hepatic lipidosis & hospice scheduled tomorrow - is it time to stop force feeding or is there hope still??

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denice

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When Patches had Hepatic Lipidosis the primary number the vet watched was the ALT. His ALT got higher than your cat's is at before it started coming down. It actually continued rising for a while after he was eating well on his own and acting fine. When it started to drop it came back down to normal quickly.
 
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When Patches had Hepatic Lipidosis the primary number the vet watched was the ALT. His ALT got higher than your cat's is at before it started coming down. It actually continued rising for a while after he was eating well on his own and acting fine. When it started to drop it came back down to normal quickly.
Were you seeing a lot of the other numbers as high, as well? How old was Patches and did he have any other medical issues? What do you think caused the hepatic lipidosis?
 

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The number the vet always talked about was his ALT. He was jaundiced so I know his Bilirubin was high as well. He had IBD which had not been diagnosed. His was in the upper part of his digestive system. He would quit eating, vomit bile and be constipated. He was only 18 months old when he had his first flare and the vet thought he had swallowed something and was blocked. He stayed at the vets for several days on an IV and he came out of it. I started the vet hopping thing every time he had a flare and there was another hospitalization, no diagnosis and he would come out of it on his own. I waited too long with a flare and took him to a cat's only clinic on the other side of the city and he was in Hepatic Lipidosis. He got diagnosed and was put on Prednisolone. He had a feeding tube, was hospitalized for several days and came home with the feeding tube. He remained on the Pred and luckily had no issues with it. He lived for another 8 years.
 
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The number the vet always talked about was his ALT. He was jaundiced so I know his Bilirubin was high as well. He had IBD which had not been diagnosed. His was in the upper part of his digestive system. He would quit eating, vomit bile and be constipated. He was only 18 months old when he had his first flare and the vet thought he had swallowed something and was blocked. He stayed at the vets for several days on an IV and he came out of it. I started the vet hopping thing every time he had a flare and there was another hospitalization, no diagnosis and he would come out of it on his own. I waited too long with a flare and took him to a cat's only clinic on the other side of the city and he was in Hepatic Lipidosis. He got diagnosed and was put on Prednisolone. He had a feeding tube, was hospitalized for several days and came home with the feeding tube. He remained on the Pred and luckily had no issues with it. He lived for another 8 years.
Thank you for sharing. ❤. What was it that eventually took Patches? How old was he when he passed? I suspect Lulu always had either IBD or food allergies. I did a lot of vet hopping, myself. When I finally found this vet and he listened to me about looking into CKD, I wanted to work with him and follow his instructions. He was the only vet that took me seriously (for years, no vets took Lulu's vomiting seriously, either). Anyway, it turned out to be a mistake. I put off 3 months taking care of her teeth because this vet said to follow up in three months to address the CKD first. By the time the 3 month follow up came, he did neither (address the CKD or the dental issue). I feel as though he was avoiding treating her and wasted 3 months of her health where all of this could have been prevented. By then, she had already started eating less and less. Had he done the bloodwork he was supposed to, I bet we would have seen her elevated enzymes before they were out of control. And had he believed me when I said she was eating less, then maybe a plan of action could have been set in motion to prevent hepatic lipidosis. I should have pushed. I should have advocated for her. Lesson learned. If she survives this, it looks like we're be changing vets again.
 

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I don't want to jinx myself, but she may have turned a corner! Of course I don't know for sure, but I suspected what caused the hepatic lipidosis was a combination of me watering down her food (as I noticed she was showing less of an appetite to the thicker purees) and her teeth/mouth issues. I think even by watering down her food, I was unwittingly lowering her calories and she was already eating less. I wanted to address her teeth, but her vet wanted to wait 3 months to address the kidneys, first. Now, I realize he was just avoiding treating anything. In those 3 months, I strongly believe her mouth became worse and now I know it is stomatitis from reviewing her ER reports from her primary medical history. Her primary never told me it was stomatitis.

Anyway, last night I chose to stop syringe feeding her as I am tired and exhausted and getting pressure from my family that I am doing the wrong thing here. And I just don't think I can put her through this for another week. But I also don't feel like she is telling me she wants to go; that's what makes this so hard. I don't get that she's given up. That's why I feel like I'm the one who has given up. Anyway, I gave her prednisolone for her mouth, not expecting much and blended some duck with water and put in on a flat plate, then went to bed.

When I woke up this morning, she ate ALL of it! And her body language looked better overall. I think that's why she looks as though she wasn't getting better! It's her mouth! I do realize that if she pulls out of this, I need to take her to the dental specialist ASAP. And I'm going to try one of those applications for the funds to do a full mouth extraction as so many people told me it vastly improves their quality of life - from what I read it is the way to go in managing stomatitis. I 100% believe that if I fix this one issue, she will be fine. With the IBD, I managed it perfectly with diet. In fact her internal medicine doctor told me he didn't think it was IBD because she was food responsive; so he thought it was food allergies, primarily chicken. As for CKD, that was also managed by keeping her on a low phosphorous diet and it was very early stage so I wasn't too worried about that either.

