Weird Stuff

Mom's been trying to get this picture for days and days and it finally worked. Mom fixed up this table for me before I moved in. It has a comfy blanket and a big pillow on it because it is a really good place for sun spots and looking out the window. I never used it much before, so Mom put all these interesting papers on it and now I rest up here every day.

Karen Jo: It amuses me that you like to nap on my income tax forms.

All kinds of weird things have been showing up in my treat saucer lately, but I don't like most of them. I resisted the temptation of the baby food much better today. I only ate half of it.

Karen Jo: I ran out of turkey baby food and gave you chicken today. Evidently you don't like that as well. You aren't doing yourself any favors by not eating the baby food with the pro-biotic in it, Herman. I also been trying different things to put your Benefiber in. So far you have turned your nose up at salmon cream cheese, cat milk and cheese spread. I wanted to try chicken broth, but I couldn't find any that didn't have onion in it. I haven't wanted to give you baby food twice a day, but if that's the only thing I can find that you will actually eat with medicine in it, then I'll give it a try. If I can't get you to take it willingly, I can always dissolve it in something and squirt it into your mouth, like I do the Interferon. I do think you are still improving. You jumped in the litter box while I was brushing my teeth today and did your usual routine when you make a poop puddle, but nothing happened. I hope that means that things are firming up a bit.

I feel like eating different things. Today I ate my I/D dry food instead of my Friskies. You ate something for lunch that smelled good, but I didn't get any.

Karen Jo: I had corned beef and potatoes. I let you smell it, but you didn't seem to want any. The vet said not to give you any fatty meat, anyway.

Hmpf. I wish you would have a steak again. I like steak.

Feeling Better

Mom tried to take a picture of me today, but something went wrong and it didn't show up on the camera's card. Here's another fuzzy one from yesterday. I just wouldn't sit still for her. I think Mom has outwitted me on the medicine front. I didn't want early breakfast today and I just wanted to get some cuddles and scritches when I did wake her up. I sometimes like to stand on her and have her pay lots of attention to me. Things were going great until I moved my feet and all of a sudden she said she had to get up right then.

Karen Jo: You stood on my bladder, Herman. That's a sure fire way to get a human out of bed.

Once she was up, she got me my breakfast, with nothing icky in it, then she started getting dressed and all that other boring stuff. For my elevenses, I got some more of that yummy baby food with the pro-biotic in it. I had eaten about a third of it before I realized that it was spiked. I walked away and stayed away for a long time. While Mom was eating her lunch, I took a few more bites, then walked away again. I felt sure I could hold out, but Mom left it there when she went to work. It kept calling me and I finally gave in. By the time Mom got home from work, I had eaten every bit of it. When Mom got home, she gave me my Stinky Goodness dinner, then put something I had never seen or smelled before in my treat dish. I tasted it, but didn't like it.

Karen Jo: I am trying psychology on Herman as well as tempting his taste buds. Since he arrived, he has always gotten something special around eleven, served on a white saucer. At first it was warmed up chicken, then his sardine. This morning it was turkey baby food with pro-biotic. Tonight it was salmon cream cheese with Benefiber. I'll see if he eats it tonight. If not, I have some other ideas for getting the Benefiber in him. If all else fails, I can always dissolve it in a little water and squirt it in his mouth. It is worth all the trouble. I think I spotted just the hint of something solid in his poop this morning.

I am feeling better, too. This morning, while Mom was brushing me, I was lying on one of my big mousies with a ribbon tail. The brush caught on the ribbon and Mom pulled the mousie out from under me. I grabbed it with my paws and rolled it around just a tiny bit. Tonight I batted my nip ball twice. Toys are beginning to be interesting again.

Karen Jo: I am so glad to see that. I hope that soon we will be having soccer games again and I will be looking all over for your balls.

