Modern Convenia

At Dr. M's request, I took Mungo in Saturday to get a shot of Convenia, an antibiotic which works for two weeks and does not require oral followup, though he wants to see the orange boy again in two weeks to see if another shot of Convenia is called for. Dr. M understands Mungo's hatred of Being Handled™ and thought this would be a better approach than forcing a vile tasting liquid on him multiple times a day for several days when he was already feeling like crap. I appreciate that consideration, and I'm sure Manwich does too.

He got bound up instantly from even tiny amounts of the aluminum hydroxide powder, requiring yet more assistance with a small feeding syringe from the Other End, so I just stopped giving him any ALOH at all, especially since he was having enough trouble with this infection.

Another thing that came up last week was a helpful note from someone on the feline CRF group, explaining that the amount of fluids we had him on (as advised by the vet) was quite a lot, and certainly a lot at once... I tried breaking the 200ml up into two sessions but he h-a-t-e-d being stuck twice (even with the great new ultra-thin-walled needles) and then I saw today that Washington State's veterinary school recommends even less fluid altogether. I realized that Mungo's recent premature boltings from the Drip Zone had been wise and I should have listened to him on it.

Between the bolting and the intentional scaling back, he got tapered down to about half of what he was getting, and instead of the sort of shock that resulted when we skipped a day of heavy fluids, Mungo had a chance to adjust more gradually and he began drinking water substantially (though not desperately) again, which he had all but sworn off of. I think 200ml may have been fine when he was critically dehydrated, as is the usual case when a vet is administering, but over the long term I think he will do better with WSU's recommendation of about 60-70ml each day based on weight, now that he's drinking water again.

I stopped by the store on the way home yesterday and ended up with some homeopathic remedies for him, which he already seems to be responding to. I was just planning to pick up more of the glycerin-based Rescue Remedy for Pets which Manwich likes having massaged into his ears (and keeps him happier when I have to go off to work), but a young woman working in the newly expanded herbal section alerted me to some Newton Labs homeopathic blends in the pet section. Of these, I got the Energy/Immune Assist and Detoxifier blends. Because they're in an alcohol base I decided to start out giving him very little, just 1-3 drops of each in his water (about the recommended oral dosage) and giving it a second to disperse in the dish before setting it down for him. He did not object to the taste at all, and although there's a chance the antibiotic decided to suddenly kick in last night after three days, he actually seemed to perk up quite a bit after drinking the homeopathic water and seems even better today. His appetite is good, taking in about 6oz of wet food a day this week.

Maybe the nicest thing is that he doesn't seem to be having as much trouble with his hind legs, where he had been sitting strangely with them sticking out as if he couldn't bend them comfortably under him in the way cats do. It's no doubt good for him to feel like he has his legs back again, especially since being deaf makes him feel so vulnerable. Of course, I am giving him a lot of deep spinal stroking with my fingertips and even nails these days, which seems to stimulate his appetite and maybe helps his arthritis. When I hit the lower spine he has those "hel-LOOO-oooo!!!" nerve surge moments like I always get when a good CMT hits a really tight knot on my own crookedy old back. There's not much meat to massage on him but what there is certainly seems to be enjoying it. I wish I'd been able to break him in for the delights of toe-pad rubs like Zoe and Cosmo but he was too old by the time he met me. I'm lucky he lets me do this much.

The strange thing is that his voice has become... *small*, somehow, as if he were a kitten again or got ahold of some helium. No trouble swallowing or anything, just making small peeps.Other than that, he seems like he's feeling better, but it is a wee bit concerning.

Overall, though... doing well.