Of course, I don't know what damage will be done, even to her kidneys, if she comes out of this. But she actually looks pretty good this morning and I have to believe it's from the prednisolone. No, I don't think it just stimulated her appetite. I think it just helped her feel better and she doesn't look miserable, now...just lethargic. I can deal with lethargic. I can keep nursing her with lethargic. What I couldn't do was see her clearly in discomfort as that was no way to live.

Anyway, crossing my fingers. I had already pushed hospice back to Tuesday. So, if the prednisolone is working, then I feel 2-3 more days will show a significant recovery. My goal moving forward is to see how much she will eat on her own.
Research what you can do for the teeth at this time. For example, in humans, they can gargle with hydrogen peroxide, etc. to help get rid of bacteria, if they need to delay going to the dentist. I know that colloidal silver is also used for that, and at least you can syringe/spray it on the gums, put in the water, etc., to help with the bacteria, and it is something that doesn't hurt a cat to consume.
 
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Research what you can do for the teeth at this time. For example, in humans, they can gargle with hydrogen peroxide, etc. to help get rid of bacteria, if they need to delay going to the dentist. I know that colloidal silver is also used for that, and at least you can syringe/spray it on the gums, put in the water, etc., to help with the bacteria, and it is something that doesn't hurt a cat to consume.
I keep hearing about colloidal silver and will look into it. From what I have read and others I have spoken to with cats with stomatitis, a full extract is like a miracle solution. Cats do VERY well after that. I had a dental specialist appointment set for Lulu before she became sick. It's supposed to be next week but with her heart murmur, she would need to get an expensive echo to figure out if it's serious and then I would need to find another $5K to cover the dental estimate. The whole thing would run me over $6K between the cardiologist and the dentist. I'm trying not to think about any of that right now and would need to apply for some sort of aid to cover the cost. In the meantime, I read that prednisolone helps with the inflammation and I have been giving her that in small doses twice a day. She is also still on the antibiotic to fight whatever infection is going on in her. It hasn't cleared in 2 weeks but another cat mama I spoke to said it took three weeks for the same antibiotic to work for their cat. Overall, Lulu does look more comfortable. I think she turned a corner. Her vet yet again is very convinced she will come out of this.

This was what the mobile vet said when I asked again about quality of life (I would NOT do non aesthetic teeth cleaning, btw):

If she can eat/drink by herself, things will resolve by itself with current meds.
Dental is an issue but you can consider offer baby food or cn or en food so that she will feel more comfortable eating by herself when she wants to.
Stomatitis and IBD can be helped by antibiotics. CKD can be maintained if you can give fluids at home by yourself 2-3 times per week.
I would say if she can start eating by herself, the prognosis will be better.
Once that happens, next step would be dental cleaning which we do non-anesthetic dental for $300 (no extraction because we don't give anethesia for this procedure).
Some cats will take antibiotics or Prednisolone if IBD and Stomatitis recurs.
 

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She is also still on the antibiotic to fight whatever infection is going on in her. It hasn't cleared in 2 weeks but another cat mama I spoke to said it took three weeks for the same antibiotic to work for their cat.
I actually thought that the infection within Lulu's body...was clearing..since her WBC count...went from being 21.6...to 17.2...(3.9-19 ranges). Oh, unless you are meaning there's an infection within the Liver, causing the high Liver numbers.
I was thinking that the 'fatty liver' cells are blocking the Liver...from working properly...and need time to resolve.
Plus any bile duct blockages, or gall bladder issues.

And of course...I guess you cannot just take one value to look at...but the entire picture.
From Lulu's bloodwork...the only values that seemed high to me...are her ALT, AST, ALP, GGT, total bilirubin, (tbil uncong, tbil conj) and CHOL.

I totally agree with FeebysOwner...that I would wait a while...to get any more Bloodwork done...in a recheck.
Mainly because you save the money for other things...and having them done so close together...is not really going to show you if Lulu is improving or not...since I think the meds need time to work,...and so does the nutrition given.
Numbers are very important...but the way Lulu is acting...is just as important.

Your mobile Vet...would best be the one...to recommend when to recheck...since she has seen this before.

Everything is so difficult to think about...when you have a sick cat in front of you...and they cannot verbally tell you how they feel.
Then you have to go by how they Act, where, and how they walk, and sleep, if they eat, potty, drink.

So glad you have other cat mamas/papas to talk to...who have gone through this illness...specifically.
...Overall, Lulu does look more comfortable. I think she turned a corner. Her vet yet again is very convinced she will come out of this.