Great News

Here I am ignoring my toys again. I moved my head just as Mom took the picture, so my face is blurry. The feather-butt bird was sent to me by Lorianna, along with a very nice card and chocolate eggs for Mom. Today was kind of strange. Mom got up way early for her and fed me first breakfast, but no second breakfast. We spent quite a bit of time together, then she put my PTU treats in the big PTU. I didn't want to go in at first, but the lure of the treats proved too strong. Mom pushed my back legs in and I knew what was coming. I turned around and tried to get out, but Mom was too fast with the door. Off I went to the vet. The good news was that I didn't get poked, prodded or stabbed with a needle, just weighed. We found out that I had lost 0.7 pounds since the poop puddles started, but I have gained 0.3 pounds back, despite my hunger strike to get my Fancy Feast and Friskies back. I was really glad to get home, but I still didn't get fed again.

Karen Jo: I didn't feed you second breakfast because I didn't want you to have to make a poop puddle in the PTU. I got some good news at the vet, too. I got permission to get the pro-biotic into you any way I could. I got some good ideas from our blogging friends and from the vet, too. That's why you didn't get fed until later this afternoon. I wanted you good and hungry for my first experiment.

Mom disappeared for a little while after she ate her lunch. She offered me some chicken, but I didn't want it. When she got home, she opened a little bottle that had something in it that smelled really good. She let me lick some off her finger and it was good. I wanted some more. She took my dish and put some of the stuff in it and I started eating it. I soon realized that she had put the pro-biotic in it and walked away. However, it was so good that I went back in just a little while and ate some more, then walked away again. But I couldn't resist. I went back again and finished it off. Well, almost. I left a tiny dab.

Karen Jo: That stuff is turkey baby food, Herman. I am so glad that you like it. I finally got a full dose of pro-biotic in you. I am to give you Benefiber, too. I got the kind that dissolves and is supposed to be tasteless. The vet said that although fiber makes people poop more, if a kitty doesn't get enough fiber, they can get diarrhea. I put it in your dinner and was glad to see that you ate some of it. If you don't finish it, I will give it to you in something yummier than your Stinky Goodness. I don't know if the pro-biotic can work so fast, or if the Pred is starting to take effect or both. All I know is that I got the pro-biotic into you about two this afternoon and at eleven tonight you made a much thicker poop puddle. Things are really looking up.

Driving Mom Crazy

I finally sat nicely for Mom to take a picture. You can see my still almost naked chest. The fur is growing back, but very slowly. Mom is getting sneaky. I woke her up for early breakfast before dawn, which I wasn't doing when I didn't feel like eating, so she got right up and fed me my Stinky Goodness. I woke her up again for second breakfast after dawn, but still earlier than she gets up and I got more Stinky Goodness. Then she made me wait. I didn't get my elevenses at all. That's when I used to get my sardine. I just got my Interferon and a treat. I meowed at her about it, but she just told me to eat what I already had. She ate her lunch and offered me a taste of corned beef, but I didn't want it. Then she did all the stuff that she does before she goes to work, including brushing me and giving me my medicine in my ear. I wanted more food, so I meowed and meowed at her. Finally she opened a new can of Stinky Goodness and I got all excited, because Stinky Goodness tastes the best right out of a new can. When she gave it to me I dove right in, then realized after a few bites that she had put that pro-biotic stuff in it. I walked away and didn't touch it again.

Karen Jo: At least I got a little bit of pro-biotic into you that way. I was hoping that you would eat more of it while I was at work.

I told you that I probably wouldn't get hungry enough to eat it, even while you were gone. I got even with you tonight. When you got home I did the usual "I'm starving. Feed me now!" routine and you gave me my Stinky Goodness. Then I gave you the "I don't want that. Don't you have anything else?" meows.

Karen Jo: And you didn't stop until I gave you some of the I/D canned food. Then you ate some of that.

Hahaha! That will keep you guessing.

Eating More

Life is good. I got a nice sun spot in my comfy bed today. I also got my Fancy Feast and Friskies back. Mom isn't thrilled, but she is relieved.

