Geoffrey Small Cell Lymphoma

[maggie101]

Please stay on! I am finding your thread to be helpful. My cat is taking pills of prednisolone. I don't remember how many mils. I found a trick to giving pills. She got her claw stuck on my shirt so she couldn't claw me. Tomorrow I will wear an old sweater. She has only just been diagnosed with ibd. I think of funny stories about her. Do you have any funny stories to tell that will make you smile? I don't think she has it bad right now but I now know the possible outcome by your thread so I am learning. I had a cat with triiditis. And more added on throughout the years. She was also on prednisolone for rest of her life.

 

[maggie101]

Please stay on! I am finding your thread to be helpful. My cat is taking pills of prednisolone. I don't remember how many mils. I found a trick to giving pills. She got her claw stuck on my shirt so she couldn't claw me. Tomorrow I will wear an old sweater. She has only just been diagnosed with ibd. I think of funny stories about her. Do you have any funny stories to tell that will make you smile? I don't think she has it bad right now but I now know the possible outcome by your thread so I am learning. I had a cat with triiditis. And more added on throughout the years. She was also on prednisolone for rest of her life.

5 1/2 ml once a day for 2 weeks then she will decrease. No more throwing up or diarrhea. So far. And eating. I don't have to be by her side anymore when she eats

 

[LTS3]

5 1/2 ml once a day for 2 weeks then she will decrease. No more throwing up or diarrhea. So far

5 and 1/2 mls of a pill??? That's not correct. The pill strength is in mg. The liquid is in ml but 5 and a 1/2 ml is a huge overdose for a cat.

 

[artiemom]

maggie101 Your baby is beautiful.. Yes, I am staying the course.
I am glad to hear that you baby does not have any issues with the prednisolone. That is really good

As LTS3 stated, the dose you stated is incorrect.. at least it should be. You may have gotten mg confused with mls. One is pill form the other is liquid form. If liquid, it could be 0.5 ml.

I am glad my thread is helping you. ((hugs))
~~
As for today with Geoffrey.. still no poop today.. sigh.. This makes 2 full days without poop.. not good..
I had a jar of baby squash in the house. I know that pumpkin can help with pooping issues; squash is in the pumpkin family.. Since the current batch of food is so stinky strong, I decided to try a small amount of food, mixed with a bit of squash. Geoffrey liked it!! OMG!

I tried a bit more, a few hours later, this time, more canned food and a bit more squash.. Shockingly, he licked his plate!!
I am confused!! He ate the squash?? I will retry again tomorrow.. and see how finicky he will be..

I will pick up more of the baby squash, and see if I can find a can of pumpkin.. just in case..
He is eating more wet--- UGH than the dry..
While that is a good thing.. normally.. It is not at this point... His prescription food is under a world wide shortage.. none, no where to be found.. . I would rather Geoffrey eat the canned rather than the wet.. but...

No prednisolone for him today... He gets a small dose tomorrow; 2mg.. then none, then 2 mg-- then stops.. just in time for the long weekend...

He started some lick lipping the other day. I noticed more of it this morning..

Tired: watched the bocce play offs and final this morning-- in the heat!! It was so hot.I was physically exhausted, and I did not play!!! Tomorrow, is corn hole.. if it does not rain......

 

[maggie101]

maggie101 Your baby is beautiful.. Yes, I am staying the course.
I am glad to hear that you baby does not have any issues with the prednisolone. That is really good

As LTS3 stated, the dose you stated is incorrect.. at least it should be. You may have gotten mg confused with mls. One is pill form the other is liquid form. If liquid, it could be 0.5 ml.

I am glad my thread is helping you. ((hugs))
~~
As for today with Geoffrey.. still no poop today.. sigh.. This makes 2 full days without poop.. not good..
I had a jar of baby squash in the house. I know that pumpkin can help with pooping issues; squash is in the pumpkin family.. Since the current batch of food is so stinky strong, I decided to try a small amount of food, mixed with a bit of squash. Geoffrey liked it!! OMG!

I tried a bit more, a few hours later, this time, more canned food and a bit more squash.. Shockingly, he licked his plate!!
I am confused!! He ate the squash?? I will retry again tomorrow.. and see how finicky he will be..

I will pick up more of the baby squash, and see if I can find a can of pumpkin.. just in case..
He is eating more wet--- UGH than the dry..
While that is a good thing.. normally.. It is not at this point... His prescription food is under a world wide shortage.. none, no where to be found.. . I would rather Geoffrey eat the canned rather than the wet.. but...

No prednisolone for him today... He gets a small dose tomorrow; 2mg.. then none, then 2 mg-- then stops.. just in time for the long weekend...

He started some lick lipping the other day. I noticed more of it this morning..

