Pet(s): Photos & Discussion

[Petunia13]

On 2/27/2017 at 1:52 PM, Lisin said:

We had major pet drama last night! After that insane Oscar mix up we headed to bed and Murph (our 2 year old pup) jumps off the bed and lands on Zooey (17 year old kitty) snapping both her tibia and fibula so we had a long ER vet night last night where they basically told us that since she's an old cat they can't really do anything but amputate but also they don't actually do that there because that's not an emergency... so she's home and splinted in a giant cast for now and we have to get her in to the regular vet for the surgery. She's fine. More pissed to be in a cast than anything. And we're on 3 hours sleep. Didn't get home until 5ish this morning. Yay.

OMG. That has to be one of the most stressful things ever. I am so sorry. My boy is the size of a kitten and skinny and I always worry about him being injured since he thinks he's a full size bear. He has had some dicey medical situations before (one was he was badly burned by a high end vet during a teeth cleaning. They over anesthesized him for his BMI, his temp fell and they used a bare heating pad on him idiotically. Then lied about it yay) and the heart ache of a pet parent when their baby is suffering is horrible. 

I hope your kitty gets well soon and is comfortable. They are so goofy and humorous; yet in these moments teach us so much about grace and dignity.  

[Jaded]

The vet called late Monday to say that they took the catheter out and he was peeing ok but she wanted to keep him until Thursday or Friday to make sure things stayed working the way they're supposed to. The vet told my friend that she'd try to charge me the least she could for everything like I mentioned previously. I didn't know he'd be spending a week there though. After I found out he was doing ok and hearing about his expected discharge date my anxiety has been going on overdrive about how much it's all going to cost even if a payment plan is set up. Hopefully I'll feel better once he gets home. I miss him a lot especially late at night when I'm still awake and alone with the house making weird settling noises.

I did get a little basic fountain from Amazon for him to see if he likes them before thinking of springing for one of the ones that cost more.

Edited March 1, 2017 by Jaded

[ABay]

@Lisin, I'm so glad to hear Zooey's surgery has been moved up and she's adapting to the cast. Extra wet food, fussing, her own litter room...she's going to get that dog to jump on her again.

@Jaded, it's ridiculous how expensive health care for pets is, but you're doing the best thing for the puss and hopefully that's some comfort. When I was a broke grad student, I used a credit card every time my cat had issues and paid it off as quickly as I could. Hardly an ideal situation, but you do what you have to.

[harrie]

1 hour ago, Jaded said:

I did get a little basic fountain from Amazon for him to see if he likes them before thinking of springing for one of the ones that cost more.

We got a fountain for our elderly cat who needed to drink more and could no longer hop into the tub or lean down into the toilet. (I was there when she fell in the toilet and felt horrible for laughing, but she was okay.)  Anyway, short story long, the fountain was  a great success with her and cats that followed. There seems to be something enticing about the trickling noise the water makes  --  I know it helped me sleep better, it was very soothing.  I hope it works for Captain as well. 

@Lisin, Zooey's very lucky to have the two of you.  I hope everything goes well for her.

[DeLurker]

@Jaded - check out groupon.  I was just looking at some pet stuff there this weekend and they had some more affordable versions of the drinking fountains compared to what I had seen in stores.

They had this one for $20 that was $65 on Amazon and this one for $18 that was $34 on Amazon.

Try not to get too stressed out - easy to say, but hard to do when you are worried about your guy and the costs.  Something will work out -

[ABay]

The vet called with the results of the albumen test and the girl cat's test if fantastic. I just have to keep giving her the zenaquin for the UTI for a couple more weeks. Boy cat, however, has a very bad protein count(?). It makes me fee stupid that they have explained the test to me multiple times and I still don't really understand it. What I do understand is that the boy cat's results are bad and only going to get worse. I've been wondering for a while if he's going to make it to the end of this year. Our 17th anniversary is June 30th, he was at least a year and a half old then, and he's outlived his brother by 7 years so far.

