Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Tiger Day 54 - the sporo story

Wow...time flies, and it's already Day 54 for Tiger's sporo treatment.

Tiger Day 53

He doesn't allow me to take photos of his sores now, but I want to write this post right now because a lady has just written in saying her cat has been diagnosed with sporotrichosis and her vet has advised her to have the poor cat euthanised because her vet contracted sporotrichosis herself and had a tough time recovering. The lady is at a loss and doesn't know what to do. She wrote to ask if there is any vet we could recommend who would be willing to treat her cat.

I replied asking her to please not give up on her cat. And I shared the many, many case I have compiled through the years we've encountered sporo cases, from Morton's, Wong Wong's, Blacktail's, Fitri's, Puteri's, Rascal's, Merdeka's, Houdini's, Thong-c's, etc, and now, Tiger's. I have always had a ready list to send to readers who ask for help for their sporo-cats but this time I can speak with more conviction as I've personally nursed Tiger (and am still nursing him).

So I want to compile his photos here in this blogpost so that I can send it to this lady to encourage her to get her cat treated. I have also recommended her to see Tiger's vet as this vet is so very compassionate and has never been known to give up on any sporo-cat.

So here goes, in a nutshell and more importantly the comparison photos are below:

Tiger was discovered to have early-stage sporotrichosis 54 days ago. The sores were found on his left front paw, the insides of his left hind leg and right hind leg. I started him immediately on Sporonox (note: please only use the original, as advised by the many, many sporo-cat caregivers). The cost ranges from RM6.90 to RM9.50, depending on the various pharmacies.

I also gave Tiger RetroMAD1 as he is FIV+ and the prognosis for recovery is usually poor for immune-suppressed cats, what more, when it's a hard-to-heal disease like sporotrichosis.

Besides these, Tiger was immediately started on Biopure (the new version of Liv-52, from Himalaya). This is to protect his liver as Sporonox is known to be toxic to the liver. Gradually, I gave Tiger the following supplements as well: Omega-7 and Transfer Factor (both to boost his immunity). Please note that Tiger is more supplements than usual because of his FIV+ condition.

For topical application, I used Lamisil Cream (terbenafine) for his sores.

The sores did not quite show improvement for the few week. In fact, on Days 7 and 9, new sores flared up, suspected to be the existing spores germinating from the deep muscle, manifesting as new sores. Though these looked scary and intimidating, it's "good" that the spores germinate rather than stay dormant in the muscle (that would literally be a "time-bomb" of sorts).

Tiger was quarantined from the rest of his friends. However, I was told that sporotrichosis, which is zoonotic (can spread to humans), spreads and starts through an open wound. I wore gloves while applying the Lamisil Cream onto his sores. But I did not have any open wounds, so that wasn't so worrying. Morever, Tiger did not have the infamous "Clown Nose" (red nose, which is very characteristic of sporotrichosis). The presence of the "Clown Nose" normally indicate that there is infection in the mucuous membrane inside the nostril (which can spread to the lungs). If this happens, the spores can spread from sneezing and through the air. Thank goodness Tiger had not got to this stage.

The Sporonox dosage is based on weight. Tiger was 5.6kg when first diagnosed, so his dosage was 1/2 cap once a day.

Sporonox - 1/2 cap once a day
RetroMAD1 - 0.2ml thrice a day
Vetri DMG - 1 tablet once a day or 0.5ml once a day
Biopure - 1 tablet twice a day
Omega-7 - 1 capsule once a day
Transfer Factor - 1 capsule once a day
Lamisil Cream - topical application once a day

Later, I discovered Path-Away Anti-Fungal Spray which helped topically, so I used this in place of Lamisil Cream as Path-Away is non-toxic and biodegradable.

Lamisil

Sporonox capsule, Lamisil cream, Biopure (liver protectant).


Vetri and TF

Vetri DMG and Transfer Factor as immune boosters.


Omega 7

Omega-7 as an additional supplement for the skin.


Path-Away

 Path-Away replaced Lamisil cream as the latter is toxic to the liver and licking would be a problem.
Path-Away is biodegradable and non-toxic.


Now, here are some comparison photos:

LEFT FRONT PAW : Gang of Four


mini-Left Front PAW 1 mini-Left Front PAW 2 mini-Left Front PAW 3

LEFT HIND LEG: Gang of Eight


mini-Left Hind LEG 1 mini-Left Hind LEG 2 Left Hind Leg 3

 RIGHT HIND LEG: Just one sore


mini-Right Hind Leg 1

In between, quite a number of sores appeared on the tail and both sides of the hips. I mistakenly thought these were sporo sores, but upon checking by the vet much later, these were actually just lick/bite sores, and not sporo-sores! Revolution spot-on solved this problem.

