Newman is all about love. He is one of the happiest, friendliest, most loving fur babies I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. I’m saying this even though Newman pretty much ignored me the last time I came to visit with him. He did have a good snooze going and all he could muster was enough strength to open one eye. It’s a tough life! I thought, well maybe, just maybe if I hang out with all the other guys and gals in the FIV suite, he’ll get at least a little bit curious. I think if I’d waited him out for three or four hours I would’ve stood a chance (he has to eat, right?), but he wasn’t budging. Instead he curled himself up even snugglier and tucked his head under.
So I spent some time visiting with Lester and Trooper who are both sweeties and apparently more rested than Newman! Nuttin begged me to help him break out of his e-collar, but he quickly gave up that pursuit. When it was time to go, I quietly stepped over to Newman’s perch in the cat tree to say my goodbyes and I got an acknowledgement. Yippee! He actually picked up his head and both eyes opened! Nah, he still wasn’t moving, but nice of him to say goodbye to me!
Here’s a bit of a cautionary tale for cat people. Earlier this month, some volunteers noticed that Newman urinated on the laundry bags while they were in cleaning the suite. That’s odd behavior for this boy, who’s had bad poo, but not bad litterbox habits before. Newman’s accident won him a ticket to a full exam, which has turned up a couple of issues of note. First, while his urine was dark, the urinalysis came back normal. The vet staff also found that he needed a dental, and as part of the pre-dental workup, they ran bloodwork.
Here’s where the plot gets thicker: the bloodwork showed that Newman’s liver enzymes were elevated. Not good. They ran a bile acids test, which came back at high levels. Also not good. Newman’s poo has been better, and he’s been acting fine, but clearly something is going on with his liver. We’ve scheduled him for an abdominal ultrasound to see if we can figure this out, because as of now, Newman seems bound to mystify us. And given that Newman’s weight has been stable, and he’s been acting normal, if it weren’t for the fact that he peed in the wrong place, we might not have realized that something was up with him.
Thanks to you, Newman’s wonderful supporters, he is getting all the support and love that he needs.
May you be well and stay warm in the month ahead.