#vet talk

[astro-b-o-y-d]

Aside from some pudge on his tummy, Percy is perfectly healthy! He might need to stay on his seizure medication for the rest of his life but that's completely fine! It was an outcome we expected and one we can easily adapt to on a permanent basis.

[askcaffeinehazard]

Update on Haru

Vet just called, Haru is a perfect candidate for the radiated iodine therapy. The people at the cat clinic are fully aware that she's  aggressive when stressed out and offered to give her Gabepentin, (the sedative I give her before going in to our normal vet) for the full three weeks she'll be in there so she's not stressing out.  It's a very low dose and apparently fine to take long term cause it's normally used for animals with seizures. I CAN take her home after one week but she'll be radiated for two weeks and can only have human contact for up to 30 mins a day and I know I won't be able to control myself and I know Pinkie would lay outside the door so best she stays there for the whole time with the Gabepentin. It's a small house and I'd hate for the other two cats to be exposed.They think the low white blood cell count from her previous blood tests is actually a common side effect of her medication and nothing to worry about but they'll double check it when she goes in on August 6th and should get her home about August 27th.Going to hate being away from her for so long but this is for a cure for her thyroid disease so we can do this! Also long wait because they are only authorised to do two cats per week with the radiation but she's still very healthy and acting totally normal thanks to her current medication so I'm happy to wait.  She has to go off her current medication two weeks before the procedure so I might see some changes in her but this gives me more time to prepare for that and time for lots of love before she goes in for three weeks.

[shityouhearatvetschool]

Friend: So how's revision going?

Me: I've been reading the same paragraph over and over for half an hour, I'm currently on track to eat my own body weight in junk food today, and my right eye has developed a twitch that won't go away.

Me:...

Me: But, you know, it's all good

[astro-b-o-y-d]

Percy's gonna stay overnight just for observation, but he hasn't had ANY seizures since we arrived and my mom and sister are being absolute angels with helping out with the bills.

Sucky day but at least things are ending on a semi-okay note. If my boy's lasted this long without issue, I like to hope he's going to be fine.

[askcaffeinehazard]

Bad news and Commission Update

Yesterday, Haru went to the vet to have an infected bite on her tail surgically cleaned out and while under the anaesthetic, the vet noticed a lump 1cm in diameter under her tongue, against the frenulum. She called me to ask permission to take a sample, to which I said yes.  She said it’s likely a foreign body that got lodged under there and caused some swelling but best to send it to the labs to be sure. Today I got some heartbreaking news.. She has Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma, an aggressive cancer. There is no cure, even with treatment (less than 10% of cats even make it to 1year after treatment) and she has about 2-4 months left to live as this cancer spreads rapidly.. I don't know what I'm going to do without her.  She's my best friend and everything to me. I knew this day would come but 11 years with her just isn't long enough.  Vet suggested looking into quality of life soon as the cancer will grow aggressively fast and cause her pain. I've already looked into at-home euthanasia when the time comes and would like to have her cremated but that doesn’t make this any easier..  For those on my commission queue, I will continue to draw but my turnaround may not be as fast as normal as I’d like to spend as much time as I can with her before I have to say goodbye.  If you would like to cancel your place in queue that’s 100% understandable and please let me know. Thank you for your patience. 

[askcaffeinehazard]

Haru's blood tests came back and they're not good. Her thyroid is elevated and so are her kidneys... The vets tested her T4 (thyroxine) and Haru’s was pretty high. So that means she has hyper thyroid disease. We caught it really early so thankfully, we have more options. Option 1 is a specialized diet that the vet doesn’t recommend as we have three cats and can’t guarantee Haru won’t eat their food.  Option 2 is medication for the rest of her life, which is the more affordable choice at $76 for a bottle of pills that are twice a day for life (One prescription lasts 3-4 weeks.) Option 3 is an ointment that gets rubbed onto her ears and absorbed into her bloodstream (it does the same as the pills, just less stressful on her to apply) That is $280 for a 3 month dose.  They need to do blood tests every three months now rather than the 12 months we were doing, just to check her kidney function.. And finally, Option 4 is radioactive iodine.  Unlike the medication, the radiation will cure her disease, the medication just makes it manageable until she passes of inevitable organ failure.. but unfortunately, it’s $2,000 and a two week stay at the cat clinic in another town while she’s irradiated.  I'm terrified because while doing research, I read that cats live on average 2-5 years after being diagnosed with the disease, even when on medication.. I know it's good to kind of know a ballpark of what to expect and when, so I know what's going to happen and can make the decision when the time comes.  Lawd knows I’ll be a wreck and not be thinking straight when the time does actually come, so it helps to have everything ready but god this sucks.   Haru is my life and I don’t know what I’ll do without her, 2-5 years really isn’t that long.  I’m grateful she’s still eating, drinking and acting her normal grumpy old lady self for now though.

[shityouhearatvetschool]

“I hate it when google gives me info about human medicine - like, I don’t care about people!”

[shityouhearatvetschool]

“You will see nipples! I mean, on radiographs!”