Dinner Anyone?

Waldo was the keeper of the food bowls tonight. He began campaigning about 2:00 this afternoon, and wasn't successful until sometime after 5:00. I've given in early before, only to have the kitties complaining when the regular mealtime came and went. Someday I might forget, you never know!

A Leonard Update

Leonard is doing very well in his "golden years" but he needed his annual check-up anyway. He had a physical exam and a cardiac ultrasound with our internist Dr. Slusser at Animal Internal Medicine this past week.

He has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the walls of his heart are enlarged, so its not performing optimally for him. He takes a medication called Atenolol, which is a beta blocker used for humans. We're very happy that his heart is stable!

He has lost a pound in body weight over the last 18 months, which isn't surprising given that he's about 18 years old! He also had a little labwork done too, and his BUN and Creatinine are elevated which are signs of renal failure. It's normally managed with supportive care, generally with subcutaneous fluid therapy, sometimes a diet change, and nutriceuticals such as Azodyl and Epakitin. With Leonard's heart disease, the fluid therapy is out ~ we could put him in heart failure very quickly. So we've opted to use Azodyl, a twice daily capsule which binds to the toxins the kidneys can't filter out properly. We will also continue a good quality diet, and add in Epakitin when his blood phosphorus levels rise.

Leonard doesn't know there's anything wrong with his kidneys or his heart. He's not very fond of his new twice daily medication regime, but takes it in stride and is still purring when we're done!

Sanctuary Updates!

It's been quite a while since this blog's been updated, so here goes. Please enjoy the following series of stories about life with our Golden Hearts critters!

The Girl Scouts Finished Their Projects...

for the Sanctuary animals and they are beautiful! Troop 1230 in Carlsbad earned their Bronze Star Award through helping the animals over this past year. The final big projects were created on the hottest day we've had in Valley Center all year, with temperatures in the upper 90's!

A beautiful play area for the goats, allowing them to jump and climb and nap up high was created, which Bob dutifully helped construct. He then tried it out first, got stuck underneath it, and came out looking for someone to take pity on him. When that didn't work, he just asked for the spaces between the steps to be blocked off!

The second project was the beginnings of a dream we've had here for years - a Memorial Garden to honor those we have loved in their Golden Years. It's beautiful! The building in the background on the right is the Cabana, so the kitties get to enjoy it too!

These girls have learned about the beauty in all creatures, old or young, normal or disfigured. We hope that they continue to spread the message of compassion, and the critters ask that they return for visits anytime. Thank you Troop 1230, you've made all of us smile!

Haircut Day!

A streak of warm weather prompted a little haircut for Austin - and check out the pile of hair left behind! His long, beautiful hair is gorgeous, but tangles as he sheds, and catches every sticker in the yard; brushing is not his favorite form of attention either! I was concerned that a haircut would be a stress to his heart, so this was a decision not taken lightly! However, I crated and carried him in to the bathroom in the house (the unofficial 'salon') and pulled out the clippers. I turned them on cautiously, fully expecting him to freak out. Imagine my surprise when he began purring and leaning in to them! His cheeks got a little more trimmed than I had planned because he wouldn't quit rubbing on them! Of course, this prompted a change in weather, so he needed some clothes. His blue t-shirt really brings out his eyes (although he doesn't appreciate that fact!)

Marci & MeiLi

MeiLi has had trouble off and on with her snotty nose, and what seems to be some asthma too. She has an appointment so see our holistic veterinarian Dr. Laflin at Cardiff Animal Hospital coming soon. She suggested a homeopathic remedy which is working pretty well so far and it, coupled with an albuterol inhaler, seem to be helping. She's gained back some of the weight she lost (it's pretty noticeable when you're only 5lbs) because she couldn't smell her food. And she's back to her crabby self! She's in the picture with Poppy enjoying a little sunshine!