Karen Jo: You scared me half to death, Herman. You stopped eating altogether on Sunday. You wouldn't even eat the chicken I fixed just for you, even though it was chopped up in tiny pieces and still warm from being cooked. When I got home from work and you still hadn't eaten anything, I gave you a pouch of food that you used to like as a treat and you finally started eating again.

I decided that I didn't like that I/D stuff after all. I don't know why I didn't want the chicken.

Karen Jo: Thank goodness that you are eating just about normally again. I called the vet and they said to just give you your regular food, try to get the pro-biotic into you and bring you in on Wednesday.

I don't want to go to the vet again.

Karen Jo: We have to get the poop puddles stopped somehow, and you are not co-operating.

Hey, I'm a cat. We are not known for co-operation. For instance, I know when you have adulterated my Stinky Goodness with that pro-biotic stuff and I won't eat it.

Karen Jo: I noticed. You ate early breakfast all up, refused second breakfast with the pro-biotic, then ate up all the food I gave you to last you until I got home from work before I even got out the door, so I gave you some more, which you had eaten by the time I got home. Maybe if I put the pro-biotic in the food I leave you when I go to work, you will get hungry enough to eat it before I get home.

I doubt it.

Karen Jo: If you won't eat your pro-biotic in your Stinky Goodness, then the vet and I will have to figure out some other way to get it into you. I have had some ideas and your friends have given me some more in the comments. The vet lady has already mentioned a paste which I scrape into your mouth.

That doesn't sound good.

Karen Jo: If you don't want to get your pro-biotic in a more unpleasant way, then just eat it in your Stinky Goodness. You are going to get it, one way or another.

Not Hungry

Mom didn't take a picture of me today, so here's one from a few days ago of me drinking out of my fountain. I am still drinking plenty of water, but I am not very hungry. I am eating some of the canned food every time Mom gives me some, but I never clean my dish any more. I am also eating some of my new dry food, but not nearly as much as I used to eat of my Friskies. I am still making poop puddles.

Karen Jo: I wish you would eat more, Herman. I got you some more canned food, so there is plenty for you. I really wish you would clean your dish when I give you second breakfast the way you used to. That is when I give you your pro-biotic. At least you are still eating more at second breakfast than you are at your other meals, so you are getting at least some of the pro-biotic. You still scratch at your platform for treats, but only the same amount as always, so I don't have to worry about you filling up on treats. The vet did say that I could give you some boiled chicken, but only a little bit. I will look and see if I can find you some turkey, as Whicky Wuddler suggested. I got some real live dead shrimp, thinking I could share with you, but the vet said no. The good part is that you are still acting like a happy cat. You cuddle with me at night and wake me up in the morning. I love how you have figured out when the alarm goes off and wake me up before then, because you don't like the alarm. You come eagerly for your brushing and still purr the whole time. You come to greet me at the door at night and your tail goes right up with its little curl when you see me. You still give me a token struggle over the Interferon, but take it like a good boy. Your poop puddles are getting smaller, but I'm afraid that it's because you are eating so much less. I'll boil you a chicken breast in the morning and see if a little bit of that will stimulate you to eat more of your I/D food.

No Buffet?

Hey! What happened to my buffet? You said you were going to add to it, not take it away.

Karen Jo: Sorry, Herman. I forgot that the vet said to put you on only the I/D food after two days. Luckily, I remembered while I was at work. I did let you finish crunching your Friskies before I took them away. I even put down the all I/D bowl next to your Friskies and I/D mix to see which one you wanted to finish up with and you picked the I/D, so I took your Friskies away. I really, really want you to get better, so we are going to do just what the vet ordered.

Do I still get my sardine?

Karen Jo: No. You were only picking at it, anyway.

I ate some of it today.

Karen Jo: Yeah, a whopping two bites. I already checked with the vet lady and you do still get your treats.

Well, that's something at least. Why are you getting so strict with me all of a sudden? I have been running this house since I arrived.

