The weekend weather forecast looks unpleasant for our usual outdoor activities. Too cloudy for astronomy and too much rain chance for cycling. What we will be up to is, at this point, unknown. Tasha is feeling much better after a few days of dosing her with Prednisolone. Dr. B. said I did the right thing in resuming the medication he prescribed as therapy for possible inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and Tasha's feline body seems to agree. {See: Cornell Feline Health Center for more info.} Where she was vomiting frequently and a little too quiet, she now keeps all meals and water down and romps around the house — her old self again. Doc would like us to begin reducing the dose and try and find some low maintenance dose that will keep the symptoms at bay. Very tricky: she went for more than a month without any medication and had no noticeable symptoms — how to find that elusive minimum dose. Dinner out at the Wild Ginger China Bistro tonight! What's pending for the weekend is a mystery!
ibd
All posts tagged ibd
I never should have come in to work. Had a bad night's sleep, probably due to physical discomfort, and got up with upset stomach, general aches and malaise, no appetite. Still, I felt I could make it. Now, getting on towards the end of the work day, I'm dog tired and just want to get home and sleep! I'll soldier on and hopefully make it to the end of the day (90 minutes from now) before going home. Wasn't a total waste here as I did get a little work done and helped solve a technical issue or two. I really feel lousy!
Right now Tasha seems to be doing better than me. Spoke with Dr. G. today –Dr. B. was ill– and she reduced Tasha's cortisone doses from two tablets per day to one. I call back in a week and see about further reduction. This is pretty much standard protocol where inflammatory bowel disease is suspected. Of course, there never was a definite diagnosis so we'll see if and when symptoms return. At any rate, Tasha is doing much better and, if she lost any weight during her ordeal, she gained back every ounce during her recovery!
Missy visited Dr. B. today and got very good news. Her blood glucose level is 227 which is just above the targeted 200. She has gained back some of the weight that has slipped away and is well hydrated. Missy tipped the scales at a dainty 8.5 lbs. today, up from 8.1 only last week. We're very pleased. Insulin dose is to be increased slightly from 5 to 6 units once a day. Meanwhile Tasha is doing well. You'd never known we were in full-blown medical crisis a week ago! Dr. B. is having us reduce the antibiotic and stop dosing at the end of the week. The cortisone we will keep up until next week when we check back with the doctor and talk about whether the dosage can be reduced. Nothing is assured, however, and the root of Tasha's episode is still not certain. She's basically being treated for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and has, so far, responded splendidly. All-in-all we're seeing improvements in both cats and hope they enjoy good health for a good long time.
Here's an excellent article on IBD at the Cornell Feline Health Center Web site: http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/brochures/ibd.html
PhotonStopper 