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drewprops
Space Pirate
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Atlanta
 
2021-07-05, 23:30

I miss the grizzled old veterinarian that took care of our critters when I was a kid.

That man was UNFLAPPABLE.

His battle-scarred fingers were a testament to the myriad ways an animal can bite you.

And, like any truly good diagnostician, he listened into the questions that we asked him.

He went beyond our words, chasing to answer the concerns that gripped us.

Our largest cat (of 3) is down to half her weight now.

After 2 visits to a new clinic I still have zero answers as to why she isn't eating.

We still don't know the PROBLEM.

I have obviously failed to make my concerns clear to the vets and techs that have seen me so far.

This will change this week.

I fell bad that the folks in the veterinary industry are so overburdened, but if I don't persist this cat won't be here much longer.



...

Steve Jobs ate my cat's watermelon.
Captain Drew on Twitter
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2021-07-06, 04:25

Timely thread, as I spent four hours Sunday at a 24/7 emergency vet with my mom and her ailing, aging dachshund..

Surrounded by apparently nobody over 30 and who talked in circles, used phrases like “reading the room” and “dumpster fire”. We eventually left there $120 poorer and still not quite sure WTF is going on with Rudy.

Like every other medical scenario, they seemed all to eager to prescribe an unpronounceable pill and speak in very vague, non-committal terms, answering questions with questions and ultimately having nothing to say yet taking forever to say it. Great at theorizing and throwing spitballs (hell, I can do that at no charge), not so great at actually fixing/curing anything.

Cold and clinical. I kept hoping some old coot with a white coat and kind smile and authoritative, reassuring voice/manner would come ambling into the exam room and dish out some old-school vet goodness, but he never did.

But everybody looked good in their snazzy scrubs and Warby Parkers.

Thankfully her real vet is open again after the holiday weekend. It’s where I take my baby boy Jasper (and Porkchop, back in the day) and it’s the kind of joint you want to be when your kittycat or pooch isn’t 100%.

So, yeah. I know exactly what you’re talking about. Just had a big dose of it myself less than 48 hours ago.

Have them check for tapeworm. My friend in KC recently went through a similar situation. It was her Googling/researching that caused her to prod the vet to explore that avenue following the drastic weight loss of Albi.
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kscherer
Which way is up?
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
 
2021-07-06, 10:38

I'm so glad I don't have pets anymore.
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2021-07-06, 11:08

I didn't for years (as in 13+), and then four years ago (yesterday, July 5, in fact), that little black, emaciated kitten, smelling like smoke/fireworks, came wandering into my yard and immediately bonded with me (and vice versa, frankly). I was helpless to resist and, within the hour, was at the grocery store buying cans of Fancy Feast and Purina Kitten Chow for the first time since 2004.

"I guess I got a cat now...".

Off-topic (click to toggle):
But he's a healthy, indoor (safe), doted on kitty now and I hope to give him a long, happy life. He was a hybrid (outside at day, indoor at night) cat until two-and-a-half years ago when he got beaten up and injured (eye and side/leg) by another, larger cat. Since then, his butt is indoors only. But I also have a 12x18 elevated screened-in porch (with impenetrable, claw-proof screening I installed two years ago) that he has access to 24/7, so he gets all the fresh air and scenery (and squirrel/bird/chipmunk/butterfly watching) he wants, without that whole "hit by a car/tormented by kids/attacked by other animals" thing hanging over either of us.

He's got it pretty damn good for a former abandoned(?) stray with haven't-eaten-in-days visible ribs. It doesn't hurt that he's brimming over with personality, and his cuteness/playfulness/affection levels are off the charts. We both struck gold.
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kscherer
Which way is up?
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Boyzeee
 
2021-07-06, 12:28

I'd probably have another cat if I ever wound up single (my wife would have to tank before me ).

And, if a cat wants to come live in my yard, I'm okay with that. I'll toss out 1/2 a meal of cheap cat food every day and the silly thing can hunt mice for the rest. In fact, I did that a couple years ago, but being on a busy street it got slightly more acquainted with someone's bumper than it may have wanted. My daughter is convinced some kid came along and collected the little fur-ball (it was a very sweet cat) and I still haven't told her what actually happened. But, if she keeps telling people that some kid "stole" her, I might have to set the record straight.

Such is life for the kitties.

- AppleNova is the best Mac-users forum on the internet. We are smart, educated, capable, and helpful. We are also loaded with smart-alecks! :)
- Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (Mat 5:9)
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drewprops
Space Pirate
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Atlanta
 
2021-07-06, 15:19

I took in 4 strays in January of 2017.

The mom had showed up in late summer of 2016. In January we lured them all inside on a super frigid morning.

Our haul: mom, 2 kittens, and a weird extra cat that followed them around.

All female.

The grey kitten fell over in November of 2019 and died in my arms. I tried to save her but watched her irises swell to black. Dead.

I'm at the vet now, agreeing to x-rays.

This cat is down to 6.8lbs from 10+ a month ago.

Mom has had a few scary patches the last few years but this is reminding me of watching my dad waste away the last 6 months of his life.

It's frustrating not knowing what's happening, or whether there is a solution.


...
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2021-07-06, 15:33

That's the heartbreaking thing about pets (and, I suppose, young children...I wouldn't know, not having any). They can't tell you what's going on. It takes a good vet/exam to figure things out. I've been in situations where I've bartered various things of my life/body if I could know what was going on or could learn what/where something was hurting and how they were feeling.

It's a whole different thing, loving and caring for a pet/animal. Endless joy, laughs and unconditional love. But the potential for heartbreak that will lay you completely out.