Karen Jo: When I saw you make a poop puddle, then go out in the hall and cry like you wanted something very badly, then come back in to the litter box room and make another poop puddle, it tore at my heart. I felt like you were crying out to me to help you and being strict with you and doing just what the vet says is all that I can do to help you. I have to go to the vet to get you some more food and I will ask if you can have some boiled chicken or other simple meat to give you a little change. Otherwise, it's just I/D food for the next two weeks.

At least I like it. I ate some more straight out of the can tonight.

Karen Jo: That made me very glad. Your appetite seems to be coming back a bit. I do wish you would eat more, though. You only ate half of what I left you when I went to work. That was the food that the pro-biotic was in. I don't see how it can help you, if I can't get more of it in you.

I just haven't felt much like eating the last couple of days.

Karen Jo: The vet lady said that the I/D might upset your tummy a little at first. I hope that's over with now and you will go back to eating more. You do have a little more hustle in your walk tonight and that's a good sign. I know by now that the slower you walk, the worse you feel. Yesterday you were just dragging yourself around, but tonight you walked briskly. I really hope that this is the turnaround point and that you will really start to improve now.

Mixed News from Vet

No picture today. The camera had enough power to take the picture, but not enough to upload it. Mom was too tired from work to help me blog about my trip to the vet yesterday. I didn't have to get stabbed with a needle at all, but I hissed at the vet lady anyway. She took me into a back room and weighed me. Mom doesn't know what else, if anything, happened back there to make me so mad. I didn't yowl, so nobody stuck something up where it doesn't belong. Anyway, I don't have to get stabbed with a needle anymore because that medicine wasn't helping me enough to continue to give it to me. I still get my Interferon and my Pred. The vet lady said that she was going to try a more holistic approach. I got a new food, Prescription Hills I/D, both wet and dry. She told Mom to mix it up with my regular good, because it might taste too bland to me and that it is always a good idea to mix up new food with old food, because new food might cause tummy troubles. I also got a pro-biotic powder to mix with my wet food once a day. A funny thing happened when we got home. It was time for second breakfast, so Mom opened up a can of the I/D food and started mixing a little bit of it with my Stinky Goodness. It smelled so good that I jumped up on the counter and started eating the I/D right out of the can. Mom just laughed and let me eat all I wanted. I didn't eat any of the mixed up stuff, but Mom figured that I got enough to eat straight out of the can. Mom mixed up some of my Friskies and dry I/D and I had some of that later.

Karen Jo: I let you eat all you wanted of your new food mainly because the vet lady said that you are starting to lose weight and that is a bad sign. Luckily, you have some fat reserves from the weight that you had gained. You scared me a bit today. You didn't eat your mixed up Stinky Goodness and I/D, you didn't eat your sardine, you didn't even eat straight Stinky Goodness. Thankfully, I decided to mix your pro-biotic with just the I/D and you did eat some of that. You did eat some dry food, too, but not much. I think I am going to get you another bowl and put just dry I/D in it, to see if you like that better now. What a buffet you are going to have! Wet food, dry I/D, Friskies, Purina Complete and Kitten Chow, all sitting there just begging for you to eat them.

I haven't been feeling too good today. I don't know why. I think maybe there's some stuff going on in my insides.

Karen Jo: I just hope that giving you the I/D food and the pro-biotic stops the poop puddles. We are running out of options. All that's left is a stronger pro-biotic that comes in a capsule. I am not looking forward to having to pill you daily. I don't think you would like that at all. Because your IBD is being caused by your feline leukemia and not by any food allergies, looking for the perfect food for you is unlikely to help. I will keep trying anything that might help, though, and if all I am left with is looking for another food, I will do it. At least you don't have to go back to the vet for at least two weeks.

That's the best news I have heard in a long time. Yay!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Mom kept putting this silly hat on my head and I kept moving around and tilting my head back so it would fall off. This is the best picture she could take. If I am looking a little miffed, it is because she just wouldn't leave me alone with that stupid hat. I hope she never tries anything like this again. She has plenty of stuffies to put silly hats on. Mom is posting this a bit early because she has to go to bed early tonight so she can get up in time to take me to the vet in the morning. My poop puddles have thinned out again, but there are more things that the vet can try to make the poop puddles stop. I just hope that I don't have to get stabbed with a needle again.

