Very Quiet Nite

WOW! I slept the entire night last nite without a meow! It must have been the plate of wet food I left out last nite for Winton around 10pm.....I often think his crying is because he has an upset stomach.....I need to continue feeding him every nite!

Monday...just a little vent....

Well hopefully I'll hear from the ASPCA about reimbursements for Kodak's initial diabetes diagnosis. i called and they received the fax on the 2oth so now I just wait. None of the babies slept with me last nite-they must have been too hot! I did wake up to Perfy getting sick.....is it not possible to have a day when something doesn't happen?? But I love them to death and wouldn't change it for the world...even though they are probably one of the reasons my ex-boyfriend walked out on me while I was at work! He hated the cats, hated the litter on the floor, hated the kitty vomit-actually hated everything about my cats and didn't like the fact that they would come up onto the bed and the fact that the dog slept on the bed..... he actually said one day: "you like the animals more than me..." oh yeah after the way you left I sure as hell do like them more than you! They are always there for me....no matter what! They comfort me when I'm sad, crying, down and cold! How anyone could hate an animal is beyond me! What is wrong with people???

It's nice being home with my animals!

Another day in the kitty household. Kodak is beginning to feel the insulin injections. I'm not sure why. I have the syringe pointed in the proper direction. Actually he feels it less in his hind quarters than he does closer to his front shoulders. Winton cried quite a bit this morning....I'm thinking he's thirsty-seems to be near the water bowl when he cries and of course always around 4-5:30 in the morning! And Perf what can I say about him...he's just a baby! He's sleeping on the comfy pillows on my bed right now.

He felt the prick today..

Kodak felt his shot for the first time today. He made a slight noise-he's not a very vocal cat-and looked at me like "what are you doing...will you get this right." I'm not sure why he felt it today...maybe he's beginning to get a little sore or maybe I didn't inject him in a fatty enough area!

Winton, as he normally does, cried from about 4:30am this morning.....he settles down but it's always right before the sun comes up. He didn't sleep on the bed last nite not sure where he was but Perfy did-wrapped around my head snuggled in my hair.

I'm heading camping today for a couple of days. I'll be back on Turkey day. My dad will be down taking care of the boys-I had thought about taking them with me....Kodak and Perf would have been fine by Winton is a horrible traveller-he would have been crying the entire time in the car.

The boys at home today...with the dog

Due to the WGA strike I'm spending alot of time at home-my animals love it....

But they don't always like the dog-Winton in particular HATES the dog and really beats up on her! He's good though..very rarely uses nails-only when she's particularly pesty!

The ASPCA form has been faxed!

I received my ASPCA claim form from my vet, he had to sign it etc, and I have faxed it off to ASPCA Pet insurance.... now we'll see how well the primary pet insurance works....I submitted $311 worth of charges- blood tests, urine, insulin etc....now I'll see if the premiums I'm paying will pay off. I'll let you know

Kodak comes to the kitchen for his insulin shot

It's like Kodak knows the shots are making him feel better! Around every 12 hours he comes up and starts rubbing up against me...he wants his shot! I swear it's made his arthritis better-he seems to be walking better, has more energy. The insulin has done wonders for him! Unbelievable.

Winton on the other hand is sleeping alot-even though this morning he raced around like a dervish chasing after something-who knows what! I think now he's sleeping. he's still eating his k/d food but I'm wondering if he's got other ailments...

ASPCA Pet insurance

I'll be submitting expenses to ASPCA Pet insurance this week for Kodak's initial blood work, insulin etc. This will be the first time I've used the pet insurance that I got on Kodak, 3 Perf and my dog Velcro. I couldn't get it on Winton since his renal failure would be a pre-existing condition. I have the primary coverage on all of them. I guess I'll soon find out if it's worth it or not. The first claim form I'm submitting is for over $300 so I'll see how much they'll cover.

