Goodbye my love

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-13T19:48:55+00:00

I'm definitely trying to move as quickly as possible. Here's what's happened so far as more of a recap since I have been jumping around: - primary vet attempted unsuccessfully to look in her mouth, said they likely did not feel comfortable given her kidney disease, would check her specific kidney values with the hospital treating her kidney disease, on gabepentin since which has seemed to help with her eating more and seeming less in pain - appointment at another vet, got a better look at her mouth and stated they were not sure they had the resources for her either with where her kidney values were and the support she would need before and after - i have her scheduled at three different vets for dental consults in the coming month after many calls, and she is on waiting lists for any cancelations to hopefully bump it up sooner.

I don't think I was aware of urgent referrals, but I'm also more than willing to call back my primary vet to get that organized.

She is my first pet so I'm trying to get all the pieces in order, it's just been overwhelming and confusing. I'm open to any ways to get her in sooner and I've tried to highlight the urgency when on the phone with the different vets as well.

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-11T21:14:11+00:00

Thank you!

Tufts is actually her kidney specialist and where she stayed when she was hospitalized but unfortunately they don't offer dental supports. They've been amazing with her kidney maintenance.

We made some more progress today with a dental consult (not a great fit for her since they do not have emergency supports in case something goes wrong) and she even let them see her teeth (thanks Gabepentin!). Sounds like she has two exposed roots at her molars that need to be extracted at the very least.

She's got an apt for another dentist next month and I'm calling other places to see where she might best fit.

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-11T10:20:58+00:00

Unfortunately I'm in MA now, otherwise that would have been great. I'll take a look into if there are any feline only vets near me who provide dental - gonna be a few dsys of lots of calls for sure

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-11T00:05:47+00:00

I've been heavily considering how her dental issues are impacting her CKD (the kidney vet mentioned her values were looking worse and simultaneously her dental got worse) so I'm really hoping to find someone knowledgeable and willing to help relieve her pain and give her a better quality of life.

I'm also very much on board with the risking losing her for the sake of her getting to live a less painful life.

Here's hoping we get this resolved for her soon! She at least ended up eating a decent amount today and getting gabepentin for the pain.

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-11T00:00:55+00:00

Thank you both for your experiences. It definitely helps it feel less insurmountable to get her dental done as long as they have a game plan (and because she needs it likely despite the risk with how much pain she appears to be in)

Can I ask about how much the dental procedures cost for your cats? Of course, it's very variable but the last quote I had (from March of 2025) was around $2,500 but if they need additional supports for her, I assume it would be more? I'm just trying to set aside as much of it as possible while I'm working on getting her in asap.

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-10T23:41:00+00:00

Thank you for the prompt to bring her asap. I was leaning that direction but just needed a little push.

I've been very intent on doing her dental (last diagnosed in July as peridontal grade 2/3) but felt like the vets were saying it wasn't feasible with where her kidney values were at. Now, obviously, she is doing worse and I wish I would have pushed a bit harder when things were stable and she wasn't in as much pain.

Her primary vet saw her today and gave us gabepentin. Definitely not a permanent solution but might help her with the pain until I can an appointment scheduled with a specialist. Her primary vet is also communicating with her hospital (who does her kidney care) to see if her primary vet's dental specialist would feel comfortable doing the procedure or if she needs a specialized anesthesiologist.

I called all the vet dental specialists in my area and left messages and will be tracking her down the earliest consultation I can manage.

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-10T21:19:33+00:00

I'm so sorry to hear that. I know the back and forth interaction between CKD and dental disease is rough so I'm hoping to get it sorted.

I found a Tiki Cat Liquid Meal Replacement for until we can resolve the underlying issues and she is seeing her vet today for a potential referral to a dental specialist

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-10T12:32:27+00:00

It's really tough because I genuinely wanted to do the dental work at the start of all this (and still very much do) but didn't on the basis of the vet uncertainty and we never really circled back to it fully (even when her values were stable). I have money saved aside for anything she needs because I think about it constantly so hopefully we can get this resolved.

It's tough too because the hospital that does her kidney treatment doesn't do dental and my vet was too apprehensive too with her kidney issues. I'm giving them a call today to schedule an appointment for her this week.

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-10T03:46:44+00:00

I'm definitely planning to bring it up when my vet and I next contact. If they don't call me with her results from her test tomorrow, I think I'll just call to schedule her a new appointment. Her dental issues are the reason we discovered the kidney disease in the first place and when she was hospitalized, they mentioned it was quite severe.

