thank you, MetaFilter February 17, 2012 12:23 PM Subscribe
MetaFilter made a bad week SO MUCH better....
I was having a terrible day on Monday, and came home to a box full of lovely Metafilter craft exchange items. Just made me smile so much I can't even say. I've been wearing the jewelry most of the week since then.
Then yesterday I found out my beloved 14-year-old kitty has kidney failure. After the freaking out, I went looking on AskMe for information, and found some really helpful threads. Today we had the follow-up appointment, and while it was scary (her numbers are very bad, but her demeanor (?) is very good), I had some idea of what to expect.
Thanks for being so awesome, everybody.
I was having a terrible day on Monday, and came home to a box full of lovely Metafilter craft exchange items. Just made me smile so much I can't even say. I've been wearing the jewelry most of the week since then.
Then yesterday I found out my beloved 14-year-old kitty has kidney failure. After the freaking out, I went looking on AskMe for information, and found some really helpful threads. Today we had the follow-up appointment, and while it was scary (her numbers are very bad, but her demeanor (?) is very good), I had some idea of what to expect.
Thanks for being so awesome, everybody.
Everybody needs another hug.
posted by Devils Rancher at 12:33 PM on February 17, 2012
posted by Devils Rancher at 12:33 PM on February 17, 2012
I'm so sorry about Sasha. My beloved Butchie had kidney failure, so feel free to memail me if you'd like to discuss anything about it.
posted by Maisie at 12:57 PM on February 17, 2012
posted by Maisie at 12:57 PM on February 17, 2012
AskMe helped my kitty this week.
*sends kitty hugs to epersonae's kitty*
posted by socks are for puppets at 3:25 PM on February 17, 2012
*sends kitty hugs to epersonae's kitty*
posted by socks are for puppets at 3:25 PM on February 17, 2012
::hugs back and also to Houyhnhnm::
socks, I hope your guy gets back to biting the other cat on the head soon. Also, that table of when to go to the vet from cali59 is fantastic.
Sasha is in surprisingly good spirits, considering. Mr e. reports that she was climbing up his chest and attempting to bite his face while he was on the phone with the vet yesterday. Pretty normal for her.
She's had two subcutaneous fluid injections (Tues & today), is on antibiotics (sort of a just in case, since her white blood count was high), new food, a supplement (potassium?), and she got a shot for anemia. (Apparently the anemia is a worrisome sign.) She goes back in a week to see how it's going; happily, we've got a great vet about a block away from our house. The recommendations on giving subQ will be especially helpful, I think. Being practical is keeping me from FREAKING THE FUCK OUT.
LobsterMitten, seeing that picture again got me a little weepy...I hope she gets at least one more summer of lolling about on the patio, since that is pretty much one of her favorite things in the world.
posted by epersonae at 3:54 PM on February 17, 2012
socks, I hope your guy gets back to biting the other cat on the head soon. Also, that table of when to go to the vet from cali59 is fantastic.
Sasha is in surprisingly good spirits, considering. Mr e. reports that she was climbing up his chest and attempting to bite his face while he was on the phone with the vet yesterday. Pretty normal for her.
She's had two subcutaneous fluid injections (Tues & today), is on antibiotics (sort of a just in case, since her white blood count was high), new food, a supplement (potassium?), and she got a shot for anemia. (Apparently the anemia is a worrisome sign.) She goes back in a week to see how it's going; happily, we've got a great vet about a block away from our house. The recommendations on giving subQ will be especially helpful, I think. Being practical is keeping me from FREAKING THE FUCK OUT.
LobsterMitten, seeing that picture again got me a little weepy...I hope she gets at least one more summer of lolling about on the patio, since that is pretty much one of her favorite things in the world.
posted by epersonae at 3:54 PM on February 17, 2012
Mefi has a way of doing that. Robocop (the pet rabbit I derive my handle from, not Peter Weller) died last week. Luckily there was that MetaTalk thread about comment fables where people said nice things which helped pull be back from the X-TREEM SADZ.
Here's hoping the best for your kitty!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 4:02 PM on February 17, 2012
Here's hoping the best for your kitty!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 4:02 PM on February 17, 2012
Hugs to you and kitty! I'm an old hand at sub-Q, feel free to memail me. Brave Sir Nigel was very near death from kidney failure at the tender age of nine, but has been going strong for three years.
posted by cyndigo at 4:51 PM on February 17, 2012
posted by cyndigo at 4:51 PM on February 17, 2012
aww... I had a similar week a little while back. Late May of '10. It was my Law School graduation, and my parents were in town (they're lovely but it adds to the stress of everything) and on the morning they show up my roommate notices that one of my sweet kitties is hiding under the couch, inert, and barely even wheezing.
I rush Gatsby to the vet (he was only four years old, and actually not quite even that) and they diagnose him with acute kidney failure. His temperature was in the high sixties. The vet warmly tried to counsel me about putting him down. I was having none of it. I couldn't handle it, with everything else. I told them I didn't give a damn about the cost, but for them to do what they could.