Hope things are learned and look up, drew.
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drewprops
Space Pirate
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Atlanta
 
2021-07-06, 16:33

Yeah, if only Dr. Dolittle was available.

They're sending us to a "specialist" in the morning.

This sucks.

EDIT:
She at least did a good job of eating her food when we got home today, which helped make me feel better.




...

Steve Jobs ate my cat's watermelon.
Captain Drew on Twitter

Last edited by drewprops : 2021-07-06 at 17:06.
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PB PM
Sneaky Punk
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Vancouver, BC
Send a message via Skype™ to PB PM 
2021-07-06, 19:19

I think the way vets, like doctors, now talk comes down to legal liability issues. They are vague to cover their butts, and put the onus on the owner/patient.
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Yontsey
*AD SPACE FOR SALE*
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Cleveland-ish, OH
 
2021-07-07, 06:32

@Pscates2.0 Man, you went to a 24/7 Emergency Clinic and got away with only paying $120?! Consider yourself lucky. Any time I had to take my bulldog to the EC, I was usually between $500-3000.

I lost my pup about a month and a half ago after 10.5 years. Broke my heart. I came home and found her dead on the floor. I suspect heart attack or something along those lines. I was grateful that I didn't have to witness it and she was awesome enough to "choose" her time instead of making me have her put down. I was dead for about a week but it has got easier. I miss her dearly every day.

Die young and save yourself....
@yontsey
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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2021-07-07, 07:56

I’m sure you do. It’s a true loss. When we had to have Porky put to sleep in April 2004, it killed us. He’d been with us since my then-wife and I met in 1989 (he was her cat). But he made the trip to SoCal with us in 1993 and all the places we lived (numerous SoCal locations, Northern Virginia, and eventually back to Chattanooga). Even after we divorced we had shared/joint custody of the little man. He lived with her in Pasadena, he lived with me in Carlsbad, etc. We’d kinda take turns with him every 6-12 months (with the other visiting him throughout so he never lost contact with either of us). He was a big part of the reason she and I remained friends and civil, and things never got contentious or ugly. He was that connecting bond. It was the two of us who took him to the vet on that final visit. Full circle, 15+ years. We still talk about him, remember things he did, etc.

I, too, was surprised at the cost. I know it was $99 for the “walk in the door/exam”, and then there were some pills (for pain) given. But we literally left there, after all that time, not knowing anything more than when we arrived. Mom would’ve gladly paid $300+ had something actually been learned or solved. We pretty much sat in an exam room for three-plus hours. Rudy was examined soon after we arrived (15-20 minutes) and then returned to us and we sat and waited for a vet to show up, speculate, talk in circles, say “I’m really not sure” about six times, etc.

On an odd note, Rudy has been perfectly fine/normal for the past 2-3 days. I asked mom if maybe he’s a bit of a hypochondriac?

I still think something stung or bit him, or he ate something that did a number on him. But I can only guess/speculate. Which is pretty much all they did…

Last edited by psmith2.0 : 2021-07-07 at 08:12.
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drewprops
Space Pirate
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Atlanta
 
2021-08-07, 00:17

My mother finally gave me permission to schedule a vet to come to the house.

Turns out there are a lot of vets who do house calls for home euthanasia.

Mom left it all up to me, and shopping for the right provider took a while.

This was a perfect demonstration of the role websites play in purchasing unfamiliar items or services online.


The first place I was recommended turned out to be a national agency that manages a network of providers. The person I spoke to on the phone had to track down service providers in my area and check their schedules. The soonest they could see me is Sunday.

I'm sure their vets are topnotch but that experience felt clinical.


The next place I checked on was a single operator who provided a personal profile about himself, which was humanizing. I did notice that his website mostly featured dog photos and the reviews on Google were dog-centric, so I was actually glad when he texted me back to say that he was out of town. All of the fraternity notes and such in his bio made him seem like a party guy who liked dogs, which is of course a dumb simplification on my part, but every detail informs your initial perception of a person.

I appreciated the courtesy of a reply text from him to let me know that he was unavailable.


The third service I checked on had a simple old school website with simple monochromatic illustrations of domestic pets instead of stock photos. The first several were cats. Like the previous doc (the dog doc) she provided a cellphone number and an email address. Very accessible, I liked that.

I later googled her and found an article on a local community website where she was featured with several other local animal caregivers, a photo featuring her with a lopsided smile holding a cat. When she called me back I quickly knew that she was the right person.

So a little while ago it struck me that this time tomorrow night this wonderful, sweet, formerly beautiful scaredy cat will be in a hole in the ground, and it feels like I'm plotting the most terrible betrayal.

I know that it is a kindness, because she is just hanging on right now.

She is inches from my feet under the dining room table. She smells terrible. She poops hard little nuggets that are the remainders of her last meal from a few days ago. She's certainly dehydrated and it is a cruelty to allow her to continue to suffer in this way.

She won't even make it to her 5th birthday.

Pet burial is apparently prohibited in most metro communities, but we've always buried our critters in the back yard and I have to say that I have been thinking a lot about where I will lay this kitty to rest.

Her sister died just a few months after her 2nd birthday and I buried her beneath a big spreading fig in our backyard, next to their brother who had died while they were still running wild as kittens with their mom.

I buried another stray under that tree last year after finding him dead in the road.

My older brother, a springer spaniel mutt is buried 10 feet down the hill from all those cats, so I know that this is the area of the yard where I will place her.

I'm just not looking forward to it.

I am looking forward the smell being gone.

Cancer is a monster and life is a gift.




...

Steve Jobs ate my cat's watermelon.
Captain Drew on Twitter
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