More on Shalimar

It's been three weeks now and Shalimar is still sick.  She's been to the vet now three times as well as the pets emergency.  She still has horrible stifling sneezes and coughs almost constantly.  It is now time to think outside the box.

I read up on everything I could find about asthma in cats and found that she is having a severe asthma attack that even though the underlying infection is gone, her asthma has not eased with that.  This, apparently, isn't unusual.  So the question is, what to do about the asthma.  Steroids do work, but they will stress her already challenged immune system.  Besides, getting a pill down this cat's throat is almost impossible.  And fighting with her for 45 minutes stresses her out even more.

My niece sent me a book about alternative medicine for pets and I'm thinking this is worth a try.  The book that quotes several well known vets, had a chapter in it about asthma in cats and what might help.  So I'm going to try stabilized oxygen which is what is suggested.  I found some at the local GNC store and will add one drop into her tiny amount of canned cat food that I've been feeding her to help beef up her calories.

Shalimar has been due now for her annual vaccinations, but because she's been so sick, I've held off getting them.  If this works, I will take the bottle of stabilized oxygen along with me when we go for her annuals and I will then discuss this with my vet.  

My fingers are crossed.

What a Week!

Now with Shalimar on the mend (finally), this week off work I was able to turn my attention to other things. Last month I determined that I wanted to change some things about the bedroom wing. We started by hiring Dan Emery to come and put up some crown molding in the bedroom, bathroom and the hall in the east wing. I had also determined that since Shalimar doesn't like wallpaper, we would remove the wallpaper from the kitchen and do a paint wash.

Well, Friday, Dan came and put up the crown molding. He was one of the few people we hired to work in the house that actually impressed me. His work was accurate and quick. He was in and out in an hour and I have no complaints. He did offer to do the painting for me too, but I do enjoy that so.

With nearly the entire day left after Dan had gone, we went to the paint store. I had in mind what I wanted since spending last vacation at the paint store trying to find just the right paint. I wanted a gallon of the trim color, Benjamin Moore Pearl Finish, #1024 Tucson Winds. This is used for the trim in the pictures as well as the base coat for the kitchen wall. I also got a quart of #1026 Broken Arrow, again in the pearl finish as well as a quart of glaze. My main purpose for this paint was for the kitchen, but I also wanted to start the trim. The bathroom was where I decided to do the trim since the wall color, though not the Broken Arrow, was nice enough to stay. I was really curious as to how the trim paint would blend with the rest of the paint. I was not disappointed.

I'm taking my time doing this painting. Yesterday I did the crown molding and the picture window above the tub. I was using the tub and a stool and wanted to get off of it asap. I was planning on doing the other window today, but it was such a beautiful day I decided to work in the garden instead. I bought some plants for the last flowerbed at deep discounts and got them into the ground. I got three white saliva for $.75 ea, a 2 gallon daylily I'd had my eye on all summer for $10 and a miniature lilac (Tinkerbell) for $3. I also got a bunch of tulip and daffodil bulbs that weren't on sale. Also in that bed will be another miniature lilac that I must move or lose (Josie) and two roses, one of which is another that I must move or lose, Frimbriata and Red Rose of Lancaster. I will have Bob move all these plants soon, as I am expecting my new little Sourwood tree to make it's arrival in the next few weeks. I will also want a beauty berry but that may not come until spring.

Oh, BTW, we did wash the wall under the kitchen bar. We figured that until we knew what we were doing with color washing, this would be the best choice. It turned out great! It looks very much like the wallpaper we took off. At least there are no seams now that Shalimar can loosen and run through the house with, leaving big gaping rips behind. This always reminds me of when I was a kid. We had two family cats, Marvin and Willy. We had also just moved into a house my parents built. Mom had just had the walls papered. When I would return home from school, I'd find Willy hanging on the wallpaper at the ceiling. He'd see me and slide down the corner, taking long strips of wallpaper with him. Mom was not pleased. She kicked him outside where he lived for about 2 weeks before getting smashed by a car. He had a short life.

Tonight for dinner is Italian meatloaf. Yum. But I'm also trying a new recipe out of my recipe book I got for my birthday. The other night I made the beef barley soup which was fabulous! Tonight I'm going to try the brown sugar oat muffins and serve them with dinner.

More about Shalimar

Shalimar went to her regular vet this evening. It turns out that she has a severe sore throat. This is what has been keeping her from eating and drinking. The antibiotics have helped some and this morning I took her into the bathroom while I took my shower. The humidity really seemed to help her.

When I got her home from the vet, we changed her eating to soft cool food and ice water. She was one hungry, thirsty kitty. I'm to keep her on the antibiotics for the duration but my vet thinks she should be eating her regular food in a day or two. But appears now that she will get better.

What Kind of Emergency Room is this???

It started last evening around 5PM. I noticed that Shalimar seemed to have the hiccups. She gets the hiccups a lot, having to do with her asthma. However, this time they didn't go away in the few minutes they usually do. I began to worry.

This morning, she still had the hiccups and now she could neither eat or drink. The more she moved, the worse they became. By 8am, I simply became scared and decided to take her to the pet emergency. She fought me horribly as I tried to put her in the crate. She seemed strong, but I was afraid that if I left this go, it could get worse and if she became to weak, she may not be able to rebound. So off we went to the emergency.

We were there for three hours. They gave her the works...blood, X-rays, the entire nine yards. They told me her asthma was constricting her breathing, but that she also seemed to have an infection too. They put her on an asthma control as well as an antibiotic and sent her home with a hefty price tag. It seems that pet emergency hospitals are just as expensive as people hospitals without the benefit of insurance. I'll try not to take her back there. Besides, it's just to far away.

Now, she's acting like a little snit. She ran under the bed when we got home and hasn't come out yet. Well, if that's how she wants it. Of course, Tootsie is worried and keeps going into the bedroom to stare at her from across the room. I figure when she gets hungry enough and thirsty enough, she'll come out. But here's the problem. I need to give her medicine this evening and if she stays under the bed, it will be nearly impossible to get her out.

She is still sounding not right, though the "hiccups" do seem to be less. I will be taking her to my vet tomorrow. Oh, she's going to LOVE that! But what must be done, must be done. At least the emergency clipped her nails so she wouldn't nail them. They did tell me she was sporting daggers.

Website Updating

http://www.geocities.com/jsaurbaugh/byjuliesdesignindex.html

I've been updating my card website. This has been keeping me busy for the past few days and will continue to do so into the near future. Check it out. I've been mixing my new cards in with the old so you will have to hunt for them.

I did take note of my prices and am happy to report that the pricing hasn't change yet.