Hello my dear friends, I’m so sorry to tell you that Samantha has passed as well

December 20, 2021 Catlady Natascha20 Comments

This year has been and still is one of the most difficult ones yet in my life, due to the combination of frightening changes in our world and country, and heartbreaking losses of two of our sweet furbabies.

Samantha has passed on Wednesday, December 15, 2021 at 14:45, reuniting with her sweet brother Sonic and my girl Murli.

I don’t know where to start. Samantha has had IBD (Inflammatory Bowels Disease) and after being perfectly stable and well for years, she’s had a flare up of the disease in early fall, out of the blue. We will never know what triggered it, as there had been no changes in her medication, food or even or any other events in our life. Nothing stressful happened at that time.

But ever since then, I went to the Vet countless times with her and I myself was there to pick up medications constantly. The Vet and I tried everything. Even ordered medications from outside of Austria to try after all the traditional ones didn’t help. We tried using medications off label with the Vet, as some of them have shown to help at times. All in combination with supplements, beneficial gut bacteria and various diets.

Though, nothing helped. Not even a little. Her condition kept getting worse and she kept losing weight no matter how much she ate, and she ate constantly.

We tried using injections to get a handle on the inflammation and cramps, but nothing helped. I gave her subcutaneous injections and drips myself at home. The Vet Lady had already taught me how to do that with Sonic.

The speed at which Samantha got worst increased as well. In the last 10 days, she started to eat every hour. I would fill up her bowl and she ate it all up, and wanted some more, which she always got. Then about an hour or so later, she would ask me for food again. So I fed her basically day and night in the end. Poor baby became so restless, and was up and down of the bed, or any other place she wanted to curl up at. But she would get up again within a short time.

On Monday morning I found her sitting by her water fountain, from which she normally drank all the time, but she seemed as if she forgot how to drink. Samantha would touch the water with her nose and acted as if she expected to get water that way. Then she would lift her head back up and look around confused. Soon later she started crying by the water, because she wanted to drink but could not.

I fed her water with the syringe, just like I did with Sonic and I kept her hydrated with drips, but she would cry by the water despite it all. I tried a number of different fountains and water bowls, with different levels of water, to see if anything helps. I even tried plates and put the fountains and water bowls higher up, so that Samantha would have the water right at the mouth level. Though to no avail.

The worst was seeing just how unhappy she seemed and she was in pain, despite pain medication. Her diarrhoea was becoming so frequent, it was heartbreaking. So Ralph and I knew we only had one choice left. We did not want her to suffer any worse than she already did.

I called our Vet on Tuesday morning to talk to her and we decided that she would come by our home to put Samantha to sleep the next day. She was going to call us before she would come, to talk again. But over night and the next morning, it became even more clear that there was no other choice left, as Samantha kept getting worse still.

Both Ralph and I were in a horrible state already, knowing what was to come. I ran about with my heart already broken and I could not even describe the sadness I felt and feel if I tried.

The last hours I just kept feeding her, because she was so hungry.

As the time came and our Vet was on her way, I closed the door to the rest of the apartment and stayed with Samantha in the kitchen and hallway area. Ralph could not bear to witness it, as he had to be with so many other of his beloved furbabies when they were put to sleep and these memories are still haunting him to this day.

Samantha knew the Vet Lady well and was never worried or afraid of her. So when she came, she stayed perfectly calm, acting normally and even had a few more bites to eat.

For a while we were just hanging out and talking to each other and Samantha. The Vet comforted Samantha and was so sweet to her, just like she always is.

All I want to say is that Samantha fell asleep without a hint of fear or stress visible. She fell asleep very quickly, while I held her head, so she could see me. At the same time she was also able to see the beautiful garden she always loved to look out to and she saw the sun setting with a beautiful red light in the clouds.

The rest is a blur again and I can’t even describe how I spent the rest of the evening and night. I just cried constantly. I didn’t want to call the Pet Crematory right away and decided to call them the next day and arrange a pick up for the afternoon.

I needed some time and I wanted to make sure Samantha has enough time to realise what has happened and let go of her body. I didn’t want her following her body in confusion if the pick up happened so soon after her passing.

I pray she’s reunited with Sonic and Murli now. I’m still being split between knowing that it was the right decision and wondering if Samantha feels betrayed. Because she didn’t expect to lose her life that day, even though she was very unwell. I pray she’s happy now, because the pain is gone and she’s whole again and able to do whatever she wants. I pray there is help on the other side, to make sure they are alright and that they are helped if they are disoriented or confused.