[DeLurker]

I don't know my cat's actual birthday, but I adopted him from a rescue a year ago today.  I think that means a cake is in order to celebrate.  Unless I can get a tuna flavored cake, he'll want no part of it so I'm thinking an extra teaspoon of tuna for him tonight.

[ABay]

Congratulations, @DeLurker! 

Edited March 5, 2017 by ABay

[harrie]

@DeLurker, happy anniversary to you and Sir Robin.  Our critters have treat time (every night at 7pm ± for those keeping score), and on the anniversary there are always a couple extra treats thrown in. 

[Jaded]

Happy Anniversary to to you both @DeLurker.

Captain came home yesterday after being at the vet's for just over a week due to his urinary blockage issues. I won't be finding out what the total bill is until later this week because the vet wasn't there yesterday when my friend went to get him for me.

He came home with the script Hills Science Diet for cats with urinary issues and is turning his nose up at it except to nibble on some of the dry food when he thinks I'm not looking. He doesn't like HSD at all. After he was adopted he came with a free small bag of the regular version and despised that kind too. Can't really afford it or the Royal Canin so I'm looking at some of the non script urinary wet food.

He's acting kind of distant which isn't like him. I'm hoping it's because he's kinda miffed at me and not because he's still feeling unwell.

[riley702]

He's probably miffed. Seems cats either shun you or cling after a separation. Sometimes the lovable little psychos go back and forth between the two. "You're back!" "Oh wait, I'm supposed to be mad..." "You're back!"

Edited March 5, 2017 by riley702

[ABay]

Is today Zooey's surgery, @Lisin? All good thoughts to the both of you.

[Lisin]

Thanks @ABay! The current update is she survived the surgery which was successful. Her leg was removed at the hip because apparently that's easier for them to re-learn balance etc. we are now in the "think good healing thoughts about her coming out of anesthesia etc." if all goes well on that end I will pick her up this afternoon.  

[DeLurker]

Thanks for the update @lisin .  I'm sure you, the collective yous, will be getting a lot of good thoughts and wishes coming your way - I'm sending mine now.

@Jaded - how's Captain doing?  I'm hoping better.

We celebrated the anniversary with a Carvel Ice Cream cake for the two footed kind and a heaping teaspoon of tuna for the four footed members of the family.

[Bastet]

On 3/3/2017 at 1:10 PM, ABay said:

The vet called with the results of the albumen test and the girl cat's test if fantastic. I just have to keep giving her the zenaquin for the UTI for a couple more weeks. Boy cat, however, has a very bad protein count(?). It makes me fee stupid that they have explained the test to me multiple times and I still don't really understand it. What I do understand is that the boy cat's results are bad and only going to get worse. I've been wondering for a while if he's going to make it to the end of this year. Our 17th anniversary is June 30th, he was at least a year and a half old then, and he's outlived his brother by 7 years so far.

Proteinuria or something different?  At any rate, I'm sorry to hear about the boy cat.  But you're taking such good care of him, and however much more time he has with you will be good time.

On 3/5/2017 at 9:15 AM, Jaded said:

Captain came home yesterday after being at the vet's for just over a week due to his urinary blockage issues. I won't be finding out what the total bill is until later this week because the vet wasn't there yesterday when my friend went to get him for me.

He came home with the script Hills Science Diet for cats with urinary issues and is turning his nose up at it except to nibble on some of the dry food when he thinks I'm not looking. He doesn't like HSD at all. After he was adopted he came with a free small bag of the regular version and despised that kind too. Can't really afford it or the Royal Canin so I'm looking at some of the non script urinary wet food.

Well, the good news is that a high-quality canned food may do him a lot more good than the prescription food (which has low-quality, species-inappropriate ingredients, yet costs an arm and a leg; those companies should be ashamed), and cost you less.  What caused his blockage -- mucus plug, struvite crystals/stones, calcium oxalate crystals/stones, etc.?  The cause of the blockage will guide you in choosing a diet, but grain-free, meat-heavy canned food (and whatever extra water you can get him to drink) is almost always the way to go.

