Last Thursday night, I went over to feed Buddy and give him his insulin. (It was "Star Wars" night, and Briton was not going to be able to leave the theater until very, very late.) Briton had said he hadn't been eating, despite appetite stimulants.
He was lying in the middle of Briton's bed, and looked bad. Very, very bad. I'd had a knot in my stomach about him all day, and I saw why. I got on the bed with him, just petting him, and knew something had to be done. Otherwise, Briton was going to come home to find that he had died.
Off again to UGA VER. The resident who did the intake recognized my name, and said, "Madeleine, right?" Turns out he was part of the team taking care of her.
I did the best I could to answer his questions, but, as involved as I've been in the last year-plus, I didn't know everything. He isn't my cat.
When the initial diagnosis and treatment options came in, we were looking at up to $3500. I can't do that. I'm already stretched taking care of Maddie. We arrived at an amount, and they promised to do as much as they could with that constraint.
Madeleine had to spend yesterday at UGA getting a glucose curve run, and I was able to talk to the intake resident, who said that Buddy was doing better. They'd gotten him to eat, and he was more energetic. Madeleine's doctor had also been looking at Buddy, and I told her that I had been hesitant to take control of those decisions, as they weren't really mine to make. I had felt, however, that Buddy was not going to make it through that night if I didn't get him some help. She nodded that we-both-know-what-we're-talking-about nod, saying, "You were right. You did the right thing."
News this morning was that he is still eating, but his kidney levels are a concern. They are going to increase fluids and see what happens. The doctors and Briton and I know that a decision will have to be made Monday. We will be at the end of the money, and, if Buddy hasn't significantly improved after 3 days and nights, the issue also becomes whether he will ever improve completely.
3 comments:
I am so sorry for your experience. Kittehs become a member of the family, and it is so hard to let them go.
So sorry to hear about this! Hopefully he'll have a rebound.
These are difficult days. The spirit of the cat will show you how to proceed. SOmetimes it is best to end the suffering, as you well know. Animals with diabetes....it is not easy to manage. Diabetic people have such trouble staying in glucose range....
Bless you all in your decisions.
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