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Posted on 01/02/2007 9:57:39 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
This is a horse chat thread where we share ideas, ask for input from other horsemen, and talk about our riding and horse-keeping. We have a lot of different kinds of riders and horses, and a lot to share. In the previous threads we have had a great time talking through lessons, training, horse lamenesses, illnesses and pregnancies... and always sharing pictures and stories.
I always have a link to this thread on my profile page, so if you have something to say and can't find the thread in latest posts… look for it there and wake the thread up!
I also have a ping list for horse threads that are of interest, and MissTargets will now be pinging everyone most mornings. Let MissTargets and/or me know if you would like to be on the ping list. As FreeRepublic is a political site, our politics and other issues will probably blend in…. There are many issues for horsemen that touch politics… land use, animal rights/abuse cases that make the news…. Legislation that might affect horse owners.
So... like the previous threads, this is intended as fun place to come and share stories, pictures, questions and chit-chat, unguided and unmoderated and that we come together here as friends. There are lots of ways of doing things and we all have our quirks, tricks and specialties that are neat to learn about.
Previous threads:
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - thread ONE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread TWO!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread THREE!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FOUR
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FIVE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SIX
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SEVEN
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread EIGHT
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread NINE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread TEN
New folk and occasional posters, jump right in and introduce yourselves, tell us about your horses, and post pictures if you've got them!
Wonderful news! Here's hoping and praying for a speedy recovery.
Here's another one. Try http://www.dreamhorse.com/ if you haven't already.
LOL!!
The last time we found a little white dog, I placed an ad. All we got were people wanting to take it. Not the true owners. The owners never came forward, so we did end up giving it to a young couple and their children. Still, I didn't feel very comfortable about that. Too much dog snatching, for lab research goes on. Even the flyer we have up at the super market, is pretty non descriptive, as far as breed.
Do you have land already? Will you be able to keep your horses at home?
Coming soon...Flying Pig Farm
Yeah, hopefully we won't kill each other first. I hear that from everybody who's ever built a house.
LOL! Love the crazy cat lady pic. Thanks for the dreamhorse site.
Yes, conformation people do remove dewclaws. I do my own. I was a vet tech for several years and learned how to do it. We remove them between 3 and 5 days of age. It is not mandatory but is preferred. Lots of Setter people have dual dogs so removing them on the whole litter is desired.
You might want to contact the Golden Retriever rescue. I think their contact info is on www.akc.org
~sigh~
I may want something that's hard for anyone to give... assurance that my old cat does not have a problem that will necessarily call for extreme measures.
He has glaucoma. That's not new. Glaucoma, and cataracts that have left him virtually blind. He got it a few years ago in one eye, and recently, I see clouding in the other eye too, and lots of evidence that he can no longer see much, if anything, beyond maybe light and some blurry shapes.
That's not really the problem. He's still been getting around pretty good. He still demands (not asks, DEMANDS) to go outside, and while I worry about him out there, he rarely goes far, and seems to be able to navigate around the yard by Braille. It's interesting to watch.
He's become a little confused sometimes, but we figure, as long as he's getting around, and hoping he doesn't injure that eye, that he was fine.
Now... fast forward to today, there is the appearance of some blood in the lens of his eye. Don't know if he has injured it or if something has ruptured or what. It's watering a little, but clear. It doesn't seem overly sensitive, we can pet over the eye and he doesn't flinch, other than a blink reflex and an instinct to not like his eye covered. I don't think it hurts.
So, I know as well as any of you that the right answer, (if money were no object), is to take him to the vet and have it checked out. Let me just give you some reality background and ask if you really think I need to force a decision based on this development, because if we end up in a tough spot, it may not end well for the cat.
When the lens first clouded over I took him right into the vet, and the vet and I talked about options, which was an eye specialist (cough) in town, or removal of the eye, which was quoted at $600 three years ago. Well, jeepers, the cat is in his upper teens, I'm not made of money, it didn't seem to be hurting him, so I took him home, figuring if and when the eye got sick or injured or painful looking, we'd make a decision then... which would most likely be to to put him down. I've got a lot of critters to care for on a limited budget, I can't sink lots of money into this old kitty, much as I love the crabby old cuss.
The crabby part brings up the other issues that aren't to be ignored. The cat has become increasingly hostile about being picked up and moved around since going blind. While he'll still jump up on my desk and sit with me often, I think it makes him feel disoriented and scared to be carried. He's BIG - twenty pounds at least, and he's clawed, and he becomes really p*ssed off really fast if we try to carry him anywhere. Taking him to the vets to be examined would be very difficult, and stressful for him, and I'd like to avoid that, too, if it's not absolutely necessary.
So I guess my question, for those with some life or work experience in cats and glaucoma and eye problems, is, do I need to freak out about this blood spot in his eye? Is this something that is ever a fairly normal part of an eye with advanced glaucoma and/or cataracts, that will happen, bleed, and heal on it's own? Or his he headed for a bad infection or worse, where his eye is going to either completely break down or burst or something really bad?
He is not suffering now, but I don't want him to suffer later because we did wrong by him, either. I need to know what's reasonable to do.
Blood in the lens is not a good sign. Blood vessels in the eye are rupturing, which can happen for a variety of reasons (including the glaucoma, I think).
That's just what I remember from going through this with a friend's cat (the eye eventually had to be removed because the pressure reached dangerous levels.)
Let's ask vetvetdoug what he thinks, I may be being unnecessarily alarmist because your cat's condition may not be at all what my friend's cat had . . . when I was a dancer we used to get in trouble swapping remedies for leg problems around for that very reason . . .
I know it might be a big problem. I just don't want it to be, and I guess I want to know what's going to happen if I let it go. Right now he's still really strong, and fairly content, but if I take him in and they want to remove both eyes for $1200, I just can't justify that.
I'm afraid taking him in might force a decision faster than I need to, but I'd like to know the consequences of not doing that.
JMHO here. For a cat that has reached his teens and has always been an indoor/outdoor kitty, I don't think you are doing him a service by taking extra measures. I have a feeling the the eye with glacoma may burst at some point, at that point you need to make a decision. At his age, I would not start any treatment beyond possibly putting some eye drops in his eyes.
Again, this is just my opinion because I feel strongly about the quality of life some animals have when we take "heroic" measures.
I agree with your reasoning. No heroic measures... For all I know he's actually in his twenties. He came here as an adult stray many years ago, we've always just guessed at his age.
And I think it's a big issue that he's no longer easy to handle. He's really hostile about being carried around. It scares him. Even getting to the vet would be a trauma for him, let alone the exam. And doing much treatment would be a hassle for us all where he'd just end up all pissed off with drops running down his face because we can't get it in his eye before he claws loose.
Before I do any of that I want to know I absolutely have to, and that it would do him some good. He's not really hurting now.
Aw, poor Kitty. I really don't know that much about eye problems in cats, but if he doesn't seem to be hurting, give it a few days. Wrapping a towel around their body, does seem to help for control. He's a pretty cat and does look good for that age. Good luck!
Oh man...I hope it's nothing serious. Crabby as the old guy is, I like him a lot!
Has it gotten any worse over the course of the day?
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