Perry was not with us long, but he will never be forgotten. He and another Siamese cat showed up at one of my colonies, within days of one another, both with wobbly hind ends. I thought that they might have homes nearby, and observed them for a couple of days. One of them was thin and very unsteady, and I thought that he could not remain out there. I thought I'd give him one more day, in case he wanted to go home, or in case his family found him. I never saw him again.
Perry was robust except for the wobble. But as the days went on, I became worried, especially as the other one may have died. He let me stroke his back when he ate, another indication that he might have (or had had) a human family. Sooo....one evening I put my carrier (always in the car) down beside him, opened the top (always get a top-opener), scruffed him, and gently placed him into the carrier.
We have a fairly big back bathroom, with a bay window, glass door to outside, big cat tree, etc., and I released him into it. He didn't freak out too much, but didn't let me touch him there...on his turf had been okay, but now... he was guarded.
A communicator I work with checked in with him, and said that he had a blood clot which was likely pressing on a nerve. She recommended several gemmotherapies, and one blood thinner. I put them into his food: had to use super-smelly commercial food to make sure he got it :-) but he was happy about that. The food I make is more bland...
After I let him acclimate for a few days, I took him to the new Urgent Pet emergency clinic in El Cerrito. They are awesome!! He got in right away. They had to sedate him in order to examine, do imaging, etc. they were skilled and kind as they and I held him for the injection. We agreed to have him neutered at that time, to save the risk of another sedation. Alas, the sedation wore off before they got to the neuter! But I'm grateful that they were judicious in their dosage...
His blood work was stellar...everything pretty much fine. I took him to PETS in berkeley for an ultrasound and another exam.The ultrasound showed some abnormalities, but nothing definitive or serious, it seemed. There was no sign of thrombosis; blood clot or clots, anywhere.
Perry then saw Dr. Reed in Richmond for another exam and acupuncture.
He didn't improve; in fact worsened. A month had gone by. I had not seen him walking; he'd moved from the bay window to under the cat tree. He had been moving from there, a few steps, to the glass door, but...he'd been dragging his back legs. Around March 3 he slowed down, then stopped eating, and stopped using the litter box.
I had an appointment with a neurologist I love: Dr. Tun at PESCM in San Rafael. The appt was not till April 2, but the clinic called me March 6 and said they'd had a cancellation on March 7! By this time, it looked as if he was at the end of his life. I'd moved him into a big cage in the living room, to keep a better eye on him and to get meds into him. He had come to trust me, or maybe was too weak to care...He was immobile by this time, but I wanted to take him in anyway, to see if Dr. Tun had any ideas as to what was going on. His records were all sent to Dr. Tun.
Our appointment was at 11:00. I went out at 8:00, and when I returned at 8:45, he had died. Long live our Perry!
Perry was robust except for the wobble. But as the days went on, I became worried, especially as the other one may have died. He let me stroke his back when he ate, another indication that he might have (or had had) a human family. Sooo....one evening I put my carrier (always in the car) down beside him, opened the top (always get a top-opener), scruffed him, and gently placed him into the carrier.
We have a fairly big back bathroom, with a bay window, glass door to outside, big cat tree, etc., and I released him into it. He didn't freak out too much, but didn't let me touch him there...on his turf had been okay, but now... he was guarded.
A communicator I work with checked in with him, and said that he had a blood clot which was likely pressing on a nerve. She recommended several gemmotherapies, and one blood thinner. I put them into his food: had to use super-smelly commercial food to make sure he got it :-) but he was happy about that. The food I make is more bland...
After I let him acclimate for a few days, I took him to the new Urgent Pet emergency clinic in El Cerrito. They are awesome!! He got in right away. They had to sedate him in order to examine, do imaging, etc. they were skilled and kind as they and I held him for the injection. We agreed to have him neutered at that time, to save the risk of another sedation. Alas, the sedation wore off before they got to the neuter! But I'm grateful that they were judicious in their dosage...
His blood work was stellar...everything pretty much fine. I took him to PETS in berkeley for an ultrasound and another exam.The ultrasound showed some abnormalities, but nothing definitive or serious, it seemed. There was no sign of thrombosis; blood clot or clots, anywhere.
Perry then saw Dr. Reed in Richmond for another exam and acupuncture.
He didn't improve; in fact worsened. A month had gone by. I had not seen him walking; he'd moved from the bay window to under the cat tree. He had been moving from there, a few steps, to the glass door, but...he'd been dragging his back legs. Around March 3 he slowed down, then stopped eating, and stopped using the litter box.
I had an appointment with a neurologist I love: Dr. Tun at PESCM in San Rafael. The appt was not till April 2, but the clinic called me March 6 and said they'd had a cancellation on March 7! By this time, it looked as if he was at the end of his life. I'd moved him into a big cage in the living room, to keep a better eye on him and to get meds into him. He had come to trust me, or maybe was too weak to care...He was immobile by this time, but I wanted to take him in anyway, to see if Dr. Tun had any ideas as to what was going on. His records were all sent to Dr. Tun.
Our appointment was at 11:00. I went out at 8:00, and when I returned at 8:45, he had died. Long live our Perry!
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