A visit to the vet for a spot glucose check yesterday

Well first of all a very quiet nite last nite! Yeah! No crying at all last nite. Winton was quiet until about 7:30am, Kodak came and slept for a few hours on the temperpedic pillow-he loves it! It feels good for me so must feel good to aging animals. I may have to buy some memory foam and make cat beds!

Yesterday, I took Kodak into the vet for his glucose spot check-he's been on insulin now for a week. He's such a good cat, everyone thinks he's the best patient! Great news, his glucose game back 173! Much better than the 433 he was! The vet is very happy with the number. It was taken 6 hours after his insulin injection. So we're right where we need to be! He'll stay on his 1 unit of insulin every 12 hours and we'll re-check his glucose and fructose levels in 2 weeks.

I don't think Winton is feeling well this morning. He threw up all his food. I may have to take him into the vet now. He still beats up on the dog though! One of his favorite pastimes!

I have ASPCA pet insurance for Kodak so I'm going to submit some of the invoices for his diabetes and see what they pay and what they dont pay.

A Quiet Nite

Wow...a relatively quiet nite! Winton only cried at 5:30 this morning and Kodak fell asleep on one of my pillows last nite....the dog isn't too happy about sharing the bed with the cats-mind you she wasn't too keen on sharing the bed with the boyfriend either-but she chased him away...he hated the animals sleeping on the bed..so now that he's gone the animals are back!

Aahh!

Oh my god-I seriously think Winton cried all night long! From about 1am on.....I cant have him doing this every nite! He's fine once I call him up on the bed-he'll settle down and sleep that's after the dog has jumped off the bed because I've called his name...it's a frigging zoo! I think he gets disoriented at night. I feed him late so he has a full tummy but that's not helping anymore!

And Kodak doesn't seem to be eating his food...or at least when I want him to eat his food! I'm going to scream!

Tuesday morning....

Winton was in full form this morning at 5am...meowing and crying! It was awful! I think he gets confused about where he is so I call his name-he races up to the bed and settles down! But really 5am! And then at 6am all I heard was this clank clank clank on a water dish...Kodak scrounging for water. Being the good mom I got up and turned the bathroom tap on for him so he could have his preferred running water! And this point I was like screw it-I cant sleep anymore. Feeding time for the beasts! Kodak wont eat his food-and I'm supposed to wait and give him his insulin after he eats-I did that last nite and I never saw him eat! I gave him his insulin anyway this morning! And as for that delinquent 3 Perf! He is crazy about milk and me eating cereal...so crazy that yesterday I set my bowl down on a table to take the dog outside-I came back to the bowl knocked over and milk and cereal all over the place! Is it a full moon or something for these animals are crazed right now. Maybe it's because I'm home this week....

A very quiet morning...

Wow, it was a very quiet morning today. normally I have Winton crying and meowing at 4:30 in the morning but they were all peacefully sleeping! I actually slept in until 7:30! That never happens! Must give Kodak his food-ha! So his insulin has something to bind to! He already came to the sink this morning and had some water and then off to the comfy dog bed he went! This entire idea of giving him his insulin injections after he's eaten and 12 hours apart-the doc really doesn't know my stubborn cat very well! There is no forcing Kodak to do anything!

3 Perf and his Corneal Ulcer

3 perf actually developed a Corneal Ulcer after I adopted Winton. Winton had been in a rescue and when he came into the house he had a typical "kitty cold" well from what my animal ophthamologist said his ulcer could have been the result of a virus from the "kitty cold." Well what a horrible thing to deal with! And it was with the baby of the kitty family who is a MEAN cat! We went to the Animal Eye Clinic in Marina Del Rey California and were treated by Dr Elizabeth Chambers. First of all-it's not cheap! But if you were to see his eye....oh my god it was awful! Cloudy and white and clearly making him miserable so it was so worth it! And I realized after he was treated just how painful it really was for him! He was docile with the vet when he first started going in and after all of the numerous treatments, visits, the white plastic collar,eye drops etc he slowly started feeling better and getting meaner! He was getting back to his normal mean self!

