8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +6 163 PMPS 192 +2 306

Status
Not open for further replies.
Violet and Garland

Violet and Garland

Member Since 2011
YESTERDAY

Garland is recovering from DKA/FHL, etube feedings

Garland is doing fabulous!! I put an update on yesterdays condo really late last night :) Here it is in case anyone missed it :)

Garland is doing AMAZING!! She is getting back to her old self when it comes to spunk. I say shes at a 75% now. She came out and snuggled on the couch. Shes purring and climbing up on my chest to rub her head against my cheek. Shes being playful and swatting at things like any healthy cat would. Shes meowing at me when she gets annoyed. Shes trying to open doors so she can go where she wants. The light in her eyes is back. She looks great, has a shiny coat. Shes scratching up the carpet to sharpen her nails again. Shes even begging for food, although shes not eating much of it. The way she goes about it, makes me think she doesnt like the old food she used to have. Shes always had the FF classics, but its like she doesnt like the taste of it. I may go buy something new to see of it makes a difference. She still is lacking some of her energy she used to have. And I know we will be tube feeding for quite a bit longer, but shes come such a long way! Connick is still hissing at her though. If its still going on when her tube comes out, i may give both of them a good bath and see if that helps. I miss seeing them get along. They always used to snuggle and sleep next to each other.
Click to expand...
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224

That's a lovely start for Garland. It's almost blue! Come on down a bit more, Garland, there's plenty of room for you in the Blue Room! I'm glad that he's starting to feel better. Continuing my wish for him to make a full and speedy recovery.

Have a great day, guys!
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224

Still checking in on Garland every day and so happy to hear she
is getting better.

Now eat something substantial on your own, baby girl.

Violet, you may want to let her get a little bit hungrier before each feeding.

Wait maybe a 1/2 hour longer to feed, and offer her some 'real' food before
tube-feeding.
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224

Hello!
I'm at tbp and can't see ss's.
This morning at home, before coffee, I took a fast peek at Garlands ss and thought I saw some blue overnight.
Was I dreaming? :-D
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224

Sandy and Black Kitty said:
Hello!
I'm at tbp and can't see ss's.
This morning at home, before coffee, I took a fast peek at Garlands ss and thought I saw some blue overnight.
Was I dreaming? :-D
Click to expand...
LOL- Yea, she was 197 at 4am. But back up to 224 a few hours later :)
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224

What I would do first is present food before each tube feeding and make up the difference. Also she may associate her old food with feeling unwell. A new food(s) is a good idea. But don't overwhelm her with too much variety. She will eat when she's feeling better. Remember the new food is likely lower in carbs than what you are feeding so you need to start being aware of these things also. If you are sure she is maintaining her weight you could cut out the clinicare but again - cutting out carbs - depending on the amount can be like a dose increase in insulin.

When she does start showing more and more interest in food you can try getting her hungrier - like feeding less prior to preshot meal. Cause you know she will need to eat after her shot to keep her stable blood glucose wise. But you have the tube in to supplement what she doesn't eat on her own. You will be building up more data on your spreadsheet also.
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224

Karrie and Maverick said:
What I would do first is present food before each tube feeding and make up the difference. Also she may associate her old food with feeling unwell. A new food(s) is a good idea. But don't overwhelm her with too much variety. She will eat when she's feeling better. Remember the new food is likely lower in carbs than what you are feeding so you need to start being aware of these things also. If you are sure she is maintaining her weight you could cut out the clinicare but again - cutting out carbs - depending on the amount can be like a dose increase in insulin.

When she does start showing more and more interest in food you can try getting her hungrier - like feeding less prior to preshot meal. Cause you know she will need to eat after her shot to keep her stable blood glucose wise. But you have the tube in to supplement what she doesn't eat on her own. You will be building up more data on your spreadsheet also.
Click to expand...
Before she got sick I fed her mostly the FF classics (chicken, Beef and turkey) I was thinking of maybe buying some of the Special kitty or friskies intead? They have low carb right? Shes meowing begging for food, when I put it down, she takes 3-4 bites and leaves it. But then 5 minutes later if I come back in shes meowing at me again. Its the way she acted when it was a food she didnt like (in the past) But right now Im not cutting out any tube feeds. Im thinking the self feed bites are just practice. Im almost scared to cut back on the tube feed amounts.. but maybe she is too full to eat anything else?
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

Violet: so much good news for Garland and so much progress. I know it must seem like forever but every day the news is astounding!!! YOU GO GIRLS!!!!
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

The stomach is empty by the time your next feeding time comes around. So she's not too full. How often did you feed her before she got sick?

