klescinsky
Member
Hi my name is Kris, and my beloved Lois was diagnosed today. I'm riding the roller coaster of emotions right now, and trying to find a way forward. I'm so glad I found this board, and I wanted to take a few minutes and introduce ourselves, because I think we'll be spending quite a bit of time here.
First of all, I'm kicking myself a bit because I KNEW something was wrong. Lois has been withdrawn and listless for close to a month. But we were in the middle of a move and she's a very nervous creature by nature, so I chalked it up to that. After all, she got a clean bill of health from the vet a few months before (note no blood work that visit, but we had no reason to suspect) along with her two sisters. I was being cautious, planning for a move that ended up being delayed a bit and wanted to make sure everyone was ready to go. I wasn't focusing on Lois. She'll be 16 this summer, but has always been healthy. She'd gained some weight and was having some matting issues, but the vet was relieved since she's always tended to be underweight. I was worrying buckets over Casper, our frail 18 year old kitty with advanced kidney disease. Turns out she made the move like a champ other than a small freakout somewhere in South Carolina. My young Maine Coon is the rudest picture of good health, and plays/torments the little old ladies. We assumed that Lois was a little stressed because Nora (the Maine Coon) likes to pop out of places and surprise her sisters.
So Lois is the classic middle child. She is quiet, and keeps to herself. She jumps into bed as soon as I get out, rather than let a warm napping spot go unused. We have friends and family who have never seen her because she is so painfully shy. When it's just us home, she's much better and more social. Lois has always liked to drink a boatload of water. We called her the camel cat, but didn't suspect anything. She had dandruff when she got nervous, but were told that it is common in some cats. She has some stiffness in her back legs and back, but x-rays show a little arthritis, nothing surprising in a geriatric cat.
So we moved, for my husband's new job. We're 650 miles from my lifetime vet, an awesome man who I trust implicitly. We drove on St. Patrick's Day, and Lois was my faithful co-pilot in her new big cage, big enough that she could stretch out. Of course she was completely bombed on Xanax because she doesn't travel well, and we decided pharmaceuticals were the kindest way to go. In hindsight, I think she stayed in the exact same position for most of the trip. She only moved when we stopped and I took her out and made her eat and drink and walk around a little. By the time we arrived Lois couldn't straighten her back legs. She was in such obvious pain that I cried. The guilt is still killing me.
We called her Pittsburgh vet, and he gave us steroids to help get her walking. We had no clue that she was diabetic, and her blood tests were recent enough that we didn't suspect that we were hurting her more. (My family is full of human diabetics, so I probably come equipped to this battle with more background knowledge than many.) It seemed to help a bit, and she calmed down a little, but she's still not herself. So this morning I come downstairs and she is lying listlessly on the steps. I knew she needed prompt medical attention so I took her to Petsmart/Banfield - we're new to the area, and it's Sunday, so that was the best I could do. They did a physical exam, and ran bloodwork. Her serum glucose was 314. They wanted to do additional bloodwork and urinalysis, to the tune of another $450. Even the complete blood panel was seriously over-priced. I felt like I was in the presence of used car salesmen - they were so worried about their bottom line, and didn't care about my cat, and was totally overwhelmed, so I declined, insisted on a copy of her blood panel, and took the pain meds they gave her for her legs. My personal criteria for a good vet is one who talks to me, not at me, and can explain why they'd like to do a test in terms of what it gets my animal in terms of care or quality of life.
So we're out here, looking for answers, and also looking for a good vet northeast of Atlanta if anyone has suggestions we'd very much appreciate it. Thanks for listening, and sorry to be so long-winded about it.
First of all, I'm kicking myself a bit because I KNEW something was wrong. Lois has been withdrawn and listless for close to a month. But we were in the middle of a move and she's a very nervous creature by nature, so I chalked it up to that. After all, she got a clean bill of health from the vet a few months before (note no blood work that visit, but we had no reason to suspect) along with her two sisters. I was being cautious, planning for a move that ended up being delayed a bit and wanted to make sure everyone was ready to go. I wasn't focusing on Lois. She'll be 16 this summer, but has always been healthy. She'd gained some weight and was having some matting issues, but the vet was relieved since she's always tended to be underweight. I was worrying buckets over Casper, our frail 18 year old kitty with advanced kidney disease. Turns out she made the move like a champ other than a small freakout somewhere in South Carolina. My young Maine Coon is the rudest picture of good health, and plays/torments the little old ladies. We assumed that Lois was a little stressed because Nora (the Maine Coon) likes to pop out of places and surprise her sisters.
So Lois is the classic middle child. She is quiet, and keeps to herself. She jumps into bed as soon as I get out, rather than let a warm napping spot go unused. We have friends and family who have never seen her because she is so painfully shy. When it's just us home, she's much better and more social. Lois has always liked to drink a boatload of water. We called her the camel cat, but didn't suspect anything. She had dandruff when she got nervous, but were told that it is common in some cats. She has some stiffness in her back legs and back, but x-rays show a little arthritis, nothing surprising in a geriatric cat.
So we moved, for my husband's new job. We're 650 miles from my lifetime vet, an awesome man who I trust implicitly. We drove on St. Patrick's Day, and Lois was my faithful co-pilot in her new big cage, big enough that she could stretch out. Of course she was completely bombed on Xanax because she doesn't travel well, and we decided pharmaceuticals were the kindest way to go. In hindsight, I think she stayed in the exact same position for most of the trip. She only moved when we stopped and I took her out and made her eat and drink and walk around a little. By the time we arrived Lois couldn't straighten her back legs. She was in such obvious pain that I cried. The guilt is still killing me.
We called her Pittsburgh vet, and he gave us steroids to help get her walking. We had no clue that she was diabetic, and her blood tests were recent enough that we didn't suspect that we were hurting her more. (My family is full of human diabetics, so I probably come equipped to this battle with more background knowledge than many.) It seemed to help a bit, and she calmed down a little, but she's still not herself. So this morning I come downstairs and she is lying listlessly on the steps. I knew she needed prompt medical attention so I took her to Petsmart/Banfield - we're new to the area, and it's Sunday, so that was the best I could do. They did a physical exam, and ran bloodwork. Her serum glucose was 314. They wanted to do additional bloodwork and urinalysis, to the tune of another $450. Even the complete blood panel was seriously over-priced. I felt like I was in the presence of used car salesmen - they were so worried about their bottom line, and didn't care about my cat, and was totally overwhelmed, so I declined, insisted on a copy of her blood panel, and took the pain meds they gave her for her legs. My personal criteria for a good vet is one who talks to me, not at me, and can explain why they'd like to do a test in terms of what it gets my animal in terms of care or quality of life.
So we're out here, looking for answers, and also looking for a good vet northeast of Atlanta if anyone has suggestions we'd very much appreciate it. Thanks for listening, and sorry to be so long-winded about it.
