Gizmo

Jen I spoke with someone from DHEC this morning and they are all in a meeting until???? They had a problem at a local government facility within the past few days where some sort of chemical was found in a drain pipe and people were exposed to fumes of some sort. They think it may have been diesel fuel but don't know how it got into that pipe.

The lady I spoke with at DHEC took my personal info for them to return my call when the meeting is over. I told her what was going on and she said that someone will be here today to check into what ever is going on at this landscape place.

The property that it is on belongs to a distant cousin and I don't know if he is involved in it or if he just rents the property out to whomever is running this place. Regardless,if they are using chemicals that is causing otherwise healthy animals to just drop dead then they need to be relocated or shut down.

I haven't heard form my vet yet this morning so i'm hoping that no news is good news. It's been 2 days now since anymore cats have died but there are at least 3 that you can look at and tell they have been exposed to something but they seem to be doing okay.

If it's proven by my vet that chemicals from this place have caused these cats to become ill and die,i'd also like to be reimbursed by that company for any and all vet bills that i'm going to eventually end up with. Gizmo has been there for 2 days now and all the things that they have done to him are surely going to add up. I don't know what vet costs are in other parts of the country but I do know that in this area they are comparable to a person going to the hospital.


dmichael

I forgot to mention why I started this thread!!! Check out the oct. blooms thread towards the end to find out what is going on.

DMichael,

Best wishes for Gizmo's speedy recovery. If fumes would effect a feline in such a manner, it sure can't be good for human health either! It is outrageous that a company could behave in such a manner. VT has some of the toughest environmental laws in the country. If that kind of incident happened here, the owners of the company would be doing some serious jail time.

Once again my sympathies for Gizmo, and I hope he is home soon, and yes, veterinarians here cost more than going to the human doctor as well.

Doug

I’m so sorry to hear about Gizmo; my prayers are with you and him for a fast and full recovery.
Lourdes

My thoughts and prayers are with Gizmo,
I hope he will have a fast and complete recovery.

Doug the place is right in the middle of a residential neighborhood but in such a spot that it may not be under any type of restrictions. That parcel of land back there wasn't even required to hook up to the city water and sewer system when it went in years ago.

I cant swear that this is what is happening but as I said this place just recently moved in and now all of a sudden these otherwise very healthy cats are just falling dead for no apparent reason.

I have to take back my earlier statement of not finding any dead cats for the past 2 days because I found another one this morning after finally getting around to going outside.

I'm getting ready to go out around the surrounding neighborhood and start knocking on some doors to see if anyone else located near this place is having issues with their pets health or if any have suddenly and unexpectedly died.

I kind of felt a little guilty about calling DHEC this morning because as I said this establishment is on family property and I don't want to be known as the trouble maker and I don't to cause any more hard feelings between members of this family as there is enough of that already . If it's found out that something this place is using has caused the problems with these cats then someone needs to be held accountable for their actions be it family or whoever is working out of the place.

Still haven't heard anything form my vet so i've got my fingers crossed that everything is okay with Gizmo

You know this year will soon be over and it seems as if my entire year has just been plagued with health issues. First off my mom who already had pre-existing health problems was diagnosed with cancer,that story is way too long to get into right now. My 87 year old (stroked) grandmother fell and hurt a leg and was in an out of the hospital and rehab for almost 3 months, I had my own set of health issues that I was dealing with and now this.

I know we always feel that our load is the heaviest,but there is always someone else out there dealing with a lot more than I may be right now but it just seems like everything falls down on you at one time. Looking back I cant think of a worse year that i've ever had in my life besides this one. I have to be thankful though because event hough my family isn't in the best of health, we are all still alive!

Now if my little man can just get over this and come back home (Sara misses him like crazy) we can all move on and try to make the most of whats left of what has ended up being a really S@#$%& year for me!!!!!

Good wishes coming Gizmo's way!! And be sure and take of yourself also........I agree, it can't be good for humans to be breathing that stuff in either!

~Brenda

DMichael,

The more I think about the problem with all the cats dying in your neighborhood, the more I think that someone may be doing this on purpose. It is hard to believe that any kind of fumes in a neighborhood could build to such a level as to be killing cats without effecting the human population as well. I'm wondering if some sicko might be poisoning the cats with some chemical such as antifreeze or the equivalent. You read about this kind of thing all the time. Whatever is happening, I hope the authorities get to the bottom of this situation quickly.

