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We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 5:52 am
by Mollycat
So today is a big day for us, Molly will be going for her post hyperthyroid radioiodine treatment checks. I guess it's a big day for anyone who has been through the whole trauma of a big illness diagnosis and a treatment that involves two weeks hospitalisation, but it's especially big for us.

Molly is best described as an indoor feral, thankfully not vicious but extremely timid and highly intelligent, and therefore extremely difficult to treat, with deep rooted psychological issues. I know there are worse out there but essentially if it involves multiple trips to the vet or any kind of medication, there's no point trying to treat her because it isn't going to happen. So radioiodine wasn't a choice, it was our only option. Diffusers, Zylkene, reiki and even an animal communicator, two weeks of hell knowing she would think she had been abandoned for the third time to an awful place were strangers tortured and experimented on her, and that was the only way to save her life. And then there was the cost. Her pre tests showed a possible liver issue (elevated bilirubin) and post treatment revealed early CKD.

In between all this Bobby became very ill and was back and forth to the vets for some unidentified GI problem that in the end we had to manage symptomatically until it finally won the fight 6 weeks ago. That was on top of very mild CKD which we had to stop treating as the diet ended up making him sick. Less than 2 years ago I lost my angel boy Henry suddenly, so sudden we thought it was a car but it wasn't, it was a tumour he had hidden possibly for years.

Between the pair of them and the dog that came with the man 2 years ago, for which we had to pay a hefty ransom of basically 2 weeks' wages to get him back from the ex in a clearly neglected state, who the man had found left to die in a box 4 weeks old in the depths of winter, the trio have spent more than £7,000 while I lost my job 6 months ago. We are exhausted mentally, emotionally, physically and financially.

Bobby is gone peacefully, the dog is fine, and Molly has her checkup today. We all hope always that tests will give us the all clear but today I have so much riding on these tests that I hope and pray will draw a line under the last two years and give us a chance to recover a bit. Healing and calming vibes welcome. Wishing you all a peaceful and positive day.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 7:08 am
by fjm
i hope the news is excellent, and brings some much needed peace of mind. I think you are already prepared for the possibility of mild CKD, and know how to cope with that, so if that comes up it is not the end of the world. You have said Molly has been more relaxed since her treatment - it will be interesting to see if she copes with the vet visit with less stress than in the past.

All paws and fingers crossed here.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 7:40 am
by booktigger
Fingers crossed for today. I do wonder sometimes when they say animals are good for our health!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 10:29 am
by Ruth B
All fingers and paws crossed here for her. Hope it will be the best news possible.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 2:43 pm
by Mollycat
Thank you for your kind wishes, well for a start we actually got there which is the first great achievement. Bloods taken, wormer administered, questions asked. Weight increased a little which is so odd as she looks slimmer so I can only suppose she has gained muscle, which is all fantastic news. Handed in all her unused diet prescription food anyway and vets will give to charity if they can't use it, so good deed done too and a little more clutter gone.

I really do recommend reiki for nervous and tough to load cats, the difference in her is just incredible.

Test results in a week.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 6:07 pm
by alanc
Glad the first part has gone well and Molly has put on some invisible weight. Paws crossed it is good news when the results come back.
Seems like your Henry went the same way as my Badger, who also must have hidden his tumor for a long time.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2019 7:46 pm
by Mollycat
alanc wrote: Mon Sep 30, 2019 6:07 pm Seems like your Henry went the same way as my Badger, who also must have hidden his tumor for a long time.
Leaves us with a lot of guilt and what-ifs doesn't it. I did read up and thankfully it's true if we had caught it sooner the outcome would have been no different. Those mouth tumours apparently are so invasive, I'm not even sure I would have put him through it if he had been 4 rather than 14. So sad though.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 3:17 am
by Lilith
Good luck! (Sorry haven't been around much due to ongoing chaos but cats are fine though Mousey's doddery but an eating machine lol.)

'Abandoned to a dreadful place'? My equally ex-feral, timid and intelligent Mouse returned so pampered and poised from her RI treatment that any more poise and she'd have fallen over backwards. And she wasn't doddery in them days.

Hope the results are excellent - they usually are; those 'dreadful places' know what they're doing. :)

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 5:11 am
by Mollycat
Lilith wrote: Tue Oct 01, 2019 3:17 am Good luck! (Sorry haven't been around much due to ongoing chaos but cats are fine though Mousey's doddery but an eating machine lol.)

