The Bub in the Belly

This weekend, my company held its annual firm-wide retreat in Hong Kong. I opted not to go this year. When we are in Hong Kong, Richard and I spend most of the time shopping. I didn't want to be dragging poor Ryan all over the malls while we checked in on our favourite labels and I think Ryan is not ready for Disneyland yet, so we all stayed home this time.

I remember there was one time Richard and I went on a company retreat to Shanghai. One of our cats, Snowy, had a fit at the boarders and after a night at the vet, she passed away. I don't know if it would have made a difference if we had been there to tide her through the night, but I wish I had been there nevertheless.

Yesterday, our cat Tiger was hospitalised. Tiger had been looking quite poorly and refusing food and peeing very frequently so I asked Richard to take him to the vet while I took Ryan for Playclub. After class, Richard told me that the vet had diagnosed Tiger with chronic renal failure - essentially kidney failure.  According to the vet, it happens to most cats when they get old. The vet said that average life expectancy for a cat is normally about 14 years. It was then that I realised that Tiger is coming to 12 years now. 12 years old! I almost can't believe it. We always call him "Tiger Boy". Guess he's not really a boy anymore.

The vet said that his protein levels are very high, he is quite dehydrated and his bladder was full - all symptoms of kidney failure. The vet was actually quite surprised that Tiger still seems quite strong and active because his readings indicate otherwise. They will keep him until Monday and try to adjust his levels and hydrate him.  The vet said that, with proper management, it is possible for Tiger to continue enjoying a good life. The important thing now is to get him over this hump in the road. The vet seemed quite confident so we are (cautiously) optimistic.

So, I'm very glad that I did not go on the retreat this year.

This morning, we skipped swimming (again) and went to Casa Verde at the Botanic Gardens for brunch, after which we took a short stroll through the gardens. It was right in the middle of the day (noon) so it was surprising that the weather was quite cool, perhaps the yearly haze helped.

Strolling through the Botanic Gardens

There was Shichida class in the afternoon and, after Ryan's nap, we went over to Ee Fann's and Shann's house for dinner. Kenny, Belinda and Matthias and Chris, Alicia and Brayden were there too.

Shann had prepared a feast fit for a king - smoked salmon rolls, roasted chicken, beef stew and spaghetti carbonara! Whew! Sorry I don't have photos of the spread - we were more interested in getting all that yummy food into our tummies! Suffice to say that, it was so good that we made a "reservation" at Shann's place for a Christmas meal! Hahaha!

After dinner, as usual, we lounged around with some ice-cream and chatted while the kids entertained themselves.

Matthias and Ryan posing for me

On the way home from Shann's place, Richard told me that the vet had called during dinner. The vet told him that Tiger's protein levels aren't coming down so it is unlikely that he can be discharged tomorrow. We are very worried now so we are going to go to the vet in the morning and get a better understanding of what's happening.