Pallina, hyperthyroid cat. Seeking advice

[booktigger]

Fingers crossed that the mass isn't anything serious, and she can still have her treatment. Hopefully she won't be left with kidney issues.

[Antonio]

Update.
The phone call didn't come. It was supposed to be at 11 am, but at 11:40 I got out from the hotel, jumped in the car and went to the university. I hoped to see someone of the doctors in the corridors, but after 20 minutes waiting I decided to ask the reception to call one of them.
A doctor arrived, he admitted he had forgotten to call me, he was so sorry.
The new ultrasound made this morning didn't show any mass in the chest, probably yesterday it was a different position of Pallina on the X-ray table, but the liquid is still there, around the heart and in some areas of the chest. Very little amounts here and there. They say it's absolutely unusual, but this wasn't a problem for the treatment which was done this morning after the ultrasound.

Now Pallina is in isolation and will be discharged on Friday between 9 am and 4 pm, whenever I want.
She ate something and used the litter.

The only recommendation is to have Pallina checked 4 weeks after she gets back home to investigate on that liquid.

I asked the doctor about the injection on I-131, he told me that it's a one off IV injection of radioactive iodine. Only one this morning and then waiting for part of the radioactivity to decrease.
I thought it was an under skin injection...

So, everything is going on as planned, only one day later. I wonder how much more radiation would have died off with one more day in isolation.

Next update tomorrow, don't know when, most likely before noon.

See you tomorrow

[Lilith]

That's hopeful then but arrgghhh grrrr don't you just hate people who don't ring with important news when they say they will? Put you through a load of stress!

Everything still crossed for Pallina! x

[booktigger]

Glad there was nothing serious and she could have the treatment

[Antonio]

Hi all, here is the Wednesday update

Yesterday the vet told me that I would have received daily updates from them about Pallina.
I've been waiting for a phone call all day, but that call never came.
Yes, Lilith, it drives me mad when they promise to call and they don't!
I have to say that with this clinic/university there's a communication issue. It isn't the first time that my requests of info or contact get unnoticed.

Anyway, they say that no news is good news, as a matter of fact if something was wrong they would have"probably" called me.
I do hope they will call me tomorrow, at least to arrange the discharging of Pallina from the clinic. If she's discharged before noon I could drive towards home right away (well, I will stop halfway like when we came up here) and be there one day in advance. At the hotel they will give me back the money for the night I wouldn't spend with them.
I'm getting bored over here, I am visiting some places around, but there's not much to see. I also asked the receptionist, who knows the area very well, and she told me that she can't advise me.
I will tell you more tomorrow night. Hopefully I will write something more than a virtually empty post.

[Lilith]

Hi, yes, waiting is awful, and you can't exactly enjoy yourself sightseeing when all you're thinking about is Pallina and wanting to be with her. But the worst is over now; hopefully her levels will be going down and do hope her kidneys are ok - hope you have more positive news today, all the very best and fusses to Pallina - well, virtual fusses at the moment

[Antonio]

Hi everybody!
We're home!!! Two days earlier than we expected.
Pallina has been discharged from the clinic this morning at 9:30.
I thought to do the same thing as one week ago, to split the journey in two and have a stop halfway. But because I left early from the clinic and I wasn't too tired, I drove straight to home, 1070 km in 12 hours!
It was a long drive but it was worth it
This way I saved a night in a hotel, a dinner, a breakfast and a lunch.

Pallina is doing fine, she's happy to be home, but she's a bit confused. The first thing she did was drinking 150 ml of water altogether with an empty stomach, so she vomited all the water 10 minutes later
Now she's asking for some water and doesn't want to eat... I left her very little water in her bowl, I'm afraid she will drink only and vomit afterwards.

She lost 60 g of weight since Monday and 200 g in a week... Hopefully now that she's back home she will gain some weight.
We'll have a check on her level in 4 weeks time.

The doctor this morning explained me the aftercare, but she also told me that all the precautions in the guideline are for an extreme safety measure, and even if we don't follow them strictly we will receive little or no harm.
Before discharging Pallina they checked her radiation level with a Geiger counter and it's 20 times lower than the maximum level allowed by local laws. The doctor said it's going down very quickly and probably the two-week safety period is even too long, but better safe than sorry.

I was the first Italian to go to that clinic ever, and as far as I know probably one of the few in the whole country to have done such a thing.

I'll keep you updated in the next few days

Thanks for your positive thoughts!!!

[Mayday21]

Hi Antonio great that you're both home & keep us posted on Pallina's progress. Vivian

[booktigger]

Glad she was able to be discharged early, fingers crossed

[Lilith]

Hey Antonio that's great! I'm not surprised you wanted to get home fast. Hope Pallina's recovered from her vomiting; for a cat so stressy about travelling she's done very well, but hope she starts eating ok now.

Mousey sends big purrs and love to Pallina and so do I - will update Mouse's thread after my next phone call.

Hey, one thing I really really have to know - does Pallina's litter tray glow green in the dark?