This was what the mobile vet said when I asked again about quality of life (I would NOT do non aesthetic teeth cleaning, btw):

If she can eat/drink by herself, things will resolve by itself with current meds.
Dental is an issue but you can consider offer baby food or cn or en food so that she will feel more comfortable eating by herself when she wants to.
Stomatitis and IBD can be helped by antibiotics. CKD can be maintained if you can give fluids at home by yourself 2-3 times per week.
I would say if she can start eating by herself, the prognosis will be better.
Once that happens, next step would be dental cleaning which we do non-anesthetic dental for $300 (no extraction because we don't give anethesia for this procedure).
Some cats will take antibiotics or Prednisolone if IBD and Stomatitis recurs.
This sounds like things can improve.

Hoping that Lulu can start to eat on her own. :bluepaw::bluepaw::bluepaw::bluepaw:
 

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I keep hearing about colloidal silver and will look into it. From what I have read and others I have spoken to with cats with stomatitis, a full extract is like a miracle solution. Cats do VERY well after that. I had a dental specialist appointment set for Lulu before she became sick. It's supposed to be next week but with her heart murmur, she would need to get an expensive echo to figure out if it's serious and then I would need to find another $5K to cover the dental estimate. The whole thing would run me over $6K between the cardiologist and the dentist. I'm trying not to think about any of that right now and would need to apply for some sort of aid to cover the cost. In the meantime, I read that prednisolone helps with the inflammation and I have been giving her that in small doses twice a day. She is also still on the antibiotic to fight whatever infection is going on in her. It hasn't cleared in 2 weeks but another cat mama I spoke to said it took three weeks for the same antibiotic to work for their cat. Overall, Lulu does look more comfortable. I think she turned a corner. Her vet yet again is very convinced she will come out of this.

This was what the mobile vet said when I asked again about quality of life (I would NOT do non aesthetic teeth cleaning, btw):

If she can eat/drink by herself, things will resolve by itself with current meds.
Dental is an issue but you can consider offer baby food or cn or en food so that she will feel more comfortable eating by herself when she wants to.
Stomatitis and IBD can be helped by antibiotics. CKD can be maintained if you can give fluids at home by yourself 2-3 times per week.
I would say if she can start eating by herself, the prognosis will be better.
Once that happens, next step would be dental cleaning which we do non-anesthetic dental for $300 (no extraction because we don't give anethesia for this procedure).
Some cats will take antibiotics or Prednisolone if IBD and Stomatitis recurs.
You've had a lot of responses, so I don't know if this was already addressed: make sure they monitor your cat's heart. Prednisolone can cause heart murmurs/heart disease, which a lot of vets don't tell us. You have to weigh the pros & cons, if that happens, & it can be reversed by taking the cat off the drug, reducing the dosage, using budesinide instead, etc.
 
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You've had a lot of responses, so I don't know if this was already addressed: make sure they monitor your cat's heart. Prednisolone can cause heart murmurs/heart disease, which a lot of vets don't tell us. You have to weigh the pros & cons, if that happens, & it can be reversed by taking the cat off the drug, reducing the dosage, using budesinide instead, etc.
Actually, the ER did not prescribe prednisolone because of her heart murmur. I had to cancel her appointment with the cardiologist today because of this whole hepatic lipidosis episode. So, I don't actually know if it's an innocent heart murmur or heart disease. I had leftover prednisolone in my house from her very first IBD ER experience. She has basically never really been on prednisolone and I only gave it to her this week out of desperation to lower her inflammation (whether that was internally or in her mouth, I don't know). I just know that she's eating less now than she was the other day. It's been almost 2 weeks since leaving the ER and her yellow (which got worse after the ER) has not faded at all. :(
 
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I actually thought that the infection within Lulu's body...was clearing..since her WBC count...went from being 21.6...to 17.2...(3.9-19 ranges). Oh, unless you are meaning there's an infection within the Liver, causing the high Liver numbers.
I was thinking that the 'fatty liver' cells are blocking the Liver...from working properly...and need time to resolve.
Plus any bile duct blockages, or gall bladder issues.

And of course...I guess you cannot just take one value to look at...but the entire picture.
From Lulu's bloodwork...the only values that seemed high to me...are her ALT, AST, ALP, GGT, total bilirubin, (tbil uncong, tbil conj) and CHOL.

I totally agree with FeebysOwner...that I would wait a while...to get any more Bloodwork done...in a recheck.
Mainly because you save the money for other things...and having them done so close together...is not really going to show you if Lulu is improving or not...since I think the meds need time to work,...and so does the nutrition given.
Numbers are very important...but the way Lulu is acting...is just as important.

