Copper- 4/14 BLOODWORK RESULTS

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owlgal

owlgal

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Last night cycle was great. But, this mornings amps was terrible. Here we go again.....

He seems really happy this morning, but hungry. After he ate a whole meal, he went outside by the mole holes and is sitting there hunting. Guess he is still hungry. He caught two yesterday. Didn't let him eat them.

amps@362
fed (raw chicken)
shot 1.7

Hope you all have a great day of good cycles!
 
Re: Copper- 4/14

Since my guys stay inside, except Sandy & Bo-"the attack front porch guard cat", I really don't have much experience w/ cats in nature. I've only received a few presents from Sandy over the years. Little snakes, one little mousie, and a couple of birds. Argh!

So when Copper "hunts", is it more for play? or does he/would he - if given the opportunity - eat the little moles? If he has, did you notice any kind of a swing in his numbers? Do you let him out unsupervised? Or does he oversee your yard projects? Sandy & Bo pretty much disappear when the mower starts up, but otherwise, they sometimes supervise/assist. Bo is usually parked on the front porch furniture, although if I'm in the yard or across the street talking to my neighbor, he often thinks he needs to come and be a part of the conversation!

Other than Sandy, (and the ferals who are now indoor kitties) I've never had an indoor/outdoor kitty. I LOVE to see them play, chase butterflies, and lay in the sun... however, I live in town, and at an intersection and I'm afraid they wouldn't all be as street-smart as Sandy is - or as home-based as Bo is. They know the routine.... but sometimes I feel like the others are missing out. Of course if they went into the fenced yard, the dogs would probably chase them, because anything out there is fair game to them.

I'm guessing you're in a rural setting? Does Copper go far?
 
Re: Copper- 4/14

I see that pretty 141 at +4 last night. Copper may have gone lower after that, so today might be rebound day, high,flat, or yuk. We live that too right now. New cycle in less than 12 hours. Hopefully the rebound will clear soon for you.
 
Re: Copper- 4/14

Lu,

Copper can go out through the cat door during the day anytime. He usually hangs out under his favorite tree or near the mole holes. He doesn't go very far anymore because of the neuropathy. I usually bring him inside and close of cat door when i'm not around. Never used to do that and let him roam free during the day unsupervised. Now i watch him like a hawk. I'm afraid that if i wasn't around and he got himself in trouble, he wouldn't be able to defend himself too much now. He never was a fighter anyway. Just a lover!

As for hunting. He loves playing with them mainly, but he would eat them in a heartbeat. I usually rescue them before he eats them. But, i'm sure he gets some i don't rescue. Yesterday, both my cats were team tagging the mole holes. When one caught one they both played with it. Copper tried to eat it, but i took it away. The 2nd one he caught and just toyed with it until i resuced it. Unfortunetly, they didn't survive. I don't mind them getting the moles because they eat up my flower bulbs. But just feel sick when they get the beautiful birds. One of the cats got a dove the other morning. Just feathers left. Pretty sure it wasn't copper, but not positive. Yes, his BG goes up when he catches other food, but i just count it as a feeding. So it really doesn't effect it anymore than a regular scheduled feeding. Now, my other cat is Mr. Adventure. He goes outside and usually does his rounds of spraying the bushes and climbs the trees. He loves being outside and stays outside all day. Only in the winter does he choose to stay inside. At night they all come inside. Too many predators out at night. We live in the woods.

Yea, i thought maybe his morning amps might be a bounce. His body should be used to it by now, you'd think.

+4 183

Caught him throwing up some grass just before i tested +4. He still had some morning meal in it. So fed him a little extra this feeding. He doesn't look sick though and ate very well. Will try to catch a +6 and then need to go rest pf day.
 
Re: Copper- 4/14

The differences between an urban and rural cat! If I ever get my front porch floor replaced, there'll be a screen porch on the side... and at least another bird feeder. Until then, the roof trumps everything on my "wanna-do" list! Poor little moles!

Someone showed me a picture of a dog w/ a rabbit head in it's mouth. Caption said "I caught the Easter bunny - don't go looking for the other half!" EWWWWW!!!!! These are the times I'm glad my guys are indoors!

Dom & Jack (dogs) "caught" an opossom once. Well, kinda. I let them out and they went FLYING down the steps... 2 minutes later they're circling what appears to be a dead possom in the yard. I FLY down the steps, picking Jack up and dragging (yes DRAGGING) 78# Dom up 15 steps by his collar. Then I'm standing in the kitchen window watching him while making a mental list: shovel, bucket, trash bag... When all of the sudden, one eye opens up, glances around... then the head lifts up... looks all around... and he saunters out of the yard between the fence and the garage. Literally playing possom!!! Who let this guy in the city limits???
 
Re: Copper- 4/14

Lu, Yea opposums are famous for the playing dead trick. THey live everywhere even in the cities. Just like a rat.


BLOOD RESULTS:
Got copper's blood test results back from message on phone. They said most of the bloodwork looked good, except he had a little low potassium and high triglycerites. What does that mean? So low potassium could be why he doesn't have muscle on his hips. Thought it was the neuro. I'm not sure how low it was. WOnder if i need to give him supplements or a different food that has more potassium.

I'm not sure what to do about high triglycerites. That means he is prone to stoke and heart attacks. Gosh, he doesn't eat that much fat. I think i will post of health too and see if anyone knows about that.
 
Wish Copper would come get some of MY moles! We've been overrun the last 3 years - they just love this sand..and my flowers.

