Monday Mews

Wow! It's already mid-February! It hasn't felt much like winter in Louisville, Kentucky. The temps seem to be warmer than usual for winter. There hasn't been any measurable snow here either. We think most of it has gone north of us. According to the news it looks like the northeast has gotten more snow than they want!

What we have had is rain. Although it is sunny today, we've had a lot of rain this winter. Mom said she'd rather have rain or snow, but not that stuff that falls in between: sleet and/or freezing rain. According to mom, when there is snow she can still get traction on the road when she drives. Not so much when there is ice on the roads. Since we don't drive we have to take her word for it.

Mom had a follow-up appointment with her surgeon at the end of January. Her wrist and arm are healing nicely now and she has been released from his care. The incision on her palm and wrist are barely noticeable now. However the incisions on her arm, especially the one on the outside of her arm, have left ugly scars. She is hoping they will fade with time.

Daisy has recovered from her dental extraction. In case you've forgotten, she had most of her teeth taken out at the beginning of January. She still has her bottom fangs. Since she finished her post-surgery antibiotics her breath no longer smells like something crawled into her mouth and died. And that, friends, is a good thing!

Brother Johnny has been under the weather. He and Cash had their annual exam at the end of December. Johnny had lost almost 3 lbs. and weighed just under 11 lbs. The vet suggested that Johnny have a blood panel ran. The vet called the following day and said everything looked good and to monitor Johnny.

Mom kept an eye on him. His appetite was good but he continued to lose weight. Mom took Johnny back to the vet on February 4th. He had lost another 1.5 lbs in a month's time. That put him down to 9.5 lbs. He was getting too thin through his hindquarters.

The vet felt around on Johnny, and listened to his heart and lungs. She said she didn't feel anything unusual and his heart and lungs sounded great. Mom mentioned a possible thyroid issue so the vet pulled out Johnny's lab results. She said that two different thyroid tests had be ran and they were fine. HOWEVER, his cholesterol and BUN were both low. She said that could indicate a problem with Johnny's liver.

The vet who saw Johnny and Cash in December was a substitute vet. Our regular vets (they are a husband/wife team) were on vacation. The substitute vet never said anything about Johnny's low cholesterol and low BUN! Mom was not happy and let our regular vet know this.

Our regular vet said she thought it best to redo Johnny's lab work. She would have the lab add another type of test for any thyroid issues. She also wanted to run a urinalysis. More blood was taken for the lab. Mom dropped Johnny off at the vet's office when she was on her way to work on the following Monday. She was going to leave him for the day so they could get a urine sample from him. Johnny's bladder said it wasn't giving up anything for them! He ended up spending the night and they got the needed sample the next morning.

(1) The urinalysis showed a bad UTI. Lots of bacteria and some blood in his urine. That in itself is enough to make Johnny feel bad.

(2) The blood work results were the same as the December results. Everything was fine, including his thyroid. However, the his cholesterol and BUN were still low.

For the past week Johnny has been on three medications. He has two different antibiotics that he gets twice each day. They will take care of his UTI and any infection that he might have in is liver. He also is getting a supplement once a day that is for liver support. Mom tried giving him the pills in those pill pocket treats. He took them the first two times. Then he figured it out! Now mom has to actually pill him. He does pretty well and he gets a couple of treats when she is done.

Johnny has a follow-up appointment tomorrow. He will have a weight check (mom said it appears that he has gained a little weight) and he is going to have an ultrasound done. The ultrasound is the best way to actually see if there is anything wrong with his liver (too large, too small, any growths or tumors around it). We will let you know what mom finds out.

Purrs,
Clarissa & Co.