Platelets And Lori

LORI:  First ME...  Guess who is in heat AGAIN!  

TBT:  Megan asked about platelet clumping.  I found this... 

"Platelet clumping occurs when the blood platelets responsible for coagulation stick to one another to form clusters. The presence of platelet clumping has no clinical consequences other than preventing instruments from properly counting blood platelets."

Apparently platelet-counting equipment ignores clumps because they are too large.  Manual counting is required.  Which my Vet says she did BTW.  She may never has seen clumps before, though.  It is pretty unusual.

I found a site that mentioned 1 per 2000 individuals.  I think that was for humans, but may be about the same for other animals.

Caturday Saturday

TBT here:   Yeah, Lori finally went into heat and everyone guessed that.  It started Wednesday night and was at a normal peak last night.  I expect it will last another day or 2.  About 80% of my cats have been female, so this isn't exactly my first experience.  Some of you may recall that Ayla required 3 spay operations to get it right (I'll explain all that if new readers comment that they want to know about that).

Though having Siamese and Burmese ancestry, Lori has been a rather quiet untalkative kitty.  A slight light meow from time to time.  Well, she is a "purrer" more than a "meower".  Maybe she had no complaints before.  LOL!  So when she started "talking" Wednesday night, I guessed what was happening.

My previous experience about spay operations was based on age.  So when she turned 24 weeks old, I asked the vets about spaying.  They said they preferred she go into heat once to establish when she wasn't, as they thought the operation was easier.  My previous Vet (retired now) just went by age. 

Just as an aside, I'm not sure how vets measure age.   "6 months" isn't exactly the same as "24 weeks".  But Lori was born on August 3rd, and went into heat February 3rd".  6 months right to the day!

OK, veterinary science advances like everything else, so I go with whatever they recommend.  I'll call Monday for an operation appointment later that week

Lori has a funny voice.  Small, slight, and calm.  Even in heat, she isn't making much noise.  I appreciate that.  Ayla had an in-heat call that would wake exhausted people in a large building!  So we are good.

Ayla has been more tolerant of Lori the past 2 days (memories?),  Laz is disturbed, and Marley doesn't seem to care.  I can sleep at night.  She seems to want my attention even more than usual and even climbs right up me to sit on my shoulder.  I'm not sure what that is all about, but I am wearing heavy jeans and thick flannels shirts now.  She has sharp claws...

I expect it will end in a couple days and if it stays as it is for the couple days, I'll sleep OK.  Lori seems to go into it for an hour and then is normal again for several.  She sleeps and eats OK.  She sleeps at night with Laz.  She joins me in bed sometimes normally.  

I'm expecting that her operation will be in 7-10 days and everything will be calm after.  No repetition of Alya's difficulties...

I still have the inflatable collar used for Ayla and Iza.  It was sold for small dogs, but it works great for cats.  Much better than "The Cone".

Flashback Friday

This time we go FAR back.  It is 2008 of this week.  Two very different things happened.

The first was that Ayla caught a great big dove!

She was only over a year old, so it was A BIG DEAL for her.  Lets just say that she wasn't hungry for hours...

The other thing was the strange intact male cat who was sniffing around the deck trying to find Ayla (who was still going into heat at the time).  I scared him away a few times (and even hosed him once) but he kept coming back.  So I discovered he was actually very friendly to me.  So he obviously had come from a good home.

After several days, I picked him up and put him in the garage with food, water and a litter box.  I took a good picture... 

And printed some out to post around the neighborhood.  I was just posting the 2nd one when a girl came running up and said that was her cat (she had seen the 1st).

He was an indoor cat but had gotten out.  I told her to come to my driveway (wouldn't let her in the car; I'm not stupid).  Told her and her friend to wait there and brought the cat out.  It was obvious from his purrs he was hers.

I thought that was my Good Deed for the week, but it didn't end there.  The cat came back the next time Ayla was in heat.  I guess they can tell 5 houses away...

This time, I just carried him to his home.  I suggested to the parents that they get him "fixed".  No, they didn't believe in that and it was "expensive".  I offerred to have my vet do it at my expense.  "No"...

Never seen him since.  I hope he had a long happy life.

But that was THIS week 2008...

About Ayla In Heat Again...

THE BIG THING:  Ayla was in heat again the past week.  Many of you are familiar with her odd situation, but I should explain to those who aren't.  It is not indifference on my part.  Ayla  underwent 2 spay operations in 2008 by the breeder's vet, but continues to go into heat.