Low potassium causes muscle weakness in all the muscles but is more noticable in the larger muscles. Potassium Gluconate powder can be purchased at most health food stores BUT BUT (BIG for a reason!!) - do work with your vet when beginning any potassium supplementation as it kills at too high of a dose. They use it for lethal injections. After starting it, the potassium (K) level needs to be checked to be sure it's still within the 3.5-5 range. Also don't increase it without having the same test done....unfortunately, this is something I live with every minute of the day. My sig has link to DH's 'Hypokalemic Periodic Paralysis' condition.....'Hypokalemia' just means "low potassium"....on bad days, I give him sometimes as much as 5 times the lethal amount for most people - to keep HIM alive.

HUGS!

ETA:
I noticed there was another thread with good info so while I was there, I copied the link...here 'tis:
http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=68710
 
pmps @ 359- oh well....

fed (raw chicken)
shot 1.6u (want to go to bed early--)

Did some research on trig's in cats. And to get a true reading, i needed to get the test fasting. He had just eaten within 2.5hrs before the test. So it was skewed and means nothing. He had the raw diet before the test too.

The potassium i'm not sure how low he was. The message was, "he was a little low". He has been drinking more water, not much, the last couple of days. The day before he did vomit some grass. Can't stop him from eating the grass. I'm thinking the zobaline might be bothering his tummy a bit. SO will cut back some on the pills and see if that helps his tummy a bit. THe blood tests he had done 6wks ago were perfect. Everything else on the bloodwork, including kidneys and liver were good she said. So was the thyroid.

So i will know more on monday
 
Definitely find out how low "a little low" was. Hypokalemia causes muscle weakness (Bob's an expert on that). Hyperkalemia can damage muscle (biggest concern being the heart since it's pretty much all muscle), so the range needs to be in the normal range. Having it low could make you think it's just part of his neuro issues. It seemed to affect Bob mostly by having a negative effect on his ability to jump and climb. He didn't have neuro on top of that, so he never walked on his hocks. Just made him weaker than normal.
There's a supplement called Tumil-K that is supposed to work well.

Carl
 
Is this supplement a pill form or liquid? How much do you give a cat that is 16lbs? What is the normal range? Or is this different with different labs?
 
Lori,
The Tumil-K comes in tablet form and in paste form. I would stay away from the paste kind, because most supplements are put into a paste to make them taste better. And the way to make most of them taste better is to add something sweet to them. If you look at a paste style supplement of any kind, read the ingredients before buying to make sure there isn't sugar or some other sweetener in them.
The tablets can be crushed and made into a powder that you can hide in his food. I am not sure what the dose should be. When I tried to buy Tumil-K, I found it online, but the sites said I needed a prescription to buy it. So you'll probably need one too, and your vet will know what dose Copper will need. You'll just be able to buy it cheaper if you buy it online rather than from the vet.
Bob's potassium was mainly delivered by way of sub-q fluids. He had to have those anyway at the beginning of his dance, and the vet just added potassium to the bag so I could do two things with one method. Even after he no longer needed the fluids to keep him hydrated, she had me continue doing the potassium that way.

I think "normal" runs from 3.3 to 5.5 on potassium levels. I've seen different ranges though, so the 3.3 might be considered "lower than normal" by some people. Bob ran in the 3.0 to 3.5 range most of the time.


Here's an example of "normal" I found:
http://www.felinecrf.com/tests0.htm
Approximate Normal Ranges for Common Tested Blood Values
BUN 14 - 36 MG/DL
Creatinine .6 - 2.4 MG/DL
Calcium (Ca) 8.2 - 10.8 MG/DL
Phosphorus (P) 2.4 - 8.2 MG/DL
Potassium (K) 3.4 - 5.6 MEQ/L
Sodium (Na) 145 - 158 MEQ/L
Packed Cell Volume (PCV) 29% - 48%

Carl
 
Re: Copper- 4/14

Grayson & Lu said:
The differences between an urban and rural cat! If I ever get my front porch floor replaced, there'll be a screen porch on the side... and at least another bird feeder. Until then, the roof trumps everything on my "wanna-do" list! Poor little moles!

Someone showed me a picture of a dog w/ a rabbit head in it's mouth. Caption said "I caught the Easter bunny - don't go looking for the other half!" EWWWWW!!!!! These are the times I'm glad my guys are indoors!

Dom & Jack (dogs) "caught" an opossom once. Well, kinda. I let them out and they went FLYING down the steps... 2 minutes later they're circling what appears to be a dead possom in the yard. I FLY down the steps, picking Jack up and dragging (yes DRAGGING) 78# Dom up 15 steps by his collar. Then I'm standing in the kitchen window watching him while making a mental list: shovel, bucket, trash bag... When all of the sudden, one eye opens up, glances around... then the head lifts up... looks all around... and he saunters out of the yard between the fence and the garage. Literally playing possom!!! Who let this guy in the city limits???
Click to expand...
OMG, did somebody say "'possum"???? The only animal I know more about than I do about cats! Opossums have basically four defense mechanisms. First they will run, if given a chance. If not, they'll hiss, growl and show you their 50 teeth (more teeth than any other land mammal). If forced to, they'll bite. And it really really hurts when they do. They have incredible jaw muscles and could take off a finger for example. Their last resort is to "play possum". But it isn't playing really. Once they drop to the ground like they are dead, their respiration drops so much that you can't tell they are breathing. The intent is to make the predator think they are dead, because many predators won't eat "dead", they prefer alive and struggling. The opossum at that point has no control over it. It's an instinctive semi-coma state. It wears off, and the 'possum (hopefully the predator has moved on by then) regains control over it's body and will then beat feet out of there. But the whole thing is instinctive rather than "planned". It only happens when it's the only chance they have to survive the "attack".

Sorry, opossums are one of my favorite all time non-domestic critters! Fascinating animals...

Carl
 
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