Barney is an Angel Now.

[kittykatharine]

I think Barney looks better - and I think he looks as if his spirits are better as well. He seemed to be more perky. I really hope that he pulls through this, he really is such a sweet little baby. When exactly is your friend coming back, the one that you hope will take him? He really appears to be improving. Keep up the good work and I will keep sending my good vibes and thoughts. Come on Barney!

[jazzcat]

I've just been catching up on this thread and I'm in awe of everything you guys are doing to help poor little Barney. He looks so pitiful and so sweet. I'm so glad he found you two to help him. I think you both are "Angels".

[krazyaboutkatz]

I've been reading this thread and I sure hope that everything will work for Barney and that he'll continue to get well and find the forever loving home that he deserves. Angela and Lara, thanks so much for giving him the care that he needs. I'll keep him in my thoughts and prayers.

[Emeraldgreen]

When exactly is your friend coming back, the one that you hope will take him?

Terri has told Angela over the past few days that she does not want Barney. I'm disappointed but it's good to know the truth sooner rather than later because we are dealing with a time issue. I think that Terri's partner will allow Barney to hang out on the porch after Angela leaves but they ultimately want him to have a different home. So that is the goal now.

I think Angela will be here for another week and hopefully for the recheck exam so we can see how he has improved with regard to the diabetes. He continues to use the litterbox and is no longer peeing inappropriately.

[momtomany]

Is there anyway to find a temporary foster home for Barney until a permanent home can be found. It hurts my heart to think of him being back out and without the care he is being provided now.

[Emeraldgreen]

Is there anyway to find a temporary foster home for Barney until a permanent home can be found. It hurts my heart to think of him being back out and without the care he is being provided now.

I feel the same way and I'm trying to come up with a plan. I'm not sure exactly what right now but I'm praying alot.

[Catty1]

Maybe the PTrs on the mainland know someone?

[momtomany]

I will pray also for Barney to find a temporary foster home until a permanent one can be found.

[Emeraldgreen]

All prayers are needed, so thank you so much!

I went to see Barney tonight and he was a bit improved but not as much as I had hoped. I'm going to pick up an elizabethan collar for him on Thursday because we can't figure out if he is scratching his left ear or if it is just bleeding on it's own. There was alot of dried blood that needed to be removed. Angela said she doesn't see him scratch but he might be doing it through the night.
She said she came downstairs this morning and found him in the kitchen. The little sneaker had pushed his way through the barrier she put up to keep him in the small room he is allowed to be in. I guess that is a good sign! He did eat a bunch of Jack's cat chow though so that wasn't good. But hopefully it won't set him back too much.

We gave him another bath and trimmed some more mats and cleaned around his ears. He nipped a few times but only stayed angry for a short time. He really is so forgiving. He just gets frustrated with us and who could blame him.

I spoke with the vet today and she seemed a bit surprised that he was showing some improvement. I think she was a bit shocked as well by his condition when she examined him. We talked about his future bloodwork and I asked when the glucose levels should be checked so we could find out if the diabetes was reversing or not. She said that can take more time and with the infection he has and the thyroid issues, it might affect the numbers so the test should be done once the other things are stabilized. She did say that we should check his blood for the infection and thyroid at the two week marker so that is what we will do and all the donations will go towards that. I decided to just throw the 100.00 in and not worry about it. He is a special guy and he needs all the help he can get. Thank you guys again for the help you've given.

I will update the donation total when everything is in. I haven't asked the reception about it yet but will when I go in on Thursday to pick up the collar for Barneybear.

p.s. I have sent a long letter to a rescue organization that doesn't have a shelter but they foster cats until they are adopted. It is located in the town I used to live in and I sort of know the woman who runs it. I sent her Barney movies and asked her if there was any way someone in her org could foster him while he was up for adoption. I haven't heard back from her yet. PT prayers that she will open her heart to the Barneymeister.

[Emeraldgreen]

Maybe the PTrs on the mainland know someone?

I was thinking about this too and contacted a rescue organization where I used to live. I think I might have posted about this already. She got back to me last night and said that the organization cannot take cats outside of their area (the Sunshine Coast) but she did say that if I gave him to her peronally, she could take him in to her house. The organization has a board of directors and would not allow Barney in but she said she could take him privately. I'm just not sure if this is the right place for Barney but then again, there are not a whole bunch of options here. She is a dog trainer but she started this rescue org. She said in her email to me that she takes care of two feral cats outside and has two cats inside, one elderly and one amputee. She said that Barney would have to be 'fine' with a bunch of polite dogs. I have no idea how Barney is with dogs but Angela told me that the owners of the property where my coworker rents the cottage, have a dog that chases the cats (Barney and Jack) so he's probably not too fond of them.

I got an idea (actually it is an idea that Candace suggested to Katherine for Sydney and I thought it was a good one!) to put some cans together with the saddest picture of Barney I could find (which isn't tough since they are all pretty pathetic) and put them in all our local stores if they'll let me and see if we can raise some money for him to have surgery on his ear if he makes it. And maybe see if anyone might want to adopt him too.

I was so excited about it and got the pictures printed and was just leaving work tonight when Angela showed up. She said that she thought it might be time to put Barney to sleep! I was floored and asked her why and she said that last night and all day today he was acting strangely and was growling and when she tried to pet him he tried to bite her. He then tried to get comfortable in his bed but just wouldn't get himself all the way on it and laid half way on and half way off. Angela wanted to help him but was freaking out. I didn't visit him yesterday so I didn't see any of this. She asked if I would come over tonight to see for myself.

I was so sad because I really thought we could help him make it. I stopped at home and grabbed my camera thinking it might be the last time I'd film him and went over there. On the drive I prayed to God that he would make it clear to us if we shouldn't give up on him or if it was time, to not leave any question. When I pulled up a few minutes later she opened the door and was dishing up some food for him. She said she couldn't believe it, that he was doing better. He was not growling anymore and was hungry. He did seem different though, like he was in pain. He let us pet him but wasn't enjoying it. I took one picture of him because I didn't want to stress him out with too much flash and stuff.

We tried to think of everything that was different from the day before and today and the one thing that came to mind is the dry food that I brought over for him to eat. It is grain free and low carb and I asked the vet specifically about it and she thought it would be good. He didn't eat any of it until last night. We think it might have caused him stomach pain, we're not sure. Anyway, I'm praying that this is the cause because if if is, he should return to the condition he was in yesterday and the day before, which wasn't great but is better than now.

I'm picking up an elizabethan collar for him tomorrow at the vet hospital and will leave a message for the vet (she's doing surgeries all morning) to see if Barney might benefit from B-12. He is peeing soooooooooooooooo much. It's the diabetes I guess but Angela said she fills a white grocery bag with pee balls (scoopable litter) every day and he is so small for that much output. I'm wondering if he might be having a similar effect to cats on sub-q's who can get depleted of certain things getting washed out.

Here is the pic I took tonight. You can see all the blood drops on the door behind him when he shakes his head. I'm hoping for better news tomorrow.

[Medusa]

Oh the poor boy. I feel so bad for him. I sure hope that you can get to the bottom of why he's feeling so punk other than the obvious. According to my vets, the B 12 shot certainly won't hurt him and it isn't expensive so I'd give it a whirl because it just may help. Prayers continuing here.....