'Abandoned to a dreadful place'? My equally ex-feral, timid and intelligent Mouse returned so pampered and poised from her RI treatment that any more poise and she'd have fallen over backwards. And she wasn't doddery in them days.
Wow Molly lost 300g in the hospital and they had to give her sedatives and appetite suppressants as she went on hunger strike. Now we have a wire cage rather than a more enclosed type carrier she looks around and purrs and pads and rubs and finger poked through the bars in the car. Poor love has been rehomed at least twice, at 9 months and 6 years, so the fear of abandonment is real.

As for intelligence, this blew me away. I got some Pill Pockets to give Boo antibiotics a while ago. Molly loved the stuff. Then she saw me put a pill in some and give it to Boo and refused to touch it ever again. I suspect the reason she has refused tuna since he died is that I always used to give tuna water when he was ill. But on the plus side there is no cold shoulder when we get home, just loving gratitude.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 6:48 am
by Lilith
Ah. See what you mean. A few years ago I had to have them fostered; the two elders settled happily; Molly did not, though the home was brilliant, but they all settled back with me - until one of them had to visit the vet. Dismayed faces until she was restored. They'd thought they were going to be fostered again!

I read somewhere that cats don't suffer from separation anxiety ... :?

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 7:54 am
by Mollycat
They just don't want us to know it Lilith.

I am the Cat that walks by Himself
And all Places are alike to me.
And he walked off into the wet wild woods waving his wild tail ...

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 10:52 am
by fjm
...
And then he came back from the Wet Wild Woods
And said budge over and make room in your nice warm bed
And by the way the food bowl is empty
And the radiators have gone off
And all the toys are stuck under the sofa
And when I have dried off and had a snooze
I will once more be the cat who walks by himself
With a wild wet tail...
And you will still be trying to get back to sleep in your damp bed!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 12:07 pm
by Lilith
fjm wrote: Tue Oct 01, 2019 10:52 am ...
And then he came back from the Wet Wild Woods
And said budge over and make room in your nice warm bed
And by the way the food bowl is empty
And the radiators have gone off
And all the toys are stuck under the sofa
And when I have dried off and had a snooze
I will once more be the cat who walks by himself
With a wild wet tail...
And you will still be trying to get back to sleep in your damp bed!
:lol: :lol: :lol:

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 12:31 pm
by Mollycat
Lovely! :lol:

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Thu Oct 03, 2019 10:46 am
by robincooper
Oh thats nice!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Oct 14, 2019 11:56 am
by Mollycat
So after a bit of delay I finally got Molly's results.

Her T4 is 15.2 (normal is 15-60) which was 60-70 uncontrolled and 30 diet controlled and 30 on leaving hospital. SUCCESS!!!!!!!
Her potassium is still a little low so she will have a supplement again for a while, calcium and phosphorous normal.
Kidneys improving, urea was borderline but she had eaten so that will skew the result, and createnine now in the normal range.
ALT liver enzyme was still high but less high than it was before.

Basically she's in pretty good shape and the treatment has worked nicely. Phew!

They still want me to try and get a urine sample ... let's see what happens there.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Oct 14, 2019 12:07 pm
by booktigger
Glad that her results are pretty much OK. Good luck with the urine sample, I still haven't got one for Lucy, nearly 3 years after her diagnosis!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Oct 14, 2019 1:24 pm
by fjm
Excellent news! I got a urine sample from Tilly by shutting her in the kitchen overnight with two trays of non-absorbent litter in case of accidents. It probably wasn't as fresh as it should have been, but it made up for that in quantity...

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Oct 14, 2019 5:10 pm
by Mollycat
fjm wrote: Mon Oct 14, 2019 1:24 pm Excellent news! I got a urine sample from Tilly by shutting her in the kitchen overnight with two trays of non-absorbent litter in case of accidents. It probably wasn't as fresh as it should have been, but it made up for that in quantity...
:shock: I'm not sure for how long Molly would be utterly traumatised getting shut in one room! That said i'm not sure how well I know her any more. Thankfully now we've discovered the miracle that is Reiki.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Mon Oct 14, 2019 5:41 pm
by fjm
Tilly's sojourn was made bearable by a large bowl of chicken, an especially comfy bed, several water bowls, and me getting up extra early to let her out, but it has to be said that she is a very relaxed and amenable cat!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 5:13 am
by Mollycat
The vet did try squeezing but there was very little there. She offered to teach me how so I could do it at home and I just laughed and explained that I can't handle Molly at home the way she can in the surgery. She looked at the totally still and cooperative cat on the table then at me with this quizzical look and I said she's only like this because she's terrified into submission, it took 4 years of patience and trust building just to be able to put both hands on her at all without her bolting under the bed and even then only in a very relaxed cuddle on the bed. It's all right for vets they don't have years of hard work building trust with timid cats to think of! You can do literally anything to Molly on the vet's table without a scratch hiss or protest of any kind, and nothing at all at home, she's a different cat. In the early days she got a tangle on her back (from a non pet friendly fleece blanket) and in the end I had to book her an appointment at the vets where she let me comb it out without a word. The vet must have thought I was a complete idiot.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 7:29 am
by fjm
Poor Molly to be so scared she freezes, but lucky Molly to have a human who understands her need for time and space at home.