[Antonio]

Lilith,
Pallina's litter does not glow in the dark

She's eating fine. Last night she drank an incredible amount of water and she was very thirsty along the road too. I don't want to think that they never gave her water during the week! But she really acted as she was dying thirsty.

To be honest I am not following all the directions they gave to me for the aftercare.
Of course I am keeping the litter in a separate bin and will be keeping it until November. But I am not keeping Pallina isolated, nor am I keeping a distance from her. If she wants to stay next to me or on my lap she's welcome. Also I am not washing my hands every time I cuddle her or she licks or love-bites me

She travelled on the seat next to mine for 12h, I didn't sit her in the boot or the back seat
I should glow in the dark too by now

When I was at the clinic I asked the doctor whether I had to tell the hotel that I was with a radioactive cat. She told me not to tell anyone anything.
I didn't stop, though, I drove straight to home.

I do hope your Mouse has the same quick recovery!

[booktigger]

I do hope you don't end up with anything for not following instructions!

[Lilith]

Aww Antonio what a shame - I was kind of looking forward to luminous litter!

You're braver than I am - I live alone and my worst nightmare is being ill or helpless and having to ask for help, so I'm going to have to observe the guidelines, I'll be stressed out otherwise. And then there's the two gingers to worry about .... I'd be a nervous wreck. So poor Mousey will have to stay in isolation. I'll make it up to her with posh gourmet meals, the little horror will get spoilt.

Lots of love to Pallina - I bet she's so glad to be home and no more tiresome meds and treatments

[Kay]

my Trigger came home after 14 post injection days, and I was only told to store used litter and throw out anything else he wee'd on

but the absence of rules about close contact was because I was beyond child-bearing years - the main dangers of radiation are to the unborn child, I believe, and just in case they are applied to any woman who could be pregnant

[Antonio]

@Booktigger,
I thought that if Pallina doesn't get too much damage from the radiations she's emitting (and absorbing) 24/7, why should I receive damage if I touch her about 1h a day? After all I am bigger than her.

@Lilith,
Pallina is still doing fine, she's eating with a good appetite. She didn't drink a lot anymore, so my opinion is that the poor girl didn't see too much water during the week at the clinic, but how can I be sure of that? I don't think I can ask them this question...

@Kay,
it seems that every centre has its own guidelines, how can we be sure that they are all right?

I keep wondering what Pallina thinks it has happened to her.
Will she think that it was just a terrible nightmare?
Or will she have a perfect and vivid memory of a long travel only to be touched and tortured by someone who spoke a language she couldn't understand?

Question:
Before beginning the long trip I had bought a new and very soft cushion for Pallina to make her trip easier in her carrier. At the clinic the brand new cushion has been destroyed!!! It was contaminated... They gave me a large towel to lay inside the carrier for the trip back home. They told me to throw it away once home.
Now Pallina has her own beds and blankets here at home, she's using them all. Should I throw them all away in a few weeks? What would I have to do with them?
The carrier is fine because it's plastic.
Thanks!

[Lilith]

Hi Antonio, I know this is a little confusing.

I was advised to bring something with my scent on it, like a used T shirt - I provided a used pillowcase - to the centre to make Mouse feel more at home, but was warned that if this becomes contaminated with wee, faeces or any body fluids it will have to be scrapped and can't be taken away when I collect her.

But after 6 weeks everything, as I understand it, even if contaminated with mess, puke etc, won't be sufficiently radioactive to pose a danger. For instance, when she's allowed free run of the house after a fortnight, if she pukes on a rug, I should clean the puke off, flush that, and then roll up the rug and store it until the 6 weeks is over. It will be ok to reuse then. Carpeting or flooring, if she sicks up on that, I've to cover the messed up area (I've got some large tape) until the 6 weeks are up; then it will be ok.

I suppose that there are regulations about releasing contaminated items back to the owner? So I wouldn't worry about the rest of Pallina's belongings - if she's sick on a blanket, for instance, just sponge it down with paper towels and flush them, put the blanket in a plastic bag, then in 6 weeks wash it. At least that's what I'd do.

Wow, it's a lot to take in!

Shame about your cushion though!

[Mayday21]

Hi Folks I sent Elsa off with a pillow she used to sleep on & was told it won't be coming back home. Vivian

[Antonio]

So far she hasn't puked on any of her items, apart when she came home, drank like a camel (as we say in this part of the world) and then she vomited on the floor, tiled.
I cleaned it up straight afterwards using also spray detergents.
She just sits or sleeps on her blankets, so I reckon they will be fine, won't they?
A few minutes ago she puked two small amounts of water in her litter.
This morning she isn't very well, she hasn't eaten, but this was typical even before the treatment.
If she doesn't eat in the next few hours I'm considering giving her a short course of Ranitidine just as I did in the days before going to Ghent.

