Updates on various kitties in my life

4 kitty updates and a bonus:

1. Abbey, my 4 yr. old girl kitty diagnosed with chylothorax in May.
She's doing great! Her fur has all grown back from having her sides
shaved to drain her chest, she runs, jumps, plays, does all her old
tricks. You would never know she had a problem unless you carefully
watched her breathing. She does breathe oddly, pushing the air with
her diaphragm. She is still on lasix and rutin and also potassium
because of the diuretic effects of the lasix. She hates being pilled
still but knows she gets treats afterwards. Yesterday I had to go pick
up her lasix from the vet and I ran into him in the parking lot. I
told him it has been almost 5 months since she was diagnosed and that
she's doing great and asked him what he thought her prognosis might be
now (he had originally told me she had less than a 10 percent chance of
survival) and he said it was all wonderful and it sounded like she was
going to live for a long time! Of course, that is not a vet visit but
I don't want to take her back for awhile, she hates it so, and it
doesn't seem necessary although I do wonder how long she should be on
lasix. I will be scared to take her off it...maybe she should always
be on it.

2. Oliver, the outdoor stray kitty (aka Twin) who got a home with one
of Tony's coworkers in June. Also doing great! He was scared for
quite awhile but got over it and is now "running the house." He never
tries to get outside (I was sure he wouldn't care about that), sleeps
where he wants, loves to get in laps. But...Tony neglected to mention
to me when we gave Oliver to them (and I never even thought to ask)
that they also have 3 dogs! They are chihuahuas so they are smaller
than Oliver and they spend much of their time outside but I probably
would not have agreed to give him to them knowing that. It's just as
well I didn't know because all is well. He ignores the dogs for the
most part. One of them wants to be his friend but he doesn't share the
feeling. They steer clear of him when they're inside. He dislikes one
of the males and hisses at him and has been known to pee on this dog's
blanket. Fortunately, the people find that amusing. They also have
birds that Oliver doesn't bother so their little menagerie co-exists
pretty well. But Tony's coworker always says that Oliver is in charge.

3. Henry, my mom's cat, who is on a diet and needs to lose about 5
pounds (!). He likes his r/d, both canned and dry, and doesn't beg for
more so all is well there, too. I doubt if he looks much thinner yet
since it's only been a couple of weeks since he began his diet.

4. Marbles, my aggressive kitty. Still on low-dose elavil, half of
his prescribed dosage. Scottie and Abbey still hide from him when he
comes out but they run to their hiding place a little slower and Abbey
will sometimes venture out a little while Marbles is out. Even Scottie
has ventured out a little on a couple of occasions. Marbles will still
attempt to chase them if they come out...usually...but sometimes he
will just watch them for awhile and his chasing is not as aggressive.
I really think he would like to be friends but they'll have none of
that. So, I would say *slight* improvement here.

5. Not an update but, unfortunately, we have a new stray cat outside
that we are now feeding. He is a young orange/white cat, maybe 6 mos.
old, very vocal, appeared out of the blue yesterday. Looks well cared
for. I'll be asking some neighbors if they know him later today and
posting a couple of signs as well as a Found ad in the paper but I
assume--as always--that no one will claim him so, hopefully, I can get
him into one of the no-kill rescues. Meantime, he has to stay outside
as I have no other places to segregate cats inside as my own 3 live
segregated from each other. Ugh. People suck. Send him good thoughts
for finding his owners or a new home, if you can.

Candace

On 2005-10-02 13:49:51 -0500, "Candace" said:

4 kitty updates and a bonus:

1. Abbey, my 4 yr. old girl kitty diagnosed with chylothorax in May.
She's doing great! Her fur has all grown back from having her sides
shaved to drain her chest, she runs, jumps, plays, does all her old
tricks. You would never know she had a problem unless you carefully
watched her breathing. She does breathe oddly, pushing the air with
her diaphragm. She is still on lasix and rutin and also potassium
because of the diuretic effects of the lasix. She hates being pilled
still but knows she gets treats afterwards. Yesterday I had to go pick
up her lasix from the vet and I ran into him in the parking lot. I
told him it has been almost 5 months since she was diagnosed and that
she's doing great and asked him what he thought her prognosis might be
now (he had originally told me she had less than a 10 percent chance of
survival) and he said it was all wonderful and it sounded like she was
going to live for a long time! Of course, that is not a vet visit but
I don't want to take her back for awhile, she hates it so, and it
doesn't seem necessary although I do wonder how long she should be on
lasix. I will be scared to take her off it...maybe she should always
be on it.

