Conference misery::feline

1074.0. "A Big Thank-you!" by SALEM::LYMAN () Mon May 05 1997 16:51

    I'd like to thank all the people who contributed to note 87.xxx.  
    Our big tiger, Laurel (one of the commuting cats in note 1052)
    was diagnosed with diabetes about a month ago.  He had all the
    classic symptoms, which we at the time did not recognize. 

    Commuting weekly may well have been the last straw.  However, 
    he is calmer now and even contented if he can sit on my 
    husband's lap (it's his cat).

    On learning it was diabetes, I consulted this conference and
    found note 87, which I printed off with most of the 136 replies
    under it, and a couple of others.  

    I'd had no idea it was so common in cats.  My husband and I
    both read them all.  We learned so much from your accumulated 
    knowledge and experience about giving shots, taking urine tests, 
    diabetes itself, insulin, the period of adjustment, etc.  Many, 
    many helpful suggestions about all phases.

    Laurel's first trip home from the hospital didn't work out too well 
    so back in he went.  At this point they found that he had a raging
    pancreas infection.  We gulped and opted for the "aggressive"
    treatment of intravenous fluids.  My husband visited him daily
    for the week he was away (again, this was the suggestion of a noter
    here) and it obviously made a HUGE difference in Laurel's outlook 
    - we also took him a tee shirt from the house to sleep on.
    The Andover Animal Hospital is where he was.  THey have regular 
    visiting hours and strongly encourage owner visits.

    Anyway, he's out now, shaved in some embarrassing places, but
    much more himself than he has been for months - though much
    thinner than before [as is our wallet ;-) ] and still very weak
    in his leg muscles. Hmmm, I wonder if there is a note on kitty
    physical therapy.  I'll be there is.
 
    Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you all.  You were a great 
    support!

    Lois

    A hug to Laurel.  Please let us know how he is doing.  Sweetie,
    who has had diabetes for more years than I can actually remember,
    sends a big hug too.
                       

    Lois,
    
    Big hugs and lots of luck to all of you.  It's great to read about
    other people who beat their bank balance into the ground for the
    sake of their kitties.  Some people drive big cars, some take expensive
    vacations; we live with cats.  I wouldn't change it for the world.
    
    

    I'm glad to hear the Laurel is doing better. Sounds like he is now
    stabilized!
    
    Deb and THE FIRM

    Laurel is doing better daily, can now even walk across two rooms
    without having to sit down and can jump into my husband's lap.  His
    glucose is still a little high; he's going for a checkup on Tuesday.
    His whole outlook has improved a lot - he's well enough to wash
    himself, hassle his brother at dinner time, demand attention, etc.  
    
    When he was away at the hospital, the other cat didn't seem to miss him 
    all that much; but now that he's back, they're never more than about 
    five feet apart and always sleep curled up tightly together - much more
    contact than before.  They had never been separated in 12 years until
    Laurel went to the hospital.
    
    Oh, I have a hint from the doctor about urine tests:  Use a small
    amount of regular (non-clumping), plain clay cat litter.  That kind has
    no chemicals in it and will not skew the results of the test.  If you
    keep it fairly shallow, there should be enough moisture to get a good
    test.  This has worked for us pretty well.
    
    
    	Thanks again, all!
    
    	Lois