So today is Day 54 and I am stil waiting for the day for all the original sores to totally disappear as the vet advised that Tiger would have to continue with Sporonox for another THIRTY days post-healing. And "post-healing" means the skin has grown back and the sores are not longer visible.

Meanwhile, I just managed to take these photos a few minutes ago.

Here's....Day 54:

mini-left front

Left Front Leg: What's left of the Gang of Four.


mini-left hind

Left Hind Leg: What's left of the Gang of Eight.


mini-right hind

Right Hind Leg: What's left of the Just One.


I've been repeatedly reminded that relapses are not uncommon in sporo cases, so it's still not time to celebrate yet.


Right now, Tiger and I are looking forward to the day when all these original sores disappear totally, then only can we begin our 30-day countdown (it begins the day the last sore disappears). After that, there are still a few more months to wait and pray that a relapse will not occur. I plan to continue with all his supplements even after the 30-day countdown. But Sporonox will stop after 30 days since it has a considerable level of toxicity.


Meanwhile, Tiger has put on weight (5.9kg) and this a good sign. The vet says there is no need to do a liver function test.


Tiger's appetite is good and it is important for sporo-cats to be on the best possible nutrition as the body needs all the nutrition and strength it can get to heal from this dreadful disease.


A note to add is that even confined cats can contract sporotrichosis. Tiger lives indoor with a garden which has plants, soil and grass. He probably contracted the sporo from the soil as the fungi lives in the soil. All it takes is an open wound and the spores enter the body, get lodged in the deep muscle and the nightmare begins.


However, as scary as it sounds, I personally hope sporo-cats caregivers will not give up on their cats who have sporotrichosis. If you would just do a wordsearch on "sporo" on this blogpost, you will find so many successful cases. Wong-Wong and Merdeka's cases were REALLY bad, and yet, they recovered. So did many others.


Whatever the disease, as long as there is a treatment protocol, we owe it to our animals to save their lives.


mini-P4290703


Hey, Tiger!


mini-P4290704


We'll get there soon...!


Other cases:

































 





Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Heidi's (mis)adventure and rescue from the roof

This morning, at about 6am, Heidi scuttled out from our bedroom to the roof. She must have jumped onto the low cabinet and scaled the green netting to get out through the window and landed up on the roof.

BUT...unlike Vincent who is a pro at getting in and out through the green netting, Heidi does not know how to get IN from the roof.

Oh dear....

So she was pacing up and down the windows, trying to figure out a way to get back in.

She is also far too small and not agile enough to jump from the roof to the ledge. Vincent can do that with his eyes closed but not Heidi.

Poor Heidi...

So I quickly got up and opened up the bottom part of the green netting to let her in, but by then she was already too frightened (in panic mode) so the more I called her, the further she walked.

Soon, she was walking away to the neighbour's roof and this was getting too dangerous. It was still pitch dark and we don't know if she could manage the roof.

I raced downstairs and got a can of Monge Tuna. I figured tuna should be aromatic enough to attract her.

Finally, the Monge Tuna did the trick. But not without some effort. My husband had to half-drag and half-carry her in from the roof. But at least the Monge Tuna attracted her to come near enough for the "rescue" to be done.

Phew!

mini-P4280701

Too scared to do anything after the morning's misadventure.


mini-20140428_123634When I came home after work...


I hope she won't embark on another roof adventure again...


Just stay grounded, Heidi.

Ginger's peace offering and his tour of Bunny's Place!

mini-P4270680

Last night, Ginger dragged his Carebears Blankie to the grille again, offering it as a gesture of friendship to Bunny & Friends. Ginger is already friends with Tiger and Tabs, of course. It's the rest that he wants to be friends with.


mini-P4270687

I will give them my blankie if they let me in....


For the past few days, Ginger has been trying very hard to sneak into the room whenever I opened the grille. I was careful not to let that happen or....2 weeks with antibiotics! I cannot risk that happening again. It had already happened once before. Ginger rushed in and Cow pounced on the poor boy and bit him real bad. And that was shortly after his episode with Mr Quack (also bitten!).


Ginger thinks the whole world is kind.


Don't we wish Ginger was right?


mini-P4270688 mini-P4270689

Can Ginger come in and play with us? 