And then, losing my mind, I obsessed myself with the Russian Girls/Sex-traffic MeTa thread, which wasn't anything I had any control over more than graduation (I wasn't sure I was actually going to graduate, to be honest. A lot of my grades were shit) or handling my folks, or Gatsby's health. But in a weird way, seeing so many people caring, and rallying around an urgent issue, and one which was far more important than my bullshit, helped put things in perspective.
And then Internet Detective Squad Station #9 saved the day in the thread. And then I walked across the stage as they called my name, and got a hug from my favorite professor at the end of the line. And when my dad asked me how I expected to pay for the vet bills (knowing full well that he was going to have to foot them himself, I simply asked, "what else was I supposed to do?," and he agreed and came back into the cages with me to pet Gatsby, barely keeping it together on the drips and medication.
And then, at the end of the weekend, Gatsby was returned to me, healthy and miraculous, with the warning that dry food is ALMOST ALWAYS BAD NEWS FOR CATS. He bounced back like a champ within days, and is mewing at my right now.
But in a weird way, the MeTa thread got me through it and gave me hope. There were more important things than my troubles, and strangers care and want to help.
posted by Navelgazer at 6:31 PM on February 17, 2012 [2 favorites]
I rush Gatsby to the vet (he was only four years old, and actually not quite even that) and they diagnose him with acute kidney failure. His temperature was in the high sixties. The vet warmly tried to counsel me about putting him down. I was having none of it. I couldn't handle it, with everything else. I told them I didn't give a damn about the cost, but for them to do what they could.
And then, losing my mind, I obsessed myself with the Russian Girls/Sex-traffic MeTa thread, which wasn't anything I had any control over more than graduation (I wasn't sure I was actually going to graduate, to be honest. A lot of my grades were shit) or handling my folks, or Gatsby's health. But in a weird way, seeing so many people caring, and rallying around an urgent issue, and one which was far more important than my bullshit, helped put things in perspective.
And then Internet Detective Squad Station #9 saved the day in the thread. And then I walked across the stage as they called my name, and got a hug from my favorite professor at the end of the line. And when my dad asked me how I expected to pay for the vet bills (knowing full well that he was going to have to foot them himself, I simply asked, "what else was I supposed to do?," and he agreed and came back into the cages with me to pet Gatsby, barely keeping it together on the drips and medication.
And then, at the end of the weekend, Gatsby was returned to me, healthy and miraculous, with the warning that dry food is ALMOST ALWAYS BAD NEWS FOR CATS. He bounced back like a champ within days, and is mewing at my right now.
But in a weird way, the MeTa thread got me through it and gave me hope. There were more important things than my troubles, and strangers care and want to help.
posted by Navelgazer at 6:31 PM on February 17, 2012 [2 favorites]
epersonae and Houyhnhnm, very sorry to hear about your kitties. A friend is going through the same thing right now too. Poor cats, poor you. Hugs to all of you.
posted by ifjuly at 6:38 PM on February 17, 2012
posted by ifjuly at 6:38 PM on February 17, 2012
Hugs for you and your kitty. We're from the Internet and we're here to help.
posted by arcticseal at 4:42 AM on February 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by arcticseal at 4:42 AM on February 18, 2012 [1 favorite]
AskMe is real good at helping kitties.
posted by mediareport at 5:14 PM on February 18, 2012
posted by mediareport at 5:14 PM on February 18, 2012
My cat is four and has some as yet undiagnosed ( after two different vet visits) possibly bad thing. I feel terrible for recently asking a question about how much he meows because he is very quiet now and I miss his meowing so much.
posted by sweetkid at 6:12 PM on February 18, 2012
posted by sweetkid at 6:12 PM on February 18, 2012
Yesterday we tried twice to give Sasha subQ and (maybe) got a tiny bit in her. (The first attempt I ended up sticking myself!) It was horribly stressful, but I've been determined to keep trying, partially because of all the good wishes here & info in other threads.
Tonight went a little better, and I know for sure that she actually got some fluids. There were hugs, ice cream & Star Trek after, and now she's sitting on the arm of the sofa. (Er, she was...she just jumped down & Mr epersonae is getting her a bite to eat.) I'm just going to keep at it until she and we are able to make it fairly routine. I hope. Thanks again.
And good luck, sweetkid!
posted by epersonae at 11:11 PM on February 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
Tonight went a little better, and I know for sure that she actually got some fluids. There were hugs, ice cream & Star Trek after, and now she's sitting on the arm of the sofa. (Er, she was...she just jumped down & Mr epersonae is getting her a bite to eat.) I'm just going to keep at it until she and we are able to make it fairly routine. I hope. Thanks again.
And good luck, sweetkid!
posted by epersonae at 11:11 PM on February 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
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posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 12:24 PM on February 17, 2012