Thanks for your posts guys.
The past few days have been nothing short of awful. The weather has been much colder here than we are used to in this part of B.C. and right now, it is 12 below which is equivalent to 10 degrees and we have ALOT of snow and more is on the way. Our pipes are frozen for the second day in a row. My husband managed to get the water going again yesterday by crawling under the house and blow drying the pipes and putting a heater in the well pump house. That worked but even with the taps dripping last night, they froze again today.
I don't care so much about that but Barney has been miserable. Every time I went out there, he gave me a look as if to say 'please save me from this'. He was tucked up next to the heater and I had been putting the hot water bear and an empty milk jug filled with hot water, wrapped in a towel next to him. But it was still so cold in there that I could see my breath in the air. He was very uncomfortable and with no meat on his bones, I think it's just to much for such a little guy.
He was so cold that his little muscles weren't working very well and he was tumbling all over the place. When he'd get into his litter box, he would only step in close to the edge and would pee over the side. He was trying to make an effort but just wanted to hurry up and get back into his bed where it was the warmest spot in the shop. Then he'd step in the pee and his tail would drag in it and then he'd climb back into bed. The heater and the cold air basically made the moisture on his feet and tail mixed with litter into this hard coating. I was wary of trying to clean it up because I didn't want him to get pneumonia if I got him wet and couldn't dry him properly in the cold weather.
As well, he is bleeding from his nose I think. If it is not from his nose, then he is coughing it up. I found about a 1/4 teaspoon of blood in his wet food dish and his water dish had blood pooled at the bottom, about the same amount. He's been sneezing alot lately.
His right ear is now a bit infected and both are causing him problems. He is getting skinnier and I think the prednisilone is creating muscle wasting which might be why he seems skinnier.

Anyway, last night I just couldn't take it anymore and completely broke down. I realized that I was adding to his suffering and not helping him anymore. I came inside, totally defeated and decided to plead with my husband and ask if Barney could please, please come inside and stay in our downstairs bathroom. I prayed about it first because I knew this was going to be unlikely. I was so upset, I could barely get the words out but I said "if you don't let me bring him in, I will have to put him down. He is suffering a fate worse than death right now."
Scott didn't want him to come in and we argued a bit but he also didn't say no. I knew that it was best to just let him rest with the idea over night.
The 11:00 p.m. news came on and it was all about the deep freeze B.C. is in and how it is going to last for quite a bit longer. I was hoping that by the morning he would soften and let bring Barney inside.
I woke up and saw Scott with his arms full of stuff from the downstairs bathroom and he was bringing it to the upstairs bathroom. I asked him what he was doing and he said "getting the bathroom ready for Barney". I was so happy.
I honestly don't know how much longer Barney has left, he isn't doing well but what I do know is that however many days or weeks he has left, he will be warm and that is the biggest Christmas present I could have hoped for.
I set up the bathroom with a cozy bed, his litter box and his food and water. The heater in the bathroom is built into the wall and is a fan heater and is so awesome. It is connected to a thermostat so we can leave it on a setting and it will kick in and out to maintain a warm temperature. I put his bed about a foot and a half from the heater so he will get the wonderful warm blasts when it turns on. I will also be continuing to fill the milk jug with hot water and the water bottle so he is extra cozy.
When I had it all set up, I walked out to that leaky, musty, frozen shed and picked him and told him he was coming home. I carried him and set him down in his new room and he slowly began to thaw out. It really reminded me of that Campbell Soup commercial where the snowman comes inside and sits down and has some soup. All the snow starts to melt away and reveals a boy underneath who becomes cozy and warm.

I had the heat on high for the first hour so he could feel the warmth right away. Within minutes he was back to the old Barney. He was doing paddies with his paws and eating with gusto (which he hasn't been doing for days now) and he let me clean him up without attacking me once. He was truly grateful. I was too.
I trimmed off all the clumpy hair on his tail and took a cloth with warm water left over from his milk jug from the night before and washed his tail and his feet and put him in front of the heater. He was clearly a happy boy. He will not be returning to the workshop.
Here are some pics and vids of Barnacles in his new bedroom. He doesn't have the tv anymore but I don't think he really cares. Now that he is in the house, it is going to be so much easier for me to care for him and visit him every half hour instead of every couple of hours. It was kind of a pain to have to put on my hat, coat, mittens and boots, over my 'Barney robe' that I wear when I visit with him (though, he was worth all the trouble plus some!) But now all I will need to put on is my 'Barney robe' to be sure I don't transfer anything to my other cats if he does have FIP (which I don't think has).
He is now in the bathroom where I take my baths so it will be a neat time for me and Barney to have some quality time.

So, this is a sad and happy update. Sad, because he is beginning to slip away, I can tell. His right eye is beginning to change shape a bit because of the tumor and he has blood either coming from his nose or he is coughing it up. Either way, it isn't good. And he is getting kind of skinny and his ears continue to give him trouble. But, the good news is GREAT and he is an indoor guy now and until he goes to Rainbow Bridge.
p.s. Our water is back! YAY!! I'm off to have a bath with Barney! LOL