Your daily cat and kitten news

[Epona]

I'm not going to lie, I'm having a bad night. Nate is on a night shift and my anxiety takes over with a not-quite-well cat to care for in the night by myself (this isn't a moan about him working btw, we need the money, just a moan about my issues).

So Radar ate some yesterday afternoon. He ate in the small hours of this morning and vomited it up and was looking really miserable. I gave his tummy a chance to rest for a bit then offered a very small amount of food with his anti-inflammatory medication in it - which he ate and has kept down so far. He's now looking much perkier, the anti-inflammatory/painkiller is doing its job. I didn't ask how many stitches he had in his mouth because I kind of didn't want to know, but I know that the poor fella is in pain when his medication wears off, I can see it by the way he looks and behaves. He kind of sits with his pupils dilated and grinding his teeth a bit, must be really sore. I am sure it won't be long until it heals, cats tend to heal quite quickly when there's no infection. There are good signs that he is happy to be alive when he has had his pain meds, he wants to get in/on everything and explore and groom and cuddle and normal cat stuff. I keep having to remind myself this is only temporary.

When Nate gets home from work in the morning we're going to check his feeding tube again to see whether we can get anything down it, also check the stoma again make sure it looks ok. If the tube is still not usable, or the stoma looks dodgy, we'll phone our local vet to see if we can get an appointment.

 

[Epona]

Radar has eaten a pouch of food this morning, so he's not about to keel over.

There is still a kink in the feeding tube. I have an appointment with our local vet at 5.30pm (it's not too urgent since the little guy has eaten this morning).

 

[Baronage-Phase]

View attachment 128681

Love this....Tobytoes looks like he's the James Bond of all cats...

 

[hegley]

Radar has eaten a pouch of food this morning.

Yay for Radar . I know you must be frantic with worry, and that will be really taking a toll as it's been going on so long now but from everything you've said it sounds as though Radar is coping with everything quite well, all things considered. Pets bring us so much joy but bloody hell, they put us through the wringer too when they are unwell - and I'm pretty sure they're quite oblivious to it most of the time!

 

[xsunnysuex]

Ok I'm officially loosing it!!
Watching the opening of the winter paralympics. Glance at the tv while concentrating on something on my laptop, and think " Bloody hell. That cat looks just like Toby"

Didn't even enter my head as to why there would be a cat there.

 

[Epona]

Yay for Radar . I know you must be frantic with worry, and that will be really taking a toll as it's been going on so long now but from everything you've said it sounds as though Radar is coping with everything quite well, all things considered. Pets bring us so much joy but bloody hell, they put us through the wringer too when they are unwell - and I'm pretty sure they're quite oblivious to it most of the time!

It's been a month since his surgery, I feel like I inhabit a different world now - a world of liquid food and syringes and bandages and vet visits and a feeding schedule.

If he gets through this and has another few years of happy life, it will be worth it. I am not going to lie though, it is stressful. I'm just not that good about dealing with a medical care situation tbh. I feel horribly anxious and stressed all the time, I don't know whether I am doing things right, I worry that I am doing things wrong...

 

[marty21]

So , mrs21 wanted a painting of Puisin as a Christmas present . The woman on ETSY is very busy (nice for her) so it was finally delivered yesterday . It is a great likeness so Mrs21 is very happy with it .

 

[Pickman's model]

So , mrs21 wanted a painting of Puisin as a Christmas present . The woman on ETSY is very busy (nice for her) so it was finally delivered yesterday . It is a great likeness so Mrs21 is very happy with it . View attachment 129639

she's got your eyes

 

[Baronage-Phase]

Ok I'm officially loosing it!!
Watching the opening of the winter paralympics. Glance at the tv while concentrating on something on my laptop, and think " Bloody hell. That cat looks just like Toby"

Didn't even enter my head as to why there would be a cat there.

View attachment 129637

Oh look....Tobytoes has a halo....
Yay

 

[Sasaferrato]

Cat pics. All my photos, all my cats, past and present.

Gizmo.

Ollie

Gremlin.

Poor beast, he developed a skin complaint, luckily a 5mg dose of prenisolone daily did the trick. However, whilst never an anorexic cat, the steroid really increased his appetite.

Bobo. He was a refugee from next door.

Marbles. Also a refugee from next door.

 

[Baronage-Phase]

Cat pics. All my photos, all my cats, past and present.

Gizmo.

