The 10th Good thing about Ella

When I was a kid, we had a book called the 10th Good Thing About Barney by Judith Voirst. Barney was a cat who died.

Ella died today.

1. She had personality.
2. She was a cuddly and warm
3. She was not afraid of the kid and allowed DD to love her.
4. She made sure that the covers did not escape during the night by lying on them and pinning them in place.
5. She never scratched the furniture.
6. She educated us about important things like having a pristine litter box, eating good cheese, chin scratches, the joys of napping, and now illness and death.
7. She gave us funny family stories to tell.
8. She created a warm spot where my feet go when I get into bed.
9. She rose above being left on the front door of the SPCA in a box. She became a Queen.
10. She was a beloved member of our family.

We will miss her.

At acupuncture.  She actually liked it.

I'm cooking for the cat? Seriously?

Come on.  Stop taking pictures and feed me!

Ella (aka Skinny Cat) is still skinny.  Maybe skinnier.  She seems to tolerate the prescription dry cat food that costs $30 for a 10 pound bag.  But she still pukes and really only seems to be loosing more slowly.  She just feels bony when i pet her.  She won't take the medicine in any form.  She is iffy about the canned cat food I have bought.  I think that commercial foods have a ton of fillers.  Two food culprits for cat allergies are corn and seafood products.  Corn seems to be in everything.

Yummy....

I'm going to try an experiment.  I'm going to supplement her diet with homemade cat food.  Tonight I ground some cooked chicken (approx 1.5 cups) with some cooked oatmeal (.75 cups) and grated carrots (handful).  She loves it.  That's a good thing.  My hope is that she will be able to digest it and maybe put a little bit of weight on.  I know she needs nutrients that a cooked diet cannot provide, but maybe this will help.  I don't think it will hurt her, given that the vet does not know what else to do.  I honestly don't know what to do either.  It's worth a shot anyway.

Darwin likes the cat food too. He just looks innocent.

Skinny Cat Update

Why?

It's not her thyroid.   The tests all came back looking beautiful.


They x-rayed her.  No masses but it did confirm just how stubborn and strong she can be. 

Give me the cheese!

More blood work.  No infection.  Stool samples were normal.  Basically ruled out inflammatory bowel disease.  Actually, all of her tests results came back looking quite good.  So why is she getting so skinny?


The vet prescribed Purina Gastroenteric Formula and Flagyl.  She seems to like the Purina.  She is the dominant cat in the household so there is no worries about her getting the right food.  She arrive first and eats what we put down.  We still have to wait several days for the Flagyl to arrive.

The mystery continues.

Skinny Cat

Meet "Brunswick"

We adopted Ella from the SPCA in November of 2006.  We had a cat, Ariel (I did not name her! I swear!), who was a bit neurotic and we thought she might like some company.  We picked Ella by going into the big cat room with a few dozen cats and sitting down in the middle of the room.  Kiddo was trying her best to be good, but she was still a squirming, excited two-year old.  We waited to see who would come to us.  Ella climbed right into the kid's lap and purred her head off.  She was not frightened or skittiesh at all.  She was not the most attractive cat in the bunch, but she was a love muffin.

Feed me!

She was also big.  Really big.  There was discussion of naming her "Brunswick" after the bowling ball manufacturer.  She had been left in front of the SPCA in a box.  She was spayed, de-clawed, and clearly used to being cuddled and hand fed people food.  She loved people food.  Especially cheese.

As it turned out, Ariel did not appreciate our kind gesture.   Despite our efforts to provide a good introduction, Ariel chased her through the house.  Ella claimed our bed as her own and for a few weeks she was either on my pillow or at the food bowl.  She even liked Ariel's kidney diet cat food.

She thinks she is invisible under there.

Ariel passed on and Ella was lonely.  We got two rescue kittens.  Ella liked them.  She loved their kitten food.  She did not exactly play with them, but she seemed more active.  Slowly, she lost some weight but she was still a substantial cat.

A little privacy please?

At least she was.  Six months ago she started loosing weight.  Then we got the dog.  She lost more.  1.5# in 3 months.  That is a lot for a cat.  You can feel the bumps of her spine as you pet her back.   Three months ago the vet was not concerned.  Now at 11.5 pounds, she is being tested for feline hyperthyroidism.

Skinny!

Initial lab results all came back looking good.  No diabetes, kidney, or liver disease.   We are waiting to hear back for confirmation that it is in fact hyperthyroidism.  Do you know that it costs about a grand to make your cat glow in the dark with radioactive iodine?  She won't take pills.  We have no idea how old she is.  So now we wait for definitive diagnosis and treatment options.

I hate waiting.