Milhous Update - ketosis

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Milhous

Milhous

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Milhous has been in the U of MN ICU for two days now. The problem has been ketosis. They are seeing slow but steady improvements and he is certainly not getting worse. I guess it can take a while to get it under control. I'm glad we took him to the U of MN when we did. He was a pretty sick puppy - so to speak. The doc says she is optimistic that he can pull through, but he'll be there for a while longer.

He better be ready to get a job when he gets out. The U of MN is GREAT and you pay for what you get! Keep your fingers crossed and share anything you can about ketosis issues, especially if you have seen it resolve.

Thanks,

Mike
 

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Thanks, Jason. He is a beauty! And, he has the sweetest personality of any cat I have ever known.
 
hi mike. milhous is in one of best places he can be right now. i'm happy to hear he's showing improvement! :-D

there are many DKA survivors on the board. alex is one of them. she went into DKA the day after she was diagnosed in 2006. after being hospitalized for about a week, she made a full recovery. kitties who have been in DKA are often prone to getting ketones, so you'll want to either check milhous's urine for ketones or pick up a Precision Xtra Glucose Meter in order to check for ketones on a regular basis.

to my knowledge, alex hasn't thrown any ketones until her recent illness, which surfaced around 7 weeks ago. they were detected in her blood, but didn't show up on urine dip sticks yet. we must have caught them right away because between fluid administration and treatment... she hasn't had them since then.

it sounds like milhous is doing well. cats are such resilient creatures...
 
Thanks, Jill. That's very encouraging to hear. Milhous also went ketonic the day after he was diagnosed with diabetes! I hope we caught this in time. The doc said she is optimistic and thinks he has a good chance of pulling through. I hope she's right! We can't imagine a world without him. He's an intense cat - people really get drawn to him. Our friends treat him like a friend and love it when we have to go out of town and ask them to look after him. :smile:


Jill & Alex said:
hi mike. milhous is in one of best places he can be right now. i'm happy to hear he's showing improvement! :-D

there are many DKA survivors on the board. alex is one of them. she went into DKA the day after she was diagnosed in 2006. after being hospitalized for about a week, she made a full recovery. kitties who have been in DKA are often prone to getting ketones, so you'll want to either check milhous's urine for ketones or pick up a Precision Xtra Glucose Meter in order to check for ketones on a regular basis.

to my knowledge, alex hasn't thrown any ketones until her recent illness, which surfaced around 7 weeks ago. they were detected in her blood, but didn't show up on urine dip sticks yet. we must have caught them right away because between fluid administration and treatment... she hasn't had them since then.

it sounds like milhous is doing well. cats are such resilient creatures...
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Hi Mike-

Maybe Milhous and Boomer can work together at a catnip factory or something! :lol: I'm picking him up tonight and I've spent over $2 grand on him this week. You do what you have to do I guess. BTW-cool name for a really cool-looking cat!
 
praying for milhous' quick recovery. ketones are no fun! he's exactly where he needs to be, tho. (((HUGS)))
 
Gabby is another DKA survivor. Like Alex and Milhous, she was diagnosed with DKA at the time she was diagnosed with diabetes. Fortunately, her electrolytes began to improve overnight while in the ICU. It took two more days for her to be stable enough to come home. I feel very fortunate that there's not been any further problems with ketones. Having Milhous at the U of MN where there's attentive, 24 hour care and frequent levels being drawn is crucial. I hope your kitty is home soon. Those Wegies are very endearing!
 
Hi Mike, Very glad to hear that all is going well at the hospital. What a beautiful cat is Milhous! We hope he'll be home with you soon.

Ella & Stu
 
My Jake survived DKA, but it took about six days for the DKA to resolve. He was in a Minneapolis ER for the duration. In addition to our ERs, the U of MN is also top notch! Milhous will get better - he is getting the best treatment. Sending you prayers and positive thoughts.

Judy & Jake
 
So glad you got Milhous there and now he will be on his way to a speedy recovery....sounds good...whew...hope the time passes quickly for you till he gets home....
 
Hi Mike. My cat J.D. had DKA and spent 8 days at the Univ. of Penn. I went to visit him every day (although it was a long drive and Christmas time) and he really appreciated me comeing to see him. He slowly got better and better every day. He would not eat at the hospital the whole 8 days, so came home with a feeding tube.
The day after he came home, I went to fetch him for his feeding and found that the tube had come out. I was on the phone to his regular vet to ask what was I supposed to do now, when I looked down and there he was eating out of his own bowl again.
It cost $, but he received the best of care, that's all I cared about.

Good luck to you and Milhous. He looks like and sounds like a very special kitty. Visit him and give him some special love.
 
Traci and Boomer said:
Hi Mike-

Maybe Milhous and Boomer can work together at a catnip factory or something! :lol: I'm picking him up tonight and I've spent over $2 grand on him this week. You do what you have to do I guess. BTW-cool name for a really cool-looking cat!
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Traci,

Great idea! His medical cost are approaching the level of my student loans! BUT, he's is doing much better and they think he has a great chance for recovery!!!!! Hey, listen, I know everyone of us thinks that our babies are the most special in the world. I have had many cats in my lifetime and have known many others, but I have to tell you that Milly is a rare find! A very beautiful Norwegian Forest Cat that just happened to be at the local Humane Society. I saw him and immediately thought he was magic wrapped in fur. He has an intense personality and is a people magnet. Even the vets at the U of MN have fallen in love with him. If I had half his personality I'm sure I'd have my own reality show! :-D

They don't want to send him home until his ketone level is normal or very, very low. It is steadily dropping, his overall pH has gone completely normal, his glucose level is 210 at last check (on short acting insulin - Lantus starting tomorrow) and he was thoroughly entertaining when we visited him tonight. He was sitting up waiting in his pen when the doc and techs came in this morning at 6:30. They let him out and said he did a whole lap of the room, checking out everything, and then jumped up into one of the techs laps! Prior to this he has pretty much been laying on his side like a dishrag with really diminished responses. The other thing that was really great to witness was that he realized how skanky he was from hanging out in the hospital for 3 days and started grooming like a madman! He has an image to keep up ya know!

I don't want to jinx things by over stating his improvement, but he appears to be doing really well and the docs are pleased with his dropping numbers. Thanks to you ALL for your kind words and I'll let y'all know how it goes. This has all happened in one week - what a stressful crash-course in feline diabetes this has been. Milhous never does anything in a small way (like father, like son :-)

Mike
 
We jut got back from visiting Milhous and he was GREAT! All his blood tests were normal and he will be coming home tomorrow! He pulled through and seems to be responding nicely to the insulin. :-D


Thanks to all of you for sharing your thoughts and concerns!

Mike
 
excellent news! Lucy had DKA too, and I remember how very, very sick she was, she couldn't even stand up and could barely raise her head. Then one day all of a sudden she tried to jump down off the table and run away from the vet! Cats are amazing.
 
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