That deep pain in my heart will stay for a long time, but I am glad that Samantha and Sonic are in the same realm again. These two belong together.

Samantha was and is such a wonderful special kitty girl. An absolute beauty, with her stunning green big eyes in which you can get lost in. She had the longest purr ever, going on and on and on every time she came to bed and we went to sleep. She was Ralph’s little girl. And became my little girl as well. I wish I would have gotten to know Ralph many years sooner, but I am eternally grateful for the years I got to have with Samantha and Sonic. They made their bond with me, which will keep us connected no matter how many years will pass, until we are finally reunited again, all of us.

The following photo was taken on Saturday, December 11, 2021. Samantha and Sonic were always smaller than Murli, and grown up Hero and Lisa. But because she was getting so thin, Samantha seems even more tiny in this photo. She loved to hang out in that basket during the day. The photo on the wall above Samantha is of Sonic btw. I took it myself in Spain, when Sonic was on his way to the front balcony. Ralph always love this picture.

For the moment, I’m trying to distract myself from the pain as much as possible. I can’t really sleep right and haven’t really been sleeping right since Sonic passed. I just miss them both so painfully.

But I distract myself by pouring all my heart and love on Ralph, Hero and Lisa. Helping and comforting them, helps me as well.

I’m very sorry for being gone for most of the year, having only done a few posts. This whole year was a mess. I’ll post again before the holidays.

Thank you all for still coming to this little blog and for leaving all your wonderful comments. It means a lot to me. Ralph also reads all of the comments.

Sending you love and blessings.

Everything · Pictures · The Cats

Sonic – Resilience, tenacity of life and love.

February 9, 2021February 12, 2021 Catlady Natascha15 Comments

This is going to be a very long post. I tried to make it shorter, but it still ended up ridiculously long. But I can’t tell all of what’s been going on with Sonic in fewer words than in this post.

If you have read the previous post about Sonic, then you know what he went through and how I have been trying everything to have him improve and gain weight. So you know about his problem with constipation…

Another scare with Sonic last week. But now we are hopefully on the right track for this to never happen again.

Last weekend, late on Sunday evening the 31st of January, Sonic started struggling to pass the remaining bit of bowel movement, after passing some hard stool. It was the last bit that the new stool softener couldn’t make soft enough. A while before that, I had to temporarily change his stool softener, because I found that the previous stool softener was the reason why Sonic kept throwing up so often. In addition, of it not working well enough. I am giving him fibre with malt paste to soften his stool now. Which is enough at the moment anyway, since Sonic only gets liquid food (a special formula for sick and weakened cats) and after that he’ll get kitten formula.

During the night from Sunday to Monday, poor Sonic kept trying and trying to pass that remaining bowel movement. He just wasn’t able to do it. To make matters worse, he started throwing up from exhaustion and being upset. (Sonic always throws up as soon as he gets upset or stressed out about something). Every little bit of water he got in, came right back up.

I stayed by his side the whole time, trying to comfort him any way I could, hoping he would try to sleep a bit. Unfortunately, he kept trying the whole night, repeatedly throwing up the water I was giving him. By the morning, he was absolutely exhausted and dehydrated. Since he is still below a normal weight, exhaustion and dehydration like that becomes life threatening.

Off to the Vet

I called the Vet right in the morning and told them what was going on. Before I left with Sonic, both Ralph and I thought that this might be it. Ralph thought he might never see his boy alive again and had to say good bye to him, just in case the worst would happen and the Vet would not be able to save him. I was in a near panicked state, barely keeping it together.

Taxi Driver wasn’t happy with us – I called a Taxi and off we went. But before I got out of the Taxi, and after I paid, the driver told me that I should inform the Taxi company that I would have an animal with me the next time, because he doesn’t accept animals in his Taxi normally and that it has to do with his religion and that animals are unclean, therefore creating a problem for him and others with the same belief. He wasn’t shouting at me or anything, just calmly saying it. But after using Taxis most of my life for Vet visits, it’s the first time ever I heard about anything like it. Especially, it’s just a kitty in a carrier, a leak proof one at that. But now it made sense why the driver didn’t even greet me and kept looking back to Sonic with an annoyed look on his face.

So I got out and into the waiting room of our Vet, which was thankfully empty and we didn’t have to wait at all. I was so worried and expected the worst.