Tired: watched the bocce play offs and final this morning-- in the heat!! It was so hot.I was physically exhausted, and I did not play!!! Tomorrow, is corn hole.. if it does not rain......

They are pills. My hands trimmer bad so no way could I do liquid. I probably did misinterpret it

 

[iPappy]

@Forry You are so kind to say that...
Geoffrey is being himself.. fingers crossed, that continues.
Thank you everyone!

He had 1/2 of a 5 oz can this morning; did the tiny spit up.. gave him one of his last 3 doses of pred, and his laxatone. He is contentedly sleeping in his corner... sweet boy... After playing this morning, cuddling with me--several times this morning.
I cannot get enough of his cuddles, and purrs.. I just cannot. I guess I am wanting to make up for lost time.. I am on my bed a lot, because that is where we cuddle.

I guess my love for him, is a bit too much. I think of him as my 'baby boy'--- not healthy.. but... Geoffrey is so important to me.. perhaps too important.. It breaks my heart to see him sick. . Now that he is acting better, I am feeling better...
That is not a normal thing... I guess I am abnormal... oh well....

Thanks again..

If it's abnormal, count me in. An adult human can be told "this is what we will be doing for your illness, and this is what you can expect to happen within the next days/weeks." They can absorb this information and be prepared, and ask questions and receive answers. Animals (and little kids) can't do any of that.
"Now that he's acting better, I am feeling better" is so relatable.

 

[iPappy]

5 1/2 ml once a day for 2 weeks then she will decrease. No more throwing up or diarrhea. So far. And eating. I don't have to be by her side anymore when she eats

View attachment 430516

What a beautiful collage!!!!

 

[nanniecat]

5 1/2 ml once a day for 2 weeks then she will decrease. No more throwing up or diarrhea. So far. And eating. I don't have to be by her side anymore when she eats

View attachment 430516

beautiful baby!

 

[CL56]

artiemom
Hang in there

 

[artiemom]

Geoffrey got his last dose of prednisolone this morning. I am having ambivalent thoughts about this. On one hand, I know it was not good for him--- weight gain, increased thirst, bad lethargy, increased appetite. On the other hand, it is better for him: more alert, less appetite, his blood sugar and urine glucose should go down..
But,I think he is also nauseous. dam.

Yesterday, I found a dried splash on the linoleum-only seen when the light catches it a certain way. I thought I had spilled something. This morning, I focus another area-- near his litter box, in the bathroom.. Yup, clear liquid vomit.. dam

His appetite is terrible. He wants to hide, curl up... not like him.
His stool is hard, also.. I am giving him baby squash, mixed into his canned food, along with some extra water. and daily laxatone.. not helping him..
I hate to resort back to miralax.. dam-- I have to syringe it into him. He can taste, smell it in his food.
And Cerenia.. Good thing I have 7 pills...
Long weekend. IMVet is in today, but... I am not going to bother him for this.. I am going to try more laxatone this afternoon, and tonight.. perhaps Cerenia late tonight or tomorrow.. Tomorrow is a chemo day..

This is such a roller coaster ride of emotions. it really is.. I am not sure how much more I can do.. financially, I am spent.

I love him.. but.. and the stress. Seeing him not well really affects me.. stress wise. I am a stress eater.. Since this entire ordeal has begun, I have gained over 10 lbs.. not good...

Just thought I would update... sigh

 

[artiemom]

Today was a chemo day... I gave another dose of Cerenia.. and a double dose of laxation and a dose of miralax.. I hope he poops.. We have completed his prednisolone tapering.. I wish it was not the long week end .. last long week end, Fourth of July, he was sick also... dam.. I just need an ear and some guidance-- hence, I am here, again...

He is not eating much at all.. snubbing his nose at his food. Actually, not even going over to it. I am bringing it to him..
I am getting worried.

By chance, I opened a bag of Orijen freeze dried lamb treats. My thinking was: if he refused this, he was really sick..
Geoffrey was curled up in his corner in my bedroom (our room). As soon as he heard me approaching, and got a whiff of the treats, he was like a different cat. He picked up.. I gave him one--put it on the towel he was lying on.. He gobbled it up!!
Gave him another small one, same thing--gobbled it up.. I ended up giving him 4 treats.. Then I said to myself "Ok, he is not that. sick. If he was, he would not be interested in this.".. I said enough to jump start his appetite.

I went over to the kitchen to seal up the bag, and put it in a ziplock bag, storing it in the microwave. Geoffrey must have run to follow me. I almost stepped on him!!! He was all over my feet, crying for the lamb treats!!
I took a couple more out an put it in his dry food dish. He ate these, and a tiny bit of the his normal dry rabbit food..
Then back to his corner... without eating any more..

