Hello from Hedwig and Stef - Long Intro

Hi Everyone! Please bear with me as this is quite long.

My name is Stef and I am the mamma to one really amazing beast known as Hedwig. I have rescued animals essentially my whole life. Hedwig was one, I got her in a small litter at around 5 days old a little over 10 years ago. Hedwig was from a feral colony, she along with a brother and sister were brought to me in a box struggling for survival. Hedwig is part main coon and had always been a very dainty 13-14 lbs. This beast has been through everything with me, moving to France, all over parts of the US, back to Alaska, and now we have been stuck in Portland, Oregon for a bit - again.

That aside, let's get to her health. Hedwig has always been totally healthy. My other kitty King Tut, who has since passed from cancer, was my troubled health kitty. Shortly after he passed away, things in our house got worse. I was under a lot of stress from work, my roommate was turning into a raging alcoholic so much so that it involved police, I had just taken in a couple rescues from an Arizona shelter, we had to move several times in the duration.... Stress, stress, stress.

Around August 2015 Hedwig had noticeably started losing weight several months after Tut's passing. She was losing weight and drinking a lot more water. She had been on a completely raw diet of Rad Cat and Stella and Chewy's for around 2 years at this point (I had swapped due to Tut's cancer diagnoses). Hedwig started vomiting with some regularity. Once it was slightly tinged with blood, so I swapped out the frozen raw to completely freeze dried which seemed to have done the trick. Fast forward to having to find a temporary place to live and finding a new home for my two rescues, Hedwig was even more lethargic and had lost a couple of pounds at this point - behaving strangely not to mention drinking/urinating more.

Making minimum wage in Portland wasn't conducive to much other than barely surviving at 880 a month and my bills without food for me being 860 (2oo for Hedwig). A friend lent me a couple hundred to get her to the vet in September, where she was diagnosed with diabetes. Everything else checked out okay. However, this vet, new to me, was very old school. Hedwig was prescribed Vetsulin and I was told how to do it and sent home with the information to order from 1-800 Pet Meds. Which I did and nothing arrived until a week later. This vet was over an hour away from where I was living, I had gone there because it was my old vet (who had since retired) office and his replacement was supposed to be good, not to mention it was much cheaper than most places. The problem was the vet wanted me to blindly shoot my cat with insulin at 2 units twice a day and no way to measure blood glucose. Being hypoglycemic myself, I decided to do some research and after much of that I became so uncomfortable giving her insulin blindly that I refused to do it. I had found information that vetsulin was harder to regulate cats on as well, so I sought a second opinion.

Vet number two, closer to my place at the time, 100$ later did a glucose test (as the three human glucometers recommended would not work with Hedwig) and as she was mid 200's suggested I did the veterinary diet and see how she was in a month since it would be difficult to regulate her with her being on the lower end of things. I did get a few cans of the diet, though I am not a fan of veterinary diets, since they're known to be a bit on the side of crap. Not to mention Hedwig didn't dig it.

After a month at this other place, Hedwig seemed to regulate once I solidly got her on Stella and Chewy's again. By that I mean she seemed much better, gained a little bit of weight back, so I felt somewhat more comfortable. We moved again, I spent a lot of time with her at my friends store where we lived off and on while homeless. Hedwig always seemed happier there and did better there. Once we were more stable in our living situation it was back and forth as she would suddenly start laying in her litter box and if I took her to my friends, she'd be fine...

In November, another vet was recommended to me and I took her in as she was going back and forth again and started vomiting more again. This vet found that her diabetic levels were around 300 at this point but not ketonic. Once again, I was recommended insulin, we were attempting to figure that out with my poor financial situation and lack of assistance offered in this state. Due to my ability to regulate her enough with food, I kept going that route and being very strict about it which helped. This vet though was obsessed with the idea of her losing more weight. The problem was she was already hovering between 10.5-11.2 lbs and she wasn't losing more weight instead she just seemed in this weird state. A few blood panels later, the most recent (January 2106) reveled high liver (ALT) levels and somewhat high pancreatic levels. The vet told me not to worry that it was unlikely to be of any concern. To keep doing what I was doing and then re-check. Initially I liked the vet but his dismissive attitude and inability to truly respond to my concerns bothered me. I planned to seek out another vet as soon as I could.