2. Oliver, the outdoor stray kitty (aka Twin) who got a home with one
of Tony's coworkers in June. Also doing great! He was scared for
quite awhile but got over it and is now "running the house." He never
tries to get outside (I was sure he wouldn't care about that), sleeps
where he wants, loves to get in laps. But...Tony neglected to mention
to me when we gave Oliver to them (and I never even thought to ask)
that they also have 3 dogs! They are chihuahuas so they are smaller
than Oliver and they spend much of their time outside but I probably
would not have agreed to give him to them knowing that. It's just as
well I didn't know because all is well. He ignores the dogs for the
most part. One of them wants to be his friend but he doesn't share the
feeling. They steer clear of him when they're inside. He dislikes one
of the males and hisses at him and has been known to pee on this dog's
blanket. Fortunately, the people find that amusing. They also have
birds that Oliver doesn't bother so their little menagerie co-exists
pretty well. But Tony's coworker always says that Oliver is in charge.

3. Henry, my mom's cat, who is on a diet and needs to lose about 5
pounds (!). He likes his r/d, both canned and dry, and doesn't beg for
more so all is well there, too. I doubt if he looks much thinner yet
since it's only been a couple of weeks since he began his diet.

4. Marbles, my aggressive kitty. Still on low-dose elavil, half of
his prescribed dosage. Scottie and Abbey still hide from him when he
comes out but they run to their hiding place a little slower and Abbey
will sometimes venture out a little while Marbles is out. Even Scottie
has ventured out a little on a couple of occasions. Marbles will still
attempt to chase them if they come out...usually...but sometimes he
will just watch them for awhile and his chasing is not as aggressive.
I really think he would like to be friends but they'll have none of
that. So, I would say *slight* improvement here.

5. Not an update but, unfortunately, we have a new stray cat outside
that we are now feeding. He is a young orange/white cat, maybe 6 mos.
old, very vocal, appeared out of the blue yesterday. Looks well cared
for. I'll be asking some neighbors if they know him later today and
posting a couple of signs as well as a Found ad in the paper but I
assume--as always--that no one will claim him so, hopefully, I can get
him into one of the no-kill rescues. Meantime, he has to stay outside
as I have no other places to segregate cats inside as my own 3 live
segregated from each other. Ugh. People suck. Send him good thoughts
for finding his owners or a new home, if you can.

Candace

What a nice update!

Candace,
You are so lucky that Abbey is doing so well!
My cat Furby was diagnosed with Idiopathic Chylothorax on July 31,
2005 and he died on Sept. 6, 2005.
We did many thoracocentisis procedures (chest drains), spent hundreds
of dollars to thousands on vet bills and then we finally flew with
Furby from Los Angeles to Texas A&M University Small Animal Clinic for
a leading veterinary surgeon named Theresa Fossum to perform a Thoracic
Duct Ligation on Furby. Dr. Fossum lectures all over the word on the
topic of chylothorax and the surgery, Thoracic Duct Ligation. Furby did
very well during the surgery and Dr. Fossum said that she sealed all of
Furby's leaking ducts, but less then 2 hours after surgery Furby went
into cardiac arrest and even with defibrillation and open heart chest
massage my darling Furby passed away. I have been grieving my loss for
weeks.I remember when Furby was diagnosed and I asked the vet what he
thought that the prognosis was and he said that it was quite
grave.Unfortunately my vet was right, but I did everything that I could
do to save Furby and he still died. I hope and pray for you that
Abbey's chylothorax has resolved itself and that she doesn't have any
more chylous effusions. If she is breathing with some difficulty than
she either developed pleural fibrosis which came from the chyle
irritating and deteriorating her lungs and she now cannot expand her
lungs fully or Abbey still may have chyle in her thoracic cavity. My
hope for you is that she is doing well. I would still keep a very
watchful eye on her for any major dyspnea (difficult or labored
respiration). Good luck.
Rest in peace my sweet Furby. I loved you very much. What a horrible
disease chylothorax is!


Candace wrote:
4 kitty updates and a bonus:

1. Abbey, my 4 yr. old girl kitty diagnosed with chylothorax in May.
She's doing great! Her fur has all grown back from having her sides
shaved to drain her chest, she runs, jumps, plays, does all her old
tricks. You would never know she had a problem unless you carefully
watched her breathing. She does breathe oddly, pushing the air with
her diaphragm. She is still on lasix and rutin and also potassium
because of the diuretic effects of the lasix. She hates being pilled
still but knows she gets treats afterwards. Yesterday I had to go pick
up her lasix from the vet and I ran into him in the parking lot. I
told him it has been almost 5 months since she was diagnosed and that
she's doing great and asked him what he thought her prognosis might be
now (he had originally told me she had less than a 10 percent chance of
survival) and he said it was all wonderful and it sounded like she was
going to live for a long time! Of course, that is not a vet visit but
I don't want to take her back for awhile, she hates it so, and it
doesn't seem necessary although I do wonder how long she should be on
lasix. I will be scared to take her off it...maybe she should always
be on it.

