These are the dog days of summer and especially Luisa hates them. With an outside temperature of 35 degrees she wishes she could trade her gorgeous fur coat for something lighter, cooler. Well the sun seems to be good for my new hibiscus plant at least: I’m expecting it to bloom soon.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
I got Luisa a pink shrimp toy on her 14th birthday. It has an airpump that makes it jump up and down and Luisa charges and attacks like a 4-year-old.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
Luisa’s age was guessed 3 or 4. I took Luisa to the vet today for a blood check and a full-body ultra sound scan. The results were great considering the circumstances. Her renal function has declined a bit over the years and her kidneys are slightly smaller than before but for an almost 14-year-old cat she’s in pretty good shape! Luisa is a leukemia carrier and I have been worrying about the possible growth of tumors but nothing unusual showed up on the screen. Big relief! I guess and I hope that since she hasn’t had any symptoms she probably got immune to it or, in the best case, expelled it from her system completely. On top of that, Luisa is one pretty lady with her long, soft three-color fur and she got a big compliment in the waiting room. A woman approached us asking if she could touch Luisa, I said ’sure, go ahead, she’s very gentle’, and the woman replied ‘nice kitty, she’s still young, about 3 or 4, right’. Truth is - LUISA WILL BE 14 NEXT MONTH!!!
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
Last Christmas: Atomo and Zafiro enjoying fun times together. Today is a fabulous day. I took Atomo to the vet this morning for a full medical check including X-ray, ultrasound and blood analysis. I also had him re-checked for leukemia. Turns out that Atomo is in perfect health and I am particularly relieved that he tested negative for leukemia which means that the vaccine is working. Yeah! Atomo’s attitude during the exams was great but when we returned to the waiting room he started hissing at the cats next to us and became quite agitated, his heart palpitating. When we were called for the results I related that to the vet and showed her his still violently beating heart but she reassured me that he had this reaction because he was nervous and upset. The results made me believe and relax. After my traumatic experience with Zafiro - energetic one day and sick with terminal cancer the next - I am probably overreacting a bit. In any case, today’s health check was a big success and one thing is def true: Better safe than sorry.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
Zafiro one week before a vile cancer killed him. The chemotherapy worked for a short time but in the end the tumor was stronger. What I don’t understand is this: Why, after decades of intense cancer research and billions of dollars spent, is there no cure? Where are the results?
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
This has been the best day in a long time. I took Zafiro to the vet this morning and we did an ultrasound scan on his chest. What we saw did not only make my day, it made my entire year: The lymphoma tumor appeared to be only half of the size it was a week ago, and the heart, previously pushed out of place by the tumor, was back where it belongs. We then looked at the X-rays and Zafiro’s lungs, last week deficient of oxygen, had sufficient oxygen, comparable to a healthy cat. The outlook has changed quite a bit from the initial diagnosis of 4 to 5 days to live, to 8 to 10 weeks to live (last week). This week it’s a completely different story, a new life for Zafiro, and this is his third one.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
Zafirito is responding well to chemotherapy. Zafiro has been on chemotherapy for ten days now and he’s responding very well to it. Once a week we visit the vet for a shot of oncovin (anti-cancer drug), a blood test, ultrasound and an X-ray when necessary. At home I give him steroids and antibiotics in powder form mixed with his food, every morning and evening, and an anti-cancer pill every other day. That’s quite a procedure: I put on plastic gloves, hold Zafiro’s head with one hand, pull down his jaw with the other hand, drop the pill into his throat and flush it down with water using a syringe. Needs some practice but I’m getting better, lol. That’s some severe medicine that might cause a reaction and hence the gloves. You should see me …! After starting the therapy Zafiro’s condition improved right away, from having difficulty breathing and moving to being a able to lead a normal life. His appetite is big as ever and then last Sunday he started jumping again: He loves climbing up the cat tower all the way to the top and landing softly on my bed, and last Sunday he jumped seven times in a row, he had to make up for lost time. Then two nights ago he woke me up because he was playing “lion and tiger” with Atomo, first time since he fell ill. They playfully attack each other, wild face, ears folded back and roaring like a lion and a tiger, respectively. Very fun to watch even in the middle of the night, lol.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
Today is 2/22, cat day in Japn - nyan nyan nyan. In English that would be meow meow meow. It’s not a happy day for me though: Zafiro was diagnosed with lymphoma, a type of cancer. He’s on chemotherapy and I am trying to prolong his life as much as possible.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
This morning I turned into a Hokkaido early bird when I took Atomo to the veterinarian. He had his ears cleaned again and got a leukemia shot. Interestingly today cats were in the majority and what I always enjoy at the vet’s office is that pet owners start conversations with each other effortlessly. It seems that a pet is a powerful ice breaker. On my way back home I passed by the recently relocated Sweets Cafe Hanako and got two cakes to go. This cafe has gained popularity similar to Cherry Merry’s success in the North 18 neighborhood. The good thing is that the cakes are so tiny there’s no danger at all of getting fat. Also thanks to all our students that brought us chocolates today, all teachers enjoyed them. And that was our early Valentine!
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