Our lovely Vet took sweet Sonic out of his carrier and had a good look at what’s going on, while I told her all the details. Like I was expecting, there was only one solid and rather hard poo left in him, which he was unable to pass. The Vet gave him two tiny enemas to soften it all up and then massaged his tummy, to break the piece up as much as possible. Thankfully it all worked and it was out without too much difficulties. Although by that time, Sonic’s rectum was all swollen up and in pain from trying desperately all night.

Sonic stayed at the Vet for a few hours

Because of how dehydrated, exhausted and weak he was, the Vet decided it would be best for him to stay with them for a few hours. That way they would be able to give him a long intravenous drip for rehydration, while also being able to keep an eye on him and able to help if he get’s worse. She explained that the subcutaneous drip, which creates a little pocket of liquid under his skin for rehydration, would not be taken up by his body fast and well enough, as his general body temperature was also a bit lower than normal.

Before the access was laid, the Vet listened to Sonic’s heart and breathing, which was thankfully perfectly normal. His heart was beating strong and perfectly regular, and his breathing was normal as well. So the access for the vein was put in, after shaving a small area on a front leg above the vein. That way they were also able to take some blood easily, to check on his kidneys, blood sugar and some other important things. Everything turned out to be fine with the blood results, which was such a great sign in itself. Then through the vein access, he received pain medication as well. An antibiotic was given too, but subcutaneously.

And so Sonic was put into his hospital bed cage / carrier, with the drip attached to the outside of it. The Vet also made him a pillow, because I told her Sonic always wants to rest his head on something. I said good bye to the sweet boy, but felt very hopeful he would be fine. Sonic is always so calm and brave at the Vet and never complains or panics. He seems to trust the Vet fully, as he’s been there so many times already (not just for emergencies though). He didn’t seem to worry or even look distressed.

Just so you know what it looks like… The following photo of Sonic in his a Vet Carrier Cage was taken a year prior, when he was there to resolve his constipation. In the picture, Sonic was put in the Vet Carrier, while we were waiting for the enema he received, to do it’s work. Only last week, he had his blanket with him as well, which the Vet made into a head rest for him, and there was an IV attached to the outside. Btw, Sonic stayed in the recovery room last week, where it’s quiet, warm and the light is dimmed.

I took the tram home instead of another Taxi just for myself. On the way, I told Ralph everything and that I am going to pick him up again in the afternoon.

Back at home, I could hardly sit still while we were waiting for the time to go by, until I could go to pick him up again. Though I was reassured by not receiving a call from the Vet while waiting at home. Because the Vet said she would call right away if Sonic would suddenly get worse, or has to be picked up sooner in case he gets upset and wants to go home.

Though thankfully, the time went by and I could finally go and pick him up. It was a lovely sunny day and not cold. Therefore I decided I would use my bicycle instead of calling a Taxi again. I took an additional blanket with me so I could wrap Sonic up and keep him warm on the way home. Btw, Sonic actually prefers the bicycle rides. He is not complaining much on the bicycle, just in the beginning when I put him in the carrier. In a car on the other hand, he stays upset the whole ride and cries a lot.

Once I was back at the Vet office, I didn’t have to wait again and was called in quickly. The Vet brought Sonic out from the back and put him on the examination table and Sonic was already sitting and looking around, visibly feeling a lot better. His IV was still attached to him. Apparently he started to perk up after the IV had been going in for half an hour. Though Sonic didn’t start to cry or struggle in there. In all, he stayed at the Vet for about 4 hours and spent that time either looking around a bit, or sleeping.

It was such a relief! God was I glad to see Sonic and he was glad to see me too! Sonic got another little drip, but subcutaneous, which would rehydrate him some more over the next few hours. After that, we put him in his carrier and we were on our way home again. This sweetie actually enjoyed the ride home and watching everything interested. It’s not a long ride anyway. Once I got us home, I opened the carrier and let him step out.

Back at home

Lisa, Hero and Samantha all came to check on him. He was still weak and unsteady, but that was no surprise after everything.

Sonic went straight for a drink. A really really long drink and then he walked into the bedroom, followed by everyone.

*Everyone followed Sonic and stayed with him in the bedroom*

The reason for Sonic’s struggles and the way to the solution

Now we also know what is always causing constipation. Sonic has a slight abnormality in the way his rectum is shaped, which makes it very easy for things to get stuck if the stool isn’t soft enough. The shape also results in the stool getting too big to pass easily once it gets stuck there.