I do not know what to think of him.. I do not want to change his food up, but.. If I can at least get some rabbit, or even the lamb treats for him... It is better.. Right now, he does not have any treats at all...

LTS3 Have you or anyone else on here used Stella & Chewys rabbit food as treats, or Orijen, or Vital Essence??
Wondering if it would be worth it to pick up a bag of one of them.. to use as a topper for his food... or mix into Geoffrey's food....
This cat is really driving me crazy.. reminds me how I was at Artie's end... dam.

Dr B told me we were eliminating the prednisolone as an experiment.. to see how he is when not on it.. and if his glucose levels decrease. My gut feeling is that he needs a bit of pred... not as much as before, but some pred per week...
I think all of the crazy doses of pred, right from the beginning when he was given an overdose of it.. Yes, Dr B did this.. I do not know if it was him, his associate, covering vet tech, pharmacy, or whom did it.. but it was done. I think all of this has made Geoffrey very sick; and sensitive to prednisolone. I feel so bad for this poor baby..
First with the diagnosis of SCL, then the mega high dose of steroids, then me panicking and trying to inappropriately give him the chemo chew.. causing aspiration bronchitis, then the still increased dose of pred.. then getting the correct dose, then up and down with the dosing, and now discontinuing it.. It would not surprise me, if poor little Geoffrey's body is in complete shock from all of this.. poor thing.. and I feel responsible for it..

Again, venting... again, major stress eating.. dam..

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hang in there!! Any reason why you cannot use the Orijen freeze dried lamb treats that he likes as a topper to his 'regular' food? At least until you figure out what you might change otherwise?

 

[maggie101]

Hang in there!! Any reason why you cannot use the Orijen freeze dried lamb treats that he likes as a topper to his 'regular' food? At least until you figure out what you might change otherwise?

That is what I use to mix in. Sometimes with churu or tiki sticks.

 

[LTS3]

You could try those foods but Geoffrey may or may not eat them with his finicky palate and appetite. I wouldn't change too many things with Geoffrey.

 

[iPappy]

Are the freeze dried lamb treats easy to crumble?
I have used Stella and Chewy's freeze dried as treats before and my dogs and cats both went nuts for them. I liked them because they did crumble easily and could be mixed into pretty much anything. I'm wondering if a treat he really likes that's crumbled (basically, into a powder) and mixed into a small amount of dry would entice him to eat it a little more.
From what I've learned with my dog (who isn't eating that great now....) is a big bowl of food seems almost overwhelming. Small portions are where it's at, and I get a better response if I offer a small portion vs. a huge one but YMMV. Experiment and see what Geoffrey tells you.

 

[maggie101]

Are the freeze dried lamb treats easy to crumble?
I have used Stella and Chewy's freeze dried as treats before and my dogs and cats both went nuts for them. I liked them because they did crumble easily and could be mixed into pretty much anything. I'm wondering if a treat he really likes that's crumbled (basically, into a powder) and mixed into a small amount of dry would entice him to eat it a little more.
From what I've learned with my dog (who isn't eating that great now....) is a big bowl of food seems almost overwhelming. Small portions are where it's at, and I get a better response if I offer a small portion vs. a huge one but YMMV. Experiment and see what Geoffrey tells you.

The orijen chicken you can easily crumble in a powder. The lamb are a little bigger and take slightly more effort. I would use my small electric grinder or a spoon

 

[Margot Lane]

I kind of agree w/ Dr. B (and your gut instinct that some pred is needed). The desire to taper off it completely is an excellent one, but my vet says (and she sees a lot of kitties) that experience has told her some consistent amt of pred is better than none at all. She says it DOES depend on the cat, but, that more often than not, pred is needed. It sounds as if you have a really compassionate, caring vet who listens to you, which is huge. Hoping you take time to take care of you, as well. (There is no way of knowing if Dr. B did overdose your cat at the beginning: I’d be willing to bet it wasn’t Dr. B, since everything you’d said about him til that point was positive). One day at a time, dear Artie, & take a deep breath to ground you.

 

[rubysmama]

You'd probably want to check with the vet first, but I find sprinkling a bit of Fortiflora on top of Ruby's canned food will get her to eat it, when she's having a bit of a not eating day.

 

[artiemom]

Big Sigh.... Geoffrey is not doing well. We finished with the experiment of discontinuing the pred. His last dose was Friday. Please forgive me if I am repeating myself...

Dam ... Geoffrey is not eating. No appetite at all.. I tried giving him some Orijen Freeze dried lamb treats, to see if it was nausea or fussiness... He loves the treats.. Not the RC PR Food.. dam
The most he is eating: 1/3 of a 5 oz can.. not enough for him.

