Feline Friday: Whew!

 Lily had her pre-arranged anal gland appointment this week. We last had her checked in the summer, and I had hoped to make it to October without incident -- and we did! Lily has not been scooting so I was fairly certain everything was A-OK.

One gland was completely normal and the other was almost clear. Turns out the increased pumpkin program is working GREAT!  This is fantastic news, as we had been traipsing to the vet fairly regularly to have them cleared. I have been keen to avoid this because sedating her that frequently is hard on the kidneys.

Lily is now getting a teaspoon of canned pumpkin (pure pumpkin -- not pumpkin pie filling!) every day. She will eat it straight out of the can, but I've been mixing it into her canned food, along with her powdered join supplement. The pumpkin bulks up the food slightly and makes it last longer, which I think is good for her diet. And the extra fiber helps her glands stay clear naturally. So we're not going to make her go through that procedure again unless she starts scooting. YAY!

 

 I had also noticed a small bump on her chin, smaller than a pea but getting a bit bigger over time. It moved with her skin, so I thought it was probably a cyst or acne. It wasn't at all like the bump our sweet Tinsel had, which was attached to her jaw bone and turned out to be cancerous. Still, I wanted it checked and removed as it seemed to be uncomfortable for Lily.

Turns out it was a fairly inflamed zit which the vet successfully removed. What a relief it was nothing to worry about! During her sedation, Lily also got a complimentary nail trim and a weigh-in, which showed she's lost a tiny bit of weight. I'm not quite sure how that happened but yippee!

It did take Lily a little longer to wake up from the light sedation at this visit, during which time she growled steadily as if to say "I know you're messing with me but I can't wake up to do anything about it". The vet reassured me everything was just fine, so we all got a good laugh listening to her fierce sound effects.

That evening, Lily was treated to a dinner of Fancy Feast then took a good long nap -- with no growling! With her chin feeling better, her newly trimmed nails, and clear anal glands, she should be in tip top shape for the foreseeable future!

 

 Happy Feline Friday!
jp and Lily