When I received the morning call from his transplant surgeon, Dr. Aronson, this morning, he was less than 24 hours out of his 3rd life saving procedure. She said when she called up to the hospital last night he was already up and eating as well as grooming himself. That he looked like a different cat as far as demeanor and affect.
This morning when she laid eyes on him, she said she was amazed; that his progress was remarkable, which means a lot coming from her.
Shortly after 10am, she called back with his labs. His creatnine was 1. ONE. Normal. He basically has normal kidney function again. During our research of the transplantation process, we learned that sometimes it can take a transplanted kidney up to 2-3 days to start fully functioning. This would have been devastating for Tyrion. During the transplant, his dialysis catheter was removed and there was no longer a way to remove waste from his blood. Just this fact alone seems like an amazing feat for that little kitty!
We received some photos and a video of him this evening and he is eating with vigor (spoiled and being hand fed, but regardless, he was eating). He looked bright!
Tyrion may be ready for his homecoming on Wednesday if he continues to progress. We are very nervous about bringing him home. My friend Lisa likened it to handling a newborn on their first day home and I have a feeling she is spot on. I'm sure we will be over-aware of every little thing he does and analyzing it to death. It's been four weeks since this journey began...thank goodness Ryan convinced me something was wrong, but to think that we thought that *maybe* he had an eye infection and was dehydrated. Our armchair diagnosis was a little off.
This is our beloved Dr. Cleroux (left). I wish I knew how many hours we've spent talking on the phone with her over the last month. She and her student Wanxin had spent a lot of time with Tyrion both before and after the surgery. In fact, Dr. Cleroux said the ICU was going to start making them mind the visiting hours. He is well loved, that is for sure.
And last, but certainly not least...
the reason Tyrion is feeling great today.
Meet Phish. Or shall I say Jaime Lannister.
While Jaime is not a typical kitty cat name, we felt it was the only choice.
If you are a Game of Thrones fan (we obviously are!), you know that's where we got the name Tyrion. Tyrion Lannister has been our favorite character since we began watching 3 years go. Just like the show/book, Tyrion is a little person, just as he is a little cat.
The reason we chose Jaime Lannister is because he is Tyrion's brother. Not only is he his brother, but he saved him from an almost certain death, just as Phish/now Jaime, saved our little Tyrion. Ironically enough, on the show, Jaime loses a body part (his hand) in battle. Similarly, our Jaime lost his kidney. They have a very unique connection in the story, and now real life.
So that's our story for today! We hope that the days continue to pass drama/complication free. The sooner we can get these two home, the better!
Thank you to all of our family, friends and even complete strangers for continued support and prayers! Tyrion isn't going to let us down!
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