Marci had some breathing problems which after a few days on hairball medication had resolved. She surprised us this weekend with a little abscess on her cheek - probably from playing too rough with claws. She's doing well, it's healing nicely!

Xanadu Left Us...

This handsome boy had such little time with us, but I believe he had a great time while he was here! Xanadu suffered from problems related to old injuries to his spinal cord, giving him upper motor neuron damage. It inhibited his ability to know when he had to urinate or defecate, or for the bladder and bowel to just empty on their own when full - a 'reflex' bladder or bowel. Thanks to his fan club at the Grayson County Humane Society , he had a colectomy and had been deobstipated more than once before he came to us. It had kept him going until he could get here for better veterinary care.


He had trouble off and on with his colon upon his arrival in late January, but then began having trouble with bladder infections also. We fixed one problem, then the other would crop back up. And then he began to have trouble with back pain too. He became unable to empty his bladder on his own, so I would have to express him daily, most of the time with some sedation in an attempt to keep my fingers. Unfortunately, at his last recheck exam (of course with sedation) we emptied his bladder and actually it was improving, but once it was empty, we discovered that his colon had became static too. Big uh oh. Into an emergency laparotomy to see what was going on.


One of the hardest decisions we ever make is that of euthanasia. Are there more bad days than good days? Is this condition painful? Is there quality of life? These are the questions we ask and then tearfully answer. I painfully made the decision that Xan shouldn't wake up from anesthesia. He peacefully crossed the Bridge with lots of love on April 11. His spunky dog-like personality touched everyone who met him.

Rest in peace, sweet prince!

Xanadu & Marci

Xanadu started feeling poorly as the rainstorm moved through Friday night. The poor guy just didn't seem to rally even with extra TLC. He also ran a fever and had an elevated white blood cell count when he went to see our internist on Monday. Prior to getting the labwork finished, we also did a couple of xrays and ultrasounded his abdomen. With his life-long history of bowel troubles, we wanted to make sure that trouble wasn't beginning to brew again. His gut looked okay, but boy his poor spine!

At some point in his life, he did have a traumatic injury (possibly a kick) that damaged 3 ribs and 4 thoracic vertebrae - and they do cause him discomfort. He has two vertebrae over his hips that are fused as one - a birth defect. And, when he had his tail amputated, a piece of vertebrae was left behind - another source of pain. Poor guy! Once he's feeling better, we will work on long-term pain management for him. In the meantime, he's on Amoxicillin and Metronidazole, subcutaneous fluids, and Pepcid to deal with the infection he has going on. He's starting to feel better today, his fever's down and he's eating again.

Marci had some difficulty breathing again, also late last week. Since our cats are doing their springtime shedding, I guessed there was a hairball issue. This pretty girl keeps her long hair stunning all the time! Into the house she came for some close monitoring in a quiet atmosphere. I also gave her a fan, turned on "low" so the air movement would make it easier to breathe. Large doses of laxatone and lactulose to lubricate things through, plus some added fiber in her diet all made a difference. By late Friday night, Marci was feeling better; she was back to normal by Saturday morning.

It's been a busy weekend with these kitties, but slowly we are returning to quiet and normal!

King of the Loft!

Ballou's House of Blues has a loft on one end of it, and most of the kitties find their way up there at bedtime. Today, Ballou claimed the entire loft for himself, perched in such a way as to keep others away and his view of the room at its best! He often prefers one of the crates in the loft, like the one behind him, for bedtime. He picked the perfect place to hang out today, as our sunshine disappeared and we spent the day in heavy drizzly fog.

Summer Tans

Leonard and Pepper decided to spend some time working on their tans, sprawled out in the little bit of sunshine they could find today. Everyone else could be found napping inside. These two are the most senior of our seniors, so afternoon sun opportunities are especially important to them!

