Second MCC quilt.

WOW!

life cycles on

Meet Penny, my new kitty. She's posing for you on Chloe's memorial blankie, which is nearly finished.

my beautiful Chloe...

...passed this morning. She's been in ill health for a while, and in the last few days, I felt she was ready to go. I took her to my vet's office this morning, and they gave her a peritoneal shot, as she was too dehydrated to find a vein. The vet explained beforehand that this kind of administration takes a few minutes longer to take effect (five to ten minutes average), but is less painful than the other options. She administered the shot, and after about a minute, Chloe was gone. Her system was so weak, that she just let go very quickly and calmly. I got to be with her as she passed, which I was scared of, but very glad I did. It is very sad, but also a great relief, as I could tell she was uncomfortable in her last days. Thank you to all who helped support me in this time of decision and pain.

the electric grandmother

back in the boot again

So, surgery Monday went well... They found another chunk of bone in my left big toe joint (the doctor and nurse likened me to lucky oysters, and said that the bone chip was shown around the room in awe). The chunk was removed, and the joint cleaned up of spurs etc. and I am home resting for what feels like an interminable amount of time... two weeks. I have the third week off, with the option to start work at that time. Luckily, I have my new Roku box and Netflix to entertain me while I heal. Any ideas of stuff to do that doesn't require transportation or much use of the foot?

oh, Cho-cho

Chloe has been diagnosed with chronic renal failure... Yesterday we went to the vet because she hadn't been eating or drinking and was acting lethargic after an episode of vomiting and diarrhea. I thought that this was it, but the vet encouraged me to try giving her subcutaneous (sub-Q) fluids to see how she would react, then come back in a week to see what I decided. Chloe handled the administration of fluids pretty well, with just some low moaning as the 100 mL was injected under her skin. She was quiet the whole way home, then went to bed straightaway. This is a shot of her post-injection with the fluids gathered around her chest:I really didn't see any improvement until this morning, when I realized she had let me sleep through the entire night without waking me with her yowling or putting her whiskers in my face. She seemed as refreshed as I did; perky even. 100 percent Chloe again. So, I've decided that I will go ahead with this treatment, even though it is kind of frightening for me. Why frightening? Because I get to become a home-nurse of sorts. Upon the next vet visit, I will receive training on administering the sub-Q injections to Chloe at home, on an as-needed basis.

When the vet first posited this option, I freaked out, to be honest. I don't like needles, or causing Chloe pain, or the two combined. So I have been reading up on the procedure, and finding that owners in similar situations found ways to cope with the reality of shooting their cats up with fluids, and some whose cats lived for many months or even years while under treatment. I was hesitant until I read this; I have said for some time that I would only do comfort care for Chloe, and have been feeling confused as to what sub-Q treatment would be, comfort care or drastic measures? I am pretty certain that, seeing Chloe so perked up today, this is really a form of comfort care.

I'm curious what y'all would do in my place... Would you do sub-Q's, or would you let your pet go?