Doug

David, a trouble maker would be someone causing trouble or problems where there needn't be any...you are doing the right thing, family connections or not. I hope Doug is wrong about it being someone doing this deliberately, but that is a possibility too. Whatever it is, someone has to look into it and do something. Possibly an autopsy could be done or samples taken from one of the dead cats - did you keep the one you found today? I would put it in a bag and save it for the enviromental people.

And you are right about vet bills - it is like that all over the country, I believe. Last time my cat had a bladder infection, it cost more than it would have cost if I had had one! I don't know if vets are getting greedy or what, but it seems to me that if you want to have pets today, especially if you have more than one, you have to take into consideration the drain on your income that their healthcare is going to be!! ( especially male cats, I don't know if you saw the thread about kidney/bladder problems in males due to high ash content in cat food, but it would be a very good idea to elimate ash from their diets )

Anyway, I am sure Gizmo will come through ok, and you should stay on this until it is resolved! Too many people don't want to get involved or cause trouble, but it needs to be done.

Doug my cats are strictly indoor cats. They go outside into a 6ft privacy fence with my supervision for about 10-15 minute intervals when I get time to take them out. They are never left unattended. Out time is usually once maybe twice a week and that doesnt happen every week.

The cats that have free range of the neighborhood make trips inside my privacy fence at night when we are asleep (trying to catch the fish i my pond) but my cats never actually have any physical contact with them at all. Whatever those cats have been exposed to has been brought into my yard by the free range cats and my cat has now been exposed to it. At least this is what the vet feels.

Well I couldn't wait any longer for the vet to call me so I called her. She has a much better outlook for Gizmo's full recovery than she did yesterday even though she didn't tell me that yesterday. His kidney enzymes are down close to normal now but he still according to her has his panties in a wad!!!

I'm friends with this vet and they know Gizmo doesn't like being away from home and has a bit of a nasty attitude when around strangers in a foreign place. He hisses and growls even at them while in the office but at home he would treat them just the way he does me. They wouldn't be able to get away form him.

They will be keeping him for at least one more night just to make sure things are good but he hasnt eaten anything since yesterday morning and she said if he doesn't eat soon that his liver could begin to fail.

Hopefully things will progressively get better and i'll be able to bring him home tomorrow after work.

My parents wondered if it wasnt the food they feed the cats that was causing this,with all of the recalls that we've had this year but my cats dont eat the same food as their cats not that that makes a difference but I dont think bad food would shut there kidneys down almost instantly like that. Gizmo just wen to the vet last week for his shots and a complete checkup and was doing great and in less than a week he is back with this new set of problems.

I also got a call from the DHEC guy who is coming to do an inspection these peoples setup and find out what they are using chemical wise.

Jen I thought about your idea of letting the vet or DHEC autopsy the cat that I found this morning but not until after I had already buried it. I have seen 2 of the other cats this morning that were really down but they both appear to be doing well now,at least they look better anyway.

dmichael

Jen,

I hear ya on the vet cost problem. But I think it's less of a "greediness" issue and more because they are now able to do the same kinds of tests and treatments that they do on humans. They now have these huge Animal Medical Centers that have MRI's, chemotherapy, etc. So it is just harder to avoid treating your pet when the stuff is out there, you know? Back in the day, when they didn't have all that stuff, you had no choice but to euthanize or let nature take it's course. But now, the sky is the limit. It's a great thing, but it also means that we are going to end up paying MUCH more money if we want to give our pets the best treatment.

My dog had a tumor on her spine about 3 years ago. Even though I was told that WITH treatment she'd still probably only have about a year, I took the chance and treated her anyway with hopes that it would help. So she had an MRI, surgery to remove the tumor, a 5-day hospital stay, and 3 weeks of radiation therapy. The total cost of this was $11,000 - boy did I wish I had pet insurance! And that cost didn't include all the follow-up stuff, me having to take 3 weeks off work to take her to treatment every day, and the cost of lodging 4 hours away for that 3 weeks (I went to Cornell University for the radiation because that was the most highly recommended place for what she had). But thank goodness I did it because she's still here! It's been 3 years and no signs of recurrence!!