My own vet (who did a fine spay operation on Iza in 2009) is unwilling to conduct secondary exploratory surgery to try to find the problem.  I accept him saying that he did not feel qualified to do that (though I think he would have been successful).  So she has been unsuccessfully spayed twice.  That makes her a rather unique cat (a uniqueness I could do without - A Siamese cat in heat is remarkably loud).  I even called a radio show vet last Summer about the problem (the response was "gee that's weird, and that's too bad".

I explored hormonal suppressants on the internet, and apparently, they are not authorized in the US (Europe allows them).

My vet suggested that I find a "Board-Certified Feline Surgeon" who might feel more qualified to do follow-up surgery.  I have found 2 within 45 miles (and an hours drive) and emailed them both in December.  Both have indicated confidence that they can successfully complete a botched spay operation.   They each want to see her when in heat for evaluation and then operate in the next cycle.

They both agree it is best to examine her when she is in heat and best to operate when she is in heat.  Unfortunately, timing was bad in Jan (her cycle fell over the weekends and/or snowstorms).  But I was able to get an appointment for evaluation today.  If not for 2 emergency surgeries, Ayla would have been operated on today.  And the vet will be away all of March.  Arghh!

On the good side, he was kind enough to hold an appointment open for the whole week he returns in hopes we catch her in heat then.  Considering that she goes into heat twice a month, the odds are good.

So it is very likely that Ayla will finally be successfully spayed in early March.  It BETTER be successful (Board Certified Feline Surgeons don't come cheap)!  Fortunately, I can afford it.  Still that's 3 years worth of her Evo canned  cat food!

More about this in March...

Snowprints!

IZA:  It snowed couple days ago, but I am trying ta catch up.  Only a inch. like the last 2 times, but I went out init this time.  I hate walkin on snow.  Its both wet AND cold!

It seemed ta be all onna ground, so I hopped to bare spots like the boot scraper an jumped up the the tabletop.  That always seems clean.

AACK!  it had snow too.  In fact I skidded on the stuff...

On the other paw, it was innerestin ta see that some animal had walked on the snow.  TBT says those are birdie tracks.  I spose so, but its not like I ever pay much attention ta birdie feet.  They dont leave those shapes on the lawn and I dont eat their feet!

 And Im amazed ta see how often they walk around on our deck!  These were all over the place...

So I decided I should leave a warning ta the birdies that I was here too!  I deliberately walked on the stuff.  I found that if I walked fast it just pushed it flat.

But iffen I stood in one spot for even a short time, it vanished...!

This is, according to TBT, my "signature print".  Ill have to figure out a way to use this sometime.  Mebbe on next years Chrissymouse cards!

TBT was gonna take Ayla out to get her pawprints, but he decided it would be mean to let her out for only 10 seconds.  She is "that way" again...  The noise is evil.

Easy Like Sunday

Ayla:  Finally!  Restin in peace after a whole nother night of heat.  I just COLLAPSED!

I'm exhausteded...  Im just grateful it might only be a couple more days!  Until the next time...

Oh, I should mention that the nice red pillowcase Im on is on a folded up blankie ON a folded up comforter.  It doesnt GET much softer than that. 

An THAT is on a small dresser so I am up high where Iza cant bother me (she cant jump worth beans)...

An Im only a few feet away from the Felliway dispenser.  If only Iza would sniff that stuff, too, that would help.

Introoder Kitty

Ayla:  We got a new cat sneakin up on our deck at night.  Its my fault; Im in heat again.  Sigh...

Aktally, since Feb 26th, Ive only been out of it 4 days.  Drivin me crazy.  So I been callin fer the mancats, ya know, REAL loud (as a Meezer does).  Cant help it.

So a few days ago, this one really innerestin mancat came by and just sat on the deck waitin fer me ta come out.  Well I couldnt GET out.  The maddening part was that it is REALLY nice weather and the door is open just an inch.  An inch is like a mile in this case...

But at least we got some pictures of my "wanna-be" boyfriend:

He really IS a handsome mancat though, isn't he.   He makes me feel kinna ecited. 

But Iza is watchin me an that makes it a bit difficult.  Plus The Big Thing has this wood bar he made that only allows the deck door ta open a inch.  Even I cant get out of that. 

So they are ALL keepin me away from him.  ARGGGGHHHHH!  Iza is being all mom-protective, and The Big Thing is being actively against my desires. 

We DID manage ta kiss through the inch-open door once.  Sigh...  I even reached a paw through the door an TOUCHED him!  *MELTING*

Oh Romeo, Sweet Romeo...

