- Joined
- Sep 28, 2016
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Hi all, I apologize for the long read here. If it's too much to read all this right now, I'll bold the important bits. I've got a bit of an issue lately and I'm hoping someone has had a similar experience and can give me any tips. I recently rescued a Siamese cat who had a broken leg and needed sugery. The original owners were going to euthanize him since they could not afford any diagnostics or treatment. They surrendered him, and a friend who works at this particular hospital took him until she could find him a permanent home. I agreed to take him, cover his bills, and help him recover (ultimately adopting him). So please, before you say "Siamese cats are noisy- you should not have gotten one if you can't handle it" etc, please hear me out!
He had a badly broken hind limb and therefore had to undergo an extensive orthopedic surgery with a metal plate, screws, and wires. He was sent home with us with his leg bandaged, and with strict confinement/no activity instructions. Luckily we have a very large dog crate for when one of our cats is sick, traveling, etc. I knew that he was probably not going to like it, but I know that in order for the leg to heal properly and avoid infection/amputation due to complications, he has to be confined and not weight bearing. Well, he is obviously not happy with this at all. Anyway, that was 11/1/16, so it's been about three weeks now. He was doing okay, lots of extreme vocalizing, but otherwise okay.
Well, at his last bandage change, one of the newer technicians where I work (and usually take my cats) was the only one working that night, and did his bandage change. He had a small pressure sore, and I feel that the way she bandaged it ended up causing more complications. I noticed two days ago that his leg seemed not quite right and brought him into the emergency hospital to have him seen. They determined that the pressure sore was worse, but that otherwise his leg seemed to be healing okay. They decided that we would keep his bandage off and give him a cone, and just ensure that he had absolutely no activity. I expressed that this was going to be difficult for me, and asked if they could give me some type of sedative. Previously he had been on buprenex for his pain, but he has been so upset and bored in the cage that he screams endlessly, and so my doctor had given him some valium. He didn't seem to respond to this at all. This doctor said that we could try xanax and sent us home. Very early the next morning I noticed something not right, and it seemed he was having a bad reaction to the xanax. I rushed him to the emergency hospital again and they said that he was indeed having a dysphoric reaction to the alprazolam/xanax. I asked if they could keep him for a few hours and try and get him to settle down, since at the time I found him he was very very frantic and I was extremely worried- I also worried that in this state, he would do damage to his now unbandaged leg. They kept him overnight and said they'd call me the next day.
By this point, because of my Siamese's issues, my other cat's current skin issues, and several upcoming exams, I had not slept more than 2 hours in the past 2-3 days and I was really a mess. I don't have kids, but I definitely have a newfound appreciation and sympathy for mothers who have fussy babies (or newborn babies at all, honestly) and are not getting enough sleep. In addition to the sleep deprivation, I am always very upset whenever my kitties are uncomfortable and happy. I just have this tendency to suck up their stress like a sponge. I'm trying to not even worry about finances right now in addition to all this, but I did also have to quit my job about a week ago because with all of this going on and lots of work in my difficult biology courses, I had to make the decision that right now I do not have time to have a job so I can hopefully save my grades. Anyway (ranting here), I picked up my kitty (named Yao by the way, after the favorite buffet that me and his original rescuer love to go to, and also because that's exactly what his meows sound like) around noon on Sunday and brought him home with a good prognosis and some Gabapentin to try in addition to his clavamox. He did not seem to react well to benzodiazepines and hopefully the gabapentin was going to keep him calm so that he did not damage his now much more vulnerable leg, and was calm enough to stay crated. I also really hoped that it would help his excessive meowing. Don't get me wrong- I know that Siamese cats are extremely vocal. I have had cats all my life and I have never mined chatty cats- in fact, I love them. But his cries are extremely urgent sounding, almost surely because he is so bored in that damn cage most of the day, and we have neighbors with very thin walls. He meows relentlessly at maximum volume pretty much anytime he is in his cage.
I ended up having to return to the emergency hospital a THIRD time within two days when his pressure sores seemed to be getting worse. Keep in mind that each time I have to get him in the carrier, he becomes even more frantic and loud, which I'm sure my neighbors do not appreciate So finally, I took him in around midnight last night and just brought him home. The surgeon who performed his surgery took a look and said that the leg looks fine, and the pressure sores are not serious and should resolve now that he's not wearing a bandage anymore, but that it is absolutely critical he stays 100% crate confined. The gabapentin is helping slightly, but not entirely.
Main point: he is a very difficult case per doctors, we have been in and out of the hospital multiple times, and I don't know how to console him. He has no benefit from or bad reactions to several different sedatives we've attempted. What I've been doing is just keeping him in my arms as much time is possible. He is very happy with this, for the most part, but I don't know what to do about the times he needs to be in his crate. My fiance and I both are students and when we have to go to class, go grocery shopping, etc., he must be in his cage. I feel so terrible for him because I know he hates it. The vet and technicians have told me that I just need to give him tough love. I understand that this is necessary, but It's really hard when he cries so loud and so frequently. Right now I have a makeshift papoose on with him snuggled against me. After I finish this post, I have to get back to work on a very long takehome exam that I have due tomorrow. I'm just having a really hard time managing all of this, and I think it would make things much easier if he didn't do so horribly when he has to be crated. We have tried playing music for him, putting videos of birds/fish/etc. on my laptop for him, several different medications, giving him toys to play with, pretty much everything. He must be crated for at least another 4 weeks and I'm a bit at wits end. Has anyone had a problem like this? Do you have any tips, holistic calming supplements you know of, tips, etc. for me? I really appreciate it. I just want the best for my newly rescued baby, and for my other kitties as well who are getting stressed out from all of this. Thanks so much.
