Bionic Jezebel: 07/04/2004

Bionic Jezebel

On June 1, 2004, Jezebel the cat was admitted to the hospital for Hepatic Lipidosis. Jezebel's life was saved by emergency bionic surgery. Outfitted with a percutaneous gastronomy tube and stylish muscle-shirt, Jezebel now leads a double life: housecat and undercover operative. "We can rebuild her. We have the technology. We have the capability to make the world's first Bionic cat. Jezebel will be that cat. Better than she was before. Better... stronger... faster."

Friday, July 09, 2004

The countdown has begun

It's official--Michael made the appointment yesterday. Jezebel is scheduled for surgery on Tuesday, July 13 to get her g-tube removed.

Jezebel has been eating on her own, full-time, since Monday night. What a relief!! It's about time, too. We changed her tank top a week ago (last Friday), and it's already grungy.

This cat just won't stop. She's had more energy than we ever remember her having. Strange thing--we noticed over the past few weeks that after every tube feeding, Jezebel would get dopey and lethargic. Maybe it's something like the post-Thanksgiving-dinner sleepy thing humans get. Whatever it is, it's gone now, ever since we weaned her off the tube feedings. What a bundle of energy. So nice to have our cat back!

Wednesday, July 07, 2004

Getting closer

I know it's been a while since I posted, but frankly nothing new has really happened... We've been gradually decreasing Jezebel's tube feedings over the last week, and yesterday she went a fully 24 hours without a tube feeding. We've switched back to free feeding, as the cats seem to eat more (!?) that way. Both Isabelle and Pax went through a bout of decreased appetite, which was probably due to the weather (it was oppressingly hot over the weekend). All the same, I've no intention of going through this ordeal again with either of those two, so back to free-feeding for the time being. I'm measuring the rate at which the kibble disappears every day, and it's getting higher everyday, which I can only really attribute to Jezebel. She does seem to be going to the food dish more often! So in other words, I think we can count yesterday as day one of seven (she needs to go seven days eating on her own before the tube comes out). Yay!

In other news, we had a wicked thunderstorm on Sunday afternoon, then another one early this morning (around 3am). Both times Jezebel came to us. I think she was a bit spooked. Poor baby!

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From www.healthypet.com: "Feline hepatic lipidosis (FHL), also known as "feline fatty liver syndrome," is the most common form of liver disease in cats in North America. The disease is unique to cats; it is not found in other companion animals.

The condition is triggered when a cat stops eating due to stress, another disease or for any other reason. After a few days without food, the cat's body will begin to use fat for energy. Cats do not metabolize fat well; therefore the fat cells build up in the liver and eventually prevent it from functioning normally. FHL is very dangerous for cats and can be life threatening if left untreated.

Cats with advanced symptoms such as jaundice or seizures require hospitalization. They need intravenous fluids to reverse dehydration and liver failure.

While cats of all breeds and any age are at risk, middle-aged, obese cats are most susceptible to the disease. The most common form of the disease is idiopathic (of unknown origin), however the disease can also occur in conjunction with other diseases of the liver.

Hepatic lipidosis is treatable, especially if caught in the early stages of the disease. If aggressively treated, 70 to 80 percent of cats will recover from the disease. When left untreated, FHL advances rapidly and is always fatal. Successful treatment requires intensive nutritional support until the cat's appetite returns. An ideal diet for a cat with FHL fulfills her basic nutrition requirements, promotes liver regeneration, and facilitates recovery from metabolic imbalances associated with the syndrome.

In almost all cases, a feeding tube needs to be placed into the cat's stomach, either directly through the side of his body or through his nose or esophagus down into the stomach. A veterinarian will prescribe a special food mixture to be syringed through the feeding tube several times per day. The average time from diagnosis to recovery with intense treatment is four to six weeks, and some cases may require up to 18 weeks of nutritional support."