Kitty is doing much better, thank you, thank you!

[kate]

We got the tests back from the vet (where he was overnight, so they could force feed him instead of us) and it turns out Fatty was fighting off an infection, that's what started all this. We're continuing on with the same regimen, but they've given him an antibiotic, so we should see marked improvement soon, and hopefully he'll be right as rain before too long.

Thanks for all your good thoughts and advice, all much appreciated! <3<3<3

Comments

[kaberett]

GOOD.

[angrboda]

Poor thing. I'm glad he's doing better. :)

[grammarwoman]

Oh, thank goodness! *HUGS*

[worlds_of_smoke]

oh good! <3

[yvi]

Yay, sounds good. I hope everything goes well from now on.

[china_shop]

Oh, so good to have the mystery solved. *hugs to all*

[montanaharper]

Glad he's doing better; I hope the upward trend continues! *hugs*

[iadorespike]

Oh, good news! I'll continue the good thoughts until he's all better, but I'm hoping this is the beginning of back to normal. :)

*hugs*

[st_aurafina]

Go Fatty! Such good news.

[adafrog]

I'm glad they figure it out.
{{{fatty}}}

[umadoshi]

So glad to hear it!

[nanila]

Hurrah! Go Fatty! :) So glad to hear this.

[synecdochic]

So, so glad! Hoping the meds make him feel better quickly.

If you wind up needing to give him subcutaneous fluids for dehydration, let me know -- I can give you plenty of tips. We've been watering Gabe regularly for over a year now. (His kidney disease has actually gone somewhat into remission! The vet is amazed.)

[kate]

OMG YES GIVE ME ALL YOUR TIPS!!! I have done subq injections on humans, but it's been a while, and it wasn't 100ml of water, it was, like, 10. <333

[synecdochic]

a) The smaller the needle, the slower the drip, but the more likely the cat is to tolerate it. We use 20ga. There's a specific brand that people report working best, and when we switched to it, Gabe stopped complaining so much -- I'm in the other room right now but will hopefully remember to go back and check on the brand before I hit 'send' on this email :D

(Ha, I did! Terumo T-sharp, 20 gauge.)

b) It really does help to warm the fluids before giving them -- cat body temp is higher, and so room temp fluids feel even colder to them. Some people put the bag in a pot of warm water; we wrap it in a heating pad turned to 'high' about 20 mins before we're ready to stab the cat.

c) Some people say that it really works to do the fluids while the cat's eating, because they'll ignore the needle/drip and concentrate on the food. We don't do it that way, because Gabe's appetite is iffy and he REALLY hated the fluids at first and we didn't want to create an association between "food = needles", but it really works for some people.

d) What we do is put the cat on the bed, right where he feels most secure, and have me hold him and rub his ears while Sarah does the stick and minds the fluids. If he's really restive, we'll drop his favorite treats for him to eat one-by-one throughout.

e) The drip goes faster if you stick the cat with the long part of the needle down and the opening facing upward.

f) Our vet tech says that most cats will start to get restive around 70-80mL, since they don't like the way it stretches out their skin. Sometimes we give him 50mL, shower him with treats, wait a few hours, and then give him the other 50mL; sometimes we do it two nights running.

[kate]

Oh, man, this is all brilliant, thank you so much! <333

[synecdochic]

The important thing to remember is just to stay calm and not try to fight the cat too badly -- any amount you can get into him is a plus, and you can always try again later.

[jesse_the_k]

So happy to hear this good news.