Adventures with Astrid and Arthritis

Pup Astrid turned 12 in February. Though I'm grateful it took this long, I have to admit that Astrid has finally started to show her age. The main issue she deals with these days is her osteoarthritis. Her back legs have definitely become more stiff and weak. Her back right leg is the most significant problem, as she was born without that hip joint properly formed, back in 2017 she lost a toe on that foot to cancer, and in 2022 she had metal screwed into that knee to repair a torn CCL. Due to her congenital hip joint issue, that leg is also shorter than the other, which has been causing atrophying muscles for years now. And it really doesn't help that Astrid is currently at her heaviest, 85 lbs, which we'd like to reduce.

All of the above said, in the past few days, we've added a decent dose of gabapentin to the carprofen and Dasuquin Astrid already gets. Almost immediately, we noticed a great improvement in Astrid's legs and arthritis. Just this past weekend, my sister, my dad, and I all went on a walk with the pup. She always gets extra excited when my dad, her Pawpaw, joins us for a walk. On that beautiful day with her beloved Pawpaw, Astrid chose to go on a long walk, and her legs gave her little to no trouble at all.

One of arthritic Astrid's main issues, even on the new pain med regimen, is posturing to none other than poop. I try to help support her when I see her preparing to go. But, given the mess I found on her yesterday, she clearly fell while trying to evacuate her bowels in the back yard when I wasn't looking. Whatever tumble she took has caused her back right leg to bother her even more than usual, and so she's getting plenty of those pain meds and is getting breaks from walks for a couple of days to let whatever she did heal up.

Luckily, over the past few years, Astrid has developed an obsession with hanging out in the back yard. So, even when she gets breaks from walks to help her legs, she happily chooses to spend hours upon hours outdoors. When my sister or I do walk her, she'll often even pick a short walk so that she can scurry home, run inside, and go straight to the back door and her beloved back yard.

Don't worry, though, because ornery Astrid is still here. The pup still steals cat food, vehemently demands pieces of chicken, and just generally wreaks all sorts of havoc, just like she's always done. 

If her arthritic legs continue to decline, even on pain meds, we'll at that point give the Librela injection a try. We're hoping to put off that slightly more divisive arthritis treatment for a while if we can, as there are some potential side effects that are a bit concerning. But, should Astrid need more than just pain meds, we'll give other routes a try.

Old girl yet still very ornery Astrid wishes you all a happy Wednesday!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

Yesterday's National Pet Poison Awareness Month tip was about being cautious of the potentially poisonous bites of certain snakes and spiders. In a similar yet also different tip, we are today talking about those critters who contain substances that could be toxic if ingested by our furbabies. For example, there are certain toads that contain substances on their body that can lead to severe toxicity. Two of the most poisonous toads are the Colorado River toad and the Marine toad. A pup or kitty making oral contact with these toads can lead to nearly immediate side effects such as drooling, vomiting, diarrhea, difficult breathing, difficulty walking, and potentially death if left untreated.

Other critters that can poison a dog or cat if ingested include a butterfly or caterpillar that has eaten milkweed, which can be incredibly toxic to our furbabies. In addition to this, there are some caterpillars with hairs or other means capable of injecting venomous toxins, which can spell out trouble if a cat or dog puts the caterpillar in their mouth. Monarch caterpillars and a variety of moth caterpillars are some of those known to have the ability to inject toxins when threatened.

Even fireflies can have poisonous effects on a cat or pup if ingested. Though their less-than-ideal taste is likely to keep a pup or kitty away, if ingested, they can cause vomiting and other gastrointestinal distress. For all of these reasons, especially if you are unsure of a critter's potential effects on your furbaby, simply do all that you can to prevent your kitty or pup's contact with or ingestion of bugs and other critters. As we mentioned yesterday, do your best to be aware of the types of critters in the area, and which ones can pose a risk to your pup or kitty. And, if your furbaby does come into contact with or ingest any bug of which you are unsure, do not hesitate to contact a veterinarian.

Living with Arthritis

Rosie has arthritis. She is 21 years old, so at least a little arthritis is expected. But Rosie has especially severe arthritis. What do I mean by this? What I mean is that, through x-rays, it was confirmed a couple of years ago that Rosie has arthritis between every single one of her vertebrae.

I'll take this time to note that all four of Rosie's paws were declawed when she was a kitten. Declawing is a highly debated topic. Having a declawed cat and knowing its effects on her, I will openly admit that I personally am anti-declaw. When a cat is declawed, not just the claw is removed, but also part of the actual digit itself. This forces the cat to learn to ambulate differently than their natural tendency. And that is why cats that are declawed -- whether two or four of their paws are declawed -- are extremely likely to develop worse arthritis than non-declawed cats. So, having been declawed as a kitten, now 21-year-old Rosie has severe arthritis.

This is not the best picture to show it, but here is a mild example of Rosie as a "low rider" due to her arthritis. As with many arthritic cats, Rosie walks and stands in a more plantigrade stance than is typical for cats (as in, whereas cats typically walk more on their toes, Rosie walks and stands in a more flat-footed stance).

Also not the best picture to show it, this an example of how arthritic Rosie's front legs sometimes tend to twist somewhat abnormally when she sits and stands.

Of course, Rosie is on a medication to hep combat the effects of her arthritis. She was tried on various joint supplements and pain medications, but the only drug that seems to help soothe her arthritis is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory. Since she also has renal disease and since non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can affect the kidneys, Rosie is kept on a low dose of the anti-inflammatory, and she is only given it every other day. It does help her, but no drug can truly defeat arthritis.

