Well, I've Acquired Another Owner

Thinks are really looking great here!

I think she looks roguishly chic, like a pirate queen, or some such.

Purrs for a continued recovery.

--Fil

Arthur Shapiro wrote:
In article , MLB wrote:
I am sure this has been a very trying day. Was the surgery performed?
If so, how did it go? Do we have hope that Lady will make it?
Sending purrs for all and anxious to hear the outcome. MLB

Thanks so much. Just got off the phone with the surgeon, after her long
afternoon of work on the kitty.

She came through everything with absolutely no problems. The cancer was not
as deep as expected, meaning that the entire ear system didn’t have to be
removed, and thus she’ll have hearing on that side. This wasn’t what was
expected. Some nearby lymph nodes were biopsied but didn't look suspicious.
The bad teeth were handled as well. It turned out that the broken teeth had
punctured the tongue, meaning she must have been in considerable pain. That
will gradually heal, now that the teeth have been smoothed out. She has very
few teeth left, and will live primarily on wet food the rest of her life.

Various lesions on the other ear and the nose were removed. She will never go
outside again, and happily my patio doors and most windows are double-paned,
low-UV items so we don’t have to worry about keeping her away from the outside
light. That will maximize the probability of her not getting skin cancer
again.

She might not be as old as we feared; the surgeon said that from the way she
endured all this major work, she might well not even be in her teens. So
barring a relapse or a catastrophe, I might enjoy a few years with her.

I’m very happy right now; if we somehow manage to box-train her I’m going to
have a wonderful kitty.

Art

Late as usual, but I am following your saga with Lady Holyfield. I've
asked the owners to send lots of purrs and am sending my best in your
direction as well. Please keep letting us know how LH is doing and know
that you are posting exactly the sort of information that this group was
founded for, more or less.

Pam S.

Arthur Shapiro wrote:
Thinks are really looking great here!



At this point it looks like a Friday retrieval, not Saturday. She's on an
injectible pain medicine right now, and I'm sure they'll give me something
appropriate. I'm used to the little .1 cc syringes, but I was told this
doctor prefers a trans-dermal version of the same medicine. Unfamiliar to me,
but that's OK.

Art

AWWWW, she is a beautiful little lady. Her ear was so big. I know that
she will know love and gentle caring from you and your missus, Art. I'm
so glad that you're there for her.

Pam S.

Enfilade wrote:

I think she looks roguishly chic, like a pirate queen, or some such.

Exactly! Or, I was thinking, you know how a cat will put one ear back,
which seems to indicate an attitude of, "You're not exactly scaring me,
or annoying me, but you certainly are STRANGE"? This kitty will *always*
look like that.

Joyce

--
I can still remember you, when you were backlit from inside
And I would stand there next to you - the bridesmaid to the bride
-- Lucy Kaplansky

Arthur Shapiro wrote:
MLB wrote:

That is great news! Perhaps you could find someone to knit her a
little cap with an ear to wear on special occasions. The surgery
looks like it will heal well but I am wondering if she should wear a
collar to protect it from being scratched. Do you know if Lady
Holyfield has been spayed?

She has been spayed. We suspected so due to the scar that my vet
noticed, and the Xrays taken before surgery confirmed it. So one
nuisance out of the way.

No collar - thankfully; she got one from the first vet but the first
owner removed it so she could sleep and get to her food dish. She had
little inclination to pick at the area, so I'd never put it back on, and
apparently these folks don't think it necessary either, at least for the
present. She's being watched 24 hours a day, so I'm not worried.

I'll have to look for prosthetic cat ears on eBay. Maybe it's the
shaved head, but her one ear looks disproportionately large and might
suffice for both sides!

It will be nice to have another purrs-all-the-time cat. My last
acquisition, Giovanni, is one of the rare non-purring cats. Not merely
seldom, absolutely never.

Art


Did you bring the kitty home today? If not, will you tell us how she is
doing? Best wishes to Lady Holy and the rest of her family. MLB

In article , MLB wrote:

Did you bring the kitty home today? If not, will you tell us how she is
doing? Best wishes to Lady Holy and the rest of her family. MLB

Nope, it's scheduled for 2 PM tomorrow, a day earlier than envisioned.

I spent two hours with her this afternoon, and by coincidence the first lady
showed up about an hour into the visit, getting her first look at the repairs.

