Akira 0.1 (10) and Bujang 1.0 (5) Acupuncture Protocol

This is now what our sessions are like if these 2 are together. Akira is always concerned about Bujang and would try to stay as close to him as possible. Even when he yells loudly and turns about wildly in his carrier, she remains cool and calm. As she thinks the sessions 'are not too bad' for herself, I hope she can convince Bujang that it will be the same for him in the long run. 

Bujang continues to be upset at the acupuncture sessions. Dr O and I thought it wiser if he uses the towel to prevent Bujang from lunging at him during the needle-in session. It has worked somewhat, but the doctor must always be aware of where Bujang's head is as, like  a snake, he can lunge out from under the towel to take a bite. But this has not happened yet and yesterday Dr O thought he was a 'good boy' as eventhough he was turning about and growling the doc managed to put in all the necessary needles. 

He has about 7 needles (only 6 shown here) and these are for his back and kidney. He told Fern that he 'could tolerate' his back pain and didn't like being disturbed. But he is already 12 years old and I don't think I like the idea of him even having to tolerate back pain if I can make it less painful or even help him get rid of it. It's a good thing Dr O is used to cats and knows how to avoid getting bitten and he allows Bujang time to rest and relax in between the needles. Bujang likes the heat and would move about to get as much heat as possible on his back. It's just the beginning and the ending that is fraught with danger. 

At home I see him running about with Tanaka but he no longer jumps up on things as much as before. It may be his back pain is affecting him and he cannot jump up as much but at least he is running about although for shorter periods of time. 

Akira continues to do well and there is new fur slowly growing on the outside of her limbs and even at the back of her ears. Dr O noticed that she had very little fur on the back of her ears on the first day we started these treatments. I think it's because she scratches them really hard. She has however bitten through her skin once or twice again. Nevertheless her fur has grown much softer. The doc said its the effects TCM and acupuncture. He said sometimes the colour of the animal would also get brighter. That seems like a good thing but I am content if she stops biting through her skin. The fur is still very short and fragile though and I hope she doesn't lick them off any time soon. 

                                       A: I will try san but I don't promise. 

We will end out post for the last day of 2014 with wishes of light and joy to everyone for 2015. Happy New Year. 

Bujang 1.0 (3) and Akira 0.1 (9) Acupuncture Protocol

This morning we tried putting both kitties in the same carrier. It didn't work very well as Bujang was too big to share the space. He did allow Dr O to put the needles on his head. These needles are to calm him. The doc was able to put one needle on his back before he growled a warning. He sat with Akira who was very calm for a little bit then he decided to get into his own. So it took us about the same time for the rest of the needles. 

This time when it was time to remove the needles, the doc out a towel on half of the carrier so that he would not be able to bite although he was just as fast as before. 

As he would not eat his full scoop of the TCM the doc decided to give him one for only his kidneys as the kidneys are the most important consideration for this time. So later I will put one scoop of his kidney TCM and 1/4 of his previous meds to see if he would eat this mixture. 

We shall see :)

Akira 0.1 (8) and Bujang 1.0 (2) Acupuncture Protocol

Akira was as usual a champion with the needles. This afternoon she comforted Bujang who was very upset at his acupuncture session. He yelled and hissed at Dr O several times and the doc called him 'Little Tiger'. 

                           It's ok Bujang. I am here. It's not to bad if you relax a bit. 

He allowed the doctor 2 needles on his head and only these few to begin with. Dr O allowed Bujang to rest for a bit between needles. It took him almost 15 minutes to complete the rows. It was only when the doctor pierced the part of his back that he felt the most pain that he growled. It may also be that he felt trapped in the carrier. We wanted him to feel safe and thought that if it was done in his carrier he would be more comfortable but not so. He hissed and yelled and turned round and round. 

After 15 minutes the doc managed to get all the needles in the right positions and left Bujang under the lamp. He enjoyed this part a lot and turned round and round so that his back could feel the heat. After the next 15 minutes, the doc and I took turns distracting him so we could remove the needles. This coming Friday he would have his 3rd session and we would try to put both Akira and  Bujang in the hard carrier to see if he will allow the doc to put the needles in without hissing. The doc said that if one is calm, the other one would also be calm. We shall see what happens or even if he would allow Akira to be in the same carrier.

