Chemistry and Blood Panel in cat perfectally normal BUT cat won't eat and is dehydrated

Fourcats4me

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I took my 8 yr old tabby DSH to the vet on Friday because she was dehydrated and listless. She was treated for chin acne given fluids, Corvenia for the acne, given a topical antibiotic ointment to be applied 1 x a day, given a Vitamin B injection and given Elura for her appetite. She is STILL not eating and had to get fluids again this morning. She has not urinated or "pooped," for at least 4 days. What do I do next? She has an appointment with a different vet on Thursday , maybe tehy can figure out what is going on. What questions should I ask them? I am lost as to what to do and VERY WORRIED! Any isdeas here would be most appreciated. Thanks.

Annie
 

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I would ask the vet about checking to see if your cat's colon is full of stool - an x-ray should be able to show that. Constipation like that can cause a cat to lack appetite and be listless. I don't think anything would necessarily show up in blood work to denote that.
I think you should push for an earlier appt. if you can get one. I am not sure it is wise to let this go another couple of days. Maybe ask your current vet about bringing your cat in for a quick x-ray now?
 
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Fourcats4me

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The vet this morning checked to see if she was constipated and found no stool in the colon.

I am furious at the clinic. Hence, I am seeking a new vet, but the earliest they could get her in is Thursday. And I have no emergency vet clinic near me. Although she was dehydrated this morning, they wanted me to bring her back this evening to get the fluids. She was a follow-up from Friday's appointment. They had changed their policy to only appointments on Tuesday mornings and work-ins will be seen after 4:00 p.m.. Excuse me, but the cat needed medical at 9:00 p.m. and should have had to wait until 5:00 to get some fluids!!! The vet that I usually see will not be back there until next week. But clearly. I need a vet when he is not in.
 

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Did they not give any fluids on Friday? Sometimes that alone will get a cat to eat again. If the fluids she will get this afternoon do NOT stimulate her appetite, you need to force feed her as cats cannot go very long without eating or other health issues can arise, and quickly.
I have had cats whose were otherwise healthy in all aspects completely stop eating, so I force fed them for a few days and just as suddenly as they stopped eating they started up again, the cause never known. Of course I always took them to the Vet, had blood work done, etc, and one time even an ultra sound because I told myself something must be wrong. Nothing :sigh:.

Anyway, it's imperative that she get some amount of nutrition in her. when you go back this afternoon ask them for some syringes for feeding, then get some very smooth pate and mix it with water so you can draw it up into the syringe and very slowly syringe it into her cheek area. It will be pretty messy but it needs to be done. You could also try getting some extremely stinky wet food and warm it up a little bit to see if she takes to it on her own. Sometimes just a change in foods helps.
 

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For a smooth Pate you can ask for Hills A/D. Mix in a little water and it becomes an easy food to syringe feed. They should be able to get you just a few cans. Get her more fluids too.
 
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Fourcats4me

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Did they not give any fluids on Friday? Sometimes that alone will get a cat to eat again. If the fluids she will get this afternoon do NOT stimulate her appetite, you need to force feed her as cats cannot go very long without eating or other health issues can arise, and quickly.
I have had cats whose were otherwise healthy in all aspects completely stop eating, so I force fed them for a few days and just as suddenly as they stopped eating they started up again, the cause never known. Of course I always took them to the Vet, had blood work done, etc, and one time even an ultra sound because I told myself something must be wrong. Nothing :sigh:.

Anyway, it's imperative that she get some amount of nutrition in her. when you go back this afternoon ask them for some syringes for feeding, then get some very smooth pate and mix it with water so you can draw it up into the syringe and very slowly syringe it into her cheek area. It will be pretty messy but it needs to be done. You could also try getting some extremely stinky wet food and warm it up a little bit to see if she takes to it on her own. Sometimes just a change in foods helps.
 
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Fourcats4me

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Thank you SO much. Yes, they gave her fluids on Friday during her visit, but they did not send her home with any. Today they gave her some fluids (AFTER my complaining). Thye also gave me some REBOUND supplement and Proplan CN Critical Nutrition. She actually ate some Temptation treats Creamy Lavor ( perhaps ten treats) by herself, but I plan to give her her remaining 10 ml of REBOUND supplement tonight which has the fluids, protein, vitamins, and minerals.
I guess, the Temptation treats contribute the calories. For once I would be happy if she wanted to pig out on her treats. I am still keeping her appointment on Thursday morning, though. She remains VERY lively and her eyes are very bright... if she would just eat......
 
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Fourcats4me

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Did they not give any fluids on Friday? Sometimes that alone will get a cat to eat again. If the fluids she will get this afternoon do NOT stimulate her appetite, you need to force feed her as cats cannot go very long without eating or other health issues can arise, and quickly.
I have had cats whose were otherwise healthy in all aspects completely stop eating, so I force fed them for a few days and just as suddenly as they stopped eating they started up again, the cause never known. Of course I always took them to the Vet, had blood work done, etc, and one time even an ultra sound because I told myself something must be wrong. Nothing :sigh:.

Anyway, it's imperative that she get some amount of nutrition in her. when you go back this afternoon ask them for some syringes for feeding, then get some very smooth pate and mix it with water so you can draw it up into the syringe and very slowly syringe it into her cheek area. It will be pretty messy but it needs to be done. You could also try getting some extremely stinky wet food and warm it up a little bit to see if she takes to it on her own. Sometimes just a change in foods helps.
 
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Fourcats4me

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I just checked to don her and she is fast asleep and very relaxed and comfortable. She ate all the Temptation treats that I had left out next to her. ( about 20) I am not going to disturb her anymore tonight. She had some subcutaneous fluids, some Rebound, the Temptation treats, some liquid L'likable Chicken," gravy, and some baby food. Thanks to all.
 

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The fluids may have gotten her feeling well enough to start eating again. Thank goodness she took some food. Treats are fine to get her interested in eating again. Whatever it takes! You can work her back into other foods when she is rested. So glad she is relaxed and resting well.
 
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Fourcats4me

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Thanks to all. I saw up and moving around this morning. I had to struggle to get the REBOUND in her along with teh appetite supplement. She ate all of teh treats I left last night. I left some more treats. I'll still take her in tomorrow to get some more fluids. That may have started to have made a difference. Please do keep us in your thoughts...

Anni
 
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Fourcats4me

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Too all,

I took Ginnie to the vet today. She has pancreatitis! They gave her some fluids, a Vitamin B injection, and Cerenia for nausea. They took some x-rays and saw some stool in the colon, but it may take two days or so before she "goes. I have to keep her hydrated and get her to anything she wants I just heard her eating so Temptation treats. They can give her nothing; it is pretty much nursing her along until her GI gets in again. But NO cancer, kidneys look good, GI looks good, no masses, etc., that is the good news. . It took three visits to the vet to get an answer..and over 800 hundred dollars. I am kind of ticked off about that ...it wasn't brain science.
 

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Don't blame you for being a bit ticked off! But pancreatitis can actually be hard to diagnose and sometimes the only way to do is through process of elimination. And the best treatment for it is to keep her eating and hydrated. Hope they gave you some Cerenia to take home with you as I believe the injection doesn't do much after 12-24 hours have passed. Sometimes, pain meds will be added as I understand it can be painful in some cats. So, keep an eye on that too - particularly if she doesn't respond entirely to eating more and the hydration!!!
 
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Fourcats4me

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Thanks for mentioning the pain meds. They did not give me any. I'll have to request some. I asked the diagnosing vet clinic to send today's records to what will be my "old vet." clinic. I will most; likely need them to refill her Cerenia, and she has an appointment with them on Monday for fluids. (She is so feisty, and I just can't restrain her well enough to give her fluid by myself, even if I wrap her up in a towel. She is a little monster when it comes to being medicated). Ginnie has a follow-up visit with the new visit; once she is healthy, I plan on leaving the old clinic. They should have been able to make the diagnosis of pancreatitis on Tuesday rather, they declined to look at her and I had to BEG for the fluids! That is just poor service for which I paid for. But I am glad Ginnie is going to be okay... I hope other cat owners can learn from this experience...
 

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There is a test done in house called an FPLI. It takes 20 min to run and could’ve diagnosed the pancreatitis
 

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There is a test done in house called an FPLI. It takes 20 min to run and could’ve diagnosed the pancreatitis
If not done, it could be helpful, but there are two kinds of tests and neither are necessarily conclusive. The FPLI, generally, tests for a marker specific to the pancreas, and concentrations are usually increased with pancreatic inflammation. One form of this test (SNAP fPL) is available as a rapid test and can give a same-day result in many vets’ offices, while another form (Spec fPL) requires blood to be sent to an outside laboratory. While these tests are currently the most sensitive blood test available to diagnose pancreatitis in cats, it can miss cases of mild or chronic pancreatitis. This is especially true of the more rapid SNAP test.
 
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Fourcats4me

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Thank you, and I hope all take in the beneficial information you have shared. However, I don't know why NOBODY even mentioned an FPLI test! In the meantime, we spent $200+ on x-rays and one was talking about a $500 ultrasound!

This experience bothers me even more... they could have done the blood test first; I was there for over an hour. If the test had been negative,they could follow with the x-rays or discuss an ultrasound. In the future, I will ask if there is a blood test or biomarker when looking for a GI issue in the future. You could see the vet's train of thought was more of " elimination" and what her condition was not, rather than determining what it was. Unfortunately, that is a costly way to come to a conclusion or make a diagnosis. I hope others can take advantage of my experience Thanks to all!
 

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This experience bothers me even more... they could have done the blood test first; I was there for over an hour.
I am in no way defending vets - I have had my share of issues with many of them. But the FPL tests are not a standard 'go to' - yet - as it has only been more recently recognized that pancreatitis probably occurs more often in cats than originally thought. And, there are a lot of other illnesses that seem to be more common. Even with my cat, whose amylase and Precision PSL were elevated - key indicators of a probable issue - no one, including specialists, ever suggested running those tests. If your cat's levels in this area were not extraordinarily elevated, then that would even lessen the odds of checking for pancreatitis.

This is why I tell ALL cat parents to regularly get blood work done, get the results sent to them, even chart them for comparison, and learn what all the elements mean so that they can have stats/trends to use when talking to the vets. This has not eliminated all the 'disputes' I have had with various vets, but it has certainly helped me to look for trends and point them out.
 
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