Ollie

Gremlin.

Poor beast, he developed a skin complaint, luckily a 5mg dose of prenisolone daily did the trick. However, whilst never an anorexic cat, the steroid really increased his appetite.

Bobo. He was a refugee from next door.

Marbles. Also a refugee from next door.

Lovely

 

[Sasaferrato]

Lovely

Thank you. There are a couple more to come, but I'm off to the dentist at the moment.

 

[BigTom]

Just been sent this photo of Max, one of the kittens I rescued, outside for the first time since I brought them indoors, he has grown so much I don't think I'd recognise him (second to bottom photo in this post), he's got a lot more white as he's grown (in that the white parts of him have become more prominent. I really want to see a picture of tubbs now, who was the other black kitten (the first one in that linked post) that looked so much like each other.

 

[Epona]

Sasaferrato - Gremlin looks a bit like my Radar, although with Radey's recent bout of post-surgical anorexia he is on the other side of the "is your pet a healthy weight" chart - I hear you about the steroids, they can do that. When my husband was in hospital for a week after an asthma attack and breathing problems he was getting steroids and was basically begging for seconds from the dessert trolley every day, hunting it down to see whether they had any leftovers. He must have put on a stone in a week and was constantly hungry.

 

[Epona]

Just been sent this photo of Max, one of the kittens I rescued, outside for the first time since I brought them indoors, he has grown so much I don't think I'd recognise him (second to bottom photo in this post), he's got a lot more white as he's grown (in that the white parts of him have become more prominent. I really want to see a picture of tubbs now, who was the other black kitten (the first one in that linked post) that looked so much like each other.

View attachment 129653

OMG he's a handsome kitty!

 

[Baronage-Phase]

Just been sent this photo of Max, one of the kittens I rescued, outside for the first time since I brought them indoors, he has grown so much I don't think I'd recognise him (second to bottom photo in this post), he's got a lot more white as he's grown (in that the white parts of him have become more prominent. I really want to see a picture of tubbs now, who was the other black kitten (the first one in that linked post) that looked so much like each other.

View attachment 129653

He is a very handsome boy...

 

[Epona]

OK so we took our cat to our local vet, the first thing Angel said when we went in was "I was just reading his notes, he's been through the wars hasn't he?" He straightened the kink in the tube again, and prescribed Cerenia to prevent any more vomiting.

I also asked him if he thought we were torturing Radar by putting him through this (he's been our vet for a while now, and I trust his judgement) and he kind of went "pfft, he'll be fine and won't remember much of this when he is well again"

 

[Vintage Paw]

Just been sent this photo of Max, one of the kittens I rescued, outside for the first time since I brought them indoors, he has grown so much I don't think I'd recognise him (second to bottom photo in this post), he's got a lot more white as he's grown (in that the white parts of him have become more prominent. I really want to see a picture of tubbs now, who was the other black kitten (the first one in that linked post) that looked so much like each other.

View attachment 129653

omg he's BEAUTIFUL. He's so lithe and statuesque and he looks like he's living his best life!

You did good

 

[Baronage-Phase]

"pfft, he'll be fine and won't remember much of this when he is well again"

I think your vet is spot on.
He will be grand

 

[Vintage Paw]

I think your vet is spot on.
He will be grand

Yep, I agree. It'd be different perhaps if he was a cat who didn't handle this thing well and it was causing him anxiety, but from everything you say he sounds like he's for the most part quite happy, even if he is in some discomfort from time to time. You're giving him a chance, that's what's important

 

[BigTom]

OMG he's a handsome kitty!

He is a very handsome boy...

omg he's BEAUTIFUL. He's so lithe and statuesque and he looks like he's living his best life!

You did good

I didn't want to sound boastful and obviously I'm biased but yes, he is a magnificent looking cat I've also go the pleaseure of one of the kittens returning for a visit his evening, Beats has been to the vet near my house with my friend who took him and she's come round for the evening with him... hopefully they remember each other!

 

[Epona]

Yep, I agree. It'd be different perhaps if he was a cat who didn't handle this thing well and it was causing him anxiety, but from everything you say he sounds like he's for the most part quite happy, even if he is in some discomfort from time to time. You're giving him a chance, that's what's important

It's been a difficult road tbh, but a lot of it is my anxiety about coping with medical care, it sounds pathetic, I panic about every last thing and get really frazzled and upset and tend to catastrophise.

