- Happy (belated) birthday to one of my best friends, Sharon, who is living in Paris and studying at the Sorbonne. It has been rough not being close enough to visit for a couple of years, but she is living her dream of studying and living in Paris.
Here is the gift I sent her (belatedly) a framed picture of us (along with another dear friend, Dorota) on the beach in Florida back in 2002. When I lived in Florida, Sharon and Dorota came to visit me. This is a good picture because both Sharon and I could probably use a little bit of Florida sunshine right now. (L to R: Bazu, Dorota, Sharon)
- Happy (belated) Halloween! Is it weird that we have become attached to our little Pumpkin? We've named him Timmy, and now that he has a face, Daiku and I can't stand the thought of eating him!
- Happy (belated) World Vegan Day! This is especially for all my friends in the blogosphere who make veganism a fun adventure filled with the best food!
- Good luck to our friend the Midwest Vegan. She is going through a big move, and we all know the stress that that can cause, so send her good vibes, everyone. She was kind enough to send me Alex Jamieson's book "The Great American Detox." Daiku and I are going to take the detox plunge sometime in the next month or two, and I'll let you all know how it goes. Thank you, Midwest Vegan!
- And finally, happy (sort of) recovery from diabetes to Bijou, our beloved almost 11 year-old kitty. She was diagnosed with diabetes 6 months ago, and after many visits to the vet and tests, much anguish (on the part of the humans and the cat), a new diet and twice-daily insulin injections, Bijou is showing signs that her condition is under control. She has gained back a pound or so, and can walk correctly again. (The diabetes caused a condition called "neuropathy" in her legs, which caused her to not be able to walk very well for a few months. This was actually the symptom that made us realize she was ill.)
If your cat:
loses a lot of weight
walks funny
starts peeing more than usual
She might have feline diabetes, get her to a vet, quick! The quicker it's diagnosed, the less chance for complications.
Here are Bijou (sleeping in the background) and Marble (licking herself in the foreground).
Have a great week, everyone!
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16 comments:
Do you feel better now that you've told the world how bad you've been?
Will you still love Timmy when he's old and shriveled?
Stress is so sneaky. You wouldn't believe how much it's cost me in dental bills! So go ahead and use it as a great excuse. At least you knew it was World Vegan Day!
I'm glad your kitty is getting better.
That detox book looks interesting. Maybe you should detox beginning Jan. 1 and make it a new year thing. If my son finds my copy of La Dolce Vegan, I'll send you the copy Midwest Vegan sent me.
The Sorbonne.. that was the first university in the world! Wow, MAT103 actually taught me something..
Aha the pumpkin looks great, cute curl of hair. Yeah definitely let me know how the detox thing goes, I'm interested.
I wish I had known about this feline diabetes.. that sounds like what happened to one of our cats and my Mom ended up having her put down...
Bazu, I can totally relate. I've been stressed to the max. I'm trying to post on my blog and comments on others, but I never seem to have any time left at the end of the day.
Glad to hear your kitty is doing better. I think it's amazing what they can do in veterinary medicine now. My Simon has his own allergist/dermatologist and we give him a needle at home every other week for his allergies. He doesn't like it, but he's a good boy about it. How do you find your cat with the insulin shots?
OH, and I'm interested to hear about the detox too!
The gift for Sharon is so pretty. She'll be so happy to see it, being away for so long. :)
Timmy is cute. He doesn't look like he wants to become pie!
Oh, the Detox book looks interesting! Definitely let us know how it goes and if it feels too extreme or not! You're so healthy already, but I hope this makes you feel better and lighter!
Bijou is so lucky to have you as an owner. I am so glad Bijou feels better now. It's so hard to feel so helpless with your babies, but you are such a good mum and saved Bijou! :) Thanks for listing symptoms. You could save more cats with that advice! :)
i really enjoyed reading this post! lovely photo of you & girlfriends, and i'm happy to know your cat if feeling better. good luck with the detox, i'll be curious about it.
Hi Bijou,
I am glad you are feeling better. I hope it keeps getting better & better. Meow!
