I went upstairs about an hour ago to check on Victannie. He was lying on the floor near the door-stiff as a board and gurgling. 🙁 I grabbed the phone and called my feline specialist (I love this woman) she allows me to interrupt her day or night and never complains. I told her I thought Vic was dying and could I bring him over so she could put him out of his misery. 🙁 She said okay-
I didn’t have the heart to put him in a carrier, just laid him in a big tub, covered him with a light blanket and took him over. He didn’t move the entire ride which greatly concerned me.
When he got to Vicki’s he perked up a bit and she told me after she examined him that he probably did have a stroke-which would go along with either hypertension, or kidney failure- but that it didn’t seem to have any long-lasting effects. She did tell me something that had escaped my vet’s notice as well as my own that he is blind! That’s why sometimes he lays in one spot with his eyes wide open. I was so concentrated on his dang fleas and skinniness that I didn’t figure it out either. But it makes sense now, how he drinks more water than he eats wet food (the pet fountain pump is pretty noisy) why he only uses one of 7 litterpans and doesn’t move about to freely.
She said that usually when they are so susceptible to fleas there is a secondary issue- disease or something that is weakened them to that state, but based on what she saw and how he acted with me- she wouldn’t give up on him yet! YAY!!! So in a few days, I will take him back to the vet to have them get a blood pressure do a hemocrit, and hopefully get enough blood to run a panel. She is thinking possibly kidney issues at work here or even possibly cancer. If he doesn’t gain any weight in 2 weeks- she would say reasonably strong- cancer.
So we are home again and I apologized for putting him upstairs.It is so hot up there even with all the fans running, but it is the quietest of the house and it is supposed to be cooler with a cold front coming in. I am so relieved he isn’t suffering. I have known Vicki a long time and she would never allow him to suffer. So I remain hopefully optimistic that we can get some answers soon as to what is going on with this handsome kid. I had to smile, she examined him inside the tub I brought and I had my hand in front of his nose- he was headbumping and rubbing me and she said “See he is telling you, you aren’t done with him yet!”
Even if at the end of two weeks he must depart, Vic will have known some wonderful affection and attention, food like he’s not had in who knows how long and comfort, too. What a terrifying time he must have had in the wild. But now I’ll bet he feels very safe with you. Good luck to Vic!
Okay, this is one of the reasons why I have stopped reading most cat rescue sites – I get too emotionally involved, when I have so many other issues (not just my own cats) keeping me in a perpetual state of anxiety and low energy, and fueling my chronic insomnia. Vic was on my mind as I fell asleep, and as I woke this morning, too. But now that I’m emotionally committed, for better or worse, count me in as one of Vic’s friends. If vet bills, house repairs, disability income, etc weren’t tapping us out, I’d toss a few dollars in his direction, too.
Anyway, so glad you have a cat friend/expert you can call on, and that she gave you a clearer picture of what’s going on with Vic. I also have a blind kitty, Ziggy, an adopted former foster. He’s deaf now, too, so prefers to mostly live in our bedroom, but prior to that, he found his way around the house quite well. He still finds his way to the litter box in the hallway. Hopefully, Vic’s test results won’t show anything alarming, and he can get comfortable in his new environment.
Also have a hot 3rd floor where one cat lives for now – a former feral/housecat-in-training who is going to be moved to another room as soon as my crisis bucket isn’t overflowing and I can get some furniture moved. In the meantime, windows are closed or open as heat dictates, and blinds or bathtowels keep the sun out so that the fans work pretty well. I bought a couple of gel-filled cooling mats, and he does lie on them. Got them from Foster&Smith, and they’re on sale again. We ordered mediums, but they sent us smalls by mistake. Small is about 11×15 and okay, but a medium would allow a cat to fully stretch out on its side. Anyway, if you’re interested in these, here’s a link:
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=24430
I got these because they were reasonably priced, and you didn’t have to fill them with water or put them in the freezer like other mats I saw.
Sending good thoughts to you and Vic – I don’t think he’s done with you, yet, either :0)
Not sure quite how hot the room you’re talking about but I have a 3 season porch that the cats have access to through a cat door in my bathroom window. When I’m at work obviously for safety sake, all the windows are closed and locked and I don’t have the ceiling fan running to save electricity. The room has two skylights and is SW facing so it gets all afternoon sun. Needless to say it is an oven during the day. Except for the very, very hottest of days (here in DC that’s upper 90s to around 100 with high, high humidity), when I come home from work, I always find a few cats napping away in that oven of a room instead of the air conditioned rest of the house. So, I wouldn’t worry too much.
I know how hard it can been to keep your spirits up but it looks like Vic is a fighter. It may just take some time to lay low and regain his strength. Just about a month ago a blue jay slammed into my car window in my driveway. I thought it was dead but it was just stunned for quite a while. When he finally came out of it a few hours later he couldn’t right himself and kept tipping over. I put him in a box thinking he would die peacefully (and out of the paths of neighborhood cats), but he struggled to get out of the box. I finally found a secluded bramble patch that the cats would not be able to get to and put him there. I would put moistened cat kibble around and I watched him for three days. He just sat in the same place, crouched on his feet with his eyes closed. On the fourth day he was no longer there. I searched and searched and thought something had finally gotten him. Then about a week later while I was feeding the blue jays some peanuts, another jay came clumsily flying near. His tail was all askew like the jay I was looking after. It WAS the jay I was looking after! He is still around to this day begging for peanuts. Still can’t fly well, but enough to get him out of harm’s reach.
I will say some prayers for both you and Vic…
My Angel lost her sight due to high bp (along with arthritis, kidney disease and sterile cystitus). I didn’t know she was blind for a long time either. She had a stroke at the end and lost the ability to stand and walk. At the very least you have given Vic love and a comfortable, safe place to be and he has clearly demonstrated that he knows this by his reaction to you. He’s under a great deal of stress just being in a new place and being blind. I hope he continues to flourish and have more time to settle in. All in all, despite how long he has, you have given him the gift of love and respect which he had given up on. God Bless Little Vic.
Wow, looks like everyone is rooting for Vic! Makes me smile. I’ll add my good thoughts and my thanks to you for helping him.
Thanks everyone! I love all my readers, you guys add so much to my blog with your comments. Thank you all for sharing.and Marian- how are those baby kittens doing?
I held each of them as they died. One had an infection of some kind and one didn’t have the suckle reflex but they all just faded on me. I held them and told them about the bridge and that their siblings were waiting for them. I raised my Paul and Mary from that age and they turn 10 in March. Nothing seemed to work for these.
I am so incredibly sorry they died, and so grateful they found you before they did.
Hang in there, Victannie.
Mary Anne, you probably already know this, but you can put some ice cubes in the water bowel/fountain to help keep the kitties cooled down. But we’re kinda with Christine on cats and heat. A little while ago it was 90-95 (F) every day for a week. The A/C was working its head off, and the kitties were all dozing in the yard soaking up the sun like they were chilly.
When we let our outside cats inside to escape the heat, many times they will flop down on the tile in the kitchen to cool off. I was just wondering if you could scavenge some large (at least 18″x18″ or larger) ceramic tiles and place them in a room out of direct sunlight for the cats to lie on… I haven’t tried this myself, but thought it might help someone without air-conditioning…