Either way, I agree -- I think she's doing damage control. I wonder what's in her chest, where her HEART should be. *No, don't tell me.*
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Artie and his Issues
- Thread starter artiemom
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Well, the plot thickens.. the "manager" at the hospital just returned my call. Asked for Artie's records to be faxed.. she was trying to be coy about where they were going.. She asked, name, ? Vet, ? office.. so I flat out told her.. did not say second opinion or what.. just left it at that...
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I like what you said about taking a "Me" day, don't forget to do that - whether it's Judge Judy or an old film on TCM, a hot cup of tea or tall glass of wine, relaxing music or hip hop, lol. Make it a stress free day and treat yourself. Lord knows you deserve it, and that's an order!
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I would check with the N Vet's secretary by this Friday to make sure all of Arte's records were indeed faxed over. You can email her your list of Arte's medicines and dosages, too. She'll pass them along to the N Vet.
Keep pooping, Artie!
Keep pooping, Artie!
I think she got in trouble and now she's covering her butt. Glad Artie's doing better.
Hi Artiemom,
Just wanted to say hello, and I've been thinking of you both. I've been busy and it looks like I have a lot to catch up with.
I'm glad too that Artie is pooping again today, but it seems like you hit some major bumps.
I hope all is working out for you and your sweet boy.
Big Big Hugs for you both. xoxoHope
Just wanted to say hello, and I've been thinking of you both. I've been busy and it looks like I have a lot to catch up with.
I'm glad too that Artie is pooping again today, but it seems like you hit some major bumps.
I hope all is working out for you and your sweet boy.
Big Big Hugs for you both. xoxoHope
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- #627
Artie is doing great with the new food; he actually likes it! licking bowls clean!
He has gained weight! without any medication..
But, he is back to rabbit poop... man.. so fast.. have to give him lactulose today.. sigh...should have done it last night.. man, he goes so fast from normal to abnormal....
Perhaps a daily dose of lactulose is what he may be needing or a twice or thrice weekly dose of it.. but, how much?? that is the question.. I think it is trial and error..
Even thought the S Vet suggested giving it to him, she did not specify an amount. I asked if 1/2 cc and she said, "yeah'... but no other information was forwarded.. it is like pulling teeth. I have to be an inquisitor to find any additional information... like me being a trial lawyer for the prosecution.. man.....
I think I will call the NVet's office on Friday to see if they got his records. I hate to be a pain but I want them forwarded. I will also ask if they would like a typewritten record of his meds.. the one I wrote out.. I can add my own handwritten comments to it...
Artie's records go back to 2012... so it is hundreds of pages... and from 2 different places.. feel sorry for the N Vet to snuggle through them...
He has gained weight! without any medication..
But, he is back to rabbit poop... man.. so fast.. have to give him lactulose today.. sigh...should have done it last night.. man, he goes so fast from normal to abnormal....
Perhaps a daily dose of lactulose is what he may be needing or a twice or thrice weekly dose of it.. but, how much?? that is the question.. I think it is trial and error..
Even thought the S Vet suggested giving it to him, she did not specify an amount. I asked if 1/2 cc and she said, "yeah'... but no other information was forwarded.. it is like pulling teeth. I have to be an inquisitor to find any additional information... like me being a trial lawyer for the prosecution.. man.....
I think I will call the NVet's office on Friday to see if they got his records. I hate to be a pain but I want them forwarded. I will also ask if they would like a typewritten record of his meds.. the one I wrote out.. I can add my own handwritten comments to it...
Artie's records go back to 2012... so it is hundreds of pages... and from 2 different places.. feel sorry for the N Vet to snuggle through them...
Don't worry about annoying the N Vet and his secretary. They're used to owners calling for all sorts of info and questions
The sooner the records get there, the sooner the N Vet can start reviewing them ahead of your appointment.
So good to hear he's eating. And gaining weight too! This is awesome progress.
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Glad to hear all is well. the starting dose of lactulose is usually .25-.5 cc. I had to give 1cc to my angel Krash. It didn't give her diarrhea that I remember. You can try with .5cc once every other day for 4 days and see how it works..often it takes 24-48 hours for food to make it's rounds from mouth to you know..so 3 to 4 days is reasonable to see the changes. I don't think you need to worry about surgery-from what you said about the colon not being over dilated it sounds like he will be ok. Glad to hear he is eating and pooping. Take a few days..rest...watch tv..take a stroll outside for a few minutes through the parking lot and in the opposite door of your place to give you a bit of exercise. plus fresh air is good to breathe during stressful times.
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- #631
thanks!! I always felt like a pain with the S Vet.. Yes, I would expect the N Vet to be accustomed to anxious owners.. There are hundreds of papers in Artie's records.. I feel bad for him...he is very complicated..
Don't worry about annoying the N Vet and his secretary. They're used to owners calling for all sorts of info and questionsThe sooner the records get there, the sooner the N Vet can start reviewing them ahead of your appointment.
Thanks for the info on the lactulose...
