Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK
Cat Health & Behaviour => Health & Behaviour General => Topic started by: Maddiesmum on October 02, 2008, 15:17:37 PM
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Well he is shaking his head again so his ears are sore! Only just finished 2 lots of drops and now he has to have further investigation so he is booked in on Tuesday of next week. Needless to say I will be a nervous wreck from now until he is home and we have results. Please keep your fingers crossed that it is something easily remedied.
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fingers and toes and paws crossed for Charlie
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Aww, poor Charlie :(
Fingers and toes crossed here.
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Fingers crossed it is something trivial :hug:
Poor Charlie :ahh:
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Big hugs for poor Charliexx
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Lots of healing and positive vibes for the lovely Charlie xxx
Love and Hugs for you Maddiesmum xxx
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Poor Charlie and hope they find something that can be immediately rectified without any probs. I wonder if an insect has crawled in or something.
Lots of strokes to Charlie :hug:
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Poor boy -hope its nothing serious.
My friends cat kept shaking his head and she was worried and took him to the vet- he tried a couple of things , but he still kept doing it, so she had to have him x-rayed .
The problem was he had a hair growing right down inside his ear and it was tickling him , thats why he kept shaking his head !!!
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how's Charlie today? :hug:
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well he's generally fine in himself, still playing, thundering round etc but just shaking his head - even in his sleep! He was over run with ear mites when he first moved in and has had, over, the past 8 months 11 weeks of ear drop treatment. It just doesn't seem to completely clear. So the vet says it needs further investigation, which is good, but worrying and stressful.
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Lots of positive vibes please for Charlie boy - he goes in at 8.30 in the morning and boy will I have a struggle depriving him of his breakfast.
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Vibes positive with abandon from Soggy Acre and hope that the vet can find out what is cuasing Charlie so much distress :hug:
Tell him the members of the Army here are all rooting for him and send purrs and headbutts :hug:
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:luck: Charlie
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Dropped him off safely. He was upset in the carrier in the car and did a nice wee and poo. Will have full health check too and his pre op bloods done. Have to ring at 2.30 to see what time to collect him. The house is so quiet without him but at least I will catch up on my Dogs Home admin work. Fingers crossed for this anxious mum
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Good luck for today :hug:
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Good luck Charlie xxx hope you are feeling all better soon -love & helaing vibes for you handsome boy xxx :hug:
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Keeping all fingers and paws crossed for Charlie let's hope they can get to the bottom of the problem - poor baby :hug: :hug:
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Hope all goes well at the vet today with Charlie :hug:
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Hope everything goes well at the vets for Charlie today! :hug:
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all the best again for Charlie and hope it goes well for you both :hug:
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good luck today !!! :hug:
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hope charlie is a bit more comfortable now and they have got to the bottom of his problem
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He's home. He has had both ears washed out and they did find some debris in each. In the left ear there was some gritty yellowy stuff which the vet saved for me. Vet has no idea what it is but it was close to his ear drum. He said his ears were actually quite clean. He will probably shake his head for a couple of days but that's normal after a wash out. Kobis (vet) did say that if this doesn't clear it then he may have a condition which causes the facial nerves to flare up for no real reason but this is treatable with medication. However he doesn't think there is any reason why he should have this.
Back to being naughty, just tipped the kitchen bin over in protest, I think, for being starved this morning, though the vet did feed him and he has just had some more here.
Phew
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well at least they did find something, hopefully that will be the end of it
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Just caught up with this and it seems I've arrived at a time of relief :hug:. Hope the yellow stuff was the problem and that Charlie gets back to full health very quickly.
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Brilliant news - so glad that Charlie is feeling better xxx
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Hope the 'yellow stuff' being removed sorts his ears out once and for all. I'd imagine he'll need an extra ration of tempations tonight to get over the trauma :evillaugh:
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so glad it's just yellow goo and hope it stays away :hug:
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So pleased yellow goo seems to be good (i.e. treatable) news. Treats treats and more treats methinks ..
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so pleased charlie isk anf hope the goo was the problem ;D
he is being himself again already :rofl: :rofl:
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Glad he's feeling better :hug: - no idea what the yellow stuff was :sick:
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Fingers crossed this is the last of it.
