Re: Need some additional info about my IG

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Posted by iZ's mom on January 23, 2001 at 22:17:56:

In Reply to: Need some additional info about my IG.(My ig is sick pleas.. posted by Cosmos Hoffman on January 23, 2001 at 16:45:21:

hi again Cosmos!

yes, i think it sounds like a good sign that Odlan is being more active! Besides it hopefully meaning that he feels a bit better, being more active will also help increase his metabolism and that will help his body (kidneys) get rid of wastes better and being more active will increase his appetite ... it will also help prevent him from becoming constipated ...

I know it feels rather mean to trick him or make him eat! I have had to do that with my iZ ... but you are right, they HAVE to eat so they can have enough energy to heal + be healthy again! Right now, while Odlan is very sick and his appetite is small, i think it is not as important to have a "Perfect Diet" for him, it is more important to just get some food and calories into him.

It is very probable that his tongue and throat are swollen and that makes it hard for him to eat + swallow ... makes him not want to even try to eat ... try cutting his food up in very small bits ... maybe use a food processor to make the leaves + vegetables into a mush (like baby food) and then feed him with a spoon???? (I've also had to do that with iZ when his throat was swollen.) ... Steroids will help reduce the swelling but only the vet can decide if it is a good idea to use them or not ... if he continues to leave his mouth open to breathe, you might want to take him back to the vet before his real vet comes back ~ yes, if his throat is swollen, that can affect his ability to breathe and then i would think he would need to be on steroids ...

the white things in the kitty box/bathroom ... 1st of all, there are 3 parts to an ig's 'waste' ... there's the solid poo, a clear liquid (urine), and some 'white stuff' (urates) that *should* be fairly thin + watery ... sometimes, when an ig has kidney problems, the urates get thicker than they should be and sometimes they turn into solid little chunks ~ that is probably what you saw ... making sure Odlan gets plenty of water should help stop that and prevent it from happening more BUT it may take weeks for it to stop because his body is just not working the eay it is supposed to right now ... the chunks are a sign of problems but are not a problem themselves (make sense?)

as far as him "not liking" his home ~ it might be that his abdomen is sore and that he can't get comfortable in there the way he used to???? when iZ was sick, he stopped liking his favorite bedtime shelf because it was too hard and it hurt his abdomen ... i had to make him a new bed-shelf out of plastic net so there wasn't so much pressure on his sore parts.

it is VERY GOOD that Odlan is able to go to the bathroom 1 + 2 times a day!!! it sounds like you are doing a very good job taking care of him! as long as the poo is pretty soft, i don't think you have to worry about that ... with him being sick and his diet changing and the medicine he's taking, the color and looks of the poo might change a bit for a while ... as long as he poops on a regular basis and it is soft, it should be ok ... IF the poop suddenly gets very BLACK, that could mean that there is intestinal bleeding and THEN you want to call the vet right away ... otherwise, try not to worry (too much!)

about calcium ... look for human stomach medicine ~ "antacids" ... (i don't know how that will translate!) ... the ingredient you want to look for is "Calcium Carbonate" ... there should be something for humans that has that as it's only ingredient ... if you can find that, i can help you figure out the correct dose for Odlan and then he won't neeed to take the other medicine any more ... (the one that starts with an "N" ... i forgot it's name) ...

i hope some of this helps! please keep letting us know how Odlan is doing and how we can help ok?

Thinking good thoughts for you both!
Bon. + iZ

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Re: Need some additional info about my IG Mr. D 01/25/01 (1)
- TUMS = Calcium Carbonate ...........nm iZ's mom 01/25/01 (0)

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: hi again Cosmos! : yes, i think it sounds like a good sign that Odlan is being more active! Besides it hopefully meaning that he feels a bit better, being more active will also help increase his metabolism and that will help his body (kidneys) get rid of wastes better and being more active will increase his appetite ... it will also help prevent him from becoming constipated ... : I know it feels rather mean to trick him or make him eat! I have had to do that with my iZ ... but you are right, they HAVE to eat so they can have enough energy to heal + be healthy again! Right now, while Odlan is very sick and his appetite is small, i think it is not as important to have a "Perfect Diet" for him, it is more important to just get some food and calories into him. : It is very probable that his tongue and throat are swollen and that makes it hard for him to eat + swallow ... makes him not want to even try to eat ... try cutting his food up in very small bits ... maybe use a food processor to make the leaves + vegetables into a mush (like baby food) and then feed him with a spoon???? (I've also had to do that with iZ when his throat was swollen.) ... Steroids will help reduce the swelling but only the vet can decide if it is a good idea to use them or not ... if he continues to leave his mouth open to breathe, you might want to take him back to the vet before his real vet comes back ~ yes, if his throat is swollen, that can affect his ability to breathe and then i would think he would need to be on steroids ... : the white things in the kitty box/bathroom ... 1st of all, there are 3 parts to an ig's 'waste' ... there's the solid poo, a clear liquid (urine), and some 'white stuff' (urates) that *should* be fairly thin + watery ... sometimes, when an ig has kidney problems, the urates get thicker than they should be and sometimes they turn into solid little chunks ~ that is probably what you saw ... making sure Odlan gets plenty of water should help stop that and prevent it from happening more BUT it may take weeks for it to stop because his body is just not working the eay it is supposed to right now ... the chunks are a sign of problems but are not a problem themselves (make sense?) : as far as him "not liking" his home ~ it might be that his abdomen is sore and that he can't get comfortable in there the way he used to???? when iZ was sick, he stopped liking his favorite bedtime shelf because it was too hard and it hurt his abdomen ... i had to make him a new bed-shelf out of plastic net so there wasn't so much pressure on his sore parts. : it is VERY GOOD that Odlan is able to go to the bathroom 1 + 2 times a day!!! it sounds like you are doing a very good job taking care of him! as long as the poo is pretty soft, i don't think you have to worry about that ... with him being sick and his diet changing and the medicine he's taking, the color and looks of the poo might change a bit for a while ... as long as he poops on a regular basis and it is soft, it should be ok ... IF the poop suddenly gets very BLACK, that could mean that there is intestinal bleeding and THEN you want to call the vet right away ... otherwise, try not to worry (too much!) : about calcium ... look for human stomach medicine ~ "antacids" ... (i don't know how that will translate!) ... the ingredient you want to look for is "Calcium Carbonate" ... there should be something for humans that has that as it's only ingredient ... if you can find that, i can help you figure out the correct dose for Odlan and then he won't neeed to take the other medicine any more ... (the one that starts with an "N" ... i forgot it's name) ... : i hope some of this helps! please keep letting us know how Odlan is doing and how we can help ok? : Thinking good thoughts for you both! : Bon. + iZ

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