Once I can get pics on my computer, I'll upload them so you can see what a beautiful little sweetheart he is.
He had a badly broken hind limb and therefore had to undergo an extensive orthopedic surgery with a metal plate, screws, and wires. He was sent home with us with his leg bandaged, and with strict confinement/no activity instructions. Luckily we have a very large dog crate for when one of our cats is sick, traveling, etc. I knew that he was probably not going to like it, but I know that in order for the leg to heal properly and avoid infection/amputation due to complications, he has to be confined and not weight bearing. Well, he is obviously not happy with this at all. Anyway, that was 11/1/16, so it's been about three weeks now. He was doing okay, lots of extreme vocalizing, but otherwise okay.
Well, at his last bandage change, one of the newer technicians where I work (and usually take my cats) was the only one working that night, and did his bandage change. He had a small pressure sore, and I feel that the way she bandaged it ended up causing more complications. I noticed two days ago that his leg seemed not quite right and brought him into the emergency hospital to have him seen. They determined that the pressure sore was worse, but that otherwise his leg seemed to be healing okay. They decided that we would keep his bandage off and give him a cone, and just ensure that he had absolutely no activity. I expressed that this was going to be difficult for me, and asked if they could give me some type of sedative. Previously he had been on buprenex for his pain, but he has been so upset and bored in the cage that he screams endlessly, and so my doctor had given him some valium. He didn't seem to respond to this at all. This doctor said that we could try xanax and sent us home. Very early the next morning I noticed something not right, and it seemed he was having a bad reaction to the xanax. I rushed him to the emergency hospital again and they said that he was indeed having a dysphoric reaction to the alprazolam/xanax. I asked if they could keep him for a few hours and try and get him to settle down, since at the time I found him he was very very frantic and I was extremely worried- I also worried that in this state, he would do damage to his now unbandaged leg. They kept him overnight and said they'd call me the next day.
By this point, because of my Siamese's issues, my other cat's current skin issues, and several upcoming exams, I had not slept more than 2 hours in the past 2-3 days and I was really a mess. I don't have kids, but I definitely have a newfound appreciation and sympathy for mothers who have fussy babies (or newborn babies at all, honestly) and are not getting enough sleep. In addition to the sleep deprivation, I am always very upset whenever my kitties are uncomfortable and happy. I just have this tendency to suck up their stress like a sponge. I'm trying to not even worry about finances right now in addition to all this, but I did also have to quit my job about a week ago because with all of this going on and lots of work in my difficult biology courses, I had to make the decision that right now I do not have time to have a job so I can hopefully save my grades. Anyway (ranting here), I picked up my kitty (named Yao by the way, after the favorite buffet that me and his original rescuer love to go to, and also because that's exactly what his meows sound like) around noon on Sunday and brought him home with a good prognosis and some Gabapentin to try in addition to his clavamox. He did not seem to react well to benzodiazepines and hopefully the gabapentin was going to keep him calm so that he did not damage his now much more vulnerable leg, and was calm enough to stay crated. I also really hoped that it would help his excessive meowing. Don't get me wrong- I know that Siamese cats are extremely vocal. I have had cats all my life and I have never mined chatty cats- in fact, I love them. But his cries are extremely urgent sounding, almost surely because he is so bored in that damn cage most of the day, and we have neighbors with very thin walls. He meows relentlessly at maximum volume pretty much anytime he is in his cage.
I ended up having to return to the emergency hospital a THIRD time within two days when his pressure sores seemed to be getting worse. Keep in mind that each time I have to get him in the carrier, he becomes even more frantic and loud, which I'm sure my neighbors do not appreciate So finally, I took him in around midnight last night and just brought him home. The surgeon who performed his surgery took a look and said that the leg looks fine, and the pressure sores are not serious and should resolve now that he's not wearing a bandage anymore, but that it is absolutely critical he stays 100% crate confined. The gabapentin is helping slightly, but not entirely.
Main point: he is a very difficult case per doctors, we have been in and out of the hospital multiple times, and I don't know how to console him. He has no benefit from or bad reactions to several different sedatives we've attempted. What I've been doing is just keeping him in my arms as much time is possible. He is very happy with this, for the most part, but I don't know what to do about the times he needs to be in his crate. My fiance and I both are students and when we have to go to class, go grocery shopping, etc., he must be in his cage. I feel so terrible for him because I know he hates it. The vet and technicians have told me that I just need to give him tough love. I understand that this is necessary, but It's really hard when he cries so loud and so frequently. Right now I have a makeshift papoose on with him snuggled against me. After I finish this post, I have to get back to work on a very long takehome exam that I have due tomorrow. I'm just having a really hard time managing all of this, and I think it would make things much easier if he didn't do so horribly when he has to be crated. We have tried playing music for him, putting videos of birds/fish/etc. on my laptop for him, several different medications, giving him toys to play with, pretty much everything. He must be crated for at least another 4 weeks and I'm a bit at wits end. Has anyone had a problem like this? Do you have any tips, holistic calming supplements you know of, tips, etc. for me? I really appreciate it. I just want the best for my newly rescued baby, and for my other kitties as well who are getting stressed out from all of this. Thanks so much.
Once I can get pics on my computer, I'll upload them so you can see what a beautiful little sweetheart he is.