There is some good news. Grrreta and Ambrose sent me some Temptations and new toys. I got a Temptation, but the best thing was the Turbo Scratcher Star Chaser. I was on that as soon as Mom got the wrapper off it. I batted the ball around the track four or five times and watched it some more. I played more than I have played since the poop puddles started. I also got this furry thing on a string that Mom hung up on the kitchen door. I watch it very carefully when it moves, but I haven't attacked it yet. I am being cautious. You never know about strange furry things, especially when they are on strings.

Award

My lazy Mom is finally getting around to accepting my awards and posting about them. Monty Graycat gave me this award, saying that we gray cats have to stick together. I agree completely. Thank you very much, Monty.

The rules for this award are:

You must pick twelve recipients for the award and post their names and links and of course make a comment on each of their blogs telling them how they have brought SUNSHINE into your life.

So many of you have brought sunshine into my life, especially since I have been having my poop problems that picking just twelve is going to be hard.

Grrreta
Ayla and Iza
Whicky Wuddler
Angel and Kirby
Our Family Cat-a-blog
Glorgirly and Katie
Friends FurEver
The Island Cats
House of the (Mostly) Black Cats
Daisy the Curly Cat
Tyler's Tattles
Cheysuli

There are so many more that I wish I could just keep going, but Mom is getting tired, so I have to stop.

I also want to thank Mark, Ayla and Iza for giving my Mom and me the Shining Star Award all over again. That is very kind and we thank you very much.

Maybe a Little Progress

Finally a new picture of me. Mom almost forgot to take a picture of me today, but she finally remembered. I always take a nap after lunch and Mom didn't remember to take my picture until after I started my nap. I nap in this bed when there isn't a sun spot on my platform. My chest fur is growing back nicely, but slowly. It is still really short. I saw Mom coming with my Interferon today and didn't even try to get away. I still protest a bit about getting it, but I take it. I wasn't a bit interested in my toys today, but I came right up to Mom for my brushing.

Karen Jo: I think things might be getting just a little bit better for you, Herman. One of your poop puddles was quite a bit thicker than they have been. I think you are feeling more like yourself, too. You woke me up before dawn for breakfast, which you haven't been doing lately. You also put on some speed going down the hall in front of me, which you haven't done in quite a while. Maybe the time isn't too far off when you'll be thundering down the hall at full speed again.

But I still have to go back to the vet, right?

Karen Jo: Yes, Herman, unless those poop puddles get a whole lot thicker in the next couple of days, you have to go back to the vet.

Will I get stabbed with a needle again?

Karen Jo: Probably. Those shots perk you right up and thicken up your poop. Unfortunately, the effects wear off in a couple of days.

I have gotten some awards and you have been ignoring them.

Karen Jo: I know, Herman. I will get to them, possibly tomorrow, but Tuesday at the latest.

Getting Along

Here's another picture of me taken a few days ago. Mom hasn't been taking pictures of me lately.

Karen Jo: I have been feeling a bit bummed out for the last few days, Herman. I am coming out of it now. Thank you to everyone for all your good wishes and prayers. Herman seems to be feeling a bit better, despite the ongoing poop puddles.

I knocked my new glitter ball around the kitchen some while Mom was at work today and we rolled my nip ball back and forth three of four times when she got home. Mom is getting sneaky with my daily squirt. Today there was a great sun spot on my platform and I was sound asleep in it. Mom sneaked up on me and although I woke up as she got close, she had my head in one hand and was squirting my Interferon in my mouth with the other hand before I quite knew what was happening. I was so surprised that I just lay there and watched while she got my Temptation. I ate it.

Karen Jo: You have been much more accepting of your Interferon squirt the last few days, Herman. I hope that is because you are getting used to it and not because you are feeling too yucky to fight it. I do think you are feeling a bit better, so I think that you are just getting used to it. I am so glad that you don't mind your medicine in your ear at all.