However, my boyfriend got in a serious bicycle accident the beginning of February and required my constant care (literally maybe 1 hour of sleep a night), due to that I lost my job (won't get into that - small business and just awful ending), by the third week he finally had surgery. Five days after the surgery Hedwig vomited up solid blood with a few bits of food. It was a Sunday and I rushed her into the one open pet clinic - Bethany Family Pet Clinic, that wasn't an Emergency Clinic (Dove Lewis) where I had such bad experiences before. A customer previously recommended them and I'm glad I went. The vet was very kind and caring. We had raised enough funds for two months of bills fundraising for my boyfriend I had to dip into to be able to cover the costs of her sub-q fluids, stomach medication, radiographs and the like at about 500$ later.

What I found out that visit, that she had a diaphragmatic hernia, some unknown gastritis, I got a blood panel ordered and well the recommended necessities. I had to raise the funds ASAP to pull off getting her an ultrasound to sort out what was found in the x-rays. Fast forward to five days on sucralfate (she hates it) and Pepcid AC and she's been okay enough. I just barely raised the funds for her ultrasound on Friday, which I couldn't be present for due to landing up in the hospital myself nearly blacking out driving my boyfriend to his doctor appointment (it's been pretty tough).

This is the end result right now;

Diabetes Mellitus
Pericardio-Peritoneal Diaphragmatic Hernia (genetic) - Gallbladder and half the liver are in the chest cavity.
Cholelith (one thus far)
Possible underlying inflammatory disease
Hepatic disease or Lymphoma
Resolving Gastroenteritis

Hedwig is currently on 2.5 mg Pepcid AC twice daily, as well as, Clavamox 1 mL twice daily.
Tomorrow she starts on Ursodiol .5mL once daily.
Lantus will be her insulin and we are debating on starting that tomorrow as well at .5 units every 12 hours.

All of this is extremely stressful and daunting. I've never had to medicate a kitty so much and thank you for sticking to her whole story (less some details). Hedwig has been indoor only and again, always in great health until the last several months. I am scared about giving her insulin honestly. I'm scared of all of it. Ever since she vomited straight up blood and all of her ups and downs. Currently she swaps between the floor and the bed to sleep and is doing so most of the day. Pretty out of it, she does eat junk food now, it's literally the only thing I can get her to eat (Fancy Feast) which she needs the calories so whatever she'll eat.

I hope to find some hope in this forum. I have definitely found some excellent information. It's easy to feel very alone. I currently can't really work so am relying on fundraising and selling jewelry I make (when I can make it) due to the medication schedule she has going on. It's been absolutely overwhelming and I know I very much wish I had some help.

Thank you for letting me introduce myself and my Hedwig. My kitty means the whole world to me and I just hope I can save her where I couldn't quite do so for my Tut.

Much Love and Hope - Stef and Hedwig

 

Welcome Stef and hedwig. Sounds like yo have your hands full but are making progress. If y have any specific quest free free to ask

 

Wow Stef, you and Hedwig have sure been through it! So glad you found this site. There are so many wonderful people here with lots of feline knowledge so I'm sure you'll find some helpful info and plenty of support. As Larry mentioned, if you have any specific questions, or just need some support, post in the Health forum. Again, Welcome to you both!

 

Stef

My, but you've both been through so much!

I'm so glad that you've found FDMB. I very much hope we'll be able to help you not to feel so alone with all your worries over Hedwig - plus a lot more besides. Welcome to you both.


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Thank you so much! Yeah hands full is quite right.

 

Me too! It's been very rough this last month and then some, but I think it's getting better. I am beyond glad to have found this site, everyone is amazing and supportive. Thank you so very much!!

 

We have, but you know, I wouldn't change it (I think it builds character - Hedwig has a whole lotta that)

Everyone has been absolutely wonderful and helpful, considering how I even felt two days ago, my confidence has increased and I am beyond thrilled feeling like I have a community that I hopefully sometime soon can participate in with my own experiences. <3

 

I'm very glad to hear you're feeling a bit better about things now, Stef. I'd be lost altogether without FDMB.


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