Akira was calm throughout and she stayed close to him, sometimes sniffing at him through the mesh. I hope she was telling him to relax and that he would feel better afterwards. Since he had eaten his TCM for his kidneys very well, the doc gave him the full dose with TCM for his kidneys, liver and spleen.  This combination is also supposed to make him feel less stress. 

Bujang resting at home after his acupuncture session.

Update: He did not like his new mixture. I think because it has multiple herbs and the smell is different. We will try until Friday. If not we will have to go back to just the kidney mixture.

Checkups and Acupuncture for Bujang (long post)

When san told me it was my turn to go to the vet I thought she was kidding. But when she didn't give me any food for a long long long time, I knew she was serious. When we went out to the vet's it was raining. San told me that the rain should not stop us from going. Hmmmm there would only be bad things from here on. 

The vet looked at my teeth, stole my blood and actually bundled me in a towel. I told them loudly 'NO WAY YOU TERRIBLE PEOPLE ARE TAKING MY NAILS!' But they did anyway. I fought and yelled and tried to scratch everyone. San said this was the worse I had ever been where my nails were concerned! Then san said that I had been having back pain and that may also be the reason I had yelled so much as the vet helper had to put me in a towel as I was a big kitty and could hurt them (I would not hurt them as I am gentle but I was in pain). So the vet touched my back to check and at one point I hissed at him and warned him to stop it. San did not want any painkillers for me as I would not take it ( and I know she is afraid of my teeth). Since I was also going to the osteopath, she said she would get Adrian to help me as well as he has been very good at helping my back pain before. 

The blood test was not as good as before. The vet told san quietly that I had kidney problems (CRE 2.4 but BUN was not so bad at 21) I was glad when san just told the vet that she would take care of that and it would be ok. 

But as I said before I thought there would be dark clouds and so there were. It rained very heavily and we couldn't find a taxi to take us home. San and I were stranded. But san thought that since we were stranded, she could send me for acupuncture for the pain in my back. WHAT!!!! I DON'T WANT NEEDLES LIKE AKIRA!! But she did it anyway!

She told Dr O that I had pain in my back and showed him where the pain was worse. Dr O saw  my blood test and discussed some stuff with san about my kidneys. I knew something was up and I didn't like it. He made me walk about and said that the pain was worse on my left and I walked with my back lower than the rest of my body. He said back pain was easier to take care of than kidneys. San as usual said we would be there to see it through. (Notice that she didn't ask me for my opinion). Dr O did say that he thought I had very beautiful eyes which were round and very bright. I was glad he noticed that at least. 

He poked the needles in my back very quickly. I was not too concerned until he put one right on the spot and I hissed at him to leave me alone. Dr O told san that one of the points for the back would also take care of the kidneys. I knew that I should not bite him (yet) but it was over very quickly. I didn't have those electrodes like Akira but only the warm light. I liked that a lot. I was there for half an hour. 

Here I was just sitting with san with the light on my back. It was over very quickly. 

Dr O then gave san some TCM for my kidneys and advised her to put it in my food. She had to warm the food first and mix a little of the powder in it. I am glad to say that as of this morning I had eaten all my food with the powder in it. 

That was what had happened yesterday. In the afternoon my sister Akira had her acupuncture session as well and we went home together in a van that san had called as no taxi would take our call. It was the Pet Mobile. We were able to be home safe and sound and very dry. 

Akira 0.1 Acupuncture Protocol (6)

This morning we came in early for our appointment. Akira was a little more nervous than usual and sat close and wide- eyed. We heard a dog in the next room who was very unhappy with needles. 

This time she had just the 4 electrodes but the process is easier and much the same as before. I noticed that she had not pulled the new fur off yet which is encouraging. 

'I wonder how long I have to do this for san?'

