Artie and his Issues

[tarasgirl06]

Thanks, Artie's Army...

Not a good morning for my guy.

I woke up early, but was just lounging in bed. I suddenly heard Artie's vomit sounds.. Oh, Oh, I ran to him, just catching the end of a tiny bit of foam coming up, on the scatter rug...

Oh-oh... I guess the Pepcid was aiding a bit...Decided to return to it. I waited 45 minutes before I gave him his morning meds..Then another 20 minutes for his food.

Artie refused his food. I guess his tummy was still upset.. sigh..

I waited another hour before I gave him his steroid; food was still left out. Artie regurged
his pepcid a few minutes later. It was in a gel cap. The gel cap was dissolved, almost melted into the pill. He did not get to any of the meds, but I could not re-use it..

I called the NVet to tell them, waited another 30 minutes and gave him another pill...He was after me while I was on the phone, even jumping on the kitchen table while I was talking to the Secretary!! and very vocal..She could hear him talking to me...She loved it..

Artie did eat almost 1/4 of a can.. and that is it so far..

He was a bear with the lactulose ...sigh.

I did see the powdered lactulose, but it is very expensive. I pay $10 for a bottle which lasts me a few months. I would also be afraid to mix it with his food, thus creating a possible food aversion, which we do not need.

I have been busy all day, and checking on CNN, with my breaks..

I washed my quilt, thinking that it may have some smell on it. Perhaps this is why Artie is avoiding my bed.. Nope!!! put him on the bed when the quilt was dry.. and he jumped down... he is avoiding my bed!!!! sigh

He is such a strange cat.

I picked him up, so I could wrap him in a towel for his lactulose. As soon as I picked him up, I saw a one inch piece of poop under him, and a stain on his quilt.. I washed this quilt yesterday!!!!! grabbed the Natures Miracle after the lactulose.. washed my hands 4 times within 15 minutes!!!

I told him to go, "Dig, Dig"... loudly.. guess what? he went!! He produced 8 1/2 x 1 inches of poop!!! it was soft.. and nothing was hanging out!!!

I am done for the day.. I did not do much, but I am tired. still have to make supper.
and another med for Artie..

What would we do without Nature's Miracle, eh? And soap...
Good on Artie for "going" well.
Well, he may be strange, but you wouldn't have it any other way, would you? Our cats are each unique and we love them SO much just as they are...
I've stayed away from CNN so far, opting for stuff online instead, including a lot on twitter. It can get obsessive, especially if you have family and/or loved ones in the zone, which I do. *PRAYERS*
Wishing you both a good rest of the day/evening/night.

 

[LTS3]

I did see the powdered lactulose, but it is very expensive. I pay $10 for a bottle which lasts me a few months. I would also be afraid to mix it with his food, thus creating a possible food aversion, which we do not need.

Maybe mix it with tuna juice which you know Artie goes bonkers for? Add water or plain borth if there isn't enough tuna juice in the can to dissolve the powder.

 

[Antonio65]

If cats can't taste sweetness why are they so attracted by our biscuits, cakes and other sweet treats of ours?
Maybe they smell some other ingredients like butter, milk or things like these.

 

[tarasgirl06]

If cats can't taste sweetness why are they so attracted by our biscuits, cakes and other sweet treats of ours?
Maybe they smell some other ingredients like butter, milk or things like these.

It makes no sense! I also read that cats hate citrus fruits (they don't like the smell) but my Baby Su, pictured in my icon, loves lemon cookies. Go figure.

 

[inkysmom]

One of my cats loves chocolate and will steal it from anywhere he can find it. I have to keep it in the fridge or a cupboard. If he hears me open a wrapper for chocolate he comes running and won't leave me alone until I give him 1 or 2 tiny pieces.
Before anyone panics, I called the local vet referral hospital and was told it's not as nearly as toxic to cats as it is in dogs. In large doses it can cause anxiety, hyperactivity and neurological problems as it's a stimulant, so they said to only let him have very small amounts.
Now that he's been diagnosed with allergies to lots of things I try to not let him have any or very rarely. Not saying anyone else should let their cats have any, just that's what I was told when I called a vet referral hospital and asked about my cat. He really lives it, so he must be able to taste some amount of sweetness.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

inkysmom Try keeping a little container of milk chocolate drops (baking isle for chocolate chip cookies) on hand. If you give him one or two of those, it's a very tiny amount, and he won't know the difference in size.

I have become a connoisseur of cat poop since meeting Artie. Just see how my horizons are broadening!

 

[inkysmom]

Thanks that's a good idea. He's pretty much given up on chocolate now since I always lock it up and when I have a small chocolate snack I try to take it with me and eat it in the car or out so not at home in front of him. When he gets any, it's very rare and literally a couple of crumbs of those little Deboy brownies or the equivalent.

 

[dustydiamond1]

Yes, your right. I just googled 'can cats taste sweetness' and the answer was no yet when I googled lactulose it stayed that it was too sweet for them. The internet is full of contradictions

 

[dustydiamond1]

Thanks, Artie's Army...

Not a good morning for my guy.

