Re: Brumley is gone
Hi Caroline, I was sad to read of little Brumley's passing. What a wonderful thing you did for him. How loved he must have felt. And even if he was one kitty, there can never be any regret for caring for him as you did, even though is time with you was too short. Bless you for giving your all for this one lone kitty. :) Wendy Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world - indeed it is the only thing that ever has! ~~~ Margaret Meade ~~~ - Original Message From: Caroline Kaufmann [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, February 6, 2008 12:05:40 PM Subject: Brumley is gone Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went to the heart, Brumley
Re: Brumley is gone
I'm so sorry Caroline. :(
tonya
Caroline Kaufmann [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
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Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is
gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his
very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at
the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he
was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds
and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue
forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom
and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who
was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain
his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased
and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the
18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped
interacting with his environment and doing the small
little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he
fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved,
sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat
soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end.
I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet
even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this
one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was
such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet
drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering?
But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was
perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after
somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing
in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have
done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was
concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good
or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was
my typical evening of treating, medicating,
feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in
his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning
routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His
little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was
obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my
arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He
was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid.
So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same
one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in
until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I
think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of
being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him
b/c he really liked this cat.
The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my
2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were
next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye),
his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She
said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she
doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of
it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done.
It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out
there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a
vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot
to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with
him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard
in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went
to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly. The vet gave me a hug and
told me I did a good job.
Honestly, I am exhausted. I have been doing very intensive care on Brumley and
it has taken up all of my mornings and my entire evening. I would get up, take
care of Brum, go to work, come home, take care of Brum, go to bed, and it would
start again the next day. So mentally and physically, I am just worn out. But
I know that- especially being a foster cat- Brumley got more care
RE: Brumley is gone
Caroline, belated condolences on Brumley's passing. He was a little fighter, and you were his angel. Diane R. _ From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Caroline Kaufmann Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 12:06 PM To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Subject: Brumley is gone Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly. The vet gave me a hug and told me I did a good job. Honestly, I am exhausted. I have been doing very intensive care on Brumley and it has taken up all of my mornings and my entire evening. I would get up, take care of Brum, go to work, come home, take care of Brum, go to bed, and it would start again the next day. So mentally and physically, I am just worn out. But I know
RE: Brumley is gone
Caroline, Im sorry to hear of your loss. I know it is hard to lose a wonderful
friend.
Marie
MacKenzie, Kerry N. [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
.hmmessage P { PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM:
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FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma } Oh Caroline, I am so, so sorry. Brumley was
such a special, brave little fellow, such a trooper. And you were surely his
guardian angel. You really did him proud. No one could have done more for
Brumley than you did---no one. It's really amazing and wonderful that he was so
content and loving of life right up till almost the last moment. He obviously
knew how loved he was. What an inspiration his example is. And yours, too,
Caroline--thanks for everything you did for your little sweetie foster kitten.
Wish there were more in the world like you. much love and big hugs, Kerry
-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Caroline
Kaufmann
Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 12:06 PM
To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org
Subject: Brumley is gone
Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is
gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his
very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at
the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he
was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds
and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue
forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom
and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who
was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain
his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased
and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the
18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped
interacting with his environment and doing the small
little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he
fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved,
sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat
soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end.
I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet
even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this
one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was
such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet
drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering?
But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was
perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after
somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing
in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have
done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was
concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good
or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was
my typical evening of treating, medicating,
feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in
his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning
routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His
little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was
obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my
arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He
was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid.
So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same
one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in
until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I
think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of
being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him
b/c he really liked this cat.