But between Iza attacking the deck door where the mancat comes, and The Big Thing making sure I cant get out, our love will not be...  Weep, weep, weep...

About Ayla's Operation

THE BIG THING: There have been some questions and surprize about Ayla's 2nd spay operation. Since she is a little uncertain about all this, she asked me to explain a bit...

1. Summary: When I originally arranged to adopt Ayla (nee Isabel), the nice cattery lady (Heather) said she would have that done the day I was to pick Ayla up. I was pleased, because that saved me both the trouble and expense. Ayla was spayed in January 2008.

A few weeks later, Ayla went into heat. My vet and the operating vet both said that can sometimes happen a few times after a spay operation. When the 3rd heat cycle occurred in April, I contacted my vet for an exam to confirm that Ayla was indeed in heat and not suffering some other problem. A test confirmed the hormonal cycles were continuing.

When I contacted the operating vet, he suggested waiting one more time, but did say that if it continued he would do a followup operation at no cost. When she went into heat again in May, the operating vet was off doing international charity vet work.

Ayla was relatively calm during the Summer (one heat cycle in July), so I thought it was fading away finally. Her heat cycles resumed every 3 weeks in early October...

By that time, I was focussed on Skeeter's worsening kidney problem and the behavioral difficulties that followed from that. I should add that both vets had suggested very little possibility of success in a followup spay operation.

The day after Skeeter went over The Bridge, Ayla went into heat again I contemplated the idea of going through that for the next 15 years and started doing some research. To my surprize, reputable websites generally said that a followup spay operation is routiely successful. I contacted the operating vet a few days later (my own vet was reluctant to followup on another vet's surgery).

The original operating vet was surprized to hear that Ayla was still going into heat, but agreed at once to do the followup operation. Though his staff failed to return my calls to arrange a visit, I reached the vet on his cell phone at 6 a.m. the planned operation day and he agreed to see her first thing. His office is an hour's drive away. So I had to grab Ayla and drive off fast.

Ayla had her operation, and the vet, knowing I was just killing time far from home, returned her too me in 3 hours. I drove Ayla home, but she had to stay in the cat carrier until the anasthesia wore off. We will have to wait and see if the followup operation was successful.

The vet did find what he thinks is a tiny amount of ovarian tissue. Interestingly, he also found an undisolved "disolvable" suture from the original operation.

2. About the operating vet... The operating vet seems unusually experienced. He has performed about 75,000 spay/neuter operations nationally and internationally, and mostly for charity and animal shelters. He says there have been 5 times that he knows of where the spay operation didn't work. I googled him and he seems to have a sterling reputation. My own vet said that he himself has performed about 25,000 spay/neuter operations and 3 have not worked. And he says followup operations were not successful.

3. Options... The operating vet is researching pharmacutical solutions in case the followup surgery doesn't work. My vet mentioned to me last Spring that such are available but "dangerous". If it comes to that, it will matter whether "dangerous" means a 5% chance of problems or a 50% chance of problems. But we aren't at that point yet...

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In Heat Again... Sigh

AYLA:

Well, The Big Thing an me thought I was all done wif it, but here I am again, stuck in the house fer all the last week an feelin weerd. I feel all bothered fer hours at a time. I'm convinced Skeeter is supposed ta do somethin about it, but he doesn't. He jus hisses at me when I roll on the floor in fronta him. LC is worse, she whaps me.

The worst part is that I wanna get outside more than efer, but The Big Thing wont let me out.

Im startin ta feel a bit calmer today, though. Mebbe if I sit very quietly an dont make any noise, I can get out when he lets LC out after dinner...

[The Big Thing here: It had been since early May, and I really hoped Ayla's "problem" was gone. I will be optimistic and hope this was "the last gasp".]

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Stressy Week

SKEETER:

Its been a tough week here. Nuthin tragic or anything, jus kinna difficult. We are all a bit stressed. We kinna got harsh on the "celebrity quiz" thing an we were worried after we posted that kitties would take our comments all wrong. I mean, its jus a quiz an we shouldnta got all hissy at it. But we were relieved ta see a lotta ofer kitties agreed. So that was good.

Ya know that Ayla-the-spayed-kitty has been "in heat" since Sunday. That's kept us all on edge (The Big Thing included). An Ayla isnt too happy about it eether! TBT rolls his eyes upward an says "it just had to be a siamese". I guess he means that meezer girlcats are louder than most. More about that later...

