Day 6 after surgery
Well, sorry for the break, but I am EXHAUSTED!! 6 days of watching my sweet Holly all day and, more importantly, ALL NIGHT, has lead to extreme fatigue. I hit the proverbial wall yesterday, but feel much better now that I took a break and visited my Mom, who had broken her hip and suffered several compression fractures last year. It felt good to be with spend time with her, after missing her the week before. I had a day off watching Holly and that has rejuvenated me. My amazing husband, Al, and equally fabulous son, Kyle, gave me the break that I needed. To top it off, Al decided to let Holly out of the room this morning, which is exactly what my baby girl wanted, but was equally scary for me, the overprotective Mom. That was the best thing he could have done. She seemed so glad to be back to some semblance of “normal”, but soon found out that things just weren’t quite the same. She tried jumping up to her normal “cat watch” on a couch in the our sun room, and soon found out that she would have to relearn how to jump up. For some reason, jumping up was harder post medication. Watching this struggle broke my heart, but on some level, I knew this is the beginning of her journey to mastering her new tripawd life.
The boys did an outstanding job keeping her from licking or biting the “dreaded” staples all day, to my relief. Kobe, her older bro cat, seemed glad to have his little sister back, but made sure everyone knew that he needed attention as well – he is 6 years her elder. She is slowly settling into her new life, as I continue to waste time grieving her leg and previous life. Sometimes, it is hard to tell which of us is the “intelligent” mammal, since right now Holly and her animal wisdom, seems like the clear choice. She doesn’t “grieve” the loss, and instead she eagerly greets the new challenges of her new existence. She just adapts to each new obstacle, or when that fails, she moves on. That is my new lesson from Holly, “JUST MOVE ON”! Today, when I finally returned home from my field trip away from Holly, Al told me that she was actually running around the house and he could not catch her. I laughed and reminded him that it didn’t surprise me, since he was still walking with a cane from his recent hip replacement. A few moments later, she ran away, just like she always had. This day ended with hope and the knowledge that, with time, Holly will be ok. This was a very good day!
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January 13th, 2014 at 2:22 AM
Hey there – soo gad you guys are doing well and that recovery is going A-okay! It really puts a smile on my face this morning! Also, I’m VERY glad that you got some time off to rejuvenate and get yourself feeling healthy again. Sleep and rest is an amazing thing for the body AND mind. I am my most optimistic when well rested..
Ah yes, as a fellow overprotective mom, I was keeping Fang from going outside too, until he was accidentally let out into the yard (while he was begging at the door as usual). This was before he got his staples out – maybe a week after amputation? Anyway, the same with Holly – it was the best thing we could have done. The “normal” comes back so much faster when they feel like they are in their normal environment and not cooped up somewhere that they’re not used to.
It makes sense that jumping up is harder post-medication. Now she can actually feel where her limits are with her wounds – so that’s actually a good thing. She is far less likely now to do something that will open up her staples, because she can feel when she does something that hurts. Also, as you probably know, our bodies get stiffer as wounds heal and we have a lot of bed-rest. When the staples come out and she heals up more she will be much more flexible again.
Also, hind leg amp kitties have a harder time getting up, and front leg amps have a harder time getting down, so this makes sense. She will need to build up more muscle in her remaining back leg to get the “oomph” necessary to hop up as far as she used to. But don’t worry! She’ll get there. And she’ll be flexing those muscles a whole lot more when she’s not got the staples and what not in her way!
Wonderful to hear from you. Praying for a continued happy recovery!
-Chantal and Fang
January 13th, 2014 at 10:18 AM
Yes! Ditto everything that amazing Chantal and Fang said! First hand knowlege indeed!
And I’m sure Jill kitty will chime in also. She has videos showing at first the trouble Jill had trying to jump….with perseverance and healing…she mastered it all.
And good for you for getting the LESSON! And good for Al and Kyle for having the insght to let her get back to “normal”…that is sooooo important for recovery…as I’m sure Al and your mom can attest to!
Thanks for taking the time to update and kudos to you for being so strong! Holly will continue to get better and figure things out so she can do what she wants when she wants…just like old times!!
Hugs and applause to all!!
