Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us
Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network
Home
Discussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue
CatKB.com
Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map

Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / February 2008

Tip: Looking for answers? Try searching our database.

Very poorly cat - advice needed please

Thread view: 
Enable EMail Alerts  Start New Thread
Thread rating: 
BLOGGZPOT - 21 Feb 2008 23:34 GMT
Hi

I've found this NG in the hope someone has come across this problem
and may be able to help.

Before I start I have to explain that the cat in question has had
medical treatment, including an hour in an oxygen tent and an
overnight stay in the vet clinic. she is now on steriod treament, but
the vet does not know what is wrong with her and has basically sent
her home to 'see what happens"

Tiddles is approx 2 years old and she adopted my SO on a building site
and came home with him. Unfortunaely it has just started to manifest
that she has 'passengers' and is around halfway through a pregnancy.
On tuesday I saw her playing with something then eating it - she
catches at least one mouse a day and eats the lot - even the guts-
everything. she did'nt come in for supper and SO found her making
'funny noises' in the Garage. I looked at her and her face was swollen
and she had brownish frothy mucous and very pale gums. She was also
hypothermic -her temperature was 36 and it should be around 38. Wed.
morning she was no better and I thought she may have been poisoned as
we are still finding rat poison in some of the outbuildings we
inherited ( we live in a rural property). The vet examined her and
said she did not have signs of rat poising as the warfarin would make
her bleed from the gums and eyes and she had no symptoms. He agreed
she was hypothermic and they kept her in the clinic overnight, with 60
minutes oxygen therapy and intravenous fluids. she perked up this
morning and this was when I was advised to bring her home - it was
that or do further tests, but he seemed to think it was best just to
'see what happens'. the kittens are still in there and are alive . he
thinks she has had an acute reaction to a substance but does'nt know
what.

We have just moved into the property and are in the process of
renovating a bathroom where we found a load of mouse droppings under
the old bath which attracted tiddles who was mooching around. I
mentioned this to the vet and asked if she could have injested Tylenol
(paracetamol) by mistake -if there were some remnants of old pills on
the floor -he reckoned that if she had injested Tylenol she would be
dead by now as it is lethal in very small doses for cats,  so would
not even test for it -he said by the time the test came back, if it
was positive she would be dead anyway, if not I'd have wasted $150 on
the test..I have an issue with this vet -i really think he's out of
his depth and probably more used to dealing with cows and horses than
cats but he's the only one for miles.
So, she's back home, face still swollen and i'm trying to get her to
drink or eat but she'll only 'drink' mushed up tuna mixed with water.
It looks like she may be incontinent as she peed in the car on the way
home which is not like her and she looks totally depressed. I've been
on the Net most of the afternoon researching, but like all medical
conditions, you can almsot 'think' yourself into any condition out
there. She's been sent home with  cortisone steroid medication
So-has anyone any advice or have seen this before??
Any tips for getting a very sick cat to drink??
If she had something really really serious would the kittens not have
been 'the first to go' ie she would have aborted them??
Thankyou, in anticipation

Clare
mlbriggs - 22 Feb 2008 00:08 GMT
> Hi
>
[quoted text clipped - 50 lines]
>
> Clare

I am not a Vet so can only send purrs and prayers that
Tddles will  improve.  Have you tried giving her water with an eye
dropper?  Or maybe some tuna juice?  Best wishes.   MLB
yngbonbon@gmail.com - 23 Feb 2008 11:15 GMT
> > Hi
>
[quoted text clipped - 54 lines]
> Tddles will  improve.  Have you tried giving her water with an eye
> dropper?  Or maybe some tuna juice?  Best wishes.   MLB

[THE TUNA JUICE IS GREAT IT WORKED LIFE INTO MY TWO CATS, ALSO THE
FISH MED ANTIBIAUTIC(SORRY SPELLED WORD WRONG ) YOU CAN GET AT PET
STORES, ITS A LITTLE EXPENSIVE BUT IT WORKS WONDERS!   LOVE TO YOUR
CATS!
cybercat - 22 Feb 2008 02:36 GMT
>I have an issue with this vet -i really think he's out of
> his depth and probably more used to dealing with cows and horses than
> cats

Sounds like your assessment is accurate, to me.

but he's the only one for miles.
> So, she's back home, face still swollen and i'm trying to get her to
> drink or eat but she'll only 'drink' mushed up tuna mixed with water.
> It looks like she may be incontinent as she peed in the car on the way
> home which is not like her and she looks totally depressed.

How were her vitals at the vet, did he say?
BLOGGZPOT - 22 Feb 2008 03:48 GMT
> >I have an issue with this vet -i really think he's out of
> > his depth and probably more used to dealing with cows and horses than
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> How were her vitals at the vet, did he say?

when she left her  temperature was 37.8, breathing normal but still
showing signs of facial swelling. since coming home she has licked at
a little mushed up tuna mixed with warm water and looks a bit more
'perky'.  she was looking out of the window at one point with avid
interest at the birds feeding ( these bieng her preferred entree I'm
afraid lol) so I am becoming a little more optimistic. when I left the
vets, the nurse gave me some cortisone steroid and told me it was
'antibiotic' -can you believe it??

