Another Death in the Family

The last 2 years have taken a toll on me and my furry family.  I began 2010 in the hospital due to a cat bite on my foot.  The day after Christmas 2009 I stepped on Claudia in the dark.  She retaliated – naturally – by biting me.  Due to my diabetes, my doctor was concerned that it could develop into something serious, so on New Year’s Day as the redness spread, I checked myself into the hospital.  After lots of antibiotics, I went home in about a week. 

On February 25^th, the day after my 60^th birthday, I put Clark to sleep.  Less than a month later, on March 19^th, I put Charlotte to sleep.  A few months later, on July 30^th, I put Cammie to sleep.  I was concerned about Charlie as the year was winding down.  He was eating plenty but was losing weight.  The vet couldn’t find anything in his blood work to determine what ailed him.  Then on December 10^th, when I went into the cat room to clean litter boxes and feed, I found Chase’s body. 

In between Cammie’s and Chase’s deaths, I spent 23 days in the hospital for what began as an infected cyst in my right breast.  I developed necrotizing fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria) and had 4 surgeries to stop the infection from spreading.  I ended up losing half my right breast and all but a small area of the skin.  Once released, I returned to the hospital daily for treatments in the hyperbaric oxygen chamber.  That lasted into early 2011.  I had a skin graft, which removed a large area of skin from my right thigh.  Most of the graft took, leaving a small area with exposed tissue.  I had 13 derma grafts to encourage skin growth.  The area finally closed up and I was released by the doctor in May or June – memory fails me now.  My health had taken a back seat to my efforts to keep many cats alive.

Chaz was the first to go on February 12^th, 2011.  About a month later, Colin unexpectedly took a turn for the worse and was euthanized on March 18^th.  About 2 weeks later, Caleb, one of my three dogs, had a stroke and he was euthanized on April 2^nd. 

Charlie & I struggled so hard to find out what was wrong with him and to get him better.  That fight ended on June 14^th.  Less than 2 weeks later, Cissy succumbed to kidney failure and was euthanized on June 24^th.  In the midst of the treating Charlie and Cissy, Claudia was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and went blind.  She was doing well on her meds, but developed stones in her bladder and blood in her urine.  Treatment failed to help her and she was in no shape for surgery.  She was put to sleep on November 14^th.  Colt went to the vet in September due to a sore area in his mouth.  It was an eosiniphilic granuloma, and a shot of depoprovera cleared it up.  I was concerned about the fact that I could hear him breathing.  It wasn’t loud, but I knew it wasn’t normal.  The vet examined him and couldn’t hear anything.  He was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism as well.  He took his pills well, but by late November he had stopped eating canned food.  I tried baked chicken and baby food, but I couldn’t get him to eat it.  I couldn’t find him Sunday night or Monday morning to give him his pills.  I was determined to find him Monday night, and I did.  I found him because I heard his loud breathing sounds.  I took him to the Veterinary Emergency Clinic, where he was x-rayed.  The x-rays showed problem areas in one of his lungs.  The following morning I took him to my regular vet and from there to Affiliated Veterinary Specialists.  I left him there and they had to take more x-rays.  Dr. Goodman was as concerned about his heart as his lungs.  However, when I returned she told me that both she and the radiologist concurred – Colt had lung cancer.  There weren’t tumors but bleeding within the lungs.  There was nothing that could be done for him, except to prolong his suffering by keeping him in an oxygen cage.  I chose to do what was best for him, although I wasn’t ready to let him go.  I took him back to The Cat Hospital and Dr. Gray put him to sleep.  That was on Tuesday, December 20^th.  Colt was only 8 years old.  Chase, who I lost just before Christmas in 2010, was his sister.  Their mom, Bob, and their sister Chaka and brother Crockett are still with me. 

