I've paid for hip surgery for Grendel, multiple urinary tract infection treatments for Kako, upper respiratory infection treatments for both Kako and Kazon, long term asthma treatment for Grendel, geriatric treatment for Henry, and the list goes on. My pets have always been a part of my family. They are my children. I do not "own" them just as human families don't own their offspring. I am the guardian of my pets, and I care for them in that regard. Given the medical treatment I've been willing to pay for to keep the quality of life high for The Kids and other pets, I found this article on Wired to be extremely fascinating. It's about veterinary medicine pushing the envelope of science — often to the benefit of regular medicine.
IT industry still crumbling
It comes as no surprise to anyone in the IT industry, but two recent studies show that jobs continue to fall away from the technology sector and that morale in the IT industry is spiraling downward at an alarming rate. I have friends who have left the industry due to the increasing workload, ungrateful environments, lack of advancement, lack of compensatory incentives, lack of training, and stagnating technology. Companies continue to amaze me at how blind they can be to these threats. Productivity falls as burnout rates increase, yet they continue to cut IT staffs and demand more from remaining employees — all without any type of compensation (whether that be formal training opportunities, bonuses or increases in pay, or opportunities to gain experience on the "latest and greatest").
You can read eWeek’s article on the studies here.
Happy Birthday, Ms. Jenny!
Although I’m running very late in the day with getting this posted, I wanted to wish a very close friend of mine a happy birthday. Better late than never, I guess (I hate being cliché, but sometimes it fits).
Since I know you've mentioned a few times that the small font sizes on my site can be difficult to read, I thought I'd make sure you could read this by selecting a slightly larger size. Let me know if you have difficulty reading this…
Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday, sweetie!
New asthma medication for Grendel
The standard treatment for feline acute asthma is the oral steroid called prednisolone. Although this often successfully treats acute asthma, even in cats, oral steroids like prednisolone carry the risk of significant side effects if used for prolonged periods of time. Some of the problems it can cause are diabetes, liver damage, kidney damage, lethargy (meaning less exercise), and increased appetite for both food and water (often leading to weight gain). These are just a few of the problems this medication can cause if used long term, and the development of any of these conditions often complicates the asthma problem and can greatly shorten a cat’s life. Since Grendel’s asthma is acute and debilitating when not treated, there’s been little choice but to use the corticosteroid treatment — until now.
Grendel was diagnosed with acute feline asthma back in 1997. Suffering from severe and debilitating attacks, it was first thought to be a form of congestive heart failure called feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). This is a common misdiagnosis in cats with acute feline asthma. After an echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart) was performed and showed no heart problems, it was decided that a bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), or bronchial wash, would be performed to check for lower respiratory disorders (such as asthma, infectious pneumonia or pulmonary infiltrates due to cancer).
Bingo! Grendel’s lungs were full of debris (mucus), and the tests indicated an acute case of asthma.
At the time of the diagnosis, the most widely prescribed and successful treatment for feline asthma was the use of systemic corticosteroids (specifically prednisone or prednisolone). Grendel was immediately put on prednisolone (5 mg twice per day) to get his asthma attacks under control. Because his asthma is seasonal, he was backed down to one 5 mg prednisolone every other day until he became symptomatic again. His medication would then be increased until his attacks abated, then he would be kept at that dosage for a few months before being moved to lower doses again.
Although this process seems to have successfully treated his asthma for several years, I have always been quite concerned about the long term health effects of oral steroid use (as I described above).
About a year ago, my vet informed me of a new treatment based on the inhaled treatments many humans use today. The only obstacle appeared to be delivery since it was unlikely a cat (even one as laid back as Grendel) would sit still and let you spray medicine down their gullet.
The solution? The AeroKat Feline Aerosol Chamber.
AeroKat is nothing more than a spacer used to contain a normal metered dose of asthma medication with a feline-fitted mask to allow a cat to breathe the medication without being subjected to the metered dose dispersal itself. This allows the asthma to be treated directly — in the lungs — without the systemic effects of corticosteroid use.
When the AeroKat finally arrived (having been on order for some time), Grendel took a road trip to the vet’s office for his first dose using the new contraption.
