New Update on Butch, Cat of the Month, April 2007
Thursday June 26, 2008
I last updated about Butch on May 29th, when Cheryl emailed me that Butch had been diagnosed with kidney failure with a prognosis of one month. Cheryl and I have been keeping in touch and the news is now a bit more promising. Butch had an ultrasound on June 3rd and the diagnosis now is renal lymphoma, a fatal disease, which is being treated with chemotherapy. He also has a URI (upper respiratory infection), which is responding to antibiotics. He was hospitalized twice for dehydration and weight loss, and a feeding tube was subsequently inserted in a procedure called esophogostomy, so that Cheryl can feed him at home. Butch has had several setbacks and at one point it was felt that euthanasia might be the kindest course to take. However, his oncologist has been encouraged by the results of the first chemotherapy two treatments.
Cheryl writes:
- She (the oncologist) feels his symptoms are related to the upper respiratory infection and that his condition has improved since his second treatment. His kidney profile while still elevated is going down and his kidneys were also smaller than they were on 6-12-08. He had gained 3 1/2 ounces and she was overall pleased with his progress. He is due for a third chemo treatment on Thursday 6-19-08.
It has been quite exhausting and a very stressful period for all of us. Romeo, who is a very active kitty, has been absolutely sleeping and hiding in his tent since Friday so we know he feels terrible. (Romeo also had the URI.) I know that Butch does too and unfortunately this upper respiratory infection has been a bad turn for him with receiving chemo too. We are praying that as Butch starts to feel better he will eat on his own and the tube can be removed. If he goes into complete remission this is possible and his quality of life will be good. Please keep Butch in your prayers. He is quite the fighter and has been such a love to me over the last 10 1/2 months.
Photo Credit: © Cheryl C.
Comments
Hi, sorry to hear about your cat’s illness. You could check earthclinic.com and cancerfungus.com for your cat.
Hope this helps.
Kind regards,
Marianne
I know it’s hard to let go but I think you just need to let him go poor thing letting him suffer like that!
Butch is in my prayers, I have lost a dog to cancer and I know the pain, still cry over my charlie, miss him so much.. I just want to tell you that I ADMIRE YOU SO MUCH. YOU are a great lady and God will reward you for all you have done for Butch.. I too took in 2 strays and adopted one ,so I now have 3 beautiful cats that I would do anything for.. We love our fur babies so much and you have the kindest heart , Butch was meant to find you and you to find him.. please keep me posted on your baby please…
I have been following your updates about Butch and I am so happy that you haven’t given up hope. I have 2 cats of my own and I would do anything for them.Butch is so lucky to have your love.You are amazing! My prayers are with you, Butch and your family!
I know how much you love Butch. I know how difficult it is to say goodbye. I hope you will be strong and let your baby go to a better place, where he will be strong and pain free again. Please do what is best for Butch, however painful for you. I had to do it on February 27th. It still hurts but it only hurts me now, not my little boy Max.
I am praying for Butch I know what you are feeling I lost my Tommy 9 years ago to diabetes and it was so hard to let him go our vet did everything that could be done, even though I have 4 other cats Tommy was my very first cat and I will always miss him.
I applaud what you are doing. I lost my beloved Mimi to cancer a few weeks ago, and know just how hard all this can be. You will know when it is time to say goodbye to Butch, and when that time comes we will all be thinking of you.
Bless you and Butch.
I lost “Baby” my 3 yr old Tuxedo cat last June 8th to a mis-diagnosis that resulted in his death unfortunatly way too early in his life.
He lived akmost 9 weeks with a feeding tube and it broke my heart to see him slipping away day after day but hanging on as if to spare me from the pain of letting go.
Finally, after sitting up all night on June 6th holding him in my arms and watching him struggle to live for my sake, I finally held him close to my lips and whispered to him ” you can go now and be at peace my sweet boy and I will always love you and miss you but I will be ok. I thanked him for the 3 years of total happiness he bought into my life and told him that it was ok for him to go and rest and that I would meet him at the rainbow bridge someday.
At that moment, he took a deep breath and opened his weak eyes and it was as if he smiled at me and he slipped away in my arms.
We BOTH let go. But the love remains.
His urn sits on my desk and he is with me always.
