Yesterday...

Yesterday me and Shaun watched Hamilton for the first time. I know, I know - we're late to the party. But it was pretty great.

Also yesterday, we went by Sonic and got Cub a wag cup. It was HUGE! He loved it. 😂

Scar is back to pooping a "melted ice cream" consistency...

Scar is back to pooping a "melted ice cream" consistency rather than the watery mess from this past week. This last poop looked like it had some parts that were even thicker! I'm stupid excited.

He also went in the litter box again with just me accompanying him, not physically putting him in there.

He's still eating tons of small meals instead of his regular can of food, but it's ok. I'm just glad he seems to be on the mend. ❤️

My cactus bloomed the other day.

My cactus bloomed the other day. It was beautiful, but didn't last long.

Sindar and Adrian live in our bedroom...

Sindar and Adrian live in our bedroom because Sindar isn't a huge fan of other cats, and now with her being blind it would be awful to move her. Adrian is the smallest in the house and some of the other cats pick on her, so that's why she's upstairs. Generally, Sindar and Adrian avoid each other and coexist peacefully, but since Sindar has lost her vision there are times that she walks right up on Adrian... and that goes about as well as can be expected.

Last night Adrian was sleeping between our pillows and Sindar got on the bed trying to find where she wanted to sleep. Sindar walked right up on Adrian, startling her awake. Adrian growled. Mostly asleep, Shaun put his hand between the cats to try to redirect Sindar. He touched her right as Adrian growled, and Sindar CHOMPED into his hand. He has a gash on his palm and two punctures on the back of his hand. Sindar WAS NOT messing around.

Shaun cleaned it well. Hopefully it doesn't get infected. But yeah, apparently having a blind cat can be hazardous. 😬

Current Status:

Current Status:

Sitting in the bathroom with Scar so he can eat his special food in peace. 😂

He's a really great communicator. Or I'm a good listener. I don't know. But I have been escorting him around all day. We cuddle on the couch until he needs food or the litter box. When he gets up he sits in my face as if to let me know he needs something for a minute, like he's transmitting his kitty thoughts telepathically. 😂 Then he heads off to do what he needs to and I follow.

He's been eating a lot of small meals today, which means that I've been having to let him in and out of the bathroom all day. He's still having diarrhea, but this last time he sat looking towards the sunroom (where the litter boxes are) and I offered to go out there with him. I opened the door and we went out, I sat in a chair, and he pooped in the box. We usually have to catch him scratching on the linoleum we put down to protect the carpet and put him in the box to get him to use it, but this time it felt like he told me he'd go in it if I came with him, and he did.

We've also been wiping his butt (gently!) and he doesn't seem to like that, but it's necessary. Hopefully not forever, but I would do it, for real.

So that's how our day is going. Not too bad. I'm glad he's eating and holding his food down, even if it does shoot out of the other end at lightning speed.

I slept in my own bed last night for the first time in 3 or 4 nights...

I slept in my own bed last night for the first time in 3 or 4 nights and I needed that.  I have been exhausted all week because it wasn't restful sleep cuddling my cat each night while wondering if he was comfortable or ok or if this was our last night together, or sleeping so light that I woke up every time he moved.  My body also hurt because I didn't move to get comfortable if he seemed to be comfortable.  But after the optimistic report from the vet yesterday I finally felt ok to sleep in my own bed and rest.

When I woke up today Shaun had already fed and medicated him.  He started his new meds this morning - a short course of antibiotics and an appetite stimulant.  Scar had been making small improvements before this new medication and I don't think it has had any time to work yet, but when I came downstairs Shaun showed me Scar's plate - he used it lick it clean, but lately has only picked at his food.  Today he did better, though - he ate most of it, thank goodness.  He's already had a bunch of diarrhea, but the last one I cleaned up was thicker.  Not quite back to soft-serve, but hopefully we'll get there soon.  He also has some FortiFlora being delivered today, so I'll be giving that to him, as well.  I will keep everyone posted.

I want to address the situation of the vet that wouldn't help him the other day.  Please don't misunderstand - I get why she didn't want to help him or euthanize him without seeing his previous records.  I probably would have felt the same way were I in her shoes.  While I am grateful to still have my cat with me I am still not 100% appreciative of her decision.  Me and Shaun have made many end-of-life decisions and it's never easy.  We've learned that there is almost always a point where you feel hopeful and want to hang on, but it rarely turns out to have been a good thing for the animal.  Looking back there are several of my pets that I wish I'd let go sooner to spare them the suffering.  Just because Scar seems to be on the mend does not mean that it definitely would have gone this way or that he doesn't have a painful crash about to happen soon.  This just as easily could be going worse for him and for us, and it still could.  So I guess "mixed feelings" is where I am in regards to that.  I definitely want to feel hopeful that he'll make a full recovery and possibly not have some form of diarrhea outside of the box for the rest of his life, but we've been battling this for so long already that I don't know if I can let myself believe it's possible without seeing it happen.  Then again, he did shit a turd the other day.

Anyway, it's been a hard week and I needed to process some emotions.  Last night was the first night in days that I didn't cry myself to sleep.  It's been such a roller-coaster.  It is really hard having so many elderly pets at one time.

Speaking of, Sindar is doing ok.  She's had one arthritis shot and another due the first week of August.  She's on gabapentin until the 2nd shot kicks in, if it will work for her and actually does kick in.  She's still blind or mostly blind, but we've managed to get her gabapentin to a dose where she's not drunk and energetically walking / staggering into everything.  One thing that has been happening for the last few weeks, though, is that she does her yodel-cry frequently.  I can talk to her, pet her, feed her, give her treats - and it only stops her for a few minutes.  The only thing that quiets her for an extended period is Shaun's presence.  She just wants him near her.  She will cry until I ask him to come upstairs to be with her.  He hugs her and pets her and talks to her, then she's done with attention.  She might walk around for a few minutes after that, but it never fails that EVERY TIME he comes up she goes to the space near our pillows where she likes to sleep and takes a nap.  He has to sneak out of the room as though he just put an infant down to nap.  It's pretty cute, but dang.  But we'll do our best to keep her happy and comfortable while she's with us.

My cat lives to see another day.

My cat lives to see another day. The vet thinks it's IBD. He's got some new meds and an appetite stimulant. She said his quality of life seemed fine currently. She wasn't upset that we were giving him gabapentin, but he shouldn't need it with his new meds.

Balthazar got an injection for his respiratory gunk and is to finish his antibiotics that he's currently on. He also had a bad tooth that was loose that we didn't know about and the vet just popped it out right on the spot.

Overall, I am really happy with how this visit went. I hope our sweet boys will finally be on the mend.