Foster cat update: Horner's syndrome

I thought I'd give a quick status update on my foster cat, for anyone who might be interested. I brought him one back in July (a few months after our senior kitty passed away). Wildman is an old guy, and a long-term shelter resident, so I wanted to give him a comfortable place to spend his "golden years."

We think he's around 14 or 15 and based on the issues he's having, that seems pretty right. He's got chronic ear infections, so he's always on antibiotics, which help a little, but aren't ever going to completely resolve the issue. Also, the ear infections caused facial paralysis on the right side of his face (probably from all the scratching).

Horner's syndrome of the right eye.

 In the last few days, it's turned into Horner's syndrome- a condition where the top eyelid drops, the third (nictating) eyelid closes, and the pupil constrictions. He was also diagnosed with hyperthyroid (a normal cat has a range of 0.7-5, and in a senior cat, a level above 2.5 might be considered hyperthyroid (when you take signs and symptoms into consideration). Wildman's test came back at 13! Yikes. So now, he's getting twice daily pills for that too. And he's got high blood pressure, and he's on human meds for those. I crack up every time I go to the pharmacy to fill my prescription for "Wildman B."



He goes back to the vet this week to have blood drawn again. Now that he's on hyperthyroid meds, there's a chance it had previously masked some other issues (like kidney failure) so they'll check on all of that. Sorry for the long and rambling, non-book related post, but I wanted to share, just in case anyone else out there has a senior cat. I'd love to hear how things are going with your older pets (and the younger ones too)!

Best buds!

Despite all of his issues, I think he's truly happy in our home. He spends his days napping on the couch and hanging out with my other cat. He's a lot of work, but it's totally worth it. Now a plug for senior cats- if you're considering adding to your family, consider an older pet. Not only are they trained and far less destructive, I think they appreciate a good home more than the younger ones do.



Also, I'm finally decided to finish the Hunger Game series, so my librarian boyfriend brought home Mockingjay a few weeks ago. Only now it's missing somewhere in the house. We had company over last weekend and I think in the cleaning frenzy that preceded, I tossed it somewhere randomly. I've looked in all the typical places (in my nightstand, in the den that we have set up as a library, the bottom of the coffee table) and it's no where. I'm getting desperate. Any suggestions? What's the weirdest place you've found a missing book?

Update: Mockingjay has been found. It had gotten mixed in with the bf's comic books. But in sad news, it has to go back tomorrow since it's way overdue, but at least it's been found!!

My Darkest Secret

I'm going to reveal something to you that I would never tell anyone (except maybe my mother). It's a dark secret that I keep hidden away because I fear what it says to the world. And a recent turn of events has reinforced what a terrible thing this is. Are you ready for it?

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I use Internet Explorer 9. SOB!

I'm the worst. I pretend day in and day out to be tech savvy. I chat with my web developer friends about html and java and way IE sucks because pages have to be developed using non-standard code. In public, I claim to use Chrome (because it sounds sooo cool). I'm also a PC, which I stand by, but would also likely not confess to these same friends (and as I mentioned above, I would tell my mom, only because I think she might still be using IE6 on her Commodore 64).

I hate when I go to log in to blogger in my typical web browser and I get all these wonky images and error messages. I get it, you don't like IE, and you're not going to continue to cater to a non-standard web browser. But it hurts. Because it's a reminder of how not cool I am. And I swear, normally, I'm very nerdy-cool. I own every game system (yes, even a SegaCD). My basement looks like something out of a teen boys fantasy dream, equipped with a Dreamcast store display stand-up video game kiosk and three rows of comic book shelves (repurposed pantyhose shelves from a department store that went out of business).

That's it. That's my secret shame. And that means when I want to update my blog, I need to open up Firefox (I know it's just as bad!!!!! Shut up, web people) and log in again. But I'm willing to do it for you!

Hope everyone is having a great and happy March. Anyone do anything special for Leap Day? My mom donated blood and helped rescued a manatee. I saw a man taking the trash out in his tighty-whities. I think I win. Unless one of you can beat me.