Looking back now I wish I'd followed my heart instead of my head. The cats I've loved since Patch have taught me so much, especially Tara. Her two year journey with diabetes and heart disease helped to form such a deep bond between us, and the things I had to do for her, from insulin shots to glucose testing and curves to keeping track of a half dozen meds per day, made me realize I'm much stronger than I originally gave myself credit for.
Sometimes I feel like I've gained enough first hand knowledge through the years to be a vet tech, and anything I (thankfully) haven't experienced personally I enjoy researching in order to write our medical posts. It's a sad fact that cats do not receive the same vet care that dogs do, so that makes it all the more important for us pet bloggers to get helpful information out there to cat parents. We certainly can't take the place of veterinary professionals, but we can help people know what to be on the lookout for and about the importance of regular wellness visits for our fur babies.
In honor of Pet Wellness Month, here's a roundup of some of our favorite health-related posts:
Mudpie's Vaccination Scare...and What We'll Do Differently Next Time Mudpie's most recent wellness exam was anything but routine because it left me with 6 weeks of worry thanks to a lump that popped up at her rabies vaccine site.
D-Mannose & Your Cat's Urinary Tract Health So many cats suffer from urinary tract infections, and Tara had her fair share as a result of feline diabetes. That came to an end once I started adding D-Mannose to her wet food each day!
4 Invaluable Resources for Managing Feline Diabetes When a cat is diagnosed with diabetes there is so much to learn it can feel overwhelming. This post outlines the resources I found most useful while I was caring for Tara.
VitusVet App Provides Peace of Mind Many of us know all too well the stress of being in the emergency room with your pet late at night with no access to their medical records. This app allows you to carry their entire medical history right on your phone. Planning on travelling with your pet over the holidays? Download it today!
New Diagnostic Test Holds Promise for Feline Asthma Patients Just by listening to her lungs and an x-ray to confirm, Mudpie's asthma was diagnosed very easily, but some cats aren't as lucky. A new test similar to a human breathalyzer has the potential to help vets identify and treat asthma in cats earlier - potentially meaning fewer acute asthmatic attacks and improved lung health for cats in the long term.
One of our greatest responsibilities as pet parents is keeping our cats healthy and happy.
Be observant - visit your vet regularly - and love them to pieces each and every day!
15 comments:
It's never too late to follow your heart! Maybe you should look into being a vet tech. The world needs more techs who are cat-centric, that's for sure!
While you may not have become a Vet or a Vey Yech(yet) the information you share is very valuable.
We appreciate that :)
Purrs Georgia,Julie and JJ
it's never to late to go back to school.
I was much like you. As a little girl, when people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, veterinarian was always my answer. Over time, though, I realized the sadness that must inevitably come with being a veterinarian. Vets do such wonderful work, and they can cure and heal and do such amazing things, but it was the heartbreak that I didn't know if I could handle. I did end up working as a veterinary assistant at a cat clinic, and while I loved and appreciated helping kitties, I will admit that after a couple of years I needed a break. There were many good times, but also enough sad times that I had to back away a bit in order to find myself again.
That all being said, I agree that, if you still have dreams of working in the veterinary field, it really is never too late. The veterinarian I used to work for didn't start out as a veterinarian. She was a CFO until she was almost 40, when she decided to leave that career and go to veterinary school. She ultimately opened up her very own cat clinic.
Purrs!
Thanks for sharing this roundup of articles. We agree with Summer...it's never too late to become a vet tech...and more cat-centric ones are really needed.
You are still helping cats through your writing. You bring awareness to those in need as well as writing posts about health topics that teach other pet parents about medical issues. If you do still have that calling, I agree with the other commenters that it is never too late. XO
The ones beyond saving would get to me. I think you are providing a service with your informational posts, Melissa, therefore still helping cats.
Follow your heart! You'd make an amazing vet tech! You're helping si many with your articles.
it's a wonderful reminder to stay on top of cat care! But you probably did make the right choice--my sister is a vet and says that the heartbreaking part is not jsut all the animals you lose but some of the clients you meet that you know are not good pet parents or who just let their animals suffer rather than take them to the vet--very heartbreaking! Mudpie is lucky to have yoU!
mudpie; tell mom sum times de best knowledge comes furst hand; frum thoz whooz pet
haz had a certain..issue, conditionz etc.....ther purrsons R ther with em ta see everee thing; frum de start. bee in a vet iz knot eazee; werkin ina shelterz iz knot eazee; takin care oh fosterz and ore feralz iz knot eazeee...984 pawz up times a trillion two all who due ~~~~~ ♥♥♥
I think a vet needs the deepest love for animals BUT also a slightly tougher cattitude than many of us can summon up.
A vet has the strength to put the animal first, last and always, ahead of deepest love and sentiment. This takes determination and courage. I could never be a vet. I have enough trouble with getting from day to day when I go through a bad patch about Dash.
It's never too late ! Thank you for this great roundup of your health-related posts. Purrs
I used to want to be a be a vet too, but by the time I got to college I was so sick of being in school, I just couldn't imagine spending so many more years on schooling. You're definitely providing a service to cat parents with your writing and researching talents! :)
WHAT?!?! Your Mom included a picture saying what you weigh?!?! HOW RUDE!!! A lady cat should never have her weight disclosed! ;)
Oddly enough, as much as I love animals - I could never be a vet. Blood and guts don't bother me - but I'm especially sensitive to animals for some reason. I could cut open a human - but a cat?!? Nope. And there's no way I could leave my work at work either. This is a random comment, but I love how similar your Mommy and I are. It means so much to me.
TBT here: Sometimes things you are intereted in have problems. I first wanted to be an astronomer before I discovered in college that it is all physics and higher math and my math failed at calculus. The I wanted to become a politician. But then I learned that it mostly involved begging for money to fund campaigns and doing what rich donors said to do.
So I ended up working in a Govt office in ways that saved more money than they spent on me and that was good.
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