diff --git a/src/agent/loop_.rs b/src/agent/loop_.rs
index bce5ce0..e21e760 100644
--- a/src/agent/loop_.rs
+++ b/src/agent/loop_.rs
@@ -15,6 +15,9 @@ use std::sync::{Arc, LazyLock};
 use std::time::Instant;
 use uuid::Uuid;
 
+/// Minimum characters per chunk when relaying LLM text to a streaming draft.
+const STREAM_CHUNK_MIN_CHARS: usize = 80;
+
 /// Default maximum agentic tool-use iterations per user message to prevent runaway loops.
 /// Used as a safe fallback when `max_tool_iterations` is unset or configured as zero.
 const DEFAULT_MAX_TOOL_ITERATIONS: usize = 10;
@@ -944,11 +947,12 @@ pub(crate) async fn run_tool_call_loop(
             // If a streaming sender is provided, relay the text in small chunks
             // so the channel can progressively update the draft message.
             if let Some(ref tx) = on_delta {
-                // Split on whitespace boundaries, accumulating ~80-char chunks.
+                // Split on whitespace boundaries, accumulating chunks of at least
+                // STREAM_CHUNK_MIN_CHARS characters for progressive draft updates.
                 let mut chunk = String::new();
                 for word in display_text.split_inclusive(char::is_whitespace) {
                     chunk.push_str(word);
-                    if chunk.len() >= 80 {
+                    if chunk.len() >= STREAM_CHUNK_MIN_CHARS {
                         if tx.send(std::mem::take(&mut chunk)).await.is_err() {
                             break; // receiver dropped
                         }
diff --git a/src/channels/telegram.rs b/src/channels/telegram.rs
index 6e67b3b..82430a8 100644
--- a/src/channels/telegram.rs
+++ b/src/channels/telegram.rs
@@ -1264,11 +1264,12 @@ impl Channel for TelegramChannel {
         message_id: &str,
         text: &str,
     ) -> anyhow::Result<()> {
+        let (chat_id, _) = Self::parse_reply_target(recipient);
+
         // Rate-limit edits per chat
         {
-            let (chat_id_for_limit, _) = Self::parse_reply_target(recipient);
             let last_edits = self.last_draft_edit.lock();
-            if let Some(last_time) = last_edits.get(&chat_id_for_limit) {
+            if let Some(last_time) = last_edits.get(&chat_id) {
                 let elapsed = u64::try_from(last_time.elapsed().as_millis()).unwrap_or(u64::MAX);
                 if elapsed < self.draft_update_interval_ms {
                     return Ok(());
@@ -1276,8 +1277,6 @@ impl Channel for TelegramChannel {
             }
         }
 
-        let (chat_id, _) = Self::parse_reply_target(recipient);
-
         // Truncate to Telegram limit for mid-stream edits (UTF-8 safe)
         let display_text = if text.len() > TELEGRAM_MAX_MESSAGE_LENGTH {
             let mut end = 0;
@@ -1333,8 +1332,12 @@ impl Channel for TelegramChannel {
         message_id: &str,
         text: &str,
     ) -> anyhow::Result<()> {
+        let text = &strip_tool_call_tags(text);
         let (chat_id, thread_id) = Self::parse_reply_target(recipient);
 
+        // Clean up rate-limit tracking for this chat
+        self.last_draft_edit.lock().remove(&chat_id);
+
         // If text exceeds limit, delete draft and send as chunked messages
         if text.len() > TELEGRAM_MAX_MESSAGE_LENGTH {
             let msg_id = match message_id.parse::<i64>() {
@@ -1375,7 +1378,7 @@ impl Channel for TelegramChannel {
         };
 
         // Try editing with Markdown formatting
-        let mut body = serde_json::json!({
+        let body = serde_json::json!({
             "chat_id": chat_id,
             "message_id": msg_id,
             "text": text,
@@ -1394,12 +1397,16 @@ impl Channel for TelegramChannel {
         }
 
         // Markdown failed — retry without parse_mode
-        body.as_object_mut().unwrap().remove("parse_mode");
+        let plain_body = serde_json::json!({
+            "chat_id": chat_id,
+            "message_id": msg_id,
+            "text": text,
+        });
 
         let resp = self
             .client
             .post(self.api_url("editMessageText"))
-            .json(&body)
+            .json(&plain_body)
             .send()
             .await?;