Better Bella

We had to take Bella to the vet today. She keeps scratching her face, and we needed some salve to help heal it. Since we were there, anyway, they took some blood to test so they could evaluate her condition. The short version: She’s doing well.

I’ve said a few times, most recently in the post on her “birthday”, that she’s doing well, but the trip tp the vet gave us proof. First, she’s gained about 250 grams (about half a US pound) in weight. That was only the start.

Then, late this afternoon, the vet rang with the results of her blood tests. They showed that her uric acid levels have halved since the last tests, as have all the other “bad” levels in her blood. The vet said it’s especially remarkable because all we’re doing is feeding her special “renal diet” food, and with no sub-cutaneous fluids.

There was one small concern: Her white blood count was a little low, but not serious—just something to keep an eye on. So, the vet concluded, we should keep doing what we’re doing.

Bella also got flea treatment and had her nails trimmed (a pet-i-cure?) to help keep her from scratching herself. She was reasonably well behaved, though she growled a bit at one point, clearly thoroughly over the visit to the vet.

The important thing, though, is that we now have real evidence: Bella really IS doing better. This has been a very good day.

The photo above is another of the ones I took for her “birthday” post. You can see the scratch above her left eye. It didn’t get worse until last week, but today was the first available appointment at the vet because they’ve been so busy.