In between dealing with the illnesses and deaths of Claudia and Colt, Campbell had to have all his teeth removed and Courtney (Chaz & Charlie’s sister) spent 10 days at The Cat Hospital for an eye infection and respiratory problem.  Her respiratory problems have yet to be solved, but a tumor in her nasal passage has been ruled out.  Cordelia, my 13 year old pit bull mix, was diagnosed with lymphoma at the end of November.  She has responded to the prednisone, but the vet has given her 6 months at best. 

This year has been a very expensive one:  my vet bills have amounted to around $10,000.  I not only need to win the lottery but to get a magic wand to insure good health for the rest of my cats and dogs.  Cowboy, Crystal and Cho-sun are 5 years old and Cagney is just under a year old.  Everyone else is 8 years old or older.  So, 2012 is just around the corner.  I can only hope that it will be a much, much better and healthier year for all of us.  

Grief is, in my opinion, the most personal of human emotions.  It really isn't something that can be shared with others because the weight of the loss is ours, alone, to carry and learn to cope with.  And, it's complicated.  Memories of all the losses rear their ugly heads and add to the sadness.  No doubt reading this will stir memories in each of you for all those whom you have lost.  Death is a part of life and is something each of us will have to learn to deal with in our own ways.  While I truly hate making the decision to end the life of my dear cats and dogs, I am grateful that I have the option to end their suffering and not have to watch, helplessly, as they endure a prolonged and fatal illness.  Ultimately, it makes me grieve more for the millions of wonderful and healthy animals who are killed daily in so-called shelters around the world.  I continue to hold out hope that the needless killing will stop one day soon and only those who are suffering and have no chance to recover are those who are given respite through euthanasia. 

Hyperthyroidism in Cats – My Experience So Far

Recently a sister blogger posted that one of the family cats was suffering from a saddle thrombosis, which is a blood clot.  I decided to learn more about this so I, of course, Googled it.  What I found was enlightening and frightening.  Here’s the site that I went to:  http://www.web-dvm.net/saddlethrombus.html

Several years ago I lost 3 cats to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).  First there was Cyd, a CARE cat that I had bailed out of animal services.  She succumbed within days of showing any symptoms of illness and died at the vet’s office because of a blood clot.  It was because of her that I decided to find out more about the saddle thrombosis, since I suspected that was what killed her.  Cyril, another bailed out CARE cat was next.  My regular vet was out of town for a holiday weekend and I feared Cyril would risk a painful death at home, so I chose to euthanize him.  Next was China, who again got sick suddenly.  I took her to the emergency clinic and the pain med injection ended up killing her.  She died in my arms as I was waiting for my vet to come into the office to see her.  I requested a necropsy and he determined that she, too, had HCM.  Losing so many to the same disease caused me great concern, but I wasn’t able to find any causation online. 

In the last year I have had two cats, Claudia and Colt, diagnosed with hyperthyroidism.  Again, I couldn’t find a cause – something I was doing wrong – to help me prevent this in my other cats.  When Claudia went blind, the vet who treated her insisted it was unrelated.  I found out online that blindness is a common side effect of hyperthyroidism as was the plaintive wailing she would make from time to time. 

Hyperthyroidism can only be diagnosed through a blood test.  Blood work generally costs between $70 and $120.00 per test per cat.  Testing all of my cats would run into thousands of dollars.  By comparison, medication is relatively inexpensive.  

The article referenced above says that hyperthyroidism can lead to cardiac problems, which can lead to HCM, which can lead to a saddle thrombosis.  By that time, it’s too late to help your cat.  Not a single one of my vets (and there have been 3 now) ever told me any of this.  Two of those vets are cat specialists.  Wouldn’t it be logical, especially since I now have (or had) two cats with hyperthyroidism, to provide me with pertinent information about spotting it, what to look for, what other conditions might develop?  This only reinforces my disregard for the veterinary profession in general.  From the same site, here is more information about hyperthyroidism: http://www.web-dvm.net/hyperthyroidism.html.  And here's another link: http://www.fabcats.org/owners/hyperthyroidism/info.html.  And one final link:  http://www.2ndchance.info/hyperthyroid.htm

The Web has been of great use to me in helping me diagnose and treat my cats over the years.  I hope all my cat loving friends out there will, at the least, augment their knowledge through the internet.  The more we know, the better care we can take of our cats and dogs.

