i went home to florida for christmas, but i surprised mason with an early christmas present--more surgery!
to be honest, i was pretty surprised, too. i think i've mentioned this before, but he has a genetic predisposition to roll his eyelid inward when he squints. this ultimately makes things worse as the eyelid starts irritating the eye. we've actually had this corrected several times but nothing's been enough. there's apparently a very thin line between fixing this for good and making the eyelid roll outward and make things even worse than before.
jonathan took care of the lampshade while i was gone. he hates that cone more than anything else. now that it's off, he actually scowls at it. he also looks at me with utter contempt when i call him lampshade.
the good thing is that he looks really good since the surgery! no more rolling eyelid! now it's just a matter of getting him off the human herpes meds before i go completely broke...
31 January 2008
10 November 2007
birthday and vet
not too much has been happening lately worth writing about. mason was doing very well, and celebrated his third birthday on october 15. we had a small party (no cake, as he is afraid), and he got a new feather mouse and a crinkle tube. i have to put the crinkle tube up at night or he keeps me up playing with it, and i keep forgetting to set it back out for him.
We had an eye vet appointment in october as well. his eye was looking really good, and we took him down to one quarter of a pill per day. of course, this didn't last long and now we're back on two quarters per day.
it is discouraging that he doesn't seem to really be getting better. it feels like everything we do is just kind of holding back the infection, and when we try to wean him it takes back over. it's been almost a year now since the first infection, and i had hoped that things would have been more progressed than they are. it still feels like we're at square one. and it's difficult to not get upset about it because i really can't tell if he's in pain constantly or not. he's always playful, even when there's gunk in his eye.
meanwhile, my pocketbook has taken a huge hit because of all the medicine and vet appointments every few weeks. i'm happy to do whatever it takes to make him comfortable and well, but it just feels like we're not getting anywhere and i hate throwing money at something that doesn't seem to be working. i was told a few visits back that "it takes time," but how much time does it take? In the six months we've been on the lysine and famvir, and i can't tell a big difference from when he wasn't on it save for the famvir holds off the infection. the lysine is supposed to help his body fight off the infection, but everytime we wean him from the famvir he goes right back to square one.
We had an eye vet appointment in october as well. his eye was looking really good, and we took him down to one quarter of a pill per day. of course, this didn't last long and now we're back on two quarters per day.
it is discouraging that he doesn't seem to really be getting better. it feels like everything we do is just kind of holding back the infection, and when we try to wean him it takes back over. it's been almost a year now since the first infection, and i had hoped that things would have been more progressed than they are. it still feels like we're at square one. and it's difficult to not get upset about it because i really can't tell if he's in pain constantly or not. he's always playful, even when there's gunk in his eye.
meanwhile, my pocketbook has taken a huge hit because of all the medicine and vet appointments every few weeks. i'm happy to do whatever it takes to make him comfortable and well, but it just feels like we're not getting anywhere and i hate throwing money at something that doesn't seem to be working. i was told a few visits back that "it takes time," but how much time does it take? In the six months we've been on the lysine and famvir, and i can't tell a big difference from when he wasn't on it save for the famvir holds off the infection. the lysine is supposed to help his body fight off the infection, but everytime we wean him from the famvir he goes right back to square one.
28 August 2007
in the red
we are back from the vet again.
we weren't supposed to go to the vet in the first place, but SOMEBODY had to have discharge from his eye yesterday afternoon instead of getting better.
good news, it looks like he's okay but just got something in his eye and it got irritated. bad news, it cost me $48 to get told this.
he really doesn't seem to be getting any worse, but he's not getting any better, either. and, once again, the vet assured me that if he has to have any proceedures done they'll try to lessen the hit on my wallet. which is extremely helpful, but i just want to knock this thing into dormancy and try to keep it that way.
he's also very fussy lately. my parents came to visit, and he was really good, but as soon as they left he started crying all the time. at first, i thought maybe he didn't have enough dry food in his bowl or he'd gotten a hair in his water bowl (this has warranted crying before) or maybe even i didn't scoop out his litter box fast enough. but none of this seems to be the case. so i've taken to waking up to cries at 3 a.m. and saying, "don't cry, emo mason!" he does not think this is funny. but at least he's not cutting, so there's that i suppose.
we weren't supposed to go to the vet in the first place, but SOMEBODY had to have discharge from his eye yesterday afternoon instead of getting better.
good news, it looks like he's okay but just got something in his eye and it got irritated. bad news, it cost me $48 to get told this.
he really doesn't seem to be getting any worse, but he's not getting any better, either. and, once again, the vet assured me that if he has to have any proceedures done they'll try to lessen the hit on my wallet. which is extremely helpful, but i just want to knock this thing into dormancy and try to keep it that way.
he's also very fussy lately. my parents came to visit, and he was really good, but as soon as they left he started crying all the time. at first, i thought maybe he didn't have enough dry food in his bowl or he'd gotten a hair in his water bowl (this has warranted crying before) or maybe even i didn't scoop out his litter box fast enough. but none of this seems to be the case. so i've taken to waking up to cries at 3 a.m. and saying, "don't cry, emo mason!" he does not think this is funny. but at least he's not cutting, so there's that i suppose.