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Hope that the yellow stuff was the cause of the problems, and that he'll be much happier now its gone :Luv:
Don't forget to keep the treat rations up for at least another day or so, sounds like Charlie deserves them :Luv:
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Blimey! I've just seen this.
Poor Charlie boy and Poor you :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
Charlie sure does deserve some treats
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How is Charlie now? Hope the only yellow thing you are seeing is the sun :hug: and he's fine.
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Not as good as I would wish. He is still shaking his head, just as he was before he had the investigation and his behaviour since he came back from the vet's has been very bad. He is jumping at the slightest sound, even if I just shift position on the sofa and wide eyed and on high alert all the time. He is due back at the vet on Tuesday.
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Oh, poor Charlie. But the vet did say he would be shaking his head for a few days after the rinse, didn't he? Or perhaps he has that unusual condition after all? Fingers crossed for him.
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This sounds exactly like Foofoo - has Charlie had brown gunky smelly discharge too?
They eventually found she had an ear polyp, had it removed and since then she has been fine.
Might be worth mentioning but I'm sure they should have seen it if they went right down to his ear drum???
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No gunk, vet said his ears were relatively clean save for the bits of yellow gritty stuff close to his ear drum which they removed. Spoke about Polyp on an earlier visit and the vet said no. They did say he would shake his head for a couple of days but has gone on quite a bit longer than that
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I have had probs with my ears and one time something was pressing on my ear drum and the sound level became painful. I was given something to help which did but I could still hear things louder than whayt I had been used to for a while and wonder if thats why Charlie is all on edge cos he maybe was partially deaf before or his ears have become sensitive to sound after the removal of the yellow stuff.
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Oh no poor Charlie,
How is he doing today?
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you know it sounds as if sound is just a lot louder than he's been used to (?). Maybe he was borderline deaf with all that gunk in his ears and now it's been cleaned out, the world is too loud and frightening. Poor Charlie, I do so hope he adjusts and feels better soon. :hug:
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To be honest I was wondering that myself. It is awful to see him to jumpy and on edge. Will see what the vet says tomorrow although this will stress Charlie again. I also think I have found a lump on his tummy which I will get the vet to look at tomorrow.
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very best of luck tomorrow. I also just thought maybe when cleaning out his gunk, they touched his inner ear with an instrument and it still hasn't healed properly. Is he calmer when the room is quiet? I hope the lump's just one of those fatty ones. Max has one on his fat little tum and one on his side. :hug:
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I hope the lump's just one of those fatty ones. Max has one on his fat little tum and one on his side. :hug:
So does Blip. They seem to be quite common. I bet it is one of those.
As for Charlie's ears, they are such sensitive organs and earache can be very persistent. :hug: Let us know what the vet's opinion is :hug:
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Good luck tomorrow Charlie Boy :hug: :hug: :hug:
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If its moveable the lump is probably a fatty one .
Sophie had one on her neck and had it removed , Smartie had one on his side and had it removed , now Sophie has another in the same place as Smartie had his !!!
Will be leaving it for now as she is nearly 15 !
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It does seem moveable but I was thinking approx 20 months is young for fatty lumps?????
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yes , i suppose it does, Smartie is 11years and Sophie nearly 15 years old.
I don''t know anything else about them -sorry .
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Will just have to wait and see what vet says tomorrow. More stress
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I wish cats could talk!
I hope that all is Ok tomorrow and poor Charlie doesnt get too stressed :hug:
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It does seem moveable but I was thinking approx 20 months is young for fatty lumps?????
Max was only 2 when he got his first one. He had it out. Then he got another one within the year. Vet at the time was a wonderful vet and she said some cats get them for some reason. I hope it's nothing at all and you can put your mind at rest xx
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Well we have been to the vet and Charlie was wonderful, not at all stressed in the basket and almost fell asleep on the scales in the surgery. Vet said there is really no reason why he should be shaking his head etc so has given him a new steroid which does not have the side effects of prednisolone, just the anti inflammatory and I have to call him in a week to let him know how Charlie is doing.
Discussed his behaviour which Kobis (vet) says he thinks is just a part of Charlie's personality. He says I am doing everything I can, Zylkene, Feliway etc but may just have to accept it.
