yesterday ,cynthia1960  pointed out this excellent post from thingswithwings which if you have not read yet, I highly recommend, because, well, yeah.

I would now like to recommend this post from Prof. Susurro at Like A Whisper which is equally filled with win, though in a totally different way.

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Dart's shaved belly


Dart is doing well so far at home.  The bandage on his foot is where they left in his catheter just in case.  I am taking him in later today to have it removed. 

Hopefully the worst is over now and the healing and fur regrowth can begin.

( The gory details... ) 

The ultrasound guy is fully booked today, so we may not get to check for an obstruction in his gut until tomorrow.  He is on IV fluids, but was still vomiting as of an hour ago, even after prevention meds.  It also could be an ulcer. He will stay overnight tonight getting rehydrated, and after that I am not sure.  The good news is that his liver enzymes in the bloodwork this morning were back to the normal range.

My poor buddy.

I just got a bunch of new invite codes for Dreamwidth.  Anyone still looking for one?  Know anyone who is looking for one?

After finding blood in his urine on Sunday I had to take Dart back to the vet yesterday morning.  New doctor thinks he has a stress-induced Urinary Tract Infection which doesn't respond to antibiotics since it's not bacterial.  She gave him painkillers and some anti-straining meds and recommends subcutaneous fluids for a few days. 

I'll take him back this afternoon for today's subcue fluids so that I can monitor him after.  He did seem to feel better yesterday evening.  But now we are up to 2 pills twice a day plus liquid meds twice, plus the after fasting/can't eat for an hour pill once a day.  Poor thing.  He is taking it like a trooper so far though. 

This is in addition to whatever happened with his liver, which is still undiagnosed.  It's still another 25 days before I get any news on that at all.

I don't know much more than I knew before.  Dart continues to show signs of feeling like his old perky, active self.  His urinalysis was clear so the problem was / is wholly in the liver so far as we can tell.

The next steps are antibiotics for 30 days along with liver antioxidants to see if that stops whatever is going on in the liver, which is hopefully a bacterial infection rather than cancer or toxins.  After 30 days we re-test him and if he is still having liver issues then we will need to go further to find the cause, the next step would be an ultrasound I gather.

The new meds mean a new routine for all of us since the liver antioxidant needs to be taken after all-night fasting an hour before eating.  The boys are used to being fed when I wake up in the morning, so they were confused by the wait (and Dart by the pill) this morning, but mostly cooperative. 

I am just hoping for the best for my dear boy that the damage is minimal and can be kept that way.

Thanks to all who sent good thoughts and wishes!

Dart seems to be feeling better this morning.  He is back at the vet for observation and diagnosis, so I still don't know much.  He is on antibiotics now and perhaps that accounts in part for his feeling more energetic.  The x-ray showed a normal sized liver so I am hoping that this was perhaps just an infection and is not a more serious issue like liver cancer. 

Dart started acting strangely on Saturday night, he spent much of the night in hiding.  On Sunday I considered taking him to the emergency vet, but he ate ok and just seemed lethargic.  I figured it was not a crisis, so I got him an appointment with his vet today. He seemed a bit better on by Sunday evening and on Monday, more active though still not himself.

( here are the details I have so far )

So the bottom line is I will know more once I have met with his vet tonight and can get him back home to see how he does. But it sounds like it could be quite serious.  Given his history I knew he could have health issues down the road, but I didn't expect them to come so soon.

That explains it!  There was a little mis-communication and the catsitter thought I was coming home yesterday afternoon! No wonder the cats were out of food!  Well, no harm, no foul, it's not like these guys are going to starve in one day.  They had plenty of water, they were just really lonely...

My poor boys

Well, I was at home, now I am at work for at least a half day.  My flight from Chicago got in to SFO an amazing one hour early!  That allowed me time to go home and change, put the cheese haul in the fridge and feed and pet the boys for a minute.  I got to work at 11:00 AM and will try to hang in here til 3 PM.  Then I can go HOME!!

The poor boys were completely out of food when I got home, which means that the cat sitter probably had not been there yet this morning.  Dart was completely jazzed to have me home, as soon as he had eaten he jumped up into my arms and then followed me around as I got changed and partially unpacked.  I gave him as much petting and belly rubbing as I could before having to run out the door again.  Poor guy, he gets so lonely when I am gone.

Madison was great, but it's nice to be home.