Also remember as she's recovering from FHL she most likely needs more calories right now to help the liver heal and to get well, than she did when she was healthy.

Maverick ate special kitty. This is what I'm feeding two of my three adopticats. Special Kitty Turkey and Giblet, Chicken Dinner, and there are others... cod sole and shrimp I believe and a couple more. I'll check out Binky's list and post back. I would try this before cutting back on feedings. We can then work out a plan for what would be the safest times to experiment and cut out food.

Have you weighed her recently? How is her weight holding? Try and weigh her the same time each day.
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

Violet:

If you buy Wellness in the 15 oz cans, it ends up costing as much as FF. I just don't know how many kitties you're feeding. A 15oz can, if it's just for Garland, may end up not being such a great idea.

FWIW, other than Special Kitty which is Walmart's proprietary food, you can order on-line through places like PetFood Direct. They carry a wide range of foods and if you set up an auto-ship account, there's a 15% discount. Just be aware they only ship in case lots so it's better to make sure your cat likes the food before ordering.
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

Such a wonderful update on sweet Garland! I can only imagine how much her level of improvement has taken a weight off your shoulders and eased you mind!

Continued thoughts and prayers here!!
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

Hi guys .. love these updates on Garland! And look at that, a dip into mid blues at +6 .. puuurfect! We have been feeding mocha special kitty turkey and giblets for a long time now, but only recently did our wal mart cut back on their stock .. yesterday, they had none .. when we inquired, we were told they were no longer going to be carrying that flavor and it looked like several others as well .. hopefully it is just a packaging change right now and they'll be back in stock soon ...
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

Thanks for posting that Devon. I'm going to buy walmart out of their turkey and giblet stock tonight :twisted: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163

Karrie and Maverick said:
The stomach is empty by the time your next feeding time comes around. So she's not too full. How often did you feed her before she got sick?

Also remember as she's recovering from FHL she most likely needs more calories right now to help the liver heal and to get well, than she did when she was healthy.

Maverick ate special kitty. This is what I'm feeding two of my three adopticats. Special Kitty Turkey and Giblet, Chicken Dinner, and there are others... cod sole and shrimp I believe and a couple more. I'll check out Binky's list and post back. I would try this before cutting back on feedings. We can then work out a plan for what would be the safest times to experiment and cut out food.

Have you weighed her recently? How is her weight holding? Try and weigh her the same time each day.
Click to expand...

I will weigh her tonight. Before she got sick she was almost free fed. I opened a can for her whenever she meowed at me asking for it... I have 2 cats, but the other one eats a mix of wet and dry. Garland ate like 3 cans a day I guess (the little 3 oz ones) Its always hard to tell if Connick was eating off her food as well.

EDIT- Her weight the day she went to the ER was 10.6, they never told me a new weight when she left. Her weight tonight is 9.8. Sounds about right. Im sure she lost at least a pound during that week before the tube when she wasnt eating at all
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163 +10 300

That 300 may be food influenced.
Looks like she got her belly full at the 4:30pm feeding!
Ketone test today yet? ;-)
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163 +10 300

Yea, I was thinking the same.. so Im holding off feeding her again until her PMPS in 30 minutes. Hopefully it will be down some by then. Ketones negative
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163 +10 300

So how are you feeling about everything overall at this point? It seems like you have gotten in the groove with everything.
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +3 233 +6 163 +10 300

Sandy and Black Kitty said:
So how are you feeling about everything overall at this point? It seems like you have gotten in the groove with everything.
Click to expand...
Overall I feel like im getting the hang of it. I feel good. I know shes getting better. I just worry about if she will ever eat on her own again well enough to not need the feeding tube. What if she has it for like a year or something? I worry about when we go out of town for the holidays, what to do with her. Last time I left her at my parents, but they could barely get close enough to her to catch her to give her the shot. But I guess these are all bridges I will cross when I get to them.
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +6 163 PMPS 192

Oh, she won't have the tube for a year. She is doing spectacular considering how critically ill she was. You should be proud.