Your mobile Vet...would best be the one...to recommend when to recheck...since she has seen this before.

Everything is so difficult to think about...when you have a sick cat in front of you...and they cannot verbally tell you how they feel.
Then you have to go by how they Act, where, and how they walk, and sleep, if they eat, potty, drink.

So glad you have other cat mamas/papas to talk to...who have gone through this illness...specifically.

This sounds like things can improve.

Hoping that Lulu can start to eat on her own. :bluepaw::bluepaw::bluepaw::bluepaw:
This is what the mobile vet has said about Lulu's recovery:
  • 1-2 weeks for you to see the energy level and mild color change.
  • 3-4 weeks for fully recovery. Please read the print out for more information.
  • It depends the color may not fade out right away.
  • Sure we can wait for a few days or even next week. (for blood work)
It's been almost 2 weeks since the ER. I would say that her energy level is better and she looks less in pain though still uncomfortable. No change to her jaundice whatsoever. :( And I feel like more aversion towards food even? The roasted duck has worked for one day and that was it. I just roasted a whole rabbit, and she's not biting. I'm running out of food options here for an IBD & CKD cat. :( She never cared for dry kibble. She was extremely pick towards canned food only eating Fancy Feast which she eventually got sick of. In the 14 years I have had her, only one food ever did she have a consistent appetite for: Instinct Signature Frozen Raw Rabbit. When they discontinued that line is when all her health issues came out in a vengeance. They came out with their longevity line but I have purchased 3 bags and all 3 from two different suppliers have terrible freezer burn so she won't eat it. Leading up to the hepatic lipidosis, I was cooking her both ground rabbit and ground pork with egg yolk and alnutrin as a meal completer. She ate it, but she didn't come running for it. And unfortunately, I think she grew an aversion to those foods before I knew she had hepatic lipidosis. I honestly do not know what else I could possibly feed her or coax her with. She also has stomatitis. It's been nonstop baby food for force feeding but there is cornstarch in the baby food so I hope that hasn't been difficult on her liver. I'm so tired of running back and forth to grocery stores and pet stores, and throwing out hundreds and hundreds of dollars on a kitty buffet she won't touch, cooking and roasting meat, coaxing with tuna juice & flakes. My credit cards are all maxed out. :(
 

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This is what the mobile vet has said about Lulu's recovery:
  • 1-2 weeks for you to see the energy level and mild color change.
  • 3-4 weeks for fully recovery. Please read the print out for more information.
  • It depends the color may not fade out right away.
  • Sure we can wait for a few days or even next week. (for blood work)
It's been almost 2 weeks since the ER. I would say that her energy level is better and she looks less in pain though still uncomfortable. No change to her jaundice whatsoever. :( And I feel like more aversion towards food even? The roasted duck has worked for one day and that was it. I just roasted a whole rabbit, and she's not biting. I'm running out of food options here for an IBD & CKD cat. :( She never cared for dry kibble. She was extremely pick towards canned food only eating Fancy Feast which she eventually got sick of. In the 14 years I have had her, only one food ever did she have a consistent appetite for: Instinct Signature Frozen Raw Rabbit. When they discontinued that line is when all her health issues came out in a vengeance. They came out with their longevity line but I have purchased 3 bags and all 3 from two different suppliers have terrible freezer burn so she won't eat it. Leading up to the hepatic lipidosis, I was cooking her both ground rabbit and ground pork with egg yolk and alnutrin as a meal completer. She ate it, but she didn't come running for it. And unfortunately, I think she grew an aversion to those foods before I knew she had hepatic lipidosis. I honestly do not know what else I could possibly feed her or coax her with. She also has stomatitis. It's been nonstop baby food for force feeding but there is cornstarch in the baby food so I hope that hasn't been difficult on her liver. I'm so tired of running back and forth to grocery stores and pet stores, and throwing out hundreds and hundreds of dollars on a kitty buffet she won't touch, cooking and roasting meat, coaxing with tuna juice & flakes. My credit cards are all maxed out. :(
This illness is just awful. :frown:
Feline hepatic lipidosis - Wikipedia
https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951913
Hepatic Lipidosis

I went back and read the dates...of the first bloodwork, and ER visit.
12/28...and 12/31...meaning that today is two weeks since first bw...and Friday will be two weeks since ER bw.

Then I went back and read your first post, again,..and couldn't believe that it was on Jan. 3...meaning a week plus a day.
I honestly thought that two weeks had already gone by...and I'm not even involved in Lulu's care...so for you it must feel like it is triple that time. I totally feel for you. :hugs::grouphug:

J Jenny22 ...Do you realistically believe that Lulu can make it until this Friday?
(With the amount of food intake...she is having now)
Is she still groaning whenever she moves?