Claudia's Story

On Monday, November 14th, I had to euthanize another cat this year.  Her name was Claudia.  I had bailed her out of Orange County Animal Services in 2005.  At that time I was still president of CARE Feline Rescue (now CARE Feline TNR - http://carefelinetnr.org/) . 

CARE is a Trap/Neuter/Return nonprofit that partners with Orange County Animal Services (OCAS).  OCAS has a low cost spay/neuter clinic that opened in 1989, offering affordable surgeries and rabies vaccinations for the cats and dogs of Orange County residents.  In 1995 CARE was founded to fix the feral and community cats in Orange County – providing traps to caregivers and free surgeries for the cats.  To date CARE has facilitated the spaying and neutering of well over 15,000 cats and kittens.

As with most TNR groups, the ear of a fixed cat is snipped off, which makes it easy to identify who is fixed and who isn’t.  The one difference with the CARE program is that the right ear of females is tipped/snipped and the left ear of males is tipped/snipped. 

Part of the arrangement with OCAS involves notification whenever a cat with a tipped ear is trapped and/or turned into the shelter.  That’s how Claudia entered my life.  I got the call in 2005.  She had been trapped by an attorney who lived alongside the Dubsdread Country Club.  Apparently he wasn’t pleased that a “stray” cat was coming onto his property.  I guess she couldn’t read the No Trespassing sign.  Already having more than my share of cats in my home, I first tried to locate the caretaker who had trapped and fixed her.  That ended in failure.  Next, I tried to find someone in the rescue community to take her.  Again, failure.  There were only two options left for Claudia – let OCAS kill her or to bail her out myself.  Well, I bailed her out.

She came home with me with an upper respiratory infection she had picked up in the shelter.  She also came with Baytril to treat the infection.  Unfortunately, Claudia wasn’t exactly a docile, compliant patient.  So, my friend Barbara would come to my house twice a day to hold her while I pilled her (Claudia, not Barbara).  For the purpose of full disclosure, her original name was Clawdia because she had a tendency to swat anything that moved near her.  She managed to scratch me on numerous occasions, as well as bite me a couple of times.  She really wasn’t feral, just more than a bit grumpy.  And she didn’t like the other cats nor the dogs.  In fact, she spent most of the first year here in a large kitty condo cage – for everyone’s protection.  I handled her and petted her as little as possible for fear of getting a serious scratch or bite.  She had imbedded her claws in me a couple of times, which resulted in me getting bitten when trying to detach her from my hand or arm. 

I let her out about a year after her arrival.  She was fine as long as she wasn’t approached.  And it took nearly a year for her to make the transition from only dry food to actually enjoying canned food.  Due to her reaction to being approached, I felt she might have limited peripheral vision.  As time went on all of us adjusted to each other and she did fine until earlier this year.

I noticed she wasn’t grooming herself and, although she had short hair, she developed mats.  She also started vocalizing, with a disturbing, plaintive wail.  She also seemed to be losing weight although she cleaned up every cat dish at dinnertime.  In fact, she would drive the other cats away from their dishes so that she could finish off the food.  I took her to the vet in February.  Because of her poor condition, she wasn’t well enough to be anesthetized for a dental, so she got a scraping instead.  Her blood work revealed that she had hyperthyroidism and she was severely under weight as well.  Within a few weeks of diagnosis she went blind.  When that happened she stopped using the litter box.  I spent the next 9 months wiping up puddles and picking up poop.  She did learn to negotiate her way from the living room to the kitchen, hallway and bathroom.  She continued to eat well and would even take her thyroid meds in her food.  I had never had any luck getting a cat to take their pills in their food before.  Of course, it helped that she practically gulped down her food instead of lapping it up like most cats.  In fact, he ate more like a dog than a cat. 

