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- #41
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Horner’s syndrome in 11 year old cat
- Thread starter lynne8832
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I'm so glad the news is that it's an inner ear infection and not a tumor!
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- #43
Me too! I was so thrilled! Shyla already seems to be feeling much more like herself. Her appetite is significantly better and she seems more comfortable overall!
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- #44
Hi everyone! I’m happy to report that Shyla is doing great! She is still wobbly on her feet, but seems totally normal otherwise. Her appetite is MUCH improved and she seems very happy. However, I am having a hard time administering her pills to her. She gets 3 tablets and 1 capsule twice every day. For the first day, she took them hidden in pill pockets and cream cheese, but she seems to have figured that trick out and will no longer take them in treats. I tried to give her the pills for over an hour tonight, with no luck. I would shove the pill into her mouth and she would gag multiple times and spit it out and I was worried that she was going to get hurt. I left a message for the neurology department to see if they had any tips or if it could be compounded into a liquid. If I do have to resort to just putting the pills at the back of her throat, could this hurt her or could she actually choke on them? It broke my heart to see her gagging and spitting the pills out everywhere, but she absolutely needs them.
Hopefully the neurologists have workable options for you, but there's also a pill popper, or shooter where you put the pill into the end of it, put that in her mouth and depress a plunger. That's probably a bad description, but it worked for us (well, for my partner with Poppycat, I didn't use it).
Sorry to hear Shyla is not happy with taking pills. My cat was like that for a long time but I recently was able to more or less get her pilled with less drama. Are the pills small enough to put inside a gel cap? If you can fit the pill or even multiple pills inside a size 3 or size 4 gel cap, it could make it easier for you and Shyla. She won't taste the med and the gel caps slide down better with some water. You can even get size 3 gel caps that have chicken flavor on Amazon. Sometimes pilling the old fashioned way (putting it back into the throat by hand) is going to the only way that works. If you can put the pill/s into a gel cap, smear some food or the cream cheese on one end of it and put it as far back as you can. Hold her mouth closed and head upwards for a few seconds. Chase it with some water or some food to make sure Shyla swallows. Always follow the pills session with a treat (to help her swallow and make it up to her). If you use the pill popper instead of your fingers, make sure you check that the tip is on securely each time you use it. If a cat bites down sometimes the tip can come off and even get swallowed.
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- #47
Thank you all so much for your suggestions! I was able to get her to take her pills this morning, but she hated it and I felt so bad. They just called me back and they can get both of her antibiotics in liquid form, which is perfect! She is much more cooperative with liquid medications so hopefully this will be less stressful for her! Overall she is doing well! She is eating great and seems very happy!
Thank you for a terrific update 
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- #49
I picked up Shyla’s liquid antibiotics tonight, so we will try those! I have a feeling that will be much easier for the both of us. Shyla loves to be outside, so I took her out for a bit today! Usually she goes outside and lays on the porch or in the backyard, but I don’t want to risk her injuring herself while she is still wobbly on her feet, so we spent a few hours together outside today. I figured she would appreciate some time outside since she’s been allowed to go outside every day of her life and she’s been inside for the past few days. I even let her walk down the staircase from the back porch to the backyard (with very close supervision) and she did amazing! She napped outside for hours and I think she really enjoyed it! I’m expecting a call from her neurologist within the next few days and will discuss surgery with her when we speak. I’m hoping that regardless of the treatment (whether she remains on antibiotics or we elect surgical intervention) that some of Shyla’s symptoms will resolve. I have read that with severe ear infections like this, it is possible for them to have neurological symptoms even after treatment, but I’m hoping that they will at least improve.
Oh, I can visualize this, how absolutely wonderful
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- #51
Hey everyone! I just wanted to give another update on Shyla and ask a few questions. Shyla is still on the Clavamox and Clindamycin twice per day, but we stopped the Cerenia and Ondansetron since her balance was improving so much. She is still eating great. She has diarrhea due to the antibiotics, which we are treating with Proviable. The soonest that we could get her in with dermatology was mid-November, which her neurologist said was fine. Her neurologist wants her to stay on the antibiotics for at least another few weeks. My question is: she’s doing well overall, but seems a bit more wobbly lately. For the past few weeks, she really hasn’t been wobbly at all. I noticed over the past few days she’s been more unsteady on her feet and falling a bit more, but she’s totally normal otherwise. I left her neurologist a voicemail to see if we should start back on the Ondansetron and Cerenia. Does this mean that she won’t get better since she is getting more wobbly? I’m not sure if I should be worried or if this is just normal fluctuation in her progress.
I would say this is definitely a question for the neurologist. Did the balance issues start up around the time you stopped those meds? If so, then it seems like they could be connected, although I don't really understand how those particular drugs could do it. That being said, many drugs do things that they aren't typically prescribed for. As an example, Viagra is used in animals that have Mega-Esophagus because it helps with the closing of the valves leading into and out of the esophagus! Who've thought?
What happened with the possible surgery? Did that happen or because she did so well on medication was that put on the back burner for now?
Let us know what neuro says. Also, why is she seeing a dermatologist? I don't remember, sorry.
What happened with the possible surgery? Did that happen or because she did so well on medication was that put on the back burner for now?
Let us know what neuro says. Also, why is she seeing a dermatologist? I don't remember, sorry.
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- #53
When I spoke to her neurologist, she said that they usually have all cases of otitis media see dermatology first, to see if it can be effectively managed without an invasive surgery. She said that if she were doing poorly, we would go straight to surgery, but since she is doing relatively well, she thinks that it would be more appropriate to get the opinion of the dermatologist first as they have so much experience with ear infections and disease. After seeing the dermatologist, we will decide whether or not to proceed with surgery based on their recommendation. The dermatologist said that many cats with otitis media need to be on antibiotics for 4, 6, or even 8 weeks before going the route of surgery.
Very interesting. Who would have thought a dermatologist would treat a middle ear infection. I learned something new today
