Super Sonic

First, an update on Catfish: he is doing the same. He is still not eating, but he seems to be holding his own.

On a lighter note, Penny has started doing something new. She screeches/squeals/shrieks just for the heck of it. It's like she tries to see how loud she can be (and/or if it is indeed possible to shatter glass). So, if you see a mass migration of bats headed toward Florida or hear tell of whales in the ocean suddenly changing course en masse, that's our daughter. :)

Pancreatitis

Well, I had a talk with the vet today. I wanted to make sure I wasn't prolonging Catfish's life if it was time to let him go. He said he felt pretty confident that this was pancreatitis/traiditis and that if we could get him eating again he'd probably be ok. I say ok because this is something that will continue to flair up and he may go on food strikes in the future, but otherwise he can live a reasonably normal kitty life. Of course, there is no way to know for sure, but I am more optimistic this evening than I have been.

Thanks for all the comments about Catfish. It's nice to be able to "share" in this venue.

Catfish Update 2.0

Well, Catfish's recovery was short-lived. I took him back to the vet yesterday on my way into work because he was not eating again. They gave him a steroid shot this time and it was supposed to make him ravenous. Not so much. I syringe fed him last night and this morning and most of the day Tray has been feeding him whatever he can get him to eat - mainly chunks of cooked chicken. I called the vet to let them know that the shot didn't work and she told me to wait a couple days that it may take some time and not to give up hope. So, I am not giving up hope - but, I will admit, I am not all that optimistic.

No More Used Baby Clothes?

Have you heard of this new law that will go into effect February 10 essentially banning any used children's product (including clothes) from being resold unless it has been tested for lead? This means that Goodwill, Salvation Army, and all consignment stores will have to spend money to test clothes before they can sell them. Obviously, they can't afford to do that, so there is a real possibility that they will no longer sell used baby or children's clothes. For an article on the law in the LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-thrift2-2009jan02,0,2083247.story
And for a discussion at one of my favorite websites:
http://babycheapskate.blogspot.com/2009/01/govt-says-sorry-no-more-reselling-your.html

On a separate, but related front, a lot of the smaller toy manufacturers that make the sorts of toys I like to buy (i.e. non-plastic things) are running into the same problem. For more information on how this effects US companies: http://www.handmadetoyalliance.org/

Catfish Update

Catfish started eating again this morning! And, he got up and walked around a bit. He's been pretty lazy and sleepy all day, but he got up and ate again this evening. He hasn't eaten much by normal standards, but it is a very positive sign. Also, we heard from the vet with the blood test results and they were (shockingly enough) inconclusive. So, we don't know for sure if he has pancreatitis, but they did say that his white blood cell count was normal so that it probably isn't cancer either. In any event, we are just supposed to keep on doing what we're doing as long as he is doing better and we'll take him back in two weeks for another check.

Here's a picture of him a couple days ago when he was burrowed up in a blanket in the guest room. Penny is wearing her new sleepsack she received for Christmas.

Catfish

I am taking to my blog to write about what is going on with Catfish - mostly because I need to talk about it without having to actually talk about it. If that makes any sense. He's such a great cat. I know I've posted about him before, but just as background for those who haven't been around him, he really is amazingly sweet and very much a lap kitty. He's 9 and has been with us pretty much all his life. He was a stray who showed up in our yard and "adopted" us. He used to be indoor/outdoor (predominately outdoor), but after almost witnessing him get hit by a car, he became strictly indoor.
Now, the way I see it, there are two types of people in this world: some people will merely make note that their cat has crawled off into the bushes to die, and other people will pull the cat out of the bushes and take it to the vet. I fall into the latter category. It's an expensive category.
Catfish had lost quite a bit of weight recently, but I didn't really realize how much until my mom and brother commented on it when they saw him at Christmas. He'd pretty much stopped eating and then two or three days ago he started vomiting bile (an indication of an empty stomach). I took him to the vet Wednesday (New Years Eve). He's down to 7.75 pounds from 12-13. He had no fever, no abnormal heart rate or rhythm, and his blood work and urine sample were pretty much normal too. But he was dehydrated, so he got some IV fluids and we sent some more blood work off to an outside lab to test his liver. I was sent home with a syringe to force feed him (by squirting liquidized food into his mouth) if necessary (and it has been). By this morning I could tell he'd taken a turn for the worse. He wasn't moving much and hadn't been to the litter box at all (despite having had IV fluids).
So, I called the vet on the after hours line as he told me to. He asked me to bring Catfish in and met me at the office, which was closed for New Years. Catfish had a fever of 105.5 (normal can be up to 102) and some pain in his abdomen. He got some more IV fluids, an antibiotic shot, a shot for the fever, and a shot of pain medication. We are waiting on the blood test results tomorrow to see how to proceed. He may have something called "triaditis" which is a combination inflammation of the liver, pancreas, and bowel. It's reasonably well managed if we can get him back up and around and eating again. He could live for many more years, so it is worth it to try and get him well, but all the tests are expensive (not to mention the emergency trip to the vet's office on his day off).
I am really hoping it all turns out ok. I love Catfish and I have enjoyed seeing Penny interact with him, and I know Tray would also be heartbroken to lose him. I'll post again as I get more information.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from the New Year Baby!