Ooofta, what a couple of weeks it has been.
A lot has happened since Update 1 with our sweet Elbee’s kidney disease. I had been taking Elbee to our vet weekly for sub-q fluids and feeding her a lower phosphorus, though non-prescription wet food.
She seemed to be doing ok–no real changes to her daily routine–until Thursday, February 6, when she seemed less energetic. The following day, she still appeared under the weather, so I made a quick appointment with our vet to have her checked out before the weekend. She had just had her weekly fluids that Monday, but our vet gave her another round, hoping to perk her up a bit.
Usually, I see a difference in Elbee’s energy for the first two or three days after fluids. But this was different. Instead of being present in our main living area as she regularly is, she was tucked into a small ball at the end of my side of the bed on the floor. She looked miserable, and she wasn’t eating. Saturday was more of the same, so by Super Bowl Sunday, I decided it was time for an emergency room visit.
Ugh, this was NOT a good experience. In short, two people with their pets were in the waiting room when I arrived with Elbee. Over the next almost four hours, we watched eight people be called back before us. When I asked for an update, I was told Elbee wasn’t as critical as the others. As the hours passed, I became more and more concerned for Elbee’s well-being. She was stuck in a cat carrier with no water (she drinks A LOT of water each day) and no bathroom (she pees A LOT every day), so I made the tough decision to leave after being told by the front desk staff that they have no idea how much longer we’d be waiting.
I was frustrated. I may have cried a bit.
The next morning, I called our excellent vet, and she got Elbee in immediately.
She wanted to keep Elbee for a few hours to observe her and run blood and urine tests. The test results showed that she has a “raging” urinary tract infection, and her CKD had severely progressed. Her creatinine was 4.6, generally considered high stage 3. In December, her creatinine was 2.6. She had just been on antibiotics in November for another UTI, but her December urine test showed the infection had cleared. After prescribing another antibiotic and giving Elbee more fluids, a Vitamin B shot, and an appetite stimulant since it’s been four days since she’s eaten anything, I got to take Elbee home.
Guess who now wanted to eat everything in sight, including trying a piece of Abhi’s kibble? The poor girl was ravenous!!
Our doc sent two stick treats home with us, which Elbee devoured.
Tuesday brought less appetite and a return to Elbee’s less energetic self. So, Wednesday was another vet visit with more fluids and some take-home appetite stimulants. Have I mentioned that Elbee isn’t great at taking drugs? She is an expert wiggler and mouth clamper, so getting pills or a syringe in her mouth is honestly a battle. This, of course, isn’t great for either of us. In my case, I usually end up with multiple scratches, and Elbs expends a lot of energy that she needs to fight her infection. This meant that Wednesday’s vet visit included an injectable version of her antibiotic.
Thursday was ok! She ate a bit more and was hanging out outside of our bedroom!
Yesterday was her scheduled weekly fluids appointment, and thankfully, the vet techs said I could bring her antibiotic pill and appetite stimulant syringe with us for them to administer. Woohoo! Happy Valentine’s Day to us!
And that brings us to today, day 4 of 30 (omg!!), of trying to get a pill inside Elbee’s fighting body. Wish me luck! Yes, we’re using a piller after trying to hide it in her food, using a Pill Pocket, hiding it in a squeeze treat, wrapping it in bacon, sardines, tuna, and liverwurst. But if you have any suggestions, please let me know!!
Hopefully, Elbee and our bank account will get some much-needed rest and recovery before our usual fluids appointment next Friday. She’ll have a follow-up urine test in about 17 days to ensure this antibiotic works. Our vet hopes her creatinine level will drop, too–that this spike is due to the infection, not a severe progression in her kidney disease.
Let’s hope and pray for good results.
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