I'm glad Captain is finally home.  Is he a little less miffed now?

4 hours ago, Lisin said:

The current update is she survived the surgery which was successful. Her leg was removed at the hip because apparently that's easier for them to re-learn balance etc. we are now in the "think good healing thoughts about her coming out of anesthesia etc." if all goes well on that end I will pick her up this afternoon. 

I'm glad everything is going well so far, and hope Zooey is running around on three legs in no time.

4 hours ago, DeLurker said:

We celebrated the anniversary with a Carvel Ice Cream cake for the two footed kind and a heaping teaspoon of tuna for the four footed members of the family.

Sounds like a good party!  Happy anniversary.

[Lisin]

Zooey Is home! She seems completely unbothered by all of this. Picture under spoiler. That pink part you see is just her tummy skin that was shaved. 

Spoiler

[ABay]

So glad she came out of the experience OK...except for the humiliation of the Cone of Shame.

[raven]

Quote

Zooey Is home! She seems completely unbothered by all of this.

That's great Lisin!  Glad she came through OK and is home now.  It's always the people who stress, never the animals :)

[raven]

Animals with 3 legs do seem to expend more energy when they move; the vet said they move fast because they need to gain momentum (I know Tai does) but I have to be careful that she doesn't gain weight, not good for the joints.  Of course that's true even if she still had four legs.  She just kind of glances when I rub her stump - the PT and vet said that new amputees can get phantom limb pain, so it is important to stimulate that area.  I try to give it a good rub/scratch when I pet her.  Interestingly she is still bald in the shaved part of her back, though hair is growing on her stump!

Here she is at work with my boss's dog Briskly - this was too cute because they never lay down together.  Briskly is about three years old and she's very sweet but Tai does not want to play or have canine company.

[NutMeg]

My cat is on the prowl right now, and I've gotten a glimpse of her prey, it the biggest cockroach I've ever seen. I'm giving her a 20 min head start, then I'm Baygoning the head out of that beast. I'm just waiting for her to either get that critter or forget about it.  

[riley702]

EEK! Kill it! Kill it!

[raven]

2 hours ago, NutMeg said:

it the biggest cockroach I've ever seen

What???? OMG *freaks out* omg omg 20 minutes??? eeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[NutMeg]

1 minute ago, raven said:

What???? OMG *freaks out* omg omg 20 minutes??? eeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Chill :) Last I saw, she (the fierce cat who selflessly interrupts her 20 hour a day nap when she telepathically senses a big insect or a lizard is in the house) was standing guard by the front door. Hope the critter is gone, because I'd rather never see it again, dead or alive. That monster was more that 2 inch long...:(

[raven]

1 minute ago, NutMeg said:

That monster was more that 2 inch long...:(

eeeeeeeeeeeee

:D

When I lived in Arizona it was the big ass spiders.  I started to open the door one day and these....long....legs....were poking themselves in through the crack, like in a horror movie.  Now that I'm in CT, I catch spiders and put them outside, but back then, I started yelling for the cat to help!

[NutMeg]

You made me laugh with your Arizona spiders. I only spent a month and a bit in Tucson, and never encountered one! 

But hey, I don't mind spiders. As long as they catch other insects, we're good. If I find them in weird places, like my desk, I put them outside too. But the long legged one are just for show and totally ineffective insect catchers. :) 

I'm starting to see a pattern here: o-m-g, I'm an insect hater! :(

[JTMacc99]

3 hours ago, NutMeg said:

My cat is on the prowl right now,

I saw my kitten last night standing on my work bench in the basement. She was intently staring up at the ceiling by the edge of the house. I am 95% certain there is a mouse or two up above the insulation, and she knows it and wants to kill them SO MUCH.  

I'm rooting for her.

[ratgirlagogo]

6 hours ago, NutMeg said:

My cat is on the prowl right now, and I've gotten a glimpse of her prey, it the biggest cockroach I've ever seen. I'm giving her a 20 min head start, then I'm Baygoning the head out of that beast. I'm just waiting for her to either get that critter or forget about it.  

