Artie and his Issues

[katlady-18]

Haven't been here in a while (and it seems I stopped receiving email notifications regarding new replies to threads on this site so who knows how much I've missed) but decided to check in and well, my heart dropped when I read that Artie is unwell again. I know I've probably said it before, but you two have been through so much already; I was really, really hoping (like everyone else here) that he would continue to improve and stabilize. *sigh* I'll check in as time permits. Sending my best wishes to the little guy, and you too.

 

[LTS3]

Any word from N Vet about what to do now with Artie?

 

[tarasgirl06]

Artie's new plush throw is the color of beach sand. He boycotted it for a couple days. I solved that by putting it on top of my bed while he is on his 'cuddling' phase. Solved the problem. Last night, he was very "Happy" so many times, I lost count.

I still have the old throw, hidden away in my store room.

Yesterday, with the help of the cypro and cerenia, Artie ate a total of 3/8 cup of food. He is refusing it this morning, but ate 1/8 cup during the night.

The Cypro is making he extremely vocal. He is also following around everywhere I go...right up next to me.

Last night he would not leave my side, and tried to keep me up all night!! constantly meowing.. not much sleep for me.

I think I found his threshold on the cypro. Three doses of 1/2 tablet causes the meows, and keeping me up. For the future, I will just give 2 full doses, and cut back to 1/4 pill at night.

Artie is constipated... what else is new?? sigh

Yesterday afternoon, he took me over to the litter box, several times, trying to dig unsuccessfully. He ended up peeing a tiny clump. sigh

He did the same thing today. It is the lack of Miralax which is doing this...sigh...

When I saw this, I gave him an extra 1 cc of lactulose. He had a dose of 4 cc Lactulose yesterday.. probably too late for him, but..

The Cerenia has kicked in. He is much more alert and feeling better, except for the pooping...sigh...

So weird how this began. But, looking back, His refusal and being so hard to medicate last week was this flare coming on....

Praying for poops....Going out around 8am for Mass, and a quick trip to TJ.. hopefully by the time I return, I will have a present.

Oh yeah, last night, around 9:45pm, my super was knocking at my door. There was still a "Leak" down in the Garage! He had to come in to check my HVAC unit!!! I was about to go to bed.. man..

He said it was not my unit, but will return today to augment the hose connection.. Stupid HVAC company!! They cannot even fix things correctly.. probably the lowest bidder for the replacements..

I always say, "you get what you pay for" and "penny wise, pound foolish"... especially in dealing with this management company....

Artie's new blanket sounds nice. I have a friend who has given me quite a few blankets, and some are that color, fleece. Really soft and pretty. I hope the new one becomes Artie's favorite!
Oh, he is urinating normally, yes? My Elvis is now getting Methio-Form tabs because he is not "producing" enough. I've ordered some cranberry tabs to maintain him on so that he does not get a UTI.
Yes, it's such a problem that many people take no pride at all in their work. I always try to get several estimates when I need to have work done, and then pick one that's in the middle, because it is as you say -- cutting corners can be a nightmare. I remember when my folks had this house painted one time -- IDK what the price was, but I do know that they did a HORRIBLE job and left paint flakes all over everything. When I hired a crew to repaint, they had to blast the entire house to get the flaking paint off. They did very good work and I'm extremely happy with them.
Hoping Artie will "doo" his best for you soon, if he hasn't already!

 

[artiemom]

Any word from N Vet about what to do now with Artie?

Working with them right now as we speak!! As soon as I got new orders, Artie decided to produce a 3 x 1 inch poop, same texture as Sunday ~~ a bit on the harder side.

I am driving the NVet and his secretary crazy because Artie is driving me crazy!!

I am to continue the Cerenia until when I do not know. I think it is touch and go from here. The Cypro is still ongoing..... I am going to be taking a lot of naps cuz he keeps me up all night!!

Still not eating today. I am thinking it may be a food aversion, but he is not getting a different food. I am playing tough love.

Of course there is a lot of noise in here right now.. Repairing the HVAC system as we speak!!

will give more of an update later.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Working with them right now as we speak!! As soon as I got new orders, Artie decided to produce a 3 x 1 inch poop, same texture as Sunday ~~ a bit on the harder side.

I am driving the NVet and his secretary crazy because Artie is driving me crazy!!

I am to continue the Cerenia until when I do not know. I think it is touch and go from here. The Cypro is still ongoing..... I am going to be taking a lot of naps cuz he keeps me up all night!!

Still not eating today. I am thinking it may be a food aversion, but he is not getting a different food. I am playing tough love.

Of course there is a lot of noise in here right now.. Repairing the HVAC system as we speak!!

will give more of an update later.

