- Joined
- Sep 24, 2019
- Messages
- 106
- Purraise
- 146
I'm dying over here with worry. Gremlin, my 16 year old, went from mild neurological symptoms getting progressively worse (a tick in the paws during sleep became a shake while even standing or walking, making him loose footing) to all of a sudden falling repeatedly and being unable to stand back up on his own.
It all started with him having a crisis of some sort at the start of this week. On Monday, he vocalized loudly, seemed disoriented, suddenly backtracks from me approaching or anything at all, and the stumbling. He was barely able to walk (taking the first step from any standing/sitting position took him time, like he was scared to, and even if he walked, he was woobly). Also, trembling.
He was the same till Friday minus the trembling. And pupils are almost always extremely dilated. And just when I thought he was recovering or at least stable, then Saturday, yesterday, it got worse. He started falling: midwalk he would drop to lay to one side, unexplicably. At first I thought he was doing it on purpose but then seemed unable to stand back up.
He has even more problems walking now (there's no normalcy even after the first step). When falling, either lays still or raises and falls again. And he meows loudly to ask me away (in pain?) when I approach or touch him or if I try picking him up, but he's unable to stand if I don't. (I don't know if he's saying it hurts or if he just doesn't recognize who I am and is scared of me.) Voice is weird too.
Another disorienting thing is that he seemed to be recovering at times. Now it's Sunday night and I realize it's more like a recurrent thing. Purred this morning. Falls all the time at night. I feel it's getting worse always at night (cold? Now he's snuggling against the stove)
But he has no fever (3 visits to the vet confirms it). He has had only one day of vomit (Tuesday, twice). Only one time (yesterday) I saw mild diarrea. No loss of appetite. Drinks and pees a lot. No high blood pressure either (unlikely to be a stroke).
Vet notes:
I was being a pain in the ass to vets all week, first (monday) them thinking ear infection (gave him drops) but not doing any additional panels meanwhile. Then suspected inflammation of the neck (saturday morning, gave them an antiinflamatory). Went to emergency vets on Saturday night but they discarded it was an emergency (gave him some hepatic protector and Metoclopramide, thinking it might have been a bad reaction to an antiinflammatory given that very morning).
I wanted to give him a test for all neurologicalproblems-induced bacteria because I suspect all this started when I gave him some fish (he turned his nose up to salmon, but I insisted like an idiot). And many of those bacteria are fatal.
But as stated, Gremlin never developped fever or big diarrea or vomit, that's why the vets kept posponing checking those. And now I'm stuck because there're no labs until Thursday (it's a festive week and labs are all closed until then...I want to cry). Which is why I'm desperate.
It's been the whole week, all this time developping who knows what really. Because I haven't been able to do the panels or have any clue what's going on, even if it's treatable, I can't treat it. I'm between a rock and a precipice.
And that is the problem: we still don't know anything. Ear drops didn't seem to make any difference. And when we suspected neck inflammation and gave him antiinflammatories, got worse that very night. That's why my head vet now is worried the sudden worsening state was the result of the drugs and is hesistant to give him any treatment at all.
(*)Gremlin has a history of bad reactions to drugs, especially analgesics and anesthesia - in fact, the way Gremlin is acting now is very reminicent of how he was when after both times we subjected him to anesthesia, two years ago, needing aid to walk... The main difference is anesthesia gave him crazy vomits, and this didn't.
Speaking of analgesics, that's the other thing: I don't know how much *is* pain, and how much is just discomfort or disorientation (if he's scared if he doesn't remember me, or is frustrated/scared because he can't move around as he used to). So I don't know if I should be giving him a humane good bye to stop him suffering... or if there's still a prospect of recovery that makes this all worth it.
He does fall down and opposes getting help back up (not sure if pain is involved).
He's eating. He drinks water. If with difficulty, he still walks (some times on his own, some times assisted). He doesn't have a fever. He hasn't had more than a mild diarrea. This isn't your typical dying cat. That's why I don't know if he is...
On the other hand, if this is all due to pain, it's no way to live.
Please give me your thoughts and suggestions. Especially if you think you know what this is. Paralysis or pain? Do you know of a bacteria I should test him for? (Already saw the suggestion for Cryptococcus in another thread, thanks for that.)
Just. I need to get my ideas in order. To be sure I am not missing anything, that I got all information. If I must wait until Tuesday, then I want to know exactly what I'm asking Gremlin to be tested for. And also, I want to make sure I'm not being cruel to Gremlin.