Ms. Holyfield has gained a half pound in two days, so she's now up to 6#14.
That was quite a quick change, and she looked a lot better. The ear area also
looked nicer. I took some pix, but haven't looked at 'em yet and they might
not be particularly worthy of posting.

I thought she had been using the box, but according to the folks at the
surgery center she now stands in it and does her thing over the edge. Oh
well; that's better than before. This is a disaster waiting to happen, but
I'll try the soil suggestion when we retrieve her.

I got a number of fleas off her with the flea comb, but had not been allowed
to apply the Advantage by either my local vet or the surgeon. Perhaps this
restriction will be relaxed now that she's on the road to recovery.

Art

(Arthur Shapiro) wrote:

In article , MLB
wrote:

Did you bring the kitty home today? If not, will you tell us how she is
doing? Best wishes to Lady Holy and the rest of her family. MLB

Nope, it's scheduled for 2 PM tomorrow, a day earlier than envisioned.
I spent two hours with her this afternoon, and by coincidence the first lady
showed up about an hour into the visit, getting her first look at the repairs.

It just feels like Friday because the workweek ended early.

Ms. Holyfield has gained a half pound in two days, so she's now up to 6#14.
That was quite a quick change, and she looked a lot better. The ear area also
looked nicer. I took some pix, but haven't looked at 'em yet and they might
not be particularly worthy of posting.

I thought she had been using the box, but according to the folks at the
surgery center she now stands in it and does her thing over the edge. Oh
well; that's better than before. This is a disaster waiting to happen, but
I'll try the soil suggestion when we retrieve her.

I got a number of fleas off her with the flea comb, but had not been allowed
to apply the Advantage by either my local vet or the surgeon. Perhaps this
restriction will be relaxed now that she's on the road to recovery.

This sounds ok, actually. It seems she wants to use the box, but is
probably cramped over at the vets. Any of the cats I've had will have
"over the edge" accidents once in a while if I give them a small box
and put it too close a wall so that they can't comfortably stand in
the middle of it.

Arthur Shapiro wrote:
In article , MLB wrote:

Did you bring the kitty home today? If not, will you tell us how she is
doing? Best wishes to Lady Holy and the rest of her family. MLB

Nope, it's scheduled for 2 PM tomorrow, a day earlier than envisioned.

I spent two hours with her this afternoon, and by coincidence the first lady
showed up about an hour into the visit, getting her first look at the repairs.

Ms. Holyfield has gained a half pound in two days, so she's now up to 6#14.
That was quite a quick change, and she looked a lot better. The ear area also
looked nicer. I took some pix, but haven't looked at 'em yet and they might
not be particularly worthy of posting.

I thought she had been using the box, but according to the folks at the
surgery center she now stands in it and does her thing over the edge. Oh
well; that's better than before. This is a disaster waiting to happen, but
I'll try the soil suggestion when we retrieve her.

I got a number of fleas off her with the flea comb, but had not been allowed
to apply the Advantage by either my local vet or the surgeon. Perhaps this
restriction will be relaxed now that she's on the road to recovery.

Art


It sounds like so far so good and will continue to get better.
I've never had to deal with litter box problems as both of the cats I
have had in the last 26 years adapted easily. My TuTu
is a very large cat and I did have to get her a larger box -- even now
she has no room to spare in it. There is no room under the bathroom
counter for a larger box. Best wishes for a happy homecoming day
tomorrow.You are this kitty's "Special Angel". Please keep posting her
progress.

On another note: My son (the engineer) keeps changing my computer and I
have lost my bookmarks and favorites. Would you mind giving me the
URL to your cat stories so I can read them all again? I've hunted a
lot but my eyesight isn't that great any more and my eyes get really
tired when I do that. Thanks and best wishes. MLB

In article , MLB wrote:

On another note: My son (the engineer) keeps changing my computer and I
have lost my bookmarks and favorites. Would you mind giving me the
URL to your cat stories so I can read them all again?

Sure, but I really have to update the site, as it's now sadly incorrect.
(Google would have found it).

http:\\members.cox.net\mybrainhurts\index.htm

I think the others are stressed. Watermelon's skin is bloodied and badly
broken out on his back. Giovanni sprayed me this evening. We were not happy.
At least Calico is acting normally.

Art

Wonderful news!

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs