Saturday, April 23, 2016

Vante has crossed the Rainbow Bridge



It is with a broken hear that I write this final blog post for Vante's Blog.

The last few years in which I haven't posted to Vante's blog have been good.  Vante fully integrated with our other two cats.  I think getting her thyroid under control with the I-131 treatment was the main factor behind that. 



Her arthritis got bad over the last 2 years and she started receiving twice daily pain medication to help her with that.  We put stairs and ramps around our house so she could still get onto her favorite high spots and the bed. 



In January 2015 Vante was diagnosed with diabetes.  She started receiving twice daily insulin shots to help her feel better and when given with treats she didn't mind the tiny needle and shot. 
January 2015 - diagnosed with diabetes.

Vante also had high blood pressure and needed a tiny, tiny pill once in the evening.  In the morning she needed a thyroid medication because the I-131 hyperthroid treatment corrected her overactive thyroid but too much, she became hypOthroid.  Half a pill every morning solved that problem and gave her energy and helped her fur grow and her coat become much better (it was rough and just not good looking for a few months).













We worked all these medicines into TREAT TIME!  8 AM and 8 PM became the best parts of the day for our three cats.  We would give them their medication in Pill Pockets and then they would get treats (Friskies Party Mix was their long-time favorite, all flavors) and two Greenies (Catnip Flavored Dental Treats were their favorite by a long shot). 
Treat Time!

In February 2016 all 5 of us, me, husband, Vante, Callie Mae, & Amelia drove cross-country to live in Wichita Falls, Texas.  Vante rode with my husband and spent a large amount of the trip either on his lap or in the passenger seat. 

In late February we noticed a bump on Vante’s left jaw and took her to a vet here in town.  Unfortunately they were unable to do dental x-rays so we went to a specialist in Dallas a week or so later.  After x-rays and a full examination while she was sedated it was determined that she had cancer in her jaw.  We declined a biopsy because the cancer had already put a bunch of small holes in her jaw bone (mandible) and with her plethora of other medical problems I didn’t want her to be in pain from the biopsy too when we were already really certain it was cancer.  We were concerned with QUALITY of life for Miss Vante.

I took Vante back home and she had a few wonderful days.  She was acting like herself and it was great to see her feeling so well.  However, then she got an upper respiratory infection and an eye infection (picked up at the vet clinics or a latent infection brought on by stress).  We treated the eye infection and it got better, she already had antibiotics in her system so we just had to let those work on the respiratory infection.  Unfortunately her cancer continued to grow at a fast rate, we could see that the bump on her jaw was getting bigger and she started having problems eating and drinking. 

We did everything in our power to make her comfortable and her last days as nice as possible: sunning outdoors, brushing, pampering, her favorite treats, cuddling, etc.  Friday afternoon, April 8, my husband and I took her to the vet and with tears in our eyes we told her how much she was loved and we said goodbye. 

It was absolutely heartbreaking.  Heartbreaking.  But we just couldn’t watch her suffer any longer because she was only getting worse daily.  Some of the things that she had enjoyed most she wasn’t enjoying or doing at all anymore.

We have a Vante shaped hole in our hearts and she will be greatly missed by us and everyone that knew her. 

RIP
Vante
September 1, 1995 – April 8, 2016

This photo was given to me by the folks at Best Friends Animal Society when I adopted Vante.  Isn't she just ADORABLE!

Vante loved climbing on shoulders.  She was a staple at Best Friends for 10 years (1998-2008).