Did you try the ASPCA? Maybe they havea sliding scale. I hope he keeps pooping.
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Megacolon - Time To Euthanize?
- Thread starter dkb817
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Sorry for the delay in updates:
We switched Ally's dry food (not the most nutricious but at least she was eating), went to two doses of lactulose per day and added in 1/2 tsp of miralax. For the last few weeks, she had been doing really good on this combination - chowing down on her kibble, keeping it down, and having good, healthy BM's.
However, the last few days, the BM's have gotten smaller and today, with the exception of a small diarrhea episode, she hasn't had a firm bowel movement all day. She also hasn't touched her kibble when normally she would have devoured it and been meowing for more. This morning, she threw up twice - I chalked it up to maybe having eaten her treats too fast, but with everything else, I fear that we may be headed right back to where we started.
We switched Ally's dry food (not the most nutricious but at least she was eating), went to two doses of lactulose per day and added in 1/2 tsp of miralax. For the last few weeks, she had been doing really good on this combination - chowing down on her kibble, keeping it down, and having good, healthy BM's.
However, the last few days, the BM's have gotten smaller and today, with the exception of a small diarrhea episode, she hasn't had a firm bowel movement all day. She also hasn't touched her kibble when normally she would have devoured it and been meowing for more. This morning, she threw up twice - I chalked it up to maybe having eaten her treats too fast, but with everything else, I fear that we may be headed right back to where we started.
I'm in the same boat with Yoda. For about a week and a half, she was pooping large every 3 days and seemed fine. But now we are at 4 and a half days with no poop and no attempt to poop. I am waiting to hear back from the vet. She is acting fine otherwise, but I am not willing to try the surgery, so I am afraid we are at the end of the road.
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Y
Yodasmom
- It's great that Yoda finally went! 4 and a half days seems like a lot, but I've come to the conclusion that with Megacolon/Chronic Constipation kitties, we can no longer go with what is "normal".
It'd be great if we could get a good poo for Ally today. The vet said last time that if she didn't have a BM for 24 hours, to give her 5mls of Mineral Oil twice a day until she went - and while technically she did have diarrhea yesterday, I went ahead and gave her the first dose of mineral oil this morning just in case she's "plugged" (and the diarrhea was all that could get around it; It wouldn't be the first time that that was the case with her)
Ally is a bit of handful when it comes to syringe feeding (that's why we give her lactulose on her treats) - but I was able to Kitty Burrito her with a towel this morning and get most of the mineral oil in her.
Fingers crossed for some action - Otherwise, we'll be making the call on Monday.
It'd be great if we could get a good poo for Ally today. The vet said last time that if she didn't have a BM for 24 hours, to give her 5mls of Mineral Oil twice a day until she went - and while technically she did have diarrhea yesterday, I went ahead and gave her the first dose of mineral oil this morning just in case she's "plugged" (and the diarrhea was all that could get around it; It wouldn't be the first time that that was the case with her)
Ally is a bit of handful when it comes to syringe feeding (that's why we give her lactulose on her treats) - but I was able to Kitty Burrito her with a towel this morning and get most of the mineral oil in her.
Fingers crossed for some action - Otherwise, we'll be making the call on Monday.
I am medicating Yoda three times a day now. She is pretty much used to the mouth syringes once I am able to catch her. Because it is multiple times a day, its a pain. But we've made it work so far. She is on Cisapride and Lactulose, and then Prednisone for unrelated back pain. I will keep doing it as long as it works and she is happy and comfortable. If she starts suffering again, I will euthanize her.
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Ally went a little this evening - smaller and pencil thin, but it's better than nothing. The vet had called to check in earlier (without prompting - I love this vet and will take all future pets to his clinic) and I left them a voicemail, warning them that if I couldn't get Ally to go this weekend that we'd be making that final call.
The mineral oil is a bit of a mess and I am worried about all these reports of aspiration, but I figure that the vet wouldn't have recommended this line of treatment unless the benefits outweighed the risks.
