Medication and foaming

[twofatcats]

What exactly is happening when a cat foams at the mouth after taking some medications? I've had it happen occasionally before, but with the current medication Red Cat is on, it seems to be happening every time. I have such a difficult time giving Red Cat a pill, so I dissolve it in a bit of water first, even though it is just a tiny pill, and give it in a syringe, which usually works much better for me. But I noticed that one time when the vet gave Red Cat a pill the normal way, it happened to him then, too. I didn't think to ask what the foaming was all about.

BTW, I believe Red Cat is hiding from me this evening. Figures. It is just about time for his medication.

 

[hissy]

It could be a combination of several things- disagreeable taste, chemicals and stress. I have on cat that no matter what type of medication he gets, he foams. I just try and make the pilling as less stressful as possible to help him not foam so much.

 

[purrfectcatlove]

This happens when the meds have a nasty taste to them . At least that has bin said to me . Maybe you can ask the vet to see if he/she has something better for your cat , as far as taste goes

.

 

[feralwhisperer]

I thought it was their rough tongue pushing the medicine that made it foam at the mouth. Get the medicine as far back in the mouth so there is less foaming

Before dissolving a pill check with your Vet. Some pills have coatings on them so they will dissolve in the stomach or intestines not the mouth or throat.

 

[twofatcats]

The medication this time is Amitriptyline (like Elavil). Oh, I hate to think of rejecting this medication, too, without seeing if it is going to work for the excessive grooming problems. We've tried so many things, but I fear that some we really didn't try long enough to be certain it wasn't having an effect. Red Cat's poor belly is just getting worse and worse, and now he has the problem at his neck, too, from wearing that cone collar.

I'll go see if I can find a picture which shows his poor bare belly.

 

[twofatcats]

The way that cat struggles when I try to get anything in his mouth, I'm just lucky to get it in the mouth at all! I'll try harder, though, to get it further back. I did check with the vet about dissolving the medication, and he said it would be okay.

Here is a photo of poor Red Cat. You can see why I'm getting more and more desperate to do something for my baby. This has been going on for over a year now, and it keeps getting worse and worse.

 

[hissy]

Oh Lord this poor cat.

Did the vet take a skin scraping?

 

[twofatcats]

Yes, skin scrapings a couple of times. Also complete blood work and full body x-ray, as well as a couple of other specific tests. By now I have forgotten what all we have done over the months.

 

[purrfectcatlove]

Oh no , that looks not good . Poor red cat

. Is that wound open ? If it is and you can touch it , you could try to put neosporin (sp) on that wound for healing , twice a day and is save to do .

Is it maybe food allergie ?

 

[feralwhisperer]

Oh Poor Baby

that looks painful. You may want to try adding a little Flax Seed Oil to his food it is good for skin problems. Or try Natural Balance dry cat food it has flax seed oil in it. http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/products/UltCat.html. Flax seed oil also great for the digestive system. Start with a small amount of the food or oil in his food. He body will need to get uses to the food. In large amounts it can it will give him loose poops.
Fern

 

[twofatcats]

The vet prescribed some type of oil or fatty acids, which I give to Red Cat with a syringe once a day. I can't tell exactly what it is, as the prescription label is right over the name of the product. The skin has developed thick rough patches, plus he also has wounds around his neck now from banging that e-collar into things for a couple of days. I asked the vet about some type of antibiotic ointiment to put on both, but he suggested I just use the Calendula Off ointiment I got last week. But that means I have to give Red Cat medicine or "treatment" at least four times a day: his prescription anti-anxiety med and the oil by mouth and treat the neck wound and belly wound, which I can't do at the same time, as Red Cat won't stand for it! Then with all that grooming, I need to give him laxative a couple of times a week for hairballs. And he is NOT one who will just lick the stuff off my finger. He runs and hides if he even sees he going into the cupboard where I keep it. Plus, he has to have Advantage once a month. And he had to be wormed twice within the past month, too, though I had the vet do that. But with a highly anxious cat, all that giving of medicine and treatment doesn't help any with the anxiety!

I'm really getting concerned that we don't seem to be making any progress in solving the problem, as I'm going on vacation in five or six weeks and will be gone a couple of weeks. And this is a cat who is absolutely terrified of any other human being. The cat lost his daddy a year ago when my husband died, and that is when this problem really started getting serious. But if he thinks I'm gone, too, he is really going to be in bad shape! And to top that off, I normally let him outside every day. He loves to hunt. But there is no way he can be let outside when I am gone, as no one else would be able to get him back in. So staying inside for two weeks without his human there will probably just cause him to lick and eat more. (He's almost 15 pounds, as it is.)

 

[hissy]

I don't know where in Washington state you live, but if it is feasible and you can bring him to me. I will be happy to watch over him while you are gone. About the laxatone, take some on your finger and rub it really good into his paw. They will usually lick it right off, and it prevents them from flinging it all over you and the room.

