Casper has been having problems with constipation again.
Thankfully, we got him to the vet before it turned into megacolon, again.
The vet says that he'll be okay but he has to stay overnight so that they can give him an enema to get him cleaned out.
Casper had a case of megacolon, a couple of years ago. He went to the vet, got a couple of enemas to clean him out and he stayed overnight.
It took a few days for him to get back to normal but he eventually did.
The vet told us to give him Miralax every day, which he has been getting.
We're supposed to cut down on his dry food and give more wet food.
We're supposed to make sure he always has lots of water to drink and we have some pills for him when he needs them.
Casper was going along great but, last Friday night, he started showing signs of getting sluggish.
We upped his dosage of Miralax as much as we dared. Saturday and Sunday, he seemed to be okay but still a bit sluggish.
He was still eating and drinking but he didn't seem to be making any deposits in his litter box.
I called in to renew his prescription for Cisaprid. I was due to pick it up this morning, before work.
However, last night I happened to catch Casper on the way to the litter box and I stood by, quietly, and watched him.
He strained in the litter box and pretended to cover his business but, when I checked the box there was no deposit.
DAMN! I thought we had this beat!
We took him in, this afternoon and the vet took an X-ray. He was blocked up but, thankfully, it hadn't reached the megacolon stage.
The vet's going to give him the old "Roto-Rooter" and we'll be able to pick him up in the morning.
With a little luck, everything's going to be okay and he'll be home before noon.
However, the thing that's got me frustrated is that Casper is such a picky eater!
He ONLY wants his dry food and his kitty cookies. He's lukewarm about eating canned food. Sometimes he will. Sometimes, not.
He usually licks all the gravy off. That's better than nothing, I guess.
Once in a blue moon, he'll eat the scraps from a can of tuna.
Casper rarely eats any human food. Maybe a lick of Vegemite or butter, once in a while. He might nibble a bit of liverwurst if we warm it up, first.
He will not eat real chicken, raw or cooked. If you give him a small piece, he'll sniff it then turn up his nose and walk away.
He does like to "inspect" our food before we eat but he only comes to give it a sniff. He never eats.
He won't even eat sushi! I've never had a cat that turned down sushi! Every other cat I've had would be like "Om, Nom, Nom!!" for sushi. Not Casper!
The vet said that Casper might have food security issues because he was abandoned.
She said that, once a cat that's forced to fend for himself finds a reliable supply of food, the learn to only eat THAT food for fear that anything else might be poison or make them sick.
How the heck can we entice Casper to eat a better diet so that we won't have to keep taking him back to the vet to get cleaned out?
Thankfully, we got him to the vet before it turned into megacolon, again.
The vet says that he'll be okay but he has to stay overnight so that they can give him an enema to get him cleaned out.
Casper had a case of megacolon, a couple of years ago. He went to the vet, got a couple of enemas to clean him out and he stayed overnight.
It took a few days for him to get back to normal but he eventually did.
The vet told us to give him Miralax every day, which he has been getting.
We're supposed to cut down on his dry food and give more wet food.
We're supposed to make sure he always has lots of water to drink and we have some pills for him when he needs them.
Casper was going along great but, last Friday night, he started showing signs of getting sluggish.
We upped his dosage of Miralax as much as we dared. Saturday and Sunday, he seemed to be okay but still a bit sluggish.
He was still eating and drinking but he didn't seem to be making any deposits in his litter box.
I called in to renew his prescription for Cisaprid. I was due to pick it up this morning, before work.
However, last night I happened to catch Casper on the way to the litter box and I stood by, quietly, and watched him.
He strained in the litter box and pretended to cover his business but, when I checked the box there was no deposit.
DAMN! I thought we had this beat!
We took him in, this afternoon and the vet took an X-ray. He was blocked up but, thankfully, it hadn't reached the megacolon stage.
The vet's going to give him the old "Roto-Rooter" and we'll be able to pick him up in the morning.
With a little luck, everything's going to be okay and he'll be home before noon.
However, the thing that's got me frustrated is that Casper is such a picky eater!
He ONLY wants his dry food and his kitty cookies. He's lukewarm about eating canned food. Sometimes he will. Sometimes, not.
He usually licks all the gravy off. That's better than nothing, I guess.
Once in a blue moon, he'll eat the scraps from a can of tuna.
Casper rarely eats any human food. Maybe a lick of Vegemite or butter, once in a while. He might nibble a bit of liverwurst if we warm it up, first.
He will not eat real chicken, raw or cooked. If you give him a small piece, he'll sniff it then turn up his nose and walk away.
He does like to "inspect" our food before we eat but he only comes to give it a sniff. He never eats.
He won't even eat sushi! I've never had a cat that turned down sushi! Every other cat I've had would be like "Om, Nom, Nom!!" for sushi. Not Casper!
The vet said that Casper might have food security issues because he was abandoned.
She said that, once a cat that's forced to fend for himself finds a reliable supply of food, the learn to only eat THAT food for fear that anything else might be poison or make them sick.
How the heck can we entice Casper to eat a better diet so that we won't have to keep taking him back to the vet to get cleaned out?