Intestinal Mass in 15 yo FIV positive cat, whether to operate or not.

[silent meowlook]

With my cat I have to feed a novel protein diet. The Royal Canin RP which is rabbit. It is a prescription diet and it was hard to transition her over to it. But that’s all she eats now. She does well on it. Although it’s been over 2 years since the presumptive diagnosis and along with her other illnesses she isn’t as well as she used to be.
I tried the probiotics. Forte Flora which would sometimes get her to eat and another supposedly better probiotic that name eludes me. I honestly didn’t see a difference.
She has also been on Metronidazole the last two months due to a rancid smell in her mouth that did resolve on the Metronidazole but comes back when I reduce the dosage.

 

[AnthonyM]

With my cat I have to feed a novel protein diet. The Royal Canin RP which is rabbit. It is a prescription diet and it was hard to transition her over to it. But that’s all she eats now. She does well on it. Although it’s been over 2 years since the presumptive diagnosis and along with her other illnesses she isn’t as well as she used to be.
I tried the probiotics. Forte Flora which would sometimes get her to eat and another supposedly better probiotic that name eludes me. I honestly didn’t see a difference.
She has also been on Metronidazole the last two months due to a rancid smell in her mouth that did resolve on the Metronidazole but comes back when I reduce the dosage.

Thanks for explaining. I have spoken to the vet today and asked what treatment is available if I'm not going ahead with surgery and she recommended oral steroids. She said his stomach would be distended due to inflammation which was why he seemed uncomfortable but that pain relief was unnecessary.

 

[Norachan]

She said his stomach would be distended due to inflammation which was why he seemed uncomfortable but that pain relief was unnecessary.

As I understand it steroids act as an anti-inflammatory which means they also help the pain caused by inflammation. Our vet often gives a steroid injection for problems such as gum inflammation or other infections.

 

[AnthonyM]

Thank you!

As I understand it steroids act as an anti-inflammatory which means they also help the pain caused by inflammation. Our vet often gives a steroid injection for problems such as gum inflammation or other infections.

Thank you!

 

[AnthonyM]

As I understand it steroids act as an anti-inflammatory which means they also help the pain caused by inflammation. Our vet often gives a steroid injection for problems such as gum inflammation or other infections.

I have given Jack his first prednisolone tablet today. As these are immunosuppressive and he is FIV+, I am wondering if I should continue with Fortiflora. I read that It should be used with caution in FIV+ cats? Thanks!

 

[Norachan]

I've never used Fortiflora with any of my FIV+ cats. I think you should call your vet and ask if it's safe to use or not.

Sorry I can't be of much help here, the products available in Asia are different to those you would be able to buy.

 

[silent meowlook]

Forte Flora is just probiotics. I would think you should keep things the same.

 

[AnthonyM]

I've never used Fortiflora with any of my FIV+ cats. I think you should call your vet and ask if it's safe to use or not.

Sorry I can't be of much help here, the products available in Asia are different to those you would be able to buy.

Thank you for your reply!

 

[AnthonyM]

Forte Flora is just probiotics. I would think you should keep things the same.

Thank you!

 

[CakesCats]

I can’t tell you what to do, but I went through a similar situation last year with my boy who was 14/15 at the time. Masses were found in his stomach and due to his age, some other health issues and location (with our vets input) we decided not to do a biopsy. We started him on gabapentin and cerenia in February 2022. I swear to you the gabapentin made him the happiest he ever was. I kept saying it took a cancer diagnosis for him to live his best life. He was so cuddly and would chase his tail and roll around like a loon. We had him for another year and 4 months before he passed on June 19th 2023. I miss him more than I could ever express, but I would make the same decision again given the circumstances. I knew Petey and I knew that if we had to put him through tons of vet visits he would have hated every second of it. Whatever decision you make you are doing it out of love and trying to do what’s best for your kitty. I hope everything works out well for you both and you have lots of good time left!!

 

[three4rd]

perhaps he's best in the home he knows until he no longer has a quality of life.

As hard as that realization is, I have to agree. Prayers for you and Jack. Enjoy him as long as you can. A manager of a kennel once told me "every day is a day of Grace". For all of us, not just our pets.

 

[AnthonyM]

I can’t tell you what to do, but I went through a similar situation last year with my boy who was 14/15 at the time. Masses were found in his stomach and due to his age, some other health issues and location (with our vets input) we decided not to do a biopsy. We started him on gabapentin and cerenia in February 2022. I swear to you the gabapentin made him the happiest he ever was. I kept saying it took a cancer diagnosis for him to live his best life. He was so cuddly and would chase his tail and roll around like a loon. We had him for another year and 4 months before he passed on June 19th 2023. I miss him more than I could ever express, but I would make the same decision again given the circumstances. I knew Petey and I knew that if we had to put him through tons of vet visits he would have hated every second of it. Whatever decision you make you are doing it out of love and trying to do what’s best for your kitty. I hope everything works out well for you both and you have lots of good time left!!

Hi, I'm sorry for the delay in replying, I have had some personal issues to deal with and didn't check my messages. Thank you very much for sharing your story, I'm sorry to hear of your loss. Petey did really well on the medication you mention. Jack is only on prednisolone at the moment as the vet doesn't think he is in pain. The vet says his prognosis is poor and I assume he had a more aggressive mass than Petey. I will enquire about the medications you mention to see if they might help Jack. Thanks very much for your good wishes!

