Musings on a Small Life

In the pet blogging world, the post-surgical cone that dogs and cats often have to wear is referred to the as the "cone of shame." Derry is the first cat I've had that has had to wear one and I think it's the cone of bravery, not of shame. It's a badge of honour for having survived an ordeal. He had a dental on Thursday, and the vet thought it worthwhile to remove the egg-sized fatty lump on his right side at the same time. (We had discussed this at length two weeks' prior, when I took Derry in for a check-up and blood work, urine analysis, etc.) This was Derry's fourth dental since he was three years old (he's 13 now) and the first one at which he's not had any extractions. (He lost nine teeth during the first dental, three at the second and two at the third.) I assumed, based on previous experience, that he would have needed at least another couple of teeth removed this time, and had I known he would not, I certainly would not have put him throug...

My little baby bear currently is recovering at the v-e-t, having had his 3rd or 4th dental now. He lost 4 or 5 more teeth, bringing the total loss to 15 or 16. However, given that cats have 30 adult teeth, he still has 14 or 15 left--which means another dental at some point, if his health and kidneys hold up. Nicki goes to the v-e-t tomorrow afternoon, almost a month early this time, because he's now peed twice outside the litter boxes (once while I was away in Halifax, in an empty Rubbermaid container in the basement, and then again Sunday night/Monday AM in the empty laundry basket in the basement). My first thought: His kidney stones or a UTI. I'll find out. He was fine in early April (UA and blood work), but that doesn't mean there isn't a problem now. Cats don't pee in abnormal places for no reason, and to the best my knowledge, they certainly don't do so out of spite. If it's not a physical issue, I can only think it's stress-related. Wh...

It's a bit cold right now for a nekkid tummy!   Thanks for all the good wishes and healing energy for him. He's spending most of his time in the basement in "his" spot--blankets folded up on a Rubbermaid storage container. He's eating, though, and even played with Mr Stick last night for a minute or two, so that's a good sign. I'm holding my breath to see whether he'll get sick--a few winters ago he came back from the vet and then got so sick with a virus, which he passed on to Derry, of course. He's been sounding a bit chesty since Thursday and last evening he had an asthma attack, but I hope he'll stabilize now with rest and TLC. Peace . (Comments are off.)

(Apologies for the long post.) Nicki went for a dental yesterday. Fun, fun, fun. Enlarge to read the amount! :-O It went okay, except he had part of his left pre-molar missing and "type 2 re-absorption" with the roots. Fortunately, type 2 re-absorption meant he didn't need the roots removed (one already was absorbed into the bone), just the remaining part of his tooth. He has a couple of stitches in the gum which will dissolve in about 10 days. However, his blood work showed his ALT and Globulin levels up -- Nicki's ALT always has been high normal (liver), but the increase in Globulin levels was new. Could be infection, inflammation, cancer, liver disease, other. Anyway, I opted to have the vet do an ultrasound while Nicki was there, to check things out. It was pricey ($275 plus tax), but indicated that his organs appear normal. The vet said he could send the x-ray to a radiologi$t, but since nothing seemed amiss, I declined. Nicki also had his ana...

The vet called me at work this aft (I had called in the AM to find out if the results were in yet, but the vet was in surgery most of the day). Anyway, he called around 3:30PM and told me the results were negative for cancer, Derry's lump really is just a fatty lump. Thanks goodness! I'm celebrating by drinking too much wine. Rye would be preferable, but the lineups at the liquor store would have been too crazy, and I was able to get a couple of bottles of wine at the Wine Rack on my way home. [Feel free to stop here. The rest is all my week stressors coming out.] It's been a hugely stressful week, not only with Derry, but also with Mom and Harry (who ended up in ER a few nights ago, via ambulance). Long story there, but the bottom line is that while his organs are, for the most part, fine, the deterioration in his brain is marked (they did a CT scan as well as MRI, x-rays, etc.). Mom had called on Tuesday evening to tell me all this had taken place Monday evening/...

I'd give a lot to get my hands on a glass of something alcoholic right now. LOL. Posted an update on the boys' blog -- they did Derry's dental first thing this AM (I finally called them at 1:20PM EDT, my anxiety spiking off the chart). Extracted the upper left pre-molar that was bad, as well as another on the right side, but that was all. Which surprises me greatly. The vet said Derry was recovering well. No one could find the lump (I'm NOT making it up), but the vet will have another go. It's just that Derry has to be sitting up to feel it; I keep telling everyone that. Anyway, I didn't realize just how tense I was until I hung up the phone. Now I feel like a wet noodle and am close to sliding off my chair, onto the floor under my desk. I so want a shot of rye or a glass of wine, but there's no LCBO on my way to the clinic or on my way home. If they weren't so hell-bent on maintaining a monopoly, I could at least get wine and beer at my local corn...