Couldn't find the lump! Have felt it a few times though. Kobis asked where it was and when I showed him said he doesn't think it will be anything to worry about as it is exactly where he would expect a fatty lump to be. Just keep an eye on it.
I am hoping (as, no doubt, is Charlie) that we don't need another vet visit now until his boosters are due in February. Fingers, toes, eyes and paws firmly crossed on that one.
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maybe charlie has spent his whole life shaking his head and its now a habit?
pleased that the vet didnt seem to think there was a problem as such :hug:
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Glad Charlie had a stress free visit today and all seems to be well! :hug:
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Couldn't find the lump! Have felt it a few times though. Kobis asked where it was and when I showed him said he doesn't think it will be anything to worry about as it is exactly where he would expect a fatty lump to be. Just keep an eye on it.
That happened with Blip's fatty lump too. It seems to wax and wane a bit. Anyway, I'm thinking I can cross lovely Charlie off my worry list, phew! :hug:
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Glad the visit today went well, and fingers and toes crossed no more visits for a while :hug:
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I'm so glad the visit went well and that Charlie wasn't stress :hug: :hug: :hug:
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Since Charlie had his ear wash his behaviour has deteriorated again and he is jumping at the slightest sound also shaking his head more than he did before. It is very worrying as he seems stressed and anxious all the time and can't focus on a good game on Da Mouse without constantly being distracted. Vet suggested he might have feline hyperesthesia which, after googling, can be a little scarey. I am reluctant to take him back to the vet right now as he is so stressed anyway and with his corona virus have to try and reduce stress which is difficult as he is very nervy. Read an article on the net by an American expert on the syndrome who states it can happen after anaesthetic.
His symptoms (some of which have, admittedly settled down) have been rippling fur, glazed eyes with dilated pupils, more vocal than usual, sleeping in different places to those he usually picks, bit aggressive and bitey and so on edge.
Am trying to keep things as normal as possible but it is difficult as I am feeling stressed just watching him.
Am at a loss to know what to do. Outpouring over :)
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Poor charlie :hug: :hug: :hug:
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As your vet has seen Charlie so recently and is up-to-speed with him, is it worth making an appointment to have a telephone discussion?
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I am due to speak to him tomorrow as he wanted to know how Charlie is doing after his check up last Tuesday
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I'm so sorry that Charlie is still so nervy. Maybe the vet will have to give him something to calm him down, depending on the diagnosis? Does he do home visits as I'm in the same boat as you with stress causing even more problems if it's a trip down to the vets? My insurance co said if the vet writes them a letter that it is medically necessary for the visit to be a home one, they would give it 'favourable consideration' to pay for that. It helps so much with a proper diagnosis and treatment if they can see what's happening and in your home environment, the vet could see that Charlie's stressed from x or y, whereas at the vets, Charlie will be stressed from being at the vets. I don't know anything about this ilness but how is it diagnosed?
Poor Charlie and poor you, we send lots of hugs xOx
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Sadly it wont be covered by the insurance as ear problems started before insurance!!! It may be that his hearing is more acute since the earwash and it is taking him to adjust to everything seeming louder. I am unsure if vet does home visits but doubt it, they are a franchise in PAH and the cost would be exorbitant. I will see what he says tomorrow and am speaking to Vicky Halls, behaviourist on Thursday afternoon. Problem is I am away Sat to Tue and the cat/housesitter will be here and have to deal with it. There can be a few causes for it, stress and behaviour problems being one of them. It can be neurological, a brain tumour, spinal, lots of different things. We are hoping Charlie's is behavioural as that way we have a good chance of sorting it out. He may have to be medicated with Valium or the cat equivalent of Prozac. I hope not. It is very very windy here today and that is driving him nuts, whistling through the chimneys then I am going to have to contend with at least two weekends of bad fireworks which is bound to stress him more as his hearing seems so acute. He jumps if I shift position on the sofa and this morning jumped up in the air when I walked near him (he wasn't asleep or anything just looking the other way)
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poor Charlie, I do hope he settles down :(
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I know its hard but try not to get too stressed out, I'm sure Vicky Halls or the vet will be able to come up with something - I know he's not mine but my friend took in a stray exactly the same time you took in Charlie and I always think of the lives they could be leading :hug:
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do you know how long Charlie couldn't really hear for? If it was ages, maybe it is behavioural and he's a nervous wreck at the minute as the world is just suddenly and terrifyingly loud. If he hadn't had a whole lot of gunk taken out of his ears, wouldn't the horrible possibility diagnoses be more likely? Valium will sedate him quite a bit but a little over the annoying firework period sounds like a good idea; if he can tolerate it, it does the job. The other class of drug that sometimes works is non sedating busparone (another human drug), although Max had that for severe stress and I can't say it worked fantastically well. Sounds like he's not sleeping too much, so valium may work better (?) - is his liver ok though?