As usual, he took most of it in stride, although he was somewhat apprehensive when the mask was placed over his face. Given his infinite ability to adapt to new situations easily, I suspect it will not be long before he grows accustomed to this new twice-daily ritual. I’m also sure he’ll be happy to get off of the pills that he currently takes.
For regular usage (currently to be twice per day), he’s on Flovent, an inhaled corticosteroid that acts on the lungs directly without having to pass through the rest of his body. This cuts out the middleman, one could say, and removes the possibility of steroid exposure throughout his body causing serious health problems down the road. Once he’s grown accustomed to the new inhaled steroid, he’ll gradually be weaned from the prednisolone (a necessary step since sudden cessation of use can cause major problems).
Even more interesting is that Grendel now has an “emergency” inhaler to be used when he has an acute attack. This is Albuterol. This is intended to provide relief during an acute asthma attack and is for as-needed use only. Since Grendel has always responded well to the steroid treatment insofar as having attacks is concerned, I doubt the Albuterol will be used much at all.
I’m very excited about starting this new treatment with Grendel. I’m always concerned about his health and the long term effects of the current treatment, so I’m thrilled that this new option has finally become available.
Once he’s off of the prednisolone, I’m expecting his energy to increase and his weight to decrease. Although my roommate likes to call him “fatty” and “roly-poly” and other such terms (all with great affection, mind you), Grendel is only a pound or two overweight. That can have some health impact if he can’t lose the weight, but, given that he’s been on the prednisolone for so long, the vet had no expectations that he could shed the extra poundage. Perhaps now, though, he’ll be able to get his buff figure back.
It’ll be a few months before he’s off of the prednisolone — and that’s assuming that he responds well to the new treatment. I’ll be sure to post updates on his progress as we go along since I know you’ll be just as interested as I am in how he’s doing.
What do I think of war with Iraq?
A war with Iraq is likely 24-48 hours away at best. It brings a certain level of solemnity to my thoughts and feelings. I still find mirth and sarcasm and joy and anger in the things that normally bring those emotions to the surface, but it is as if a fog has overtaken existence, dampening spirits and putting a cap on the height to which our emotions can rise. It is a blanket laid quietly over the planet that muffles sound and obscures vision. War is a terrible thing, but I do not feel that America is wrong in its final ultimatum to Saddam Hussein. No, I do not want war, but I'm a realist who must face reality.
War is an ugly thing. People die in wars. Animosity is given credibility in war. War should always be the last resort.
There is a cold phrase that often goes along with armed conflict — "collateral damage." This is the phrase we use to describe those who are harmed by war without being targets of war. When a bomb strays off course; when a target is hit successfully yet produces unforeseen damage to nearby structures; when innocent lives are used for political gain against the enemy; these are considered collateral damage. It is impossible to avoid this type of tragedy, although it is the one thing which honorable combatants try to avoid most diligently.
War carries with it the stigma that diplomatic attempts to solve differences or conflicts have failed miserably. This often speaks to our human nature to hope for the best in all situations and to assume that we are evolved enough to solve our problems through dialogue. As much as I wish it were possible to accomplish all things via this approach, I am a realist in that I know that human beings are not sensible, predictable, even-handed creatures, and we often prefer to push our luck beyond diplomacy in the hopes that the other side of the argument will simply back down.
War teaches our children that armed conflict is a viable way to solve problems. It dispels that which we strive so ardently to teach the next generation — that all problems can be solved peacefully.
I do not want war. I will never look upon the broken body of the enemy with spite and enthusiasm and a sense of arrogant triumph. I will never be able to step over the dead and dying enemy, strewn across the battlefield, without feeling tremendous remorse and the weight of a heavy heart. Death and destruction are not solutions to be arbitrarily meted out at will when we do not get our way.
Despite these thoughts, I reiterate that I am a realist. This requires that I put aside my view of the perfect world and seek out the truth of the world we really live in.
I would like to say confidently that all disagreements and conflicts can be solved peacefully. This is a wonderful view of the world, but it is so far removed from reality that it can only be said by those who really did fall off of the turkey truck this morning.
Peaceful solutions require that all involved parties inherently hope for peace. Peace requires that those involved in a disagreement be honorable and trustworthy beings of conscience.
Only a fool would believe that this is true of all human beings.
I do not want war. I do not wish war upon any country.
I do want peace. Unfortunately, it appears few in my country want the same thing, or at least few of those speaking up at present.