Wednesday, August 5, 2009

It can only happen to us!!!! and a couple of questions

Now what you ask.........

well Molly continues to be a joy, BUT.........would you believe she has allergies!! I know what you're saying, she'll fit right in, in this house. She started chewing her paws when we brought her home on Saturday, Maxine our black lab did the same thing and was allergic to ragweed. Now ragweed allergies don't normally start until August 15th, so not sure what is going on with Molly.

So I take her to the vet on Tuesday for a meet and greet, and to get some allergy pills. He's not sure what is going on with her eating her paws, but gave me the pills. The problem with these pills though is that for four days she is on a high dosage, which makes her pee like a trooper. That brings me to another issue, Molly cannot go through the night without being let out for a pee and a poop!!!

I swear it's like having a baby in the house. Plus she tends to chew her paws through the night, and as she is sleeping in our bedroom, both me and dh are walking around bleary eyed...LOL Also as Molly sticks to us like glue, there will be no way she will sleep anywhere else.

So of course the vet says we need to check her for heartworm, and I should make sure she doesn't get fleas, so she should take Advantage for that. Here is a breakdown of the bill:

Office Visit - $55
60 Allergy Pills - $40.80
Heartworm test - $32
Advantage Medication - $94.72
GST (tax) $11.13

For a total of $233.65

I need to research this more for next year, as I am sure I can get the Heartworm/Flea control medication cheaper, and I used to give Maxine Benadryl for her allergies, but she was 100lbs in weight, and as Molly is less than 40lbs I don't know if I can give her Benadryl?

Also there is a cat wandering around outside. I have seen it on our property a couple of times now. It spends a lot of time wandering around the raspberry patch. What should I do to encourage it to hang about our place? I don't want to have a cat in the house, but don't mind having one outside. Also as it is freezing cold in winter here what happens to them in winter?

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yikes! I hate those unexpected expenses, but at least you've got it figured out.

For the cat, he'll stick around if you leave a bowl of cat food outside. For winter, he should be fine as long as there is somewhere he can seek shelter. We've had outdoor cats through the winter and they slept in our shed. They came inside when it dropped below about -5C, but they were outside otherwise.

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stitchersanon said...

The cat probably has a home and is a wonderer....after mice no doubt, or song birds.
I have to give our dog piriton...do you have that there? he is a small dog and it is fine. He is allergic to dust mites (!!)

I think you will have to put Molly in another room with her bed and just put up with her howling for a few nights, like a puppy. Dogs are pack animals and she wants company, but you have to be opack leader adn be boss.

As for toiletting in the night, if she has been in a kennel in a run then she has has access to a loo all night and just needs training, like a puppy. It isn't that she cant, it is just that she has not needed to go through the night and may not have been trained before if she was used for breeding.
All of this takes time...it is like having a baby...cept you cant get babysitters lol
You dont know her past and you may be the first nice people she has come across...so be pack leader and train, with kindness but firmness. I use clicker training and it is brilliant..very easy.
Good luck

Niki said...

Is there a children's benadryl? Try that on Molly.

Don't have a clue about cats, sorry.
Have a lovely day
Niki

Clippy Mat said...

just don't let the outdoor cat in the house or BANG up goes your vet bills a bit more.
we just got a dog and the vet wants $600 plus for teeth cleaning!!

fingers crossed molly breaks her through the night habit.
:-)

The Good Life in Virginia said...

ack...
yes, some of the meds are available on-line. i see commercials here in the u.s. for them all the time and touting that why pay x-amount when you can get the same things for x-amount.

our little kit goes in next month for spaying and lasering her front claws...bill will be $250.00. as much as i like her she is a very defiant and stubborn one. stands right in your face and defies you. never have had a cat like that ^..^
she is fierce ^..^

have a wonderful day.
hugs

Rudee said...

Vet bills are atrocious no matter where you live!

The dosing of benadryl is about 1 to 2 mg per pound every 8 hours for dogs and cats. You could low dose this and give a 25mg caplet every 8 hours to see if it's enough to curb the symptoms without making the dog too drowsy. Give here 50mg at bedtime and see if she sleeps through the night. If she doesn't, you can take it and see if you do!

Patty said...

Start sitting a little food out, the cat will soon be hanging around. Our daughter has a small little house, looks like a dogs house, but smaller and has a small round opening for the cat to get in and out of. Pine chips to sleep on. The house also has a removable roof, (very heavy) that can be removed to clean the house good now and then. In fact, about all five of her outdoor cats sleep in the box, their body heat helps in the winter. In the summer, they just lay around any place. And if it is raining, they leave their garage door up just far enough for the cats to get in out of the rain.

Our dog use to lick and chew their feet, especially right after the yard was mowed. We had to give her something for her allergies, not sure what it was. Get the children's dosage of Benadryl and give to Molly. Probably the liquid form would work best. Yes vets are as expensive as a doctor for humans.

Paula said...

We used to have "stray" cats stay with us when I was young. My dad built an insulated "dog" house for them and then put in a low watt light bulb that he turned on when it was really cold to keep the chill off of them. He did place this "dog" house inside a shed so they would have a bit more shelter. They lived there for years, keeping the mice at bay.
We did give them food and water.
Hope this helps.

Paula

Shawnee said...

Before I read your post I was wondering if my dog, Maddie, has allergies! Now that I've read your blog, I think I'll look into it.
Oh and thanks for visiting my blog. Good luck on the contest!

Anonymous said...

I know that Advantasge (and Revolution) are expensive - but they ARE worth it in the long run. I have 3 cats. I used to have to give each one a month, so you can see how it would add up quickly. I now only have one indoor/outdoor cat, and she gets Advantage once a month (every 6-8 weeks in the winter) and I share one caplet between the two indoors ones. I used to have an all-white cat, and you could see the flea-dirt on her, despite a collar, but after I started her on Revolution (now I use Advantage) she didn't have one more flea for the rest of her life.

I, too, came originally from England, lived in Ont. for 12 years, and am now in N.S. - and LOVE it here!
Elizabeth

Scrappy quilter said...

For the cat, he'll also stick around if you have mice in the woodpile. If you leave some food out he'll be there for sure.

Is Molly allergic to her food? Our dog was. Once we changed the food she was fine. Vet bills are expensive here too!!

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