Hope they'll fix it right this time and then leave you alone for awhile!
My Elvis meows about the house late at night sometimes. So I know how it is. They are crepuscular, after all, and it's up to us to fit into their schedules

 

[artiemom]

NVet called me!!

I am to give Artie sub-q's twice a day for a day or 2. I questioned it, and he said it was ok, short term.

I am to keep pushing the lactulose! So more Lactulose tonight, as much as he will take, 3-4 cc!!

Continue with the cyproheptadine, 1/2 tab twice a day

Continue with the Cerenia.

Have to update tomorrow.

He thinks it is an IBD Flare, that we are dealing with..

Yikes... Artie is definitely going to run away from me..
and I will have another sleepless night.. Meows in the ear, walking all over me......

I am going to have to go to bed early, and take naps this week...
Artie is still refusing his food! I honestly think he wants new food--kind of a food aversion...

This cat is going to drive me to drink!!!

Oh and the AC is still not fixed!! My super came in to replace the tubing. I had AC for 45 minutes; when he called to tell me to shut it off, again!!!!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

OK...ONE good thing has come out of this. You now know that when Artie pitches a fit about the meds, you may be going into a flare-up, which is something worth knowing, especially once you and NVet pin down how to proceed from there. As my gran used to say, "It is an ill wind, indeed, that blows no good at all!" Have my fingers crossed for BOTH of you, and sending hugs!

 

[maggiedemi]

There's nothing wrong with having a little drink of wine!...Bring his blankie to bed with you, maybe he'll pay more attention to that and let you sleep. But if he's anything like Demi, he likes to suck on the blanket and knead it while standing on top of me and crushing me.

 

[neely]

I am driving the NVet and his secretary crazy because Artie is driving me crazy!!

Remember, "squeaky wheel gets the most oil."

Just when I've been away from the forums again, Artie is in the midst of a possible flare up. I have been reading your latest posts with updates to get caught up. I am so sincerely sorry for what your ginger boy and you have been through. Thankfully the N Vet is back and hopefully Artie will improve under his excellent care.

To add insult to injury, how could your a/c go out at a time like this? Wishing the unit gets fixed properly once and for all and you have many cool days ahead.

 

[LTS3]

Is the AC condensate drain clogged? That can cause leaking. My condo reqires all owners to clear out the condensate drain every year. Usually management takes care of scheduling that at no cost to owners since all the unit condensate drains empty into a common drain.

I wouldn't worry about driving N Vet crazy. I've done it before and I'm sure other clients have also done it.

 

[tarasgirl06]

NVet called me!!

I am to give Artie sub-q's twice a day for a day or 2. I questioned it, and he said it was ok, short term.

I am to keep pushing the lactulose! So more Lactulose tonight, as much as he will take, 3-4 cc!!

Continue with the cyproheptadine, 1/2 tab twice a day

Continue with the Cerenia.

Have to update tomorrow.

He thinks it is an IBD Flare, that we are dealing with..

Yikes... Artie is definitely going to run away from me..
and I will have another sleepless night.. Meows in the ear, walking all over me......

I am going to have to go to bed early, and take naps this week...
Artie is still refusing his food! I honestly think he wants new food--kind of a food aversion...

This cat is going to drive me to drink!!!

Oh and the AC is still not fixed!! My super came in to replace the tubing. I had AC for 45 minutes; when he called to tell me to shut it off, again!!!!

Hopefully you'll only have to do 2x/day for a day or two AT MOST.
Hopefully the a/c will soon be fixed (and what LTS3 said is a probable!) and you will be a couple of cool cats very soon

 

[artiemom]

The AC condensation tubing was not connected properly. It was just jammed in-- not a correct fit.. ugh!!

My super had to replace the tubing in all 6 units because the company, did not have anyone available to come out!!!! Must be a very small company! I guess the owner's wife is very sick.. but that is not excuse for shoddy workmanship. My super was furious at them..In his imperfect English, he kept saying, "Cheap, Cheap, Cheap".. I agree.

Artie had his second dose of the sub-q's last night. He was shocked, but did not move an inch.. good boy on that.

I gave him an additional 4 cc of lactulose yesterday. In total, he had 7 cc... I did run this by the N Vet before I did it.. He was the one who say to keep pushing the lactulose..

Artie was on my lap, with the new throw, the entire time I was watching TV. As I got up, at 10:35pm to get ready for bed, he decided he wanted to 'bat' his yarn ball around, and cuddle/kick his chili pepper, and his little fishey... what a crazed cat!!

As soon as I shut the light out, and got into bed, The Yowling/Howling started!!! Nothing before..
The thought came to me that he was afraid of being alone and/or afraid of the dark.
I put the TV on, volume on soft.. and kept the light on in my bedroom.

