Back at it

So I went back to work today. 8am to 5pm. By 3pm I was exhausted. By the time I got home I had nystagmus again. Tomorrow I have a gastrointestinal consult for abdominal pain. Then I work through Saturday. Yay.

Yesterday I saw a new cat in the yard. I'm fairly certain his left hind leg is broken. I couldn't catch him. I got pictures I'll post when our internet connection is up again. Right now I'm posting from my sidekick.

Anya has become obsessed with birds and runs from window to window to watch them.

Trying to stay busy

I am scheduled to return to work on Monday. We'll see how that goes. In the mean time I've discovered that while writing by hand is very very difficult, drawing is a bit easier. So here are some examples of things I have been working on.

MRI

So since I already had a "Cat" scan. :) Today I had an MRI to try and see if there is any physical reason in my brain for the vertigo that has lasted 10 days. I will get the results next week sometime.

In the mean time, some of my cats have become amazing little nursemaids, while others are just terrible. Luna Moth is either sleeping on me, crawling on my lap demanding attention, throwing stuff off tables or fighting with the other cats. Penelope Jane on the other hand gives kisses, kneads on me, hasn't asked to play fetch in days, and has toned down her harrassment of Anya.

Vincent has just gone on like business as usual. ;)

I will get better.

More tests scheduled

I'm officially out of work for at least the rest of this week and next. My neurologist appointment is 4/14. And I hate valium.

Thank goodness for kitties.

Health Issues

So my furry nursemaids are doing the best they can, but my health is not improving.

I wish they could go with me to all my appointments. I had two today and have to schedule a neurological exam asap and am waiting for my mri authorization. Not to mention the gastrointestinal consult I have scheduled on 4/1/08.

I don't know when I will be able to go back to work.

The critter room is a disaster, but everyone has fresh food and water and get there meds.

I couldn't make it through this without them.

Luna Moth's Insides

This is an x-ray that was taken in January as clinical interest and to check to see if anything was wrong with her spine.

We later learned she has arthritis.

Poor Kitties

I'm neglecting them a bit and hoping they put up with me. Luckily hubby is wonderful and thinks of them for me.

I was rushed to the emergency room yesterday after getting very dizzy and nauseated at work. On his way to meet me there, my amazing husband stpped at home to feed the cats. A very good decision because we did not get home until 1:00am.

I have vertigo that only responds to valium, not antivert, so I am exhausted, and still slightly dizzy. I am obviously home from work, but can't do the little things for the kitties I wish I could.

I hope they understand.

Clicker Training

I brought the clicker, target and treats tonight and got some surprises.

Vincent is very receptive to the clicker and will even jump up onto chairs to touch it.

Luna Moth has apparently been watching and waiting to show off. She did "Paws Up," followed the target to a chair, and basically impressed the heck out of us.

Anya will dance for the target. So adorable.

This is really fun.

Cardiac Ultrasound

Luna did very well for her ultrasound today. We had to wait a while because there was an emergency before us. But she didn't act out at all. The doc didn't shave too much of her chest and we saw most of what we needed to.

The end result is she is going on diltiazem and aspirin therapy. The hope is this will prevent her from developing a clot.

Anya is a big girl now

Yesterday morning Anya discovered the birds at the feeders on our deck. She immediately started chattering and swishing her tail. A first for the sterling kitten.

It was absolutely adorable.

Cardiac Ultrasound

Because the doctor is willing to do Luna's ultrasound for free, or "clinical interest," I have to work around her schedule and be available on off time. So I'm to call her at the clinic around 10:00am on Sunday to see if she has the time to do it that day.

Fine by me, I just want the best for Luna Moth.

We survived the shot clinic!

So in order to be at WVMC at 8am this morning, with seven cats in six carriers, I got up at 6:30am. I can't leave the house without a shower. Especially when I know I'm going to be working in close proximity to other people. It's a thing. ;)

Anyway, I got up and got ready and then dragged the hubby out of bed. We had stayed up way to late to be getting up at the crack of dawn this morning. But oh well. And I discovered that the bump I got on my head last night when I oh so gracefully slammed my head into the corner of this little cabinet in our bathroom bending over to pick up my towel, really hurts! Regardless, I had to get going.

