Krista's Care

[daftcat75]

She's back. Dr told me she pooped a little on the transfer from cage to carrier. Luckily I told her to put down a pee pad inside. She was angry as lion with a thorn in his paw when they brought her out. Sitting in my own poop would make me angry too. I asked them for a cardboard box and proceeded to dump a growling, hissing, bitey (gummy?) Krista into for the ride home. Once I got her out of the carrier, turns out she only left a couple of spots on the pee pad. So I gave them the pee pad, left Krista in the box, put her carrier on top, and took her home. Sadly, she weighs so little I barely noticed her in the box. They weighed her at 6.1 lbs. That makes so sad and scared for her. She really needs to stop losing weight already!

Vet office said on outtake, "no food until she's walking in a straight line again after sedation." I let her out of the box at home and she walks in a straight line straight to her food plate and then to the kitchen. "You convinced me. I'll feed you." They also told me to restrict her portion for that first meal. So I got a very hungry Krista to eat all her Proviable dose today in a half portion of food. We'll get back on standard feeding times in a couple of hours.

 

[daftcat75]

Her poopiness (or is it Her Poopiness?) has me so jumpy that anything remotely sounding like litter box, and I'm up to follow her in there. So I hear what sounds like motorboat flatulence. I leap up to seal her off in poop jail. She's just scratching the scratching post in the office. Whew!

Also, I'm happy she likes to drink from my glass. I finally get to see her drinking water. The sedation drugs always make her so thirsty.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Her poopiness (or is it Her Poopiness?) has me so jumpy that anything remotely sounding like litter box, and I'm up to follow her in there. So I hear what sounds like motorboat flatulence. I leap up to seal her off in poop jail. She's just scratching the scratching post in the office. Whew!

Also, I'm happy she likes to drink from my glass. I finally get to see her drinking water. The sedation drugs always make her so thirsty.

Awww. Yeah, I get that too sometimes with scratchings, since I have posts and pads all over the house.

 

[daftcat75]

They told me to restrict her feedings tonight because the sedation drugs might make her nauseated. But she is just pacing the apartment looking for food or flakes--I gave her one fish flake in her carrier when I forcibly removed her from under the bookcase and plopped her unceremoniously into it this morning. Now she's visiting all the usual hiding spots from last year looking for more fish flakes like they are back on the menu again.

I don't know why she isn't singing and dancing in my face yet. I'll feed her again in an hour. I want to feed her again. But I also want it to stay down. Proviable was in this half portion. CBD will be in the next half portion. And for second dinner at 9ish, she can have a full unpoisoned ounce again.


Also, I have a craft beer, a coffee milk stout with sea salt and milk sugar on nitro. I earned this. I can't wait to bust into it. But I will wait. If she has to wait, so do I.

 

[daftcat75]

She arrived in a nice multiroom carrier. She came home in a box.
But the carrier did live to see another day. There was just no getting her back in the carrier once I got her in the box.

 

[tarasgirl06]

They told me to restrict her feedings tonight because the sedation drugs might make her nauseated. But she is just pacing the apartment looking for food or flakes--I gave her one fish flake in her carrier when I forcibly removed her from under the bookcase and plopped her unceremoniously into it this morning. Now she's visiting all the usual hiding spots from last year looking for more fish flakes like they are back on the menu again.

I don't know why she isn't singing and dancing in my face yet. I'll feed her again in an hour. I want to feed her again. But I also want it to stay down. Proviable was in this half portion. CBD will be in the next half portion. And for second dinner at 9ish, she can have a full unpoisoned ounce again.


Also, I have a craft beer, a coffee milk stout with sea salt and milk sugar on nitro. I earned this. I can't wait to bust into it. But I will wait. If she has to wait, so do I.

That is very gallant of you. I would do the same. My Three are ALWAYS cleaned for, watered and fed before I even think about food. They deserve no less.

 

[daftcat75]

An hour and two belly rides later and she finally gets another 3/4 oz with CBD and I get my milk stout. This would be awesome with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Next time!

