catching-up

Hi efurrybuddy - it's Twizzler here.  Sorry I've been away for sooo long.  Things were just very sad at our house, losing little Meep and then poor Bear just 20 days later.  We can't thank you all enuff for all of your kind thoughts and words - it really meant a lot to us.

I've been doin' pretty good - I did hafta go on depression/anxiety pills 'cause I pulled-out all of my furs.  No, seriously - I really did pull 'em all out.  The only place I wasn't bald was my face & head (and that was only 'cause I couldn't reach those furs).  The meds have helped; almost all of my furs have grown back.  Sometimes I still give a good tug and yank some out, but it's still way better than before.

Now for the really excitin' news - I have a new 'dopted brother!  His name is "Jack" (kind'a after a famous movie pirate . . . ) - he's an FIV+ rescued House Panther (currently sporting a "lion-cut") and he only has one eye (hence the "pirate" theme!) 
Jack is furry friendly and all he wants to do is give & get love!  He just wants to sit in my mom or dad's lap and headbutt their faces.  Seriously, he could do that all day!  Me & Jack get along great too - we like to cuddle, give each other baths, and take turns chasing all around the house.  Oh and another cool thing 'bout Jack - he talks almost as much as I do!
My mom & dad weren't sure they were ready for another kitty after losing Meep & Bear so close together.  But they knew I was furry unhappy bein' an only-kitty.  Of course I still miss my little brother Meep and my big brother Bear so much, but Jack is a great new brother.  We get along so well that I kind'a think Buzzy, Meep, and Bear helped Jack to find me.

thank you again

We would just like to thank everyone for their kindness and support.  This blogosphere is an amazing place, filled with wonderful kitties and their people.  We are truly grateful to you all.  When he feels that he can, Twizzy promises that he will continue Buzzy's blog.

another sad day

Early this morning, we had to help Bear to the Bridge.

It seems he must have had a heart condition that went undiagnosed.  All the fluids that were supposed to help ease his CRF were too much for him to handle, and last night he went into heart failure.  At midnight we took him to an emergency vet.  There was just nothing that could be  done to help our little boy.

We knew that because of the CRF we wouldn't have very much time with Bear, but we were not prepared to have to say good-bye last night.

In our hearts we know that Bear is with Buzzy & meep at the Bridge, but we are just missing all of our boys so much.

when it rains ...

. . . it really pours.

After losing little meep, Jim & I needed to get away for a bit, so we took a trip to Disney World.  We boarded Twizzy & Bear at their doctor's office and asked that they run routine urinalysis and senior blood panels while the boys were there.  We always do that when we board them, and things have always come back normal.  But not this time.

Poor Bear is in chronic renal failure.  The vet estimates that he's lost at least 75% of his kidney function.  His BUN and creatine levels are off the charts.  She started him on IV fluids and meds as soon as she got the test results back.  His levels have been re-checked, and although the fluids have helped a little bit, his values are still too high to come home.  He's going to remain on the IV drip until at least Thursday night.  They'll re-check his blood work and hopefully he'll be able to come home.  The vet says that if we can get his numbers down, we'll be able to care for him at home with sub-q fluids, meds, and a special diet.  She has been very upfront that she is not encouraged by how he's responded to the IV fluids so far.  When we went to visit him at the hospital last night, she said that we need to be prepared that he may only have about 1 to 3 months left.

This is all such a complete shock to us because Bear showed no symptoms of anything being wrong.  As a matter of fact, he was actually becoming more social and affectionate than he had been in the past.  Monday will be his first "gotchya day" and in some ways we feel like we're just really getting to know him.  The thought of having to say good-bye so soon is breaking our hearts all over again.

UPDATE @ 3pm:  Just spoke with Bear's doctor and the good news is that we can bring him home today.  The bad news is that his kidneys can't tolerate any more fluids, so there is no reason for him to stay in the hospital.  The hope is that once his body has absorbed the fluids that he's received, we may be able to start sub-q next week.  He's going in for a re-check on Monday to see where things stand.  Although that's certainly not how we wanted to celebrate his first "gotchya day", we're very grateful to be able to bring our Honey Bear home today.

thank you

We just want to thank everyone for their kind words, thoughts, and prayers.  They are all truly appreciated more than we can say.

Right now things are hurting too much for us to blog, so we're all going to take some time off.  This will always be "Buzzerbee's Blog", but Twizz & Bear will be back posting in February.

Thank you again for all of your care & support.

a very sad day

Poor little meep is losing his fight against his heart failure. Thanks to his doctors, meds, and his own toughness, we are very lucky that he had three good months and some great days before this time came.

But now our little boy is just too tired to keep fighting. His heart failure, anemia, and now an infection have proven too much, and meep is telling us that it is time to let him go. Tomorrow we will help him cross to the Rainbow Bridge, where we know his big brother Buzzerbee will be waiting for him. There we know that he will be strong & playful once again, and that he will always be able to find a good sunny spot on the floor to sleep in - on his back with his tummy floof taking in all that warmth.

We know we've been bad kitty bloggers, but we have a note from our mom . . .

"Please excuse meep, Twizzler, and Bear's absence from the blogosphere. The boys were all very helpful with the house moving, and needed to take a little break. Thank you. Sincerely, m&T&B's mom"

While we've been gone, we have had some "developments". First, we don't much like our DSL internet. At the old house we had cable that we (and our dad) loved. Let's just say that the new internet is a little "less reliable".

Okay, now for the more serious stuff. Poor little meepster has gone into congestive heart failure. He's not in any pain, and is on some medicines to help his condition. We're all just being real gentle with him and lettin' him know how much we love him. Right now he has good days & bad days; we're all tryin' to enjoy the good days as much as possible.

And as most of you know, Twizzler loves efurrybuddy, especially little meepster. So of course he's super-stressed-out 'bout meep bein' sick. We're not sure if that's the cause, but crazy Twizzler has literally pulled-out almost all of his furs. He's had all kinds of tests that come back negative for lots of nasty stuff, so it may be anxiety. Tomorrow he's gettin' a stinky "dip" that might help, but if that's not it, he may hafta go on anxiety/depression meds.

I know I'm still the new kid, but I luv my family furry much, and I'm sad that meep & Twizz aren't feelin' good. We promise to do a better job bloggin' and we'll keep efurrybuddy up-to-date as we know stuff.

Thanks for listenin'
Bear