Please read my comments below before you contact me, because it
may not be necessary for you to do so, which could save us both some
time.
The Name Issue
I'm afraid this might embarrass some of you, which is
not my intention, but I really feel it's time I clarified this.
My name is Helen, not Tanya.
Tanya was my first CKD cat, in whose honour
and memory the site was named. I do answer the many e-mails I receive
which are addressed to Tanya, but it is kind of strange masquerading as
a blue Persian cat.
When to Contact Me
Please do not hesitate to contact me if:
I've got anything wrong (I've tried my best, but I'm not a vet).
you would like
to say thank you. I love getting thank yous (even ones
addressed to Tanya) — it makes all the work I put into this site worthwhile.
Words are just fine, I don't normally accept financial donations. If you would like
to thank me in some other way, please read
this.
there is
something you think I should be including on the site, such as new
research. Please do check the site first to see if I already cover it. You
can search here.
any of the links are broken. I know many of them are broken following the site review, so I'm slowly
working my way through them.
Ongoing Support
Unfortunately I am not in a position to offer
ongoing assistance. I'm afraid I'm atrociously bad at answering e-mails
promptly — my priority is to maintain this site and run
Tanya's CKD Support Group.
Please feel
free to join the group if you need ongoing help, or just want to talk to
others who understand — it can give you a faster response than I usually
offer (you will be very lucky to hear back from me within a week, and I
often take a month or more), and can provide ongoing
support.
Sometimes people give me a telephone number and ask me to call them. I
regret that I am unable to do this, I can't afford the time or the cost of
what are usually international phone calls, and since I am not a vet, I
cannot diagnose or treat your cat. I don't give out my own phone
number for privacy reasons and because I do need to sleep occasionally.
Looking for a UK Vet Who Permits Sub-Qs?
if
you are looking for a UK vet who
might be able to work with you and allow you to give your cat sub-Qs if
appropriate, please join
Tanya's CKD Support Group,
which I run. I am not always able to respond promptly to e-mails, so this
is the quickest way of finding a vet.
In your first post, please state
where you are located (your nearest large town or county) and that you are
looking for a vet. There are a
number of British members who may be able to give you a personal
recommendation.
If I am aware of vet in your area, I or one of the group
moderators will also contact you privately with details.
If You Think The Food Data Tables Are
Wrong
Ah yes, the food data tables. I sometimes here from people who tell
me something in the tables is wrong (and some of these people are really quite rude). So far, only
three times in 18 months have my correspondents been correct. The others
simply misunderstood the basis
of the tables, but it takes up a lot of my time answering these e-mails
because I have to go and re-check my data and then write an e-mail
explaining how I calculated my figures.
So if you think you have found a food which is low in phosphorus, or if
you think I've got the wrong data about a food, please be sure
that you understand the basis on which my food data tables are calculated before writing to tell me about it.
My tables are calculated on the basis of dry matter analysis (DMA). The labels on the cans in the USA do
not provide information on a DMA basis. Therefore that
amazing food you've just found which apparently has a
phosphorus level of only 0.17% — I'm afraid that's not likely to be the
case.
In fact, in the USA, under AAFCO guidelines a commercial food cannot be labelled as a complete
adult food
if it contains less than 0.5%
phosphorus on a DMA basis. I know it's very complicated! The
Food Data Tables
page tries to explain all this in an understandable way.
Of course, you might be right! So if you've read how I calculate the data
and you still think I'm wrong, please let me know. I hate it when
information on the site is not accurate!
Any Questions?
If you want to ask me a question, please do
the
following before contacting me:
remember that I am not a vet and I cannot
diagnose or treat your cat.
I'm afraid I am not currently able to add any
stories to the Other People's Losses or Success Stories pages. I am always
happy to read about other people's cats, but I am in the middle of a major
site review, so I am not adding to these pages at this time.
if you use some kind of challenge/response
system (e.g. earthlink, spamarrest), please whitelist my e-mail address
before
you write to me, because I won't take the time to add myself to your
whitelist. I do
answer everyone (except spammers) eventually, so if you use one of these systems and I don't appear to have
responded, chances are that I have responded but refused to whitelist
myself.
I get really, really tired of downright rude people
sending me e-mails effectively saying things like "tell me this" or "give
me this." I know you are stressed, but please remember to use those magic words, please and thank you.
Paragraphs are good too. You're not James Joyce, and it's really hard to read
a lengthy one paragraph e-mail, let alone find the salient points which
require a response. I do answer even rude people eventually, but only
because it's not their cat's fault they are rude.
THE MOST IMPORTANT POINT: if your cat is very sick, or his/her condition
has suddenly worsened, you need to contact a qualified vet immediately.
The internet can never be a substitute for a qualified vet who can
physically examine and treat a sick cat.
Translation
Offers
Thus far I have received offers to translate my
website into French, Spanish, Swedish, Polish, Hungarian, Portuguese, Chinese and Turkish.
Whilst I greatly appreciate these kind offers, I am unfortunately unable
to accept these or any other offers of translation. This is for three
reasons:
It is extremely important to me to know that
any information provided in my name is as accurate as possible. I allowed
my site to be translated into German because I am a qualified translator
from German and thus am able to judge the accuracy of the translation. I
am not able to do this for any other languages, and I therefore cannot
permit any other translations.
This site is extraordinarily comprehensive. The English
version of the site is now 2000 pages
long. This would be a big task even for a professional translator, let
alone for an unpaid volunteer.
I usually update this site weekly, sometimes daily. This entails me remembering to
send amendments to my German translator, waiting for her response,
then checking her amendments are accurate and adding them to the site.
This doubles my workload, and having to do this for even more languages
would only add further to my workload and stress levels.
Please do not consider translating my site without my
knowledge or permission. It is a breach of my copyright to do so. This
site is a labour of love for me, a work which I freely make available in
two languages to people in need of help. Unauthorised translations,
however well-meaning, whether for profit or otherwise, are essentially
theft.
****
Thank you for visiting, and I wish you all the success
in the world in helping your cat. .
Helen
Please click on the black cat to send me an
e-mail.
TREATING YOUR CAT WITHOUT VETERINARY ADVICE CAN BE
EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
I have
tried very hard to ensure that the information provided in this website is
accurate, but I am NOT a vet, just an ordinary person who has lived
through CKD with three cats. This website is for educational purposes
only, and is not intended to be used to diagnose or treat any cat. Before
trying any of the treatments described herein, you MUST consult a
qualified veterinarian and obtain professional advice on the correct
regimen for your cat and his or her particular requirements; and you
should only use any treatments described here with the full knowledge and
approval of your vet. No responsibility can be accepted.
If your cat
appears to be in pain or distress, do not waste time on the internet,
contact your vet immediately.
This site was
created using Microsoft software, and therefore it is best viewed in
Internet Explorer. I know it doesn't always display too well in other
browsers, but I'm not an IT expert so I'm afraid I don't know how to
change that. I would love it to display perfectly everywhere, but my focus
is on making the information available. When I get time, I'll try to
improve how it displays in other browsers.
This site is a labour of love, from which I do not make
a penny. Please do not steal from me by taking credit for my work.
If you wish to
link to this site, please feel free to do so. Please make it clear that
this is a link and not your own work. I would appreciate being informed of
your link.
