bad for a kitty her age. One is smaller than the other, but not so much smaller than you would expect for her age.
The big thing? She’s full of poo. Oh so full of poo. I saw the xrays and the poor kitten has poo up to her eyeballs. Not an emergency but the vet complimented me for knowing that it was tending toward serious. We have a new diabetic friendly laxative. And for now she’s up to 3 units twice a day on insulin (from 2.5). I’m holding my breath a bit about the blood/urine tests but I feel hopeful and the vet said she looked great for a 17 year old diabetic, geriatric, arthritic kitty sans teeth. And she ok’d the food we’ve had her on as excellent (Wellness mostly sometimes Dick Van Patten or Chicken Soup for the Cat lover’s soul).
I’d been feeling badly since we hadn’t had her in in a few months because of the pregnancy loss (it sounds weak, but I’m just now able to make and keep appointments, which my therapist says isn’t too damn bad for so recent and significant a loss, but still I feel like a bad cat mom). Still, after suitable punishment (she turned her back on me several times quite ostentatiously) I prepared her lap and she deigned to use me as furniture.
That little miss has been with me through so much and is the last surviving member of my own personal triumvirate (Hotspur, Newg and Ninny). I want her with me as long as she’s feeling good enough to wave her cane and yell at the kids
