Oh Annie, I am so sorry to hear about your baby. What a sweet face. Finger and toes crossed for her. You're in my thoughts girl.

Annie, lots of hugging love to Pinkums and you. I was crying reading your latest report on her. Please see if you can get a more decent place for her to be transferred to on Monday. I feel like slapping these people myself! Sorry, you said no negative remarks, but I couldn't help myself. Keeping my fingers tightly crossed for her.

Eduarda

My prayers are going out to both you and Pinkums!!! I also read the latest post; OMG please get her out of there ASAP! Love and hugs, Becky

Pinkums is finally eating a little on her own now and with the IV and me feeding her when I can get over there, she is gaining a little weight. I think she looks much better than she did when I last took pictures of her on August 3rd. She is filled out a little bit since then and doesn't look so depressed.
As you can see, she looks up at me now. She didn't for several weeks. She has good days and not so good days still, but I think I can see improvement.

Special Thanks to Becky and GGG for the adorable and pretty kitty Get Well Cards they sent to Pinkums. The sentiments were very special too. Brought tears to me eyes to see them when I walked into the hospital today.
The animal hospital was really impressed that she had friends who sent her the cards. They said that had never happened before.
They taped them to her cage. I was impressed that they did that.
{{gwi:610094}} August 16, 2009 (the stamped date on the photo is wrong)

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{{gwi:610096}} August 16, 2009

Thank you ladies! Pinkums and I feel very loved.
Please continue to pray for her. She still has a long way to go before she can just get off the oxygen, let alone come home. And it will take months after that for her to fully recover.
I have been so stressed out over her that the hair at my temples has turned snowy white since she was hospitalized. No kidding!
And now I have a cold of some kind. Ugh. I feel just awful.

Today was not one of Pinkums good days, but she did eat a little tuna and dry kibble both and that was good enough.

~Annie

Here is a link that might be useful: Several Pictures of the Pinkums and her friends

Dear Annie, I'm just back to reading on the forums again after several weeks, due to a pet problem of my own. So very sorry to hear all you have been through with Pinkums and I hope she continues to improve and completely recover. She is so lucky to have you for a mom with all your knowledge and vet skills. Wish I had known about the pet forum earlier. When I feel up to it I'll post my sad pet story. You and Pinkums are in my thoughts. Big hugs to you both. Debby

Dear Annie~ It's good to see that Pinkums is feeling a bit better, and I'm glad you got the card! : )

Looked at the photos in your link and they were wonderful--I had no idea she had so many companions! Love the name Hydrox for your tuxedo kitty---just like the oreo cookies brand name how cute! Missy Ling is gorgeous she looks part Siamese.My Bella and PePe kitties are half Siamese, but don't look it much.

Do take care of yourself--plenty of rest and fluids, how about some herbal tea with lemon and honey?

p.s. My Bella is doing much better, off of meds thank goodness.

p.s.s. Found a food that my Bella really likes to eat, maybe Pinkums would eat it too! Fancy Feast (brand) savory salmon feast--it's a bit pricey, 50 cents for a small can, but worth it I think if they will eat when sick! It has a very smooth consistency like a pate, that they can lick and don't have to chew and chunks--so it's very easy for them to lap up, especially helpful when they are sick and may have trouble chewing the chunks.

My Bella kitty was eating tuna like your Pinkums, but really only wanted the tuna juice. Then I read (online) that kitties need extra taurine in their diets (unless they are exclusively eating raw meat). So, since canned kitty food has added taurine in it, I searched and kept trying different brands etc until I found this one by Fancy Feast: Savory Salmon Feast(it comes in a tiny orange and white can with a pull lid). BOTH my cats love it!!! It is available in most regular grocery stores in the pet food aisle, about 50 cents a can. Just thought I would let you know, in case Pinkums would like it.

