4/4/2024 0 Comments Fleury update (sort of)Yes, we're back to every other day seizures still with Fleury. I've spent the last week researching medicines, talking to vets and pharmacists about options (there aren't many) for cats. I've called my vet like 3 times, and feel like a bother at this point... Oh, and shout out to CHEWY's new "talk to a vet" option. I had a discussion about causes of seizures, and what's going on with Fleury. I really just needed more information about meds and causes, and the vet was very helpful!
Our options are Keppra (three times a day liquid) or Phenobarbitol (which comes in once a day or twice a day). I don't know anything about the latter. I do know that one comes with the need to get bloodwork every 8 weeks to make sure it isn't harming any of his organs. Okay, that part freaked me out. But I'm sure it's okay. Maybe? I haven't decided yet. And since we are moving into the weekend and the vet is closed on Fridays, I might start the three times a day Keppra and see how it goes. Yes, I already discussed that with the vet. I like to two times a day Phenobarbitol, but I think some research is needed before I make that decision. Thank goodness my vet isn't annoyed with me yet! LOL
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3/30/2024 0 Comments Fleury the kittyOh Fleury... My little guy went 8 weeks without an episode. But now we're back to every other day. This stinks! Last night he had one, and I picked him up like we do, (we have no idea if this is the right thing to do or not) and cradled him, whispered to him, rocked him like a baby. It felt like it lasted forever as he clawed to get out of my arms. I don't think he is trying to get away, I think it is the seizure.
I am sure it only lasted 2 minutes, but it felt like eternity. These episodes are terrifying. I was shaken for hours after. My anxiety kept me from falling asleep, worried about him having another one. Every little sound in the house had me wanting to make sure he was okay. I decided we need to start him on the medicine. After they stopped earlier this year, the vet and I agreed that putting him on a med wasn't necessary at the moment, since they stopped. But to keep them updated. Of course last night was Friday, so I can't even call till Monday. But I think this is the right decision for him. I spent the morning calling and chatting with pharmacies to see if I can get the one a day pill in a smaller pill - the answer is NO. Then I tried to get the suspension (three times a day) med in a little pill - again, NO. The little guy is 5 pounds. He is a little runt, but he is scrappy and can hold his own. But the one a day pill is a horse pill. They don't make it specifically for pets, so it is human grade med, the same one they would give a human. Looks like we are going to go with the suspension unless the vet can give him a different med. I'm just not sure I want to wait until Monday to find out. It's so difficult with animals. They can't tell you what is going on, and as their mom you only want what is best for them. 3/1/2024 0 Comments Age is just a numberI'm currently 48, and not caring that I'm closing in on 50. We all age. I mean, what's the alternative? Right? I'm good with getting older, and the number doesn't matter to me. I don't feel almost 50 but I find it cool to say "at almost 50..." I know, I'm weird.
All the ads on tv about botox really bug me though. And maybe I'm contradicting myself, because I do dye my hair. But these beautiful ladies on these ads complaining about a few lines on their face... We all age. So those lines are natural. Here's me contradicting myself. Yes, I dye my hair. I started getting the straggler white\silver hairs, and those stand straight up no matter what hair care products you use. Now I'm noticing white streaks! Yes, going gray is natural, and yes, I'm good with aging. But I like my dark hair. So maybe I'm no better than the ladies on the botox commercials... But I'm not ready to go white. My mom and aunt aren't embracing the grays, and my grandmother continued to get her hair tinted well into her 90's! And I'm not ready to either. You've probably noticed that I can't seem to settle on if these rouge hairs are gray, white, or silver. I honestly can't tell. Some of mine look white, and others look silver. But they don't stick around long enough for me to figure it out, lol. And that being said, I'm off to color my hair! TTFN! 1/15/2024 0 Comments Fleury kittyJust an update. We did take Fleury to the vet, and we were able to get a video of what was happening, luckily. It was helpful for the vet to see what he was doing. Of course it doesn't present as a typical seizure, but that is what the vet thinks it is. Everything else about him is healthy. The vet did a thorough exam, and blood work. All good.
We were given seizure meds to give to him three times a day. Now we just have to figure out how we are going to do it! Fleury does NOT like to be held. I am trying to make a plan before we randomly start giving it to him, since it needs to be given 3 times a day (every 8 hours) and at the same time every day. I am just grateful there wasn't anything really bad wrong with him. But why this is happening is still a mystery. Of course. 1/9/2024 0 Comments January 9th, 2024I had hoped to start using the LE pump every day (runs for 1 hour) and read while I was doing that. I also had hoped to start my latest book. Well, I'm so stressed that there has been no LE pump (well, I started again today), no reading (the tv is still on), and no writing (yet).