If you were to wait until thursay or Friday,...and then either do the recheck bw...or euthanize at the mobile vet...do you think that Lulu would make it until then?...or is this not what you had wanted...versus the plan for home euthanasia?
Having her die at home, so she is surrounded by you, and the home she loved.
(also remembering to set aside the funds, for the above options,..since they will cost different amounts, too.
If the mobile vet clinic does not offer payment plans...then that is another thing to consider.)

I guess I am basically asking you to look at her,..and ask yourself...what would she want?
What would cause her the least amount of suffering...if she indeed looks like she is suffering...and straining to survive.
 
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This illness is just awful. :frown:
Feline hepatic lipidosis - Wikipedia
https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951913
Hepatic Lipidosis

I went back and read the dates...of the first bloodwork, and ER visit.
12/28...and 12/31...meaning that today is two weeks since first bw...and Friday will be two weeks since ER bw.

Then I went back and read your first post, again,..and couldn't believe that it was on Jan. 3...meaning a week plus a day.
I honestly thought that two weeks had already gone by...and I'm not even involved in Lulu's care...so for you it must feel like it is triple that time. I totally feel for you. :hugs::grouphug:

J Jenny22 ...Do you realistically believe that Lulu can make it until this Friday?
(With the amount of food intake...she is having now)
Is she still groaning whenever she moves?

If you were to wait until thursay or Friday,...and then either do the recheck bw...or euthanize at the mobile vet...do you think that Lulu would make it until then?...or is this not what you had wanted...versus the plan for home euthanasia?
Having her die at home, so she is surrounded by you, and the home she loved.
(also remembering to set aside the funds, for the above options,..since they will cost different amounts, too.
If the mobile vet clinic does not offer payment plans...then that is another thing to consider.)

I guess I am basically asking you to look at her,..and ask yourself...what would she want?
What would cause her the least amount of suffering...if she indeed looks like she is suffering...and straining to survive.
When I look at her, she has not given up. The vet is right; she looks like a sick cat, not a dying cat. That's what makes this so hard. She's much better than when she left the ER. To a stranger, she actually looks like a normal cat, now. She sleeps most of the day, she walks around, she leaps on furniture, she drinks water, she uses the litterbox, and occasionally she eats the temptation treats. At night a few times, she surprised me by eating on her own but has not done that in 2 days. And now....she is actually fighting me on the syringe feeding which I actually think is a good sign that she's getting her energy back. Before she was in that meatloaf stance and clearly in pain almost all day long with squinted eyes and groaning. Now, she looks more relaxed but sleeps almost the whole day. Her body language has improved. But still - these are MILD improvements at best. She still will not play with a laser light or her favorite toy. She still shows little to no interest in food with some very fleeting exceptions. And very rarely, but still sometimes, I may hear her groan or struggle to get comfortable while she lays. I will say it is not often and that in itself is a huge improvement. She did just vomit some bile today, too.

Yes, I wholeheartedly believe Lulu will make it to Friday. She has not gotten worse. She has gotten better. But as I said before, it's such small improvements, way smaller than I had hoped to see at this point. And if she is growing averse to foods, then this whole process is going to get that much more difficult for me and I am so tired of carrying this burden alone. I still have to work full time to pay my rent and I haven't seen my dog in like 2-3 weeks. I have terrible cabin fever and I miss my family. I feel like a prisoner....

Honestly, I am much less inclined to euthanize her at this point as she has improved and does not look like a cat that needs to be put out of its misery. She's just not a super happy cat and that still causes me so much anxiety. She even cuddled with me today in the bed and she jumped on the piano bench while I was playing. There isn't a shred of suffering in her eyes that tells me she wants to rest. If there was, this whole process would have been so much easier. As much as I love her, I have no desire to force her to suffer for my selfishness. I'm just not that type of person. When a pet of mine is suffering, I can't bear it to the point where I am usually ready to put them down earlier than another owner would do so. 4 years ago I went into septic shock and I was struggling to breathe throughout my stay at the hospital. My organs were shutting down and I almost died. I remember the feeling of wanting it to end as I felt that uncomfortable in my body and was suffering from not being able to breathe. I would not wish that on anyone, especially not my pets. I would recognize that look in anyone and anything if I saw it. My decision to possibly euthanize her has more to do with how much she has been through in the last 4 months and how uncomfortable she still feels now and what hurdles lay ahead for her coming out of this. I think about how much more trauma I would have to subject her to before she gets a decent quality of life back.
 

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I can't recall - did she like baby food meat? You can add EZ Complete (for most of them) to it to make it nutritionally sound for a cat. You might find this article helpful if baby food meat is an option.
 

