Just what is going on here.

A story about a very sick kitty:

Several days ago my roommate's cat Thatcher began having episodes where he'd meow and drool. I brought this to my roommate's attention but she said 'he's just a drooly cat'. I knew this was no ordinary drooling. When he started involuntarily peeing I pointed this out, too. Finally when I managed to get a video of him having some kind of fit she saw that he was very sick and took him to the vet. They took blood and sent him home. 

The blood test turned up nothing and the vet didn't seem too concerned. I was, however, and continued to trail the cat. He continued to feel sick and meow at me for help. After a few hours he had a massive and terrifying seizure which I managed to catch on film. The roommate rushed home and took him to a specialist several hours away. When he got there he had another huge, deadly seizure and the vets there rushed to save him. 

His sodium levels were astronomical. Oral Sodium poisoning in cats is very rare. It was far more likely that the problem was internal--probably neurological. In order to save this cat the techs had to bring sodium levels down slowly or risk brain damage and then he had to be taken to neurological specialists in another state.

My roommate kept sending us these horrible audio texts of her sobbing and saying the vets kept talking to her about end-of-life options. The fate of Thatcher wasn't looking good and the bill for care was $10k and climbing. Even if he did come out of it there was a chance of permanent brain damage. However, as bad as the seizures appeared, he was unconscious and not in any pain. We all talked about it and she decided to give him the chance, however slim. 

I was sobbing, dreading going to bed and waking up to find the texts that he had died overnight, but against all odds the cat was still alive and, in fact, doing better than expected. His sodium levels were good enough that day to send him on to the other state school so he was packed up and my roommate drove him the 5-6 hours over.

Neurological experts took him over and began testing. His eyes track and his reflexes are good but he's still extremely out of it. A brain scan turned up nothing and a spinal tap was also negative. They're still testing today. The working theory is that he has late onset epilepsy and something in his body causes upset and makes sodium levels climb which gives him worsening seizures, ad nauseum. There are anti-convulsants he can take but it's important to get to the bottom of his illness, if possible, so that's where they are at. 

All this hubub has been giving me some terrible sleep. I love animals and feel responsible for them even if I don't 'own' them, per se. (Actually I don't really believe in owning animals more than owning people.) 

So I've been working but haven't gotten as much done as I'd like to or should. I have commissions to upload but once those stop trickling in I'll have to get on AC and EF paintings. 

Other than that I'm just thrilled it's spring. Winter gets me more badly every year. I need that green and warm and strong sun!  I'm turning into a reptile!