In late September or early October she started passing blood in her urine.  We tried antibiotics – no change.  The vet thought she might have stones in her bladder.  She was in no condition for surgery, so I tried special food.  It didn’t help either.  Then I tried Kidni-Flow, a homeopathic treatment, and she only occasionally passed blood in her urine.  Although she never put weight back on, she seemed to be holding her own.  I kept the paper towel industry in business, but you do what you have to do, right?  My kitchen floor certainly got mopped a lot more frequently than in the past.  On Thursday, November 10^th, she ate very little.  On Friday morning she threw up her breakfast.  She wouldn’t eat Friday night or all day Saturday.  She also started wailing again, which she had not been doing since before she was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism.  And, apparently, the wailing, plaintive crying is a common symptom of this disease.  She also was more restless and seemingly confused.  I felt certain that she was in pain.  It was obvious to me that it was time to let her go.  I didn’t see any reason to prolong her suffering or put her through a surgery she probably wouldn’t survive.  She did eat a bit of A/D on Sunday, but wouldn’t eat for me Monday morning.  I took her into the vet and put her to sleep that afternoon.  

 I have no idea just how old she was.  She was obviously an older cat when I bailed her out, possibly 6 – 8 years old, but that’s only a guess.  I have no idea what her life was like before she came into my life.  She lived on or around Dubsdread’s golf course but, without finding her caretaker, I have no idea how long she had been there.  The fact that she wasn’t feral indicates that she had been in a home at the beginning of her life.  No doubt she had either been dumped there or left behind when her owner moved.  Although for most of the time she lived with me and the other critters she was not very accepting of affection, she did develop some affinity for head scratches the last several months.  She seemed to enjoy having her head and cheeks rubbed and even being picked up.  Maybe not an idyllic life, but she was safe, well fed and comfortable for the six years she was here. 

I asked the staff at the clinic to take a picture of Claudia for me, since I didn’t have one.  This was Claudia on her last day – I do miss her.  

I’m glad that she had an extra 6 years off the streets and I know that I did the right thing by giving her that chance.  There are so many, many cats and kittens who never get a chance and are killed every day in shelters or on the streets.  They deserve so much better than that.  I am thankful that I was able to avoid that fate for Claudia, even for a short time. 

REALITY CHECK: Republican debate in South Carolina

Based on previous debates and the intervening press coverage, I’ve actually been looking forward to this particular debate.  From the outset, it was obvious that the candidates had been studying, practicing and getting educated on foreign policy and national security. 

Based upon the candidates’ resumes and past performances, I fully expected Herman Cain to exhibit how little he knows about the rest of the world and the United States’ place in the world.  He fielded the first question and, frankly, he surprised me.  It’s not that I think he’s not intelligent, it’s that he has continuously relied upon what he considers his sense of humor when answering questions or walked circles around those questions without providing a clear answer.  

  

While each candidate actually – much to my surprise – said some things with which I found myself agreeing, the only two candidates who made the most reasoned and responsible responses were Ron Paul and Jon Huntsman.  Huntsman, for whom it amazes me that hardcore Republicans haven’t rallied to, lost me when he stated that his economic plan was simply three words – THE RYAN PLAN.  I was so stunned that it took me nearly five minutes to realize that he meant the Paul Ryan Plan.  OMG!  Huntsman has in the past said some things that seriously bothered me, but this – THIS was beyond the pale.  

Former Governor Romney answered a question about Iran and nuclear weapons by saying he would wage war against them to prevent a nuclear program in Iran.  My follow up question to him would have been – “would you send your four sons to Iran to fight?”  This man is pro-war now, as he was during the last presidential election, yet his four sons have not done military service.  As President he would be willing to send the sons and daughters of other Americans into battle.  Why not his own?

Newt Gingrich – well, he was/is Newt Gingrich.  His arrogance and condescension were, as always, front and center.  His demeanor is part teacher, part dictator, always self-promoter whenever he has the microphone.  He is well-educated and probably the smartest person in this field, but his ego is too enormous to measure.  And I rarely agree with his version/interpretation of history, recent or otherwise.  

What disturbs me about all political campaigns, regardless of political party, are the promises.  One person cannot change our laws, our policies or our government.  “If I am elected” or “when I am elected”  I will do (fill in the blank).  They can try, they don’t succeed nearly all of the time.  What the voters must do is change their focus from promises and demand that candidates provide us with their honest answers to questions about their positions on issues, their values and who they really are.  A few of them have – Bachmann, Santorum and Paul.  Others tell the voters what they want to hear – Romney, Gingrich and Perry.  Cain bobs and weaves and avoids.  Huntsman is treated as an afterthought in these debates and gets little or no press coverage. 

It is up to the voters to educate themselves, not only the issues that are the top priorities for them but, on all of the issues.  And it is important to look at both sides of an issue.  The side that you traditionally oppose might, possibly, have valid points that your side doesn’t discuss or take into account.  Don’t rely on sound bites.  Catch phrases rarely capture everything involved in an issue or in implementation. DIG DEEPER!

Voters also need to know on which issues the President can make a difference.  We have three branches of government so that power is not concentrated in the hands of one or only a few.  The President doesn’t MAKE laws, the Congress is charged with doing that.  The President can sign a bill into law or veto it.  So, what issues are important to you? 

Although I have serious problems with President Obama, I will be voting for him once again.  The environment is my number one priority.  Some of the positions he has taken have been of concern to me.  His appointment of Ken Salazar to head the Interior Department bothers me.  Approving deep water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and allowing a lease offshore in the Arctic are simply wrong.  However, I know that none of the Republican candidates, except possibly Huntsman, have any concerns about protecting the planet or the impact of environmental degradation on the health and well-being of Americans.  Yes, jobs and the economy are a priority, however, Republicans in general do not see the connection between working toward a sustainable, clean environment, which will provide jobs, national security and a healthier country.  

Many of the Republican candidates talk about American exceptionalism and our position as world leader.  Shouldn’t we be leading in clean energy?  Shouldn’t we be leading in preventing debilitating diseases and providing exceptional healthcare to our citizens?  Shouldn’t we be leading in helping people escape from poverty?  Shouldn’t we excel in educating our youth?  Should we continue to export our bad habits?  American exceptionalism will only return when we show we care about all Americans and giving all Americans the opportunity to be the best that each individual can be and are able to realize their full potential.  Which candidate cares more about YOU than about themselves and those who fund their race for the Presidency?  Who do you trust to look out for YOUR self-interest and success?

And, in closing, I’d like to add the following from my brilliant mentor and personal editor, Judith V:

“Because “this is America,” the majority of us think someday we will be rich, and it’s always been thus. For hundreds of years, settlers, then immigrants, came here because “getting rich was not just the right of kings.”  Well, don’t vote your aspirations – 99% of us working class people will never enter the top 1%, so why vote for people and policies that favor this very small minority and keep you working two jobs and in debt up to your eyeballs. We must always, always vote “our realities and NOT our aspirations,” otherwise we will remain indentured to that top 1%!”

Cagney at 7 months

I've been mulling over various political entries, but I just can't pick a topic.  Way too many to rage against at this point in time.  So I decided to take the easy way out and post the latest pictures of the littlest cat in the house, who has decided she is independent and in charge.  So, for your viewing pleasure, here is the Monster-In-Charge:

 
She weighs just over 6 pounds now.  When I snatched her off the street, she was just over 2 pounds.  Here's an early picture of her for contrast: