Blocked salivary gland

[jekyllsmummy]

Hi everyone.
Yesterday I took my cat into the vet as he had been drooling a fair bit over the weekend and had barely eaten.
I had to leave him there so the vet could get a second opinion.
Upon picking him back up i was told that he has a blocked salivary gland.
And that there is a large lump growing underneath he's tongue on the left side of he's mouth, pushing he's tongue to the right.
He was given 2 injections, one was a type of steroid and the other an anti inflammatory.
(He has had the same injections before about 3 months ago, but for he's food allergies).
We are going back fri/sat to have it looked at again and if there's no change it will have to be drained.

I've been trying to research why he'd get something like this, but I'm just lost.

Has anyone else had this problem? If so what caused it :-(

Sorry for the long post. I'm very worried and have never heard about this before.

 

[denice]

That has to be painful.  I have heard of it in cats so it's something that can happen in cats.  I don't have any experience with it so I can't offer any insight.  I hope your kitty gets better soon without a lot of invasive procedures.

 

[jekyllsmummy]

That's ok Denice, thanks for your reply though. I hope he gets better soon too, but as of now he's still not showing signs of feeling better so I think he'll be having a minor surgery on Monday to have it drained :-(

 

[oneandahalfcats]

Hi everyone.
Yesterday I took my cat into the vet as he had been drooling a fair bit over the weekend and had barely eaten.
I had to leave him there so the vet could get a second opinion.
Upon picking him back up i was told that he has a blocked salivary gland.
And that there is a large lump growing underneath he's tongue on the left side of he's mouth, pushing he's tongue to the right.
He was given 2 injections, one was a type of steroid and the other an anti inflammatory.
(He has had the same injections before about 3 months ago, but for he's food allergies).
We are going back fri/sat to have it looked at again and if there's no change it will have to be drained.

I've been trying to research why he'd get something like this, but I'm just lost.

Has anyone else had this problem? If so what caused it :-(

Sorry for the long post. I'm very worried and have never heard about this before.

Very sorry to read of your kitty's current troubles. Other than the drooling and not eating, has your kitty displayed other symptoms such as weight loss, vomiting, or trouble swallowing. Has she been sleeping a lot?

The blocked salivary gland must be really uncomfortable and no doubt causing the drooling and lack of interest in food, but the location of the lump is most likely contributing to this as well. Did your vet mention anything about the lump and what he/she thought it might be?

I don't want to alarm you but the lump could a malignant mass (squamous cell carcinoma) or a benign condition known as Eosinophilic Granuloma or cyst secondary to the salivary blockage as the result of infection. I had a tuxedo that developed a lump under his tongue which was found during a teeth cleaning. When tested is was found to squamous cell. His initial symptoms were drooling which progressed to difficulty eating and swallowing as he couldn't maneuver his tongue properly to eat, and then bleeding from the mouth. If your cat has not lost any weight, or experiencing symptoms other than the drooling and difficulty eating, then likely it is a granuloma or cyst.

The lump would need to be biopsied to be sure, although aspiration is less invasive but perhaps not as reliable as the biopsy.

Many positive vibes and warm thoughts that this is something innocent and treatable.

 

 

[jekyllsmummy]

 
Very sorry to read of your kitty's current troubles. Other than the drooling and not eating, has your kitty displayed other symptoms such as weight loss, vomiting, or trouble swallowing. Has she been sleeping a lot?

The blocked salivary gland must be really uncomfortable and no doubt causing the drooling and lack of interest in food, but the location of the lump is most likely contributing to this as well. Did your vet mention anything about the lump and what he/she thought it might be?

I don't want to alarm you but the lump could a malignant mass (squamous cell carcinoma) or a benign condition known as Eosinophilic Granuloma or cyst secondary to the salivary blockage as the result of infection. I had a tuxedo that developed a lump under his tongue which was found during a teeth cleaning. When tested is was found to squamous cell. His initial symptoms were drooling which progressed to difficulty eating and swallowing as he couldn't maneuver his tongue properly to eat, and then bleeding from the mouth. If your cat has not lost any weight, or experiencing symptoms other than the drooling and difficulty eating, then likely it is a granuloma or cyst.

The lump would need to be biopsied to be sure, although aspiration is less invasive but perhaps not as reliable as the biopsy.

Many positive vibes and warm thoughts that this is something innocent and treatable.

There's been no sign of weight loss yet and he has not been vomiting either. He's definitely having trouble swallowing, but is still managing to eat hes wet food. Just takes him a little longer then usual. He's sleeping patterns have changed, and he's very attached to me at the moment.. Following me around the house and sleeping right beside me at night.