 

[daftcat75]

I think between the vet day, the sedation drugs, the gap in the Mirtaz, something is making her eat slower today and that makes me scared and sad.

Because even if her eating picks up later, is it enough? What happens if she eats more calories than her now 6 lbs frame could possibly require, poops perfectly, and still can't maintain or gain weight? Something is robbing her of calories or nutrients. It could be simply the chronic loose stools and that one good stool yesterday does not a recovery make. But she has been requiring a lot of calories for a long time and her thyroid has never been an issue.

I'm picking up a rabbit today and will supplement her diet with fresh rabbit meat and rabbit meat stock.

I guess we're waiting on test results before we decide on any course of treatment. And we have to wait until her ultrasound on Wednesday before we can start pred. I told the doctor that the last office gave me a pred that made me angry and bitter about its taste at only 1/4 of the dose expected for her. "Give me a tiny pill and we'll wrestle twice a day if that's what it takes to get her weight back up."

 

[tarasgirl06]

I think between the vet day, the sedation drugs, the gap in the Mirtaz, something is making her eat slower today and that makes me scared and sad.

Because even if her eating picks up later, is it enough? What happens if she eats more calories than her now 6 lbs frame could possibly require, poops perfectly, and still can't maintain or gain weight? Something is robbing her of calories or nutrients. It could be simply the chronic loose stools and that one good stool yesterday does not a recovery make. But she has been requiring a lot of calories for a long time and her thyroid has never been an issue.

I'm picking up a rabbit today and will supplement her diet with fresh rabbit meat and rabbit meat stock.

I guess we're waiting on test results before we decide on any course of treatment. And we have to wait until her ultrasound on Wednesday before we can start pred. I told the doctor that the last office gave me a pred that made me angry and bitter about its taste at only 1/4 of the dose expected for her. "Give me a tiny pill and we'll wrestle twice a day if that's what it takes to get her weight back up."

My beloved Sun was diagnosed with dry-form FIP at age 2 and lived to be just around 16, almost unprecedented at that time. He received regular injections and cortisone or pred when needed, as well as B12 to boost his appetite. With the Immunoregulin for his FIP itself, we kept him going strong and eating well for most of that time.

 

[daftcat75]

She had a great poop earlier. Perfect even. One and done!

But about an hour ago, she had another great poop, if not on the large side.

And this time she was restless afterwards. It's so nice that I know her tells. And she's learning mine. Just as she's picking her spot, she looks at me, I get up to move towards her, and she scurries off into poop jail.

It wasn't a blowout pudding poop. It was two runny fingers of pale poop.

I got some blood results back but I forgot to ask for them to be emailed to me. I'll drop in tomorrow and ask for them. I need to get the new vet's email address while I'm at it. One thing I miss already about the old office is that I knew all the front office staff. But anyway.

The doctor said nothing remarkable except a slight elevation in ALT (liver enzyme.) So what else is new? I asked how slight? 200? 300? 170. 170? Mirtazapine can be responsible for that. Not going to worry about this.

I was searching Google for "what causes pale poop?" and the results suggested an issue with liver, gallbladder, or pancreas.

The X-rays suggested there could be an issue with liver or gallbladder. I wonder if she has gallstones.

Gallstones, one of the most common gallbladder diseases, can block the bile duct, causing intense pain, nausea, vomiting, and pale stool.

Or "stuffiness" in her bile ducts. I wonder if it's simple as another course of ursodiol.

Let's see what the rest of the results and the ultrasound says.

That she's more good poop than bad today is a hopeful sign. Her disposition and willingness to socialize and play is also a very good sign. And maybe when I have something other than rabbit and "poisoned" rabbit to offer, she might show up in her feed me spot again.

I started her on an anti-inflammatory supplement that contains turmeric. Between this and the CBD, maybe she gets some relief until the doctor can prescribe a treatment course.

 

[daftcat75]

I know I focus a lot on her input, output, and weight.