Thanks for reading. Sorry for the long post. Thanks in advance.
It all started with him having a crisis of some sort at the start of this week. On Monday, he vocalized loudly, seemed disoriented, suddenly backtracks from me approaching or anything at all, and the stumbling. He was barely able to walk (taking the first step from any standing/sitting position took him time, like he was scared to, and even if he walked, he was woobly). Also, trembling.
He was the same till Friday minus the trembling. And pupils are almost always extremely dilated. And just when I thought he was recovering or at least stable, then Saturday, yesterday, it got worse. He started falling: midwalk he would drop to lay to one side, unexplicably. At first I thought he was doing it on purpose but then seemed unable to stand back up.
He has even more problems walking now (there's no normalcy even after the first step). When falling, either lays still or raises and falls again. And he meows loudly to ask me away (in pain?) when I approach or touch him or if I try picking him up, but he's unable to stand if I don't. (I don't know if he's saying it hurts or if he just doesn't recognize who I am and is scared of me.) Voice is weird too.
Another disorienting thing is that he seemed to be recovering at times. Now it's Sunday night and I realize it's more like a recurrent thing. Purred this morning. Falls all the time at night. I feel it's getting worse always at night (cold? Now he's snuggling against the stove)
But he has no fever (3 visits to the vet confirms it). He has had only one day of vomit (Tuesday, twice). Only one time (yesterday) I saw mild diarrea. No loss of appetite. Drinks and pees a lot. No high blood pressure either (unlikely to be a stroke).
Vet notes:
I was being a pain in the ass to vets all week, first (monday) them thinking ear infection (gave him drops) but not doing any additional panels meanwhile. Then suspected inflammation of the neck (saturday morning, gave them an antiinflamatory). Went to emergency vets on Saturday night but they discarded it was an emergency (gave him some hepatic protector and Metoclopramide, thinking it might have been a bad reaction to an antiinflammatory given that very morning).
I wanted to give him a test for all neurologicalproblems-induced bacteria because I suspect all this started when I gave him some fish (he turned his nose up to salmon, but I insisted like an idiot). And many of those bacteria are fatal.
But as stated, Gremlin never developped fever or big diarrea or vomit, that's why the vets kept posponing checking those. And now I'm stuck because there're no labs until Thursday (it's a festive week and labs are all closed until then...I want to cry). Which is why I'm desperate.
It's been the whole week, all this time developping who knows what really. Because I haven't been able to do the panels or have any clue what's going on, even if it's treatable, I can't treat it. I'm between a rock and a precipice.
And that is the problem: we still don't know anything. Ear drops didn't seem to make any difference. And when we suspected neck inflammation and gave him antiinflammatories, got worse that very night. That's why my head vet now is worried the sudden worsening state was the result of the drugs and is hesistant to give him any treatment at all.
(*)Gremlin has a history of bad reactions to drugs, especially analgesics and anesthesia - in fact, the way Gremlin is acting now is very reminicent of how he was when after both times we subjected him to anesthesia, two years ago, needing aid to walk... The main difference is anesthesia gave him crazy vomits, and this didn't.
Speaking of analgesics, that's the other thing: I don't know how much *is* pain, and how much is just discomfort or disorientation (if he's scared if he doesn't remember me, or is frustrated/scared because he can't move around as he used to). So I don't know if I should be giving him a humane good bye to stop him suffering... or if there's still a prospect of recovery that makes this all worth it.
He does fall down and opposes getting help back up (not sure if pain is involved).
He's eating. He drinks water. If with difficulty, he still walks (some times on his own, some times assisted). He doesn't have a fever. He hasn't had more than a mild diarrea. This isn't your typical dying cat. That's why I don't know if he is...
On the other hand, if this is all due to pain, it's no way to live.
Please give me your thoughts and suggestions. Especially if you think you know what this is. Paralysis or pain? Do you know of a bacteria I should test him for? (Already saw the suggestion for Cryptococcus in another thread, thanks for that.)
Just. I need to get my ideas in order. To be sure I am not missing anything, that I got all information. If I must wait until Tuesday, then I want to know exactly what I'm asking Gremlin to be tested for. And also, I want to make sure I'm not being cruel to Gremlin.
Thanks for reading. Sorry for the long post. Thanks in advance.