Feline CRF ( Chronic Renal Failure)

Now onto the "other feline disease" that I've been dealing with for about 4 years. Feline Chronic Renal Failure. Here are the basics from the webpage http://www.felinecrf.com/

Symptoms of CRF

CRF can only be accurately diagnosed with clinical tests. There are some symptoms and behaviors that indicate the likelihood of CRF and, if these are observed, the cat should be tested as soon as possible.

The most telling signs are increased thirst (polydipsia) and excessive urination (polyuria). As the condition progresses, your cat may experience loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, weight loss, poor hair coat and emaciation. Only 30% of kidney capacity is needed for normal functioning. Therefore, no symptoms will be seen until approximately 70% of renal function is lost. It is important to begin treatment as soon as the first symptoms appear.

Even with diet control, drugs and fluid therapy, you will eventually see at least some of the symptoms on the following list. Not all cats will exhibit all symptoms.

• Excessive urination
• Increased thirst
• Nausea and gagging
• Licking lips
• Grinding or cracking sound in jaw
• Vomiting (both clear/foamy liquid and food)
• Drooling
• Dehydration
• Hunching over the water bowl
• Stomach irritation (uremic gastritis)
• Constipation
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Muscle wasting
• Emaciation
• Poor hair coat
• Halitosis (ammonia smell)
• Lethargy
• Sensitivity to sound
• Eating litter
• Weakness
• Depression
• Oral ulcers
• Detached retinae
• Convulsion, low temperature, coma (end-stage)

I know somewhat overwhelming! I was incredibly overwhelmed and actuall cancelled a trip to hawaii when Winton was diagnosed! yeah I got ridiculed beyond belief because I was putting my cat before a trip-but you know Hawaii will always be there my cat wont!

I've been dealing with CRF now for 4 years....I know Winton will eventually die and it sucks but I've been trying to make his life as wonderful as possible! As of today, Winton has high blood pressure-which is a common symptom of CRF. he takes medication twice a day for his high blood pressure as well as eating Hills K/D both canned and dry! He loves it thank goodness! I went thru a period of time when I was attepting to feed him raw food but honestly it was very expensive so now I occasionally give him a raw patty.

Treatment

There is no cure for CRF but the condition may be managed for a time. The cornerstone of CRF management is to control the amount of waste products that are sent through the kidneys. Since the remaining nephrons are limited in their ability to process waste, the idea is to reduce the amount of waste to a level that the nephrons can accommodate. This is done through a combination of diet, medication, and hydration therapy (diuresis).

Prognosis

CRF is a terminal disease. The only questions are how long and how well the patient will live until the end. With proper treatment, the cat may have from months to years of relatively high-quality life. As the cat's caregiver(s), it is up to you to determine when the quality of life has decreased to a point at which prolonging life no longer has value.

As CRF progresses and toxin levels rise, cats become more uncomfortable with an overall sensation of feeling unwell. Human patients with a similar condition don't report "pain" but describe their condition as feeling poorly. Dehydration, in particular, can make the patient very uncomfortable. Aggressively treating CRF, especially with subcutaneous fluid therapy, should not be thought of as "prolonging the agony" as there is no significant pain associated with kidney failure until the end-stage. Even then, unless the patient convulses, the chief symptoms will be malaise, weakness, nausea and discomfort.

yeah pretty much sucks! I see Winton losing weight every year! I took him in about 6 months ago because he had lost weight...they ran every test they could except a pelvic ultrasound-which I was scheduled to do but did not-and found no reason for his weight loss. there were no obstructions nothing. He is happy, loves to eat, fights with the dog, does all the things he's always done. I'm sure I'll soon be working my way to sub-Q fluids at some point. But as of now we're on high blood pressure medication and Hills K/D.