So in order to entice the not so travel friendly kitties into their carriers I did not feed them a full breakfast in the kitchen like they generally get. Instead I grabbed all the bowls and food and Vincent's pill and pill pockets (a gift from heaven) and brought them into the critter room. I was hoping that kitties would be so hungry they wouldn't notice the carriers all over the place. Um, best laid plans right?

It did work for Persephone surprisingly and I was able to catch her quickly. Vincent is a mush and he was very easy, as was Anya, who got to share the big carrier with him. Will grabbed Stella and shoved her in a carrier. Penelope wanted to see what was going on, so she got stuffed in a soft sided carrier. Luna was found hiding in the bay window, she got the fancy car seat carrier. And then there was Calliope. Oh my. We had to chase her all over the house, and then unbelievably, I grabbed her off the kitchen table, and did not get injured in the process! Somehow we got all this done by 7:35am.

Time to warm up the car and get the cupcakes from the downstairs fridge. We loaded up all the kitties. Turns out my little Honda Fit can hold 6 cat carriers with room to spare! We got to work and started loading them into the hospital. Every year it's the same thing. We try to get organized, and never do, but everything that has to get done does.

I had a different doctor than I normally see assigned to me for the clinic, which was fine, I don't mind getting second or third opinions on my kids. They were all getting their rabies vaccines, some were getting distemper and everyone got Home Again Microchips and Vincent needed some blood work because his age isn't known and he is on medication for behavioral issues. So a tall order. :) Plus I had to be available to help with blood draws for other peoples' pets. What really ended up happening was after my critters were done, I helped the doctor with all her other responsibilities. I was there until noon.

The rundown:

Vincent Tiberius: Doing great, a little chubby but not as obese as I thought he was. Some dental tartar, could use another dental (he'll have to wait). HATED being there and getting his blood drawn. Couldn't get a urine sample. Heart sounds great, so he isn't developing the heart disease Maine Coon cats are prone too yet. Yay!

Stella Blue: Doing great. Good weight. Great teeth. Cute as a button. :)

Anya Gray: Perfect kitten. ;) Good weight (she lost some). Perfect little angel at the appointment.

Luna Moth: What teeth she has left are fine. Weight is good. Heart murmur is 4/6 and she should have a cardiac ultrasound and probably start medication to avoid throwing a clot. So the doctor I saw is going to do the ultrasound as "clinical interest" (free) and I'm going to give her my recipes for cupcakes and frosting and basically thank her for ever. Luna will probably end up on aspirin therapy and cardizem. And we still haven't started her on arthritis therapy. Ugh. Poor kitty. Good thing she loves pill pockets.

Penelope Jane: Doc remembers her and her sisters (Persephone and Calliope) from the night they were dumped on the hospital doorstep a little over a year ago. Commented that she got huge. And beautiful. Scared to DEATH at the hospital but did very well. And I clipped her nails.

Persephone May: Did very well for a scaredy cat! I managed to clip all her nails, including the extra thumbs. Took her shots and chip like a champ. I'm so proud.

Callipe Anne: Did as well as can be expected. Bit me. Did not get her nails clipped. Getting her vaccines was a trial. But we managed. She will be scarred for life. We were too busy to make notice of how much bigger she is than her sisters.

So other than Luna's heart and Vincent's teeth, no serious recommendations or concerns. Yay!
Oh and all this...Paid for out of my annual credit. Came to about $220 total that doesn't come out of my pocket. Not bad for seven cats and a whole lot of transponder chips, vaccines and some blood work.

These are the cupcakes I made for the volunteers. Varying levels of icing because some people like a lot, and some don't. :) Those are raspberries on the top.

All the rabies tags and Home Again tags from today's visit. Yes, they go on the cats' collars.

Persephone's huge paws. Can you see the second thumb?

Calliope in our shopping basket. The hubby was able to pet her in that basket six times yesterday, he was so excited!

Sweet Thank Yous

Tomorrow is the shot clinic. So today I made two dozen cupcakes. Chocolate cake with buttercream icing. All vegan. This is the first time I've made icing from scratch. It came out great, but I made a mess! The cats were happy to lick up splattered Earth Balance Margarine and Spectrum Vegetable Shortening for me.

I have to be at the hospital at 8:00am so I'm getting up at 6:30am to have time to catch them all. Wish us luck. :)