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howeirdTook Pumpkin to the vet for a dental cleaning. They needed him in by 8 am, since he gets anesthetized for this. It is way too early in the morning for me to be functional.
It was a relatively sleepless night because I had to hide the cat food (Pumpkin could not eat anything after 8 pm in prep for being put under) and he was so hungry that he kept trying to lick my arms. When I put them under the covers, he clawed at the covers. And when I told him to stop, he sulked and curled up on top of my arm. When he sleeps on the bed, he usually parks himself at the foot, since I am prone to roll over a lot in my sleep. At 6:38 when I woke up (beating the alarm clock by 22 minutes) he was curled up against my right side.
He knew something was up, followed me into the bathroom until I turned on the shower, and followed me, meowing all the way as I went downstairs to the kitchen, took my meds and got my shoes on.
Then came the fun part - trying to get him into the carrier. I'd brought it out of the storage room last night, and it was sitting in the livingroom all evening. Usually he and Domino will play in and around the carriers, but not this time.
He fought me for about 5 minutes, before I managed to get his head inside and use my body as a wall to encourage the rest of his 20 lbs. inside. Once inside he became the Horrible Crying Machine. He meows in a kind of Ravel Bolero rhythm. Meow. pause. Meow. Pause. Ad infinitum all the way out to the car, and to the vet's and inside the vet's. The pauses were about the same length as the meows. I could use him for backup on my next album.
Signed the paperwork, which included an estimate. Talk about sticker shock! For just the basic dental exam and cleaning it comes to almost $400. That's with a $50 Dental Health Month discount. Almost as much as my new crown cost.
Speaking of which, at 9:30 I go in to my dentist and have the temporary crown popped off and the permanent one installed. And then they need to fill one cavity, and adjust my partial to fit the new crown. I have been without lower molars for two weeks, which seriously limited my choice of cuisine. I mostly stuck to soup (Progresso's split pea is pretty good stuff) and those little stuffed potato thingies which are mashed potato with cheese or sour cream and chives packed into a paper boat about the size & shape of a baked potato. Bananas, sugar free chocolate pudding (Jello makes some excellent stuff). Broke down once and had a shake at Burger King.
And this afternoon I go to the endocrinologist, my first appointment with him. I had gone to one on referral a few years ago when I did not belong to Kaiser, and for some reason never got any good information out of that visit. I'm hoping for better luck this time. One nice thing about Kaiser is my doctor and diabetes nurse are very good communicators.
After that appointment it should be about time to pick up Pumpkin.
It was a relatively sleepless night because I had to hide the cat food (Pumpkin could not eat anything after 8 pm in prep for being put under) and he was so hungry that he kept trying to lick my arms. When I put them under the covers, he clawed at the covers. And when I told him to stop, he sulked and curled up on top of my arm. When he sleeps on the bed, he usually parks himself at the foot, since I am prone to roll over a lot in my sleep. At 6:38 when I woke up (beating the alarm clock by 22 minutes) he was curled up against my right side.
He knew something was up, followed me into the bathroom until I turned on the shower, and followed me, meowing all the way as I went downstairs to the kitchen, took my meds and got my shoes on.
Then came the fun part - trying to get him into the carrier. I'd brought it out of the storage room last night, and it was sitting in the livingroom all evening. Usually he and Domino will play in and around the carriers, but not this time.
He fought me for about 5 minutes, before I managed to get his head inside and use my body as a wall to encourage the rest of his 20 lbs. inside. Once inside he became the Horrible Crying Machine. He meows in a kind of Ravel Bolero rhythm. Meow. pause. Meow. Pause. Ad infinitum all the way out to the car, and to the vet's and inside the vet's. The pauses were about the same length as the meows. I could use him for backup on my next album.
Signed the paperwork, which included an estimate. Talk about sticker shock! For just the basic dental exam and cleaning it comes to almost $400. That's with a $50 Dental Health Month discount. Almost as much as my new crown cost.
Speaking of which, at 9:30 I go in to my dentist and have the temporary crown popped off and the permanent one installed. And then they need to fill one cavity, and adjust my partial to fit the new crown. I have been without lower molars for two weeks, which seriously limited my choice of cuisine. I mostly stuck to soup (Progresso's split pea is pretty good stuff) and those little stuffed potato thingies which are mashed potato with cheese or sour cream and chives packed into a paper boat about the size & shape of a baked potato. Bananas, sugar free chocolate pudding (Jello makes some excellent stuff). Broke down once and had a shake at Burger King.
And this afternoon I go to the endocrinologist, my first appointment with him. I had gone to one on referral a few years ago when I did not belong to Kaiser, and for some reason never got any good information out of that visit. I'm hoping for better luck this time. One nice thing about Kaiser is my doctor and diabetes nurse are very good communicators.
After that appointment it should be about time to pick up Pumpkin.
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no subject
Date: 2005-01-26 05:27 pm (UTC)No wonder they do the metronome meow in the car!
I always feel guilty, but resolute, when driving my pets to the vet. ;)
no subject
Date: 2005-01-26 08:03 pm (UTC)I never feel guilty driving them to the vet, just ego bruised that they keep up that meowing even when I sing to them.
no subject
Date: 2005-01-26 08:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-26 10:01 pm (UTC)First of all, $400 for a cleaning is about routine.
Secondly, creatinine is something that the kidney usually processes out and can be elevated in cases of early renal (kidney) failure or dehydration. If it's slightly elevated, the usual process is to give lots of fluids during surgery to help flush out the creatinine and help support the kidneys. It's important to support the kidneys since (a) they're a major organ that one can't live without and (b) they help to process and flush out the anesthesia. So IV fluids are a Good Thing in this situation.
Hope there aren't any extractions needed!
no subject
Date: 2005-01-26 10:27 pm (UTC)Yup, I figured the price was reasonable, considering all the stuff around doing anesthesia. If someone tried to clean Pumpkin's teeth while he was awake they would be shredded. And I know the IV is the right thing to do (I'm diabetic and have borderline creatinine levels myself).
But it *is* expensive.
Dr. Sawyer called, he said all went well except for a bit of gum bleeding around one canine, for which he'll prescribe antibiotics.
no subject
Date: 2005-01-26 11:24 pm (UTC)Well, at least I got the kidney function thing right!
But sorry that the kitty is having minor kidney troubles. :(
no subject
Date: 2005-01-27 02:22 am (UTC)I don't think he has kidney trouble, the creatinine level was borderline and two other readins (which I promptly forgot the names of) appeared normal. But I'll bring him back in a month for another blood test.