Sunday: Hili Dialogue

October 12, 2014 • 3:46 am

It is Sunday and we have some  good news from Dobrzyn: Cyrus is on the mend. What an excellent, kind and caring family he has!

Hili: You will get IV drip, I will purr for you and all will be well
Cyrus: Thank you—your purring is helping a lot.
zkropla
In Polish:
Hili: Dostaniesz kroplówkę, ja ci będę mruczeć i wszystko będzie dobrze.
Cyrus: Dziękuję, bardzo mi twoje mruczenie pomaga.

34 thoughts on “Sunday: Hili Dialogue”

  1. Jerry if you have time, e-mail me the details of Cyrus’ s condition & therapy.

    1. Hi! I doon’t know much except that he had that tick-borne disease, and that he is getting injections and one more day of an IV drip. The vet says he will be fine but will always be a “carrier” of the disease. If there’s something more specific you want to know, just email me or put it here, and I’ll find out more details.

      Oh, I heard there is a vaccine in Europe for this condition. Is it useless to give it after the animal is already infected?

      1. I’ve got no ideas about canine or other animal vaccines, but I’ve had my immune system assaulted by injections against a tick-borne encephalitis, and it was a good few years ago, so the basic technology isn’t exactly new.
        Assuming that these are significantly related organisms/ diseases, which is a fairly substantial assumption.

    2. Thank you for your interest. I will try to give you the answer but I have no idea if the names of the medicines are the same in Polish and English. The disease was a parasite Babesia canis (he got it from ticks). I don’t really know how Jerry came to the conslusion that Cyrus will be a carrier. The vet didn’t say anything about it. Cyrus got: urea, creatinine, Alat, Aspat, Imizol inj. 40 ml 1.2 ml, Catosal 4 ml, Melovem 100 ml 1.2 ml, Synergal 100 ml inj 1.5 1 ml, Atropinum sulf, 0.5 mg/1ml 1 amp., Atropinum sulf, 1mg/1ml 1 amp., NaCl 0.9% 1000 ml, Ringer 500 ml.
      All this was given Friday morning by the vet. In the evening we gave him Ringer 200ml (IV drip) and another drip of Ringer (200 ml) in the morning. Then we went to the vet again and he got two different IV drips there – I don’t know what it was – plus an injection of antibiotics. In the evening he got Natrium chloratum (0.9) 500 ml) and this morning Glucosum and Natrium chloratum 200 ml. plus an injection of antibiotics. I am to give him additional 200 of this glucose drip in the evening and tomorrow morning it is back to the vet. But he is so much better! No fever any longer (it was 40.3), he is stronger – even run on today’s walk – and the most important: he is eating again. Sorry for all the mistakes in the names of medicines. This is a foreign territory for me.

      1. O my, my: what excellent news and lovingly wonderful care, Ms Malgorzata / Mr Andrzej: a heavy – duty regimen !

        I am so happy to hear this; such parasitisms are quite wicked – evil. Ms Hili’s purring, I am certain, soooo helps.

        Paz, Pause and, of course, … … PAWS !
        Blue

      3. Seeing the pic, I was afraid for the reason but happy to hear that it is something treatable!

      4. A fact sheet about Babesia from CAPC Vet. Org. (linked on the organism’s wiki page) confirms Jerry’s understanding that Cyrus may remain a “carrier” after his symptoms recede.

        “Dogs diagnosed with Babesia should be considered permanent carriers of the infection.”

        Hope Cyrus feels better soon!

      5. Cyrus’ medications:
        – Imizol (aka imidocarb) is a urea derivative that works as an anti-protozoal. It’s the only medication labeled for specific treatment of B. canis. It helps to reduce morbidity and mortality by lowering parasitemia. It IS potentially curative for B. canis, though not always.
        – Atropinum sulfate (aka atropine) is used to reduce the cholinergic effects of the Imizol (salivation, lacrimation, urination, defecation).
        – Catosal is a vit. B12 & phosphorous supplement. It stimulates metabolism. Likely given because Cyrus wasn’t eating.
        – Melovem is a generic of meloxicam, an NSAID (anti-inflammatory)
        – Synergal isn’t a medication I’m familiar with, but a quick google search shows that it is amoxicillin (antibiotic) and clavulanic acid (a potentiator of the antibiotic). aka the Polish version of Clavamox. The addition of clavulanic acid makes it harder for bacteria to form resistance against the amoxicillin. This isn’t a specific treatment for B. canis, but antibiotics are often given regardless to cover bases.
        – Natrium chloratum & glucosum: sodium chloride (a common form of fluids given for rehydration) and glucose. Common supportive care for animals not drinking or eating much. Hypoglycemia (low glucose) can be seen with Babesia infections.
        – I’m guess that the urea, creatinine, and Alat/Asapt are referring to Cyrus’ blood serum chemistry values —> likely increased? Common with Babesia.

        Regarding the European vaccination:
        – Solely for B. canis canis derived from cell culture exoantigens. Reduces morbidity and mortality, but doesn’t induce protective immunity (i.e. doesn’t prevent infection) and doesn’t confer cross protection against other species of Babesia. Reported as 70-100% effective in original study, but other field trials haven’t been as impressive. No vaccine will eliminate the carrier state once it has been established.
        – There’s also another bivalent vaccine in the works for canis canis and canis rossi but differences in strain antigenicity drastically lower its usefulness.

        Regarding B. canis:
        – Three subspecies: canis, vogeli, and rossi. B. canis canis is the one most commonly found in Europe.
        – If Cyrus has the B. canis canis, then it was likely transmitted by the brown dog tick.

        There is another species more common in the US, B. gibsoni, that is more serious, and is often associated with relapsing clinical disease. This is the species that is more often associated with persistent infection/increased morbidity/increased mortality.

        Given that Cyrus has responded well to treatment, sounds like he has a good prognosis 🙂 Your vet may decide to re-check for Babesia in several weeks/months depending on what they’re seeing. Please keep us updated on how Cyrus is doing!

        1. Thank you! We are just back from the vet. It was Babesia canis and we are to return in two weeks time for blood tests. The vet hopes that the parasite was killed but wants to check – if some of those pests are still lurking in Cyruse’s blood he will get another dose of parasite-killing medicine. He also got some antibiotics which we will give him for 5 days but otherwise he was declared healthy. And he seems back to normal: eating, running, playing with Hili. Thank you all!

  8. Holding something at arms length for extended periods of time can make you mentally tough and physically exhausted. I would think that knowing you are helping a companion would make it easier.

    1. A moment after this picture was taken the drip bag was suspended from a hook in the wall above Cyrus. No mental toughness or physical exhaustion for Andrzej…

      1. Good also that performing the injection itself isn’t a problem…I’ve administered fluids to a couple cats, and sticking needles in them was quite traumatic for me but not even uncomfortable for them. At worst, they were annoyed that they had to wait so long for the post-infusion treat, but were eager to get it started (in anticipation of the treat) when I pulled out the gear.

        I’ll assume the antibiotics and the like in your above list are standard of care for this particular disease. I know from experience that the bulk fluids, the Ringer / saline and the glucose and the like, often provide near-immediate comfort and relief in addition to the indicated therapeutic benefits.

        Poor dog’s obviously getting the gold standard of treatment — and even upgraded to platinum since he’s got the cat-purr massage! Obviously, none of it is any fun for anybody, but it looks like it should be over with in record time.

        Thanks for taking such good care of him!

        b&

        1. Thanks, Ben! I was taught how to give injections to humans and since them I gave plenty of injections to both humans, cats and dogs. However, I never managed to give any injections to Hili. She is too strong, energetic and slippery. Even the vet always has trouble with her.

          2. Well, here’s hoping it’ll be multiple decades before Hili needs any sorts of injections, and that by then she’ll not object quite so vigorously (but still, of course, be capable of vigorous objection, merely not choosing to do so).

            b&

  9. I am confident that the purrs of a cat have great healing power. Best wishes to Cyrus, his superior (Hili) and his humans.

  10. Such great news about Cyrus! I have been so worried. Thanks for the update. Nurse Hili to the rescue!

  11. Gus and I send our very best wishes for a speedy recovery. We hope Cyrus is up and dancing again soon!
    (Nice sweatshirt, by the way!)

  13. Poor Cyrus. I am so glad he has found such a caring family. I got a little choked up seeing him like that.

  14. As is quite often the case….Jerry was correct…..once infected, even with no further sighs , Cyrus will be a carrier. In the states…there is no vaccine, therefore my knowledge of such is nadda. I can not stress enough, the importance of topical & home treatment for ticks & other ecto-parasites…..not for human transmission , but for reinfection or a new tick borne illness. SPENECTOMY OR CORTICOSTEROID THERAPY COULD BRING ON A REOCCURANCE OF SYMPTOMS. Kenneth R Sanders VMD

  16. I’m so pleased Cyrus is going to be ok. It’s wonderful he has such a caring family who are able to help him. The healing powers of purrs are the icing on the cake!

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