I even mixed the treats with the dry food--not much success. Geoffrey wants the treats, only. I do not know if is he being fussy with his food, or he really has a decreased appetite. I am going for the decreased appetite. Geoffrey lost 1/2 lb over the past week.. dam... I can feel his spine.. dam.. He looks thin..

I got an order of Stella & Chewy's Freeze dried raw rabbit. I tried rehydrating, and adding it to his wet food... NO GO.. he sniffed; then walked away. I am taking all food over to him. Geoffrey has no desire to go over to his food.. dam

Demeanor wise, he is good.. alert, waling around, looking out windows-occasionally.. demanding to be brushed... but he is not eating and not pooping. He used to have a BM every other day.. Now it is every 2-3 days, with double doses of laxatone and 1/2 tsp miralax, daily... Something is wrong.. I know the Chemo could cause constipation; the same with the Cerenia, I gave for a couple of days.. not good.

I was so upset, that I went onto the "Laps Of Love". Geoffrey cannot continue this way... I took their quality of life test. Geoffrey scored an 11/22..... with the automated response of: We are concerned about his quality of life. He will decline over a short time frame.. not exactly their quote, but you get it...

I am seriously thinking of CBD oil, as a last resort. A friend gave me a link to a company she is using for her IBD kitty. I trust her.. I asked Dr B about it. Answer, from other clients: Dr B cannot guide me though it, but some other clients are using it..
I am going to call them tomorrow afternoon ... I also got a couple more companies from the Lymphoma Group on FB..

This is the last resort.. Geoffrey has a horrible diagnosis.. He does not seem to be responding positively to treatment. Dr B cannot understand him.. I cannot either.. It seems everything we are trying, has disastrous result.. I cannot afford the echocardiogram.. I told J (Dr B's secretary) about that.. she was ok with it.. I absolutely love her.. She called me AFTER her working hours.. I Love her. I was crying while I was talking to her..

Dr B is not in today. He called in late this afternoon for updates: as I was leaving messages. He will be in Tomorrow, Wednesday, afternoon. Dr B prescribed 4 mg of prednisolone to be given asap.. with an update tomorrow morning. He will call me tomorrow afternoon...

Geoffrey means so much to me.. perhaps too much.. He is supposed to be my ESA... But, I have been supporting him more that he has supported me... Not really, because I love him..

I feel cheated.. really cheated...
I had had Artie for 6 years... and not a good 6 Years. The first few years were wonderful..OMG.. Artie was my Soul Kitty.. always with me.. When I broke my upper arm, he would not leave my side..When I had pneumonia, he would not leave me... Then IBD and Megacolon (motility issues) kicked in-- and fast... I put him down on 5/23/18

I adopted Geoffrey 11/4/2018... just before my b-day... He was younger.. only 4 years old or so... He looked healthy, but skinny. I was a volunteer at the time. I needed time to get my apartment ready for him. I took him home the day before my b-day... I had a suspicion he may have IBD, because he vomited a couple of times while in the shelter..But he was Orange.. I fell in love with him..

Geoffrey was tuff from the beginning. I think he was either abused at one point or was completely afraid of people.. It took a lot of work, and Prozac to get him to the point he is now...He is my cuddle bug.. He loves me.. trusts me--you can see it in his eyes, and demeanor.
Now, I feel cheated,....... I really do.. I have worked so hard for my relationship with
Geoffrey... now I feel I am short changed.. Only 4 years with him...less than my Artie... dam. I wanted a younger kitty, so I would not have to go through the horror I did with Artie-- yet, G is younger and sicker.. It just seems to get worse...

I want a kitty in my life.. The way I am going, I don to thing the stars are aligning towards that. I need a kitty. I am alone..
I need someone to give me unconditional love....

Sorry if I am getting so maudlin.. so much down things.. I feel that way, today...
The "joys" of small cell lymphoma..

Sorry for the badness.. I have been tearing up all afternoon... I know life is not fair.. but I so much wanted a healthy kitty, for a while. Too much.. in such a short period of time.. feeling sorry for myself.. not right.. I have only had Geoffrey for a short period of time.. not even 4 years.. and it took almost a year to get him acclimated to me and love..

Pumpkin had diabetes.. was a sick kitten, nursed her back to health... bottle feeding...
Artie with his IBD, Megacolon-- motility issue, his heart arrhythmia...
Geoffrey with IBD, Small Cell Lymphoma, heart arrhythmia... possible diabetes... dam.
it just gets worse and worse...

Is someone trying to tel me that I should not have any more kitties?? I wonder.... I have spent so much money on them.. not to mention my emotional attachment to all of them.. I take things hard.. this is not right.. sorry.. I am feeling sorry of myself.. and for my baby boy...... whom I love...

 

[Furballsmom]

I'm so very very sorry.