 

[AnthonyM]

As hard as that realization is, I have to agree. Prayers for you and Jack. Enjoy him as long as you can. A manager of a kennel once told me "every day is a day of Grace". For all of us, not just our pets.

Hi, I'm sorry for the delay in replying, I have had some personal issues to deal with and didn't check my messages. Thank you for your kind and very true words!

 

[MA LESTER]

I have also got a 15 year old cat and his red blood cell count keeps going higher and higher the vet said he has probably got something wrong with his bone marrow or he has a growth somewhere
They could do a biopsy but at sandy age it could be risky
So we have decided palliative care he has to take a steroid half a tablet every day
So far he has had a bit of diarrhea
He is eating more and drinking
So personally I think you should do palliative care

 

[AnthonyM]

I have also got a 15 year old cat and his red blood cell count keeps going higher and higher the vet said he has probably got something wrong with his bone marrow or he has a growth somewhere
They could do a biopsy but at sandy age it could be risky
So we have decided palliative care he has to take a steroid half a tablet every day
So far he has had a bit of diarrhea
He is eating more and drinking
So personally I think you should do palliative care

Hello,
Thanks for your message. I'm glad your cat is showing an improvement. Unfortunately, Jack's stool is really bad now, almost liquid and very red. My vet says nothing will help except surgery. Sadly Jack is going to get weaker quite quickly. I'm still wondering if I should have the surgery done.

 

[Norachan]

I'm sorry you're in this position A AnthonyM It's a very difficult decision to have to make.

If you go ahead with the surgery how much more time does the vet think this would give Jack? If it will buy him another 3 or 4 months of realtively comfortable life and you can afford the surgery it might be worth going ahead with it.

If it's a case of putting him through the surgery and, at best, only getting a couple of extra weeks I wouldn't do it. No one wants to spend their last days on earth recovering from a major operation.

How does he seem otherwise? Is he still on the steroids? Does he look uncomfortable? Is he still interested in eating?

 

[AnthonyM]

I'm sorry you're in this position A AnthonyM It's a very difficult decision to have to make.

If you go ahead with the surgery how much more time does the vet think this would give Jack? If it will buy him another 3 or 4 months of realtively comfortable life and you can afford the surgery it might be worth going ahead with it.

If it's a case of putting him through the surgery and, at best, only getting a couple of extra weeks I wouldn't do it. No one wants to spend their last days on earth recovering from a major operation.

How does he seem otherwise? Is he still on the steroids? Does he look uncomfortable? Is he still interested in eating?

Thank you for your reply and your kind words! The vet said he might survive a year but it was 50/50 whether he would get through the operation. He's on 5 mg prednisolone daily, he's quite mobile and has a good appetite which I'm sure the steroids are helping. I think he does look uncomfortable sometimes and he spends time sitting in quiet corners which he never used to do but I have several other cats, so if he doesn't feel well maybe he wants to keep out of their way. It's about 3 weeks since the ultrasound. I saw the vet again on Thursday and she said the mass was more palpable now but she didn't think he was in pain and could offer nothing other than surgery.

 

[Norachan]

I've never been in this position. My FIV+ cat was only 6 years old when she developed tumours in her eye. We thought that the surgery would give her a few more years at least, but it only bought her a couple of months. Still, when I first found her the vet told me she might only make it to her second or third birthday, so having her for 6 years was special.

My case was quite different from yours. If I were you I would ask the vet a lot more questions before I made the decision. How long would Jack have if he didn't have surgery, is he likely to suffer a lot as he deteriorates, will pain medication and steroids keep him comfortable until it's time to let him go, what would his recovery from the surgery be like, best case scenario, in terms of how long he has to stay at the vet's and whether he will have a good quality of life after surgery?

FIV+ cats are prone to certain types of cancers, so it would be a good idea to ask your vet about the possibility of Jack developing other tumours in the future.

Thinking of you and Jack.

 

[AnthonyM]

I've never been in this position. My FIV+ cat was only 6 years old when she developed tumours in her eye. We thought that the surgery would give her a few more years at least, but it only bought her a couple of months. Still, when I first found her the vet told me she might only make it to her second or third birthday, so having her for 6 years was special.

My case was quite different from yours. If I were you I would ask the vet a lot more questions before I made the decision. How long would Jack have if he didn't have surgery, is he likely to suffer a lot as he deteriorates, will pain medication and steroids keep him comfortable until it's time to let him go, what would his recovery from the surgery be like, best case scenario, in terms of how long he has to stay at the vet's and whether he will have a good quality of life after surgery?

FIV+ cats are prone to certain types of cancers, so it would be a good idea to ask your vet about the possibility of Jack developing other tumours in the future.

Thinking of you and Jack.

Thank you once again, your suggestions are much appreciated and I will certainly ask the vet. Sorry to hear about your FIV+ cat, I'm pleased you had some quality time with her. Jack was left behind when a neighbour moved away in 2011. I'm not exactly sure of his age but he's had 12 healthy years with me. He's never been ill, he just had some teeth removed in 2019.
Kind regards,