Sure enough, Artie came over, started his yowling again. I had to respond with a determined voice, calling him.. Yup, jumped up, and stuck like glue to my lower legs during the entire night.

I cannot move at night because he is right up against my lower legs.

He jumped off me several times and did yowl/howl, but did quiet down for a longer time, allowing me to doze a bit; However, my back is very sore from lying in such weird positions.

I sleep on my side, my right hip hurts if I am in one position for too long, along with my right arm having to be positioned a certain way because of the injury I had there.

Lying on the left side is not doable, for the entire night. Stomach sleeping is kind of ok, but to get past Artie, is so much work. and then the back starts up from the change in position...

Needless to say, I am not feeling well today.. back is killing me, along with right hip. I am really tired also...Whining...

When I checked the box, I discovered Artie had left a small 2 x 1/2 inch hard poop in there... not enough.. sigh....

He is acting ok.. would never know .. he does go in the box periodically to voraciously dig.. but not in the way he had done in the past.

He is not eagerly eating his food either. I would think that with the cypro, he would be eating me out of house and home; but he is not...
Artie only ate 1/8 cup of food during the night--usually it is 1/4.. he was too busy yowling and straitjacketing me.

NVet is again taking some time off...He deserves it.. but why does it have to be now!! I am being selfish.

I will give Artie a double dose of sub-q's again today. Unless the NVEt oks it, with my reservations. I will not do it again. I do not want to put him into fluid overload; however Artie has not been drinking water since this entire episode began.

No food yet for him. I think I filled his stomach with meds...

 

[neely]

I can relate to Artie sleeping with you but in such a way that it constricts your normal sleeping position. I guess he just loves his mom and wants to get as close to her as possible. Last night Carleton was sleeping next to my leg where I would normally bend my knee and when I woke up it hurt to move it. If I am already asleep I don't even realize he's there. I do hope you are able to possibly do some stretching exercises for your back today that might help.

As for poop and eating I'm sorry Artie is not cooperating. I have no fresh ideas but I do sympathize. Was the super able to adequately repair the a/c after replacing the faulty tubing? I hope you can get some much needed rest today and Artie surprises you by nibbling on his food and leaving a present in the litter box. Are you still playing that game where you throw some pieces of food out for him to chase and eat? I love that strategy.

 

[katlady-18]

I can relate to sleeping in uncomfortable positions and waking up sore because furbaby likes sleeping on or next to you. It's adorable but physically painful to us. LOL.

Hoping Artie will eat and leave you a little treasure in his litter box.

 

[tarasgirl06]

The AC condensation tubing was not connected properly. It was just jammed in-- not a correct fit.. ugh!!

My super had to replace the tubing in all 6 units because the company, did not have anyone available to come out!!!! Must be a very small company! I guess the owner's wife is very sick.. but that is not excuse for shoddy workmanship. My super was furious at them..In his imperfect English, he kept saying, "Cheap, Cheap, Cheap".. I agree.

Artie had his second dose of the sub-q's last night. He was shocked, but did not move an inch.. good boy on that.

I gave him an additional 4 cc of lactulose yesterday. In total, he had 7 cc... I did run this by the N Vet before I did it.. He was the one who say to keep pushing the lactulose..

Artie was on my lap, with the new throw, the entire time I was watching TV. As I got up, at 10:35pm to get ready for bed, he decided he wanted to 'bat' his yarn ball around, and cuddle/kick his chili pepper, and his little fishey... what a crazed cat!!

As soon as I shut the light out, and got into bed, The Yowling/Howling started!!! Nothing before..
The thought came to me that he was afraid of being alone and/or afraid of the dark.
I put the TV on, volume on soft.. and kept the light on in my bedroom.

Sure enough, Artie came over, started his yowling again. I had to respond with a determined voice, calling him.. Yup, jumped up, and stuck like glue to my lower legs during the entire night.

I cannot move at night because he is right up against my lower legs.

He jumped off me several times and did yowl/howl, but did quiet down for a longer time, allowing me to doze a bit; However, my back is very sore from lying in such weird positions.

I sleep on my side, my right hip hurts if I am in one position for too long, along with my right arm having to be positioned a certain way because of the injury I had there.

Lying on the left side is not doable, for the entire night. Stomach sleeping is kind of ok, but to get past Artie, is so much work. and then the back starts up from the change in position...

Needless to say, I am not feeling well today.. back is killing me, along with right hip. I am really tired also...Whining...

When I checked the box, I discovered Artie had left a small 2 x 1/2 inch hard poop in there... not enough.. sigh....

He is acting ok.. would never know .. he does go in the box periodically to voraciously dig.. but not in the way he had done in the past.