Are there any sounds that he reacts well to, or that he reacts calmly to? (eg like soft, classical music: they use that to calm wild animals in Africa) or is he spooked by any sound or sudden movement? I do really feel for you and hope that he can adjust to his new world as fast as possible. Does he have the freedom of the house or is there one quieter room you could settle him in for the moment? Poor Charlie. xxx and for you too with all the worry :hug:
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Well there is nothing to really suggest that his hearing was impaired before the wash out, it is just assumption on my part really (or hope?) At the moment he is reacting to the slightest of sounds, even my friend tapping on my computer keyboard earlier. He wouldn't cope with being put in a room on his own. Valium is actually one of the recommended drugs for hyperesthesia! There is no sound he particularly likes and it is not just sudden noise he is jumping at, it's everyday noises that never bothered him before this though I have to say he didn't do too badly this afteroon when next door had a tree surgeon removing a tree. It was quite noisy and he just sat on the window ledge and watched. I am hoping it is stress relating following the anaesthetic - apparently it can give them flashbacks to earlier anaesthesia etc, and to the fact that he had the wash out and was in the vet's all day. Vicky has been very good about Charlie in the past so I am hoping she will give me some ideas. I have been following the recommended suggestions for helping him, ie extra play and regular feeds and so on and he is tired now from playing and is asleep. He doesn't seem very good at dealing with stress.
I know what you are saying Dawn F and am trying not to get too stressed. However having had nine years of sick animals with my dog Pepsi (RIP) followed immediately by Dragan (RIP) I think I worry too much at the slightest. Thanks for the moral support.
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mmm after nine years i suppose it is second nature, I hope you can sort it out :hug:
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There can be a few causes for it, stress and behaviour problems being one of them. It can be neurological, a brain tumour, spinal, lots of different things.
Can be linked to diet too apparently - preservatives, colourings etc in cat food and also chemicals in flea treatments etc and those used in the house for cleaning, air fresheners etc. Hope he's a bit more settled soon. :hug:
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I reckon that the tree surgeon episode is good news as he clearly didn't feel threatened by it, although it was loud. Does he freak out at sounds in the house that aren't near him or just those that are in the same room? maybe a short course of valium will calm him down - better to be a bit woozy than always scared. Give you a rest and respite from worry too if he's calm. xxx big hugs.
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He has been better today, no fur rippling, no vocalising (well just his normal amount) and he has gone back to his favourite sleeping place on the dining table. Also not been as aggressive and bitey. Plus he hasn't been grooming as much. Still jumpy and wide eyed though. He jumps at any sound whether it is close by or upstairs or in the kitchen wherever and whatever. I am pleased at the way he dealt with the tree surgery though as it has changed his view from the window today and he doesn't seem too concerned. He has been up and had his tea and is now snoozing again on the dining table which is normal behaviour. He usually wakes up at 9pm full of steam for games and then supper. Fingers crossed.
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that all sounds good. I hope he's turned the corner and it's just a matter of time. Come on Charlie :hug: :hug:
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he sounds to be settling down :)
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I do hope he is settling down and still think it was to do with his ears.
As you know I have had lots of probs with ears and one was that my eardrum had got out of shape by something pressing on it......a bit like Charlies gunge I suspect.
But one day I woke up and everythng was really loud and i couldnt tell where the sounds were coming from or what they were. I was in serious trouble by the time I got to the doctor, when phones were ringing so went outside and a plane came over!
