Month: April 2020

How is our little boy doing?  I really don’t know.

Rusty is resting as I type.

Positives:

• • I have been able to give him the transdermal meds so that is positive.
  • He is eating a tiny bit of wet food.
  • He has used the litter box for piddling but no poop.
  • His breathing rate is acceptable while not great.
  • He is aware of his surroundings.
    • He has started to “steal” the warm spots on the couches or bed when we get up.

Still no purr and sort of a whine instead.

We cancelled the cardio appointment because he couldn’t handle the ride or the sedation.  He probably wouldn’t have come out of it.

So right now we are just watching. Not knowing what we will see. Is he really rallying to survive or is it the rally before the end?

We are trying to give him room to sleep where his little body can either heal or decide it is enough.

So I guess our update is there really is no update… Just continued prayers for the best outcome for our Bunnyman.

Give all your furbabies extra hugs and scritches on behalf of our brave boy.

Head Scritches and Sandpaper kisses,

Gina and Nick

The last you heard from me was Rusty had just come out of the closet in the bedroom and was laying on the couch.  He decided it was great place to hang out and chill for the rest of the night.  He stayed there overnight too and is still there.  

My daily prayer:
Dear God,
I know you are a bit busy right now. With the help of all of your angels and saints, both in heaven and on this earth, please help my little boy be as healthy and happy as he can be. While I would love for that be here with us, if the only way is to move on, let him go peacefully and quickly. Help us understand what is going on and give us the strength to pull through whatever the outcome is. Our lives and his life is in your hands.  If his life is supposed to continue here with us, give him the strength to fight. If his life is supposed to move on, give him permission to let go knowing he loved.

The answers that come are not always what I expect but are needed.

In desperation to find new ways of pilling Rusty, I was watching video after video and came across Transdermal Gel.  Never heard of it before!  A bit more research showed the Lasix can be compounded into that form.  I called the vet’s office to ask about that as well as Rusty’s general state.  His vet (The Saint Doctor Scott Withman) is off until Wednesday but they had the ER doctors call me back.

• Call 1:  Doctor #1 says they can get the transdermal but not sure if it will do anything for Rusty as it seems like he is near the end.  I can bring him in if I want them to try anything but it doesn’t sound good.  He did explain the current practices (based on the Covoid-19) for putting him down. 
  • This brought me a little comfort, knowing Nick and I could be in the room with Rusty if we had to do this but the conversation brought me to tears for the 100th time this weekend.
  • I did tell the Doctor that if Rusty is really at the end, as long as he is not struggling, I will let him go here and then call them about what do next.
  • Rusty’s answer to this whole conversation, Mommy feed me treats by hand!  Just a few, but I will eat them if you hold them!
• Call 2:  A different doctor, the one that actually worked on Rusty when he was brought into the ER called about an hour later. She wasn’t sure if we had been contacted yet.  We told her we had been, what the conversation was etc.  She asked us to explain what was going on with Rusty and told us not to worry about the medication right now.  She is not convinced he was ready to give up
  • Try to get him to eat and drink something.  If he is going to fight, he will need some nutrition for strength.  Don’t worry about slipping pills in or trying to put them down his throat.  If he can start eating, we can have cautious hope and worry about the meds then.
    • If he doesn’t eat or drink and is really ready, she is OK with the plan to just keep him here comfortable.
  • She will have the office start the prescription for the transdermal so we will be ready just in case he pulls through.
  • Rusty’s answer to this call: Mommy feed me 3 more treats by hand please.  

Nick and I decided we did all we could for the day and to be the pawrents we could, we needed to sleep. Nick slept on the other couch in the living room so Rusty would see him when he wakes up and so Nick could check on him and his breathing. I slept in the bedroom.  We have his spot set up in there on the bed if he chooses to come in there. That’s also the room with the closet that he hangs out in so either way he will know that I exist and if anything happens while he is there, hopefully I would know.  Before we went to sleep, I tried to give him some wet food and he ate some, not a lot, but he didn’t back away from it!  

We set up a leaving serving tray with water, wet food, and treats and went to sleep.  We slept through the night, all of us.

 

Rusty is still going.  He is breathing OK (not perfect as it there are issues with his lungs).  He ate more food this morning.  He drank water.  And still hanging out on the couch.

Still no litter box but no accidents either.  Eventually his body will catch up, or let go.

Well, I have to get to work.  Luckily we are both working from home so we can keep an eye on him.  I will try to keep our tripawd family updated.  We are literally on death/recovery watch.  It can go either way.

Head scritches and Sandpaper Kisses,

Rusty’s Obedient Hoomin Servants for as long as we can be,

Gina and Nick 

Thank you to all of you wonderful people who have reached out. As I said in my previous update, our boy is home.  Our plan was to give him the meds, get him to the cardiologist and love him fiercely.  well, things are not going as planned. He is extremely lethargic.

He decided to lay in the closet, barely responding.  My heart wants to believe that he is just resting and healing, but my head knows different.

There is part of me that wants him to go in his sleep, knowing he was loved.

He wants no part of food. We cannot medicate him. He hasn’t used the litter box. He did drink water. The few times he has walked, he goes 4 steps and lays down.

He did come on the bed for a little bit last night. And then on the couch.

Absolutely no purring since home.

he spent most of the day back in closet and just came out now. So we are waiting to see.
I just want whatever is best for our little fighter, a turn for the better or chance to move on to the rainbow bridge , just something to help us all.

This is heart breaking.

update: 9:30pm Saturday

Rusty the Bunnyman is home for now.  Current status and plan:

• lasix every 8 hours for 3 days then every 12 hours.
• We have an appointment on Wednesday with cardiologist.

He is very lethargic right now.  We have called the vet twice trying to figure out what is the new normal and what means something is wrong.

My gut is telling me we will be saying goodbye way too soon.  So the rest of our plan, love him now and always  💕

 

 

https://youtu.be/TWGrRdASo_U

Hello precious Tripawd family.

Please keep our little fur baby in your prayers. We brought him to ER last night with severe breathing issues. Stayed at least overnight. Not sure if the cancer spread or if something else is wrong, like cardio. (It has been over 2 years since his surgery to remove the cancer in his leg.) Initial chest X-ray showed symptoms of both.  The case is being turned over to Dr Scott this morning.

He is in good hands as we figure this out but it is not looking good. I truly think my borrowed time is coming to an end.

Not being allowed into the building due to Covoid-19 was surreal.. I understand it. I hate it. I couldn’t be with my baby to let him know it will somehow becomes alright and that tore me in two.

Anyway, please pray for him that he is comfortable and for us to be the best hoomins possible for him, whatever that will mean.

Update as of Apr 3-12:30pm

Dr. Scott has called.  The cancer has spread to Rusty’s lungs.  Not sure if there is also a heart issue.  Rusty is improving overall.  He is in an oxygen bed, receiving a diuretic to help his lungs.  Respiratory rates improving and he is resting.  After giving the techs a hard time this morning and fighting back (which while the techs didn’t appreciate, both doctors were pleased because it meant he wasn’t giving up), Rusty accepted head scritches from the doctor.

 Dr. Scott is hoping we can get him strong enough to enjoy some time at home again, under minimal meds.  He is very good about being honest with us and level setting our expectations.  We expect him to be there for at least another 24-48 hours.

 

Head scritches and Sandpaper Kisses(we hope)

Gina and Nick

Rusty the Bunnyman’s Hoomin Servants.