So, how else do I try to help alleviate Rosie's arthritis? By making sure that my house and life is built around making her comfortable and making everything as easy on her and her old joints as possible. She has given me over twenty years of companionship, so it's the least I can do for her.

What are some of my methods for helping to alleviate Rosie's arthritis? Well, I place step stools and makeshift stairs for Rosie to use to get onto and off of furniture, since her arthritis makes it difficult for her to jump. I also make sure that she has plenty of soft beds to lie on, so that her joints are not stiff from or pained by hard and uncomfortable bedding. In cold weather, when her arthritis seems to bother her the most, I make sure she has means of staying nice and warm. And, I make sure that her food and litter box and other necessities are as near to her favorite sleeping areas as possible, so that she doesn't have to travel too far with her stiff joints.

Soft blankets help keep Rosie's joints comfortable. One of her favorite soft beds, as seen in this picture, is a giant fleece blanket. She also likes to be tucked in on cold winter nights.

Rosie has many, many soft blankets that she uses.

Keeping warm helps to keep Rosie's arthritis at bay in the winter. In fact, over the past couple of years it was discovered that Rosie likes to sleep directly in front of a heater in the winter. So now, every winter a heater is set up just for Rosie. Heater + favorite fleece blanket = Rosie's paradise. (Note: In this picture Rosie is actually sleeping on one of the step stools she uses to get onto the couch. Because it was the piece of furniture closest to the heater, she demanded that her blanket be placed on it. She got her way, of course.)

This little old lady is served breakfast, lunch, and dinner in bed. She deserves it.

Queen Rosie may have arthritis, but with the help of lots of TLC she doesn't let it get her down.

All hail the Queen.

It only seems right that the first of my four-legged furballs I introduce here would be Rosie, otherwise known as Queen Rosie.

Queen Rosie

When I refer to Rosie as the Queen what I mean is that, in this furry corner of the world of mine, essentially everyone and everything revolves around Rosie. That's okay, though, because she's put in her time. At the beginning of this month Rosie turned 21 years young. I've had Rosie since I was a very young child. I grew up with her.

Now, in her geriatric years, Rosie is battling renal disease and arthritis, and she even fought off a severe case of pancreatitis and hepatitis two years ago. She also has -- excuse me while I use watered down medical terminology here -- a bad eye. At this point in time the eye is not causing her any problems or symptoms, but in the future it could result in glaucoma, which can be very painful and for which the only true cure is to have the eye removed. Through all of her ailments, though, Rosie has been a real trouper. It seems that nothing can bring her down. In fact, back when she was being treated for pancreatitis and hepatitis, she was deemed “bionic” by the veterinarian caring for her. What’s more, upon meeting Rosie, no one ever seems to believe me when I inform them that she is twenty-one years of age. I can only hope that I’ll age as well as Rosie.

I should give credit where credit is due, though. Helping Rosie fight her ailments is indeed an impressive pharmacy of medications. One of these is RenAvast, a relatively new nutraceutical that promotes healthy renal function. It has not been on the market for very long, but it has worked wonders for Rosie. On RenAvast, Rosie not only acts happier and healthier, but her renal values (BUN, creatinine, etc.) have been not only remaining static but at times even showing improvement. In fact, at her most recent vet visit a few weeks ago, her renal values were at levels lower than when she was first diagnosed with the disease. In addition to RenAvast, Rosie is on potassium supplementation and famotidine (pepcid) to further assist with issues arising from her renal disease, and she receives subcutaneous fluids daily to help flush out the circulating toxins caused by her faulty kidneys. She is also on a low dose of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory for her arthritis.

So, as I said, Rosie is certainly on an impressive pharmacy of drugs. But, since with these medications she is thriving in her geriatric years, I won’t complain a bit. After all, just like us, our animals age. And, just like with us, age is not a reason to simply throw in the towel. Quite the opposite, actually. So, if giving Rosie a pharmacy’s worth of medications makes her feel more or less young again, then that’s what she’ll get.

And then there’s the fact that Rosie has taught me that just because an animal is aging does not mean he or she can’t offer us just as much companionship and undeniable entertainment that he or she offered as a youngster. Yes, my once young and playful Rosie has certainly slowed down, but, at the same time, she has become sassier and at times riotously set in her ways. When Rosie wants fed she lets that fact be known loud and clear, and then she gets fed right then and there. Seriously, she gets fed on the couch in the living room, because that’s where she wants to eat.

Rosie invented the "couble" -- a couch and table all rolled into one.

Talk about breakfast -- and lunch, dinner, snack, and everything in between -- in bed. Speaking of which, when Rosie wants help getting onto my bed in the wee hours of the morning, she lets me know with a meow that could wake even the dead from their slumber. And so what do I do? Of course I immediately jump out of bed and lend her a helping hand onto my bed, and then I swiftly contort myself into whatever position she demands of me. And then there’s the fact that when Rosie physically demands the very blanket off my lap, I relinquish it without question. And when Rosie wants the resident dog or five other cats to give her some much needed space, she lets them know with a wail or a hiss or a swift slap in the face, and sometimes all of the above. And then, with a hop, skip, and a jump, I corral the young hooligans out of Rosie’s sight.

As I said, Rosie is the Queen of this furry brood of animals, and she deserves to be. After all, to put it in perspective, she is the equivalent of a human being who has made it to roughly one hundred years of age. We must respect our elders. So, all hail the Queen.