But behavior, attitude, disposition, she's nowhere near "cat scores" yet.

When my last cat had an aggressive oral cancer, I learned about cat scores as a way to determine when the quality of life had dipped so low that the cat wasn't doing cat things anymore (eating, affection, grooming, playing, sunning, etc.) Krista may have her rough moments directly after a meal where she wants her bookcase time. But those pass. Right now she's sitting in my lap, purring away.

She's persistent and resilient. I believe in her!

 

[Furballsmom]

Krista baby, we love you!!

 

[CL56]

Krista baby, we love you!!

I second that !

 

[daftcat75]

Some belly rider had a 4am feed me spring in her step and voice. Trillin like Dylan: I can’t make out what she’s singing, but I like her sound!

Since I figure we’ll feed first breakfast in an hour and since I reckon she’ll continue her song and dance for an hour...

I thought this would be a good time to squeeze in a medicine portion so first breakfast can start unpoisoned. This morning’s med stack: a smidgen of Celloquent Gold (anti-inflammatory supplement with turmeric and aloe), 3 drops of CBD oil, and a pump of salmon oil mixed into a half portion of rabbit. She ate most of it. Then I guess I insulted her by scooping the remainder of the feeder portion she was having trouble picking up and adding it to the remainder of the medicine portion. She says she’s done eating and she’s sitting on bed with me now.

Since the lights will start coming on in 40 minutes, I guess neither of us are going back to sleep now.

I’m sure she ate more than zero of the medicine and that’s all I need right now. We are so far away from the recommended dose. 3/4 tsp recommended. The smidgen spoon is 1/32 tsp. Hopefully this stuff won’t make things worse. But that’s why we start low and slow.

 

[MissClouseau]

I was searching Google for "what causes pale poop?" and the results suggested an issue with liver, gallbladder, or pancreas.

The X-rays suggested there could be an issue with liver or gallbladder. I wonder if she has gallstones.

Or "stuffiness" in her bile ducts. I wonder if it's simple as another course of ursodiol.

Let's see what the rest of the results and the ultrasound says.

That she's more good poop than bad today is a hopeful sign. Her disposition and willingness to socialize and play is also a very good sign. And maybe when I have something other than rabbit and "poisoned" rabbit to offer, she might show up in her feed me spot again.

I started her on an anti-inflammatory supplement that contains turmeric. Between this and the CBD, maybe she gets some relief until the doctor can prescribe a treatment course.

Is it possible the fat content in her diet could be too much for her? Hima also has liver-bile issues, she was hospitalized around the same time Krista did and was also on ursodiol and all. Anyway, I read low-fat diets are the best for some liver and other digestive issues and in fact, the wet foods that disturb Hima the most seem to be the greasy (or jelly) wet foods. She does better on Pro Plan Delicate canned food that is probably mostly fish + 14% turkey, than Naturea Chicken which is chicken + chicken liver + water and vitamin additives formula, or Schesir Bio Organic foods. I considered if chicken was the problem but her dry food has chicken, and sometimes she still eats boiled chicken breast as a treat without having visible trouble. Similar reaction to greasy food from one of the strays I take care of.

Although, really unclear if it has to do with liver or if there is a secondary thing like acid reflux (there usually is) and greasy food disturbing is more about that.

 

[daftcat75]

By 6am, the feeder portion mixed with the medicine portion were both gone.

She was warming up her pipes again. She even tried to belly ride me while I was lying on my side. She climbed precariously onto my hip and that’s where she sat. Very proud of herself I’m sure.


Final score yesterday: 7.3 oz for 223 calories. 2 perfect poops, 1 pale poop remainder. No pudding blowouts or barfs.

First breakfast was finished before I had completed clean-up and recorded the overnight meals in her food journal.

Her first pass on her second breakfast is quite impressive. Radiator time! Possibly followed by bookcase time.

I still have to give her the Mirtaz wet willy today and a B-12 shot.