I've known cats that were very disciplined and methodical killers - but I've never had one.  They catch, but refuse to sacrifice the entertainment value of torturing the poor thing for as long as possible.  Plus, they are royally pissed when I remove their prey from their clutches and dispose of it.  They make angry noises and give me the ears.

[EighteenTwelve]

Soon after I got my second cat (Snip) eight years ago, I set my first cat (Lily) on a house centipede in the bathtub.  Lily knocked it around enough to disable it, picked it up, and raced down the hall into the living room.  Lily then dropped the centipede on the floor in front of Snip and tried to teach her how to kill it.  At least some of the lesson must have sunk in, because a couple of months ago Snip swatted another centipede down the hall into the living room, at which point Lily stomped on it and ate it.

[Jaded]

On 3/6/2017 at 10:12 AM, DeLurker said:

@Jaded - how's Captain doing?  I'm hoping better.

I think his bladder is still having spasms because he's still in and out of the litter box a few more times then usual leaving small deposits. Since my friend picked him up I didn't really get any aftercare instructions except to feed him the Hills c/d Urinary wet and to give him this gel he doesn't like daily. To get some of the gel into him daily I've been putting it on his paw so he has to lick it off. I got that idea from some threads I read on a cat forum while searching. Others online said their cats came home with antispasmodics and/or pain meds to help with the spasms from having a catheter in for so long. Captain didn't come home with either and I kind of feel bad that I can't make his spasms better. I called the vet this morning and they said everything came home with him that was supposed to. I had called to make sure that they didn't forget to include anything after reading about others being sent home with meds. 

He still won't eat that Hills SD and screams at me while were in the kitchen and I'm getting something to eat. He's hungry for something he actually wants to eat too. I ordered some Purina One Urinary food from Amazon that's a Chicken and Gravy flavor that I'm hoping he'll eat. He hates pate and the Purina has gravy which he loves.

[DeLurker]

1 hour ago, Jaded said:

He's hungry for something he actually wants to eat too

What if you mixed some of the Hills SD in with the one that has the gravy he loves?  Maybe commingling will make it more appealing...

Cool trick about putting the gel on his paws! 

Here are my two from this afternoon...three if you count the cat toy peep that the dog loves beyond reason.

[Jaded]

Mixing some of his old Fancy Feast did make him eat some of the Hills SD. So that made me feel a bit better. I feel like such a stupid idiot because I forgot to ask the vets office what kind of crystals he had when I called today to see if he should have been sent home with any meds for spasms and/or bladder inflammation. The lady there kept talking over me on the phone so I was getting flustered and frustrated. He's still licking down there a bit more then usual. I'm guessing that might have to do with the fact that he may still be having spasms though?

[Bastet]

14 hours ago, Jaded said:

I'm guessing that might have to do with the fact that he may still be having spasms though?

Prazosin would help with that. 

[isalicat]

Hello again all you cat experts! Louis, the latest addition to our family, is proving once again to me that despite having quite a variety of wonderful cats over the last 35 years, I still don't know it all! Over the last four days he has been acting perfectly normal, eating, alert, grooming, snuggling, purring....and each day in the early morning hours throwing up quite vociferously. There has been no change in his diet at all (he eats three of those tiny Fancy Feast cans a day plus a little bit of non-seasoned people dinner hand outs - no dry food as that was making him throw up and the vet said to forget it). I thought that with the warm weather that he may have been eating something out in the garden like grass or whatever so I kept him in entirely for over 24 hours and he still threw up this morning at about 6:30 AM. I don't see any evidence of hairballs in the throw up (sorry to be so gross). Any ideas? If this keeps up obviously I will take him to the vet but as usual I am trying to avoid that as he is still fairly new and just had a whole day's procedure involving blood work and anesthesia at the vet a few weeks ago to clean his teeth. Help!

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, isalicat said:

I don't see any evidence of hairballs in the throw up (sorry to be so gross).

