The Latest on Olivia

Usually, I schedule Olivia's vet visits for days when I come in late to work anyway--on alternating Fridays, my arrival time is 10: 30 or so--and get a phone call from the doctor later in the day with the latest blood test results.For the appointment this past Friday, I decided to just take the whole day off--I had the vacation time to take, and I'd be able to stick around and get the test results straight from the doctor's mouth in person.

And I am so, so glad I made that decision. Because getting this news over the phone wouldn't have had quite the same effect.

Our appointments always start the same way: Olivia and I are led into an examination room where she's placed on a table that also functions as a scale. She's weighed while I discuss how she's been since her last visit with one of the veterinary assistants, who then passed on my report to the vet, who then comes in to discuss treatment options with me and finally takes Olivia away to draw her blood. Then the vet and her assistants resupply me with whatever I need until the next appointment (fluids, syringes filled with antacid, special-diet food, etc.).

This time, when Olivia hit the examination table, the assistant and I got a surprise. And, for once, it was a pleasant one: Olivia had gained half a pound in the three weeks since her last appointment (when she had lost a tenth of a pound, as she had at the previous appointment as well). I gave the assistant my report--good, steady appetite, minimal vomiting, slight bagging of the skin later in the day after her subcutaneous fluids--and he went off to talk to the doctor, who came in a few minutes later. She briefly examined Li'L O, was pleased with what she saw--a lively kitty with a shiny coat and bright, attentive eyes--and took Olivia down the hall to draw the blood. She was brought back a few minutes later, and we waited.(Well, I waited while Olivia prowled the examination room, as seen above.)

We didn't have to wait long.

The vet came back in 20 minutes later with an expression on her face that appeared to be surprise bordering on shock: Olivia's creatinine (toxin) level had dropped from above seven (dangerously high) at her last visit to 4.4--still high (as to be expected in a cat with kidney disease), but much closer to normal. It appears that the adjustments we made after that last visit--upping her appetite stimulant to once every 48 hours and increasing her fluids to 100 milliliters a day--had paid off. The vet even high-fived me and printed out the test results for me; they're on my fridge now.

The vet was hesitant to say it out loud for fear of jinxing it, but she went ahead anyway: She expressed the hope that Olivia had "turned the corner" and was in a much better place than she had been at previous appointments. I took my little kitty and her many, many supplies/medications home, dropped her off and went out into my day of errand running (with celebratory side trips to Quake and the neighborhood cheese shop) with a significantly lighter step than I had after any previous visit with the vet. My baby was not only doing better, but she was doing well.

And how did Olivia celebrate this news? She threw up Saturday morning and picked at her food the rest of the day (She ate better Sunday and was her usual springy self this morning, so no worries--especially noy after Friday's news.)

The vet gave me all the credit in the world for getting Olivia this far, but I give all the credit to my little girl--if she didn't want to live, all the effort on my part wouldn't mean a damn thing. But she's working right along with me. She hates the medicine and the fluids, but she puts up with them. She doesn't always like the food choices, but she eats just the same. And if the vet and I can keep Olivia where she is now, my kitty and I will be together for a while longer.

And that? Is the best news of all.