Love and hugs and continued Best Wishes,

XXXXX Becky

Sorry to hijack Pinkum's thread, but just wanted to say to Becky - my dog has been through some problems recently and hadn't eaten for two days until tonight. I gave her a can of Kitty's food, some Fancy Feast Giblets and Gravy. She ate it!She wouldn't eat the great Beneful Dinner Entrees or the other variety of gourmet dog foods I bought for her, but she liked that oily smelly cat food. (Hopefully it doesn't all get puked up around midnight tonight)

Yes, Annie take care you yourself as well!

My neighbors also highly recommend jarred infant foods for sick kitties! It is a good idea since the ingredients are high quality (but I wouldn't keep them on it for long).
It looks like Pink's food is pretty raw there, but she is looking fairly good. I think her fur looks quite well, which is a great sign.
Love the way she is leaning into her oxygen and holding it with her paw!!
Glad the card arrived safely. My kitties love to see photos of cats on the computer monitor, they are all "ROOTING" for Pinkums!

GGG

Becky,
Thanks for the tip. I had already been buying it. I bought the Fancy Feast for kittens, hoping to give her a little more nutrition. She does not like the pate type cat food AT ALL! Sick or not, she will not eat it (little stinker). I bought about ten cans of different flavors to see which she might eat. She likes tuna. PERIOD. (Little primadonna) She did eat a little of two or three vaieties, but then wouldn't touch it, so I brought it home and the cats at home thought they had died and gone to heaven!
So, I tried different things when he appetite waned.
tomorrow I am taking two cans of Friskies Flaked Tuna. It has a lot of meat juice, which is what she likes best.
And she likes the Friskies (nice and smelly), so we shall see if it tantalizes her taste buds. Little punk!
Talk to you all tomorrow. We are having a big, bad thunderstorm right now. Flooding and bad lightening, so I am getting off here.
Glad to see you again Debby!
Many Thanks to Edna, Eduarda, Becky and Christine and Debby.
You are all dear to me, I hope you know.

Love Annie

Annie, have you tried cooking for Pinkums? I know vets just want us to feed pets the brand foods, which have all the nourishment they need, but when Timmy is sick my vet gives the OK to give him chicken broth with rice. Just like for humans - my Mom swears for a good chicken broth when we are sick :-)

You could try to boil a bit of chicken, then slice the meat in tiny bits and maybe add some rice. Even if she didn't eat the solid parts, the broth itself would be good for her and maybe she would lick it. It's so easy to do and would be a variation on her usual food, maybe she would take a fancy on it - cats are such picky eaters. My Mom also boils fresh fish for her cats. After boiling, she slices the fish in tiny bits, deboned of course, and feeds it to them as a treat. They love it. Sometimes they sit on the kitchen counter next to the stove when the fish is cooking, just to smell it, LOL!

Big hugs and get well wishes to sweet Pinkums
Eduarda

Darling girl,
This is so heart breaking.
I mixed canned chicken or beef broth with the pablum. I used different consistences until I found which he preferred. Some days he would turn his nose up at anything.

I also mixed chicken gravy mix for him to drink. My theory was something was better than nothing.

Take care of Annie, also.

Kathy

Good Morning, Kathy,

I was up all night watching that storm. Man! It was horrific! Flooding widespread, but not here because we live on a high ridge out of any flood plain. It came in bands about 30 minutes apart, kind of like a hurricane. Strange. The lightening was unreal!
My English Shepherd, Sheppie, is terrified of lightening and was literally under my feet or legs all night. I just couldn't go to bed and leave him alone frightened the way he was. Now I feel horrible. I used to be able to stay up all night and go to work. Not anymore.
I'm going to eat some cereal and go to bed here in a minute.
It is still raining, but no thunder and lightening, so he went outside to relieve himself.
That dog is so smart. He walks outside and looks up into the sky and searches for a few minutes. If he doesn't see any stars, he turns around and heads back inside. If he sees lightening off in the distance, he immediately dashes back inside. Poor baby. Poor HUGE baby.
Kathy, you are such a dear. My arthritis has been really bothering me the past few days. What's up with that? My doctor took Xrays and told me that the arthritis has advanced in my knees and feet now and is really starting to hinder my walking and doing anything. I walk like an old broken down mare! Embarrassing! Of course, if I sit for more than a minute, then my feet and ankles swell up like the Stay Puff Marshmallow man. What a deal, huh? Scr-wed either way I go. :)