I woke up early, but was just lounging in bed. I suddenly heard Artie's vomit sounds.. Oh, Oh, I ran to him, just catching the end of a tiny bit of foam coming up, on the scatter rug...

Oh-oh... I guess the Pepcid was aiding a bit...Decided to return to it. I waited 45 minutes before I gave him his morning meds..Then another 20 minutes for his food.

Artie refused his food. I guess his tummy was still upset.. sigh..

I waited another hour before I gave him his steroid; food was still left out. Artie regurged
his pepcid a few minutes later. It was in a gel cap. The gel cap was dissolved, almost melted into the pill. He did not get to any of the meds, but I could not re-use it..

I called the NVet to tell them, waited another 30 minutes and gave him another pill...He was after me while I was on the phone, even jumping on the kitchen table while I was talking to the Secretary!! and very vocal..She could hear him talking to me...She loved it..

Artie did eat almost 1/4 of a can.. and that is it so far..

He was a bear with the lactulose ...sigh.

I did see the powdered lactulose, but it is very expensive. I pay $10 for a bottle which lasts me a few months. I would also be afraid to mix it with his food, thus creating a possible food aversion, which we do not need.

I have been busy all day, and checking on CNN, with my breaks..

I washed my quilt, thinking that it may have some smell on it. Perhaps this is why Artie is avoiding my bed.. Nope!!! put him on the bed when the quilt was dry.. and he jumped down... he is avoiding my bed!!!! sigh

He is such a strange cat.

I picked him up, so I could wrap him in a towel for his lactulose. As soon as I picked him up, I saw a one inch piece of poop under him, and a stain on his quilt.. I washed this quilt yesterday!!!!! grabbed the Natures Miracle after the lactulose.. washed my hands 4 times within 15 minutes!!!

I told him to go, "Dig, Dig"... loudly.. guess what? he went!! He produced 8 1/2 x 1 inches of poop!!! it was soft.. and nothing was hanging out!!!

I am done for the day.. I did not do much, but I am tired. still have to make supper.
and another med for Artie..

 

[foxxycat]

Wanted to triple the above comments--if someone doesn't want to read=-=they can well you know...something to do with pounding sand...err pound off or oh heck something like that. WE want to know what's going on with our boy.

I don't know if it's true about sweetness because Honeybee LOVES melon, watermelon, strawberry, cake, frosting ANYTHING I eat except for citris-she gets a crinkled up face and runs away when I hold it out to her-but she's always pestering me to smell the food I have so I don't do it on purpose but that facial expression is TOO funny!!

 

[artiemom]

Artie Update:

I cannot remember when I last updated.. but, Monday, Artie had a lot of poops.. one episode of 10 inches and another of a 4 x 4 clump of very, very, soft stool.

I did not give the Pepcid over the week-end, and he Vomited up some foamy stuff on Monday morning, so it was back to the Pepcid. I gave him a Cerenia, late Monday because he was not eating much.. eating more dry than wet, and it was not much.

Tuesday: Artie had a good morning.. at least a good day, until I gave him the lactulose.. OMG...what a fight..

He was actually playing!! A couple of episodes of play time.. one in the morning and one in the afternoon, before the lactulose.. he was batting around a ball, and running to it when I lobbed it across the floor.
He was so cute...and mellow..

Artie did not eat as much as he usually does.. he cut down a bit...sigh.

He was so good with his sub-q's.. actually sleeping through it.

No poops yesterday. He surprised me by jumping up to the top of his tall cat tree!! He has a bit of a limp, but no worse.

NVet said he uses Adequan as an arthritis med.. It is an injection which goes directly into the muscle.. not sub-q.... ugh... I am not sure if I would try that..and I am not sure if he would want me to..

It is twice a week for 3-4 weeks and then once a month.....I will hold off on that.

Artie was so so so bad yesterday with his Lactulose dose, no matter what I do..
I had to burrito him... cover the arm of the chair with a towel, get a cup with lactulose and a syringe ready, a cup of water with a syringe ready, a couple of wet paper towels, and a dry paper towel..

It was a total disaster.. at one point, Artie had squirmed back from the burrito, with his head buried.. He poked it out, and I had to laugh at him.. He looked as if he was an old lady with a babushka on!! (kerchief)....

Still a fight.. lactulose on him, the towels, me, the coffee table.. what a mess.

And then, he jumps down, and the spittle comes out.. I have to chase after him to wipe his mouth!

and he is not swallowing it.. He is refusing to.. I swear, no matter how I give it to him. he seems to aspirate some. I think he is doing it to himself..

I heard him coughing a couple of times...

Artie ran away from me, to hide on the dining room chair, with the table cloth hiding him....

He is just too strong, and smart for me.

This morning.. no poops, yet.. he was playing a bit..

have to give him sub-q's..warming up now..

