Artie and his Issues

How is Artie today?  I hope you'll post an update of how things went at the specialist.  I really hope he is having a better day today than yesterday.  That little boy is dear to my heart.  

You are in my heart, you and Artie...

How is Artie today. Hope there is improvement.

Tallyollyopia said:

 
All right, I have nothing to add other than sympathy and support, but I'm posting so I'll get updates on the thread.

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You don't have to post in order to subscribe.  There's a little star button at the top of the page that you can click.  However, I believe you're underrating the value of sympathy and support.

Margret

thank you everyone.. I will post a complete update tomorrow. It was a long night and day yesterday and today..

Artie is home from the S-Vet.. He had a pretty ok day today.. from now on it will be 'one day at a time'.. 

I promise to go into more detail tomorrow. I am exhausted tonight..Yesterday was a really bad day...nights he is cuddling up so tight to me.. and paces on an off me.. so not much sleep... plus my care needs a new starter put in. I keep crossing my fingers each time I start it.. I do not want it to fail when I need it for Artie... myself, I can deal with--but not him..gotta get it taken care of on Friday.. I am too tired for tomorrow, plus it is going to be a bad rainstorm..

Yes, I have gotten overwhelmed. I needed to go to the grocery store today and then caught in traffic both ways; to S Vet and Back.. so I am tired.. 

Having a drink or 2 right now.. Artie is on his pillow.. he did eat good for him... long story...

I love everyone here.. and are sending everyone my love.. thank you so much.. I really appreciate your support and love.. thank you...

Please take care of yourself, Artiemom Take a long bubble bath, enjoy a quiet evening, and head to bed early

He ate today! That's good news.

Take tomorrow as a mental health day for yourself and the two of you to just relax together. Hopefully he has a good day tomorrow.

I agree with what everyone is saying.
Take some time, you need it.
I am keeping you & Artie in my thoughts & prayers.
Big hugs & healing vibes to both of you!
Wishing you both peaceful sleep tonight.

Artie ate a normal amount within a 24 hour period.. 2 1/2 small cans. I will happily take any small miracles..

He did walk all over me during the night.. side effect from cypro.. but we cuddled for an hour, in bed before I got up.

As far as yesterday.. I really do not care for the S Vet.. She really does not have any bedside manner and is so unemotional.. 

She was not happy when I asked about cutting back on some of his meds.. Her comment was, " If you do that you run into him having to be hospitalized for OBSTIPATION, repeatedly"...man.. talk about blunt. 

She is young but very intimidating.. at least to me.. we never really hit it off. It is her way or the highway..

I am not about start over with another vet..not at this point. I will have to 'deal'

He still has to take most of the meds.. no lactulose (her suggestion)or Reglan-my input--not hers...

She stressed that all the meds have side effects-- it is a which is worse type of thing.. the side effects or the disease. 

I asked about the side effects of cisapride on cat's hearts because a friend do mine mentioned it to me.. the S Vet shot back, 
" is you friend a veterinary pharmacologist or is it just from her own experience?"  ~~~man, NASTY.....

She also asked me why I went to the ER.. I told her not eating, lethargy, meat loafed position, not have much strength in his meow, just not right. I told her I wanted him hydrated and needed something for him to eat.. She just looked at me, while tying in her laptop.. I then asked her if I did the right thing.. she said yes..  she is a piece of work..

I also asked what is the minimum weight he can be.. She said 9.5 lbs.. well, Artie was 9.4 lbs on Christmas Day in the ER....I knew he was shutting down in front of my eyes...

She agreed to teach me to do sub-q's, but not willingly.. The Vet tech is great; she went over it with me.

The S Vet ordered them to be done twice a week. I do not plan on doing that unless I really have to. Artie is a very difficult cat. The tech did not think I could handle him alone. She suggested I ask a Vet tech to help me..but that still means he would have to go to a Vet for it.. that was the whole point of me doing it at home.. perhaps just for the first time or so..just to get an idea. 

and the order is for 100cc at a time.. the R Vet does not do that much because of his heart murmur. She only does 50 cc....so confusing..

I do not want to overload him.

As far as knowing when to put him down.. The S Vet said it would be when I feel things are too much for me, or he feels things are too much for him--like hiding from me.. running away from me.. then it would be time to consider. She brought of the possibility of a hospice Vet who does house calls, and can help me decide. He can come out, visit, and leave the "Quality of Life" form and go over it with me before I make that decision. It would be expensive though. 

She also suggested that I could even have them for hospice care, to do all the pilling--I cannot imagine how much money that would cost.. I cannot afford that.. 

I asked what she would consider life span.. she said she did not know.. it could be a couple of months to a couple of years, depending on him.. but he is a senior cat.. cannot type or verbalize what I wanted to say, sorry, I will be crying again. 

Asked about any injectables.. she said the only one would be the steroid, and that is very expensive. and I would only use that when the sub-q's were given...

I would like to update and go over things with my R-vet, but how do I would it? what do I say? her first day back from vacation is today. I may ask if I can possibly just take him in to see if one of the techs there can help me with the sub-q's, at least until I have a handle on them...

While I was waiting in the exam room, it was in the back.. I heard someone mention, "is this the cat that is so sick?".. it was the end of the day, and I was the last appointment, so I know they are referring to Artie..

I am going to spend my time with Artie, being strong and loving, to him.. loving him to the end...

He was extremely vocal on the way to the hospital.. and the traffic was so bad. I had to drive the back roads.. glad for the GPS on my phone.

Right now Artie is curled up on my bed, on the sheets, just beneath the pillows.. one of his favorite places.. he is so sweet, and can be feisty!! but that is Artie.. such a good boy.. 

My friend has advised me to cut way back on all his meds, but I do not feel comfortable doing that.. she is just treat the symptoms, not the disease.. and leave cats alone.. 

