Cats, eh?

Mar. 4th, 2026 03:07 pm
lexin: (Default)
[personal profile] lexin
What it is to be the cat parent of two disabled cats.

Poor Opal is going through misery at the moment, poor baby. She’s been biting her fur off her back for well over a year, and while it’s better than it was, it’s still not ideal as she still has bare patches where she’s been chewing. I took her to the vet last week for the vet to look her over before prescribing her Metacam again.

Trip to the vet (£16 in taxi fares) plus £210 in costs. Ouch. The doors of the poor house gape wide.

The vet took one look at the sore on her back, decided it was infected, and so prescribed a tube of steroid gel and an antibiotic. I have been trying to get her to allow me to put the gel on and eventually had to resort to a cat onesie to stop her licking it off. She also didn’t like the taste of the antibiotic in her food. She loathed the onesie I made her wear with the heat of 1000 blazing suns, and once it was on she wouldn’t move or eat. She threw off both attempts of giving her the cone of shame about 10 minutes after it was put on. I’ve been beside myself with worry. I love my cats, even Geraint who constantly misbehaves.

Second trip to the vet, £16 in taxi fares plus £50 in costs. The cost this time was for a wormer and flea treatment for Geraint.

The vet identified an ulcer on Opal’s gum, just next to her left front canine. Treatment: stop giving her Metacam for at least two days, and come back on Wednesday to get a steroid injection.

I took Opal back to the vets today (£16 in taxi fares, £39 in costs) and they gave her the steroid injection. I pleaded to be allowed to remove the onesie during the day and very reluctantly they said OK, if she has it on at night. I’m not completely impressed because she loathes having it put on and off even more than she hates wearing it.

Having said that, though, once it was off, she ate all her breakfast and licked the bowl clean. So, it achieved something. She’s now asleep on my desk. I’d say she was watching me type, but she’s spark out.

Cats, eh?

Feb. 19th, 2026 08:50 pm
lexin: (Default)
[personal profile] lexin
I’m exhausted, and I don’t know why. I’m working with my CPAP machine quite well, and it works, but I’m starting to fall asleep in the afternoons again.

Mind you, I had a good reason yesterday. When I went to hospital at the end of January, I was given a prescription. I took it to the pharmacy but it turned out that the doctor (whom I suspect to be a locum) had not signed or dated the scrip, and therefore it was useless. On Monday I had a letter from the hospital about the appointment, and usefully there was a phone number.

I rang the number and was told that if I came to the hospital at 09:15 on Wednesday, they’d give me a new prescription. I rather balked at the time, but I pulled myself from my bed at a sparrow’s fart and made it to the hospital by 09:10. Great, I thought, I will be home by 10:15. Not so. I was finally given my new prescription at 11:00, and had been excruciatingly bored, not to mention cold. Most hospitals seem to be overheated, but that one is always cold.

Worse, when I left the hospital to catch a bus home, I had to wait in the freezing wind. By the time the bus came, the muscles of my face wouldn’t move, and I wondered if that’s what Botox feels like.

I made it home at about 11:30, and had a hot breakfast at the local club, which has a café at the back during the mornings. It was very nice to have a meal I hadn’t prepared myself. Having said that, I’m living largely on breakfast cereal because even heating up ready meals is proving too much for me these days.

Cats

Geraint seems to be doing better, he’s gained some weight and is no longer the skinny cat who originally came here. He plays, has zoomies and when I’m playing my PS5 he curls up at my feet, keeping them warm.

Opal still has a problem with her back – she’s chewing her fur, for all the world like a person with trichotillomania. It really worries me. She’s on Metacam and Gabapentin, but though it helps a bit, it doesn’t solve the problem completely. The vet only suggested that she be fed something that is a specialist food for a cat with a problem with coat and stomach. Again, it helps, but not completely. I give her a taurine supplement and various oils, but really, I’m at a loss.

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gloria1

August 2016

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