You always give me my ear medicine just after you brush me. I love getting brushed so much that I am too happy to mind a little ear rub. I hope I don't have to go back to the vet again.

Karen Jo: I am afraid that you will have to go again early next week. If your poop puddles don't stop by Monday, we have to go back and try something else. Maybe a change in food is what you need.

I hope it's not yucky food, if that is the case.

Karen Jo: Your vet carries the Hills Science brand and if you don't like that, maybe I can find that duckpea stuff that was recommended. I am feeling much better about you now. I can tell that you aren't feeling really sick and you are acting almost normally. You still talk to me a lot and grumble at me when I don't get up early enough for your breakfast. You are eating and drinking normally. You are still a happy cat, purring and coming up to me for scritches and walking around with your tail up, with the little curl at the end. The only real difference is that you aren't quite as active as you were before the poop puddles started.

Good News and Bad News

This is the reject picture from a few days ago. Mom didn't use it because she thought it made me look sad. For some reason, she thinks it is appropriate for this post. I don't know why. I was not sad at all. I was looking to see if there were any Temptation crumbs on the floor. I had just eaten one and sometimes there are crumbs on the floor after I crunch it up. Mom was lazy last night and didn't post about my vet visit.

Karen Jo: Sorry, Herman, when I got home from work, I was so exhausted that all I could do was go to bed.

I know what the good and bad news is all about. The good news is that although I went to the vet, the vet lady didn't stick anything up where it doesn't belong. The bad news is that she STABBED me with a needle and it HURT, so I hissed at her.

Karen Jo: And you, my clever boy, hopped right back in the PTU so she couldn't get at you any more. That was the first time I ever heard you hiss.

I'm not stupid. I know that if I get locked in the PTU at home, then I am going to the vet. If I am at the vet already, then being in the PTU means that I get to come home. I was good and ready to come home.

Karen Jo: The shot was to help stop your poop puddles. I really wish the good and bad news was as simple as the way you see it. The bad news is that the feline leukemia virus has become more active in your system and it has given you Inflammatory Bowel Disease or IBD. The good news is that you are on Interferon and it may help deactivate the virus again and that the IBD may be controlled by a medicine that I just have to put in your ear. It is called Prednisol. It all depends on how well your immune system and the Interferon can fight the feline leukemia virus and how delicate the virus has made your digestive system. I am thankful that I was giving you The Missing Link to help build up your immune system for three weeks before this problem struck. On the other hand, I would give anything for my dabbling in your food to have been the reason for your poop puddles. You would have been back to your normal self again by now if that had been the cause.

This is getting embarrassing. My Mom is leaking water down her face. Mom, it's not as bad as all that. I responded somewhat to the first treatment, which is what let the vet lady know that it was IBD and not some bad bacteria that I got in my gut, so you don't have to give me the nasty pink stuff that you were dreading. I am not fighting the Interferon, just resisting it, but I let you give it to me. I am feeling better today.

Karen Jo: Yes, I am thankful that all you do is walk or trot away from me when you see the syringe in my hand, but you always let me catch you. You don't hide from me and make it really difficult. You even opened wide for me today.

I don't know why I did that. You squirted that stuff right in my mouth and I had to swallow all of it. I was so embarrassed that I made it so easy for you that I got sulky and didn't even want my Temptation after it was all over.

Karen Jo: You didn't sulk long. You couldn't resist your sardine, which comes right after your Interferon, which you well know. I was also glad to see that you put on some speed getting away from me when you saw the syringe. That means that you are feeling better. I bought you a new toy today and you even played with it a little bit. I saw a ball meant for a child, called a crystal glitter ball. It is kind of large for a cat toy, but it is soft and filled with a liquid with a plastic crystal in the middle and glitter which floats around in the liquid. Since Herman likes his flashy ball, I thought this might interest him. I thought it would be safe for him, since he doesn't bite or stick his claws in his other balls. I rolled it across the kitchen floor and he went for it. He batted it around a little. I am very heartened by this, since he hasn't played with anything for days.