I just went into the bedroom to check on him and as soon as I went in he was wanting cuddles, so I lay on the bed and he sprawled across me purring and nudging my hand cos he wanted stroking. He's mostly happy. And he's healing and won't be in discomfort forever.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

: purr :

 

[Vintage Paw]

It's been a difficult road tbh, but a lot of it is my anxiety about coping with medical care, it sounds pathetic, I panic about every last thing and get really frazzled and upset and tend to catastrophise.

I just went into the bedroom to check on him and as soon as I went in he was wanting cuddles, so I lay on the bed and he sprawled across me purring and nudging my hand cos he wanted stroking. He's mostly happy. And he's healing and won't be in discomfort forever.

I understand what you're going through. I mean, obviously I can't understand your specific circumstances, but the thing about anxiety, getting upset, dealing with medical care, I understand. Caring for Charlie became my entire life. It resonated with something you said previously, about everything in your life having changed the past few weeks. Even in the periods where he was relatively healthy I was on edge 24 hours a day, waiting for the next bump in the road.

It is completely exhausting. Physically, but mentally and emotionally. It changes you. I don't want to sound too OTT, but I'm a different person after having gone through that, and the barest hint of a problem with Peggy makes me feel ill and unable to cope. I'm still unable to fully stand down from red alert, even though she's mostly fine and hasn't had any major issues, and it's all because of what happened with Charlie. That's not to say it's going to affect you long term in the same way, but rather to say I understand how absolutely all-consuming it can be on an emotional level. It's taken a toll on me because of my underlying anxiety, but that's something I put up with because I can't countenance not having pets.

 

[BigTom]

terrible photo but I think they remember each other.. karl was a bit wary but seems fine now

 

[stavros]

I had the day off today, and for once I woke up without needing a piss and having plenty of water to hand. This meant Missy could get straight onto my chest and spend about twenty minutes pummeling my chest with her claws and nose, whilst purring very loudly. Incredibly, for the first time ever, she managed to wear herself out doing this eventually.

 

[Epona]

I understand what you're going through. I mean, obviously I can't understand your specific circumstances, but the thing about anxiety, getting upset, dealing with medical care, I understand. Caring for Charlie became my entire life. It resonated with something you said previously, about everything in your life having changed the past few weeks. Even in the periods where he was relatively healthy I was on edge 24 hours a day, waiting for the next bump in the road.

It is completely exhausting. Physically, but mentally and emotionally. It changes you. I don't want to sound too OTT, but I'm a different person after having gone through that, and the barest hint of a problem with Peggy makes me feel ill and unable to cope. I'm still unable to fully stand down from red alert, even though she's mostly fine and hasn't had any major issues, and it's all because of what happened with Charlie. That's not to say it's going to affect you long term in the same way, but rather to say I understand how absolutely all-consuming it can be on an emotional level. It's taken a toll on me because of my underlying anxiety, but that's something I put up with because I can't countenance not having pets.

I feel the same, I also suffer from anxiety and it's very difficult to try to be rational. I *think* Radar is mostly eating ok on his own now - but before this I hadn't really paid that much attention to his food intake, he had a wet meal in the morning and evening and dry left down in the bedroom overnight (he's always spent the night in the bedroom with us) - I just know that he's usually self-regulating when it comes to food, and that leaving food down for him has never been a problem, he doesn't over-eat, he just always left what he didn't need.

It's difficult to try to work out what he would normally eat, and we currently have him on junk food anyway just to encourage him to eat - anything is better than nothing type thinking.

I think I'm going to be carrying this anxiety about his food intake forever tbh. Now if I put down a bowl of food and he doesn't run over to it, or takes a few bites and walks away, I'm heading to a quiet place where I can have a cry about it. I'm not sure that I will ever be in a place where I'm not watching what he eats. This whole ordeal has been terrifying tbh.

 

[stavros]

We were sat on the sofa this afternoon watching telly when the bin lorry came past and a few bin men were chucking stuff in. Something must've offended her, because Missy took to briefly growling at them, despite the distance and multiple barriers.

 

[Epona]

Radar has had 2 pouches of food today (although I just noticed it is gone midnight, so I mean yesterday) which is appropriate for his weight, I just put down another half a pouch (he still needs to gain weight so I don't care how much he eats - as long as it's slowly/small portions so he doesn't vomit!)

 

[Epona]

I'll never moan or feel frustrated about a cat pestering me for food ever again btw.