By Samantha Keefe
First of all, I want to thank everyone who helped us out when the Momz told you about me drinking a lot of water. Momz assumed it was because of my thyroid maybe being out of whack again (I am on meds for hyperthyroid), but some of you let her know that it could be other things too.
That made her get me into see our vet a little sooner, and even though everything turned out OK, if it had been something bad we would have wanted to get a jump on it.
Our vet agreed it could be either my thyroid or a kidney problem. So not only did I get rudely poked and prodded by the vet, they stuck me with a needle and sucked my blood out! They checked both my thyroid and kidneys and by the next morning we knew all the tests had come back good! There was a little issue with one of the kidney ones, but the more important one was fine and the vet is not concerned at this point.
My T4 test for my thyroid came back good too! It is on the high side of normal, but that just means we need to continue to monitor it and I can stay on the same dosage of my meds, which – most of the time – I take like a champ in my Greenies Pill Pockets*. The Momz is actually really surprised that those are still working, so she says “knock wood” as I tell you this.
Everything else in my thorough exam by the vet was great! She didn’t feel anything unusual in my belly, which was one of the concerns last year. Something was going on then, but Momz and Dadz declined to put me through an endoscopy and we’re all so glad that decision turned out to be the right one.
As far as why I might be drinking a lot of water: Well, I might not be drinking any more than I ever did. At the old house I shared water dishes with the dogs, so Momz didn’t really know how much I was drinking. Plus I snuck water out of faucets sometimes too! Here I have my own dishes so it’s far more noticeable. Also, Dadz, who mostly takes care of my kitty litter didn’t think I was peeing any more than usual. Also, at the old house Momz always added water to my canned food and she hadn’t been doing that here, so duh – I’ve been thirstier! Momz is such a worrier!
I also wanted to tell you that I still don’t have full run of the house, but I am OK with that. I have lots of space to roam and cool places to explore and sleep. Momz lets me hang out and be her office cat, and then if I decide to go upstairs to nap after working hard for a while, she’ll let the dogs in the office.
We still plan to get me integrated, but because we’re under construction in our new house the dogs are a little more stressed out so it’s just not a good time. Next week we’ll be getting a break from having workers here so we hope to put Luke on a leash and see how he does with me. I know he’s just blustering – he’s so immature – but Momz and Dadz want to be 100% sure that I’m safe with him, and we still have to figure out the kitty litter situation. My kitty litter is gated off, but my silly beagle sister Cricket can fit through my cat hole! They also want to be sure the dogs don’t bug me when I come out of there because they think that’s why I wasn’t always using my kitty litter at the other house.
Speaking of kitty litter, we’re all so excited that we found a new kitty litter that we all love! I am happy to use it and Momz and Dadz are happy that it is not dusty, it’s all natural, and it doesn’t smell one bit! I say this is TMI but Momz said I should tell you that not only does the kitty litter itself smell really good, but they cannot smell pee or poop, not one bit, even right after I use it. So if you’re looking for a better kitty litter you might want to try this Weruva Cat Litter* made from hinoki wood and green tea.
*Disclaimer: We were not compensated for sharing these products, we are sharing them because we like them. Some links are, however, affiliate links so we may receive small compensation if you order through those links.
Dog people: check out this Best Bully Sticks sale – through tomorrow only!*
So glad the test results were good! Moving is hard on everyone. So stressful. Pretty soon the workmen will be gone and everybody can settle in and enjoy your new digs!
I am so happy to read that the health tests all checked out. I suppose stress could cause some extra drinking too.
Wonderful news!
Wow Sam you are doing so great! Being an office cat is fun, as I am the office dog around here. Sounds like things are going to be back to normal soon. Mom thinks that her cat Danny never did well on his thyroid meds is because she could never get the pill down and he always spit them out. No pill pockets then! Love Dolly
Once in a while I don’t really eat my pill, but I can fool the Dadz easily. Momz will find it later though, and then Dadz catches heck! MOL
Love, Sam
I am glad your bloodwork came back good. Kitty’s with thyroid problems may also have kidney problems so good to hear all is well. Keep on doing well!
I am happy to see your tests were all good. You have a wonderful Mom, I am glad she is a worrier and got you checked right away.
And we thank you again for encouraging her to do so!
Yay for good test results, Sam! Thyroid issues were the #1 issue we saw at the vet clinic. Especially with pets that were active and fed correctly. Owners would question their hair loss or unexplainable weight gain. It seemed as if 85% of the time the culprit was their thyroid.
We wonder why thyroid issues are so common in cats? Our vet actually caught this at my yearly exam last year before we even noticed anything was wrong with me. Momz feels bad that she was missing something, but I think our vet just noticed things that she couldn’t.
I’m keepin it short n’sweet, so Yay!!
Glad everything is ok. Sometimes waiting on the results is the hardest part.
Paws up for the good news from the vet, Sam! We hope you continue to do well and you get more comfortable in the new house.
We are so happy that your check-up went well. Bentley drinks like a camel at times too. It looks as if you are settling into your new home very nicely, Sam. ♥
I’m glad to hear this good news!! Now the Momz and Dadz can relax a bit and enjoy doing their “little projects” around the new house. 🙂
I am so sorry I missed all of this! I have been behind in email due to having a lithotripsy for my kidneys yesterday….I missed your original post i think (or haven’t gotten to it yet). I am glad that everything seems to be ok!
Cody has his own bowls/fountains but insists on ONLY drinking out of Dakota’s bowl (go figure). As for the kitty litter/gate…….we have the type of a baby gate that Cody can jump OVER but there is no way that Dakota can fit through the gate. Ours is literally a gate intended for babies (it’s a heavy plastic). Dakota COULD jump over it (if he ever figured that out, which he hasn’t in 9 years lol), but he cannot come THROUGH it. Maybe one of those would work?
Also, there are some days that Cody drinks more than others…treats, inside/temp, etc., all factor into that. Hoping all continues to be ok!
We hope everything went OK with your lithotripsy, Miss Caren!
We have had those heavy plastic gates, so know what you mean. The problem is that Luke can leap over those with no issues – he is quite the jumper. We have to have the taller gates. But thank you for the suggestion!
xxoo Sam
Very glad that the vet didn’t find anything wrong!! At the other house were you interacting with the dogs? I can’t remember.
Yes, I was interacting with the dogs there, though I still mostly kept to myself. The only times Luke had issues with me was if I had gone to the vet, or snuck outside. We think it was something to do with me smelling different. Luke has not been good with me through the gates, but he also seems to have a thing with gates….he snarls at Cricket and Sheba through them sometimes too! So we think he’ll be OK with me, but we’re just being cautious.
Living with cats isn’t always easy, but kitties also say living with dogs is tough. Glad you are healthy, and I’m sure you will have the run of the entire castle soon!
I’m glad the vet didn’t find anything wrong. Tell your Mom that your in the safe deposit box and that’s where valuables are kept. 😉
Aw, we love that, Edie, thank you!!! ♥
We are doing our happy dance that the vet did not find any thing that your humans need to worry about. Yippee! Hip hip hooray! We tried the Weruva, and most of us didn’t like the bigger pellets. Mom was very disappointed. Hope the work will soon be completed so you can have more freedom. XOCK, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth and Calista Jo
Thank you!!! I don’t mind the bigger pellets at all, but Momz doesn’t like that I track them around. She’s thinking of trying some kind of mat next to the box to see if that helps.
The workers are on break now, so Momz has started working with Luke and me. So far so good!
Sam that’s so good to hear! I love boxes too and the one you picked looks like a treasure chest … no wonder with you inside, right?