First, we want to thank everyone for your thoughts and well wishes. For those who have donated to help us pay Miyagi's medical bills, you have a very special place in our hearts. So here's an update on what's been going on the past few days around here.
As you know, Friday I woke up to Miyagi howling in pain and very sick. I monitored him for an hour to see if he would get better, and he didn't. I called our vet to try and get him in. Those of you who follow me on twitter may know how this story goes...the vet told me that I could make an appointment for Saturday or Monday. That wasn't going to happen. I could tell that he needed help immediately. They took my information down and told me that they would call me back after consulting with the doctor. Thankfully, they agreed to see him at 12:30. At that point it was 11:00. Waiting for that appointment time was HORRIBLE. He just kept pacing around the house in pain, howling and getting sick.
I packed him up in his crate, and off we went. The doctor couldn't feel anything wrong while examining his abdomen and told me he thought that Miyagi was either working on an epic hairball or ate a spider. He gave him some fluids and anti-nausea medication, and after paying the $86 bill, sent us on our way.
We got home and he wasn't getting better. The anti-nausea medication was obviously not working because Miyagi continued to get sick all afternoon. M came home from work and checked on Miyagi, who was laying under the coffee table (something he hardly ever does). M noticed that Miyagi had started to PROFUSELY drool. It was dripping from his mouth. That's when we made the decision that he needed to go to the Emergency vet.
We brought him in and he was so lethargic and in such obvious pain, it was heartbreaking. They examined him, then took him in the back to run blood tests and x-rays. The x-rays showed no obvious obstruction in his intestines, but because of the pattern of gas build up shown, the doctor couldn't rule out that there was something stuck in there. So they recommended we leave him there overnight to be on an IV, be monitored and re-x-rayed. We said goodbye to him and went home without him. Which killed me. I cried the whole way home.
The doctor called at 1:30 am to tell us that she had taken new x-rays and there seemed to be improvement, and that he hadn't vomited a single time since he had been admitted. Good news! I was able to sleep well.
In the morning I called for updates, they said he was doing much better, he had perked back up, he was being very vocal (which is normal for him), and he had started purring when people would come see him. Basically it sounded like he was back to his old self. But he still wouldn't eat, so they wanted to keep him longer to make sure he would eat and not get sick again. Around 3:00, he still wouldn't eat, so I brought some of his food from home over and visited with him. He was 100% himself, trying to climb out of his crate and on to my shoulder. He was ready to go home. But they needed to see him eat. So I left him there again. At 7:00pm, I was FINALLY allowed to come pick him up, I was so happy!
I brought him home, and took off his bandage, revealing his shaved leg where they had put in his IV.
Styles was happy to have his little brother back home.
And this morning, I woke up to Miyagi sleeping at the foot of the bed. Best sight ever!
There have been people who think we are INSANE for taking him to the Emergency vet and paying so much money to make sure he would be ok. But he's our BABY. He's not even 3 yet, he's got a long, happy life to live. And even though we can't afford his medical bill, there is no WAY we could just let him suffer and do nothing about it. It will take us a while to pay this off, and we are so thankful for those who have already offered help. We are thankful he didn't need surgery, but the bill for the overnight stay ended up being a little over $1000. Which is a lot of money for us, especially with me having been unemployed since March.
But eventually the bill will be paid off, and we will still have Miyagi here, which is what matters most <3