His constipation problems were one of his two big issues that nearly took his life repeatedly. The other issue is the auto immune disorder, which affects his gums and causes a runny nose and runny eyes. Although the disorder is under control, his gums are very sensitive. There are no wounds or anything anymore, but it seems to be a nerve issue that make his gums sensitive in some way, although not painful. This is why Sonic kept losing weight, despite eating. Sonic is also extremely fussy and picky with food, which does not help at all of course.

It took me quite a while to figure out how to stop him from losing weight. Everything I tried to feed him, he refused, due to his pickiness. He just has a little sniff at something and then goes “Yuck, no…” and walks off. Sometimes also trying to bury it before walking off.

For a long time I kept failing when trying to give him liquid food with a syringe in his mouth. He was struggling against it and if I got anything in at all, he would refuse to swallow it and everything would run out of his mouth. A second try after that was always even more impossible. I was considering to talk to the Vet about a feeding tube, but Ralph and I knew that would never work and only stress him out.

Success with feeding – As you know, I’m not giving up. So out of desperation, I kept trying to work out how to feed him with a syringe. For some reason, and by some more trial and error, I finally found the right way to feed him with a syringe. I just have to put the food on the back of his tongue and it’s fine. Not only that! He actually loves it! It’s unbelievable, but he LOVES getting his formula like that now. He doesn’t want to lick it up himself, because he dislikes anything that he thinks is messy. I use a 1ml syringe, so I have to keep pulling up some more milk for him. And you can see that he is looking forward to more while I am doing that. Then amount from the 1ml syringe is just right for a mouth full that he swallows in one go. He’s getting 100ml a day of a formula very high in nutrients and energy.

The improvement was amazing

Just 24 hours after feeding him like that, he had a whole lot more energy. Within not even a week, he was walking fast and steady, no wonky legs, no weakness. On the bad Monday last week, he was so weak, he could not even drink water properly. He couldn’t hold up his head or used his tongue properly, he was that weak. So the difference was enormous to say the least. The formula is Royal Canin’s Convalescence Support support btw. Unfortunately, it’s not being produced anymore and the last remaining stock in the stores is now almost gone. Thankfully though, Kitten Formula is going to work just as well. I’ll probably just have to feed him a bit more of it.

Lisa and Sonic
Hero and Sonic
Lisa and Sonic

This big comfy chair next to the living room window is now Sonic’s favourite spot. He’s decided to hang out there while he recovers and becomes stronger. I took the photos during the beginning of last week. Lisa and Hero often stay close to Sonic, especially when he was still rather weak. The blankies are on there to protect the chair from getting ripped to bits lol. Sonic also has his little cushions to rest his head on.

How Sonic is doing now

Sonic still prefers to hang out on the big chair by the window. He can see everyone from there and it’s soft and comfy. His body temperature was a bit low in the beginning of last week and we kept covering him with a blanket to keep him warm.

Since Wednesday of last week, Sonic’s body temperature is back to normal.
Digestion is working and he’s not struggling with hard bowel movements. Sonic also gets up and has drinks of water often.
Sonic is walking rather fast and normal again. He jumps up on his chair with ease.
He’s interested in things again, purrs and enjoys cuddles and brushing and is even playing when I get out his favourite toys.
Sonic’s appetite is huge now and he loves getting fed with the milk formula and enjoys some boiled chicken breast.

I only had one wish for Christmas and my birthday, which was today, and my wish is for Sonic to keep getting better, gain weight and stay with us for a lot longer! So far it seems, my wish has been granted! I keep praying for Sonic’s wellbeing and I’m thankful that the sweet boy is still with us and still fighting to get stronger! What a boy!

I have a couple more posts coming up that I didn’t post because my attention and mind was all on Sonic. Thank you so much for all your sweet comments and your kindness.

Lots of love from us all!

Everything · Murli the cat · Our friends · Pictures · Ralph and I · The Cats

Thank you all for your love and kindness after the sudden passing of my sweet girl Murli

December 16, 2019January 3, 2020 Catlady Natascha14 Comments

You all have been so sweet and your many comments all over WordPress, Facebook, Twitter and the Emails mean so much, I can’t even describe how much. It helped my broken heart to keep going.

