Project Cat – Junior 1, Vet 1
Well, Junior plugged again the day after we got him home (Thursday). Really, it was somewhat expected. We thought it would be the end of the line for Junior–what else could possibly be done?
The vet at Premier Animal Hospital, the great Dr. Daigle, wanted to try perineal urethrostomy. There were a ton of issues with this surgery–cost being a huge factor, but also, I didn’t want Junior to suffer any further. The poor thing has had problems for over a month–never comfortable and just really too distressed. Dr. Daigle had only good things to say about the surgery; I admit, I was skeptical. P/U basically cuts the urethra off wherever the problem is (usually the very narrow end) and sort of extents things back out. This seemed…extreme.
Never mind how long we talked about the possible pros and cons. The bottom line: Junior did unbelievably well in the surgery. He looked good the day after when we went to see him. Well, he actually looked a bit like an orangutan–he is orange and his butt was shaved!!! He ran around a bit, sat and slept in BMHusband’s lap.
On Saturday, he was fritzing out, a combo of the pain meds and the very busy vet’s office. A little girl had gotten stung by a bee and she was screeching at the top of her lungs. In general, cats don’t care for that kind of thing. (Neither do some humans, but I won’t name-names.) Junior ran off some of his excess energy and then began to calm a bit. He’s hating the helmet they keep around his head so that he can’t pull stitches or otherwise cause himself death and destruction. The vet’s office calls us daily with updates–the main one being that “Junior is doing good. He hoovered his food again this morning/afternoon.” Yes, Junior and mom Scamp are both good eaters. I’ve never seen two cats plow through food like they do. I’m not sure I’ve seen *anything* plow through food like they do.
Junior, the outdoor, live-feral-and-free is going to be a housecat under close supervision for at least two weeks.
Don’t worry about us–we obviously lost our minds, oh, about 3 months ago. The damage isn’t even hardly noticeable anymore…
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I have to admit, I was steeling myself for the worst as I was reading this post, but was extremely relieved that you opted for the surgery and that Yunior seems to be doing well in recovery. I know this has got to be costing you a pretty penny, but I also know the emotional investment we put in our animal buddies. Hopefully, your vet is helping out any way he can.
Wishing you all a Merry (and uneventful!) Christmas!
Comment by Trina — December 23, 2008 @ 8:00 am
You think you were steeling yourself for the worst– we went in that morning completely steeled. I had read about the surgery, but didn’t really think it was an option. The vet, because it was a rescue cat, offered to reduce the service cost–otherwise there is no way we could have even considered it. He also asked if we wanted to just leave Junior with him and let him do the surgery and adopt him out. Given even the reduced cost and our fear that he wouldn’t make it in the end, we very nearly did that. The whole thing was scary and stressful for all of us, but Junior did amazingly well. We actually have him back home as of yesterday afternoon. (I really didn’t want to post until I knew at least most of the ending!) He did okay yesterday, but the painkillers are opiates and that seemed to make him itch and it made him soooo hungry. He couldn’t settle down much until evening when the drugs appeared to wear off. He did great through the night (stayed quiet and out of trouble in his bathroom.) The bathroom is covered with painter drops.
Anyway, this morning after we gave him medicine and made sure he had used the litterbox, we let him out.
He headed straight for the back door, thinking he was going outside…’fraid we had to disappoint him–and will continue to disappoint him for the next two weeks at least!
But he’s doing great. He’s eating well (and not desperately as of this morning). He’s extremely playful and happy to not be in a cage. He found a window and sat and watched birds for almost an hour. The only thing that seems to be bothering him is his helmet. He *hates* it. I’ll try to post a picture of him in it when he’s more settled.
Thanks for all your warm thoughts!!!! I hope your Christmas is fabulous!!!!
Comment by Maria — December 23, 2008 @ 9:01 am
The vet offered us some options we never dreamed we’d have. I think maybe The Man Upstairs, for whatever reason, thought this kitty deserved a chance.
Comment by Randy — December 23, 2008 @ 10:34 am