We don't know how long the process will take but looking at how much she has improved mentally, I think we will stick with this for the long haul. We are going to see Adrian next week and we will see what he says about her stress levels as well. 

Akira 0.1 Acupuncture Protocol (5)

This morning she decided that she wanted to cuddle close during her acupuncture session. She was bright-eyed and alert throughout. 

We spent the whole 30 minutes like this. We had 2 lamps and no electrodes this morning. 

For 2 days in a row, she had eaten all of her meds without fuss. So this morning I told Dr O that I would give her the meds later. Dr O showed me a bunny who loves the TCM and would always wait for more. THAT is a super bunny. 

I decided to give her the mixture directly from my finger, without the syringe.  Now that I know the consistency, it's easier to give it to her more in one pass so it took us at most 4-5 minutes with no waste. Before it would take us 10 minutes with a lot of the mixture ending up on the matteress or on her fur. 

After the meds I would give her bare parts a wipe down with sea salt and warm water, as advised by her osteopath Adrian. 

I am very glad to see no new bites or broken skin and I can see some new growth of fur, very short and fragile. Before, her leg would be as bare as her tummy. But it's early days yet. She is still grooming as enthusiastically as before almost always immediately after her meds or wipe-down, no doubt to calm herself as well. But we notice that she grooms the underside of her fore paws most intensely these days than her other parts. 

Akira 01 Acupuncture Protocol (4)

Today I went to the needle doctor. He said he has never seen a kitty who was so quiet and still when he puts in the needles. I was quite pleased to hear him saying that about me. San was pleased as well.

 This morning she had extra needles on her head. She allowed the doctor to put in the 4 needles but didn't want the 5 th one. 

                 She also had additional electrodes- 2 more than before. 

             She sat quite still as usual 

                    Napping at home. 

We are coming back on Saturday for her treatment. She is getting used to being outside the whole day which means I have to keep a close eye on Tanaka. He was outside with her and I saw him sitting quietly but before I knew it he was creeping up on her. It was a good thing she was vigilant and meowed. He knew then that the game was up and wanted to hide out but I told him it was time-out time. 

I am encouraged that she had decided that outside is a good place that is safe as well. I feel that if she is inside the room she will be away from people and the goings-on in the house and it might make her depressed later. Poppy gives her a wide berth and she does not interfere with whatever Poppy decides to do as well. So the one kitty that I have still to convince or re-train is just Tanaka. It will be a long time still I think before Tanaka gets over his obsession with Akira though. 

Akira 0.1 Acupuncture Protocol (3)

This morning we arrived at our appointment at 8.40 am and the doctor allowed us into the room to just rest. Akira was suspicious and stayed in her carrier to wait for the doctor. 

                         

            She stayed in here for a full 10 minutes and turned around only once. 

            

I think she was a little nervous as she knew what was to come. There was another cat in the next room and it did not sound happy although it was not complaining. 

This morning she was wired to some electrodes to stimulate her points. She was very quiet and the doctor said again that she was a nice and friendly cat and not a complaining one. I guess he does not know her when she wants something. Then she would whine at length :). This process took only 10 minutes. After the 10 minutes, the machine played a soft Chinese song. I thought it was to calm her but the doc said that it merely signaled that the procedure with the electrodes was over. :)

                                A close-up with the electrodes on her needles

           

This morning she stayed close to me but she was relaxed throughout the whole procedure. She meowed only once. Otherwise she kept still while I sang her a lullaby. I think I should just put the lullaby on tape and play it to her when we're there. 

                     

She was eager to leave once she has eaten her TCM mixture. The doc managed to give her quite a lot of it in 3 small doses. I would do the same later. I told the doc that we would give her the TCM in the evening as well and from tomorrow, we would try to give her the meds twice a day as stipulated. The doc took some more pictures of her as well. 

He asked me if there was any improvement. I told him that I had not discerned much in terms of her overgrooming as she stayed in her room much of the time. But I noticed that she was much more affectionate to me and instead of just sitting on my lap at night for our nightly ritual, she would sit close to my chest. He seemed to think this was good progress but I think it's time I look closely at her bald spots. The doc did say that it would take some time and change would come gradually. I think this is as it should be and I told Akira that we would take it slow and easy. We have another appointment in 3 days. 

