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Monday, October 1, 2012

I Witnessed a Miracle

I want to share with all of you a miracle that took place this weekend.  
For the past week, my beautiful cat Sara, has been very sick.  
She is only five years old and last week we noticed that she wasn't eating as much.  

No other real symptoms, except over the past year on a few occasions she had begun urinating outside of the litter box.  We had brought her to the vet for the urination issue immediately when it happened and there was nothing out of the ordinary in her tests.  About a month ago, they did put her on some medication that would calm her bladder down and that seemed to work.  They had run blood work then that was completely normal.  Then about a week ago we noticed she wasn't running to be fed.  Then the next day (a week ago Saturday) she just wasn't finishing her food.  We brought her immediately to the vet who ran some tests and could find nothing out of the ordinary.  The vet got her to eat some wet food and so we thought perhaps she had just gotten bored with her regular dry food.  The next day I tried to give her the wet food and she backed away from it like it was the worst thing she had ever seen.  I tried to get her to eat, but she wouldn't.  Sunday night I got her to eat some treats, but she ended up throwing those up the next morning.  I brought her back to the vet on Monday morning and they ran the blood work again.  Tuesday morning I called at 8am when they opened and they told me she had acute kidney failure.  We were in shock.  I brought her immediately in and they started IV fluids and all of the treatment.  Over this past week she wasn't really showing signs of great improvement.   There was a little improvement on Thursday, but by Friday she was not doing as well again.  On Friday we agreed to put in a feeding tube.  The vet offered to take her home with her for the weekend (as our vet is not a 24 hour facility) that way she could monitor her IV and feed her through the tube.  On Saturday the vet called me and said that Sara wasn't progressing the way that she had hoped.  We went to church and lit two candles for Sara and prayed.  I told God that I was leaving this in His hands.  I begged Him not to let my children have to go through this.  I begged Him not to let Sara go through this.
I told Him in silence that I needed His strength to get through this.

 On Saturday night at 9pm, the vet called me and told me that things had taken a turn for the worse and that Sara hadn't urinated in over 8 hours and the end was near.  She said there was a slim possibility that maybe she had a urethral tear and she could do an x-ray while inserting a catheter and doing a dye test.  The test came back that there was no tear, just total kidney failure.  My husband, our kids and I said our final goodbyes.   It was horrible.  The vet gave us our options.  I wanted to take Sara so that she could die at home.  I could NOT agree to euthanize her...I just couldn't.  She did not appear to be in any pain, just extremely weak.  My husband feared that if we took Sara home she may not pass as peacefully as I would hope, and that would not be good for any of us to experience.  Our amazing vet again agreed to take Sara home so that she could be with her and monitor her and let her die with dignity and in peace.  We agreed that she would call us in the morning either way.  We didn't sleep at all.  We were all completely devastated.  I have experienced death before, but there was something so wrong about this.  So wrong that this sweet, innocent cat went from being completely healthy to this in less than one week.  My son asked the vet at least ten times that night if there was any chance of a miracle.  She said she didn't think so.  
The depth of the pain I was feeling is indescribable. 

At 10:15am on Sunday morning I texted the vet, no longer being able to wait to hear.  She texted me back saying Sara seems to be feeling fine and that she was watching the birds.  That text only made me cry more.  My poor sweet Sara...I now feared that it could take longer than we had thought and how were we going to get through this.  How long could we wait for the inevitable?  I text back..."any urine?"

A few minutes later the vet called me, and she was crying.  My heart dropped.  I wasn't sure I was hearing the vet correctly when she told me that Sara had urinated through four towels and that she was meowing.  The vet was clearly shaken up as well and said she needed time to process what had happened.  I asked, "are you saying there was a miracle?"  She answered, "yes".  My son was sitting there assuming the worst and he was at a loss as well when I told him.  The only logical explanation that the vet could come up with was that there must have been an obstruction somewhere and the test I had insisted she perform the night before must have inadvertently gotten rid of the obstruction.  She said Sara appeared to be hungry and that she was going to take her back to the clinic and run some tests.

We went to see Sara this afternoon, and the vet agrees that this was God's work.  
We spent some time with Sara who for the first time in a week was walking around, meowing and rubbing up against us like her old self.  Her blood work is improving and they are going to be closely monitoring her and hopefully she will be home in a few days.  She isn't eating on her own yet, but she is acting hungry and is tolerating the liquid diet significantly better. It's hard for me to completely relax, but I truly believe (as does the vet) that she is on her way to a full recovery.
Ironically, today is exactly five years to the day from when we brought Sara home.

We are all so ready to ignore our inner voice.  Mine was screaming at me so I had no choice but to listen.  I refused to let the option of euthanizing Sara even be discussed at any length. Something inside me told me not to give in and I didn't.  I wanted it to be God's decision when to take Sara, not mine.  She was not in any pain and she was not suffering.

Never underestimate the power of prayer.

I have never experienced a miracle before.  
I am in awe of God and His hand in this.  
This experience has changed me forever.
  
-Judy
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16 comments:

Jody Tolsma said...

Praise the Lord! He truly is in control of all things. He could have chosen to take Sara but in His goodness He did not! I'm happy for you and your family!

Anonymous said...

Your post made me cry! I love animals! God does as well!

Shari @ turnstylevogue.com said...

So happy for you. It is so hard to watch a pet suffer. Truly a miracle.

Shirley@Housepitality Designs said...

I believe in miracles....and she is a miracle...so happy for you!

Unknown said...

I am so very pleased that Sara is much better. It is truly horrendous to watch a loved pet suffering. Fingers crossed she continues to improve. Sue x

Samantha from Colonial Curve Cottage said...

Your Sara looks exactly like our Murmel who we lost last December after 17 1/2 years of lovin! We were able to allow him to drift off to forever in our home, all of us near him. I'm so happy for you that you'll have a chance to live toward the large amount of time we had with our sweetie. It's so hard when they go, but so worth loving them. I'd rather have them and feel the pain of their loss, than never know the sounds and snuggles of a cat. God loves his creations, each and every one. Blessings, and thanks for sharing your miracle.

Laura said...

I definitely teared up while reading this. I had a dog pass from renal failure. Your cat is a true miracle. Hope she continues to improve.

Traci said...

How awesome for your family!!! So glad she's on the road to recovery.

Cindy said...

As I was reading your post, I was reminded of a couple of things. One, recently I've been hearing on the news that there is a cat treat that is made in China that has been suspected of leading to kidney failure in over a hundred cases in North America. When I got to the end and read that she was on her way to recovery, I was reminded of the time that our little poodle was dyeing and we prayed diligently for him and he was healed. God does heal our animals. Praise God for the miracles that He does for us. And I praise God for your little miracle walking around your house tonight!
Hugs, Cindy

Cynthia said...

i am so happy for you. God wored his magic.

Cynthia

Thoughts for the day said...

What a wonderful story. Now I hope for better days ahead for all of you.

SheilaG @ Plum Doodles said...

That's an awesome story! God is indeed in the miracle working business.

Debra@CommonGround said...

This just brings tears to my eyes. a miracle for sure!!

Mrs. Handyverger said...

Judy, I'm so very glad that you got your miracle and little Sarah will be coming home to you. We lost our Pippin, at the age of 6, to acute kidney failure in January - it was so difficult. You may be dealing with some chronic issues in Sarah after this, but it's my understanding they're manageable - I'm so happy your girl's coming home! :)

Julia@Cuckoo4Design said...

Hi Judy,
you just came over to my blog and left me such a nice comment, thanks!
I just have to comment on this story. I have 4 senior cats and I love them dearly!
I know your pain. My one cat had a blocked urinary tract (almost died) and now has kidney disease. He will probably die of kidney failure.
I'm so glad that your beautiful furry baby is doing better.
And your vet appears to be very compassionate!
Great story and outcome! Good luck!

Chiquis Jewell said...

What an amazing story to share so thank you so much for sharing it!
I am glad that Sara is doing good :)

God bless you and your family, I really enjoy your work!!

C.J.

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