Internet problems since last Wednesday – I just want you to know that we’ve been having really bad trouble with our internet since last Wednesday. It got so incredibly slow, that no site would load properly, or time out altogether. Trying to comment failed mostly and the few replies I got out took multiple tries. Due to my phone internet running on the same network, it had the same issues. Many people in Austria had the same problems with the same provider these days, which is probably due to the big changes they are working on. Thankfully it seems to be working again today and hopefully, it stays that way.

I will reply to all your kind comments as soon as I can, starting tomorrow and during the next days.

Thank you so much for creating this beautiful card for Murli, Sherri-Ellen and BellaDharma and for your thoughts in your blog post. You’re purrfect friends and fur family and we love you both!

BellaDharma LadyMew for Murli — BellaDharma and LadyMew’s card in remembrance of sweet girl Murli

Many of you knew Murli and me for years. I shared so many posts and photos about our everyday lives and what we’re up to, way back before I even knew Ralph. Murli and I made so many wonderful friends, who became really close friends. It does not matter how far apart some of us are living, we feel close to each other and due to how we share our lives with each other. We all had our hearts stolen by each other’s furbabies and feel real heartbreak if one of them passes on. You all know very well about how I feel, so I don’t even need to describe the deep pain I feel in my heart.

It really is thanks to the love and friendship that I keep going. It’s all of it… My love for and from my other sweet furbabies Samantha, Sonic, Hero and Lisa, and of course the love for my wonderful caring and loving husband Ralph, and the love and support of all of you kind friends. Otherwise, I think I would have just lied down in bed and give up for a while.

But I keep my head up for my other kitties and Ralph. It’s not good for the kitties if I cry constantly and give into my heartbreak. I keep busy by caring for everyone and pouring my love on all of them.

It was difficult when everyone slept and I could not go online in any way to reach out or reply to any of you, due to the internet problems. It’s the quiet hours that are the most difficult, which is why I still can not sleep well. It’s only once I become so exhausted from lack of sleep, that I can get some hours in. Eating is another challenge.

I did not expect it to happen so soon. In fact, I was sure we would have a decade or even more left with Murli. I was hoping she will reach her 20s at least.

The only thing that is a slight comfort, is to know that Murli just slept away. She simply laid down to sleep and passed away. Her body had no signs of distress or pain, she was just like she always liked to sleep when she lied down by a heater.

And so I keep on living, carrying the love for Murli in my heart for the rest of my life, together with my beloved family, Ralph, Samantha, Sonic, Hero and Lisa.

The last couple of days

I have candles burning in between the window panes for Murli and I will keep having candles burning for her at the least until the new year. Sonic also loves watching them, as he absolutely loves lights.

In our home, it’s not just Ralph and me who have been sad and missing Murli. Murli was loved by Sonic, Samantha and also the babies Hero and Lisa. There was something special about her, something that made other cats feel comfortable around her. Everyone wanted her friendship. Sonic especially loved Murli, he really did. It was obvious that he felt very sad for the first couple of days.

Sonic_watching_Candles — Sonic watches the candles I put in between the window. I put them there for Murli. As a sign for her that we’re thinking of her, that we keep a light going for her. The candles will be burning all the way until the new year at least.

Sonic, who is a pretty vocal kitty boy normally, was very quiet, hardly a peep from him and he kept to himself, just sleeping mostly. Though he did eat and drink properly thankfully. But anytime he did get up from sleep, he would walk around the apartment, looking everywhere for Murli. Sniffing at everything that had her scent, trying to follow it, hoping he would find her. He kept that going for a few days but has given up now. Though I am sure he is still missing her. He is thankfully though much more himself again. Sonic bonded with Hero and Lisa as soon as he met them. I think the friendship he has with the siblings is doing him well now.

20190818_Murli_Samantha_02 — Murli and Samantha relaxing

Samantha always enjoyed hanging out with Murli on the balcony in the summer, for hours and hours. I don’t think she even realises exactly what has happened yet, due to her not walking around with her cone. She hasn’t been around in the apartment except on the few cat bed spots she wants to be at.

PoorSamanthaWithCone — Samantha with her cone these days

Regarding her cone, I was not able to use anything that covers her stitches, due to them being wire stitches, as they had to be strong after she ripped out the initial ones. Anything on top of these would make it more difficult for healing, due to the wire stitches getting stuck in anything and with Samantha’s body movement, it would cause irritation. It also helped to not cover it, because it had to drain a bit.

I will use something different, like the wonderful suggestions I got, for my sweet little girl Lisa, when she gets spayed.