Tilly is very cooperative on her own terms - one vet carried her off for blood tests, reassured by her relaxed behaviour on the examination table. He brought her back with a slightly startled expression on his face, and added "minimal restraint" to her notes. Ask her nicely with treats and she will sit and let you get on with it; try to force the issue and reap the claw and tooth filled whirlwind!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 8:58 am
by Mollycat
Aw I like the sound of Tilly, after all don't we all like to be asked nicely before being stabbed in the neck with a shard of Sheffield steel!

Yes that didn't help the vet's opinion of me as we always ask for bloods and any other exam work possible to be done with us in the consulting room. On this occasion I actually blurted out, I promised her I wouldn't let her out of my sight ... I expect our notes say animals fine, owners neurotic :lol: I think they all know by now we're not squeamish and we are calm when they are being tortured for a good cause.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 12:06 pm
by booktigger
Lucy is similar, can't brush her at home, but at the vets she just lies and accepts it, so now when we go for acupuncture, the vet hands me a brush and goes for a cigarette while I brush her - she is still vocal, but doesn't bite like at home. They are under no illusion of what she is like though, she got sent home early after her hip operation as no one could do anything with her, and she had to be left for the day for a special blood test last year as they weren't sure how to work the machine - unfortunately we had a new vet nurse who didn't realise what she was like, and after she drew blood on them, they gave her a little bit of sedation and when I picked her up, was told not to leave her for bloods again! :roll: I've never liked them taking my animals in the back for bloods, we rarely need a nurse as I'm rather practiced in holding them in the right position.

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 5:16 pm
by alanc
And there's my Tilly, who I sometimes suspect of feigning illness so she can go to the vet and be made a fuss of by the Vet nurses all day......

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 6:07 pm
by booktigger
Buster enjoyed being at the vets, why stay at home alone when you can have vet nurses fawning over you!

Re: We have a big day today

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 6:27 pm
by Mollycat
booktigger wrote: Tue Oct 15, 2019 12:06 pm Lucy is similar, can't brush her at home, but at the vets she just lies and accepts it, so now when we go for acupuncture, the vet hands me a brush and goes for a cigarette while I brush her - she is still vocal, but doesn't bite like at home. They are under no illusion of what she is like though, she got sent home early after her hip operation as no one could do anything with her, and she had to be left for the day for a special blood test last year as they weren't sure how to work the machine - unfortunately we had a new vet nurse who didn't realise what she was like, and after she drew blood on them, they gave her a little bit of sedation and when I picked her up, was told not to leave her for bloods again! :roll: I've never liked them taking my animals in the back for bloods, we rarely need a nurse as I'm rather practiced in holding them in the right position.
Oh no you've got my Molly all wrong, she never bites or scratches, she's just slippery as a mackerel (see profile pic = one aptly named mackerel tabby under the grey) and hides. But I am certain if pushed she would lash out, if I tried to drag her out of her hiding place or something, and then she would be dangerous. As the scar in my eyelash line proves, yes I pushed her, I stroked her when she was on her ivory tower. I would have to hurt her to restrain her when she tries to bolt. Bobby was more likely to scratch a vet and he did bite me, not hard, but without hesitation if I annoyed him. Molly only bites when she's chewing my finger when she's off her t*ts on catnip!

I think they take them out back to avoid anxious owners making the animal more stressed and most people don't want to see them stick a needle in the jugular even though it's less stressful for the cat. All ours get more stressed from us being out of their sight. Bless the vet she even at my request put Boo's line in with me holding him to put him to sleep when I can imagine some people would really go to bits. I don't hold Molly though. She may see things differently if I did.