Update on Cogsy

Well, even though a vet and a cat eye specialist both told us that Cognac would probably never see again... Oh, and the fact that they both pretty much ruled out head trauma... Cognac is getting some of his vision back gradually. I don't know how good he can see right now, but he's carrying himself differently. And he's jumping on surfaces again. And he's back to chasing Bella. I always thought it was a tad strange that he went completely blind just a few days after a stray cat was terrorizing him from outside. I believe Cognac tried to charge our deck door to claim dominance. (If you read my last post, you would have read that the stray cat was charging our deck door from outside trying to get our cats inside. The vet thought that it was a little far fetched that Cognac would try to do the same thing. Well, the stray cat was doing it to provoke our indoor kitties... It's possible Cognac did the same thing to provoke it. Just sayin'. I'm not talking badly about the vet or specialist, either. They are great at what they do.)

I was so brokenhearted about the whole topic. Brian and I moved to a wonderful house in the country. We chose this house for the gigantic living room windows and the quiet surroundings. We're on 6 acres in the country. That's partly why I was so emotional. Cognac had only gotten to enjoy the beauty of living here for a mere three weeks before going completely blind.

I'm off sick today. I pulled something in my knee. While sitting around the house I noticed that Cognac was acting different; happy. He has been depressed since going blind. But today he was walking around with a puffy tail (which, for him means he's happy and excited.) I had a few tears of joy. I kept saying, "Oh my God, I can't believe this." I don't think his vision is back to 100% yet because I couldn't get him to follow the laser pointer... But I can get him to come to my hand without making any noises with it. Also, he RAN upstairs. He hasn't done that since before going blind. I'm so happy right now.

As I'm sitting here typing this, Cogsy is sitting on the window sill looking outside. I don't know what he sees yet, but I know he's happy.

As for the stray cat, I haven't seen him in 8 days. And I'm glad. Not that I wish harm on him, I just don't need him here hurting my kitties. I don't know if he was on our deck so much because the people before us fed him. I hope he's happy elsewhere.

This is our house:


We get a lot of visitors:



This gelatinous guy was on our deck chairs. His body was giggly like jello.


(A Luna Moth)


It's looking like Cognac has his life back.
I'll keep everyone updated.

Prepare To Be Baffled

So, Cognac, our cat with a tooth allergy, is completely blind. And no one knows why.
Here is a timeline that I typed up for the Ophthalmologist:


Saturday June 12th: Stray cat charged at our deck sliding door.

Monday June 14th: Cognac could see perfectly.

Tuesday June 15th: Cognac vomits sometime around 5:45 p.m. We notice some time after 8:00 p.m. that Cognac’s pupils are very dilated.

(From the 13th – 17th I scare stray cat away several times. It was very persistent.)

Thursday June 17th: I call Dr. Seidl telling him about stray cat. Dr. Seidl thinks it is stress that is bothering Cognac.

Friday June 18th: Cognac starts on Ovaban at 5:30 p.m. (1/4 pill)
Saturday June 19th: I scare stray cat away. Cognac gets Ovaban at 6:30 p.m. Later that night we finally discover that Cognac is completely blind while he walks up stairs.

Sunday June 20th: We make Cognac as comfortable as possible We follow him to make sure he’s getting around okay. He gets Ovaban at about 6:30 p.m.

Monday June 21st: I call Sr. Seidl’s office at 8:00 a.m. Cognac goes to vet at 2:20 p.m. Stays all night. No Ovaban dose.

Tuesday June 22nd: Cognac comes home at 11:00 a.m. I make appointment with Dr. Davidson’s office. Dr. Seidl says not to continue Ovaban.

While Cognac was at vet they gave him: Baytril Injection and Dexamethasone 2 MG/ML Injection.

**Past Medication: Doxycycline. (Cognac has rare allergy to his teeth. He had 6 of them removed. He also has a history of upper respiratory issues. Also had to have infected tissue removed from his throat.)

The stray cat continuously charged our deck sliding door daily. I’m not sure if Cognac tried to do the same thing to claim dominance. Dr. Seidl could not see any head/skull trauma on the Xray.

He went to the Michigan Vet Specialists today. The doctor said that his eyes are healthy and that his retinas are functioning properly. She's going to get Cogsy's complete medical record from our vet. And she's going to converse with a neurologist and she'll let us know what to do next on Monday. It's nice to finally have some info that our vet couldn't give us. We're not sure if this is temporary but I'm praying that it is since his eyes are healthy. She said it could be his optic nerve or a tumor or something with the auto immune system - which would be treatable with steroids (auto immune problem.) She did have to say that he was an exceptionally well mannered little guy. :)

I did some research, too. Dilated pupils, sudden vision loss, vomiting, and lethargy are symptoms of head trauma in cats.

I have to say, this has been incredibly hard to witness. It's hard to imagine Cogsy this way. He's been such a snuggler lately, too. He spent the night at Dr. Seidl's this week... And an afternoon in GR today. He is such a trooper.

We're hoping for the best.
We're preparing for the worst.
Please pray.