I applaud you for standing by your baby and doing all that you medically can for him but if his quality of life diminishes to the point that you know he cant come back then give him permission “to go” for it is the greatist gift of love you can give him at that point. Sometimes I think they hang on to spare us the pain of letting go.
God bless their little hearts that they love US that much.
I will pray for you and your Butch.
Good luck with everything!! I don’t want to start any trouble here, but I hope that these people who keep telling you to let go aren’t making my medical decisions if I get sick. Everybody suffers if they are sick–it doesn’t mean you should just “pull the plug.”
I had a cat go into renal failure and the vet said he might live for a month or so. It’s a year later and my cat has gained all of his weight back and his kidneys are functioning at a good level. He had to have some treatments done and he didn’t like them, but in the end, I know he’s happy to be alive!! Don’t give up
Thank you for speaking up, Georgi. It’s easy to post criticism or facile advice, but not really helpful. Prayers and morale support are called for here, not unsolicited advice.
Cheryl has an excellent veterinary team and is working very closely with them. Butch is the one to tell her when the time comes. For me, I pray that that time will be a long time away and that Butch will continue to improve. He’s an amazing cat and Cheryl is an amazing woman.
Franny
Dear, dear lady, we struggle so not to let go, AS DO our precious furbabies…I agree with Pat that Butch WILL let you know when he is “ready”, in some way that only YOU will be able to “read.”. In the meantime, hold him close and let him feel your great love, as I am sure you are already doing…he needs that more than anything. You are his world…
The doctors ARE giving you some hope, so hang on to that for now too; I’m sure they have his needs in mind as well. ((HUGS)) to both of you.
Hello again–I meant to say “Franny” instead of “Pat”–I hope Pat knows I’m not trying to speak for her!! Just a silly mistake on my part!
I’m so sorry that Butch is having such health problems. I do suspect that the URI is playing a major role in how bad he feels. I’m glad to hear that he’s responding to the chemo.
I know that there is a Yahoo group specifically for people dealing with feline lymphoma, and also groups dealing with feline cancer. It might be helpful for you to check them out and benefit from others’ experiences as you go through this.
Good luck to you and to Butch.
Hugs and prayers for you and Butch, Cheryl. The world needs more people like you.
Never lose hope.
Sometimes, on the internet, we forget that we only see very selected details of another person’s situation. Hence, it is very easy to stand in judgment, even though we do not have all the factors at hand. I have cared for cats for over 35 years from now and I can say, without hesitation, that every decision between treatment and euthanasia is different, because every cat is different.
Cheryl knows Butch best… better than her vets and better than anyone else, including those posting here. The decision to cease treatment is hers alone and because her love for Butch is plainly evident, I have full faith that she will make whatever decision is necessary at the right and proper time.
In the mean time, it is obvious that Butch is in the hands of a caring advocate dedicated to carrying out her responsibilities with sensitivity and courage. That alone is worthy of applause.
You and Butch are in my thoughts. *healing vibes* I hope you have a lot of time left together. You’re an angel for taking such great care of him. *hugs*
(I second everything Georgi and Dru said.)
I lost a wonderful cat to squamous cell cancer under her tongue many years ago. I let the vet operate on her and as a result she lost part of her tongue and I spoon fed her for 3 months. Had I known how it would turn out I wouldn’t have had her operated on but you can’t do things both ways to see which one is best. I took care of her for those months and said I would know when the time had come to end it for her ( and me) and when the time came I did what I had to and grieved for months for her. It’s like losing a member of the family. Good luck to you and Butch.
hi cheryl,
god bless you! i hope everything turns out for you, and i willl pray for you and butch!
Pay attention to Butch, he’ll let you know when he needs help over the bridge. Prayers for peace and comfort for you and Butch, may it take years of comfortable living before he needs your help…………ben
Cheryl,
You and Butch (along with your other furkids) are in my thoughts and prayers. Knowing how much Butch has been through it is apparent he is a fighter and not ready to leave you just yet. (plus what Dru said)
Hi,
sorry to hear about your cat’s illness.
Was one of Butch’s symptoms bad breath’?
may Butch get well soon, hopefully
looking forward for your answer. Thanks
Farah, I’m sorry to tell you that Butch passed away earlier this year. You can read about it here.