Fortekor

forcryinoutloud

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Has anyone ever used fortekor for a cat with heart issues? One of the side effects is vomiting and Jack has vomited three times this morning. It looks mostly like water, or foamy water. I'm just wondering if anyone has experience with this and whether the nausea (cause he does appear nauseous, with the constant licking of his lips) and vomiting goes away?
 

Antonio65

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Hi, I had given Fortekor to my cat for nearly 10 years and she never had the slightest problem.
I was giving her this medicine for her kidney disease, half 5 mg tablet once a day.
My cat would love it, she used to take it right off my hand, as it was a treat.
I have known other people who used those tablets for the cats with CKD and none of them has ever told me anything of this kind.

I'm sorry, I can't be of more help. Hopefully Jack is feeling sick for a different reason, because those tablets are necessary for him and it would be bad if he can't stand them.
 
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forcryinoutloud

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He isn't throwing the pill itself up - I give it to him in the evening, so it's been about 13 hours since he had it before he threw up. One of the side effects is nausea/vomiting so I'm not too worried at the moment. If the vomiting becomes more pronounced, or has blood in it or something like that, it's straight to the vet we go again, but he doesn't mind the pills themselves.

I use a "pill popper" and then follow it with water to make sure it dissolves and doesn't get stuck in his throat as pills can do in animals (well, in people too - my own will get stuck and I'll have to drink a big glass of juice or eat a piece of banana to shove them down). He did throw up on like the third day I started them last week a few times, but it was just that one day until this morning. So I am thinking maybe the stress of the vet visit yesterday (which is 40 minutes each way, on top of the vet poking and prodding at him - which he did NOT appreciate if the growling was any indication lol).

Hopefully he will feel better later this afternoon and will be interested in trying a little wet food. He actually ate some last night, which I was thrilled about, but only took one lick today and walked away - so I think the nausea might be making him uninterested in food.

I'm wondering too if anyone used fortekor for heart disease in a cat, and how long your cat lived (or if they're still going strong)? I'm quite upset that she said 2-3 years would be doing good, but that it could be less than that. :( I'm hoping Jack beats the odds and shocks them all and lives to be well into old age! But I know that is my wishful thinking.
 

jcat

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Our last cat got Fortekor (other meds like a beta blocker, diuretic and blood thinner were later added) for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM). Jamie lasted about four years after it was diagnosed, dying shortly before his 14th birthday; he survived for more than a year after two vets, one a cardiologist, told us he probably had just "days or a week" to live after his second major bout of congestive heart failure. When Jamie was first diagnosed, I read a lot about six months to two years being the average life span after diagnosis, but soon learned that a lot of cats just aren't "average". It's something you simply have to take a day at a time, while treasuring every hour you get to keep them by your side.

I never noticed any nausea from the Fortekor, which he got immediately before mealtimes, so having a full stomach may have made a difference. It was the diuretic that seemed to cause nausea at times, so we'd have to stop giving it to him temporarily. As soon as we did, he'd eat.
 
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forcryinoutloud

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Thank you! I am trying to accept that he has this, that it's necessary to just take it a day at a time and try not to get lost in the sadness of knowing that he's sick. Though it's hard, especially after having lost his brother a month ago and knowing that Jack is also sick. :(

I'm glad to hear that your furbaby got four years on the fortekor (though I am sorry for your loss) - I'm hoping that Jack will have plenty of years left. We have to get his blood checked again in about 5 months to see how the fortekor is working. The vet said that he might have to go on lasix at some point, when fluid begins to build up, but that at this point in time there is nothing showing on the x-ray that suggests there is fluid build up. I am hoping that means that it was caught early enough to extend the amount of time I will get with him.
 
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