(no subject)

[hawkwing_lb]

I got tired of the cat's mouth smelling like rot this afternoon. (His swollen cheek continues to swell. Inside his mouth is a red and leaking mess. Antibiotics do not appear to have helped, and if it continues like this, there is only so long he'll still be able to eat.)

So I took a measure of ouzo, some salt, added warm water, and held him down in the bath while I tried to wipe as much of the inside of his cheek with a clean towel and the aforesaid mixture as I could. Which wasn't much. Possibly I shouldn't have added ouzo, but I figured a tipsy cat is a cat who's going to sleep without hurting, and I daresay the amount that actually got in his mouth is not going to damage his innards more than the painkillers he's already on.

It's a fucking mess, is what it is, and worse, he's started limping and favouring his hind legs. He's only seven or eight, dammit. He's too young a cat to be an old crock.

---

I was invited, out of the blue, to a friend of a friend's dinner party last night. This makes the second Saturday night in a row I have been social until after midnight. It is very strange, and altogether unusual. I was quite baffled to be invited, to be honest: there were only seven people there, myself included, and all knew each other rather better than I knew 'em.

It is a weirdness.

---

Today, I'm wandering around the house, unable to concentrate on my study notes for the exam tomorrow. My brain feels all thick and scattered: I need to go for a run, do some exercise, freaking climb, but I can't scrounge up the necessary focus or willpower to do anything.

Well. Dammit. I suppose I'd better try.

Comments

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry to hear of The Cat's problems..it sounds like he has either a serious infection or else something different is going on. While seven may seem young, it is technically the age at which cats become "elderly".

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

He is the One and Only True ruler of the household. Whatever it is, the vet just shakes his head and mutters. So, you know. I despair. :/

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

New vet not possible?

::tries to stretch fingers across the pond::

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Two vets operate from the same surgery. They serve pretty much all non-livestock in this region of the county. Both of them say either "Infection" muttermutter, or "Cancer" muttermutter. Apart from antibiotics, neither of them have much to suggest, and frankly, I think they're probably far too used to people who want to put their pets down at the first sign of long-term non-curable issues. They do not make supportive quality-of-life noises.

(I mean, tests and such are expensive, and I probably can't afford to get the cat treated properly anyway, even if we knew there was a course of treatment for whatever he has, but the vet hasn't even suggested biopsying the cheek, which, you know, as a complete ignoramus here I'd think might be something to try. Or if it's an infected abcess, wouldn't lancing be a possibility? Or exploratory surgery? Healthy tissue doesn't swell tight like that, at least not in humans. And cats are also meat-based mammals, so some things have to cross over.)

I'm half tempted to invest in some vetinary science books and teach myself, but, alas, no monies. And I'd rather not screw things up.

Anyway. I shouldn't rant.

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

Yes, a biopsy would be helpful. Have you asked for one, if they won't propose it?

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

He's going down tomorrow night. To be honest, if it costs over a hundred quid, we can't afford it, so, you know, right now I'm just a bit pissed at the universe. Apologies if it's spilling over.

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

No apologies needed. It's a hard thing to do, even for the right reasons. I know you want only the best for him, and you've certainly tried hard to do that.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Oh, not being put down. Not yet. We figure we have another couple of weeks before he can't eat, but this will be the last trip to the vet to see if there's anything affordable left to try.

I hate that pecuniary considerations exist. I can has socialist paradise, plz?

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

So UCD vets are no use either? Too bad.

(Also: phew.)

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

One other thing to consider: ask your vet for a script (apparently under Irish law they have to write one if asked), and see if your chemist has a better price. It's been known to happen. Unfortunately, it's not legal in Ireland to order meds online.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

You are a person of great kindness and magnificence. :)

I don't think the boy has long, though. But we'll try to make it good while it lasts.

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

Oh, go on with you.

When all else fails, get him a nice dose of steroids. One of our unwritten rules is "Let nothing die without steroid." They can be useful for pain control as well as for the various conditions that lead to the sort of presentation your boy has, so at this stage, there's no harm done.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

That's what he's on. A pill a day, at the moment. Getting it into him is a pain and a half, though. :P

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

A friendly chemist might compound that into a tuna-flavored suspension for you. ;-)

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

:)

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

Or, now that I think of it, have you checked with UCD? As a teaching hospital, they may be able to help.

[jeff2001.livejournal.com]

That sounds like an abscess. Get them to lance it, and everything'll be ok.

I'm sorry for your pain. Just yesterday I was in my cat's mouth, which smelled like rot. He's got a lip issue, and I had to clean out some food stuck in there. He's 20+, close to the end, so it's very difficult -- all this to say, I feel your pain, and I send you good thoughts.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Good thoughts are always useful.