Artie was so content yesterday
during sub-q's:

At the top of the world:

 

[foxxycat]

Adequan has had good results with many cats including my Floey. I didn't know it's injected in the muscle-I always told it goes subskin. That reminds me to bring this up for Pumpkin Face's check up. I wonder if it will help her out. The laser therapy helps but it's expensive. I need to stop putting off her appointments but waiting to see what the idiots running the company are going to do-they keep saying they will restructure-code word for layoff. so I just figure wait until end of September to get her looked at-hopefully by then they will figure out whats going to happen.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Artie Update:

I cannot remember when I last updated.. but, Monday, Artie had a lot of poops.. one episode of 10 inches and another of a 4 x 4 clump of very, very, soft stool.

I did not give the Pepcid over the week-end, and he Vomited up some foamy stuff on Monday morning, so it was back to the Pepcid. I gave him a Cerenia, late Monday because he was not eating much.. eating more dry than wet, and it was not much.

Tuesday: Artie had a good morning.. at least a good day, until I gave him the lactulose.. OMG...what a fight..

He was actually playing!! A couple of episodes of play time.. one in the morning and one in the afternoon, before the lactulose.. he was batting around a ball, and running to it when I lobbed it across the floor.
He was so cute...and mellow..

Artie did not eat as much as he usually does.. he cut down a bit...sigh.

He was so good with his sub-q's.. actually sleeping through it.

No poops yesterday. He surprised me by jumping up to the top of his tall cat tree!! He has a bit of a limp, but no worse.

NVet said he uses Adequan as an arthritis med.. It is an injection which goes directly into the muscle.. not sub-q.... ugh... I am not sure if I would try that..and I am not sure if he would want me to..

It is twice a week for 3-4 weeks and then once a month.....I will hold off on that.

Artie was so so so bad yesterday with his Lactulose dose, no matter what I do..
I had to burrito him... cover the arm of the chair with a towel, get a cup with lactulose and a syringe ready, a cup of water with a syringe ready, a couple of wet paper towels, and a dry paper towel..

It was a total disaster.. at one point, Artie had squirmed back from the burrito, with his head buried.. He poked it out, and I had to laugh at him.. He looked as if he was an old lady with a babushka on!! (kerchief)....

Still a fight.. lactulose on him, the towels, me, the coffee table.. what a mess.

And then, he jumps down, and the spittle comes out.. I have to chase after him to wipe his mouth!

and he is not swallowing it.. He is refusing to.. I swear, no matter how I give it to him. he seems to aspirate some. I think he is doing it to himself..

I heard him coughing a couple of times...

Artie ran away from me, to hide on the dining room chair, with the table cloth hiding him....

He is just too strong, and smart for me.

This morning.. no poops, yet.. he was playing a bit..

have to give him sub-q's..warming up now..

Artie was so content yesterday
during sub-q's:

View attachment 194036

View attachment 194037

View attachment 194038

At the top of the world:

View attachment 194039 View attachment 194040

Such a handsome golden mancat! It looks nice where you live -- lots of tall trees and greenery. Makes a nice backdrop for King Artie's orangeness, too
I think it's quite clear that Artie DOES NOT WANT that lactulose, no way, no how, no time!
Well, strong and smart is GOOD! Even if he does run you around a lot.
Sounds like he's jumping and getting around quite a lot better, so I'm sure I'm not alone in hoping it was only some kind of temporary "ouchie".
Wishing you both a good day/evening/night!

 

[margd]

What lovely photos of Artie. It's hard to believe he's actually undergoing a medical procedure at the time.

 

[foxxycat]

I love the pictures. He really is a good boy. My Floey would fight me at first but eventually she knew I would have sat on her if I had to..but never slept like this.

 

[artiemom]

Artie is really very good at just about any medical stuff and meds, EXCEPT for the lactulose.. That is the only thing he is horrible with... I am really lucky..

 

[Mamanyt1953]

If you ever want to howl with laughter, google "cats wearing babushkas" and GO POTTY FIRST!

This one reminded me of Artie the most.

OK...lactulose didn't go well, but it never does. Considering all, that's small potatoes...unless, of course, you are the one trying to squirt the stuff down a struggling cat's gullet. I'm glad that the limp is no worse, and probably somewhat better, or he wouldn't have attempted that leap. There are too many cozy spots much lower down for him, and he knows it. So we'll call that "a step in the right direction for now," and I'll take that. AND THE PLAYING! Oh, Artie, my love, my heart swells when you have such good days!

 

[artiemom]

Mamanyt1953

 

[BestBabyC]

May I ask what ails Artie?

 

[tarasgirl06]

If you ever want to howl with laughter, google "cats wearing babushkas" and GO POTTY FIRST!
View attachment 194086

This one reminded me of Artie the most.

OK...lactulose didn't go well, but it never does. Considering all, that's small potatoes...unless, of course, you are the one trying to squirt the stuff down a struggling cat's gullet. I'm glad that the limp is no worse, and probably somewhat better, or he wouldn't have attempted that leap. There are too many cozy spots much lower down for him, and he knows it. So we'll call that "a step in the right direction for now," and I'll take that. AND THE PLAYING! Oh, Artie, my love, my heart swells when you have such good days!

The "cats in babushkas" really are funny! I laughed out loud at quite a few of them. And I liked seeing the cat matryoshka (nesting) dolls, too. I was given some of these as a gift and they really are beautiful.