Sunday 'sort of' at the Shelter 06-10-13

Today was a little different. I did go and volunteer, and I did go to the Shelter. However, my initial Shelter visit was a brief pit stop, just long enough to collect a table, cage, collection tin and some literature.

From there my Daughter, Libby and our latest 'Tribe' recruits, Millie and Willow, headed for Pets at Home, Kilner Way Retail Park at Wadsley Bridge. We went to help sell raffle tickets for Support Adoption For Pets. The Pets at Home branch support two local animal charities, Labrador Welfare and just recently The Sheffield Cats Shelter :)

During the month of October both charities are being offered the opportunity to come into the store and help sell raffle tickets, whilst raising awareness of the Charities at the same time. Funds raised this month will be shared between these two amazing Charities. What a fantastic gesture!

Labrador Welfare were the main attraction today, with a selection of lovely dogs, who were so well behaved.  They had an information point at the main entrance to help sell the tickets. No one can resist meeting and greeting these two :)

Beautiful Golden Labs

This lovely black lab really enjoyed a fuss too :) 

It made sense for us to keep the kittens a little away from the dogs so we set up in the cat section.

Set up ready to chat :)

We were unsure how much room we would have so took a small cage for the girls.  I decided to take them with me as they are a Shelter success story really.  To think they were born outside to a Mum who had no home, had it not been for the Shelter where would they be now?

We also took harnesses and leads for the girls.  Unsure how they would react to being out of the home environment we monitored them carefully.  They were a little hesitant to start, so we had one each on the lead in our arms and they soon settled into it.  

Millie stayed happily in my arms for quite some time.  I began to feel like a Bond villian, stood there, stroking my kitten. 

So Mr Bond, I've been expecting you....

Willow found her investigative feet.  She was very interested in the rows of cat food and biscuits, but her attention was soon turned to a meaty fly in the store.  Here she is having a rest.

We had a lovely time chatting to people and selling tickets, but we could not compete with yesterdays attempt by Emma and volunteers Amanda and June. But then they did have a secret weapon.......

Cute as my little girls are, there really is no way we can compete with Ernest in his jumper! As he struggles to retain his body heat, a volunteer knitted him this lovely little top. He can be seen above with his Foster Dad, Matt, whom I'm told he loves very much. I think the feeling is mutual :)

Today Ernest has been having a well earned rest.

As we called back in at the Shelter on the way home we got up to date on the day's news. Tilly, Cuebee and Lego have all been pre-adopted today!

We took a few moments to snap some new pictures of the residents in room 1.

Tinkerbell

Tinkerbell is beautiful and very affectionate, she was very interested in getting some attention from us. It's hard to believe she was a stray.

Next up is Tilly, who was pre-adopted today.  Very unusual colour as you can see, but again very friendly and keen for a fuss.

Tilly

As soon as she's had all her vaccinations and checks she'll be off to her new home.

Another one wanting a fuss was this little lady.

Mitzy

There are so many lovely cats in this room and these are just a few.  Hopefully, the right person will come along for them very soon.

A second opinion

The more I thought about it the more I wasn't happy. If there was a chance the diagnosis was wrong, that could mean Millie's eye might be saved, but not if no one paid attention and gave her a chance.

The next check up was a week later and it was to be with one of the practice partners. This would be make or break for the surgery as far as I'm concerned. But then I started to mull it over, what if waiting a week meant she could no longer be helped?

Willow and Millie on my knee

Another vet at another practice was recommended to me. So on Friday 19th July, we went for a second opinion. The vet had done his homework. He'd had all the test results faxed over and had read the diagnosis.

He checked Millie's eye with dye and had a good look inside. He explained he was checking for any ulceration as the steroid drops we were using are good for swelling but can make an ulcer worse. He saw no ulcer, but did say there was starting to be a build up in her eye.

After further examination he concluded that, based on the evidence, he would come to the same diagnosis. Most likely FIP, but like the other vet, he could not say for absolutely certain.

I talked to him about the contradictory 'plague scenario'. He was cautious, but agreed that the information and advice I'd been given was a little extreme.  He went on to say that he would not consider euthanasia necessary as she was so well in all other respects, but there might be a point when  her eye needed removing.

The way he said it made me think euthanasia had been indicated in her records and he disagreed. Well I also disagreed in the strongest terms. If I had taken their information and accepted it, they would have advised me to put her to sleep and maybe even her sister too.

Everything we'd read was supported, if not a little cautiously, by the new vet who, unlike mine, had done some research or had existing knowledge. He mentioned the name Dr Diane Addie from Glasgow University and told me to look up her findings if I wanted to know the real deal with FIP.  It just so happened this was one of the sites of information we'd come across already.

For the first time I felt a little better. I accepted that Millie could have a killer disease, but there was a slim chance that she might not. That way there was still hope. In addition all the information we'd read about not needing to isolate meant we didn't have to keep the kittens locked away. We just needed to manage ways to reduce the risk of cross infection.  It meant that whatever time she had could be spent with us and that was a big deal.

We carried on with Millie's medication for the next few days. There used to be a hint of a pupil showing, but this was slowly starting to be obscured by the white substance creeping higher everyday like silt.