My poops are better, too. They aren't as liquid.

Karen Jo: I just hope that they keep getting better. You don't seem to mind the medicine in your ear. We have a week to stop your poop puddles with this treatment. If it doesn't work, then we have to go for stronger medicines and maybe a change in your food. Oh, Herman, I am so worried. I knew when I adopted you that you had two fatal virii and that I might not be able to keep you for long. I was determined to take the best care of you possible and give you the best home you have ever had and spoil you rotten, so you could live the longest, happiest life possible. I really hate it that your feline leukemia virus has gotten active again so soon. I am hoping and praying that we can knock it down again and that you and I will have years together.

Curly Fur?

We got rain today, instead of snow, and the humidity was higher than normal. This is some of my tummy fur and Mom thinks she can see little waves in it. What do you think?

I am still making poop puddles, so I have to go to the vet in the morning. At least having poop puddles all the time hasn't affected my appetite. I love it when Mom opens a new can of Stinky Goodness and I was starving when she got home from work tonight. She popped open the can and I jumped up on the counter and started licking it right out of the can. Mom pushed my head aside so she could divide up the can into fourths with a fork. When she lifted up a fourth with the fork, I grabbed the whole thing in my mouth and nommed it right down. Mom laughed and put another fourth in my dish. I nibbled a little bit of that and had a bit of dry food to go with it. I still am not interested in playing, but I love my brushing. I am not fighting the Interferon squirts very much. Mom shows me that she has a treat for me, then comes to give me the squirt. I walk away from her a little bit, then let her catch me. She steadies my head with one hand and gives me the squirt with the other. I run off a little ways after it's over and she follows me and gives me my treat. Then I get my sardine. It's not too bad. I hate to be held or confined, so, unless I really start giving her problems, she is going to keep giving me my squirts this way. She will look for the soft pipettes that Whicky Wuddler recommended, so she doesn't hurt my gums.

Not Lucky

Mom took this photo right after my brushing. After she finishes brushing me, I usually look at her, hoping to get some pets and scritches. I almost always get them. I didn't fight Mom so hard about my squirt today and I didn't sulk afterward. I heard her in the kitchen getting my sardine ready, so I went in and ate some of it. My chest fur is starting to grow back some. Mom says it looks and feels like velvet. I made lots of poop puddles today and that means that Mom has to take me back to the vet. I don't want to go.

Karen Jo: I don't want to have to take you, but we have to stop the poop puddles. Thank you, everyone, especially Whicky Wuddler and Mom, for the great advice on giving Herman his daily squirt. Herman likes Temptations even more than his sardines and it would be more immediate, so I'll try giving him one right after the squirt. I have already used Temptations to get him to scratch on his platform rather than the couch, so he's used to getting one as a reward.

Mad at Mom

Here I am, keeping my chest warm against the carpet and ignoring my toys. I didn't feel like playing at all today, even though Mom brought me home a new toy. I sniffed it, but that was all I did with it. I have changed my mind about my medicine. I really don't like Mom squirting stuff in my mouth and I have decided to fight it. I got very mad at Mom for squirting that stuff in my mouth this morning, even though it just tastes like water. I poked a couple of claws in her hand, trying to push her away from me. Then I wouldn't come anywhere near her for an hour. She gave me my sardine, but I wouldn't go near it until she left the kitchen. She tried to bribe me with my brush, but I ignored her. An hour later, I finally gave in to the brush when she tried it again, but I sat and thought about it for a little while before I went over for my brushing. Mom gave me a really long brushing and I loved it and forgave her. I am back to my usual eating habits, not so hungry today. I am still making poop puddles, but Mom found a little bit that looked almost solid. If I don't stop making poop puddles by the end of Friday, Mom is going to have to call the vet again. I don't want to go there again, especially if it means that Mom will be squirting stuff in my mouth twice a day.

