White Blood Cell count

Bloody Hell! My white blood cell count is low, below acceptable levels and is only 1730 thingies (not sure what unit of measurement Ben Vet used so I am calling them 'thingies').

As a result no more chemo until my WBC is back up again. Ben Vet has given me some anti-biotics called Synulox to help me fight off any infections, he has also given Meowmie some Stemetil anti-nauseau INJECTIONS to give to me should I get sick. Meowmie has never given an injection ever before in her life - Ben Vet said to Meowmie not to worry, cos it doesn't matter if it goes into skin, muscle or veins!!! MEOWMIE BE CAREFUL PLEASE!

Blood Tests and Buses

Ohmygod how do you do it!!? I had to go on a BUS today. I had a check-up appointment at the Vet Place and Stormie's Limousine didn't show up so Meowmie said some bad words and then took me to a Waiting Hut on the pavement where the bus comes to collect you from.

I was quite scared, I didn't like being taken to the Hut in my basket, humans kept staring at me. Seems a cat in Central London is a rare sight judging from all the staring and pointing. Then the big red bus came along...what a noise. The bus was full of miserable big humans, screeching medium-sized humans and squeeky tiny humans. The tiny humans seemed most interested in me, I didn't care much for them though so just turned my back on them.

Then we got off the bus about 15 minutes later and I have never been so happy to get to the Vet Place. I had to have some blood tests today to make sure my White Blood Cell count was ok - chemo can make it low and then I can get infections easily and get ill, so Ben Vet checks these things from time to time. Ben vet shaved my neck (again!) and took my blood away, it was very red. I weighed 3.62kgs and Ben Vet seemed satisfied that I was doing OK. Ben Vet said the blood test results would be back in a few days.

Ben Vet then gave Meowmie an update on the vet bill. Ben Vet said that Pet Plan insurance had paid the first claim of £4500, of which the two Meowmies are paying the £900 excess in installments - so really Pet Plan paid £3600. Meowmie went a bit quiet. We got the bus home. I think Stormie's Limousine has been sacked.

18 weeks on - Remission!

I've been better since my last post - only sick a handful of times and those were all acidy-tummy-up sicks and gorged-myself-stupid sicks. No cancer tummy-up-sicks - which is a huge relief seeing as I am considered to be in REMISSION. Ben Vet said to Meowmie that he considered me to be in Clinical Remission - he sounded very sure about it this time, so I am going to state it here in my blog too - he has said it before now, quite some time ago, but he seemed quite definite yesterday when I was there for my Vincristine so I am confident to share the good news.

Can't remember if I explained this before but basically, chemo isn't a 'cure' for animals like me, it just holds the cancer back. Ben Vet said the only way of proving remission for sure would be to operate again....but he isn't willing to do that, he explained to Meowmie that there was little reason to put me through an big operation again because the physical signs tell him what he needs to know. Plus - my tummy hair hasn't grown back yet from the operation in December - I just have very very short downy hair there now...my poor tummy!

Here is a picture of me begging Meowmie to share her chicken dinner with me - you can only see the Green Foods in this picture but I assure you there was DEFINITELY chicken on that plate!!!

Bad Patch

I had some Doxorubucin on the 27th...I've been sick a few times since, I don't like it very much. I was at the Vet Place all day again for that one too. I'm bit disappointed cos I just had a good run without any troubles.

My appetite has been OK - once I am sick I always return to my food bowl and refill myself up - and I always keep the second helping down. I am also sick sometimes after my Pred steroid - either frothy stuff (tummy acid sick) or food sick; food sick meams I have gorged myself too much though. To be on the safe side Meowmie has been giving me Metaclopramide - an anti-nausea, it works for a bit but sometimes I am still sick.

I feel so bad for meowmie's carpets and sofa. I do, in the main, manage to throw up on some newspaper that Meowmie has placed in the hallway, but sometimes I don't get there in time :(

Cat Beds

Meowmie J and Meowmie L bought me and Castle a new bed today! I like it when I get presents, here is a picture of my new bed:

It is beautiful, it is a big Fake Sheep Skin pad. Obviously we don't have a big stinky dog on our bed. Can you believe how tolerant that cat is? Bloody fool. Maybe the photographer drugged it to make it stay there with that horid dog. Anyway - our bed - Meowmie has put the new bed underneath the radiator in the sitting room - it is so beautiful, Castle and I just like to sit on our favourite cushion on the sofa and admire it. By the way why is the sitting room called a 'sitting' room and not the 'sofa' room? You humans don't call the bedroom the 'sleeping room', or the kitchen the 'cooking room' or the bathroom the...oh...for once you make sense :)

I saw a very posh cat bed in a magazine the other day, it would look lovely in Meowmie L's apartment, it's got one of those daft little dogs in it but just imagine how much nicer it would look with a pretty seal-point siamese lounging in it!



Oh, and if you weren't quite convinced at how stupid dogs are...have you EVER seen a cat allow itself to look this ridiculous?



Wish me luck for my Away Day tomorow - Doxorubicin this time - poo, that's a strong one :(

My Diet

I have a new favourite food at the moment - I say 'at the moment' because I might decide I won't eat it next week. It is Whiskers in Gravy - it HAS to be chunks in gravy - NOT in jelly. I won't eat that stuff (at the moment). I know it is not the best food for me to eat but it is what I fancy. Ben Vet told Meowmie L that she should try to encourage me to eat 'healthy' protein-rich foods as this is best for Lymphoma kitties. HOWEVER I also heard Ben Vet say "to be honest, the main goal is for Storm to eat and gain weight, so if she wants regular cat foods then let her".

I know I am probably causing Meowmie some anxiety with my fussy tastes and I don't mean to, but it is just what my body is telling me. I was watching meowmie reading her lap-telly yesterday, she was studying an article about feeding cats who have lymphomas, so far, from what I can gather she is doing everything right and is tempting me with the correct foods. At the end of the article there was mention of 'assisted feeding' with a syringe!!!! I don't fancy that AT ALL so I will be doing my utmost to feed myself at all times. Here is a link to the article http://felinelymphomacaregivers.org/docs/KeepingSickKittyEating.html

These are the foods that tempt me in order of current preference:

Chicken (always)
Whiskers chunks in gravy (pouches)
Tuna (tinned)
Sardines (tinned)
IAMS dry food
IAMS pouches
Hills Science Diet tinned food mixed with small amount of boiling water

Meowmie doesn't often give me the tinned fish cos when I sick it up it STINKS and it takes ages for Meowmie to scrub the carpets clean.

A Park Full of Cats!

Meowmie J has gone to Argentina to work and earn some Vet Tokens and Salmon Tokens. Argentina is a place in south America which has tasty cows and fast horses. I think Madonna used to be the Queen Of Argentina but then she left so she sang a song about it asking them not to cry for her.

Meowmie J sent Meowmie L a picture on her tellyphone - it was a picture of a park and in the park were hundreds of cats! No dogs - just cats. They were laying around sunbathing, eating and just being cats really. I wish there was a cat park in London. I hope Meowmie J doesn't fall in love with any other cats.





I had my Cyclophosphamide a few days ago and I have been really well - no sicky-ups and a good appetite. I wonder why some weeks I am OK with the drug and others I am not? Ben Vet and Caroline Vet were lovely to me - but I don't like it when they take my temperature...it is not very dignified at all. Meowmie L does her best to reassure me but it doesn't make it any less embarrassing! Why can't they put the thermometer under my tongue or armpit like they do with you humans!