We’ve been to the Vet with Samantha today: Everything has healed really well! The stitches have been removed! There is only a little crust hanging on by a little corner still, which is slightly bleeding if it’s being pulled at. It’s only superficial. But she has to keep her cone until tomorrow morning, just to give it a tiny bit more time. As soon as I get up tomorrow morning, I will free her!

Hero and Lisa on Bed — Hero (left) and Lisa

The babies Hero and Lisa haven’t been here long enough yet to be impacted as heavily by Murli’s passing. But they too loved Murli right away. They enjoyed hanging out with her looking out the balcony door, or the bedroom window to watch the birds. They were not worried about her or obviously felt comfortable around her right away. It was so cute to hear them talking to Murli with friendly meows, with their tails straight up.

There was a special moment with Hero and Murli after she passed – Not long after I had found my sweet girl Murli lying on a blanket next to a heater, after she had passed away in her sleep, Hero came along and lied down beside her. Then he took one of his front paws and gently laid it on one of Murli’s front paws. It was very special and words are not doing justice to how it was in reality.

Hero and Lisa are special. They were meant to come into my life at the time they did. I’m sure an angel was looking out for us, knowing about what is going to happen. Maybe it was my beloved Mama?

These two sweet kittens went through so much already in their short lives. They almost died themselves from starvation and dehydration after being abandoned. Hero with his severely injured and infected leg was so very close to death. If they had not been found when they did and by the right person, who did everything to save them, they would not be here. But now they are, and I gained their trust with lots of patience and love. They are healthy and thriving! Happy and feeling right at home with us.

Their lives just started. Murli will always be part of our family, always present in our hearts and minds. I know we will be reunited again once I have to go, but until then, I’ll treasure every single day with the ones I love, as every moment is special and will not return and you may not get another chance.

Love to all of you.

Everything · Murli the cat · Pictures · The Cats

My heart broke today, as my beloved Murli unexpectedly passed away.

December 10, 2019December 12, 2019 Catlady Natascha65 Comments

This is how she was and hung out just yesterday. She was happy. Nothing was pointing to anything being wrong.

I just wanted to let you all know, that my sweet girl Murli passed away early this morning.

My heart shattered when I found her lying on one of her spots next to the heater, as if she had simply laid down on her side to sleep and then died. When I looked down to her and saw that her beautiful big eyes were not reacting to my presence and she was lying so still, I knew she was gone. In a panic right away, I went to pet her head, and it felt cold. Her tummy was still a bit warm.

Her last big health check in the late summer showed perfectly normal blood results. Her thyroid was doing fine too with her meds, her Hyperthyroidism was totally under control with her having completely recovered from the symptoms she had from it before we started treatment. She kept the same weight.

Her teeth were regularly sorted out, and all her organs were working normally. There was no sign of any danger. I just don’t know what happened.

I called the pet cemetery people and my sweet Murli was picked up around midday. She’ll be cremated and I will pick up her Urn. They are really lovely and extremely caring and respectful in everything they do.

They will also make a beautiful ceramic heart with her paw print in it. I also chose her Urn, which is also beautiful.

It was so difficult to have to give her body away, but I will get her remains back in about a week.

I held her body a couple times and hugged and cuddled her. I just would have given anything for life to come rushing back into her.

Murli and I had a very special bond. She always knew when I was about to come home, even at random times. She also always knew when I woke up, even if she wasn’t in the room with me. I didn’t have to move, just opening my eyes was enough and she knew I was awake from a few rooms over. Then she would come to me.

She was a happy girl all the way to the end. She took to the sweet kittens Hero and Lisa more and more and loved watching them play. Murli’s tail was always straight up and she had the most beautiful purr.

I wish there would have been any sign for anything being wrong, as I would have gotten her to the Vet in an instant. I wish I would have been able to save her, from whatever was failing in her body. I also wish I would have been with her when she died, and not asleep.

There is so much more I need to tell you all, about what has been going on these days. I am a wreck at the moment, running on hardly any sleep.

Samantha is a worry as well right now, because she had a little surgery with local anaesthesia to cut out an old scar that had started to change and grow, although it was benign. But it had to be removed and I made sure it was done very quickly, since I didn’t want to take a chance of something like that becoming cancerous.

Thank God it was benign. But now she has to wear a cone, which makes her too worried to move around on her own, because she can’t see her feet. It robs her of her important senses.