Being from a medical background, I am not sure I can do all of that.. Artie needs some meds,.. going cold turkey is not the way,, unless there is no hope.. right now he Artie is still full of life and love....and I am full of love to return to him.. He is alert, sometimes follows me around, cuddles in bed--more than ever, and is still a strong presence ...he is life.. he has life.. how can I not try to keep him around. Not being selfish, but I have to try to comfort him as long as I am able to; and as long as he wants...

Artie is my sweet little boy, who has been through so much bad times with me.. It is now my turn to return his love, and be there for him.... I will... For being together just shy of 5 years, he has become a part of my heart and life..

I may not post much in this thread, if I am absent for a bit, please understand.. it is hard to express myself sometimes; especially when I am get deep into things. I get upset.. 

please understand that I will read all your posts, and pm's but I may not be able to reply to all---sometimes my anxiety disorder/depression does come into play.. I am trying to be upbeat for my guy...and confused at the same time...

thank you for all your love and concern...

Your situation makes me so sad. It's a terrible situation to be in but you know Artie best and whilst he has quality of life, keep fighting for him but take care of yourself also. Artie needs you well.

As far as the S Vet is concerned, she sounds a right piece of work. Maybe she needs to consider if she is in the right profession. Don't let her upset you. Artie is yours and the decisions are yours to make.

Verna davies said:

Your situation makes me so sad. It's a terrible situation to be in but you know Artie best and whilst he has quality of life, keep fighting for him but take care of yourself also. Artie needs you well.

As far as the S Vet is concerned, she sounds a right piece of work. Maybe she needs to consider if she is in the right profession. Don't let her upset you. Artie is yours and the decisions are yours to make.

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I agree, she sounds like a peice of work alright!
Yes, your intuition as far as the meds are rigjt i think.
I completely understand. This takes me back to when Angel was fighting lymphoma, & going through chemo..
I felt the same way. As long as he still had life in him, in his eyes, I could not live w/ myself if I didn't give him as much time as I could. Until he was ready.
As hard as it is, they say you will just know when the time is right, & it's true.
Angel had retrieved to the bathroom where it was darker, then even trying to hide between the tub & toilet. When I picked him up to come have some cuddle time with me in bed, that's when I knew. Just hearing his breathing. He drew in breath OK, but sounded as he was pushing it out, because of his lymph nodes being so swollen. That when I knew as much as it broke my heart, & as much as I would never be ready, I knew he was. His eyes had also gone dark.
It was then I called my mom to pick us up in the morning.
I don't say this to upset you by far, but just letting you know my experience if it helps.
I completely understand what you are going through.
Continuing to send you love and peace and hugs!

Kelly

No advice, just and

I will see that and add some more.      

I hope that both of you have a good day today. We understand if you need to take some time away from the thread. The two of you have been through so much. We will continue to send love to you both and healing vibes to sweet Artie. Please give him a hug and kiss for me- or 10 if you want. 

I suggest you call your R vet and ask for a phone consultation. I've done this many times when dealing with chronically ill animals, and it's amazing how helpful it can be. She will be able to tell you on the phone if you have to take him in or not - and she may well not need to see him herself since he's had so many vet visits recently. She should have access to his notes from the ER and your S vet, and they should give her a pretty clear picture of how Artie is right now - without the need to put him through the the stress of another vet visit. You could ask her to speak to the S vet for you too, especially if she has a different take on the meds or sub q's. From that you should at least be able to get clarification on treatment moving forward.


With sub-q's, you might find a cat bag helpful. Most cats accept them quite well, and it is often the least stressful way to deal with procedures with an anxious cat. This thread has a great video showing one in use (and is a wonderful illustration of syringe feeding too ). [thread="227858"][/thread]

Know that we're all here to support you :heart3:

thank you.. I put in another voice mail request to speak with our R-Vet...just waiting..

I also ordered some of the Terumo thin walled needles.. I know how thick an 18 gauge needle is and it hurts...

I am sitting on top of the bed, Artie got brushed a bit.. I had to pick him up, and he did not want much of it..He jumped down, I pulled out a string toy, he tried to grab it, but lost interest in it. Then he went over to eat... 

now that I am sitting on top of my well made bed, Artie has jumped up behind me, on the pillows, purring and kneading... as he used to do...Right now I am in heaven.. I do not want to move.. just hearing him purr is fantastic music to my ears. and his kneading is so strong.. 

I feel like doing nothing, again today, but my house is a complete mess. I may have to do something to the Christmas decorations.. My car goes in the shop early tomorrow morning. I need that car to be fixed.. I will drop it off and ask someone to drop me off at home and pick me up when it is completed. 

Today, we are expecting rain, so it is a dark, gloomy day.... 

Artie is really happy.. he is really getting "off" if you know what I mean... his foot was just pushing on my head.... I love it... he can get as 'happy' as he wants, as many times as he wants...

I need to trim his claws, but do not have the heart to stress him out anymore.. perhaps this week-end...

he is 'done' now... he is so funny and cute.. he makes me smile.. he is now curled up on top of my pillows... I do not have the heart to move or give him some meds.. I think I will just stay here for a bit, and cuddle with him....have to shower and look up cat bags.... and order a bit of the ritzy rabbit food for him.. I had put it on hold last week.....

Aww, I'm so glad that Artie's so happy and is having such a good day :9: Moments like these are so precious :heart3::heart2::heart3:

Playing a little then losing interest is perfectly normal for a senior cat - it's so wonderful that he's feeling playful today

Artiemom said:

 

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Great news! WTG Artie!

Good old Artie. Enjoy the moment both of you

I am so glad Artie is happy and better today. You are doing something right! Let him show his affection for you! Nothing could be better for him right now.