Chipper + Cat Food = Ick! Ick! Ick!

[Cinder & Smoke]

They seem very determined to get to the bottom of this mystery illness.

Chipper perked up when he saw us,
but his ears soon dropped when I think he realized he wasn't going home just yet.
Poor guy.

Hard to believe he's got the Minds & Diagnostic Skills of U-M Vet School "stumped"!

Sure hope they get the solution discovered soon so Chip can perk up his ears
and GO HOME!

Hang on Kiddo - you've got the Whole World Praying for you!

[pitc9]

Oh Poop!!

Still praying for you guys and think about you!

[ramanth]

Dr. Beal called at 6 a.m. and apologized for waking me (it was okay actually because I slept through the alarm...had he not called I'd likely be late for work ).

Anyway he said he just had to call because he was so excited. Chipper is doing MUCH better!! They gave him some medication last night and he perked right up! He showed interest in food (nearly stole one poor nurses lunch ), and when given a little dog food, he wolfed it right down and kept it down. No vomiting at all. Had some diarreha but no blood in it.

They are still waiting for the results of the blood tests they were doing yesterday and he'll be seeing an internist. I should be hearing from the internist by 11 a.m. Because of his reaction to the medication they feel without a doubt that it's Addison's, but the internist will know for sure.

Based on the internists opinion, Chipper will either come home today or will stay one more night and come home Friday.

Andy and I swung by the clinic on the way to work this morning and Chipper pranced into the waiting room, tail high, butt wiggling, looking so very much alert. He leapt into my lap and covered me with kisses. It was so great having the old Chipper back.

[mugsy]

WOOHOO!!!!! That's awesome! I will keep checking for updates! Keep in mind I have a test to type and a stack of papers to grade because we have to send out grades tomorrow, but, where am I??? Doing much more important work...checking on Chipper!!

I am so glad to hear that he is doing better...will the meds be a lifetime thing then?

[ramanth]

If it is Addison's, then yes, he'll be on medication for the rest of his life. However, the treatment is once a month and he can live a long full life.

[cyber-sibes]

Woooooo woooooo! Woooooo! (Group howl)
What a relief to read your post this morning! You know his improvement's got to be impressive for the vet to call at 6 am! (((hugs))) Prayers & healing vibes going out that Chipper is on the road to recovery, good health & many years with his new family!

[AdoreMyDogs]

Kim I'm so sorry I wasn't able to reply until now. I don't get on very often anymore. I am so glad to read the new updates and hope they only continue to get better. Poor guy I'm so glad you took him, because if you haden't, who knows what would have happened to him. I bet the rescue orginization or foster home would never have invested this much time or money into him.

Keep up the good work, Mr. Chipper! You have found yourself in the very best of homes and we all want you to stick around for a long, long time!

[mugsy]

Hey Kimmy (and anyone else in the area that might be interested),

If you guys can swing it, you should come down on Saturday the 9th with the pups and get their picture taken with Para Noel (sp) (Father Christmas) at the shop. His costume is amazing and we will have the fireplace lit and he will be in a comfy rocker and there are stockings hung on the mantle with the Christmas tree right there...for $9 you get a Polaroid in a cute paper frame or for $13 you get the Polaroid, a digital mailed to you, and a 15 sec video... We would love to see you guys and have a chance to see Kia again and meet Chipper man! The pictures are from noon to 3.

[anna_66]

Now this is the kind of update I was hoping for Glad to hear he's feeling a little more "chipper" today...hope it continues!
More prayers that all goes well and they've found out exactly what's wrong and that it can be managed easily.

This update makes my gloomy day seem brighter.

[pitc9]

Yippppeeee!!!
Still praying for his continuing recovery

[Queen of Poop]

Ya hoo!!!!!!!!!!!

Good news first thing in the morning. Atta boy Chipper!!

[Ginger's Mom]

Yay! After wiping away the leaky happy eyes, I did a quick happy dance around the office. I am so happy to hear that they seem to have found the problem and a cure. I will continue to keep you and Chipper in my prayers. Okay I am off to do a quick google search on Addison's disease now. I don't know anything about it, BUT, I am thinking that if you and Andy hadn't adopted this little guy when you did, he wouldn't be around today. Hugs to you.

[Vela]

YAY I'm so glad to hear he's getting better! PT prayers at work again. I hope he gets to come home today.

[tatsxxx11]

Andy and I swung by the clinic on the way to work this morning and Chipper pranced into the waiting room, tail high, butt wiggling, looking so very much alert. He leapt into my lap and covered me with kisses. It was so great having the old Chipper back.

Wooo hooo!!! Group hug, group holler, oh happy, happy, happy dance and tears!!!
I'm so happy to hear the good news, Kimmy! Oh, happy, happy, happy!!!
Can't wait to hear your boy's back home with his wonderful Mom and Dad and sibs!
GET WELL SOON, CHIPPER!

[ramanth]

A very sweet woman named Michelle just called. She is a internal medicine student there at MSU and wanted to go over some of the procedures they will be doing today. There was a lot to cover but I think I can remember it all from my hastily jotted notes.

They said they got a sample from his latest diarreha and they are going to check it for parasites. A flotation to look for eggs and a smear to look for an overgrowth of bacteria.

If he does have parasites they do not plan to just sign it off as the problem as parasites could be secondary to something bigger.

He has been given the wormer panacure in the meantime though.

Although Dr. Beal feels strongly it's Addison's, the internist doctors, Dr. Byle and Dr. Ruckland want to cover all the bases and not put their eggs in one basket so to speak.

Chipper will undergo an abdominal ultrasound today where they will look for signs of Gastro-Intestinal issues such as IBD, pancreatis, and colitis. If they see anything suspicious during the procedure they will needle the cells for a biopsy.

Cancer is not totally out of the question but they don't feel it's the underlining issue. More of a better safe than sorry procedure.

In the meantime, they'll await the blood work back for signs of Addison. As it stands, his steriod levels are low (which are controlled by the adrenal glands) but his electrolytes are fine and with Addison's they are typically imbalanced. His protein levels are also low but that could be due to a gastro intestinal issue and not necessarily Addison's.

One of the internists will still be in touch later this afternoon to answer any questions and explain the procedures more or how they are doing.

~~~
Molly, I'd love to come visit. I don't think we have anything going on that day but of course we'll have to see how Chipper is doing.