In other news, it's time for EASY PEASY SUNDAY pictures. 

I thought this 4 would best sum up our week. It had been a very hectic week for us as Tanaka and Akira had their annual checkups and we are changing Tanaka's diet to a renal one although we still give him the usual canned food. Akira had 3 appointments with Dr Oh and we had to figure out the best way to give her the TCM. Bujang and Putih will go for their check ups when our vet comes back from vacation. Putih has been playing a little more and she has a favourite routine on the ESS although we have not had the chance to take any pictures of her rolling her ball about the house. All the kitties have had their treatments with Craig and he had helped them out with their emotional difficulties as well.  But mostly we spend our days just hanging out with family. We give thanks that apart from the usual December checkups and little hiccups, we are all in fine shape. 

    

Akira 0.1 Acupuncture Protocol (1&2)

Ok. I know I look a little silly with needles on my head but san made me so it.
She told Fern that "It's not too bad".

We went to the vet last Tuesday for her annual checkup. She behaved well and the vet took blood very quickly. She had the CBC and we were glad to see that she had excellent results. Her teeth needed cleaning but the vet said I could schedule her for next year. As usual we discussed her over grooming issues and the vet said there was nothing else that they could do for her as she had gone through the clomicalm as well as the ovarid route to very little effect. I was advised to put her in a collar just so she can't lick and bite her lower limbs. I know at the back of my mind that I may have to do this but I thought maybe I could try one more route - Acupuncture. So the vet made the appointment for us on that same day.

This is Akira undergoing a 30-minute acupuncture procedure on Friday 5 Dec. She was relaxed under the lights. She sat quite still the whole time, better than the first time we had tried it last Tuesday. I had asked Dr O for permission to use the pictures and he gave us the ok. I told him that I would like to document such a process as it would allow me to think about it and I thought others who may chance on our blog can see if acupuncture is something their own companion animals may benefit from. At this point I need to say that I do not know if this will work for Akira at all but I am willing to try.

A very short video of the 1st 3 needles. She had about 25 needles on her body. You can also see it here

Dr Oh's very calm and mild manners relaxed us both the first time we saw him. He saw her blood test results and asked the usual questions about diet and behaviour. Then he put her on the floor so he could see her walk about and take pictures of her bald parts without disturbing her at all. Then he said for me to put her on the table and proceeded to do the acupuncture. He explained what he was doing and then he left us for 25 minutes or so. On Tuesday she was rather nervous and came very close to me but yestetrday she took everything in her stride. The following pictures are from yesterday's session, which was her second one.

 Here she was just relaxing. The light was warm and quite comforting. She liked it a lot more yesterday.

 Akira undergoing the procedure in the quiet of the very simple room. On Tuesday she had only one lamp but yesterday she had 2. 

 Close-up of her needles

Akira looking at her personal chart. 0.1 means 'female'

Dr Oh explained the 5 elements and started to explain that all the organs affect each other in turn and it was crucial for all of them to be balanced. In Akira's case, her fears and stresses affect her liver, which in turn affects her spleen. An overactive spleen will affect the kidneys, the kidneys affect the heart and the heart affects the lungs. She is also 4.8 kg, which is not the optimum weight and this may be caused by a slow metrabolism as she eats very little.  The numbers at the bottom of the page correspond to where the doctor would place the needles.

Dr Oh was very optimistic that she would be able to overcome her overgrooming problems. He said she was a 'very good cat' and 'very easy'. But when it comes to the TCM herbs she was very difficult. She has to take a full spoonful twice a day but I have only managed to give her once a day and not even a spoonful as she would swallow a little, spit out a lot and some of it would go onto her fur, It is powder and I have to give it to her in a syringe. Dr Oh said this was ok and yesterday we experimented on the right consistency of water to powder themixture  needs to be in order for her to swallow more. 

We have to see Dr Oh twice a week and tomorrow is her 3rd appointment.