The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my
2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were
next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye),
his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She
said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she
doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of
it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done
Brumley is gone
Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly. The vet gave me a hug and told me I did a good job. Honestly, I am exhausted. I have been doing very intensive care on Brumley and it has taken up all of my mornings and my entire evening. I would get up, take care of Brum, go to work, come home, take care of Brum, go to bed, and it would start again the next day. So mentally and physically, I am just worn out. But I know that- especially being a foster cat- Brumley got more care and better care than he ever would have if I had not intervened. In his short, sad little life, he never got frustrated, he never got mad and I don't really think he knew he was sick, but he
Re: Brumley is gone
Caroline, I am so very sorry for your loss. What a wonderful guardian you have been for your Brumley. This disease is new to me and my new Himalayan and I'm learning so much from this group already. Again my heartfelt condolences. Lynne - Original Message - From: Caroline Kaufmann To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 1:05 PM Subject: Brumley is gone Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly. The vet gave me a hug and told me I did a good job. Honestly, I am exhausted. I have been doing very intensive care on Brumley and it has taken up all of my mornings and my entire evening. I would
RE: Brumley is gone
Thank you Lynne. I want to make sure you understand though that Brumley was not an FELV cat. Altho some of the vets that saw him thought he was presenting with FELV typical symptoms (the eye), he was tested twice- once at 2 lbs by the shelter- and once by me at 6 mths of age, so if he had initially been a false negative, it should have shown up at the 6 mths test when he was undeniably symptomatic with some kind of infection/possible virus. If he had been Felv+, he would have been viremic at that point and shedding the virus and the test would have caught it. We suspect he had dry FIP- which if you are not familiar with it- sheesh- it's a whole other can of worms and practically impossible to diagnose- a very complicated and ugly disease. I thought Felv was the worst thing I'd ever see, but I hadn't met FIP yet. At this point, I'd pray for a kitten to be FELV positive in lieu of facing dry FIP again- if we had choices in these matters. But I just wanted to make sure that Brumley's death didn't make you despair, as he was not FELV+. But I have been on this list almost a year and the people here helped me so much with my FELV cat Monkee that they are my first go to contacts when I have a foster doing something--anything- FELV or not- as I build my cat-care learning curve. It's these people who led me to the FIP support group that has given me tons of support, advice and help with Brumley. But I wanted to let the people on this group know what happened because they learned of Brumley when I first took him in and came to this group for initial advice. caroline From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]: [EMAIL PROTECTED]: Re: Brumley is goneDate: Wed, 6 Feb 2008 15:05:23 -0500 Caroline, I am so very sorry for your loss. What a wonderful guardian you have been for your Brumley. This disease is new to me and my new Himalayan and I'm learning so much from this group already. Again my heartfelt condolences. Lynne - Original Message - From: Caroline Kaufmann To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 1:05 PM Subject: Brumley is gone Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I
RE: Brumley is gone
Oh Caroline, I am so, so sorry. Brumley was such a special, brave little fellow, such a trooper. And you were surely his guardian angel. You really did him proud. No one could have done more for Brumley than you did---no one. It's really amazing and wonderful that he was so content and loving of life right up till almost the last moment. He obviously knew how loved he was. What an inspiration his example is. And yours, too, Caroline--thanks for everything you did for your little sweetie foster kitten. Wish there were more in the world like you. much love and big hugs, Kerry _ From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Caroline Kaufmann Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 12:06 PM To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Subject: Brumley is gone Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so
Re: Brumley is gone
Caroline,I am so sorry about sweet little Brumley.He was so lucky to have you
here for him.and it is good to hear that Monkee was there to greet him.Hugs to
you!!
Sherry
Caroline Kaufmann [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
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FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY:Tahoma }
Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is
gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his
very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at
the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he
was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds
and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue
forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom
and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who
was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain
his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased
and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the
18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped
interacting with his environment and doing the small
little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he
fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved,
sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat
soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end.
I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet
even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this
one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was
such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet
drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering?
But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was
perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after
somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing
in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have
done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was
concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good
or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was
my typical evening of treating, medicating,
feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in
his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning
routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His
little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was
obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my
arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He
was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid.
So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same
one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in
until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I
think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of
being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him
b/c he really liked this cat.
The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my
2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were
next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye),
his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She
said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she
doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of
it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done.
It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out
there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a
vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot
to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with
him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard
in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went
to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly. The vet gave me a hug and
told me I did a good job.