 

[twofatcats]

Thanks so much for the offer, Hissy. Unless things change, though, I think it will probably be best to keep him at home. At least he'll have Purdy for company. They do get in scraps sometimes, but they do play chase occasionally and usually at least tolerate each other. I was going to have a friend come by daily to feed them and clean their boxes, but if Red Cat has to be medicated daily, I'll probably have to get the assistant at the vet's office to stop by and play "pet sitter" again instead. I'd hoped to avoid that, as I suppose she smells like the vet office to him, which wouldn't help his anxiety any. But I'll have to do what I have to do.

When I'm home, though, whenever I see him licking his belly, I tell him "No" and he stops. Without me there to stop him, he will probably be licking twice as much.

 

[feralwhisperer]

I need to give him laxative a couple of times a week for hairballs

Since you need to give he a laxative the Flax seed oil in the food would be great for him. With this you may find that he doesn't need the laxative anymore, that would be one less stressful medication episode. Again try Natural Balance cat food it has flax seed oil in it http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/products/UltCat.html. Petco is where I've found it.

I look forward to the day you call him Red Cat with White Belly

 

[hissy]

Sounds like you have a good workable plan for him. Red Cat is lucky to have you in his corner.

 

[monica's six]

Originally Posted by FeralWhisperer

I thought it was their rough tongue pushing the medicine that made it foam at the mouth. Get the medicine as far back in the mouth so there is less foaming

Before dissolving a pill check with your Vet. Some pills have coatings on them so they will dissolve in the stomach or intestines not the mouth or throat.

I agree 100% with this from my experience recently giving Zoey her anti-biotic pills and with past experience with Isabelle. It is almost as though the act of trying to spit the pill out is what causes the foaming. Zoey has been so bad about taking her new anti-biotic pills that I've done something I never dreamed I'd have to do... I bought one of those "Pill Poppers" at Petco and I have to admit, it works GREAT! She doesn't spit them out, no foaming at all... I feel like a failure as a pet owner not being able to just get her to take her pills but Zoey is crafty and determined not to take it. Isabelle was so good about taking her pills that I thought I was the expert on pill giving, but apparently not!

 

[zanniesmom]

Have you looked into soft elizabethan collars? I have never used one but they look a lot more comfortable than the plastic ones. Here is the website:
http://www.bonafido.com/page6.html
Also, try asking your vet about a pill gun. My vet says they work well for giving pills to difficult to pill cats, but I have never had to resort to one.
Becky

 

[monica's six]

Thanks for that Soft E Collar link! My cat is likely going to need one after her surgery tommorrow and it'd be good to keep her as comfortable as possible.

 

[twofatcats]

At one time I had a pill gun that worked. That was several years ago. It broke, and the one I got from the vet after that is too long. This cat is a sweetie otherwise, but when faced with taking medication, he'll try to turn around and scratch me and get away over my shoulder, or he will try to put his face down into a corner. One has to be able to hold the cat with one arm, and use the same hand which has the pill gun to position the head, and you just can't do that with a long gun. The new vet also has the long ones. I tried the pet store and a couple of other stores when I went to a neighboring (larger) town Saturday, but no one had them. I'm 80 miles from a Petco, and when I tried entering "pill gun" or "pill popper" in a search on their website, I got items which had nothing to do with a pill gun. Is there a different term I should be using?

I may try the soft collar later, but I want Red Cat's neck to heal from the first collar first. Besides, I have to give him the oil and the Amitriptyline and put ointment on his tummy now. The poor cat is going through enough at one time. (And so am I!) I don't want him to hate me for all the ordeal I'm putting him through.

 

[monica's six]

It's called a Pill Dispenser on Petco's website. Here's a link to the right page for you.

http://www.petco.com/product_info.as...5&dept_id=%2D2

One other suggestion has to do with containing the arms and legs of your cat so you can have one hand free to position his head and one hand free to use the longer pill dispenser. Have you tried wrapping Red Cat up in a towel? I got this suggestion from my vet and it works wonders when they are wiggly. What I do is put a towel flat out on the floor, put the cat in the middle of it, wrap one end on top of the cat, wrap the other end on top of the cat the other way tucking it under the legs tightly. Then what I do is sit on the floor with her facing me and contain her using my thighs. That way she's staying still and I have two hands to deliver the meds.

I have to admit since I've started using the pill dispenser, I haven't had to wrap my Zoey up in a towel, I've been able to just sit down on the floor and contain her between my thighs, but that is only because the pill dispenser has made the act of getting the pill down her throat take less time. When I had to give her liquid medicine I really had to use the towel else she would have ripped me to shreds with her claws. Zoey is a real sweet cat, but she is determined not to take her medicine, and she really hated the liquid stuff.