I was given something to clear my ears, which took about 3 weeks but just ordibary things were painfully loud.....flushing the loo was a nightmare and also my first visit to the supermarket when I was nearly better .......did you know how loud the fridges are and the blip when the scanner works at the checkout? To me it was so loud and painful and this sounds so like Charlie but it does go and took me about a month I think before the sounds started to get back to normal.
Real normailty however took a very long time but by then only really loud noises were bad.
Lets hope that Charlies hearing is starting to settle and if so , he will too cos its so scarey hearing things that normallly you dont even notice and they are deafening. Cats hearing is also so much more sensitive than ours.
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Hope things have calmed down. Sounds like Charlie is nearly back to his old self again.
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how's poor wee Charlie tonight? I hope he's keeping nice and snugwarm and not too many frightening noises, and that you are doing ok too :hug: It does really seem that he's got the feline equivalent of what Gill had - really horrible.
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Well a lot of the previous symptoms have gone and he has reverted to his old patterns of where he sleeps and his usual routine. However he is still jump with noise though I don't think it's quite as bad. Spoke to the vet yesterday who says that the hearing should not have been affected that dramatically and I really didn't feel I was getting very far with him to be honest. He says it is good that his other symptoms have improved and just to see how it goes. Said not to leave him on his own when fireworks are going off though.
Am speaking to Vicky Halls tomorrow so will see if she can offer advice. He's currently squatting on the kitchen worktop as he has got wind of the fact that there is a beef casserole and dumplings in the oven!!!!
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I am coming to squat on your working top too :rofl: :rofl:
My doctor said a bit similiar to your vet and that sound doesnt change in volume but it does when you have had this kinda problem with your ears and it sounds like Charlies ears are calming down now but it takes a long time before they get back to normal......and they do it by themselves.
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Glad Charlie seems to be improving. Hopefully it won't be long before he's fully recovered. Korky had an ear washout out in August because he kept shaking his head and they found loads of gritty gunge (black in his case) in his right ear. He continued to shake his head after the procedure and its only in the last 2 weeks that he's got back to normal after various complications, scares and treatments.
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Thanks for that - did Korky seem to react more to sound after his ear wash?
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Sorry but no. He did react to sound slightly more than usual for the first couple of days but nothing like you have described for Charlie. After that he became very lethargic and then started showing nasty cold/flu symptoms (which I put down rightly or wrongly to the stress of the anaesthetic/procedure). Once we cleared that up he developed a copious gritty discharge from his ear (a bit like liquid coal) which he hadn't had prior to the washout and finally he completely lost all co-ordination and kept falling over to the right.
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poor boy, ear problems can be nasty. Thanks for your prompt response
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I'm still convinced the vet may have touched something while cleaning out his ears as it's so sensitive in there and so easy to do. How is little Charlie today? I hope managing to have a good sleep now that the cold, grey yuk weather has arrived. xxx
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He's doing a lot better. He is still jumpy but that's almost all we are left with. we had really bad gales and rain last night and he was good and slept in his old favourite place in the spare room.
Had a very long chat with Vicky Halls yesterday. She is a wonderful person, so understanding and helpful. Anyway she has asked me to video Charlie when he is in one of his strange moods and send her the footage. She wants me to keep her updated on his progress. She gave me some suggestions for helping him and we will see how he goes on.
He did have some discomfort with his ears when he woke up at tea time last night. Was really shaking his head and poking his paw down.
Thanks for the support
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:hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
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glad he's alot better :)
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Sounds like he is doing well and pleased you have spoken to Vicky ;D
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Had a good day so far, touch wood, even had a roll over for a belly rub which he hasn't done since before he went in for his ear wash. Fingers crossed. It's over to the cat sitter from early morning tomorrow until Tuesday afternoon, I'm off to visit my friend in Sussex.
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Oh dear, that will probably stress him out again then :(
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Not sure it will Gill. Last time he was fine, she is very good with him and sticks to his routine so nothing changes for him except me. I hope so anyway
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How is Charlie doing now? I hope he's OK
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He is still jumpy and has been a bit bitey with me since I came back. Seems he had a whale of a time with the cat sitter and was nice as pie with her! Something I'm doing?
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Must be :rofl: :rofl: