Tanner Tuesday

Tanner spent yesterday at the vet school having his monthly recheck.  This involved a physical exam, blood work and an abdominal ultrasound.

The results of the ultrasound were unchanged, so he remains in remission!

His blood work showed an improvement in the kidney values

BUN = 30 (was 71)

Creatinine = 1.7 (was 2.7)

His phosphorus was slightly elevated and will need to be rechecked in two weeks.  If this doesn't go back down on its own, then there is a supplement he can take to help him.

His potassium was within normal limits, so the supplements are working!

He is anemic again...nothing needs to be done at this time.

He has lost more weight.  Current weight is 5.45kg or 12 pounds.  The vet ran a T4 (thyroid) test and we are waiting on the results.  She said if he doesn't come back Hyper-T then next month we will run a GI panel to make sure he doesn't have an absorptive disorder.

At home, Tanner is eating well and playing hard.  He is taking his meds and fluids like a champ!  I will continue to cherish my moments with him and do what I can to keep him healthy and stable.

Wordy Wednesday

This week, our Wednesday post will combine all the posts for the week!

We will start with Tanner...who has learned to love sitting on laps these days!  He seems to enjoy snuggling in the evenings while we are watching tv, although he thinks he should be petted the entire time he is sitting there!  He loves his head rubbed, he face and his arm...

Tanner gained a couple of ounces this week, so that is good for him!  He weighs 12 lb 11 oz now.  He has been doing well with his eating, although I am starting to see it taper a bit.  I think an appetite stimulant is in his near future :)  We have decreased the fluids to 50 mls daily, and I wonder if he is starting to feel the effects of slight dehydration again?  I will speak with the vet school on Monday when he goes in for his monthly appointment.  At this appointment they will checking blood work and repeating the abdominal ultrasound to make sure the lymphoma is still in remission.

We have had a couple of days off work, due to a small amount of snow but a fair amount of ice.  It's been nice to be home with the boys!  I do believe they were ready for us to go back to work today though.  Oliver gets so tired when we are home because he won't allow himself to miss anything...he HAS to know what we are doing!  By the evening, he is just wiped out and can't go any longer.  This is a quick video of him playing with one of their favorite toys.

It's HERE on youtube if the above doesn't work.

We hope everyone is staying warm and safe this winter...we are ready for Spring!

Wacky Wednesday

Today's Wacky Wednesday post is brought to you by Oliver...

Oliver does not like when we mess with the silverware, especially trying to dry it and put it away.  It's quite funny to us, because it doesn't matter where he is, he will talk and tell you to stop :)  If the video above doesn't work, here is a link to youtube.

http://youtu.be/5Aq0Us7fhss

Have I mentioned lately that Oliver is a nut?

Tanner Tuesday

I don't want to jinx us, but I feel Tanner has turned a corner to wellness again!  Last week, he went to the vet to once again check his kidney and potassium values.  The BUN has decreased, and creatinine remained the same.  The potassium level is on the low end of the range, but is at least within the range now!   Symptomatically, Tanner was still experiencing dehydration and not wanting to eat much.  He had lost more weight and now weighs 12 lbs 7 ounces.  The vet wasn't overly concerned about the weight loss, as he felt most of it was water weight from the dehydration.

We devised a new plan to try for a week, and then re-evaluate.  Tanner is getting 100 mls of fluid daily to help with the dehydration.  He is getting a shot of famotidine daily in case his stomach is too acidic.  He gets an appetite stimulant every two days.

This morning, Tanner was the first one down the stairs to get breakfast!  Last night, he did not want to sit still for his fluids...the fight is coming back in Tanner!!  He is feeling better!

He still seems slightly dehydrated to me before getting his fluids, but less than he was a few days ago.  The appetite pills have him chowing down, so maybe he will gain a bit of weight this week for me.  He is on a fish kick right now and prefers those flavors over chicken or turkey.

Notice, in the picture above, Tanner is wearing his new survivor bandana.  According to the etsy site we ordered from, the lime green ribbon is for lymphoma.  I think this looks very pretty with Tanners orange furs.

What's coming up for Tanner?

Thursday, February 12th - Check up with the regular vet, revisit our plan, repeat blood work

Monday, February 23rd - Vet school visit for blood work, check up, and ultrasound

Thanks for checking in on my boy and sending him purrs!

Mancat Monday

This post is mostly about Oliver...he is a mancat that keeps life interesting!

The black tornado at work...getting into cabinets can lead to messes :)  Thankfully, no one tried to eat these pods of  dishwasher liquid!

Here is a video of Oliver, trying to drink from the bathroom faucet.  He loves running water and wants to drink several times a day.  The problem is, that he seems to snort the water more than drink it!  I don't want him to create a problem, like pneumonia...does anyone else have a cat that just can't figure out how to drink safely from running water?  We have unplugged their fountain for this reason too!

http://youtu.be/dIDeFQh45io

Mancats are crazy!!

Mancat Monday

Tanner has had a pretty good week at home.  He has turned into quite the lap cat too!  He insists on either sitting completely on your lap, or propped up on your legs, and prefers to be covered up with the down throw.  He gets all toasty warm and takes a nice long nap, complete with twitching paws!

Tanner lost weight again this week and now weighs 13 lbs 1 oz.  I was actually hoping he would gain, as he really doesn't need to lose anymore weight.  You can easily feel each bone in his spine!  He is still eating pretty well, but I can tell there are times when he is hungry, but nothing seems to be what he wants.  We are opening multiple cans to find one that smells good to him.  I gave him a shot of famotidine over the weekend to see if that would help his stomach to feel better.  I wish he could tell me how he is feeling!

We stopped the antibiotic because he is having major diarrhea, even with the probiotic in his food.  I hope getting this out of his system will perk him up too.

He is doing well with taking his potassium pill, and he regular heart meds.  He is asking to play more, and will run around some.  His back legs are getting stronger looking, but if he stands with his feet too close together, he wobbles.

He seems dehydrated, so I have brought out the fluids and gave him 50ml on Thursday and Sunday.  This seems to help.  Tanner goes to the vet on Thursday afternoon for blood work recheck, and I made an actual appointment to have time with the vet as well.  I want to talk about how much fluid and how often can we safely give them.  I need to know that we are doing all we can right now to support Tanner and give him good quality.