The Story of TingTu
Spoken communication sometimes becomes boring and then important details are missed. So, for all who are interested in the outcome of TingTu’s near death experience, here it is!
As some of you know, when I took TingTu, my Siamese kitten, for a routine neutering, he died on the operating table. His heart stopped beating and he stopped breathing when the anesthesia was turned off. In prolonged efforts to revive TingTu via CPR, it appeared his little lungs might have been damaged as well, evidenced by blood coming from his nostrils.
The veterinarian and his assistant kept an oxygen cone over TingTu’s face for hours, and had delivered some IV liquids and two steroid shots but by the time I came to pick him up, he had still not recovered any movement or any signs of consciousness. He was breathing so rapidly and shallowly it seemed certain he would die soon. I was advised that my best option was to have him euthanized, partly because he might have brain damage even if he did recover consciousness.
Though I also felt he wouldn’t be with me much longer, I decided to take his little, limp body home, wrapped in towels, and see if I could help him make his transition in a warm home rather than on a cold operating table. It did occur to me that he had only lost one or two of his legendary nine lives and that maybe he would indeed return to life.
At home, he occasionally seemed to be trying to lift his head but it always drifted backward, followed by terrible yowls and straightened limbs, as if he had just been thrown from a balcony. His eyes were rolled back and his head was shaking and he was clearly unconscious. These seizure-type episodes happened with some regularity, maybe once every 20 minutes or so. I could only watch helplessly and keep him covered with towels.
(In retrospect, I now believe that these horrifying seizures were symptoms of vertigo. Firstly, because I myself have had extreme vertigo, in which I felt I was falling in spirals, out of control, just that awful feeling of falling in circles endlessly. It would make sense that if a cat had such a feeling he would put his head back and stick out his limbs to right himself. And secondly, one of the anesthetics used, Ketamine, does affect humans with vertigo, so why not an animal?)
My son owns a device known in Russia as “Diadens” which delivers electric shocks to nerves and muscles at varying intervals and frequencies. He brought it over and used it on TingTu, moistening his fur to be sure the current reached his body. He placed the Diadens on his neck, head, and back for about five or ten minutes in each area. Though TingTu was still unconscious, he visibly relaxed following this treatment, and did not have another seizure for over an hour and a half. His breathing also slowed down and relatively became more regular.
I got out my essential oils books and discovered that the scent of Lavender essential oil can be used under an animal’s nose to help it to calm down. When TingTu began to put his head back, I held a Q-tip saturated with Lavender oil near his nose and this considerably shortened the yowling periods. In addition, I saturated another Q-tip with oil of Peppermint, which helps to alleviate dizziness, as well as opening up the lungs. I also had a Young Living blend called “White Angelica” which contained a few of the oils recommended for emotional, physical and psychological trauma, such as Melissa, Sandalwood, Geranium, Myrrh, Hyssop and Bergamot. I noticed that TingTu, still unconscious and unable to move his body, would put his nose as close to the Q-tips as he could when he put his head down.
A few times I attempted to put drops of water in his mouth but he did not seem able to swallow, though after several hours, he did swallow a few drops.
On Friday, the morning following the operation, the veterinarian office called to see if TingTu was still alive. Again, I was urged to bring him in to be euthanized. I was torn between not wanting him to suffer in the long run, and not wanting him to suffer the immediate trauma of another long car ride to the office, only to be put to sleep! So, I thanked them and continued to give him water and whiffs of essential oils. He was not “screaming” very often, maybe once every three hours or so. But his body was stiff like a corpse. I changed his towels and turned him over a few times, and his entire body moved as one. The only sign of life was his breathing and his occasional head movements. His eyes were still closed. Despite the dire symptoms, I continued to drip water through the side of his mouth and he surprised me by swallowing more and more often.
My son came over on Friday night and again treated TingTu with the Diadens. He did not seem to mind the treatment, though still seemed unconscious. My son did not have much hope for the cat. He tuned the Diadens to top frequency, theorizing that the current had to pass through his fur. When he left that night, I made mental plans where I would bury TingTu if he died during the night.
