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Introducing Betty White
- Thread starter daftcat75
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She's been a bit pushy now that she's got enough pain relief. She somehow tricked me into feeding her early for breakfast, lunch, and now dinner today. I think she's been changing the clocks on me. I was trying to make Super Bowl Sunday seem more like a regular day to avoid this very outcome by watching it in the office. She wasn't fooled. She came in around four and started crying at me when she realized I wasn't really working. Joke's on her now. I just gave her 37.5 mg of gabapentin. She'll sleep very well right through the halftime show. By third or fourth quarter, I can rejoin her in the front room to get us back on schedule. And actually, I do have a little bit of work to do right now because this furry interruption has been pulling this business all week. 
A furry interruption is the BEST kind (and always welcomed here!), right?She's been a bit pushy now that she's got enough pain relief. She somehow tricked me into feeding her early for breakfast, lunch, and now dinner today. I think she's been changing the clocks on me. I was trying to make Super Bowl Sunday seem more like a regular day to avoid this very outcome by watching it in the office. She wasn't fooled. She came in around four and started crying at me when she realized I wasn't really working. Joke's on her now. I just gave her 37.5 mg of gabapentin. She'll sleep very well right through the halftime show. By third or fourth quarter, I can rejoin her in the front room to get us back on schedule. And actually, I do have a little bit of work to do right now because this furry interruption has been pulling this business all week.
Hoping all is well in the House Of Betty. 
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She's eating so well and finishing her plates that I fear she will gain more weight this week if I don't trim portions. I've budgeted for a long time now with the assumption that she'd leave a remainder somewhere. Now it's clean plates all the time. She turns them in early and then has the gall to ask for another. It's a quality problem to have.Hoping all is well in the House Of Betty.
But it also makes me a little sad. Because she's only eating this well with enough gabapentin in her. I spoke a long time with her doc the other day when she had me come in for another in-person consult instead of an after hours call that neither one of us really wants to make or receive. She showed me Betty's X-rays. And while her radiologist's job is still safe, it seemed for a second there that maybe I could actually see what she was talking about. She was trying to show me that the tooth she couldn't extract didn't really have roots (or much of a distinct shape) left to extract. It was all this fuzzy mess where tooth and jaw blended together. It seems that burring that tooth remnant down below the gum line was probably the only thing she could do. She assumes the nerve had died long ago. I trust she did what she could do with the training that she has. She told me it's a good thing that Betty responds so well to the gabapentin because she may simply have something called "feline orofacial pain syndrome." This one ranks right up there with "fever of unknown origin" and "idiopathic gastroenteritis" (aka "they just barf sometimes") on the Mt Rushmore of unhelpful diagnoses. We both agreed that a dentist consultation would probably be in her future at some point. But she's not concerned with the gabapentin usage. "It's quite safe and if she does have feline orofacial pain syndrome, she's already receiving the treatment for it" And if she has changes that may be consistent with arthritis, then she's already receiving one treatment for that as well. So for now, as long as she's responding well to the gabapentin, we're going to give her and my wallet a rest.
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It’s a tough call. You’re doing your best. Think of lions in Africa, probably going through the same dental struggles, w/ nobody to look after their teeth. Remember, you have to look after your own teeth too, not an easy thing in a country which charges so freakin much for a single (human) dental visit. If the nerve died a long time ago, well, then…there is no pain? Not your fault. You can tell & empathize w/ what she might have gone through but all you have is now. Do your best with that and give yourself a pat on the back. This is a VERY loved cat, and one of the reasons why so many of us pay attention to your thread. YOU CARE. You set the bar high for the rest of us, and show us a way forward. That’s all you can do.
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Absolutely agree with you,
Margot Lane
and you too,
daftcat75
-- Betty's thriving and it sounds like she's enjoying her food and her life! 
Margot Lane
and you too,
daftcat75
-- Betty's thriving and it sounds like she's enjoying her food and her life! - Thread Starter Thread Starter
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Is it dinner time yet? Betty was ready a good hour early today.
Not pictured is the kitchen counter just to the right of Betty (viewer’s right, Betty’s left.)
Not pictured is the kitchen counter just to the right of Betty (viewer’s right, Betty’s left.)
Is that a Do Not Disturb door hanger? I don't think Betty is paying attention to it. *FEED ME! FEED ME! FEED ME NOW!*Is it dinner time yet? Betty was ready a good hour early today.
View attachment 443752
View attachment 443754
View attachment 443753
Not pictured is the kitchen counter just to the right of Betty (viewer’s right, Betty’s left.)
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I believe it is flipped to the Service Please side. Which she also kindly ignores.Is that a Do Not Disturb door hanger? I don't think Betty is paying attention to it. *FEED ME! FEED ME! FEED ME NOW!*
*Only if she didn't place it like that!*I believe it is flipped to the Service Please side. Which she also kindly ignores.
We have a door hanger here, too. It has a bas-relief of an orange tabby, and the message, "BEWARE! ATTACK CAT ON DUTY!"
What would Betty have to say about this, I wonder?
How is Betty and her dad ? I miss my daily updates....
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She lost about a poop’s worth. This is good.