You know what they say about making plans, right? All week we have been dealing with Fleury the cat having episodes. Some are very small, one was pretty big (be he also had one while on the cat tree, and he always tries to get away when they happen, and he tried to jump off the tree, needless to say, he fell.) And still, he is always perfectly FINE once he shakes it off. I don't get what is happening. I want to take him to the vet, but I also don't want to spend hundreds of dollars for them to tell me "we can't find anything, so just keep an eye on him" You know? And before you question me as a cat-mom, I am a good pet-mom. I spoil these pets rotten. But it's like my own medical care...I hate to spend the money if I'm not sure if they can even help. I can't tell you the amount of times I've gone to the doctor, tell her what's going on, and she looks at me with question and says "huh, I've never heard of that before". That visit should be free, right? I'm not risking jinxing it, so I won't say too much about Fleury. But, on Sunday I was reading on FB about Purina ProPlan/Purina pet foods harming pets. This isn't news to me, back in the Spring, I noticed our dog, Nika, who we put on Purina ProPlan Sensitive stomach many years ago FOR her stomach issues. The food stopped all her issues! Until Spring 2023. The stomach issues were back and I know she wasn't eating anything odd (I am very strict about her not getting anything but her dog food and the treats that I buy due to her sensitive stomach). The issues went on for too long (like 2 weeks.) That's when I read about Purina silently changing the recipe to the Sensitive Stomach feed. Like WHY would you do that? People are using it to STOP stomach issues, and this food is now CAUSING them? Anyway, that led to me overthinking and over researching dog food. We went through 3 brands before finding one she would eat. Okay, now to this week. Now there is more bad reports about many Purina products, including the wet and dry food that the cats are on. I start to wonder if THIS is what's happening with Fleury? And if it is, dare I wonder if changing his food ASAP will make him better? I ran out first thing yesterday morning and searched the aisles for cat food not by Purina or Nestle. I settled on one kind of dry food (Tiki Cat) and bought 4 or 5 different kinds of wet food. Fleury is SO PICKY that this might be a challenge. I am also not looking for the top tier/best pet food around because that falls under the homemade/raw food category. And I researched that for the dog, and after many weeks of going back and forth, decided that wasn't for us. If you're wondering why, it doesn't fit into who we are. We are on a budget and that budget barely gets US food from the grocery store (at today's inflated prices). I hate to cook and am bad at it; I don't make US dinner 40% of the time (hello take out, pizza, or the stand-by grilled cheese.) I don't like touching raw ground meat or raw chicken for US, no way I am looking at or touching chicken feet or organs to feed my fur balls (sorry babies.) But that is me. You do you. I'm doing my research and doing the best that I can. But we are ditching to Purina cat food. This has been stressful and overwhelming. I watch him like a hawk all day, and am literally afraid to go to sleep at night for fear he'll need me. If you read this, would you mind sending a little good juju, healing thoughts, or prayers my Fleury kitty's way? He is only 6 and besides these random episodes perfectly healthy. (yes, still eating and drinking, playing, harassing the dog, and chasing Buddy Cat all over the house) 1/5/2024 0 Comments not a morning personYes, I found the below quote on social media. It isn't mine, I borrowed it. But it explains a lot.