Truth be told, LC an I arent doing too great this week eether. LC been "losing" her food some lately. The V-E-T cant find any special problem wif her innards an says sometimes there are jus bad days wif all kitties. TBT is spossed to watch her outside a lot ta see if she is eatin lotsa grass or bugs. An iffen it keeps up, he gotta steal one of her poops for a test. (Yuck)

Me, I been missin the litterbox some lately. Its embarrasin, cause I feel confoosed sometimes. Las year, I couldnt make it all the way down ta the basement sometimes ta poop an I was goin closer up the stairs. So TBT moved 2 litterboxes upstairs an that really helped a long time. But now Im hafin problems efen there.

Like I said, its embarrisin. But I haf always been a honest kitty and whats true is true. Its not like the litterboxes arent clean, I jus sometimes confoos bout "in an out". An it used ta be jus poop mistakes. Now its pee too. (sigh) I peed onna wood floor the ofer day (an I nefer done that before) and there are sometimes wet spots inna basement cement floor.

TBT hasta turn on lights at night an look at the floor when HE gets up ta do HIS thing an we gotta walk around carfeful too. So we're all kinna gettin each ofer upset and we are all a little stresst!

Now, about Ayla... I gotta turn this over ta The Big Thing cause I dont unnerstand all he is splainin...

THE BIG THING: I understand, Skeeter; it's complicated. From discussions with the original operating vet (who has done about 70,000 spay operations and does them international as charity work (virtually all he does), it is possible that a small amount of tissue remains in Ayla sufficient to provoke hormone production, yet almost impossible to find and remove in a follow-up operation. And he says a second operation would have some risks attached. But he will examine her for free and will do any follow-up operation I authorize (accepting the risk) for free. He does not, however expect much success from such a follow-up operation. He said the situation Ayla is in is extremely rare but any improvement is even more rare. He also said it can be a result of a pituitary gland reation that will fade over time.

My own vet examined Ayla back in February (while she was in heat) and found the spay incision was infected, took a blood sample for a hormone test (which it suddenly occurs to me I never received the results of - I will have to call him tommorrow about that). The spay incision healed just fine and I can barely find it now. He says he has only had one situation like Ayla's and was not able to fix it.

The original operating Vet has office hours in my town on Thursdays, so I just missed that opportunity. I knew that, so that's my fault. But Ayla's "heat" this time has been less than the previous ones. In February it was 24/7 and this time, she is yowling maybe 30 minutes every 4 hours and usually sleeps through the night OK. So, I think I will wait to see if it happens one more time. I can handle the occasional yowling in daytime and the effort to keep her inside when I let Skeeter and LC in and out.

And I suspect Skeeter's and LC's problems may be stress-induced by Ayla's problems and will cease when she is "back to normal" (in a couple of days, we all hope). We'll see...

Oh, BTW, here is a couple of pictures of Ayla's BIG BLACK MANCAT suitor. They aren't very good pictures, as I was taking them though a double glass door. And this is after Skeeter chased him out of the yard once, LC chased him out of the yard once, and I sprayed him with water several times. And here he is calmly sitting on our deck the next morning!







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Again? Already?

LC: I don't believe it! Ayla, the once-spayed kitty, has gone into "heat" again (2nd time!)...

(Due to the nature of this post, I wont be postin any pictures. It might be disturbin to Beins an kittens)

She was spayed Jan 16th, went into heat Feb 3-9, and was back in it yesterday! Mouse-droppings, just after 10 days? Skeeter is confused by it. Ayla keeps floppin infront of him, sniffin him, crawlin along the floor, and "presenting". It makes me kinna 'mbarrassed, cause I vaguely recall doing that myself when I was a kitten before my own operashun.

Its kinna funny though. Skeeter (though he had his own "doodad operation" as a kitten) sometimes tried to get at me "that way" fer years when I wasnt innerested innit. I didnt mind until he got bitey on my neck (an nothin ever "happened"). Now that he sees the real thing, he doesn't know what ta do... MOL!

Seriously, Ayla offers and Skeeter hisses or runs away. Just like a guy...

Is ben a weerd day. Ayla got took to our regular V-E-T fer tests, she has ta take those "anti-biotics", an she hadda sleep in the basement las night cause we were all goin crazy from the noise (Meezer girlkitties in heat yowl like a cross between colicky Bein babies an hungry seals, with a little tortured banshee in the mix).

I'm probly gonna pay for this post ('mbarrassin Skeeter), but its worth it. I dont get a "whap" at him like this very offen...

BTW, it is snowin! Deep enough to brush my belly fur if I went out innit! First (second?) time this cold season!