I'm off to do some research to see if pregnant cats can get pre
eclampsia?

Clare
cybercat - 22 Feb 2008 04:35 GMT
>when she left her  temperature was 37.8, breathing normal but still
>showing signs of facial swelling. since coming home she has licked at
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>vets, the nurse gave me some cortisone steroid and told me it was
>'antibiotic' -can you believe it??

Oh, yes, you need a new vet. I am not so sure about the joys of
rural living when I hear stories like this. What a bunch of a.ses in
that vet's office. The attitude of lots of these large animal vets is
"so it dies. Replace it."

>I'm off to do some research to see if pregnant cats can get pre
>eclampsia?

Clare, I hope she will be okay. You sound like a bright, capable person,
I am sure you are way ahead of me here .. but I sure would keep her
confined to rooms in the house where there are no hazards--indefinitely,
but for sure while she is pregnant and sick. I think M. L. Briggs has a
good suggestion when she mentioned feeding water with a dropper
(actually I used a turkey baster) to make sure she is getting enough.
Not forcing, just cuddling her in a towel and dribbling it while giving
attention, petting, talking softly. You know how dangerous it can be
for a cat to get dehydrated. With a vet like that your only choice,
should she be off her food and water for a couple of days, I think
I would learn to give subcutaneous fluids myself, rather than trust
her to the vet. Good luck, we'll be thinking about you.
BLOGGZPOT - 22 Feb 2008 16:59 GMT
> >when she left her  temperature was 37.8, breathing normal but still
> >showing signs of facial swelling. since coming home she has licked at
[quoted text clipped - 25 lines]
> I would learn to give subcutaneous fluids myself, rather than trust
> her to the vet. Good luck, we'll be thinking about you.

thankyou for your kind words cybercat. she has perked up a little
today and eaten a little tuna. I'm keeping my other two cats well away
and have made her a cosy home next to the heater in the laundry room.
her face is still swollen - she is normally 'oriental' looking but
looks like a hamster at the moment. Hopefully this is an acute
reaction to something. We are knee deep in snow here at the moment
( Rockie Mountains, Canada) so she has either chewed on something dead
outside or perhaps walked through a toxic substance.  Good idea the
turkey baster - knew it must have a purpose in life lol! She is the
strangest cat though - i think she has had to really survive as a
stray - she will have perfectly good fresh water down for her and go
try and drink from the toilet - and with two males (human) in the
house its impossible to keep the seat down. for this reason i can't
use toilet bowl cleanser, so i'm pretty certain its not that.

Well fingers x'ed and healing vibes ;-)

Clare
erach27@gmail.com - 23 Feb 2008 09:32 GMT
Pleaes ask a urine therapist (153,000 web pages) about how to treat
the cat.
Or consult http://spacetimemotion.tripod.com

Erach

> > >when she left her  temperature was 37.8, breathing normal but still
> > >showing signs of facial swelling. since coming home she has licked at
[quoted text clipped - 46 lines]
>
> - Show quoted text -
erach27@gmail.com - 23 Feb 2008 09:34 GMT
Hi,
Can you do urine therapy (153,000 web pages) alleged to cure all
diseases and I can vouch it has reversed my medications for a genetic
illness, so will it cure cats ?
Or check http://spacetimemotion.tripod.com

Erach

> > >when she left her  temperature was 37.8, breathing normal but still
> > >showing signs of facial swelling. since coming home she has licked at
[quoted text clipped - 46 lines]
>
> - Show quoted text -
Phil P. - 22 Feb 2008 06:35 GMT
. I looked at her and her face was swollen
> and she had brownish frothy mucous and very pale gums.

..and hypothermia

...are *classic* symptoms of acetaminophen (Tylenol) toxicity in cats.

Speak to your vet *NOW* about acetylcysteine-  (140mg/kg/hr for 7 hours) it
reduces the toxicity of acetaminophen.

Have your vet check for methemoglobinemia.

Phil
BLOGGZPOT - 22 Feb 2008 16:50 GMT
> . I looked at her and her face was swollen
>
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> Phil

Thankyou Phil - I told my vet about this whe he examined her - he was
very arrogant and said if she had injested Tylenol then she would be
'dead by now' as the syptoms i were describing had happened the
evening before.  We are 50 miles from another vet and i really don't
want to have Tiddles have the stress of a long drive -she hates car
journeys.

Clare
 
Sign In
Join
My Latest Posts
My Monitored Threads
My Blog
My Photo Gallery
My Profile
My Homepage

Start New Thread
Enable EMail Alerts
Rate this Thread



©2008 Advenet LLC   Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.