Unfortunately the vet didn't mention what it could be, she first thought it looked like a tumour and we talked briefly about oral cancer which is why I had to leave him there for a few hours so they could have a proper look. At this stage all ive been told is that its a blocked salivary gland, i'm still completely clueless but The vet doesn't seem too worried and said that he'll be fine, he'll just have to go and get it drained if it doesn't  go down over the coming days.

There was a mention of allergies and she thinks he may have picked up a flea from around the yard and might have been bitten by it, causing an allergic reaction.

He also suffers from food intolerance and over the months of figuring out hes problem, he had small ulcers on hes  tongue and very large scabs over hes body that would appear after he's eaten the wrong food. We've stuck to hes strict diet for over 3 months now and the ulcers are still on hes tongue, but the scabs are gone and he's fur is beautiful and soft.

I guess we'll just have to play the waiting game, I'll know more Monday. Thankyou for your concern, I just feel awful that he's going through this :-(

 

[oneandahalfcats]

 
There's been no sign of weight loss yet and he has not been vomiting either. He's definitely having trouble swallowing, but is still managing to eat hes wet food. Just takes him a little longer then usual. He's sleeping patterns have changed, and he's very attached to me at the moment.. Following me around the house and sleeping right beside me at night.

Unfortunately the vet didn't mention what it could be, she first thought it looked like a tumour and we talked briefly about oral cancer which is why I had to leave him there for a few hours so they could have a proper look. At this stage all ive been told is that its a blocked salivary gland, i'm still completely clueless but The vet doesn't seem too worried and said that he'll be fine, he'll just have to go and get it drained if it doesn't  go down over the coming days.

There was a mention of allergies and she thinks he may have picked up a flea from around the yard and might have been bitten by it, causing an allergic reaction.

He also suffers from food intolerance and over the months of figuring out hes problem, he had small ulcers on hes  tongue and very large scabs over hes body that would appear after he's eaten the wrong food. We've stuck to hes strict diet for over 3 months now and the ulcers are still on hes tongue, but the scabs are gone and he's fur is beautiful and soft.

I guess we'll just have to play the waiting game, I'll know more Monday. Thankyou for your concern, I just feel awful that he's going through this :-(

I know what you mean. Its hard to see a cat suffering in this way and know that there is not much you can do for them

Glad to hear that he is still eating. Its also good that he is seeking you out rather than hiding, which some cats do when they are in a lot of pain, and feeling hopeless.

From what you have described, it sounds like the lump could very well be more of the same ulcers that he was getting previously, which is a much better and more likely scenario.

One other scenario to discuss with your vet is the possibility that the ulcers are the result of an auto-immune disorder which may require a different direction in terms of treatment. My male gets rodent ulcers and allergic reactions to things from time to time and I discovered L-Lysine to treat and prevent future flares. L-Lysine works to support the immune system with very positive results. L-Lysine comes in liquid form which is given every day.

I hope that Monday can bring some good news and a solid plan for treatment to deal with the ulcers. Hugs and best wishes to you both. Please keep us posted.

 

[jekyllsmummy]

Jekyll has had a great afternoon. Apart from the struggle with swallowing he managed to eat almost a full can of wet food (156g).
He played in the garden, was very alert looking at all the birds and such.
And seems to have he's drooling under control, I've only had to wipe he's face twice today.

Thank you for the warm wishes, I will definitely keep you posted. :-)

 

[oneandahalfcats]

Jekyll has had a great afternoon. Apart from the struggle with swallowing he managed to eat almost a full can of wet food (156g).
He played in the garden, was very alert looking at all the birds and such.
And seems to have he's drooling under control, I've only had to wipe he's face twice today.

Thank you for the warm wishes, I will definitely keep you posted. :-)

Just seeing this now. That is wonderful!

 

 

[susank521]

How is Jekyll doing?

 

[jekyllsmummy]

Sorry I haven't been able to keep the thread updated!
Jekyll is doing great! He's back to he's crazy little self. Unfortunately the vet said that the problem is still there, i.e the lump but it's no where near as big as it was. We're going for another check up in two weeks.
Fingers crossed it resolves on it's own :-)

 

[oneandahalfcats]

Sorry I haven't been able to keep the thread updated!
Jekyll is doing great! He's back to he's crazy little self. Unfortunately the vet said that the problem is still there, i.e the lump but it's no where near as big as it was. We're going for another check up in two weeks.
Fingers crossed it resolves on it's own :-)

Very happy to hear that Jekyll is doing so well and that the lump is decreasing in size .. A very good sign

.. Continued vibes for a full recovery

Thanks for asking the question SusanK521!  ..

 

[susank521]

So glad to hear that he's doing better! Wonderful news. We're all with you on hoping that it resolves on its own.