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.

Sable's Vet Visit (check up)

Sable was dropped off at the vet this morning for his annuals and to have a boo-boo looked at. Our Sable is considered to be a medium hair cat. At age 15, his coat isn't as shiny as it used to be, and he has started getting some mats in his fur. Although he is a black cat, his undercoat is a soft gray. Mom could brush him for hours and he would continue to shed. The problem is when those little mats form in Sable's fur, mom said it is like the beginning of a human "dredlock". She either has to cut them out or pick them apart before she brushes him.

When it was time for bed last night, mom found LOTS of tuffs of black and gray fur that looked like Sable's fur. She picked it up and threw it out. Then Sable jumped on the bed and mom noticed a bare looking spot on his hip/thigh area. She took him out to the family room and gave him a good brushing. He pulled away from her when she went over the bare-ish spot. Upon further inspection she said it looked scabbed over. When she rubbed over it with her finger tip the rough place pulled up and it was bloody beneath it. After cleaning it with some warm water (Sable hated that) she put a little antibiotic ointment on it.

Mom was concerned that the boo-boo might get infected, so it was off to the vet for Sable! The vet called and said the place is nothing to worry about and should heal up just fine. He trimmed some of the other mats off and trimmed up Sable's butt fur. He got his needed vaccines and mom will pick him up on her way home from work.

The vet did tell mom that Sable has lost some of his body mass (aka weight). It's been a gradual loss and the vet said it is age related. Sable has lost 3 lbs. over 3 years, going from a little over 12 lbs. to a little over 9 lbs. The vet recommended that Sable go on a prescription food so mom is going to give it a try. He loved Angel Fred's prescription food, so hopefully he will like this food.

We hope everyone has a fun weekend. If the hots are in your part of the country, take it easy and stay cool. If there are storms in your area, stay safe and stay dry!

Purrs,
Clarissa & Co.

A Long Journey Begins (not cat related)

Clarissa and her brothers and sisters said I could take over the their blog for today. Kitties and woofers, let your pawrents and purrents read this if you like it.

One of my favorite actor's is Sean Patrick Flanery. You may remember him from the movies Powder or The Boondock Saints, or my favorite, Mongolian Death Worm. He also played the young Indiana Jones on t.v., and he was in the last season of Dexter.  I met him the first time in 2012 at a convention in Virginia Beach. He was super nice and he posed with me for this picture:

In early January 2014 I ran across his blog, Shine...Until Tomorrow. His first post for 2014 struck a chord with me. Sean does not mince words. If you take the time to read the post you will understand when I say I kept right on eating those Oreos.

March 2014 rolled around and I was going to Wizard World/Louisville Comic Con. Sean was one of the celebrities at the convention. On Saturday night at the con, I met a woman named Shannon. We started talking about Sean and the subject of weight came up. I told her how I wanted to lose weight and how unhappy I had become with not only my appearance, but my general health and the way I felt (tired, easily winded, knee pain). She said, "If you really want to do this you need to go talk to Sean tomorrow. Tell him what you want to do and he will be behind you 100%."

Sunday afternoon arrived and I found myself standing in the line at Sean's booth. I had already spoken with him on Friday afternoon and had gotten the covers of 3 movies signed. As I waited for my turn, I wasn't sure if I could make this commitment to get healthy. I used the excuse if I chicken out I'll just get a pic signed for a friend of mine. I reached the front of the line and there I was, standing in front of Sean. I said, "Sean, I'm ready to shine."

I will tell you exactly what I told him. I'm almost 54 years old. I have type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. I weighed 292 lbs. When I told him what I weighed he didn't sugar coat it and say, "Oh, you don't look like it." No, he looked at me and nodded. "That's about right," he replied.

I told him that I want to lose 150 lbs. "That's great for a long term goal, but what is your short term goal?" He asked.  I told him that I wanted to lose 50 lbs. by the end of December.

This the pro shot photo that I had taken with him about an hour later. All 292 lbs. of me.

With Sean Patrick Flanery on March 30, 2014.

On April 1st I started walking. A half-mile nearly did me in. But I stuck with it. I cut out most of the bread, sweets, and fried foods that I used to eat. Those a now an occasional treat for me. I felt so much better without the extra sugars! I weighed in at the doctor's on May 9th. I had lost 12 lbs.

On May 31st, I participated in my first ever charity walk (for the local chapter of the MS Society). I chose the longest route and walked 3 miles. Was it easy? No. I almost fell out on the last half-mile. But the sense of accomplishment I felt when I crossed the end point was amazing.

Right before the MS walk began. May 31, 2014.

I am also amazed at the difference in my appearance. In two months I have gone from 292 lbs. to 268 lbs. I've dropped approximately 2 sizes. I still have a long way to go. But I will keep on shining!