Okay, no hairballs, but what is in the puke -- regurgitated food?  If so, and these early-morning puke fests are after he's been served breakfast, he's probably eating too much at once, and it comes back up.  If that's what is happening, you'll have to put down a little bit of a food at a time rather than giving him access to the whole meal at once.

[isalicat]

Thanks for the swift replies! Louis the cat is throwing up in the early morning at least 8-10 hours after his last meal of the day - I give him something just as we are having dinner and then that is it for the night. It definitely just seems like regurgitated food which is why its puzzling that it is so long after he has eaten. I am going to try cutting back on quantity - he is a little (10 lb.) cat and as my last tom was almost twice his size (and not fat - just bobcat size) I think I am used to giving too much food. I did look on line for portion size for a cat his weight and three small cans a day were what was recommended but I think if we are giving him some people food tidbits too maybe one less can a day would be a good start.

[Jaded]

My cat is about the same size and I give him 2 3oz cans a day. With the bigger 5.5oz cans I half them.

[Bastet]

What you need to look at is calories; the average cat needs 200 calories per day.  (Riley is a smaller-framed cat, and only gets 180 -- when I fed her 200, she got too big.)

With the timeline, I would suspect something in the food irritating his digestive system.  You said there had been no changes in his diet, but he's getting people food nightly -- is it the same people food each night, or something different depending on what you had for dinner?  Try eliminating the people food and see what happens. 

[bosawks]

My dog, Alli, can be a bit of a puker.  She was vomiting up bile around 3:30-4:00 am at least once a week.

She now gets a 1/4 teaspoon of Manuka Honey twice a day and 1 biscuit at bed and she's down to an episode 1-2 times a month tops.

Don't know if that's transferable cat knowledge though......

[bosawks]

Sure, the Manuka honey is for her ulcer and the biscuit is so she has something in her stomach at bedtime so hopefully her stomach acids don't start churning leading to the throwing up bile.  The enzymes in this Manuka Honey are supposed to have antibacterial properties which address the ulcer and also act in reducing stomach acids.  I can't speak for anyone else but it has really helped Alli.

Oddly, my gasto recommended the same Manuka honey for my ulcer but I blanched at the price....

Edited March 10, 2017 by bosawks

[DeLurker]

My SIL knows tons about dogs. She recommended I get some plain yogurt and add a heaping tablespoon or two into Kook's food .once a day .  Supposedly has same benefits to doggy GIs.

Cat tried it once and passed after that. Maybe if it came in tuna flavor.

[ratgirlagogo]

7 hours ago, Bastet said:

Okay, no hairballs, but what is in the puke -- regurgitated food?  If so, and these early-morning puke fests are after he's been served breakfast, he's probably eating too much at once, and it comes back up.  If that's what is happening, you'll have to put down a little bit of a food at a time rather than giving him access to the whole meal at once.

Yes, we had one cat who just barfed all the time. I worried because it just seemed like she barfed up all the food immediately and she was so small and skinny to begin with.    I worried she was ingesting cat litter by licking her paws after using the box, that she needed different food, that she needed probiotics, etc etc.  Two different vets told us the same  thing - she was gobbling her food down like a dog and then barfing because she was nervous around the older dominant cat, and that's it - it was an emotional thing - she felt she needed to eat all the food right away before poor old Yin-Yang could take it from her.  As the second vet said "some cats just barf a lot."  We started feeding tiny amounts of food several (three, four) times a day - I mean like each cat got half of one Fancy Feast can.  This eventually did work.  

Edited March 10, 2017 by ratgirlagogo

[theredhead77]

On 3/7/2017 at 9:25 AM, JTMacc99 said:

I saw my kitten last night standing on my work bench in the basement. She was intently staring up at the ceiling by the edge of the house. I am 95% certain there is a mouse or two up above the insulation, and she knows it and wants to kill them SO MUCH.  

I'm rooting for her.

