- Joined
- Sep 28, 2017
- Messages
- 18
- Purraise
- 27
Hi. This forum has helped a lot over the past few years of lurking, but it's been nothing short of a total lifeline this month. I need somewhere to pour my anxieties. Future developments will be kept to this thread despite its specific title.
Anya (9 F DSH) lost about 1-1.5 lbs this summer after we switched to a kibble that didn't agree with her. We took her in for blood work on August 12 and came out with hypercalcemia. We then returned on August 16 for an enema and a malignancy panel for which we are still awaiting results. It tests iodized calcium and parathyroid levels (a specific combination of these values can apparently point to cancer) and I intend to call tomorrow if I don't hear anything by the afternoon. Her kidneys, BCs, and thyroid are all fine. Her teeth are great. The vet did hear something on Enema Day that sounded like a developing URI, but nothing came up on the x-ray and she hasn't shown further symptoms of a URI...?
We changed her kibble to something she loves and she's been gobbling it up with a burning passion. She has also been extremely thirsty; I did notice that my little boy (1 M) has also significantly upped his water intake so there may be a sodium shift involved with this new food.
According to the rudimentary bathroom scale (I know), Anya hasn't lost -- and has possibly gained -- weight over the last ten days. She also feels noticeably heavier. The issue is that her spine seems much knobbier than it did and her waist is now so segmented that she totally resembles a giant black ant when she walks. I can't see her ribs through her fur but I can feel them. Even her arms look... pokey.
How can this be? Is it possible to maintain/gain weight while simultaneously losing fat or muscle? And if so, what can cause this? Food can't possibly weigh this much and she's been pooping well.
Am I imagining the extreme boniness? Is this hypochondria? Can cats retain a substantial amount of water weight? Can a skeleton get larger?!
I know I'm talking to the vet tomorrow but I can't sleep or think about anything else. I've been pacing for days. Anya's also at a comparatively "healthy" weight so I don't know if my concerns will even get addressed without a few differential diagnoses. I'm terrified.
Thanks for listening, you guys. I truly hope that the next update to this thread will be "oh results are back, she's fine and accidentally getting fat."
Anya (9 F DSH) lost about 1-1.5 lbs this summer after we switched to a kibble that didn't agree with her. We took her in for blood work on August 12 and came out with hypercalcemia. We then returned on August 16 for an enema and a malignancy panel for which we are still awaiting results. It tests iodized calcium and parathyroid levels (a specific combination of these values can apparently point to cancer) and I intend to call tomorrow if I don't hear anything by the afternoon. Her kidneys, BCs, and thyroid are all fine. Her teeth are great. The vet did hear something on Enema Day that sounded like a developing URI, but nothing came up on the x-ray and she hasn't shown further symptoms of a URI...?
We changed her kibble to something she loves and she's been gobbling it up with a burning passion. She has also been extremely thirsty; I did notice that my little boy (1 M) has also significantly upped his water intake so there may be a sodium shift involved with this new food.
According to the rudimentary bathroom scale (I know), Anya hasn't lost -- and has possibly gained -- weight over the last ten days. She also feels noticeably heavier. The issue is that her spine seems much knobbier than it did and her waist is now so segmented that she totally resembles a giant black ant when she walks. I can't see her ribs through her fur but I can feel them. Even her arms look... pokey.
How can this be? Is it possible to maintain/gain weight while simultaneously losing fat or muscle? And if so, what can cause this? Food can't possibly weigh this much and she's been pooping well.
Am I imagining the extreme boniness? Is this hypochondria? Can cats retain a substantial amount of water weight? Can a skeleton get larger?!
I know I'm talking to the vet tomorrow but I can't sleep or think about anything else. I've been pacing for days. Anya's also at a comparatively "healthy" weight so I don't know if my concerns will even get addressed without a few differential diagnoses. I'm terrified.
Thanks for listening, you guys. I truly hope that the next update to this thread will be "oh results are back, she's fine and accidentally getting fat."