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I can't recall - did she like baby food meat? You can add EZ Complete (for most of them) to it to make it nutritionally sound for a cat. You might find this article helpful if baby food meat is an option.
I have this file! :) I actually use Alnutrin because I am afraid of the chicken liver in EZ Complete. Lulu is deathly intolerant of chicken. I was just about to add Alnutrin to her baby food starting tomorrow, I think. She has also been getting some Nutri-Cal and also eating some temptation treats and lastly getting a vitamin tonic once a day. So there are vitamins that she has been getting outside of baby food. She's actually getting sick of the baby food and that worries me a bit. I added some taurine the other day but am trying not to overload her system.
 
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If you are currently using Gerber, try to see if you can find the Beechnut. They don't taste the same (I've tasted them), so might be worth seeing if you 'swap' between them that it might help?
I was going to do that but I don't think they have a pork version. Seems all the baby food is usually poultry and beef. I know she cannot have chicken. Turkey is debatable and I'm little worried to try it. And Beef I'm not sure either. I actually think giving her bison right before this episode caused her inflammation. She was on those three proteins for canned foods for years before I knew she had IBD. Chicken was the biggest offender. But I am worried of giving her something that will cause her inflammation and vomiting right now. Gerber had ham and that seemed like a safe bet. I'm going to blend the roasted rabbit into a puree tonight and I hope hope hope that she will eat it. What Beechnut would you suggest?
 

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What Beechnut would you suggest?
Well, on that note, you are kind of 'stuck'. They don't have ham, and you can't do chicken, so your only options (as far as I know) are beef and turkey. :( I have even considered the baby food meat sticks but need to look into those further.

Ever consider canned sardines? A friend of mine suggested getting some and adding just a tiny bit of them to Feeby's food - not every meal, but just to add some 'interest'. I haven't been to the store to buy any yet, but I will be...
 
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Jenny22

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Well, on that note, you are kind of 'stuck'. They don't have ham, and you can't do chicken, so your only options (as far as I know) are beef and turkey. :( I have even considered the baby food meat sticks but need to look into those further.

Ever consider canned sardines? A friend of mine suggested getting some and adding just a tiny bit of them to Feeby's food - not every meal, but just to add some 'interest'. I haven't been to the store to buy any yet, but I will be...
Tried sardines already. 😩 Tried tuna...mackeral...I have tried everything. Just now I opened a can of CN cat food that the mobile vet gave me and she cried for it and eat some of it!! I hope it's not another fleeting thing she'll eat.

After she eats, she is back into this meatloaf pose. Do you think that is inflammation? Is that normal with hepatic lipidosis? This is part of the problem in getting her to recover; I feel food makes her feel ill right afterwards no matter what I give her. She has IBD, so could be intestinal inflammation. She was never ruled out for lymphoma so I hope that isn't what's going on here but I feel like the ER would have mentioned it after the ultrasound if they suspected it. So, I guess I'll give her some prednisolone and see if that helps (if it is in fact inflammation). :(
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When I look at her, she has not given up. The vet is right; she looks like a sick cat, not a dying cat. That's what makes this so hard. She's much better than when she left the ER. To a stranger, she actually looks like a normal cat, now. She sleeps most of the day, she walks around, she leaps on furniture, she drinks water, she uses the litterbox, and occasionally she eats the temptation treats. At night a few times, she surprised me by eating on her own but has not done that in 2 days. And now....she is actually fighting me on the syringe feeding which I actually think is a good sign that she's getting her energy back. Before she was in that meatloaf stance and clearly in pain almost all day long with squinted eyes and groaning. Now, she looks more relaxed but sleeps almost the whole day. Her body language has improved. But still - these are MILD improvements at best. She still will not play with a laser light or her favorite toy. She still shows little to no interest in food with some very fleeting exceptions. And very rarely, but still sometimes, I may hear her groan or struggle to get comfortable while she lays. I will say it is not often and that in itself is a huge improvement. She did just vomit some bile today, too.
Thanks Jen, I had an entirely different picture in my head.
I thought she was mostly immobile, not moving around much, crouching all the time, meatloaf, and groaning in pain.

(Also perhaps hiding, like my rainbow, ckd and hcm cat, Spotty, did when he was 15.5 years old.)
(He, too, had dental extractions done, when 14 yrs old,...and I regret that I had not been observant enough, about his teeth earlier, since I think that caused the hcm, and ckd to develop faster. Similar to what you said earlier about Lulu's dental issues.)
Yes, I wholeheartedly believe Lulu will make it to Friday. She has not gotten worse. She has gotten better. But as I said before, it's such small improvements, way smaller than I had hoped to see at this point. And if she is growing averse to foods, then this whole process is going to get that much more difficult for me and I am so tired of carrying this burden alone. I still have to work full time to pay my rent and I haven't seen my dog in like 2-3 weeks. I have terrible cabin fever and I miss my family. I feel like a prisoner....
I'm kind of angry at the ER place...for not giving you the option..of trying out a 'nasal gastric tube'.
Even your primary Vet, should have offered you this. Not sure about cost of this type versus other types.
True, they say that this tube, may be easily displaced, or the cat can paw it out...but at least the primary Vet, or ER Vets should have offered...some lower cost options..in available tubes.
Not sure how long a liquid diet...would have helped.
sorry for venting.