Millie

By the time of our next appointment on Thursday 25th the eye was full. The senior vet told us it was puss. I discussed the incorrect information given out and he suggested this was down to the previous vet being 'over cautious'. I'm still not sure how I feel about this as being 'over cautious' could have lead to euthanasia. I set this to one side for the moment as my priority is Millie.

Through talking to him it became clear he was willing to consider other treatment. The eye, he said, was redundant and posed a risk that infection could travel down the optic nerve to her brain. 

In his words we had 'a window of opportunity' and I should think about having her eye removed. There was no need to think, I agreed. Looking at her eye I wanted it gone. It was her best chance.

Eye is full of puss

We starved her overnight and I dropped her into the surgery at 8.30am. The senior vet was performing the surgery himself and he had given me confidence in his ability.

When I collected her later that day the sight of her was a bit of a shock. She had to wear a lampshade to make sure she couldn't scratch her stitches. 

Millie with her stitches and 'lampshade'

I was told it was normal if blood came out of her nose and to only feed her plain food to begin with.

Today she's eaten well but other than that she's very dozy and is sleeping or snoozing a lot. 

I suppose it will give her time to heal and maybe the meds have induced it, but I always worry when they are quiet.

Millie the day after her operation

There is no way of knowing if I've bought her any extra time, but I know I've done my best for her.

Pop over to the Corona Virus and FIP page if you want to know more.

The results are in...???

On Monday I called for the results. Only one part had returned and they couldn't tell me anything until everything came back.  I tried again last thing to see if anything more had come through and the answer was still no.

Tuesday lunchtime I was on the phone again.  Still nothing.  I asked if the result could be rushed through as I was so worried about all my cats.  Once more it was a no and, "they should be back in a few days".  I put the phone down with my head swirling.  I wasn't sure how, ringing for results on Monday had suddenly turned into waiting until Thursday. 

I decided the vets needed to know I wasn't happy.  Later that day I called again and explained the information I'd been given.  I said that if I'd been told they would be several days I wouldn't be quite so annoyed.  I advised that according to their practice the lives of 9 cats were riding on these results and asked if someone could just please ring the lab so I would know when they would be available.  I also mentioned the attitude of the vet.

It was then the receptionist started to apologise.  It turned out we had seen a locum and from what was said it seemed I was not the first person she had upset.  I was assured that she wouldn't be covering for them again and the receptionist agreed to call the lab and find out about the results.

Poor Millie

Later that evening another vet called me from the practice.  She explained that they were still waiting for Toxoplasmosis results but that the FIP result was the one that had been back from Monday and it was positive.  Now following all my research I know that there is actually no test for FIP, so this is a little misleading. What I was actually being told was that she was positive for coronavirus.  I will be dedicating a page to this virus and disease shortly.

I don't actually understand why no one could give me this result on the Monday, but at least I now had it.  The vet on the phone wasted no time in telling me what a bad situation this was for Millie and my other cats.  She made an appointment for me to come in the following Thursday the 18^th. 

Millie continued to play and act as if nothing was wrong. I continued to research as everything I’d read didn’t seem to ring true to the information I was being given.

Thursday came.  The vet examined Millie’s eye once more. She then proceeded to tell me that I needed to make ‘decisions’ about both kittens as they would spread this disease to all my cats who would not be able to then leave the house.  She also told me that I needed to alert the Cats Shelter (I’d already spoken to them right at the start) as I had, in her words, ‘opened a can of worms for your own cats and the cat shelter’ 

I really couldn’t understand what I was hearing. This is my simplistic understanding of it:-  The coronavirus can be passed on yes, but in most cats it seems to be like us getting flu.  FIP occurs due to the body’s reaction to the virus.  From what I’ve read the FIP disease can not be passed on and will only occur in a small number of cases.  It’s actually not that common. It seems to me that it is generally young kittens or older cats who are weak or have immunity issues who become more susceptible*. Those with FIP will still be shedding the virus in their poo, so this is where the main cross contamination risk comes from.  Cats do not become immune to it either, they can continue to re-infect each other, although there are ways to reduce the risks with good litter hygiene.  In a multi cat house like mine it will be harder to eradicate.

I tried to discuss my understanding with the vet, but she insisted that FIP could be spread and that I needed to consider my options for both kittens.  In addition it's still worth pointing out that whilst FIP is possible, it is not confirmed.  When I asked if it was worth seeing an eye specialist, it was knocked back.

All the way home I cried, but by the time I got there I’d picked myself up again.  I would not be trying to ‘get rid’ of the kittens.  Even if I wanted to, who would take them?  There are hundreds of unwanted healthy cats and kittens without homes, what chance did my two have?

I moved as much furniture out of the cat room as I could and went out and bought the best high street cat tree I could find (not that impressive) and some new toys.  Do you know why?  Because I wasn't giving up on my little girls, even if they had to stay in one room, we would manage and they would be loved.

In the back of my mind I was thinking, if I think they're wrong about the advice they're giving me, how am I supposed to have faith in the diagnosis? I decided it was time for a second opinion.

  

*please note:- these are only my own interpretations – if you’re affected by this I’ll be posting links to the resources I used and I’d strongly suggest you read and make your own decisions – and if your pet is ill, see your vet