The average cat has their tube about four to six weeks. So not years. Maverick had his for ten weeks - but this was due to a complication at day 10 and needing to recover after that, but I pushed too much food at him and different things to get him back to eating quickly. I expect he would have eaten earlier if I hadn't done that. I couldn't afford to place another tube if he pulled it out - the PEG tube is much more costly than the etube up in Canada. Each surgery was $3k. His 7 week post op blood work had shown his liver was recovered and all was well but he wasn't eating. This is why I'm being pushy about not forcing food on Garland. She will eat when she's feeling better. She is showing interest in food and taking bites and things will improve. There are only a few of cats on the FAF site that have needed feeding tubes long term but have no other diagnoses (unlike cats with cancer, CRF, etc)

So for now, pick up a few new flavours. Present the food as you used to (same bowl, temp etc). But don't force it. If she doesn't want to eat she won't. If she free fed before, can you just leave food out and let her go to it when she wants to? There are lots more suggestions for getting a cat to eat when a bit more time has passed. I can share them now, but I don't want you jumping in with both feet and panicking and trying everything all at once.

How long has it been since she started drinking on her own?
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +6 163 PMPS 192

Back to blue in no time.
I don't know anything about feeding tubes but I'm sure that Karrie could fill you in on approximately how long it may stay in.
Don't look too far ahead. I'm sure you will be able to manage whatever needs to be managed when the time comes.
Look at all you have been handling so brilliantly!
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +6 163 PMPS 192

Sandy and Black Kitty said:
Back to blue in no time.
I don't know anything about feeding tubes but I'm sure that Karrie could fill you in on approximately how long it may stay in.
Don't look too far ahead. I'm sure you will be able to manage whatever needs to be managed when the time comes.
Look at all you have been handling so brilliantly!
Click to expand...
And back in the red now. Hmm... I tested her and it came up 362, so i tested her again bc that number seemed so high. The second one was 306. Its been 2 hours since she last ate...
 
Re: 8/29 Garland AMPS 224 +6 163 PMPS 192

Karrie and Maverick said:
Oh, she won't have the tube for a year. She is doing spectacular considering how critically ill she was. You should be proud.

The average cat has their tube about four to six weeks. So not years. Maverick had his for ten weeks - but this was due to a complication at day 10 and needing to recover after that, but I pushed too much food at him and different things to get him back to eating quickly. I expect he would have eaten earlier if I hadn't done that. I couldn't afford to place another tube if he pulled it out - the PEG tube is much more costly than the etube up in Canada. Each surgery was $3k. His 7 week post op blood work had shown his liver was recovered and all was well but he wasn't eating. This is why I'm being pushy about not forcing food on Garland. She will eat when she's feeling better. She is showing interest in food and taking bites and things will improve. There are only a few of cats on the FAF site that have needed feeding tubes long term but have no other diagnoses (unlike cats with cancer, CRF, etc)

So for now, pick up a few new flavours. Present the food as you used to (same bowl, temp etc). But don't force it. If she doesn't want to eat she won't. If she free fed before, can you just leave food out and let her go to it when she wants to? There are lots more suggestions for getting a cat to eat when a bit more time has passed. I can share them now, but I don't want you jumping in with both feet and panicking and trying everything all at once.

How long has it been since she started drinking on her own?
Click to expand...

I know, but I still get all nuts about it when Im just sitting here thinking LOL I worry about things sometimes. Im not pushing her at all. Ive been putting out food, letting her graze on it if she wants. But thats about it. I keep water down all the time. Im not sure how much of it shes drinking though.. i think a few licks here and there everyday since she started feeling better.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top