Dam, yeah, doing this alone cannot be easy, at the same time of having to go to work, to pay the bills.
I really hope that your dog gets better, too. I cannot remember what you said he has, but I briefly think I saw that you said your family was caring for him/her.
Honestly, I am much less inclined to euthanize her at this point as she has improved and does not look like a cat that needs to be put out of its misery. She's just not a super happy cat and that still causes me so much anxiety. She even cuddled with me today in the bed and she jumped on the piano bench while I was playing. There isn't a shred of suffering in her eyes that tells me she wants to rest. If there was, this whole process would have been so much easier. As much as I love her, I have no desire to force her to suffer for my selfishness. I'm just not that type of person. When a pet of mine is suffering, I can't bear it to the point where I am usually ready to put them down earlier than another owner would do so.
You don't come across as selfish at all. Just the opposite.
Extremely kind, caring, and going to huge lengths, to try and help your cat.

I totally admire people like you, who can post online when their pets are sick, and have such strength, to look for further ideas...right in the midst of a pet's illness, or during the journey of the illness.
I learn so much from people like you...when you post for your cat. I know that may sound dumb or stupid to say,...since I really wish...that your beautiful cat Lulu would not be going through this at all. But your thread, has taught me so much, about this illness. :touched:and how strong people are.
Having to go to work, and caring for a sick animal, at the same time, is so difficult and stressful.
4 years ago I went into septic shock and I was struggling to breathe throughout my stay at the hospital. My organs were shutting down and I almost died. I remember the feeling of wanting it to end as I felt that uncomfortable in my body and was suffering from not being able to breathe. I would not wish that on anyone, especially not my pets. I would recognize that look in anyone and anything if I saw it. My decision to possibly euthanize her has more to do with how much she has been through in the last 4 months and how uncomfortable she still feels now and what hurdles lay ahead for her coming out of this. I think about how much more trauma I would have to subject her to before she gets a decent quality of life back.
(Omg...thankfully you made it. Holy, having organs shut down sounds awful.
Never had sepsis..so would not know that pain.
For those of us, who have had different illnesses, or stays at hospitals, I know what you mean about not wishing that type of pain on beloved animal companions.)

I guess the biggest hurdle would be the dental issues...

(since I know that my rainbow Spotty cat, felt a hundred times better from having 6-7 teeth extracted at age 14. He acted like a kitten again....more playful. But that is when I learned he had CKD...from the 'in house' blood work
A year earlier, his female Vet had heard a heart murmur 2-3/6, and did proBNP bloodtests...and when those increased..she had suggested a cardiologist, who did a heart echo..and then we learned he had HCM.)
Strangely enough, though, the male Vet, at the same clinic,...was not bothered by the proBNP numbers...and did not fear doing the extractions. The female vet said she was not comfortable doing them without a cardiologist consult. So it really varies, ..how different Vets...with different ages, and experiences...do things.)

Which reminds me...can you do "in house" blood work...at the mobile vet place?
Would it be cheaper costing? but maybe not as thorough,...or else they don't show liver enzymes. I cannot recall.

Get plenty of rest, Jenny, and only answer when you can. You are amazing.
 
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Jenny22

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Thanks Jen, I had an entirely different picture in my head.
I thought she was mostly immobile, not moving around much, crouching all the time, meatloaf, and groaning in pain.

(Also perhaps hiding, like my rainbow, ckd and hcm cat, Spotty, did when he was 15.5 years old.)
(He, too, had dental extractions done, when 14 yrs old,...and I regret that I had not been observant enough, about his teeth earlier, since I think that caused the hcm, and ckd to develop faster. Similar to what you said earlier about Lulu's dental issues.)

I'm kind of angry at the ER place...for not giving you the option..of trying out a 'nasal gastric tube'.
Even your primary Vet, should have offered you this. Not sure about cost of this type versus other types.
True, they say that this tube, may be easily displaced, or the cat can paw it out...but at least the primary Vet, or ER Vets should have offered...some lower cost options..in available tubes.
Not sure how long a liquid diet...would have helped.
sorry for venting.

Dam, yeah, doing this alone cannot be easy, at the same time of having to go to work, to pay the bills.
I really hope that your dog gets better, too. I cannot remember what you said he has, but I briefly think I saw that you said your family was caring for him/her.

You don't come across as selfish at all. Just the opposite.
Extremely kind, caring, and going to huge lengths, to try and help your cat.

