Scout's End of Year Checkup

Scout's last checkup of the year was on Monday. He was his usual hungry grumpy self when we took him in. Dr. E was pretty excited that his weight was up to 14 pounds, which kind of surprised us because he's been kind of picky with his food the last few weeks. We told her this, as well as that he's started waking us up during the night to get food and water and that his "meow" has kind of lost it's power. Not that he's ever had a strong call, but now it's kind of like he has laryngitis. Dr. E said that maybe he had something stuck in the back of his throat, but she couldn't tell for sure unless they put him under anesthesia and did an oral exam. We said ok and left him there for them to check him out further. About three and a half hours later we got a call that he was ready to be picked up. Here is his discharge summary:

Scout is back today for recheck examination and refill of his medications. You report that he has been doing well at home since his last visit but his appetite seems pickier and you have noticed a change in his voice since the last visit. You also report that he is getting you up during the night for fresh food and water. On physical examination his weight is increased at 14.0 pounds today. The remainder of his physical examination was unremarkable. His complete blood count was fine. His chemistry profile had persistent elevations in his BUN and creatinine (38 and 2.8 respectively) but they are stable when compared to his previous visits. Given the change in his voice we also elected to perform a sedated oral examination. He does have a small chip missing from his left lower molar and some mild gingivitis but no other abnormalities were detected. I would recommend a dental cleaning and potential extraction of his tooth if necessary based on x-rays. This can be arranged at your local veterinarian or a veterinary dentist if you prefer. Let's plan on seeing him back in three months for his next scheduled checkup. If you have any questions or concerns in the interm, plese do not hesitate to call.

On the way home, Scout let us know how irritated he was with us for leaving him there and letting them do what they did to him. He was also pretty hungry, since it was now after noon, and he hadn't eaten since 10pm the night before. We got him home and gave him some turkey baby food for being a good kitty and passing all his tests. He spent the rest of the afternoon napping on top of me on the sofa.