Please, please, please? 


mini-P4270682

Indy: WHO is coming in?


mini-P4270683

Pole: Can I go out instead? 


mini-P4270684

Tiger: Yay!! Ginger is coming in to play with us!!


mini-P4270690

A supervised and guarded tour, of course.


mini-P4270691

Ginger, meet Cow. Cow, meet Ginger.


mini-P4270692

This is Bunny.


mini-P4270693

Peacefully does it...


mini-P4270695

Meet Pabuka too.


mini-P4270697

That's the Clubhouse outside.


mini-P4270698

One day hopefully, Daffodil and family can come in and I wouldn't have to worry about them being community cats anymore.


And Vincent and Heidi too.


Timmy is quite happy at his Vegetable Patch and seldom goes away from the patio, so I don't worry so much about him.


Mr Zurik...I think he has his own place (training camp) with his shrews, of course.


It's just Cow, Bunny and sometimes, Indy, who attack other cats. HOW to subdue them? Daffodil's family is no match for the titans. They will be shocked and traumatised.


mini-P4270699So for now, Ginger, do please carry on with your peace offerings.


Maybe one day....we will see the light and you can join Bunny's Place!

Monday, April 28, 2014

Mom's Garden (Blanket No. 40) - up for auction!

Here's another great gift for Mother's Day!

Capture

 This is Mom's Garden!


And the vegetable garden fabric is Japanese cotton priced at RM45 per metre, donated by Tabs & Associates.


Auction Rules:

1. Please check the latest comment for the latest bid before putting in yours.

2. All bids are placed as comments on this blogpost. All comments will be published instantly in chronological order. 

3. The auction ends at 5pm, on Tuesday, 29th April 2014. 


Note: Please monitor this post near closing time if you want to ensure that you are the highest bidder.

100% of the winning bid will be channeled to our Fund for the animals.

Do we hear RM150?

The bids as they come in:

27th April:

At 11.00pm, HS bids RM350.

At 10.33pm, Aurora bids RM300.

At 8.37pm, Irenelance bids RM151.

mini-P3120611

This is a two-layered cotton patchwork without padding in between.


It measures 49.5 inches by 75.5 inches.


Here's how the design is done:


mini-PB230042 mini-PB230043

Place them back to back, one horizontal, one vertical. Sew the four edges together.


mini-PB230044 mini-PB230045

Cut diagonally.


mini-PB230046 mini-PB230048

Voila!


mini-PB230050

You can arrange them any way you like.


There are many permutations. It's so mathematical and fun!


mini-P3120612

The backing cloth is contributed by Agnes and Gerley. My mum did the backing while I sewed the top design.


mini-P3120613

Here you go!


It's Japanese cotton and oh-so-comfortable! Good value for money.


And of course, 100% of your bid goes to the animals.


Happy Bidding!!

Sunday, April 27, 2014

Timmy fights Mr Zurik

A few hours ago, I heard the most devastatingly scary cat-fight sound outside at the patio.

I rushed out and saw Timmy confronting poor Mr Zurik (who looked very scared) at Timmy's Vegetable Patch. I quickly ran to grab the hose, intending to stop the fight by spraying water in their direction. Before I could, Mr Zurik ran off towards the porch with his tail down (but fluffed up) and Timmy went after him with (yikes!) a tuft of blackish grey hair in his mouth, still huffing and puffing like the Big Bad Wolf.

It was quite scary...seeing Timmy huffing and puffing with a tuft of hair in his mouth.

I went after Mr Zurik and he did not seemed injured in any way at all. There were no blood stains too. I doubt Timmy bit him.

Mr Zurik stopped at the porch and stayed there while I restrained the Big Bad Wolf at the patio. In any case, Big Huffing Timmy wasn't going anywhere. He just wanted to guard his Vegetable Patch.

By dinner time, everyone was at the patio already....except Mr Zurik. I grew worried...is he injured?

So I laid out all the bowls and there came Mr Zurik!

He didn't look any worse off.

mini-P4260654

Mr Zurik finishing his dinner.


mini-P4260655

Me ain't no fool.


mini-P4260656

I checked him again...no visible injuries anywhere.


mini-P4260657

I let Timmy out and there was no fight.


mini-P4260658

There's some orange-privilege here...Timmy allows Ginger to go into this Vegetable Patch and even sit under the pots, which is Timmy's favourite snooze spots.


mini-P4260659

A greater and more fearsome warrior looks on...


mini-P4260661

Who? Me?


mini-P4260662

This is one of Ginger's favourite chill-out spots.


mini-P4260663

The greater warrior sniffing for clues...


mini-P4260660

He watches...silently.