Honestly, I am exhausted. I have been doing very intensive care on Brumley and
it has taken up all of my mornings and my entire evening. I would get up, take
care of Brum, go to work, come home, take care of Brum, go to bed, and it would
start again
Re: Brumley is gone
Caroline, I am so sorry. I think losing one we've nursed intently is especially hard. I am sure you are exhausted. I find Monkee's visit a comfort and assurance that he was waiting for Brumley. I had a visit from Teddy around the time Keisha died. Be gentle with yourself and know that you gave the little guy a chance. Kudos for keeping on looking until you found a vet with compassion and willingess to try to help this little earth angel. Laurie - Original Message - From: Caroline Kaufmann To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2008 12:05 PM Subject: Brumley is gone Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly
Re: Brumley is gone
I'm so sorry. He died loved and cared for. That may not be much comfort to you right now but it was to Brumley. On Feb 6, 2008, at 4:21 PM, Sherry DeHaan wrote: Caroline,I am so sorry about sweet little Brumley.He was so lucky to have you here for him.and it is good to hear that Monkee was there to greet him.Hugs to you!! Sherry Caroline Kaufmann [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hello all. Sadly I have to report that my sweet foster kitten Brumley is gone. I know that so many of you championed his cause and helped me with his very intensive care that started the minute I took him home from the condo at the store on Dec. 22. I so wanted him to be a success story and in a way, he was. His story was about not giving up, even in the face of impossible odds and other vets writing him off as having FIP and then not wanting to continue forward with alleviating the pain his affected eye was causing him. But my mom and I kept going and by the time we got to our 5th vet, we found someone who was willing to keep working on Brumley and in the meantime, alleviate the pain his eye was causing him- which he did and Brumley's quality of life increased and I thought he might make it. He didn't stop eating and drinking until the 18th of Jan. and that is also when he became ataxic. But he never stopped interacting with his environment and doing the small little things that he wanted to do- like continue to walk around, even tho he fell sometimes- that never stopped him, hang out with the dog whom- he loved, sniff things, curl up on me and purr, bird watch, family wathc, and try to eat soil from the plant, etc. He never stopped purring either until the very end. I was worried that with Brumley I wouldn't know when it was time. And his vet even said to me about 5 different times that he would drag his feet on this one because he loved Brumley's grey and white coloring and the way Brum was such a trooper and would just not give up at all! So I worried that if the vet drags his feet, and I drag my feet, will we keep a cat going who is suffering? But that didn't happen. I don't believe Brum suffered much, if at all. He was perky last night and purring away in a cat box he found the other night- after somehow making it all the way up the steps to the housecats room and climbing in it! He had started to fight me a lot with syringe feeding (which I have done since Jan. 19th) and the subqu fluids- also since the 19th. So I was concerned that the fighting- which he had never done before- was either a good or bad sign. But he was fine last night- he got his two prednisones and it was my typical evening of treating, medicating, feeding, and babying The Brum. But this morning, he was not standing up in his crate and looking around and meowing- which had become his usual morning routine. He was laying flat and my mom thought he had already passed. His little front paws were gripping the crate and I had to pry them off- he was obviously in respiratory distress- as this is my 3 time since Monkee died in my arms in July to see this, so I know the signs b/c I live in fear of them. He was craning his neck like he was trying to breathe and his breathing was rapid. So I threw on clothes and we rushed him out to the emergency clinic- the same one that also took my Possum on the 22 of Jan. Brumley's regular vet wasn't in until 9 today and he had surgeries scheduled, so we couldn't go there. Which I think is good b/c when I saw his vet, I would have started balling instead of being composed and I just think it would have been a mess for both me and him b/c he really liked this cat. The emergency vet said it was grave. Clinically, he was dehydrated (despite my 2x day fluid treatments), his liver was failing, she suspected kidneys were next, she found granulomas throughout his body (other places besides the eye), his temp was down again to 94, and she strongly suspected brain damage. She said he was definitely dying and whether it was dry FIP, Toxo (which she doubted), or she proposed a very severe fungal infection-- either way, none of it was reversible and everything that could be done for the cat had been done. It was definitely time. Which I already knew when I decided to take him out there. I was with him. Brumley was so bad off that the ER vet couldn't get a vein, couldn't get the juglar and had already decided to euthanize with a shot to the heart. He was even less alert than Possum was when we did this with him, so it was definitely the right time- he just crashed so fast and so hard in light of how he was last night. Since the shot went to the heart, Brumley left this world very quickly. The vet gave me a hug and told me I did a good job. Honestly, I am exhausted. I have been doing very intensive care on Brumley and it has taken up all of my mornings and my entire