 

[daftcat75]

Is it possible the fat content in her diet could be too much for her? Hima also has liver-bile issues, she was hospitalized around the same time Krista did and was also on ursodiol and all. Anyway, I read low-fat diets are the best for some liver and other digestive issues and in fact, the wet foods that disturb Hima the most seem to be the greasy (or jelly) wet foods. She does better on Pro Plan Delicate canned food that is probably mostly fish + 14% turkey, than Naturea Chicken which is chicken + chicken liver + water and vitamin additives formula, or Schesir Bio Organic foods. I considered if chicken was the problem but her dry food has chicken, and sometimes she still eats boiled chicken breast as a treat without having visible trouble. Similar reaction to greasy food from one of the strays I take care of.

Although, really unclear if it has to do with liver or if there is a secondary thing like acid reflux (there usually is) and greasy food disturbing is more about that.

She's not barfing except when she has the extra poops. I don't suspect acid reflux. Eliminate the extra poops and the barfing will go away too.

Because of her IBD and through much trial and error, Rawz is the only canned I will feed her. These are my options based on the proteins she can have. I can lower her fat with rabbit and pumpkin but I'm not sure how she'd handle the extra pumpkin bulk in her stool. Seems like she's already producing more stool than she can handle. Then again, we may be having rabbit pate shortages soon. My most reliable store says they are back-ordered for a couple of weeks now. It might be a good idea to bring the rabbit and pumpkin back in the mix to weather out the shortage if they don't have new stock coming in this week.

Flavor	As Fed	DMB	% of Calories
Rabbit	7	32	54
Turkey	9.5	43	65
Rabbit and Pumpkin	6	27	48
Duck	7	32	54

 

[tarasgirl06]

By 6am, the feeder portion mixed with the medicine portion were both gone.

She was warming up her pipes again. She even tried to belly ride me while I was lying on my side. She climbed precariously onto my hip and that’s where she sat. Very proud of herself I’m sure.


Final score yesterday: 7.3 oz for 223 calories. 2 perfect poops, 1 pale poop remainder. No pudding blowouts or barfs.

First breakfast was finished before I had completed clean-up and recorded the overnight meals in her food journal.

Her first pass on her second breakfast is quite impressive. Radiator time! Possibly followed by bookcase time.

I still have to give her the Mirtaz wet willy today and a B-12 shot.

This probably doesn't apply in Krista's case, but we have occasional pale poops here, and I don't worry because I feed a widely varied diet (of foods they regularly eat -- nothing new) and I believe it's because of the food that time, not anything wrong health-wise.
Sounds like you're both in a good place right now. Keep it up!

 

[daftcat75]

This probably doesn't apply in Krista's case, but we have occasional pale poops here, and I don't worry because I feed a widely varied diet (of foods they regularly eat -- nothing new) and I believe it's because of the food that time, not anything wrong health-wise.
Sounds like you're both in a good place right now. Keep it up!

If it was just the occasional pale poop that she deposited in the box each and every time, I might not be so concerned. But I don't want to follow her pooper around the apartment with a Spot Bot chasing bonus bombs no matter what the color.

In any case, I'm fairly certain the diagnosis will end in some kind of -itis (and hopefully not an -oma) and that administering anti-inflammatory supplements should help.

This is the Celloquent Gold product I am giving her. 1/32 tsp twice a day until I'm certain it's not making things worse. She only had her first dose last night and again this morning. So we're still waiting on the first poop after administering this stuff.

Celloquent Gold | Multi-Nutrient with Turmeric | Immune Support for Cats | Vitality Science

Multinutrient with added Turmeric for cats, a potent anti-inflammatory, used for thousands of years and has been proven to help fight against cancer.

vitalityscience.com

 

[daftcat75]

I just remembered that I still have some Alnutrin. She's never liked it because I've always used chubs of mystery ground rather than freshly ground thigh meat. I've been worrying about how I would balance the rabbits I buy her because I wasn't sure there would be enough organs. But I think I might be able to come up with 23 grams of rabbit liver. If there's a 1 lbs of meat on the legs.