On Saturday morning, I woke up from sleeping next to him on the floor to see he was holding his head up and looking at me with his blue crossed-eyes opened! I juiced some wheat grass and mixed it with his water. He took quite a bit of liquid that morning through the dropper, though he could not lap it, and then he attempted to pull himself up. His front legs were functioning but his entire hind end was immobilized. This caused him to meow frantically and I calmed him down with more Lavender. This worked, by the way, almost instantly!
I picked him up with the towels around him and held him. It was then that I noticed that when I touched him with my hands, his body began to vibrate rhythmically, exactly as if I was touching him with the Diadens! If I touched his hind end or rear paws, his hind end vibrated. If I touched his head or upper body, his upper body vibrated. He clearly relaxed and enjoyed this experience. I was amazed but continued to hold my hands on him in different areas, and each time, I could feel and see his muscles tense, shake, and relax, over and over!
A friend brought him some salmon broth, which TingTu seemed to enjoy. Mind you, he had not eaten since Wednesday afternoon, and he did not seem at all interested in food, chewing, or even lapping liquids yet.
Also, upon recommendation from an essential oil practitioner, I placed a scant drop of Frankincense on my fingers and touched them just inside TingTu’s ears. This, I was told, would help his brain to retain oxygen. He certainly smelled wonderful!
By Saturday evening, TingTu began purring when I held him. I was ecstatic!
On Sunday, I continued with the oils, the diluted wheat grass water, and the salmon broth. And, for what it is worth, for three days I had been continually chanting a Buddhist chant for lungs and limbs, said to invoke sunlight inside the body, “Om Suryaya, Namaha.”
He tried to walk but his hind end just flopped sideways, causing him to fall down over and over. I held him a lot, to keep him calm, using the oils, the chanting, and my hands, seemingly miraculously, continued to cause his body to vibrate wherever I placed them!
He was beginning to lap water and broth from a bowl held near his mouth, though he occasionally blew bubbles into the liquid with his nose.
On Sunday night I propped his hind end so he could sit in front of his bowl. He ate ravenously on his own. I had mixed some Cod Liver Oil in his dry cat food.
After he ate, I put him in his litter box but he did not seem to be ready for that. He could lie normally, holding his head up, and purring. He seemed very happy after eating, and was very interested in the small lamp near him, peacefully watching it and blinking.
On Monday, he continued to try to walk, but his hind legs did not support him well. He would shake his head and fall over. These were, to me, clear signs of dizziness. In humans, you can tell someone is dizzy because their “hind legs” do not walk straight. TingTu walked as if he was on a ship in rough seas! His front legs were fine, his rear legs were not.
By Tuesday, TingTu began to use the litter box and also, finally had a bowel movement. This had concerned me because I knew he needed to get the poison from the anesthetics out of his body, and the longer he retained feces, it would be reabsorbed into his system. I was hoping the Cod Liver Oil would help with this. His feces were very dry and had a bluish caste to them.
For several more days, TingTu seemed to have tunnel vision, also an effect of Ketamine-type drugs. He repeatedly wanted to go into the small space between the refrigerator and the wall, which was impossible. Also, he could not see anything unless it was about three feet directly in front of him. I dangled his toys in various places to see where his vision was strongest, and it was always about three or four feet in front, not on either side or closer to his eyes. (He still smells around for his food and does not seem able to see close up.)
He began to get his balance back (and yes, I did continue the peppermint, as a remedy for dizziness, though careful to not get it on his nose), and he started to chase his sister and play without bumping into furniture or walls much.
About two weeks after the operation, TingTu was functioning very well. It has now been nearly a month and he is running and playing, and seemingly grateful to be alive! His peripheral vision continues to improve, he grooms himself very well, and he grooms his sister well also! His appetite is normal, he meows, purrs, pounces, loves to be petted, and seems just fine!
I continue to make big bowls of wheat grass water, which TingTu still loves (and his sister also laps it up). Oddly, both cats also seem to love munching on the sprouted wheat berries I use to grow the wheat grass! Do they think the wheat berries are bugs?
I wrote this in hopes that it might help some other creature, or person, when all else has failed!
Om Suryaya Namaha!
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