Andreas and Nicky.

This is Ludde, my parents dog. He’s a Västgötaspets or as the breed is called in English; Swedish Vallhund. The Swedish Vallhund is a very old breed also known as the “Viking dog” since it was used as a herding dog as early as during the age of the Vikings.

I don’t want to take out anything in advance since Sarah’s health has been a roller coaster ride for the past two weeks but there’s definitely a big improvement. She’s been eating by herself for two days now and she seems healthy. If it wasn’t for her yellow skin tone (a symptom of liver failure) I wouldn’t even notice she’s not 100% well yet. She has stopped hiding under the bath tub, she wants to sleep next to me again, she’s more social in general. Actually I think she’s even a bit more social than she was before she got ill. She definitely “talks” more with me. She’s meowing when she sit in my lap, meowing when I call her name, meowing when I pat her. Perhaps she’s been feeling lonely during her sickness. Cats who are sick wants to be alone but perhaps even though she didn’t want to be near me she missed me.

Oh how hard this has been. There’s been so many ups and downs. Times when she looked so miserable and I was convinced she would die. Then there was that time when she ate a little and I got my hopes up so much. Only for her to stop eating again. The veterinary telling me that it would be best to put her to sleep. Then finding information online about cats who had the same problems as Sarah and survived. Up and down and up and down. From hope to despair and back again.

I’m glad I didn’t listen to the veterinarian. I decided to give her a chance. Some would say that you shouldn’t force feed a cat for nearly two weeks. That I should have let her go after just one week. But I read about someone who had a cat with the same illness as Sarah and force fed her cat for six weeks and the cat fully recovered. You don’t give up on a human being if there’s a chance, do you? Definitely not after just one week.

I said I don’t want to take out anything in advance but truth to be told I already have. When I see such a positive change, how can I not get my hopes up? The important thing was for her to start eating again. Not eating was what caused the liver failure and eating is what will cure it.

It’s not just her mood and energy I see a difference in. There’s a definite difference in her appearance. Just look at these. She looks so good now compared to how miserable she looked last week. See the difference in her eyes? How different her ears are positioned?

Sarah now.

Sarah nine days ago.