I totally admire people like you, who can post online when their pets are sick, and have such strength, to look for further ideas...right in the midst of a pet's illness, or during the journey of the illness.
I learn so much from people like you...when you post for your cat. I know that may sound dumb or stupid to say,...since I really wish...that your beautiful cat Lulu would not be going through this at all. But your thread, has taught me so much, about this illness. :touched:and how strong people are.
Having to go to work, and caring for a sick animal, at the same time, is so difficult and stressful.

(Omg...thankfully you made it. Holy, having organs shut down sounds awful.
Never had sepsis..so would not know that pain.
For those of us, who have had different illnesses, or stays at hospitals, I know what you mean about not wishing that type of pain on beloved animal companions.)

I guess the biggest hurdle would be the dental issues...

(since I know that my rainbow Spotty cat, felt a hundred times better from having 6-7 teeth extracted at age 14. He acted like a kitten again....more playful. But that is when I learned he had CKD...from the 'in house' blood work
A year earlier, his female Vet had heard a heart murmur 2-3/6, and did proBNP bloodtests...and when those increased..she had suggested a cardiologist, who did a heart echo..and then we learned he had HCM.)
Strangely enough, though, the male Vet, at the same clinic,...was not bothered by the proBNP numbers...and did not fear doing the extractions. The female vet said she was not comfortable doing them without a cardiologist consult. So it really varies, ..how different Vets...with different ages, and experiences...do things.)

Which reminds me...can you do "in house" blood work...at the mobile vet place?
Would it be cheaper costing? but maybe not as thorough,...or else they don't show liver enzymes. I cannot recall.

Get plenty of rest, Jenny, and only answer when you can. You are amazing.

So, after leaving the ER, she was pretty immobile, crouching, etc. and hiding. She's kind of been in the bedroom sleeping all day instead of out near me which makes me sad. But she mostly looks tired. I completely feel for you and the dental issues with your cat. I had no idea with Lulu. I was only told she had mild gingivitis about a year ago and that was it. I regret not addressing her teeth then. But I also feel the vet was incompetent and probably under diagnosed the severity of what was going on with her teeth. She had been on a homecooked and raw diet for a year, so I don't know how her teeth went from mild gingivitis to feline tooth resorption and stomatitis.

I'm angry at the ER too - It was New Year's Eve and I was told that the other two ERs nearby were closed for the holidays so the place was triple capacity. I was so angry of the people coming in, too. One lady brought a perfectly healthy dog that got into a normal dog fight. The type of dog fight that establishes dominance. No blood. No open wounds. Perfectly healthy dog and she wasted a spot at the ER "just in case". I saw lots of cases like that that night with people who had no business taking up the vets' time. They were already understaffed. People really do not understand what "emergency" means. So, in a sense I think Lulu was very neglected. NG tube was not suggested but honestly I have had it twice and it's the second most miserable thing I've ever experienced. I'm not sure I would put my cat through that. What I am angry about is that I was discharged without any real guidance or instruction on how to treat this at home...no real liver support or helpful meds or fluids. And then I'm even more angry that her primary who was responsible for us even being in this situation made no attempt to check on us and didn't offer any advice or additional support either on how to treat this aggressively at home. In fact, when I asked for ondansetron which the ER refused to give her, her primary called me yelling at me because he was frustrated that my pharmacy hung up on me and then proceeded to tell me that he wasn't spending any more time on this and that I could drive the two hours back and forth to get my prescription from his office the next day. She vomited that night without the meds...I honestly felt so abandoned and overwhelmed. Thank goodness for sites like this. ❤❤❤

My dog was diagnosed with Lyme disease. He is on meds. I don't know how early we caught it or if he was suffering from any longterm effects. I haven't seen him so I hope he's ok. I pushed for the blood test - I just knew intuitively that he had Lyme. I don't know why. But I knew and I am so glad I listened to my gut. My last dog went undiagnosed for 8 months at least and I strongly believe that is what caused his cancer and his organ failure.

Thank you so much for all of your kind words. They mean a lot to me. I am really trying. For me, I become hyper-focused when there is an issue like this and I research and read EVERYTHING I can possibly find until I find the right answers. When I was sick and gaslighted for having endometriosis, I did the same thing. I buried my head in the internet, gathering as much data and anecdotal stories as possible. It's where I found my surgeon who finally "fixed me". If it were not for him, I would have had an unnecessary colostomy and hysterectomy at the age of 35. That's another long story for another day and what lead to the septic shock.

I understand what you mean by vets. Her primary who has been avoiding treating her didn't want to do anything that involved anesthesia on her. Whereas I had many other people tell me just like your baby, that the dental issues are treatable in her condition.

The mobile vet does do bloodwork, by the way. I think I am going to retest Lulu on Friday. :)
 
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