Sparky Left Us Today

While his new chemo drug Cytoxan had made him tired, and cause a little diarrhea, Sparky continued to eat and get around pretty well. He was enjoying new-found foods in his diet - home-cooked chicken and rice, baby food, Gerber meat sticks, and sugar cookies! He slept in his old favorite sleeping spot last night, barking once for me to get up and change his bed when he had peed. This morning, he had a 105 fever and could barely walk. Off to work he went with me. He shuffled into the hospital, barely making in the door, and as we were drawing blood and placing an IV catheter, he quietly passed away.

Sparky was with us only a little over a year, but what an amazing year we had together! I'll miss his daily companionship during chore-time and his wonderful warm personality as he greeted visitors. We will all miss his eyes, the windows to his soul and spirit, that after some time and lots of love, began to shine again.... That sweet blonde teddy bear of a dog touched all of our hearts and taught us all about learning to love again....

Rest in peace sweet spirit, you will be missed!

Sparky Week 2

Today he began an oral chemotherapy drug called Cytoxan, given once daily for 4 days. He has a high white blood cell count, so we've added in antibiotics to help fight infection. He had fluid tapped from his chest today, so he's breathing easier. Ultrasound showed that the tumor has reduced in size, and the fluid in his chest is looking better, so this is all very encouraging news.

His energy level is down a little, but he's still getting around to help feed the animals. He continues his Chinese herb regime along with his traditional medications. We'll keep the blog updated!

Sparky Begins Chemotherapy

Sparky's knee is healing pretty well ~ he can put some weight on it and even walk a few steps on a level surface. The fluid cytology came back and confirmed that it is indeed chyle, which is caused by leakage from the thoracic duct or one of the lymph vessels that drain to it. The most common causes are a tumor, a trauma, heartworm disease, or right-sided heart failure.

We know he has a mass - the most common mediastinal (middle of the chest) tumors are either a lymphoma or a thymoma. One can be reduced and managed with chemotherapy while the other one can't; surgery is just not an option for this sweet ol' guy either. So, after quite a bit of discussion with our internist Dr. Slusser, and our holistic veterinarian Dr. Laflin, we've opted to try chemotherapy. If the tumor is due to lymphoma, it should respond to the chemo by reducing in size, which will keep the fluid from building back up in his chest. If it's not, well, we'll cross that bridge when we need to.

Sparky received a dose of vincristine today, a small intervenous injection, and also had his chest tapped again. Today, we removed 1400mls from it, and he was feeling much better afterward! He has a recheck in a week, and we'll evaluate how well it worked.

Just Hangin' Out

Melody decided to spend some quality nap time with Sparky today. He's been pretty bummed out since he can't do his normal daily routine - at least until his knee heals. Just outside the picture on the couches are Quincy and Holly, making it a full living room of blondes!

Hank

A former Kentucky boy, Hank was very surprised to hear that there is sun in San Diego, and today he spent as much time as he could following the sunbeams around. Here he is rolling around on the bench in the kitty room. It's a wonderful day to be a kitten!

A Sparky Update

While Sparky's front leg is healing well, and his knee is healing slowly, we had another blow to his health yesterday ~ he had a little cough as he walked in to work with me, and an x-ray revealed fluid in his lungs. Uh oh. Then an ultrasound of his heart found the cause ~ a tumor in his chest. Big uh oh.

We did a procedure called a thoracocentesis, in which a needle is inserted into the chest cavity and fluid is drained off. After 850 ml's were drained off (a little over a quart) he was feeling much better. And he sat through all the work-up and procedures like a perfect gentleman! An analysis of the fluid we drained from his chest is pending, as it may reveal what type of tumor this is.

Today he saw our holistic veterinarian Dr. Laflin, both to work on his orthopedic issues and deal with his newly diagnosed cancer. He received a chiropractic treatment and energy work, and will be starting some Chinese herbs and nutraceuticals and vitamins to help support his body. Healing Touch, Reiki and a fresh, whole food diet are also in store for him. In the picture above, he's outside in his favorite spot, on a blanket, where he can watch everything going on. The yellow rope handles belong to the sling that I use to assist him as he walks ~ 80lbs is a lot of dog to lift! I'll post updates on the blog, and hope that you will keep him in your thoughts!