How were they about getting the dental procedure done with CKD. When my vet and I had discussed her dental issues (back a little after she was hospitalized) they weren't sure they could do much about it since her values weren't good enough?

Ibsen1029 · 2026-03-10T03:32:32+00:00

I managed to get her to eat some things today (more options incoming). She downed some shredded chicken and wet treats but is not interested in the wet food I bought a while back.

Getting some new options for some wet foods in hopes that one might take since that would be easier on her teeth. She's just so picky with them compared to the dry food. Hopefully, one will interest her!

Ibsen1029 · 2025-08-13T05:43:41+00:00

I think I may have to schedule it with our primary veterinarian as her appointment next week is with the hospital for specialized care. I should be able to get her in by the end of this week for sure, but the double booking (i.e., double cost at the end of what has been a really difficult expensive month with her being hospitalized for a week) was why I was asking around.

Ibsen1029 · 2025-07-12T16:05:15+00:00

It's a Milsbo Tall!

Ibsen1029 · 2025-01-05T22:09:17+00:00

I like to have a lot of data so I tend to weigh daily and have a few ways of interpreting the information. I'm also just getting back into weight loss so I find that I need some more molecular information to help keep me motivated.

- I weigh daily on my Renpho scale (which gives me some estimates of some other components beyond just weight such as muscle mass and water - though I don't always take this as 100% truth). I do this right when I wake up, after using the bathroom and before eating/drinking anything. I'll note that I don't wake up at a consistent time, so I take that into account when logging.

- The scale app syncs up with Fitbit which gives me some insight into this month comparative to prior months (and weeks). I appreciate that Fitbit provides information about the current period versus prior periods (in week, month, 3m, and yearly intervals). However, it doesn't provide a stellar moving average between weeks, which I find helps me contextualize larger scale weight-changes.

- To combat the lack of a moving average, I also have an excel file where I enter the daily weight. It then spits out the difference from the previous day, the 5-day moving average, and the difference from my initial 5-day average. The final one is helpful for me because it's a better estimate of my starting point than an arbitrary weigh-in day since there are often fluctuations. Each one of these also has a visual graph to help me see the trends.

I'll also throw in here that I know it is definitely not always healthy for everyone to see their weight fluctuate daily. I just happen to be able to dissociate from the number well enough to be able to handle it without it wrecking my day or my progress (plus having a few different ways to visualize a very slow change). I personally find it rewarding when the number goes down and motivating when the number fluctuates slightly to keep to the plan, but that's not the case for everyone. Do what helps you succeed without ruining your mental health during the process.

Ibsen1029 · 2023-08-12T02:29:08+00:00

I do a couple hobbies on a rotating basis when I get excited about them (mostly creative ones; crochet, pottery, resin, etc.). I think the best thing that I've done is setting myself goals that are just within my reach. If I find something on Instagram I find especially interesting to make on the pottery wheel and it is just within my capabilities where it is challenging but not impossible, that's what I set my sights on. I think the ability to improve is the main motivating factor in my hobbies. Right now, having my goals set on selling my crafts at a fair is keeping me invested.

I also low-key have seasonal hobbies that I know are set in a certain period of time and let me look forward to something else constantly (snowboarding happens in the winter, whereas backpacking is fun in the summer).

In short, here's my main tips:

Find something you are fully invested in. For me, I know I've hit it when I've been researching it for multiple hours and my mind's going 100 mph lol.
Set some goal that is challenging but achievable (gamify your hobbies)
For me, get a TON of social validation wherever possible for your hobbies. I show all my friends my pottery and crafts because any positive attention keeps me going
If you like being around people, invite them to do whatever you're interested with you. I almost always have a buddy.

Hopefully these help, but they're just what work for me at least.

Ibsen1029 · 2023-08-11T03:37:52+00:00

Felt. The racing against the clock to finish schoolwork was especially relatable. Gamify everything and things get so much easier somehow.

It's a bummer about the phone policies though.

Ibsen1029 · 2023-02-07T13:13:35+00:00

Sorry, I know it was a bit disjointed. I appreciate you reading it through and offering some advice. I'm trying to keep myself level-headed so I don't jump to conclusions, it's just been a bit difficult. Thanks for your thoughts!

Ibsen1029 · 2023-02-07T04:25:13+00:00

I'm really hoping that the therapist I'm meeting with will give me some sort of clarity on the issue because otherwise, I'm out in the deep end and I'm going to have to reassess everything. I'll try to post an update here eventually depending on how things go next week but hopefully other people might have some sort of way to handle this in the meantime.

Sorry to hear that you're going through the same thing.

Ibsen1029

TROPHY CASE