2. Oliver, the outdoor stray kitty (aka Twin) who got a home with one
of Tony's coworkers in June. Also doing great! He was scared for
quite awhile but got over it and is now "running the house." He never
tries to get outside (I was sure he wouldn't care about that), sleeps
where he wants, loves to get in laps. But...Tony neglected to mention
to me when we gave Oliver to them (and I never even thought to ask)
that they also have 3 dogs! They are chihuahuas so they are smaller
than Oliver and they spend much of their time outside but I probably
would not have agreed to give him to them knowing that. It's just as
well I didn't know because all is well. He ignores the dogs for the
most part. One of them wants to be his friend but he doesn't share the
feeling. They steer clear of him when they're inside. He dislikes one
of the males and hisses at him and has been known to pee on this dog's
blanket. Fortunately, the people find that amusing. They also have
birds that Oliver doesn't bother so their little menagerie co-exists
pretty well. But Tony's coworker always says that Oliver is in charge.

3. Henry, my mom's cat, who is on a diet and needs to lose about 5
pounds (!). He likes his r/d, both canned and dry, and doesn't beg for
more so all is well there, too. I doubt if he looks much thinner yet
since it's only been a couple of weeks since he began his diet.

4. Marbles, my aggressive kitty. Still on low-dose elavil, half of
his prescribed dosage. Scottie and Abbey still hide from him when he
comes out but they run to their hiding place a little slower and Abbey
will sometimes venture out a little while Marbles is out. Even Scottie
has ventured out a little on a couple of occasions. Marbles will still
attempt to chase them if they come out...usually...but sometimes he
will just watch them for awhile and his chasing is not as aggressive.
I really think he would like to be friends but they'll have none of
that. So, I would say *slight* improvement here.

5. Not an update but, unfortunately, we have a new stray cat outside
that we are now feeding. He is a young orange/white cat, maybe 6 mos.
old, very vocal, appeared out of the blue yesterday. Looks well cared
for. I'll be asking some neighbors if they know him later today and
posting a couple of signs as well as a Found ad in the paper but I
assume--as always--that no one will claim him so, hopefully, I can get
him into one of the no-kill rescues. Meantime, he has to stay outside
as I have no other places to segregate cats inside as my own 3 live
segregated from each other. Ugh. People suck. Send him good thoughts
for finding his owners or a new home, if you can.

Candace

Jamie wrote:

If she is breathing with some difficulty than
she either developed pleural fibrosis which came from the chyle
irritating and deteriorating her lungs and she now cannot expand her
lungs fully or Abbey still may have chyle in her thoracic cavity. My
hope for you is that she is doing well. I would still keep a very
watchful eye on her for any major dyspnea (difficult or labored
respiration). Good luck.
Rest in peace my sweet Furby. I loved you very much. What a horrible
disease chylothorax is!

Jamie, I am so sorry about Furby. You did everything possible.
Abbey's chylothorax was also idiopathic. She does have fibrosing
pleuritis also. She had her chest drained twice and after that she had
an ultrasound which showed that the damage to her lungs had made the
chyle that was then present distribute into little pockets. They said
they didn't think they would be able to drain her chest again. Her
prognosis had already been grave but that made it even worse. I was
trying to prepare myself for her death but she started to improve
slowly...and now she's almost normal. I do monitor her breathing very
closely. When she is sleeping, it is often only 22 rpm. When she
exerts herself it can go up to about 60 but it is usually in the 40-50
area when she is up and about.

I know her lung damage can't be reversed but if she leads a quiet,
indoor life as she does I am hoping she can reach a normal age.

Once again, I am very sorry about your kitty. It is a terrible disease
and it can strike at any time for no apparent reason.

My condolences.

Candace

"Candace" wrote in message
oups.com...
4 kitty updates and a bonus:

1. Abbey, my 4 yr. old girl kitty diagnosed with chylothorax in May.
She's doing great! Her fur has all grown back from having her sides
shaved to drain her chest, she runs, jumps, plays, does all her old
tricks. You would never know she had a problem unless you carefully
watched her breathing. She does breathe oddly, pushing the air with
her diaphragm.

