Ali's Trip to the Vet

[Lerah021399]

Ali had an eventful evening yesterday. She had her yearly vet appointment and was such a good girl! She clung to me the whole time (she usually is so aloof to both my husband and myself when she is at home). She got her rabies and distemper shots. They also took some blood to check her sugar levels since she has diabetes and they will also be checking to make sure that her kidneys are functioning properly…they have started a new program at our vet’s office for “senior” kitties. They start doing these tests when cats are seven years old or above with the owner’s consent. They test the stool, urine, kidneys and a few other things to make sure that your kitty is healthy. I did not get all the tests done on Ali, but they sent her blood to the lab to get her kidneys checked, they are checking for heartworm (not that she’s had any signs of it…just being safe since she hasn’t been on the meds to prevent it), and the test to check her glucose levels for the past 2 weeks (there is a technical term for it, but I can’t remember it). While I was there I had them give me Heartguard for her since the mosquitoes have been so bad lately and they’ve been getting into our house. If any of you have any ideas on giving the Heartguard to her I would welcome them. She likes the flavor of them, but she has a hard time chewing them up since they are so dag-on chewy (maybe I should cut one into little pieces and mix it with her food). Anyway, I get the results of the tests on Monday…here’s hoping for a very healthy kitty. I have no reason to believe that she would be otherwise…she has been so energetic lately, so I’m taking that as a sign that she is doing a lot better then she was without the insulin and her prescription cat food. Well, $220 later, Ali is at home and loving every minute of it! She’s worth it though!

[HayleyRosie]

So happy to hear that the vet visit went go well. I hope Mandy's goes as well on tuesday. Please keep us posted when you get the results from all the tests. I have a feeling everything is fine.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Great news that Ali is doing good! Hopefully all the test will confirm that. I think it's great that your vet offers these "senior" tests. When I took Tubby to the vet for the first time in years when he was 15 (figured it was time since I thought 15 was starting to get really old) they tested his kidneys because it's common in older cats that the kidneys start to fail. And it's a good thing they did because he is in the early stages of kidney failure. I guess I figured something was wrong because he was throwing up almost everyday. But thanks to their tests, we caught it early enough that with treatment, he's been doing great for the last two years. I am thoroughly convinced that had they not done that test, he might not be here today, because even when I miss just one day's pill, he throws up the very next day. So without those pills, his kidneys would be in pretty bad shape.

So here's hoping Ali's glucose levels are good and all the other tests are good too. I firmly believe that if you catch most kitty illnesses early enough, they are totally treatable. But if ignored or left untreated, they are deadly.

Hugs and smoochies to Ali for being such a good girl.

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm glad to hear that Ali was a good girl at the vet's office. Now hopefully all of her test results will also come back fine. Please keep us updated on her results. BTW my Storm will be 8 years old in January. I wonder if my vet will recommend the senior tests for him.

[smokey the elder]

My Moebius turns 10 in September. Her next visit in January I'm going to ask the vet about what screening he recommends. Probably a kidney and liver panel, at the very least. She's always been healthy (one URI in 2002; that's it!)

[kimlovescats]

What a good girl you were Ali!!! I'm sure all of her tests will come back just fine! Huggies and kissies to you!!!

[Kirsten]

Ali, you're such a good girl!

Wonder if Lily will be the same tomorrow when she's going for her second row of shots!

Kirsten

[Lerah021399]

Well, the doctor just called me and he had some good news (not great news). He said that Ali's sugar levels came back a little high, so he wants to put her on a more insulin. She is currently getting 1 unit in the morning only. So he wants to have her getting a shot in the evening of 1/2 unit as well. Not a big deal. He wants to see her in a few months to make sure that she is regulated w/ the insulin. He was a little concerned that she has lost about a 1/2 pound since we started giving her the insulin...he said that more than likely it's just from trying to get her regulated (we were first giving her 2 units in the morning and at night...too much. Then we went down to 1 unit 2x's a day...still too much... and then to nothing...too little... and then started her back up w/ what we're doing now). Well, hopefully this new routine should work for her. Her heartworm test came back negative! Her liver function came back a little high on one of the insymes, but he wasn't concerned about that...he thinks that it's a side affect of not having her insulin regulated yet. So by far, I think that's pretty good news. She'll be going back to visit him sometime before the end of the year.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Well, all and all, sounds to me like Ali is doing quite well, and that's wonderful news! A little work to be done yet on her insulin, but over all it sounds like she's doing great! Hugs and smoochies to her again for being such a good girl.