Karen Jo: I am so sorry that you don't like having your medicine squirted in your mouth, Herman, but you might as well get used to it. You are going to get it every day for the rest of your life, which I hope is a long one. I could use some advice about giving Herman his medicine. I know that I have to remain calm and not make a big deal out of it. Herman does not like to be held, so I have been just holding his head steady while I stick the syringe in between his teeth and squirt in the medicine. I know about the cat burrito trick, but I don't want to resort to that if I don't have to. I think Herman would really, really hate that.

Some kitties wanted to know how I react to being in a car. I meowed softly all the way to the vet and all the way home. The only good place I ever went to in a car was my forever home. I love it here and I don't want to leave.

Making Progress

Mom kept trying to take a picture of my shaved chest, but I wouldn't let her. A big mancat like me should have fur on his chest. You can see how short the vet lady clipped my ruff in the front, though. It's a bit cold going around bare-chested, too. I am doing a lot of meatloaf position on the rug, trying to keep warm. Luckily we had sunshine today, so I could warm up in the sunspots. I am feeling perkier today. I actually played with my flashy ball for a minute or two. I wasn't very enthusiastic about it, but Mom and I rolled it back and forth a little bit. Boy, have I been hungry! I ate up almost all the Stinky Goodness that Mom gave me for breakfast and lunch and I ate half a can in forty-five minutes after Mom got home from work, which is very unusual for me. I also ate some of my dry food. I have decided that I don't much like Mom squirting stuff in my mouth, but I am going to let her do it. She only needed two tries to get my Interferon down me this morning. Then I got my sardine! I really confused her about that. After asking and asking for my sardine for three days, when I finally got one, I only licked up the oil and nibbled at it. I had eaten more than usual for breakfast, though, so maybe I wasn't all that hungry at sardine time. I am still making poop puddles, but they are smaller and not quite as liquid. Maybe I'll get lucky and not have to go back to the vet for antibiotics.

Karen Jo: I really hope that you do get lucky, Herman. I think it was funny that every time I pointed the camera at you, you covered up your chest. I didn't realize that you were self-conscious about your shaved spot. I think you'll get back to eating your sardine again. You probably got used to not having it and didn't save room for it. I am glad to see you eating so much. The vet was very happy about your weight. You have gained one and two-thirds pounds since coming to live with me. You now weigh in at a mancatly 12.4 pounds.

Back from Vet

Mom didn't take a picture of me today, so she is using one that she took a while ago. She often takes two pictures, one right after the other, then picks one to post. Hopefully this is the one she hadn't posted already. See my full fluffy chest fur? The vet stole some of it today. Yes, I'm back from the vet. It wasn't too bad after all, except for having something shoved up where it didn't belong. I really objected to that, but she got it done eventually. So what is wrong with me? There are three choices: temporary bowel inflammation caused by Mom perhaps upping the dosage of The Missing Link too quickly for my system; I have developed IBD; I have a virus. The vet decided to go with the first choice for the time being. I got a shot of an anti-inflammatory drug. I do have a slightly elevated temperature, so a virus is a possibility. I don't get any more of The Missing Link until the poop puddles go away, but then Mom is to put me back on it, but to stop at the half dose for at least a month, then we'll see about upping it again. Mom is also supposed to give me an equal amount of Bene-fiber with The Missing Link, which might help my system accept it better. Mom also got a bottle of Interferon Alfa-2A, already mixed up and ready to squirt in my mouth every morning. That is to help control the feline leukemia. I don't know how I feel about that yet, but the good news is that I am to get my sardine right afterward. Yay, I get my sardines back. Here's hoping that the poop puddles go away in a few days, or I will have to go back again. If I do go back, then I get treated for a virus with a really nasty-tasting antibiotic that Mom has to squirt in my mouth.

Karen Jo: I am so glad that the poop puddles might just be caused by a temporary thing and that my giving you The Missing Link was the right thing to do, but I may have rushed it. I have been so worried that I did something bad to you. I am really hoping for the temporary bowel inflammation or even a virus to be the cause. I don't want you to have inflammatory bowel disease along with all your other problems. If you do, though, we will handle it as best we can.