Your friend,
Yummers
Great card...I'm sure your friend will appreciate it :)
It's nice to know I'm not the only one getting attached to pumpkins!
Sorry to hear about Bijou, but I'm glad that she is doing better. I know several people who've had to give their kitties insulin shots. I've been curious about feeding my cats a raw diet (I think I saw a brand awhile back that was dehydrated, so you just add water...it's not like actual pieces of raw meat - I don't think I could handle that) - I wonder if that would affect the diabetes at all, like a change in diet affects human diabetes?
I read that detox book quite awhile ago and thought it had some sound advice. I didn't actually follow the plan, but I'd like to pick the book up again and give it a re-read. Good luck!
Great catching up post! Happy Halloween, World Vegan et. al. to you to. :)
I'm glad your kitty is doing better. I have diabetes too and it can be a real drag sometimes. How do you know if she is having a low blood sugar reaction?
I'm sure your friend will love her belated gift. I used to live in NYC and all my friends were in CA, so I remember really treasuring things like that. That was a great idea for a present for your buddy in Paris.
That is a lovely picture and I am sure your friend will appreciate the gift greatly.
Timmy is cute but are you sure he isn't a Charlie (as in Brown? i.e. the curl! LOL)
Be sure to blog about the detox - I would love to hear more about it. I am going to check if the library has that book - I really need to lose some weight to improve my running!
What great news about Bijou. I'm just curious about what diet you switched her to? We have our cat on vegan food (Evolution) and she is really thriving. Plus, she has great breath! Something she never ever had when she was eating meat.
Can't wait to hear how the detox goes. I've been interested in her book. I think I'll try to check it out from the library.
You're a sweet friend to send Sharon such a nice gift. Pictures are always lovely and the frame is really fun.
Thanks for the comments, everyone! I will definitely let you know how the detox goes, although the suggestion to wait until Jan. 1 is a good idea, so it might be a while.
To answer the Bijou questions:
Carrie, she *hates* getting injections twice a day, but she tolerates it as long as 1) it's coming from me and 2)she's distracted by eating while I do it! She's gotten a lot better though (and I'm sure I've gotten better at giving shots- yikes! I'd never handled needles before)
Meesh, unfortunately, unlike with humans, we can't constantly monitor her blood sugar. We have to watch out for her becoming unconscious, though. Pretty scary, but I hope it never happens.
Crystal, I never put my cats on a vegan diet, and now that they're old I don't think I will. Maybe if I was starting out from kittenhood. That's so cute that your kitty has good breath! Bijou's on a diabetes formula cat food: Purina DM diabetes management.
I hope things will be less busy and stressful for you soon. I can totally relate to having a stressful time lately and it's not even related to Rob and I's birthdays-anniversary extravaganza. LOL And happy birthday wishes to your friend Sharon. That is so cool she's living her dream of being in Paris. WTG!!!!
And what a terrific gift sending her a sunshine filled picture of all three of you. You all look so pretty in your white dresses.
Got a big laugh about you naming your pumpkin Timmy and now not being able to eat him. That's hilarious.
Glad to hear that Bijou is recovering from her diabetes. Get well and stay well Bijou :)
Hi,
This is for Bazu. I don't know you, but my cat recently was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. The food isn't working and I am so sick that I am actually trying to find a home for my beloved cat. My twins are bothering him too much. What I wanted to say is that many people are starting to do blood glucose levels at home using human kits (stick in the ear). I don't have the websites, but just typing in testing blood sugar in a cat would probably get you there. I am terrified of the idea of over-medicating, like you are. But you are truly a great human to your cat. I just thought you might want to know about the home testing to put your mind at a little more ease. Doctor's office visits can elevate the BG levels and the home tests are pretty accurate. You can buy them at the pharmacy. I have heard that One Touch Ultra is great. Good luck.
Cheryl
Thank you for this great information, Cheryl. You are right that the stress of the doctor's visit seems to make her test results less accurate. I will look into the home testing kits that you mention. I'm glad to keep learning more.
And my heart goes out to you and your cat. I know exactly how you must feel. It's tough to deal with.
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