David - my thoughts and hopes are with Gizmo for a speedy recovery. Keep us posted on this chemical thing and what you find out about it!

Karen

David,
Being a major cat lover I can understand how you feel. I have had cats all my adult life and they are an important part of our lives. Hope Gizmo gets home soon. = ^..^ =

Dee

Dee, My earliest memory of us having a cat was when I was 3 years old and I just turned 40. Yeah I can remember back to when I was 3 but cant recall stuff I did last week!!! Go figure that one out!!! When I lived with my parents our house was never without a cat and like yourself all of my adult life has been spent having a cat or two in the house.

Since I have no biological children my pets are my children and I become very attached to them especially my cats,I have 2 small dogs as well but am more of a cat person.

I can jokingly say that he house has been very peaceful with Gizmo not around but there is an emptiness that Sara the other cat and even the dogs have noticed. I hope he has a good night and will be able to come home tomorrow.

I lost 2 cats back in 05" who were mother and son within 14 days of each other. Turns out they both had a hereditary heart condition that we didn't know anything about and there really wasn't anything the vets could have done to save them had we known about it because most cats who have it don't live past age 3.

Bonnie who was the mother cat dies first and then Brutus the son died 2 weeks later. The oldest of the 2 cats I have now (Sara) Was to come into the house as a companion for Brutus since his mother had died. The day that I was suppose to go and get Sara (12 wks old)from her old owner was the same day that Brutus got sick and went to the vet. I got a call around 7 that night letting me know that he had died as well.

A coworker of mine had a cat with a litter of 8 week old kittens that needed homes so I went and picked out Gizmo!!! He's one of those very loving ,affectionate cats and he and I have a very close bond so if something happens to him I don't know what i'll do.

As for the vet bills they'll just have to set me up on a payment plan and take what I can afford to give them monthly. It seems like those of us who take really good care of our pets are the ones who always have problems. My sister has 2 cats that have NEVER,not one time set foot in a vets office and one of them is 13 years old and the others at least that or older and never had a problem.

dmichael

I went to the vets office around 3:30 to see Gizmo. He sure looks and acts 100% better than he did yesterday at this time.

He is as most cats are quite picky about his food and eating habits so he's refusing to eat the vets food so I took him some of his favorite. Still wouldn't eat but i think its because of being in a strange environment.

She offered to let me bring him home for the night but said i'd have to have him right back down there in the morning so I just left him. He was glad to see me though but still had a bit of an attitude going on!!!



This message was edited Oct 4, 2007 5:08 PM

Gabi, you have a point about animal care today, it has become more sophisticated with technology and all, but all my cat had was a bladder infection and she needed some antibiotics...it was $140!! (It would have been $130 if it hadn't been my first visit there...)

I would spend ANY AMOUNT on my animals, I really would, and I am sure most animal lovers would do the same, but the cost IS something you have to take into consideration these days when you get or are thinking about getting a pet. They all get sick sooner or later. Also, when I did volunteer work for a local shelter, it was a common reason for abandoning animals, that people couldn't afford the vet care.

It is what it is, and vets certainly do deserve to make some money, but it HAS gone up quite a bit lately, and it seems like it happened overnight.

David, you were lucky to get to see Gizmo at the vet's, last time my cat was in, the vet said if I visited it would just upset her. Well, I am hoping to hear good things tomorrow...

Jen my uncle is best friends with the owner of the clinic and I am friends with 2 of the workers there so they didnt have a problem with me visiting him. I'm sure they dont allow all of their clients that privilege but they know how this cat responds to me. After my being there for just 5 minutes his attitude changed completely for the better.

I agree pet care costs have skyrocketed but I will pay whatever it takes to get any of my 4 back to health.

You're right Jen. People really do have to take the cost of unforeseen medical problems into consideration before getting a pet. So many people go to a shelter or pet store and see a cute puppy or kitten and take them home, without really thinking of the financial responsibilities. The prices have definitely gone up in pet healthcare. If you think about it, if a human had a bladder infection we'd have to spend probably the same amount of money that you spent on your kitty (if not more), unless we had insurance. And pet insurance doesn't help much at all (so I've been told).

