I took Indy, Cow Mau and Rey to the vet’s today. I shall write about Indy first.
The reason for taking Indy is that (1) he has been sneezing for 5 days now, Cetirizine isn’t working, and (2) his oatmeal stools (again!).
Since we were already there, the vet decided to check his creatinine, urea and phosphate (which is supposed to be due next week) and do his CKD checks.
I’ll start with the good news of the day for Indy.
Indy’s blood pressure has come down from the staggering 180mmHg to a normal 120mmHg!! Hooray!
The rest of the news isn’t that good, I’m afraid. But also not THAT bad.
With all the well-reviewed supplements I’m giving for his CKD, I expected to hear some good news on his kidneys but alas, this isn’t so.
I was hoping the kidneys would “reverse” a little for the time being. Again, this isn’t happening. The vet says maybe the damage in his kidneys are extensive, so reversal isn’t possible anymore.
Indy’s creatinine is 400 (down from the previous 426 but this decrease is not significant. His urea is still the same at 24.9. Phosphate 2.08.
So he is still at Stage 3 of CKD.
The bad news is although Indy looks real good, his blood PCV has gone down from 30% to 25%. The protocol of this clinic is that it does not warrant the Darbepoetin jab yet. Previously, it was 25% and the DPO brought it up to 30% but today, we had to follow the clinic protocol.
Very sad news for me too that our vet will be leaving for overseas soon. There goes our country’s brightest…so sad. I have tons to say about this brain drain, but this isn’t the platform for it.
Now, on to Indy’s runny nose. He has nasal mucus but there is no bacteria in it. He also has eye discharge and this has some bacteria in it. For this, Indy is given Cetirizine, Bromhexine and Doxy (antibiotic). I am to nebulise him for 5 days too. Tarivid eyedrop for the eyes, 3 times a day.
Indy’s next check-up is in two weeks.
In our haste and concern for his runny nose and his CKD, I forgot all about getting the Promax for his oatmeal stools!
But one more good news, though. Indy has gained weight again, to 5.15kg!
Doing the nebulisation at home.
The vet initially asked me to self-monitor Indy at home. I was worried about his blood PCV dropping. It’s very difficult to evaluate and assess Indy on just the clinical signs because Indy always appears to be very well.
Look at his CKD, for eg. Last year’s blood test showed all to be well, and this year’s, taken after 11 months, already shows me at Stage 3 of CKD with a creatinine level that had shot through the roof.
There were no clinical signs. Not even dehydration. Perhaps the only thing was a gradual weight loss which corresponded to “being so choosy” (which was usually inappetence), but he’s been choosy all his life, so…
The vet said I could bring Indy back in a month, but no, I’m not taking any chances. I am bringing him back in 2 weeks, together with Cow Mau and Rey (their stories will be coming up next).
Meanwhile, I forgot to get the Promax, so I’m going to try whatever probiotics I have first.