[vanilla]

Hope Pallina is getting better each day... sending hugs to her dressed in my radioactive suit

[Lilith]

Hey Antonio, how's she doing? Hope she's eating better, purrs and hugs from Mousey and me

[Antonio]

Hi everybody,
Pallina is better today, she ate her usual 2 cans of wet food and acted as usual. Today was a good day, and it was a little fresher than in the past few days, so I might think that the heat had something to do in her lack of appetite.
In about a week we should be out of the "red zone", though, as I said before, I have never been really in "danger mode"
Pallina is sending glowing purrs to you all

[Lilith]

Ah that's good news - probably was the heat. My Mouse's appetite is just the same but this is the UK - you know what they say, it has 9 months winter and 3 months bad weather lol (not!)

Mousey sends glowing purrs back to Pallina!

[Antonio]

Pallina is back at her good appetite!

At the clinic they advised me not to let her out for the first two weeks. The reason is that if she pees outside the ground could be contaminated. But she's never done such a thing in all her life. If she's outside and needs the litter, she comes inside, uses it and then gets out again. She is very polite
So they told me that in this case it was no harm to let her out.

This morning she was out for a short walk but she sneaked outside the fence and went to a field where she rolled into a dirt spot!!!
She came back home completely brown with dirt!
My attempts to clean her with a wet cloth didn't work so I had to shower her!
I put her into the bath tub and used the hand shower and shampoo to wash her thoroughly until she came out as white as snow
She was absolutely shocked by this experience, the last bath she had was 15 years ago.

She's absolutely lively for a 16 yo cat.

This morning I realized that at the cllinic they lost one of the latches that keep my carrier closed! The carrier was also equipped with two straps to prevent accidental openings. They had lost them two, but they were aware of that. The latch has been lost during the stay, I sent an email this morning, but I think that the chances to retrieve it are at a minimum...

[Lilith]

Hey that's great news about her appetite

It's impossible to know how they feel, isn't it? I thought my Mouse was off her feed yesterday but thankfully she's back to normal too.

Lol, Pallina sounds to be getting back to downright normal and naughty - wow I wouldn't DARE shower Mousey - I know who'd win!

Lots of purrs and hugs from Mousey and me to you and Pallina

[Antonio]

Damn cat!
She managed to escape to the neighbour's yard again!
I thought I had made my backyard cat-proof but it's clear that there's a fault somewhere.
Pallina stays outside only when I can be with her. She mainly lays on the ground and sleeps or rests or just looks around her. As a matter of fact I have just found out that she begs to be taken to the backyard not for sleeping in a fresh spot, but to study the fences and the nets I have installed. While she lays down, she kept an eye closed (the one towards me) and the other eye half-open to elaborate escape plans. When I'm with her she just lays down, but as soon as I go inside for 15 seconds she's already on the other side!!! She's fooling me!!!

I'm taking care and feeding some feral kittens in my front yard.
Half an hour ago I was there watching them eating to make sure no-one else would steal their food, Pallina was home. When she realized that I wasn't looking at her anymore she sneaked out the door, someway she jumped over the gate to the backyard (the same gate that she pretends not to be able to cross when it's closed and I'm with her!) and a few seconds later she was in the next yard. I called her back with a loud voice and she instantly ran back home and I found out where the hole in the cat-proof net is. Now I have to fix it.
But I'm sure she already has more small passages up her "sleeve"

Luckily enough this time she came back home clean, or I would have showered her again
When I showered her yesterday I was home alone and was positive I would have ended up to the ER at the local hospital. She was so shocked and surprised that didn't move a claw

[Lilith]

Is her surname Houdini?

[Antonio]

Is her surname Houdini?

This is what I said yesterday when I found out that she had gone to the other side despite the net

[Antonio]

Today's Friday. The second Friday after the end of the treatment in Belgium.
According to the guidelines, this is the last day of the special period, tomorrow we'd be free to live our normal life, kiss and hug Pallina, dispose of her litter wherever we want.
I think I want to extend this special period until the end of the month at least for the litter, the only precaution I have had so far. Then, from September 1st, I will count three months and at the beginning of December I will throw it all away
I also stuck a yellow and black sign with the radiation danger warning on the bin at the back of the house I had been dreaming about having one of them for all my life, now I have a good reason for that

Pallina is not the same herself anymore, though.
After the shower of a few days ago because she was all dirty, she hasn't been her usual anymore. She's much quieter, she's sleepy, she eats a little less, doesn't wake me up in the morning anymore.
I wonder what happened to her since that wet nightmare she had...

[Lilith]

Ah. I think she may be giving you what Mayday calls the Black Paw because of that shower. She'll come round

So glad you're nearly out of the danger zone, hope she does start eating better soon but Mouse's appetite has been quite erratic. We can't know how they feel after a gigantic shock to their system like this. Haven't been on for 3 days because of pc problems but been having fun with what goes in and what comes out the other end too Yuck!

As ever all the best

[Mayday21]

Hi Antonio having been on the receiving end of the black paw "I'm keeping my distance afterbwhat you did!" I hope Pallina's back yo waking you soon. Keep us posted & don't forget she's been thru quite a bit in the last month. Vivian