Feline Diabetes Mellitus

Kodak, my Russian Blue, is my "old man. He was the first cat in my household and the most amazing stoic creature-but stubborn! Last week I noticed he was racing to any tap I turned on. Having known people that have had diabetic cats, including my mom and my aunt, I had a sneaking suspicion that he was diabetic! Let me first give you some of the symptoms of feline diabetes:
1. Increased water consumption and urination
2. Increased appetite
3. Weight Loss
4. weakness

Diabetes Mellitus is a disease caused by a deficiency of insulin or a reduced ability of the body's cells to respond to insulin. Without insulin, sugar cannot enter the cells of the body and it builds up in the blood and eventually passes into the urine. This causes increased urine production and thirst. Hunger increases because the body cannot use the sugar in the blood and the body tries to cope by digesting it's own muscle for energy. Diabetes is diagnosed by detecting high sugar levels on blood and urine tests. It's not curable but can be controlled with proper insulin, oral hypoglycemic and diet.

I was hoping he wasn't diabetic but at 11 years old it had to be something. And since he was racing for any running water I turned and he had lost weight..well the signs were there. So I took him in for a blood test and a urine test. I received the results this week-of course Murphy's Law I was out of town working! So here I was trying to deal with a newly diagnosed diabetic cat and work in an area without cell reception! It was horrible! I so wanted to come home but luckily I have the BEST petsitter in the universe and an amazing dad!! They were able to hold down the "kitty fort" until I came home and could throw myself full force into treating my stubborn diabetic cat!

Kodak's glucose levels were 433. The normal range is 70-150 and he had glucose in his urine....he is diabetic! So off we go!

He went to the vet last wednesday and received his first insulin injection. He's getting 1 unit( 1cc which equivalent to 1ml) every 12 hours of PZI Insulin-which was rather expensive at $109.57. ( I'll be looking in to see if I can find the insulin any cheaper elsewhere!) His Insulin syringes are U-40-1/2CC which were bought in a bulk of 100 for $20. But at 1 unit every 12 hours the Insulin will last quite awhile.

On saturday November 10th I took him in for my first "diabetic" appt. I was given pamphlets and instructed on how to inject the insulin. The first thing one must do is mix the contents of the insulin-DO NOT SHAKE the bottle, gently roll the bottle in your hand. My vet said for about a minute. Also remember, insulin loses it's effectiveness in sunlight and heat so it must be stored in a refrigerator. Also the needle is directional-it's has a little hole which should be pointing up so that when the needle is injected it causes as little pain to the cat as possible. I was also shown what areas were best-the fatty areas around the shoulder etc. My Kodak has a few of those areas so he really isn't too bothered by the injections yet!

As for food...well here comes the fun part! Yes my boy is very picky about his food! And if he doesn't like the smell-well he wont eat it! My vet told me to really try to get him to eat the canned diabetic food because he has seen cats go into remission by eating the canned diabetic food- so I bought both canned Purina DM and Hills M/D to try out-and luckily my petsitter bought Dry Purina DM....for my stubborn Russian is not a big fan of canned food! Well as you guessed-he will not eat the canned food! Turns his nose up at it. And I'm not going to force feed canned food! So Purina dry DM is where we are in the food world-at least he seems to tolerate that so far!

We go back in 5 days, this thursday, to have his blood glucose levels checked again. They've started him off on a low level of insulin just to see how he's responding and if it's even making a dent in his glucose levels......might have to up it after our vet visit on thursday. I have pet insurance on Kodak and 3 Perf so i'm going to check to see if any of these expenses are covered. I don't have insurance on Winton because he was diagnosed with CRF 4 years ago and they wouldn't cover him.....

First Post

Hi to any of you that have older cats! I have 3 cats...all 3 getting up there in age and with that comes the joys of aging felines! I decided to start this blog because 2 of my 3 cats have diseases: My 11 year old Russian Blue, Kodak, was just diagnosed this week with Diabetes mellitus, and my 10 year old Orange Tabby, Winton, was diagnosed 4 years ago with Chronic Renal Failure (CRF). Some people cant believe I'm dealing with not only one disease but now two. But I love my cats! So i decided to blog about my everyday trials with my boys! I hope you enjoy!