The mineral oil is a bit of a mess and I am worried about all these reports of aspiration, but I figure that the vet wouldn't have recommended this line of treatment unless the benefits outweighed the risks.
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Another Update (5/7/2018)
Ally had two good BM's on Saturday (with the two doses of mineral oil), none that I could tell on Sunday (with just the one dose of mineral oil). I explained where we were at to the vet when he called this morning and was assured that if it was helping, she could stay on the mineral oil forever (I know that long term it might mess up vitamin absorption, but it's either this or have her get so backed up we wind up having to euthanize)
She had a really good BM earlier, so I'm hoping this is an uptick and we're back on a good path.
Ally had two good BM's on Saturday (with the two doses of mineral oil), none that I could tell on Sunday (with just the one dose of mineral oil). I explained where we were at to the vet when he called this morning and was assured that if it was helping, she could stay on the mineral oil forever (I know that long term it might mess up vitamin absorption, but it's either this or have her get so backed up we wind up having to euthanize)
She had a really good BM earlier, so I'm hoping this is an uptick and we're back on a good path.
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Hi guys i know your messages are old but i'm in the same boat and need advice, my girl is almost 9 covid proticol at the vets office meant a long delay in diagnosing her megacolon, currently she gets medicated 3× a day cisapride lactulose psycillum and a stool softner and perscription food have me finacially strapped, my girls still having good days but despite all her meds is only going every 3rd or 4th day it's so hard that they can appear content one day and at deaths door the next, how did your pets fare in the end? I lost one girl almost a year ago to renal failure i regret letting her condition advance and wish i'd let her go sooner now her sibling is left with an equally devastaing diagnosis and my heart tells me not to let history repeat itself and for my last memories to be of the cat i adore not a skeleton hunched in a corner.
It's so hard to know when the time is right, let your little girl tell you. If she is existing, not finding any joy in life anymore, it is time. When her eyes are dull, she is not moving much, and eats so very little it is more for a bird then a cat, it is time. It is much better to be one day early then one day late. It would be tragic to have her suffer. Feed her little treats, whatever she wants, my Burt ate Arbys roast beef at the end. See if the vet would let you give 1/4 tsp.of Miralax, it helped my Burt. I will pray for your little girl. My heart goes out to you. I hope there will be others come on and help. The best thing you can do is be with her and live her. That is all she ever wanted.
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TiggerTonks
- hi there, I’m so sorry you’re in that position.
unfortunately, we ended up euthanizing my Ally on 9/11/2018 when her megacolon worsened again (to be fair, we think she had also developed some kind of oral cancer at the end as well). It was a hard decision that I questioned - but the night before we took her in, she jumped up on my bed and I swear the look she gave me said “I’m tired, I’m ready to go”. Even the vet techs confirmed that she was a shell of the cat she once was - but in a selfish way, I hadn’t been ready to let her go yet which ultimately led to a lot of unnecessary suffering. like you said, I’m now a proponent of “better a day too soon than a day too late”.
here’s a video my vet did that helped me figure when enough was enough and that while she was alive, it wasn’t really living
End of life decisions
unfortunately, we ended up euthanizing my Ally on 9/11/2018 when her megacolon worsened again (to be fair, we think she had also developed some kind of oral cancer at the end as well). It was a hard decision that I questioned - but the night before we took her in, she jumped up on my bed and I swear the look she gave me said “I’m tired, I’m ready to go”. Even the vet techs confirmed that she was a shell of the cat she once was - but in a selfish way, I hadn’t been ready to let her go yet which ultimately led to a lot of unnecessary suffering. like you said, I’m now a proponent of “better a day too soon than a day too late”.
here’s a video my vet did that helped me figure when enough was enough and that while she was alive, it wasn’t really living
End of life decisions
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Thankyou for your reply and i'm so sorry to hear ally passed i've been jugling medicating and perscription food for a year including an anal prolaps she's about to turn 9 and acts more like a 17 year old sleeping all day only awake to be medicated and fed and poo every 3-4 days yesterday she just stared at me as if asking for my help and i've seen first hand what awaits her and feel it's time.