As for The Pink Cat, she is being fed and is even eating a little on her own now. We just need to help her get her body weight back up so she doesn't get stressed so easily. She looks a lot better. I didn't think she would make it last week, to tell you the truth. She was just bones with skin stretched over them and limp. She wouldn't look at me. Just stared off into space. That really worried me. She was depressed and couldn't do anything but lay on her side with her face shoved into the oxygen cone. I started feeding her and now she is eating for the vets too.
I bought some NATURALS brand dry cat kibble for my other cats to see if it could possibly help three of the cats that have allergies to all other foods I have tried. They lose their fur and get sores. I saw this brand and decided to give it a try. They all love it and I can see some improvement in their hair and skin already. I am going to take some over to give to Pink. It has no artificial flavors or colors. The other cats are going after it like a kid after candy! I have another cat, named Unkle, who has spent the past 8 years in the bathroom. He has an immune deficiency, so I have to keep him in there away from the other cats. He cannot come out even for a minute or he gets sick. Poor kitty cat. He still get congestion even with all I do to keep him safe. But he likes his little room. He gets a lot of attention - EVERYONE who uses the bathroom gets a lap full of Unkle! He gets more attention than all the other cats. :) He has shelves and cubby places I built for him in there, to make sure he gets ample exercise. He climbs all over in there and sits in the sunny southern window so he can soak up the Vitamin D. He tends to stay rather thin, however, in spite of all that I do to fatten him up. Well, this morning I noticed that he has begun to put on some healthy weight since I started giving him that new dry cat food. His fur is soft and shiny, and he looks a lot healthier. So I am definitely going to offer it to Pinkums and see if she will eat it.

Eduarda,
Chicken broth is really good for sick critters, but Pinkums won't have it. (spoiled brat). I have offered it. I will boil her some chicken today though and take it to her still warm and see if she will eat some of it and drink the broth. That is a very good idea! My cats go nuts every time I cook chicken! They pace back and forth all through the kitchen, meowing their heads off and rubbing against my legs, especially Missy Ling, the half-Siamese. What a voice!
And yes Becky, she is half Siamese, but instead of having blue eyes, she has sea green eyes - they are a soft mint green. Really pretty.

Thanks everyone.

~ Annie

Just got a call from the vet:
Pink is not responding much if at all to the anti-fungal med she has been on. He said there should have been improvements by now, so he wants to try something else. The thing is, that this med is very potent stuff. However, is we don't, she will likely not make it. He has some tests to run first and will get back to me.
Doesn't look so good.

Sorry, Annie that the Pink Cat is not responding to her current meds. I hope they can find something else.

Poor Chessie has been under the weather. He had a cold when we got him, and has one again now. Guess he's off to the Dr. tomorrow, poor baby!

Oh, Annie; too bad the anti-fungal stuff didn't do the trick. Just the fact that she is eating again must be a good sign overall. You know we are all hoping she does much better. Maybe the new medication will be the answer. Take care of yourself too. Stress is never good for you and you've had so many health things to deal with as well. Hope Pinkums will be home soon, happily purring on your lap! Hugs to you both, Debby

Oh Annie, I do hope they find something else to help poor Pinkums! By the way, another food idea is an IV by the vet.

Still pulling for Pinkums.

Hugs and lotsa love to both you and Pinkums,
Becky XXXXXXX

Annie, sometimes one med doesn't work and we need to try something else. It happens with us humans too and histoplasmosis is a difficult disease. The lady I know that had it took a long time to recover as well, as I said before. Apparently it's not easy to come up with the right med that does the trick. Keep your hopes high and hopefully the doctor will come up with the answer once the test results are back. We're all here rooting for Pinkums! You take care of yourself too, you certainly have a lot on your plate right now.