Sparky

Poor Sparky! As arthritic as he is, it doesn't take much to cause him trouble. Whether he tried to get up wrong, or too fast, or another dog ran into him we'll never know for sure, but what we do know ~ Sparky has torn a ligament in one of his knees. In addition, the "wrist" of the opposite front leg has been strained too. The result is an 80lb dog with two gimp legs.

Not a super great way to start out the new year.

Sparky saw our orthopedic surgeon Dr. Lenehan on Thursday. We took some x-rays and were relieved to see that the injury to his front leg is just that, and not the beginning of a bone tumor - he's just the right age for that to happen. We are weaning him off the Prednisone that he's been taking for his arthritis in the hopes of starting an NSAID such as Previcox or Metacam which he can use long term without the steroid side effects (he's been drinking like crazy - not fun if you can't easily get up to pee!) Our fingers are crossed that his knee will scar down and heal, but that takes 8 weeks to know for sure. All other issues considered, surgery is not our first choice, as his recovery would be very difficult.

Sparky will be seeing Dr. Laflin, our holistic veterinarian, this coming week, for supportive care - acupuncture and Chinese herbs. In the meantime, he's getting the best maid service one could hope for and he's taken up residence in the living room where he can immediately order room service!

2 New Faces

Two cute feline faces joined us over the weekend. Xanadu and Hank came from the Grayson County Humane Society in Kentucky. Their sweet personalities endeared them to the staff, who tried desperately to find them forever homes. It just wasn't meant to happen.

Xan (as his friends call him) had a spinal cord injury at some point in his pre-shelter life, causing him to have bowel troubles and the inability to carry his tail normally. His veterinarians in Kentucky amputated his tail so it was no longer a source of pain or a place for hygiene troubles. He's had to be "cleaned out" more than once under anesthesia, and even had a colectomy (a partial colon removal) to keep everything moving through. He needs daily monitoring to make sure everything works like it's supposed to!

Hank is a Manx by breed, so his troubles are similar to Scooters, with both fecal and urinary incontinence. He doesn't always know when he needs to urinate, so his bladder has to be checked and expressed when needed. His nerve function to his colon is also lacking, so he needs someone to keep an eye on his rear end too!

These 2 have prompted us to consider building a new kitty room in the future, where all those who are incontinent can live worry-free, named of course "Poo Corner".

Ringing In The New Year!

This is how most of the critters are spending New Year's Day ~ napping because it's so windy outside there's not much else to do! This is also how Holly has been spending most of her time since she's been here. If she's not napping on the floor in the living room, then she's sleeping behind the chairs in the living room or on my side of the bed. She's trying to play a little, but isn't sure how to work into the wrestling matches yet.

We wish you the best in 2008!

Caring For Each Other

The friendships that form amongst animals are amazing and we witness unlikely pairs bond frequently. Several of the animals that live here with us have personalities that make it difficult for them to blend into a normal household, age and disabilities aside. MeiLi is one of those critters ~ always preferring to be the "only cat" in most any situation. She hasn't been feeling well the last few days, suffering from a sinus infection.

Today I found Scooter spending a good part of the morning with her, giving her a bath. He stopped every time he saw the camera, so that's why he's just sitting beside her, trying to look like he doesn't care. As soon as the camera disappeared, he went back to work, making sure her whole body received attention. They spent quiet time napping together afterward too. She looked a little better tonight, wanting to get up and eat with the other cats, so that's a good sign (if you can't smell with a stuffed up nose, why eat?)

I'm hoping that the rainstorms coming in a couple of days will help her out. 50mph+ winds are blowing dirt and pollen around today, so the HEPA filters are running to help us all breathe better. But nothing matches the care that Scooter has given MeiLi today. Who would have thought it?