Hi all......I'm Mikeys foster mum and I thought it was about time I came on and introduced myself and said a big thank you for all the support you are giving following Gills lovely posts
I just wanted to reply to a few posts too:
Mark - he saw a regular vet originally and they said they felt any movement we were seeing was just reflex. I then took him to see a neurologist and he said the same.....so there doesn't seem much hope from the experts that he will ever walk again. ...I just find it hard to beleive though that he won't improve further with what I am actually seeing him do! Do the specialists ever get it wrong??? (I didn't knickname him 'Miracle Mikey' for nothing!lol) Re his tail.....you have just voiced what I have already thought....apart from being a built in mop at times his tail at the moment serves no purpose....depending what happens in the future I don't know if removing it would perhaps be the best thing... but at the moment I wouldn't want to put him through another operation and I just feel that until enough time has passed to be
completely sure, I wouldn't want to go down that route. If he's taken by surprise by something it does all puff out but I guess thats just reflex.
Jackspratt - thanks so much for posting that link....I have got a cart which Angie very kindly leant to me but at the moment he keeps slipping out of the front harness so I've not been having much luck with it unfortunately.....but I do think there would be huge value in Mikey having one made to measure so I have contacted the people at Dog mobile....have also sent them some of the videos of MIkey and am waiting to hear back....
Pudding - I understand fully your concern but just wanted to say my decision to keep him alive is not just because I can. I have thought long and hard about it and the reason I am not going to pts is because he
is enjoying his life....despite it being limited. If he ends up ill, or hugely depressed and frustrated by his limitations then that would be a time to rethink the situation but whilst he is showing a real zest for life....how could I possibly take that away?
Angie - will forever be grateful of you sending me the 'Pookie' link....that really was what helped me to see things more clearly. I am already moving him quite successfully onto a raw diet and am already seeing the improvement in his poo's
Skully - just a bit or reassurance really.....Mikey is thankfully not showing any signs of any sores on his legs....in fact the fur still seems completely normal thickness. The fur is a little thin on his tummy and bottom but it doesn't appear to be getting any worse as time goes by so I am hopefull it will stay as it is. I have no real surfaces in the pen that can cause any real friction.....its all lined with puppy pads so he slides quite easily across them. They are also a tremendous help in keeping him clean and dry. I use puppy pads and lots of vetbed so he actaully doesn't need a bath that often (cos you're right he does hate it!
) I use 'Tushie wipes' on a daily basis and he'll only actually need a proper bath about once a fortnight beleive it or not.....so its not too bad for my little man. For an incontinent cat he keeps amazingly clean and dry.....and he cleans himself very well too.
Gail - When I saw Mikey for the first time in the vets I cried and it did pretty much kill me. It wasn't my decision at that point whether we should pts or not but the decision wasn't being made so I just said 'one thing is for certain he's not going to show any signs of improvement sitting in a little cage all day' so thats how he ended up coming home with me. He has gone from strength to strength and now I see 'Mikey' rather than his disability. He has so much character and such a zest for life that the videos actually arent that hard to watch. I have a friend who didn't want to come and see him as she thought it would upset her too much....in the end she did come (armed with a load of tissues!lol) but she never did need them....
Gill - Just a
for all that you have done and were/are prepared to do for Mikey.
Sorry for such a long post....I just wanted to respond to each of you personally
And finally a big thank you from this little man