If you read our last blog post or have been following us on Instagram, you probably know that Caster has been very sick with a mystery illness for the past 4+ weeks. Things were pretty scary there for a minute, especially since the vets couldn’t figure out what was wrong. Unfortunately they still haven’t pinpointed or diagnosed anything, but I am happy and grateful to report that Caster is doing much better!
He had a big turn around last Wednesday or so. His went to the vet last Monday because, in addition to the multitude of other seemingly random symptoms, he was eating and throwing up litter and hadn’t pooped in I don’t know how long. I was concerned he had a blockage or something, so off we went to the vet for the 6th time in 3 weeks. Caster wasn’t cooperating for X-rays, and our vet, Dr. Caldwell, didn’t want to sedate him because of his fragile health state, so we had to settle for our vet just feeling Caster’s abdomen to try to determine if there was a blockage. He said that if there was anything, he didn’t think it was substantial, so he just gave us some probiotics and a laxative for Caster to take a couple times a day.
Dr. Caldwell also prescribed a steroid – both in pill and eye-drop form. He had prescribed an antibiotic, clindamycin, a couple weeks prior but was nervous about prescribing a steroid because he was concerned it might make whatever was going on with Caster worse. However, after seeing that the antibiotic wasn’t really doing anything and consulting with the ophthalmologist that Caster saw a few weeks ago, he decided to go ahead and prescribe the steroid, prednisolone. His hope was that the steroid would combat the inflammation in Caster’s eyes and put a stop to his worsening vision as well as help whatever else was going on with Caster internally.
Well, it worked! After a couple of days on the laxative, Caster finally pooped and also stopped eating and throwing up litter. The steroids have helped tremendously too. He has eaten very well for about a week now, his energy has returned, his eyes are looking better, and he’s his usual rambunctious, curmudgeony self. He has been playing with both his favorite wand toy and with his brothers and sisters. He has been spotted prancing down the hallway and pouncing after Sophie. He is whapping us and letting out his grouchy meow on a frequent basis (hence the nickname “Curmudgeon,” shortened to “Mudge” or “Mudgey”).
And to top it all off, the sign we’ve been waiting for to tell us that Caster is truly back to his usual self happened last night… HE JUMPED UP AND CLIMBED THE DOOR FRAME! Caster’s signature wall climb is one of my favorite things that he does, and we haven’t seen it in several weeks. To witness him doing it last night brought tears of joy to my eyes.
Though his eyes are looking better, damage has still been done to them, so he isn’t seeing 100%. The doctors don’t expect him to recover his vision fully, though I’m not giving up hope on that. I’m expecting to see a complete recovery of everything! God has granted my Christmas wish of having a healthy Caster, so I expect He will complete the job! Until then though, I’m grateful to have Caster healthy and happy again.
Thank you to everyone who has reached out and sent prayers and good thoughts our way. It truly is a comfort to know we have such loving and supportive furiends and followers. You guys are the best <3
Brian Frum says
That really is such wonderful news, way to go Caster, keep improving!
Eastside Cats says
Mystery illness! But we are all glad that you are feeling much better, Caster! Nothing worse than when someone you love is feeling under the weather.
Dalton/Angel-MrJackFreckles/Pipo & Angel-Minko says
Oh, we are so happy for you and Caster! Great mews indeed! We will purr and pawray that he keeps well:)
da tabbies o trout towne says
dood….we R veree sorree ta lurn ewe haz knot been doin sew grate; we have knot been
online in a while. we IZ happee tho…. ta heer yur doin better… N we send de blessingz of
st francis….. ewe continmew ta improove….. N yur momz new yeer wish oh a 100000000000
purrcent better caster… comez troo ~~~~~~~♥♥♥
Allison says
Your post brought happy tears to my eyes. I’m so glad that Caster is on the mend. I’ll pray that his vision is restored too. Hugs!
Ellen Pilch says
I am so happy to read that Caster is feeling better and climbing the doorway. I will keep him in my prayers. XO
The J-Cats says
We are so happy to hear that Caster is feeling better.
Purrs,
Trixie, Caspurr and Shimshi
Kitties Blue says
We are all doing a happy cat dance, and Mom and Dad are so relieved and thankful that “Mudgey” (Mom loves the new nickname) has returned to his old self. Truly a Christmas miracle. He looks fabulous in these photos. Mom is going to pray super hard that whatever this was NEVER EVER returns. We love you all so much, and when you are hurting, so are we. Sending lots of love to all, and Astrid sends Sampy 1234567898765478987654346789876543676432356765432123456787654323567898765432357898765435787642 kisses and her undying love. XOCK, angel Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, angel Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth, Calista Jo, Cooper Murphy and Sawyer
The Island Cats says
We’re so glad Caster is doing better and up to his old tricks.
Connie - Tails from the Foster Kittens says
I’m curious if they ever tested for anemia, because eating litter is a sign of that..
Emily says
They did a full blood panel on him. It didn’t show anything out of the ordinary, nor did it indicate anemia. I thought the same thing about the litter and mentioned it to our vet, but Caster’s blood work was normal. Eating litter was just one of the many symptoms he had… consistently low body temp, lethargy, pain when touched, not eating, chorioretinitis which cased him to lose some of his vision… it was all so random, and neither our regular vet or ophthalmologist were able to diagnose him with anything other than the chorioretinitis (which is a symptom of some other underlying condition). Thankfully the steroids have made a big difference!
Mary McNeil says
What a great Christmas gift to Catster and all those who love him !
caren gittleman says
This is the most WONDERFUL news ever!!! Keep climbing Caster!!!!!! xoxo
mommakatandherbearcat says
YAY! We’ve kept Caster in our thoughts and prayers and we’re relieved that he’s back to himself.
Summer says
I’m so relieved to hear that Caster is climbing the walls again! I’m sending more healing purrs his way.
Teddy says
So VERY happy to hear that Caster is BAAAACK! I guess sometimes even the vets/experts are stumped by things that are going on with our cats – like when Teddy was so sick early this year. He did finally get better like Caster has done – – but we may never REALLY know what was going on. The point is they make the turnaround. It’s quite a nice Christmas gift to have your boy feeling so much better. You can relax now. YAY!
Hugs, Pam and Teddy too
Connie says
Thank you for responding..
Stephanie says
So happy to hear this! Having a sick kitty (especially when you don’t know what’s wrong!) is awful.
Random Felines says
This makes us all so very happy!!
The Swiss Cats says
We’re so happy to hear such wonderful news about Caster ! Purrs
meowmeowmans says
Hooray! We’re so glad Caster is doing so much better! We will keep on purring and praying for him, of course.
Piggles and Friends Rescue says
The eating litter is a sign of PICA, could be lack of nutrients. We had a kitty who did this and thankfully adding a high calorie nutrient/vitamin dense supplement helped. It comes in a gel and they will literally lick it off as you squeeze it out. They love it. I would suggest adding it to Casters daily meds and see if it helps. Took about a week to see a huge difference in our guy. Sending love and head boinks to you all ❤?
Emily says
Thanks for the suggestion. Thankfully he stopped eating litter and is showing no signs of illness anymore! Yay!