Tara T. Cat Update
Last night Tara was a very good girl and ate some dry food. She apparently got into Willow's food this morning, too, because she had food in her stomach for the ultrasound. She was far more alert today, too, far more herself. Which meant she was very curious about the world on this trip to the vet--fortunately Jaime opted to carry her rather than put her in a cage, so she had a relatively relaxed journey full of new smells and sights. actually, she's a very good traveling cat. Too bad she's allergic to the outside (seriously) so her exposure has to be minimized.
Anyway, the ultrasound revealed there were no tumors or anything like that. There was a small irregularity near her pancreas that might have been scar tissue from a previous infection, and her kidneys were smaller than they should be (again possible infection) and her liver was very enlarged. She may have developed an infection in her kidneys, started to feel sickly, stopped eating, and then developed her current condition--I don't remember the big long name but it's basically fatty liver. The best way to treat for that is just nutrition and calories. Since we can't be sure she'll get enough without feeding her ourselves, they're going to insert a feeding tube for at least a week, maybe two.
We also got some antibiotics and something else for her liver and I need to go buy her some pepcid. Her surgery is tomorrow morning--they couldn't do it today because of the food in her tummy. Well, they would have around 3 or so, but I did not want to leave her there alone all day to cry and be scared and feel abandoned. And then all night. Ugh. I'll take her in the morning and pick her up in the afternoon--at least that way she'll be asleep for the bulk of the time she's alone.
We're having a fundraiser/party tomorrow night. I'm going to basically sell books, jam, salsa, baked goods, and whatever else people want that isn't nailed down. Amazingly, the donations covered all of today's expenses ($600!!!!!) but we still need to raise money for her feeding tube and food. Fortunately, Tara T Cat has a lot of fans/friends around here, and we're hoping they'll show up for some free food and to wish her well at least.
I'm not really surprised she'll eat the dry food but won't touch anything else. She's always been very brand loyal. I was honestly pretty stunned that she took to the wet food so fast. I think she probably lost her appetite for the wet food and that compounded issues she already had.
I'm very optimistic about things. The vet cautioned not to be complacent because she looks good (she looked so much better today) because cats who are sick like that can go down hill fast. Fortunately, they'll also do a payment plan for the feeding tube, so it was a complete no-brainer. I hope that within two weeks she's back to her old bossy, sleek self. She hasn't demanded morning cuddles in weeks.
ETA: By the way, the editing/beta offer still stands for anybody who donated. Please just email me or message me anytime, any project. And if there's anything else I can do to help you (I am a lady of a few talents) don't hesitate to get in contact. :) I would really, really like the chance to repay anybody I can. You each helped me save my baby's life, and I couldn't be more grateful. The prognosis is good, but she would have died from this, sooner rather than later. I can't even express how devastated I am at that thought.
Anyway, the ultrasound revealed there were no tumors or anything like that. There was a small irregularity near her pancreas that might have been scar tissue from a previous infection, and her kidneys were smaller than they should be (again possible infection) and her liver was very enlarged. She may have developed an infection in her kidneys, started to feel sickly, stopped eating, and then developed her current condition--I don't remember the big long name but it's basically fatty liver. The best way to treat for that is just nutrition and calories. Since we can't be sure she'll get enough without feeding her ourselves, they're going to insert a feeding tube for at least a week, maybe two.
We also got some antibiotics and something else for her liver and I need to go buy her some pepcid. Her surgery is tomorrow morning--they couldn't do it today because of the food in her tummy. Well, they would have around 3 or so, but I did not want to leave her there alone all day to cry and be scared and feel abandoned. And then all night. Ugh. I'll take her in the morning and pick her up in the afternoon--at least that way she'll be asleep for the bulk of the time she's alone.
We're having a fundraiser/party tomorrow night. I'm going to basically sell books, jam, salsa, baked goods, and whatever else people want that isn't nailed down. Amazingly, the donations covered all of today's expenses ($600!!!!!) but we still need to raise money for her feeding tube and food. Fortunately, Tara T Cat has a lot of fans/friends around here, and we're hoping they'll show up for some free food and to wish her well at least.
I'm not really surprised she'll eat the dry food but won't touch anything else. She's always been very brand loyal. I was honestly pretty stunned that she took to the wet food so fast. I think she probably lost her appetite for the wet food and that compounded issues she already had.
I'm very optimistic about things. The vet cautioned not to be complacent because she looks good (she looked so much better today) because cats who are sick like that can go down hill fast. Fortunately, they'll also do a payment plan for the feeding tube, so it was a complete no-brainer. I hope that within two weeks she's back to her old bossy, sleek self. She hasn't demanded morning cuddles in weeks.
ETA: By the way, the editing/beta offer still stands for anybody who donated. Please just email me or message me anytime, any project. And if there's anything else I can do to help you (I am a lady of a few talents) don't hesitate to get in contact. :) I would really, really like the chance to repay anybody I can. You each helped me save my baby's life, and I couldn't be more grateful. The prognosis is good, but she would have died from this, sooner rather than later. I can't even express how devastated I am at that thought.