Tomorrow is DD day--Derry's dental; I have to fast him after 8PM. Water is okay, though, I double-checked. I'm nervous about how to allow Nicki to eat but fast Derry, assume I'll keep Derry confined in one of the upstairs rooms for a bit, while Nicki eats breakfast. Probably the easiest thing to do. I'm also nervous about the procedure. I know he'll lose at least one more tooth; I'm just worried he won't make it through the dental. I know that if that were to happen it would be a merciful death--he would go to sleep and just not wake up. Can't ask for a better transition from this world than that. But he's not even 8 years old yet (June), and I'm so not ready to let him go. (I won't be ready at any age.) So that's top in my mind today. Please think good thoughts for him! Thanks so much.     Peace . 

I was browsing Amazon.ca on the weekend, as I so often do, and came across this art print in the form of a jigsaw puzzle: Archangel Haniel by Steve Roberts I was drawn to the image, kept going back to to it, unable to shake its pull, and ended up ordering the puzzle (very inexpensive). The title of the art piece is Archangel Haniel, the artist is Steve Roberts, and I had to Google to find out who the angel is, as well as the artist. The first site that Google returned told me that she is the angel of Joy (among other things, listed on other sites). You can enlarge to read the snip from the site, if you wish. Boy, she's certainly what my soul needs right now! "Funny" how the universe/god/goddess/spirit can deliver messages--even in a jigsaw puzzle.  :-) His prints are available, in various sizes, from http://www.fantasy-graphic.com/ . Tempting, but even if I could at this time (nope), shipping into Canada no doubt would be cost-prohibitive. Allposters.ca doe...

As I figured, the vet couldn't find the lump and Derry wouldn't be still long enough for even me to find it. So I'll keep an eye on it, so to speak, and see if it remains the same over time. However, he does need a dental ASAP, with at least one extraction. I've scheduled that for March 31st. (The vet is off next week for March break and does dentals only one or two days per week.) $190 today, with taxes, $700 for the dental if only one tooth is removed. That puts an end to any lingering hope of ever replacing my ugly kitchen counter top! Derry, below, home now and cleaning off the vet stink. They had to shave his neck to take the blood sample (hope that comes back okay). I've not seen the shaved spot yet, just got home and let him out and am giving him space.        Thanks for the good thoughts. I'm going to trust the lump is fat. Oh, btw, the food restriction the boys have been on? That Nicki has lost about pound on? Derry's weight actual...

I posted this on the Fuzzy Tales blog already, but am so shocked and disgusted that I wanted to post here too. The estimate for Derry's straightforward, "easy" cleaning, of course. Click to enlarge. This is why people don't take their pets to the vet. They simply can't afford to. I called the clinic and very nicely (really) said I just couldn't swing this, that it was over half my monthly income (the high estimate definitely is) and that it was a huge increase from last year's $600 or so for Nicki. I asked if they had payment plans, but they don't.  I've been with that clinic since 2007, I've dropped over $10K there since February 2009, most of it as incurred debt. I absolutely cannot express how disgusted I am. Even if Derry had no injections and no extractions (which he ought not to have), that would knock off only about $100. I don't know if the clinic that neutered, and then took, Toby would be any better. All ...

The vet called about 30 minutes ago, the dental already complete. Nicki's fine , no infection or extractions. I posted an update on the Fuzzy Tales blog (same post, just an update at the end of it). He did need his anal glands expressed again (last time was 4 months ago), so I'm glad I had them do it while he was unconscious. And he can come home after work, so that's great. BTW, a public thank you to my awesome co-worker (the one who has supported me through so much over these past 11.5 years), for both picking us up this morning and for offering to take us home today too. It's really not more than a few minutes off her regular route, but it's greatly appreciated, especially since she's on vacation at the end of today and of course is anxious to head home. Thank you. And thanks to all of you, for your positive vibes! Pic snapped yesterday evening. I'm still keeping calm and carrying on .  :-)

Nicki goes for his dental tomorrow. I had toyed with the idea of dropping him off this evening, partly because I usually leave for work around 6AM or 6:30AM, and partly because it's going to be hair-pulling to fast him and keep him inside from 3:30AM-ish, when I get up, till 7:30AM-ish, when I call a taxi. It wouldn't be so bad if I got up at a "normal" time of oh, say 6AM or so. But then I thought that, goddess forbid, if anything happened to him and he died under the anesthetic, I wouldn't want his last night to be spent in a tiny cage at the vet's office, alone and scared. So now I think I'll get up per usual, lock them both in the basement for the duration, feed Toby, then go back to bed for a few hours. I'm sure I won't sleep, but I could read and listen to the radio. No doubt Nicki will carry on, but the sound of my floor fan might drown it out. I did warn the neighbour mother, the other evening when she came to my door, that I ha...