He is not eagerly eating his food either. I would think that with the cypro, he would be eating me out of house and home; but he is not...
Artie only ate 1/8 cup of food during the night--usually it is 1/4.. he was too busy yowling and straitjacketing me.

NVet is again taking some time off...He deserves it.. but why does it have to be now!! I am being selfish.

I will give Artie a double dose of sub-q's again today. Unless the NVEt oks it, with my reservations. I will not do it again. I do not want to put him into fluid overload; however Artie has not been drinking water since this entire episode began.

No food yet for him. I think I filled his stomach with meds...

How well I know about the yowling at night, and the moving issue! Yowling often happens with older cats -- some say it's like dementia in humans. I don't know, but I do know that several of my beloved cats have developed this pattern when they were older. Mostly it happened with males. Elvis doesn't yowl, he chirps, but I hear it just the same.
I would be concerned about Artie getting enough moisture, since he is eating only dry food now. If he is not drinking water, he is not getting the moisture he needs. Do you have/could you get a cat fountain for him? I've found that my cats are a lot more inclined to drink from the fountain than they are from stationery water bowls. Just a suggestion.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I am so familiar with the yowling. Hekitty has taken it up as a hobby. Something to occupy her in the dark hours when I'm not up to wait on her hand and paw. She does NOT, however, yowl to wake me up. To wake me up, she has begun sitting on my pillow and poking a paw in my mouth.

Come on, Artie! Get with the program and POOP!

 

[tarasgirl06]

I am so familiar with the yowling. Hekitty has taken it up as a hobby. Something to occupy her in the dark hours when I'm not up to wait on her hand and paw. She does NOT, however, yowl to wake me up. To wake me up, she has begun sitting on my pillow and poking a paw in my mouth.

Come on, Artie! Get with the program and POOP!

OH, gosh, that must be fun!

 

[maggiedemi]

Hekitty is so awesome

 

[artiemom]

Well, gave another update to NVet via Sec.

I am to discontinue the cyproheptadine, since it does not seem to be improving his appetite, and he is getting so paranoid/antsy/yowling.

If he does not poop by tomorrow, he will get an enema as an outpatient.

I was out, but retrieved my VM message before the secretary left for the week-end. Everyone is taking long week-ends!!

The NVet will be off, beginning Thursday, until Tuesday!!!!

He did update the Vet who is covering for him, about Artie.

I was able to speak with the J, the NVet's secretary. We decided, and she checked with the NVet and the covering Vet; about just scheduling him for an outpatient enema, tomorrow afternoon. I hate to wait that long, but I have a doctor's appointment right at mid morning, in Boston... This is a very busy week for me, with appointments, and such...

While we were on the phone with each other, Artie tried to poop, nothing....sight.. he is miserable.. that is why he is not eating.. he goes over to the food, sniffs, and walks away.. He does need a cleaning out..

Just my luck to finally find an awesome vet, and Artie has a flare, requiring another enema, when he is on vacation...

The secretary did tell me that the NVet really trusts my judgement on things. I find that amazing.. me?? I guess this cat was given to me for a reason.. to take really good care of.. and I am..

I am just really tired.. two nights without sleep is too much for me, at this age. whining...

I had to go into Boston for an exam today-- just routine.
I had to get another medium iced coffee because I was so groggy.

I stopped by Angell Memorial to pick up some more Cerenia for Artie. The adoption room was open for visitors. I had to go in and check out the kitties. There are 3 orange kitties there.. all elderly, 9+ years... poor babies.. sad...
There was also a kitten with cerebellar hypoplasia.. sweet thing.. but she was so wobbly on her hind legs.. poor thing.. so cute.
I did really like a tuxedo female, 1 yr 8 months old. I think her name was: Poroit... yes a female.. so sweet. She was hiding in her box, but when I started talking to her, she came out, head butting me, paw through cage door... melted my heart.

I got a text message on the way home, and an e-mail. The church's social committee is having a last minute meeting tonight.. I do not even want to attend, but I have to. I need to attend because we are having an outing on the 29th and we have to formalize things. There are only 4 of us who are really involved in this outing.. sigh

All I wanted to do was to get home, give Artie some meds, change my clothes, have some popcorn, and a glass of wine.. and go to bed early..

Artie still has the fluid pouch from this morning. I do not think I am going to give him anymore fluids tonight because he has not even absorbed the sub-q's from this morning. If I do give him any, it will be a minimal amount.. like 50 cc.

I am rambling now... another hour before I have to leave for the meeting. I may not get back on-line tonight. If I do, it will just be to read messages...

Thanks to all for your support. I am still clomping along.. for Artie...

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Um...have we mentioned lately that we love you? Jes' sayin'.