Sally and Happy Hannah
January 13th, 2014 at 6:26 PM
Hello again, Sally and Happy Hannah. Holly, her highness, is acting like the royalty that she is, and keeping the peasants (me) from her throne, LOL! I enjoy posting her recovery, because it reminds me that she is improving. Letting her be the independent kitty will be difficult for me. I have really enjoyed the bonding we have had throughout this journey. I remember when I was bedridden for 4 weeks after finding out that I had a severe spinal leak, after back surgery. She was there for me and we became really close. Guess I am trying to give back, a little, for her love during that crisis of mine. Animals are so WONDERFUL!! I simply can’t imaging living without them.
Glad to be over the hump,
Karen, Holly’s loyal subject
January 13th, 2014 at 1:51 PM
hi! Like Sally said, Jill had a really hard time jumping up on things after surgery – I had to get crafty to find ways for her to get up on the bed, because she wanted up on the bed to be with me. Here is a video 4 days after amputation of her struggling to get up:
http://youtu.be/5bKrtgw0amc
and here she is one month after surgery:
http://youtu.be/G2AJAOWIkm0
and now, one year later!
http://youtu.be/uidGBZpELEc
January 13th, 2014 at 6:32 PM
Hi ERica and Jill. Al and I just watched your videos. They were so helpful and we really loved watching them. Al said that they remind him of Holly. Yes, I am accepting the fact, slowly by surely, that she will not get around the same. It is hard to deal with, but I try to remind myself that the choice was 2=3 years with her leg, or the possibility of 7-13 years without the leg. I am confident that this was the RIGHT CHOICE! Holly just keeps moving forward, like the stoic kitty that she is, LOL! If I catch up on sleep, I hope to post a video of Holly, or at least another photo. She is, after all, very photogenic!!
Feeling like a human again,
Karen, Holly’s proud Mommy
January 13th, 2014 at 6:24 PM
Hi Ellen
It sounds like things are going fabulously for all of you….well except maybe the “worried” Mom….but I’m glad to hear you are taking care of yourself now.
It really sounds like Holly is doing very well and that she is adapting quickly to the life of a tripawd which is now her new normal 🙂
Keep us posted on how you all are doing.
Hugs
Linda and Tucker
January 14th, 2014 at 3:41 PM
Oh wow this is a cool update. You are mastering as many lessons as Holly is, kudos to you for accepting the change and growing from it! We all learn so much from this, I wish I could truly convey that to every pawrent who comes here looking for help. It does get better!
Glad to hear things are looking up. Sorry to hear about your Mom. Maybe she needs a therapy visit from Holly?
January 16th, 2014 at 2:19 AM
*poke poke* Hey — how are things going?
January 18th, 2014 at 12:40 PM
Hi Chantal,
Sorry, life is slowly getting back to normal. I have been busy catching up after spending every waking moment with Holly for 7 days. She went to the vet on Friday and got her staples out. That was a big milestone. We also received GREAT NEWS: The pathology report showed NO cancer!! That was really big, as Al and I had this at the back of our minds, since her surgery. That was such a relief. Thanks for your concern and I will post a new blog sometime today. Holly is still struggling with jumping up, but I am hopeful that with time, she will master this as well.
Sincerely Yours,
Karen, Holly’s very relieved Mommy
January 21st, 2014 at 1:54 AM
Hey! I’m glad things are calming down, and there’s no more annoying staples to bug Holly. Hurray! Also….. NO CANCER! WOOOOT! That is absolutely wonderful news! I imagine that you guys are feeling wayyyy better about things now. That is just lovely. 🙂
Don’t worry about her jumping – she’ll get it. Just let her keep trying as she feels like. She’ll build muscle in that remaining leg in no time. 🙂
January 21st, 2014 at 10:28 PM
Hi Chantel,
Finally found time to post! I have been getting back to the NEW normal and it takes almost as much time as getting ready for the big surgery, LOL! Again, I can’t thank you enough for all your encouragement and inspiration. It has been my life line. As you probably know, I spend much more time with both Holly and her bro, Kobe. I guess this has given me the opportunity to realize that every moment with my kittys should be cherished. Kyle, my son, has been busy making new cat toys and I am playing with them more than I am willing to admit to my non-pet friends, tee hee. I am hopeful that Holly will once again be able to jump on the kitchen island, but am preparing that this may be a “jump” too far. She is a small kitty, to begin with. I am sure that I will feel much better when her hairless patch on her arm and leg, fill in. I am trying to gain courage to tell my older son, Tom, who lives in Texas. He asked the other day, and I just told him that Holly was doing well. I guess that I am still “getting there”.
Warmly,
Karen, Holly’s still trying to accept it, Mom