Kitty kidneys and clouds.

What I'm Wearing:

Shirt: Charlotte Russe (hand-me-down from sister) |  Jeans: House of Derreon  |  Boots: Thrifted - similar boots here |  Necklace: Present from sister  |  Bracelets:  old - maybe Kohl's?  |  Earrings:  Handmade gift from friend  |  Jacket: Rampage Clothing Co. (hand-me-down from friend)  

Hair:
Twisted, with a sloppy pull-through bun.

So it seems the weather realized, "Oh crap! It's too soon for summer weather! Back to spring!"  On one hand I'm thankful, because I really disliked turning the air conditioning on in MARCH.  On the other hand, my first rotation (which starts on Monday) is "equine field services", meaning I'll be outside taking care of horses.  I would actually prefer to have sunshine and warmth for this rotation, please!  Sigh.

This has actually been a pretty depressing week.  On Tuesday I took my cat Abby into the vet hospital for x-rays because I felt a strange lump in her abdomen.  It didn't feel like kidney to me, but the location seemed odd for it to be anything else.  The x-rays came back and, in looking at them, we discovered that both of her kidneys are small and her right kidney is lumpy-bumpy.  So it turns out it was in fact her right kidney that I was feeling, but I didn't recognize it due to its small, abnormal shape.  We decided to do bloodwork and a urinalysis on her to check her kidney function.  

Diagnosis?  It looks like my poor dear has early stage renal disease.

Renal failure is not at all unusual in older cats.  In fact, it is one of the reasons why it's so important to take your cat to the veterinarian yearly for checkups, especially once they hit the age of 7 years.  There's not much I can do right now for Miss Abby since she's not showing any clinical symptoms, but it is SO important to just know that her kidneys are bad so that I can look out for any of the tell-tale signs of disease progression.  I also may switch her to a prescription diet specifically formulated for cats with kidney disease.  I'll have to take her back into the hospital in 6 months for more bloodwork, just to make sure her disease isn't progressing.

Luckily I caught it early, so I can be extra vigilant in looking out for the clinical signs of chronic renal failure (such as drinking and urinating a lot).  I'm also giving Abby an extra heaping dose of pets, cuddles, and loving, because she's so special to me and I'm so thankful she's in my life.

Abby, taking a nap in the sunshine after returning home from the hospital.

If you have a pet, give him/her an extra cuddle today.  How I wish they could all live forever!

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