Lots of get well wishes
Eduarda

Okay,
a little clarification...(my bad)

The vet isn't saying that she is NOT responding to the meds she is on, but he is not satisfied that after three weeks she has improved.
She has gained a "little" weight this past week, but still, he says she should be doing better by now.

Pink has been on an IV for the past two weeks, after I urged him to do so. He said he was already planning on doing that. (ya right). But anyway, he did "get er done".

Even so, he told me yesterday that she seemed a little dehydrated, so he upped the flow a bit, just a little, and later he found that it had accumulated as a lump on her neck. He said he was surprised that she wasn't absorbing it and is now wondering what is up with that. So tests are also to see why that is happening. Poor Pinkums. So the other tests are to recheck her kidneys and liver before he starts the new meds. It is an IV fungal medication and very potent. It is the most effective one, the most expensive one and they will need to monitor her daily for possible side effects to her liver and kidneys. It will cost around $210 for a ten day dose. He says he treated one of his own animals with it a few years back and it did the trick and faster than the others. He will have to order it. In the meantime, she will continue with the one she is currently on now. He said that fungal infections are slow to develop and just as slow to cure and get rid of.

I feel a little better today. I took two naps yesterday while it poured down hard with much needed rain. till rainy and gray out today. Yeah!

I took a soggy walk out through the garden this morning to look things over and see if there was any storm damage. I picked a bunch of jalapenos and other hot peppers and more okra. Found a few tomatoes (smaller than they should be), so I mixed up some tomato food and went back out and gave them all a dose. * I use Miracle Grow as a last resort if the weather isn't cooperating. It will give my tomatoes a shot in the arm, so to speak, and they will kick in and do better. There are gobs of green Romas developing and the Beefsteaks are finally making fruit. Better late than never. I have peppers to pickle and can. Probably make an apple pie with all the apples I have - or at least slice and freeze them before they get too ripe.

No news about my new car...yet. (Thumping my fingers on my desk top....irritated, irritated, irritated.) Why is it taking him so long to get it done? I went by a car dealer two weeks ago and had everything ready to go down in less than five minutes. Grrrr.

Now, I am having trouble with this ding dong computer. Keeps locking up or going to Blue Screen. Now I have to wait for him to get around to fixing her, too. (Rots a Ruck!)

One of my young grandsons comes here after school everyday, so he keeps me company. He only goes to school for a half day. Hopefully he will soon be able to go all day. He is doing so much better this year. Poor little guy. His life has not been easy. But he is Grannie's boy and I am proud of the leaps he has mustered, despite his several problems.
Yesterday he made a giant Heart-shape photo frame for me at school and brought it home to me with a big smile. He was trying to cheer me up. What a sweet little boy. I will post a picture of it when I can. It is BEAUTIFUL!

I have been trying to add new photos of roses to my photo bucket account. It keeps shutting down while I am downloading the images, so am getting nowhere fast. BUT, as soon as I do, I will post the link. I have a lot of pretty roses I want to share with my GW friends.
BTW, I hope I don't sound like I am a know-it-all, or a show off or a braggart - I wouldn't like anyone to think that of me. No no no, not the case on my part. I just want to show them to people that I know can appreciate all my hard work and their beauty, and I LOVE to talk about gardening!!!

Okay, enough rambling.

I will keep you informed on how The Pink Cat is doing. I haven't been able to get over to see her since Sunday. If I had my new car.........

~Annie

Oh, Annie, I was so hoping the car would be a done deal by now!

I think that would lift your spirits a lot. I don't go anywhere very often without DH, but I sure wouldn't want to be sitting here without the means.......

Sorry Pinkums is progressing so slowly.

At least you are getting rain; we have to count our blessings where we find them!

Annie, I'm so glad you have so much hope in you!
Your grandson sounds precious. My sister has a son who could only manage 1/2 day of school about 2-3 days a week for years and now he is full-time in the 8th grade...and they are talking about full integration into the 9th grade if he can catch up the last bit academically. This is WONDERFUL news because in high school there will be much more peer pressure for more appropriate, high school behavior. Crying and tantrums out of frustration will not be accepted but hanging out and talking will be (which he does great at now, anyway. He expresses himself very well to us now!).
Mainly it's the learning issues that will hold him up now. Smart guy - it is just finding the right route into his brain is the challenge!
He also as a BEST FRIEND and had a girlfriend. Leaps and bounds in two years. It is incredible. We just kept telling him he had to "WANT" it, and want it bad, and it worked!

BTW,
The vet told me this afternoon that Pinkums got another Get Well Card...from someone in Missouri. Now I wonder who that could be??? ;)
Thank you girlfriend.

Not feeling well this evening and don't feel like eating. I am just going to go hit the sack.
~Annie

Update:

Pink's tests came back excellent. She is a good candidate for the new treatment, so Doc is ordering it and will start it soon.
I just have to have faith that she will pull through.

~Annie

Update Update:

Just got a call from the vet's office.
They consulted a cat specialist about Pink's illness and treatment. The specialist said she would NOT use the IV fungal drug; that she had discontinued using it long ago after having lost a number of cats. She suggested giving Pink low doses of Prednisone (sp?), a steroid, to reduce the inflammation in her lungs,which would help with her breathing, and that in turn would help the medication she is currently on do a better job.
That sounds much better to me. I was concerned about the other drug. The other good news is that the Prednisone is relatively cheap.

She is not looking good today and did not eat last night.
Poo Pinkums.

~Annie

Well this is good about the prednisone, Annie. Hopefuly they will give it to her ASAP and not another 48 hours wait like the last drug?

Can they feed her by IV, or give her an appetite stimulant???

Becky

I'm sending you a big hug Annie, hopefully the prednisone will do the trick along with the new meds. I saw a remarkable turnaround when prednisone was given to our Dobie. I've been on the stuff myself several times so know how quickly it worked for my problems. Hope you are feeling better today, get plenty of rest, DON"T overdo, the garden will survive, it might look a little ratty but that can be remedied at a later date. How do I know this...LOL.

Take care my friend,
Annette

My cats get prednesone a lot - I'm about ready to administer a low dose to Chester and then see if we can get some antibiotics. I think his cold is back...he is clearly under the weather. I find it helps a lot in cats, helps them feel better and desire eating - getting them stronger faster. Boo takes it for her allergies/athsma when it flares up, and she feels better in a day or two.

Hope the Pink Cat is doing better today and tomorrow and for a long, long time to come! Debby (Chickenmom without her chicken)

Debby,

I am so sorry to hear that you lost your sweet little chicken. I wondered how she was doing. Hadn't heard from you in awhile.
Send me an email if you want to talk.

Your friend,
~Annie

Hi Dear Annie~ I am happy to see you posting, been checking here daily. How's Pinkums? and how are you holding up?

XXXX Becky

How is Pinkums feeling these days, Annie?
Thinking of you both,
Patti

I check every day, waiting to eagerly hear how Pinkums is doing.

I am having computer problems.
I have written several posts only to lose them before I could get them posted.
I hope I can get this one done.

First, MANY THANKS to everyone who has sent Get Well Cards. It is so fun and heartwarming. The Vet's office loves them too.

Pink is doing MUCH better.
I am so happy.

Here are the pictures I took of her today (August 28th):

1.
{{gwi:610097}}

2.
{{gwi:610098}}

(in case my puter crashes again, I will post two at a time)

~Annie

Today, at noon, Pinkums ate 3/4 of a can of Tuna! Wow! And that was her third meal for the day! Good Girl Pinkums!
She is sitting up now, although she stays close to her oxygen mask. She keeps one paw inside the cone just in case someone thinks they are going to take it away from her. (hehehe)
I can hold her now for a couple of minutes. She purrs.
I groom her every day and she loves that a lot.

Her weight dropped from 8.6 lbs down to 5.3 lbs. She was just terribly emaciated. That is what Hystoplasmosis does when it gets into the lungs. She just kept losing weigh every day. But as of this morning, she has begun to start gaining weight again. She now weighs 5.6 lbs and looks so much better. I am so happy.

3. These cards greeted me this morning: Thanks Christine and thanks Deb.
{{gwi:610100}}

4. The Pink Cat eating tuna from her baby spoon. I laid it down to take this picture, and she kept eating. :)
{{gwi:610101}}

So very glad to hear Pinkums is doing better, I also have been checking in every day to see if there was (with fingers crossed) some good news like many others, hopefully she will be back at home with you soon. You take care of yourself now ya hear.

Hugs
Annette

More Photos

5. After a minute with her head in the oxygen cone, Pink went back to her Tuna! Good Girl Pink!
{{gwi:610102}}

6. While feeding Pinkums, another card came...from Canada! Thanks Annette!
{{gwi:610103}}

Aren't they all the most adorable cards you ever saw!

6. After a short rest and a good brushing, chowing down again!
{{gwi:610104}}

7. Mmmmm...Tuna! Lip-smacking good! Thanks Mommie!
{{gwi:610105}}

8. The Pink sitting up
{{gwi:610106}}

Last photo for today:

8. She ate more than 3/4 of that can of tuna and all of the juice. I added a little hot water and she ate some more and some of the dry food too.
{{gwi:610107}}

She was getting sleepy, so after lots of kisses and tiny hugs and I Love You's, I said goodbye until tomorrow.

~Annie

Annie, Thanks so much for posting these photos of your Pinkums! It warms my heart to see her eating and enjoying the tuna. It's so cute that she keeps one paw on that oxygen cone.

Hi Annie~ It is wonderful to see that Pinkums is getting better. Her appetite is improving and her weight is finally starting to increase. Love that last shot--she sure is enjoying her din-din! : ) And look at all of those beautiful cards and darling pink kitty dishes!

Thank you so much for keeping us posted. I hope you are taking good care of yourself too, as you need it.

Lots of love to you and to Pinkums,

Your friend,

XXXXXXX Becky

Soooooo happy to hear Pinkums is doing better! I haven't had the time to post this week (work crazy) but I've been checking every day as well. I was rather worried that you hadn't posted and was going to mail you today if you hadn't posted. So glad she's doing better. I bet you feel a lot better too :-)

Big hugs to the Pink girl and her Mum
Eduarda

Oh, Annie! Her whole demeanor looks different. She just has this "this is my life right now, my job is to GET BETTER" look about her now! How wonderful. I hope she continues to fight and get stronger and do well. She wants to, you can see it.

Bippie is here looking at Pink, her soul sister on the screen. I think Bippie feels if she can come back from the brink then Pink can too. Bippie is now having very few symptoms from her heartworms.

I love that Annette sent a card from Canada! The pink cat now has an international fan club!

Annie,
Positive thoughts from Vermont coming your way. I know that that little monkey will come home to you soon. You are such a great mom. Me and DH are sending you and Pinkums happy thoughts, prayers and hugs.
Our get well card is on its way to you both.

L, Skibby and Steppe

Today, Pink got another Get Well Card...from Portugal!
Thank you so much Eduarda and T. :)

Will post more tomorrow.
A lot has happened and I am too upset to write about it right now. Pink was starting to recover and now...thanks to the weekend shift's sloppy work and ignorance, she has gone way down. Can you spell "Herbal Overdose"? Stupid ho's! I would sue them if I thought I could prove it. They are covering their a*ses.

More later.
Pinkums & I so appreciate your show of love and concern for her. Thanks again for all the beautiful cards.

~Annie