Werner and Melanie write:Furry pants, no more

After Phoebe's vet visit, we were reassured that there was nothing serious behind her diarrhea. We were given medicine that would clear up the problem and said she would be fine.

Then Melanie went into labour.

Phoebe started the meds on Monday evening. Meant to be taken twice-daily, she had one dose Monday, two on Tuesday, and two on Wednesday. Melanie went into labour that night. Thursday, before leaving for the hospital, Werner convinced her to eat another pill, and a few hours after Bärchen was born, he came home to give her another. On Friday and Saturday she had one pill per day.

By Saturday, it was obvious she had taken a turn for the worse. Werner came home from the hospital to find the diarrhea had returned, that Phoebe had stopped using her by then very messy litterbox, and was herself very dirty. Melanie and the baby were still in hospital, and Werner was staying there, so he put her into the ensuite for the night.

Melanie's parents arrived that evening and took care of her. On Sunday, we all came home from the hospital. Melanie was extremely concerned for Phoebe, and missed her a great deal. She went to check on her, and found a diarrhea-stained cat in a filthy bathroom. Coinciding with crashing hormones, this caused a serious meltdown for Melanie.

Werner and Gord bundled Phoebe up into her carrier and took her to animal emergency. They shaved her furry pants and tail and kept her overnight. On Monday, Linda and Gord collected Phoebe and transferred her to her own vet, where she stayed until Thursday. Her spirits suffered greatly while boarded at the vet, and she stopped eating, so the vet sent her home. She'd been on meds again while boarded (she had a bit of a fever), but was sent home without any.

In the five days since she returned, we've been watching her closely. As she hadn't been eating, she wasn't passing much stool, and that which she did pass seemed fairly normal. Then, this morning, some was in her litterbox which was, Werner reported, 75% normal and 25% not. Late this afternoon, she had a poop in her carrier which was quite soft.

She's energetic and engaged and eating, but still hasn't shaken the diarrhea. She's curious about the baby, and not hiding under the bed as we feared she might. With four adults about, she's getting lots of love and attention. But she's still a sick kitty, and we just don't know what to do. Werner called the vet, and we'll be taking her in first thing tomorrow morning.

We just want our Phoebecat to be healthy and happy and her old self.