She’s been getting pudgy. I wouldn’t mind if she came back closer to 10.5. But I’m also good with this pace. I’ve been leaving just a few grams off each plate. This is especially necessary since she’s getting extra A/D both in the extra gaba (or twaba as I’ve labeled it since it’s the 12.5 mg dose) and also the starter strips.I really do believe she has a dentist appointment in her future. I just have to make it. I’m debating between the one I know who’s farther (2 hours) or the one I don’t know who’s potentially booked further out. He’s only an hour away. But it’s a tough urban hour. Either way I’d probably want to book buffer nights in a nearby hotel the night before and after her appointment so we’re not stressed about driving and making our appointments on the same day.
Shoot! She’s a fugitive of the city. I forgot to pay her registration on time.Part of that is that her registration requires a rabies shot and we needed to do her dental first. I have a letter from her vet recommending that she not get her shot this year. I just have to put it altogether and figure out if I’m emailing or printing (need a new printer ink cartridge) and mailing it in
After long months waiting to get to and through her dental appointment, I’m just trying to take a breather before we press on to the next thing. Sad and exhausted that the dental didn’t fix her up like I hoped it would.
I know the feeling. These days, it's all too prevalent and all too warranted. But slow and steady (and determined, and careful) wins the race.View attachment 444033
She lost about a poop’s worth. This is good.
I really do believe she has a dentist appointment in her future. I just have to make it. I’m debating between the one I know who’s farther (2 hours) or the one I don’t know who’s potentially booked further out. He’s only an hour away. But it’s a tough urban hour. Either way I’d probably want to book buffer nights in a nearby hotel the night before and after her appointment so we’re not stressed about driving and making our appointments on the same day.
Shoot! She’s a fugitive of the city. I forgot to pay her registration on time.Part of that is that her registration requires a rabies shot and we needed to do her dental first. I have a letter from her vet recommending that she not get her shot this year. I just have to put it altogether and figure out if I’m emailing or printing (need a new printer ink cartridge) and mailing it in
After long months waiting to get to and through her dental appointment, I’m just trying to take a breather before we press on to the next thing. Sad and exhausted that the dental didn’t fix her up like I hoped it would.
Could you scan the doc on your phone and send it in that way?
Well, that's not a lot extra to cause concern. Hopefully she'll go back to her ideal weight once this adjustment period is over.
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I'm afraid you have it backwards. I already have a scanned copy of the doc's letter. I suspect the city wants it mailed in. That means I finally have to buy a new ink cartridge that I've been putting off all this time because I haven't needed it.
Betty's been leaving remainders on breakfast. I'm not terribly concerned yet because she gets extra A/D at breakfast (we're up to five capsules in the AM now! and four in the PM) and she's not leaving (significant) remainders anywhere else. I've been saying her overnight is there as a convenience rather than a requirement. Well, she's just shifted that overnight remainder to breakfast, I suppose. As long as she isn't leaving remainders on all meals like before, I won't be concerned. We'll just keep checking in on Sundays to make sure it's all good. I may try adding some Mouser to breakfast to get more calories and more protein. If she's going to leave a remainder, let's make what she does eat count.
I agreed to upgrade my Xfinity modem and I wish I hadn't. I've got so much home automation. I'm taking a site survey to ensure that what was online before comes back online after. And in the process, I'm having to do some detective work matching IP addresses to devices. Wish me luck!
You have Mouser? Yeah! Hope Betty will (still? yet?) like that as another variety in her diet.
NINE capsules? Wow.
Has the city SAID they want it mailed? I put off getting a new cartridge until I couldn't any more, because I VERY rarely use the all-in-1 anymore. And I've used it precisely once since loading the new cartridge, hoping it doesn't dry out before I need it again. There are so few times that physical copies of anything are called for, in my life.
Oh yeah, I do!
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Well that was sad and disappointing.
She took a healthy, but not overly large (about 10-12 grams), first pass on breakfast this morning. Turned around, and barfed it back up. I got to see both the orange capsule fragments that belonged to her ondansetron and the big white capsule that is her gabapentin. I assume the other capsules also came back up. Rather than go through the whole medication process again, I quickly decided if there were two that I believed were both essential for her to have this morning, and safe if she already had some. She got a second chance to take the tiny ondansetron and the big 25 mg gabapentin. I gave her a tiny amount of A/D to chase those, and we called it good on breakfast this morning. Well, I called it "okay." As long as she doesn't make a habit of this. Gosh, I can't even remember the last time she had a scarf and barf. She seems no worse for the wear though. We'll see how she's feeling after third sleep. If there's a bright spot to this, she still has plenty of breakfast for after third sleep.
She took a healthy, but not overly large (about 10-12 grams), first pass on breakfast this morning. Turned around, and barfed it back up. I got to see both the orange capsule fragments that belonged to her ondansetron and the big white capsule that is her gabapentin. I assume the other capsules also came back up. Rather than go through the whole medication process again, I quickly decided if there were two that I believed were both essential for her to have this morning, and safe if she already had some. She got a second chance to take the tiny ondansetron and the big 25 mg gabapentin. I gave her a tiny amount of A/D to chase those, and we called it good on breakfast this morning. Well, I called it "okay." As long as she doesn't make a habit of this. Gosh, I can't even remember the last time she had a scarf and barf. She seems no worse for the wear though. We'll see how she's feeling after third sleep. If there's a bright spot to this, she still has plenty of breakfast for after third sleep.
Hoping Betty feels better soon!
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She had a good third sleep and finished her breakfast while I finished cooking mine. I don’t see any new piles. I think she’s alright. Maybe a pill didn’t go down right, maybe she had too much A/D, maybe she ate too fast. She won’t tell me. And as long as this is just a one-off, I don’t need her to.