I am thinking Artie should be on a baseline daily dose of miralax and lactulose.. What I am seeing today is from Sunday/Monday.. He did not eat much on Sunday morning, but once I opened the new food, he chugged it down...and ate like a pig on Monday.. also this is when he gets bad...sigh...
Yes, I am just resting again...getting sleepy again.. every afternoon around this time.. I feel like a real old lady.. which I am, but I am not used to feeling this tired and this lazy..
I went up to the S Vet Hospital to pick up, hopefully, his last refill of prescription from them..
I think I will either transfer all his meds to the new place and have them mail me the meds, or I will see if I can get most of them from the semi-local compounding pharmacy and his R Vet... pretty much doing that now, anyway...
Artie is sleeping in his quilt/tent.. he is not eating as much as yesterday. I think his tummy is kind of full cuz he did not poop much yesterday and practically none today... fingers crossed...
He still likes the new food... hopefully Chewy has it in stock soon...
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It's good that he'll eat the new food. And I think you're right about the trial and error. Hope the both of you figure it out soon.
@Artiemom, I think everyone here is agreed that your S. Vet is a total hack. Unfortunately, she's done one bit of damage that I see threatening to become permanent, but only if you're unaware of the problem, and it's not something she did to Artie, it's something she did to you.
She acted as if your worries about Artie were unimportant, your observations were dismissable, and as if her time was more important than yours. She acted as if it was an imposition on your part to want her to do the job for which you were paying her! How dare she treat you that way!?
And all of this was wrong of her. But now I hear you say things about how annoying it must be to the N. Vet to have a patient with so many records to go through. Good doctors aren't like the S. Vet. They take the amount of time necessary to do the job, they listen to the patient (when the patient is human) and to the loved ones of the patient. When the patient is an animal, they listen to the client (that's you -- the person paying the bills, the one who hires the doctors). Good veterinarians know that the client is the person who knows the patient best and is best able to translate for the patient.
Now that you have a good veterinarian for Artie, please dump all the baggage the S. Vet laid on you. I know, habits are hard to change, and this is a habitual way of thinking. But the first step to changing a bad habit is to recognize that it's there, and that it's worth changing. And we'll be here to remind you when we see you backsliding.
You're right; now that you've found a food that's actually good for Artie, and that he likes, you're back to the fine tuning project with his medications. It would be much easier if you could see results immediately, but what is, is, and we learn to deal with it.
With regard to the suggestion that you take some little walks, there's an additional benefit to walking -- any rhythmic motion, such as walking, tends to induce a relaxed state of mind, almost like meditation. This is one of the reasons that so many meditation methods involve concentrating on your breathing. And when your mind is more relaxed it's easier for you to come up with creative answers to the problems that we already know are about to arrive. I know an author, one who has won an incredible number of awards for her work, who says that whenever she gets writer's block she scrubs the kitchen floor, because the rhythmic motion opens the creative floodgates for her and absolutely destroys the writer's block. And taking a walk is a good deal more enjoyable than scrubbing the floor. (Of course, if you really want to scrub your floor...)
Margret
She acted as if your worries about Artie were unimportant, your observations were dismissable, and as if her time was more important than yours. She acted as if it was an imposition on your part to want her to do the job for which you were paying her! How dare she treat you that way!?
And all of this was wrong of her. But now I hear you say things about how annoying it must be to the N. Vet to have a patient with so many records to go through. Good doctors aren't like the S. Vet. They take the amount of time necessary to do the job, they listen to the patient (when the patient is human) and to the loved ones of the patient. When the patient is an animal, they listen to the client (that's you -- the person paying the bills, the one who hires the doctors). Good veterinarians know that the client is the person who knows the patient best and is best able to translate for the patient.
Now that you have a good veterinarian for Artie, please dump all the baggage the S. Vet laid on you. I know, habits are hard to change, and this is a habitual way of thinking. But the first step to changing a bad habit is to recognize that it's there, and that it's worth changing. And we'll be here to remind you when we see you backsliding.
You're right; now that you've found a food that's actually good for Artie, and that he likes, you're back to the fine tuning project with his medications. It would be much easier if you could see results immediately, but what is, is, and we learn to deal with it.
With regard to the suggestion that you take some little walks, there's an additional benefit to walking -- any rhythmic motion, such as walking, tends to induce a relaxed state of mind, almost like meditation. This is one of the reasons that so many meditation methods involve concentrating on your breathing. And when your mind is more relaxed it's easier for you to come up with creative answers to the problems that we already know are about to arrive. I know an author, one who has won an incredible number of awards for her work, who says that whenever she gets writer's block she scrubs the kitchen floor, because the rhythmic motion opens the creative floodgates for her and absolutely destroys the writer's block. And taking a walk is a good deal more enjoyable than scrubbing the floor. (Of course, if you really want to scrub your floor...)
Margret
Sounds like you and Artie are doing quite well today -- keep up the great work! If Chewy doesn't have the food, can you request it? Or maybe DrsFosterSmith.com will. Best to you both!