Veterinarians have to make a living just like the rest of us, but it would be nice if the occupation as a whole would find a way to cut costs....because the truth is that most people wouldn't spend an arm and a leg to cure their pet. And I really can't blame them...firstly because pets unfortunately don't have a very long lifespan, and second because most petowners think of their dogs/cats as pets (and you really can't blame them for not wanting to go into debt just to take care of a pet. I just happen to be one of those people (along with most of you, it seems) that thinks of my pet as a child - partly because of my love for animals (especially my special sweetheart of a dog), and partly because I have no biological children of my own and probably never will. So I would go bankrupt if I had to, just to make sure my little girl is healthy....I guess that would mean no more hoyas!

Glad to hear that your cat is doing better dmichael.

This message was edited Oct 4, 2007 7:02 PM

David, I am glad you got in to visit him, I feel so bad for animals that have to stay over, they don't know what is going on, for all they know they will never go home again. I am sure it made him feel better seeing you, the poor thing.

Pet insurance is probably only worth it if you KNOW for a fact that your pet is going to have alot of expensive issues - like for instance greyhounds - a friend of mine has 2, and has had several over the years. He claims it is almost a given that they will develop hip problems and need surgery at some point...so if you know that is coming, and you know it is going to be relatively high priced, then insurance would be much cheaper in comparison.

I don't have insurance for myself right now, getting it for the animals is somewhat out of the question! But, it is what it is,and we do what we have to do...I can't imagine my life without animals in it, no matter what the cost. Sadly, too many people buy or take pets on impulse, the millions of homeless animals in shelters areproof of that. I want to bring them all home. I wish I could. Actually, I am trying, but right now I
only have room for a few at a time!

David, I freaked out when I started to read this thread, but I am so very, very relieved to see that Gizmo is improving!!!!!
David, Jen, and every one else, our pets really are our family members, aren't they?! It's nice to see so many people here who would do anything and everything in their power for their pets!!! It makes my heart feel good, even though the subject matter is so terrible and painful.
David, please buy Gizmo and Sara a little yummy cat-nip for me when Gizmo feels up to it.
Ann

Hi David...I left this computer this morning at o'dark thirty and just got back. I am so happy Gizmo seems better...and is recovering. Our pets ARE our children: they depend upon us so thoroughly and we....on them. Right?

I suspect the cat food...am reading The Omnivors' Dilemma and our food is NOT what is is purported to be...I am totally paranoid now...well, a bit more paranoid than before. Maybe I will get thin.

Nah.

Best to you and Gizmo, David....

Glad Gizmo is doing better. I am also a cat lover and I don't know what I would do if something happened to my baby. Keep us posted!

Jen

OH DAVID...is everything OK?????

We miss you...and your Gizmo....

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes and thoughts about Gizmo. I brought him home yesterday and everything is fine. He isnt on any meds and the vet doesnt expect any long term effects from this.

Boy was he ever glad to be home? Gizmo is one of those cats that absolutely hates being confined and away from home. He spent 3 days and 2 nights at the vet and didnt eat a bite of food so when he got home just as soon as his feet hit the floor the search for food began!!!

There a little tension in the air between the 2 cats right now but Sara is just guarding what she thinks was rightfully hers first! Gizmo is trying to be sociable with her but she just aint having it just yet,she hisses and growls if he gets within 5 ft of her!!

Still havent heard anything form DHEC about the lawn care company, of course it's just a few dead cats so why should they be concerend??The guy probably threw my name and number away as soon as he got of the phone.

I’m very glad David, for both of you. I know how it hurts when they get sick.

As for the hissing and growling of Sara, let me tell you what happened with Fedor. He had an allergic reaction to the rabies shot, we had to take him back and he spent a night there. Next day two of the other cats were also hissing and growling at him. I asked the doctor why this was happening, because they had never been like that towards him. He said that they could smell the medications and “clinic sent” attached to Fedor’s body, that all I could do was to wait a couple of days until the sent was gone. None of us humans could smell a thing, but even the dogs would avoid Fedor. He was right, the third day the hissing and growling disappeared.


This message was edited Oct 6, 2007 4:54 PM

I am a major "cat person". MIne are all indoors now with supervised visits a couple of times daily to play outside. My dh basically made the porch off our bedroom into an outdoor cage so our cats can play outside even without supervision.

So glad to hear Gizmo is better. Keep us posted on what is causing this. I think every town has a Humane Society that could be called in it someone has decided to get rid of ferals by poisoning them?