the words "humor me" got the testing done for Jazzy. My vet wanted to test for pancreatitis, Cushings, and something else before testing for acro and IAA. I asked her to humor me and send the tests in anyway. Boy was she surprised at the positive result!
There are lots of reasons Harley could be needing a higher dose. There might not even be a reason - we've had a couple of cats here who have gone up to around 7 units and eventually gone OTJ. Acro and IAA are only two possibilities, but they are easy and relatively inexpensive to test for (a lot less than the other things she wanted to do). They are also a lot more common than many vets think. I decided I would feel better if I knew, because then I would know whether there was a reason her dose was higher, or if Jazzy was just being a stubborn Siamese. ;-) If the tests had been negative, then at least I would know that those two common causes had been ruled out before I started thinking about the more expensive tests the vet suggested.
I was actually relieved to get the positive result, because then I felt like I knew what direction I should take and could help Jazzy feel better. She has come SOOOO far in the 3 months I have had her, from a miserable kitty who vomited several times a day and had liquipoo daily and wasn't grooming, to a kitty who usually has normal stools, has vomited only once in the last week, does an ok job of grooming (arthritis doesn't help), and is sassy and a little bit playful. Having the dx told me that it was ok to be aggressive with her dose increases, so I could get her onto a dose that worked for her. Don't feel that any of this is hopeless. ((((Pattie))))