Due to that, I removed the cone on Wednesday night (she had the little surgery Wednesday morning). It went alright until Friday morning, when she had suddenly and very quickly pulled out all her stitches. So I rushed her to the Vet in a Taxi right away. Thankfully it had just happened, so the wound area was still fresh and it was possible to sew her back up. If the area would have dried out already, she would have had to be put under anaesthesia and the area cut out some more, to have fresh tissue that can grow back together again. Dry tissue would not grow together again like that.

We were lucky she didn’t get an infection out of that. Though she had been put on antibiotics anyway.

So now the cone has to stay on. I can’t cover her wound area either, as it needs to be able to drain properly if it has to and it heals better that way. Also, due to the place that area is on her body, it’s very easy for her to reach with her mouth. So I can’t even use anything else, or even just shorten the cone. The cone itself is just exactly long enough for her to not be able to reach it.

Since she is too afraid to move around much with the cone, I have to carry her to the kitty toilet and I feed her by hand and give her water with a syringe.

Just yesterday I went and bought some chicken breast for Samantha and Murli to make them happy with it, as they both are crazy for it. Murli and Samantha were both so excited while I was cooking them and preparing it all for them. Both were meowing and just could not wait. Both of them ate two bowls of chicken breast each.

I just don’t know how I will get over not having my sweet little best friend around me anymore, my Babygirl Murli. We have been together since I adopted her with just a couple weeks old. She only turned 14 in August.

I can’t even put it into words how shattered I feel, how much I miss her and how badly I want her back alive. No, I really do not know how I am going to get over her passing.

But I do have so much love for my sweet 4 remaining babies and I will make sure they will have nothing less than a life filled with love and happiness. I just pray that we have many many more years with them all. I can’t bear to even think of losing one of them too.

I know I will see my lovely Murli again when it’s my time to leave my body, but it’s going to be a long time until we’re all reunited and I will miss her so so much.

Murli on a lovely warm fall day — This was just on October 18, 2019 when we had a wonderfully warm day. Murli was so very happy to hang out on the balcony and she kept going out, even if it’s been cold, at least for a few minutes at a time.

Everything · Kitty Knowledge · Pictures · The Cats

What a week! Constipated Sonic emergency.

August 31, 2019August 31, 2019 Catlady Natascha24 Comments

First the most important thing: He’s been fine since after the Vet visit. He’s a happy Sonic again, flopping all over the apartment as always.

Originally, I started to write a post for Tuesday, which I never got to finish because Sonic became unwell due to sudden acute obstipation.

2019-08-30 10_54_15-veterinary-FelineConstipation-ClientHandout.pdf — Source: http://veterinaryteam.dvm360.com/constipated-kitty-offer-veterinary-clients-handout

It started during the night from Monday to Tuesday. I woke up to Sonic being very restless. He was up and down from the bed, going to the toilet and back up on the bed again. He did it repeatedly, so I got up with him and noticed he was straining to have a bowel movement. He was really trying hard, but nothing would happen. This went on for a while, but eventually Sonic curled up beside me and we all fell asleep.

As I got up the next morning, I came into the living room to Sonic happily playing with one of the strings they have hanging around the place. He also ate and drank properly and because I had put more of his medicine in his food that morning, I was hoping it would resolve itself.

Later that same Tuesday morning we also had a Lady come by who had a look at our bathroom tiles, so she can prepare the right ones for us when they come to change the tap in the shower.

It was all very busy that morning and into the afternoon. But at around 2pm I tried to have a little nap, and Sonic was with me on the bed as well. We slept for a little while, but then I woke up to him straining to have a bowel movement again. The periods of rest between him trying became much shorter, until he was basically straining the whole time, even while being on the bed. I think he was becoming really exhausted. His back legs were moving and kicking and he was unable to relax at all anymore.

He also started feeling hot to the touch and he was now complaining when trying to press out a bowel movement, without anything happening. He was glowing hot and seemed to get weak. He got worse quickly suddenly.

I knew I have to get him to the Vet instantly. I called our Vet office, which was closing at that time of day, to ask which Vet would be on call for emergencies right now. But instead, the Vet told us to come over right away and he’ll wait for us. Our Vet office has two Vets. The Lady Vet is doing the mornings and the male Vet is doing the late afternoons. I know both of them, and he is just as great and kind.

My hands were shaking, my heart pounding in my head, I was so worried about our sweet boy. I picked Sonic up from the bed and put him into the carrier and called a Taxi, which thankfully came within just a minute.

