Update for Fenek

Update for Fenek

April Greetings to You, and to all Fenek’s friends!

Health news takes precedence this month.

On Thursday afternoon, March 31, Fenek was observed to have labored and open-mouth breathing. A chest x-ray revealed a pleural effusion, or fluid buildup in the chest cavity. He was given oxygen and taken to the emergency veterinary hospital, where the fluid was drained and samples tested.  Fenek was released on April 3 and brought back to Tabby’s Place, where he will now receive heart medication in addition to the existing meds for diabetes and his ears. He routinely has his ears checked by the vet team once a week, at which time they administer longer-acting medications if needed for pain and infection.

Medical staff had been planning to take him to a specialist to evaluate whether further surgical intervention is required to help Fenek’s ears, but due to his pleural effusion, that is being postponed until Fenek is cleared to go under anesthesia. They were advised to begin a new medication to treat the inflammation more aggressively.

On the subject of his diabetes, Fenek has been gradually losing weight over the past month and his appetite hasn’t been consistent. His insulin levels have continued to fluctuate, so now he has his blood glucose level checked twice each day. This helps the staff determine the proper dose of insulin he needs, varying from none up to 3 units twice a day.

As you can imagine, Fenek isn’t 100%, and it shows. You can see in these pictures the shaved areas on one side and right foreleg. There’s a similar area over the ribcage on his other side as well. Just the same, he still enjoys being held and petted.

When I arrived at Tabby’s Place on April 3, Fenek was nestled in the arms of a staff member, and it wasn’t long before he took his place on my lap for more rest and petting therapy. I got the close-up photo on my lap, and one of our volunteer photographers recorded the image from a little farther away.

While those two shots look like he’s tuning out the rest of the world, the other picture shows he has plenty of spirit left when someone comes to try to medicate him.  That’s a “Get away from me” look if I ever saw one.

With all his current health problems, it’s not difficult to imagine Fenek’s situation if he weren’t being cared for at Tabby’s Place. But Tabby’s Place does it, with your help. Thank you for your generosity that helps make it possible.

In other news, by now you know that Tabby’s Place is building an expansion called Quinn’s Corner, for vulnerable cats with feline leukemia virus (FeLV). As we prepare to open our expansion later this year, our need for volunteers increases. Volunteers are a huge part of our operation, as we could not run Tabby’s Place without them.

Beginning in May, we will launch an intense volunteer recruitment campaign to find those willing to give the gift of time and make an impact on the lives of our cats.  If you know of anyone who would be interested in volunteering (perhaps even you!), please let them know we will soon be reaching out with more details. (They can sign up to receive our emails here; scroll down to the “subscribe” box.) There are many types of volunteer duties to fit diverse abilities and schedules.

Thank you, as always, for helping to spread the word about Tabby’s Place.

Until next month, we are wishing you all good things.

Your correspondent,
John