My kitten (almost 2 now) plays fetch by bringing me a toy and smacking me in the face until I wake up to throw it. I'm terrified I'm going to wake up one day to a bug*.

He also eats too fast and promptly barfs. Good thing he's cute.

*I can barely kill little spiders. I have been known to buy people 6pks of craft beer to dispose of bugs for me.

Edited March 10, 2017 by theredhead77

[DeLurker]

I've read that elevating the food bowls for cats & dogs can help reduce the amount of air they inhale and be a beneficial position for eating.  

Sir Robin's dishes are on a low shelf in the kitchen island - originally out of necessity because my kitchen is teensy. The Kook's bowls I just set on the raised area around the fireplace - maybe a foot off the ground.   Again, mostly so I don't trip over them all day.

[bosawks]

8 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

Hmmm. Does it have to be Manuka honey? Or can it be the honey I get that is locally made? I googled it and see that it is from Australia. 

@DeLurker  That makes sense to me because I have acid reflux and I have found that eating the Chobani flips yogurts helps neutralize it [before bedtime]. 

It is supposed to be the Manuka and since it's working I'm loathe to try another since she was throwing up blood and that was stressful.

But I don't see any reason not to give your local honey a shot and start with that.

I probably wouldn't have started with the Manuka except I was in a panic....

Edited March 10, 2017 by bosawks

[Qoass]

@bosawks, it's snowing and you're the latest poster and there's no picture of Alli?

Boo.

[bosawks]

8 minutes ago, Qoass said:

@bosawks, it's snowing and you're the latest poster and there's no picture of Alli?

Boo.

Unfortunately, I'm at work but here's one from our earlier snow.

 

[FlyingEgret]

Three weeks ago my 21-month old Selena was acting very listless, drinking a lot of water and not eating much.  I took her to the vet and discovered she has tumors in both kidneys most likely caused by Feline Leukemia (which was discovered after I adopted her, even though the rescue group had tested her and the results were negative).  This will be terminal as I decided not to explore radiation and/or transplant options for multiple reasons.  The vet had no idea if she would last a couple days, a couple weeks or a couple months.  So I brought her home to enjoy whatever time she has left.  The most important thing at the moment is to make sure she is eating and is not in any pain.  Since I adopted the kittens, they have been eating Hills Science Diet (chicken with gravy) and really like it, but Selena was not eating that or even eating treats.  So I started sprinkling a little canned tuna on top of her (and her sister's) meals.  Of course the tuna gets devoured first, but she then eats the regular food as well.  She is back to jumping, playing and acting more like her precocious self; and I am enjoying and embracing all her antics for as long as she has!

[DeLurker]

@FlyingEgret - I just noticed the little wispy spikes at the top of Selena's ears - I thought it was just shadow at first - I love that.  I have a black & white kitty myself, so I am a big fan of her colors.  Love how even her paw pads have black on them - Sir Robin's are all pink.

I commend your attitude and outlook.

In other news, I cannot put off washing my dog any longer.  The last week has been very grey with forecast for showers, so not a lot of good windows of opportunity.  Today is the same, so it will probably involve washing the big galoot in the tub.  Since he is no fan of bathes, it always earns you "how could you do this to me?" eyes and passive resistance. 

Post indoor bath requires a thorough cleaning and wiping down of the entire bathroom and then thorough cleaning of the bather.

Edited March 11, 2017 by DeLurker

[Bastet]

On 3/9/2017 at 7:27 PM, theredhead77 said:

*I can barely kill little spiders. I have been known to buy people 6pks of craft beer to dispose of bugs for me.

Hmm, do we live close enough for me to come dispose of your bugs?  (I won't kill them, though, just relocate them - unless they're dangerous.)

FlyingEgret, I'm so sorry about Selena's diagnosis, but very glad to hear she's feeling like her old self again.  I think you are making the right choice; "If it was someplace other than the kidneys, I'd recommend treatment" is not an uncommon phrase in talking about feline cancer.  I wish you two much more good time together.

[bosawks]

We are Marquette!  Let's dance!