Sonic was complaining loudly all the way to the Vet about being in the carrier. Since he can’t hear me talking to him, I just put my hand into the carrier and laid it on him, which helped. Traffic was thankfully not bad anymore, since it was more than half an hour after the evening rush hour. We arrived in maybe 6 minutes.

At the Vet

Just after I got in and put the carrier down, the Vet already came to us to take us into the examination room. Sonic was put on the examination table and checked out, while I was right there, next to him. The Vet hooked Sonic up to a drip for rehydration and then a bit later, two tiny cat size appropriate enemas were given.

Sonic was just lying on his side with his head in my hand, which he always likes to do, while we had to wait for the medicine to do its work inside his digestive tract. He was obviously totally exhausted. But even if he weren’t exhausted, Sonic is always relaxed and patient at the Vet. He never complains or struggles. He’s the most patient cat.

After the medicine had enough time to work, the Vet started massaging Sonics tummy. It took a bit of effort for Sonic, but eventually, the whole problem was resolved and that poor boy was relieved of his blockage. The Vet even gave Sonic a big clean up with warm running water, cat shampoo and then dried him off. Even with that, he remained as calm as anything.

Then as the carrier got put on the table, Sonic just went in by himself right away. He’s had enough at that point, I’m sure. Though he must have felt so much better already.

The Vet gave us some more medicine that helps with Peristalsis in the digestive tract. I have to put 0.3ml in his mouth with a little syringe three times a day.

In addition, I’ll give him the fibre-rich dry food again. I had stopped giving it because Sonic kept throwing up from it. But the Vet explained to me why that was likely happening… The fibre-rich food was being digested in his stomach quite quickly and easily, but then could not move on fast enough out of his stomach into his intestines, because it was working too slow, which then caused him to throw it back up.

Now with the medicine and smaller portions, he seems to keep it down just fine! Which is a good sign that his intestines are now working better.

How Sonic is doing now

20190828_Sonic — Sonic the next morning, after the Vet. He was still tired, but obviously feeling well and comfy now.

Sonic was already feeling so much better right after we got home from the Vet at about 8pm. His temperature had already dropped down to almost normal again and he was flopping down on the floor, as he always likes to do. Then he just went to sleep and slept all the way through to the next morning.

The next day he was already up for playing again, feeling hungry and drinking properly. He was fine and a happy little kitty boy again!

He’s been going to the toilet without a problem since and is all back to normal.

So how did it come to this?

Sonic needs a bit of medicine on his dry food that helps his digestion work properly. Unfortunately, he refuses to eat wet food. I tried and tried, he does not want to know anything about it. So dry food it is, although it’s high-quality dry food. He drinks plenty of water, so he’s well hydrated normally.

Now I am sure I know what happened that it came to this… Samantha must have eaten his medicated dry food. The medicine is a syrup that gets put right on top of his food, and normally he’s already waiting to have his food when I put it down. But he was not feeling that hungry I guess, so I just put it down for him. Samantha must have gotten to that food before Sonic did, without me noticing… I put Sonic’s dry food WAY OUT of Samantha’s path. His food is right next to our bed, on my side of it and normally it works out like that.

Samantha must have eaten Sonic’s medicated food on Sunday and Monday, because she had a light case of the runs on Monday morning and Tuesday morning.

The next problem was that Sonic did not drink like he usually does. In fact, I think none of the cats drank normally Sunday to Tuesday. I have a feeling that the extremely high humidity we have right now made them less thirsty. They might have felt like their throats aren’t feeling dry ever and did not feel the need to drink as much.

This combined must have Sonic caused to get severely blocked up.

Now I learned more and will make sure that nothing like this happens again. We already have two cat fountains that they all love to drink out of. But I think I’ll add another small one, which I will move around.

I found that putting a water bowl somewhere on a new spot will make the cats curious about it and then drink out of it, just because it’s suddenly right there. Having more water bowls around generally always helps. With Sonic, Samantha and Murli I found that their water intake increased by a lot after we got the water fountains.

Sonic_playing_on_Bed_01 — Playful Sonic – He was watching the lens cap of the camera, which was dangling from it on a string…

It’s so wonderful to see him feel happy and well again. We have a beautiful sunny summer day today! Murli is out on the balcony and Samantha at the window in the living room, enjoying the sun. Sonic is wandering around the apartment after he having a little play fight with Samantha.

Have a lovely Caturday! Love from me and the cats!