That's great! I had a gut feeling she'd pull through. When you were
describing her activity and breathing, I didn't think her fibrosis was as
bad as your vet estimated. I've seen chylo cats that couldn't barely move
without gasping for air-- you caught it just in time.




She is still on lasix and rutin and also potassium
because of the diuretic effects of the lasix. She hates being pilled
still but knows she gets treats afterwards. Yesterday I had to go pick
up her lasix from the vet and I ran into him in the parking lot. I
told him it has been almost 5 months since she was diagnosed and that
she's doing great and asked him what he thought her prognosis might be
now (he had originally told me she had less than a 10 percent chance of
survival) and he said it was all wonderful and it sounded like she was
going to live for a long time! Of course, that is not a vet visit but
I don't want to take her back for awhile, she hates it so, and it
doesn't seem necessary although I do wonder how long she should be on
lasix. I will be scared to take her off it...maybe she should always
be on it.


You gotta be careful with lasix-- Cats are sensitive to it and prone to
dehydration, prerenal azotemia and hypokalemia---although the potassium
supplement should prevent hypokalemia. Gotta make sure she drinks *a lot*.
You might want to speak your vet about tapering the dose and monitoring her
very closely.

I'm a strong proponent of rutin for chylo cats-- the only problem is that is
practically impossible to determine whether resolution of chylo occurred
spontaneously or in response to the rutin. I haven't heard about any
adverse effects of long-term treatment or benefits after chylo resolves.
So, I wouldn't be in any hurry to discontinue rutin therapy.

Phil.




2. Oliver, the outdoor stray kitty (aka Twin) who got a home with one
of Tony's coworkers in June. Also doing great! He was scared for
quite awhile but got over it and is now "running the house." He never
tries to get outside (I was sure he wouldn't care about that), sleeps
where he wants, loves to get in laps. But...Tony neglected to mention
to me when we gave Oliver to them (and I never even thought to ask)
that they also have 3 dogs! They are chihuahuas so they are smaller
than Oliver and they spend much of their time outside but I probably
would not have agreed to give him to them knowing that. It's just as
well I didn't know because all is well. He ignores the dogs for the
most part. One of them wants to be his friend but he doesn't share the
feeling. They steer clear of him when they're inside. He dislikes one
of the males and hisses at him and has been known to pee on this dog's
blanket. Fortunately, the people find that amusing. They also have
birds that Oliver doesn't bother so their little menagerie co-exists
pretty well. But Tony's coworker always says that Oliver is in charge.

3. Henry, my mom's cat, who is on a diet and needs to lose about 5
pounds (!). He likes his r/d, both canned and dry, and doesn't beg for
more so all is well there, too. I doubt if he looks much thinner yet
since it's only been a couple of weeks since he began his diet.

4. Marbles, my aggressive kitty. Still on low-dose elavil, half of
his prescribed dosage. Scottie and Abbey still hide from him when he
comes out but they run to their hiding place a little slower and Abbey
will sometimes venture out a little while Marbles is out. Even Scottie
has ventured out a little on a couple of occasions. Marbles will still
attempt to chase them if they come out...usually...but sometimes he
will just watch them for awhile and his chasing is not as aggressive.
I really think he would like to be friends but they'll have none of
that. So, I would say *slight* improvement here.

5. Not an update but, unfortunately, we have a new stray cat outside
that we are now feeding. He is a young orange/white cat, maybe 6 mos.
old, very vocal, appeared out of the blue yesterday. Looks well cared
for. I'll be asking some neighbors if they know him later today and
posting a couple of signs as well as a Found ad in the paper but I
assume--as always--that no one will claim him so, hopefully, I can get
him into one of the no-kill rescues. Meantime, he has to stay outside
as I have no other places to segregate cats inside as my own 3 live
segregated from each other. Ugh. People suck. Send him good thoughts
for finding his owners or a new home, if you can.

Candace

Candace, all strays know who to flock to!

I'm glad all of your kitties are doing so well. That's amazing that
Abbey is jumping and playing after her prognosis, you are taking good
care of her. Your vet should use her as a success story!

That's great too that Twin is doing so well. I know what stress you went
through with that one.

Hope the current stray situation works out soon. I know when I was
trying to catch a stray years ago who was around every night -- she
disappeared at the exact time I had the spay appointment. It works out
in the end though, patience is the key with these outdoor visitors.

Happy hunting,

Rhonda

Candace wrote:

4 kitty updates and a bonus: