Cat Behaviour Maven

Bobby's First Picture

I haven’t posted anything to this blog for quite a while, not since we lost Sophie a couple of years ago.  This past month has been tough.  Up until two years ago we had four cats, Sadie, Joey, Sophie, and Bobby.  I’ve chronicled the loss of Sadie and Sophie in this blog, Sadie from a lymphoma a type of cancer and several month later we lost Sophie to kidney disease.

For the past to years we have enjoyed being with Joey and Bobby.  Even though Joey is 17 years old and suffers from Kidney disease, the disease has been under control although the vet told us that thing were deteriorating, he seemed to be doing OK. Bobby the baby who we raised from an 8 day old kitten and was now 11 years old continued to be his mischievous  self. Linda raised him and she was very close to him

We expected our time with Joey to be limited but at 17 we understood what was happening.  Bobby we expected to be with us for years to come.  Then came the shock.  We had noticed that Bobby tended to wheeze when he slept but over the years we thought it normal until a couple of month ago we noticed that he was sneezing blood.  We took him the vet who treated him with antibiotics for an infection.  Several round of antibiotics did not seem to cure the infection and the vet recommended a CT scan.

We arranged for the scan with a specialist in West LA and the results confirmed a carcinoma in his sinus.  While the specialist recommend possible radiation treatment we recognized after what we went through with Sadie and the research that I had done that it would not extend Bobby’s life very long and he would be miserable because of the treatment.  We also realized the the cancer was very aggressive and he did not have much time.

Bobby, The Handsome Boy

We brought him home.  He did not seem to realize anything was wrong but we recognized that his breathing was becoming more and more difficult and after awhile he had stopped eating. His sinuses started to swell and his breathing was rough.  We didn’t want  him to suffocate  or starve or go into convulsions so we decided to say good bye.  It’s been very tough around here the past couple of weeks.

We’re not quite sure how Joey is taking all of this.  He stopped eating about the same time as Bobby but after we said good bye to Bobby on Monday, Joey’s was eating better than ever on Wednesday.  He has been very clingy but he seems to be taking it all ok. We know his time is limited too but we will make the best of it.

We do this to ourselves because we know we will love them and we will out live them but we still keep on doing it.  Pets are special.  They are apart of the family and when we lose one we lose a family member.

Sophie Newman-Katz

Our beloved, quiet, most beautiful and sweet Sophie was put to rest yesterday morning, September 7, 2010; she was approximately 14 years old although several years ago the vet told us she could be 2 to 3 years older.  We never found out Sophie=s back story, where she came from, her true age and how she came to find herself in our backyard 13 years ago when she moved inside with us.  She never liked to talk about her past and we never pressed her.

Sophie is the cat most visitors to our home never see; she is shy and afraid of people she does not know and is not a great fan of cats.  We usually tell people that Sophie does not like cats, which was mostly true of her relationship with Sadie,  she used to hit poor Bobby; she gets along with Joey because he is such a mellow, loving soul.

In February 2007, Sophie was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism.  We subsequently took her to a specialist in Orange County where her thyroid was irradiated.  She stayed in the hospital for 5 days and came home  looking better and we trust feeling better.  Prior to the diagnosis of hyperthyroidism, the doctor told us that her blood test indicated the probability of kidney problems down the line.

Those kidney problems came to light not long after and Sophie received at first weekly subcutaneous hydration (Asub-q@) administered by her Dad.  Then twice a week and she was still doing okay.  Sophie also had thyroid meds to take every day (inside a pill pocket) and a liquid vitamin.  She endured like the champ she was.  She was put on a special prescription food for felines with kidney disease.  And much to our surprise, she liked it – the dry version anyway.

In July 2009 Sophie had a serious kidney situation and was hospitalized for 8 days, during which time she received 24 hour sub-q hydration for 6 days followed by 2 days of Alet=s see if she can get along without the 24 hour sub-q@.  She did, and on July 20 we brought our girl home.  Her sub-q hydrations were increased to three days on, one day off.  We did this until May 2010, when we were told to hydrate every day, which her Dad did.

For all the years that we had Sophie, she slept on my legs, on top of the blankets.  Usually she was quiet, but sometimes if I moved a bit too much and disturbed her, she bit my foot.  Before settling down on my legs Sophie would get a tummy rub from her Dad.  Then she would walk over and settle down on my legs and have a cat bath.

Following Sophie=s release from the hospital in July 2010, she started to sleep on the pillow next to me, front paws on my arms or face; we had to be touching.  Aside from the difficulty I had breathing, I was concerned because Sophie walked in a cat box ! !  But she seemed to need the security of being near me and not breathing was a minor inconvenience compared to joy of having Sophie with us.

Sophie was a lap cat, always snuggled with me.  But when she saw Ira, she could not run away fast enough.  She used to flop over on her back at his feet and he would give her a face rub or her favorite, a tummy rub.  Sophie always seemed to like her family and her home a bit more than did the other cats.  Ira always said, if you believe in Karma, then Sophie must be very close to human.

Approximately three weeks ago, Sophie started to spend all day and all night on the sofa or chair in the family room.  No lap sitting either, just sometimes getting up on her napper in the window.  About a week ago she stopped eating her dry food (the girl always, always had a terrific appetite).  She liked Bobby=s canned breakfast food, so we gave that to her.

This past weekend she stopped eating; tried to eat, but seemed to gag or choke.  Yesterday she stopped drinking water, again tried to drink water but seemed to gag or choke.  Her muscles were weakening and she seemed disoriented.

Tuesday morning we made the decision and called our vet.  She passed quietly and peacefully in our arms, knowing she was very much loved and beloved.  We lost both of our precious girls in just under four months.

And of course after incredible heat in the Valley these past several weeks, it was overcast and cloudy yesterday and again today.  The heavens too mourns the passing of our Sophie.