08 August 2007
vet visit
it's been almost a month since all the stitches were removed and mason was given a clean bill of health. we'd been trying to ween him off the famvir, but the surprise visit to the vet today put an end to that.
over the weekend, mason had a little discharge from the eye he had surgery on, but it went away and he seemed fine. last night, i caught him squinting and called the vet this morning. i took him in this afternoon and he's got conjunctivitis but no ulcers yet. so we're back up to two pills a day and some eye drops and if he's not better by next week we get to go back.
having to take him so often to the vet is beginning to be a nuisance. he's seeing an opthamology vet, and she and her assistant are absolutely wonderful and have been a big help in trying to get me things for free and not charging me for little things when he has surgery. but it's almost $50 anytime i have to bring him in, and on top of the expensive medicines it's beginning to take a toll. i am thankful that they are very helpful, though, and don't think i'm a crazy cat lady when i call them if he blinks funny.
the plan of action for now is to increase the famvir to twice a day for a month to try and put the virus into complete remission before we try to ween him again. his eyes look a lot better, though, which is a huge relief. maybe we can finally get a step ahead of this thing.
i was happy he didn't fight me on getting in and out of the cat carrier today, which is a huge acheivement. when we got home, we played with his laser pointer that my aunt sent him. this is also my new favorite toy, because i don't have to run around the apartment with it like i do with the little octopus-on-a-stick thing. no loud stomping = happy downstairs neighbors.
over the weekend, mason had a little discharge from the eye he had surgery on, but it went away and he seemed fine. last night, i caught him squinting and called the vet this morning. i took him in this afternoon and he's got conjunctivitis but no ulcers yet. so we're back up to two pills a day and some eye drops and if he's not better by next week we get to go back.
having to take him so often to the vet is beginning to be a nuisance. he's seeing an opthamology vet, and she and her assistant are absolutely wonderful and have been a big help in trying to get me things for free and not charging me for little things when he has surgery. but it's almost $50 anytime i have to bring him in, and on top of the expensive medicines it's beginning to take a toll. i am thankful that they are very helpful, though, and don't think i'm a crazy cat lady when i call them if he blinks funny.
the plan of action for now is to increase the famvir to twice a day for a month to try and put the virus into complete remission before we try to ween him again. his eyes look a lot better, though, which is a huge relief. maybe we can finally get a step ahead of this thing.
i was happy he didn't fight me on getting in and out of the cat carrier today, which is a huge acheivement. when we got home, we played with his laser pointer that my aunt sent him. this is also my new favorite toy, because i don't have to run around the apartment with it like i do with the little octopus-on-a-stick thing. no loud stomping = happy downstairs neighbors.
first post!
this is my first post. let's catch you up with a little about mason.
mason will be three years-old-in october. in december 2006, mason developed an eye irritation that we thought was caused by his constant playing around in the christmas tree. when it didn't clear up, we took him to the vet and he was diagnosed with an ulcer on his eye. he had surgery to correct this in early february 2007 and now has a cloudy mark on his eye (though he can see perfectly fine). in may 2007, we took a trip and had him kenneled. this caused another eye infection and his diagnosis of feline rhinotracheitis virus (feline herpes). since june, mason has had another surgery to repair a small ulcer in his other eye as well as cosmetic surgery to keep his eyelids from rolling inward and aggrivating the condition.
mason is currently on famvir, a human herpes medicine that does not have a generic and costs around $31 for 5 pills (he takes 1/4 twice daily), and l-lysine, an amino acid supplement to help stop the reproduction of the virus. so far, he's still having flare-ups. we try to keep everything for him as calm and relaxed as possible to lesson the chance of another ulcer.
other than that, mason is very friendly, and loves to climb in your lap if you're typing or trying to read a book. he also likes to pet your hair if you're petting him. and he is very vocal. if you don't answer immediately, he meows in what sounds like "ma-son". this doesn't help us figure out what he wants and is honestly kind of creepy. he is also a scaredy cat, which can be annoying when we're trying to keep him calm. here is a short list of things mason is afraid of:
* strangers
* when the DVD player opens
* the dishwasher
* the toaster
* toast
* athletic shoes
* ryan adams
* the yoga mat (in all fairness, it's because i've rigged it to fall on him if he tries to jump on the bedroom window at night)
* litter box covers
* being alone
* being with people
* the dark
* beetles
* hairspray
* pans
* cat food with chicken in it
so, that's pretty much what we'll be covering here.
mason will be three years-old-in october. in december 2006, mason developed an eye irritation that we thought was caused by his constant playing around in the christmas tree. when it didn't clear up, we took him to the vet and he was diagnosed with an ulcer on his eye. he had surgery to correct this in early february 2007 and now has a cloudy mark on his eye (though he can see perfectly fine). in may 2007, we took a trip and had him kenneled. this caused another eye infection and his diagnosis of feline rhinotracheitis virus (feline herpes). since june, mason has had another surgery to repair a small ulcer in his other eye as well as cosmetic surgery to keep his eyelids from rolling inward and aggrivating the condition.
mason is currently on famvir, a human herpes medicine that does not have a generic and costs around $31 for 5 pills (he takes 1/4 twice daily), and l-lysine, an amino acid supplement to help stop the reproduction of the virus. so far, he's still having flare-ups. we try to keep everything for him as calm and relaxed as possible to lesson the chance of another ulcer.
other than that, mason is very friendly, and loves to climb in your lap if you're typing or trying to read a book. he also likes to pet your hair if you're petting him. and he is very vocal. if you don't answer immediately, he meows in what sounds like "ma-son". this doesn't help us figure out what he wants and is honestly kind of creepy. he is also a scaredy cat, which can be annoying when we're trying to keep him calm. here is a short list of things mason is afraid of:
* strangers
* when the DVD player opens
* the dishwasher
* the toaster
* toast
* athletic shoes
* ryan adams
* the yoga mat (in all fairness, it's because i've rigged it to fall on him if he tries to jump on the bedroom window at night)
* litter box covers
* being alone
* being with people
* the dark
* beetles
* hairspray
* pans
* cat food with chicken in it
so, that's pretty much what we'll be covering here.
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