I learned long ago that I am an introvert. I was always shy as a kid, like really shy. Going to parties or events (even family ones) sent me into a panic. Heart racing, stomach churning panic. But I assumed it was part of being shy. Because in the late 70's early 80's there was no talk of social anxiety. Later in life I diagnosed myself with it. I still get the racing heart, hard to breathe, nausea panic when I have to go to a party or event, yes, even family ones! And as an author, yes, I am in full fledged panic mode on the way to the author events that I participate in. If I was going alone, I'm pretty sure I would turn around and go home (or never get in the car in the first place) even after months of planning and excitement, when it's time, I freak out. Anytime I need to go to an event that causes this, I make sure to have Mr. G at my side. I use him as the go-between. He was always a people person, and helped draw in the folks, where I would then find my groove. Without him, I might be the girl shrinking in the corner. Maybe not. But who knows? I feel this quote this morning. I have a morning ritual, I wake up, once I am changed and ready for the day, I pour my coffee, put my breakfast sandwich in the microwave, and grab my vitamins. When mornings like today happen, it is TOO MUCH stimulation for me. Remember, I just woke up. Just because I sleep till 10:30 doesn't mean I'm wide awake yet. My son is trying to get his lunch ready while I am in the middle of my morning ritual. He's hungry and HANGRY, and I'm not awake, coffee-less, and frustrated now that my pattern has been disrupted. I think I have habits, and plans so I know the outcome, there will be no surprises. And when things don't go as planned, it throws me off. So me trying to navigate around my son while he is flustered and hungry is almost too much first thing in my morning. Add in the worry I am holding in my heart, hoping Fleury will be okay, and the concern I feel each time I look at him. By the way, he's fine right now. He's been eating treats, and running around, bullying the dog, and just being Fleury all morning. As I write this, I feel like you're reading this thinking "this chick is so whiney..." But...before 2020, I had worked hard on "getting out of my shell". I forced myself to do things I wouldn't usually do. Go places I don't normally go. And push past the panic attack until I was actually enjoying myself. It took YEARS for little results. But I was doing it. Something my dad told me long ago always comes to light during these times. He told me that my grandfather hated going out (events, parties) he never wanted to go, he was miserable that he had to go, but when he finally got there, he really enjoyed himself! That is me in a nutshell. But since 2020, I feel like that is me x20. I am a work in progress. 1/5/2024 0 Comments January 05th, 2024I decided to change Pet Corner into COFFEE HOUSE. This is where I'll talk about my pets, daily life, mom life, and mental health.
I really needed a space like this! The last few days have been mentally exhausting (for me, anyway.) I swear that when you an adult there is no such thing as living "stress-free". What I am experiencing is, finally getting rid of what stress thinking it's smooth sailing now. Thinking your stress is gone, now just enjoy life, finally. Only to have new stress pop up in its place!
That's where I am at right now. Two and a half years ago, our little Fleury suffered what we believe was a seizure. It was terrifying. Luckily Mr. G was working from home, because I was basically useless. I froze. I panicked. ***little backstory: we had two dogs before our current 2 cats and one dog. Our dogs passed away at age 15, literally 6 weeks apart. The first one was quiet, the second was distressing. It was the middle of the night, and I sat with her all night. It was traumatic to me. Now with my peri-menopause hormones all out of whack, I worry everyday about repeating that THREE more times, even though these three are still "young-ish". So there I am distressed over watching Fleury suffer...struggle? I don't even know the words. I feel like his body was feeling what I do when my foot cramps up. It seemed to work itself out from his shoulders to finally his tail. I think he is alert while this is happening, and he tries to get away from us, so he isn't unaware. It's weird. The vet had no answers for us because he was perfectly fine when we got to the vet. She couldn't find anything unwell about him at all. Here we are, two and a half years later, he had one on Tuesday. It was scary. But as the first one, it slowly went away and then he was running around the house like normal. Deep breath, right? Well, no. This morning, he had another one. (he doesn't lose control of his bladder or bowels when this happens, fyi) I am more useful now, talking softly to him, petting him, trying to keep him calm. So why two in one week after so long? Now I am on high alert with him. Yes, he needs a vet visit, but rushing him there if he isn't mid-whatever this is won't help us. Fleury is now 6years old, so he is still young. He has no physical signs of anything ever happening. And now I wait and hope it doesn't happen again soon. 3/2/2023 0 Comments the dogAfter 7 years, our dog has decided she doesn't like her crate at night. She freaks out, not only hurting herself but keeping us all awake. I did a BAD pet owner thing and gave into her nonsense by letting her out and sleeping in the living room with her. She is perfectly FINE in the living room. She has always been like my shadow, but it is worse since the pandemic. She even SLEEPS next to me now. My biggest concern leaving her on her own when not supervised is our cats. She likes to chase them. She's just playing, but she doesn't know when play is too rough for a little cat. And of course the worry of her eating the little cat toys, or the dreaded litter box...
I don't know what her issue is. When I do try to sleep in bed, she doesn't like to sleep upstairs, even loose, and us having a bed for her there. (She will sleep on said bed if it is in the living room.) And she is so cute it's not easy to be mad at her! 1/24/2023 0 Comments welcome to the pet cornerJust wanted to introduce my fur kids.
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AuthorI am the Dog Mom of Nika the red Husky, and Cat Mom of Buddy and Fleury. Archives
March 2024
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