A good vet will never make you feel like an imposition. Once when I was in California, I adopted a kitten from a shelter. The next day he got really sick. I spent over $100 at the vet and he was still having trouble breathing. He had a URI. I called them back to ask if there was anything else I could do. The receptionist said, "Give him the medicine we gave you and if he dies, deal with it." I was LIVID. I called the local country vet here in Missouri that I take my boys to now. He asked me how big the kitten was and told me how much children's benadryl to give him. It cleared his little nose right up and he was a playful kitten in no time. And then a few months later, the landlord's boyfriend - who hated cats, apparently, went to our house and opened a window and he ran out and I never saw him again. Of course that was illegal as shit, but I was 18 and renting my first place with my new husband who was 19 and renting his first place and we didn't know what to do so we did nothing and I cried and walked the streets for 3 months looking for him. But the point of my story is, my vet here - who wasn't even being paid for his advice - helped me save that little kitten. And he didn't make me feel like I was a pain. Hopefully Salem found himself a new home. I don't want to think about the other possibilities.
I am hugging the words "eating like a piggy" close to my chest and dancing around the room with them! Despite the issues with the poop, the fact that he is eating well and gaining weight is HUGE! I am confident that you and N Vet will work together as a team and get Artie in better shape than he has been in for a while, and that both you and N Vet will enjoy the process! I really think that for the first time in a long time, you will be respected as the person with hands-on experience in Artie's issues, and valued as a part of his care team, not...an interloper, almost. S Vet has much to answer for!
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- #637
Yes, I guess you can say the S Vet really screwed up my psyche... what little normal part of it was left..Honestly, when she called, I felt so intimated by her. I was tongue tied and did not know what to say.. I really was.. I could not focus.. I could not ask questions.. I just felt as if I had to agree with whatever she said and not question...
So right on her making me feel as if I have been wrong... This afternoon, I was writing in my/our journal questioning whether or not the S Vet told me about the lactulose before..and it was my mistake because I could not remember it, or I was screwing things up..
But then, I tell myself, if she was a good Vet/doctor, she would have put down the updated doses on the update sheet they provide at the end of the visit.. All that has been stated was" "Continue with the lactulose"... that was it... not daily, not twice weekly, no dosage at all.. I think that is the answer; I have it in black and white that she does not follow through...
Just worried about my love now... he tried to poop, but could not.. he strained in the box...
That is another thing: How can Artie go through 2 enemas and a manual evacuation, and she still does not consider him to be Constipated???? What the $#%@$... If that is not constipated, then what is?? straining to poop is not consitpation?? If it isn't, then I need a new definition of what is...sigh...
I left a voice mail for my R Vet.. I want to give Artie another 0.5- 1.0 cc of Lactulose tonight.. to see if it helps.. I know there is not an immediate reaction, but perhaps an additional 0.75 cc would be better???
I am really going by the seat of my pants.. and feeling so inadequate..
I really hope I can get in sooner than the 23rd... and that Artie holds out that long... sigh...
He is so full of life.. so full of it.. I do not want him to be in pain.. of any kind, if I can help it... sigh..
Yes, I know any kind of exercise or physical movements do increase the endorphins in the brain.... For me, if it is cold out--hate cold.. I do write a lot.. I find it helps me to physically put things down on either paper, computer or on here... helps me get my feelings out and really confront how I feel about things...
I updated Artie's 2 journals.. actually one is geared more for him and the other is geared more for me.. but I do feel better seeing it in ink... I had the classical music on and a small cocktail which I am still drinking, with added water...
@Margret thank you for setting me straight.. I needed it..((hugs))
Any time. I'm good at laying down the "law."
We all feel inadequate when our fur babies are sick. It hurts to remember that, since we aren't gods there's only so much we can do, even more so since there's no way to convince our fur babies that we aren't gods.
In many ways, life is full of pain, for all of us. It's also full of love, and joy, and grief, and fear, and wonder. We take note of the negative and do what we must to deal with it, and then we concentrate on the positive. Sometimes that takes courage. I think Artie is full of courage, and life, and love. And, unfortunately, hard poops. But Artie is a fighter. As long as he's not ready to give up, don't give up for him, not unless you know that it really is hopeless, and the bad days will always outnumber the good days. That's where the need for courage comes in for you, and that's what we're here for, to help give you the courage you need. And, BTW, as long as Artie still, um, "pleasures" himself I'd say that he has a lot of life left in him.
Margret
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Artiemom, I would never have referred you to N Vet if I had no confidence in him. Artie is complicated, yes, but N Vet has experience dealing with complicated cases. He's probably had clients even more complciated than Artie in his 20+ years as a vet. What Margret said is true. You need to stop thinking about the S Vet and let all the negative experience with her go.
I
Artie, hang on for 3 more weeks ok? You need to keep eating and pooping for your Mom
SO glad that things are going better for you both. Mega 
that it continues 
that it continues - Status
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