I'm so sorry, we are here for you.........
I’m so sorry! I know letting them go is the hardest thing. I would find out if you can have her put to sleep at home. Unfortunately I think we know when it is time to let them go; we just hate admitting it.
That said my mom let it go on at least a year longer than she should have with Sarah. The poor dear would cry out every time she pooped & I saw her try to lick the poop out more than once. I miss Sarah, my mom still misses her dearly almost 5 years later. But when she was diagnosed with mega colon at 20? Years old & the vet explained it would just keep happening again, she let her go. When my beloved Dante got gravely ill, I made it clear to the vet I didn’t want him to suffer after seeing Sarah suffer.
When the time comes, I suggest the crossing the bridge forum.
That said my mom let it go on at least a year longer than she should have with Sarah. The poor dear would cry out every time she pooped & I saw her try to lick the poop out more than once. I miss Sarah, my mom still misses her dearly almost 5 years later. But when she was diagnosed with mega colon at 20? Years old & the vet explained it would just keep happening again, she let her go. When my beloved Dante got gravely ill, I made it clear to the vet I didn’t want him to suffer after seeing Sarah suffer.
When the time comes, I suggest the crossing the bridge forum.
Oh---this brings back so many memories of Artie... My Angel Soul Cat....
He had megacolon and IBD.... I have a very lengthy thread going on here, about him...
It was about the same time as
dkb817
... I had to put him down on 5/23/18...
T TiggerTonks I tried everything, except surgery. He just kept getting more and more constipated.. and fussy with food.. trying to stay away from chicken... It was horrible. Artie would sometimes, yell, as he tried to poop. He also needed almost weekly emergency enemas.. I had puppy pads everywhere for his leakage, sheets everywhere.. was going crazy trying to find food for him.. medications for him....
I was acting like a maniac, demanding emergency enemas at both the regular Vets and the Specialist.. whichever one was more easily available.. The staff hated to see me...
His regular Vet suggested I learn how to do enemas at home.. I felt that was not a way to live... NO, I could not do that to my boy.. My strong, lovable, funny, soul kitty~~~~ that was no way to live..
The only other option was surgery.. which at his age, 14, and with all his issues, was not logical.
The specialist was not for the surgery, also. It is a very difficult recovery period... and sometimes it does not help... I could not do that to him...
The specialist was so supportive.. He always told me, that it is better to let them go, when they are having a good day, then to let them go when they are suffering.. I do not know know which is the way to do it... I still feel guilty that I let Artie go on a fairly emotional good day.. He was eating, but could not poop.. He was walking around with a large piece of poop hanging out of his butt.. I had to pull it out, and it hurt him... Artie had a motility issue. it was not officially megacolon, since the diameter of his colon was not overly enlarged.. he just could not push it out...
So I made the decision, after a ton of tears, after it really affected me emotionally... when I could not do anything else.. I was out of ideas, food, medications left to try, just out of options...
It was down to that... a life of daily home enemas, with leakage around the house; or a weekly enema scheduled at the regular vets..... Not a life for anyone...nevermind my dear love...
It was the hardest decisions I had to make.. akin to my dad going into hospice care and dying at the hospital.... I was a wreck...
It was affecting me... emotionally.. as well as Artie.. Oh how I dreaded that day...
I knew it had to be done... by trying more things, it was just prolonging the inevitable...
I still feel guilty doing it on a fairly good emotional day for him... but he knew it was time.. He knew it... I do not know if I would be second guessing myself if I waited until it was a really bad day... But the Specialist told me, it is better to do it earlier, rather than later... I guess the guilts..
There was no option...
I just want you to know that my heart is there with you... It really is... I am getting teary eyed, just reliving things... I know what you are going through....
and everyone else who has had to deal with this....
(((((((HUGS))))) my heart is with you... breaking for you...
He had megacolon and IBD.... I have a very lengthy thread going on here, about him...
It was about the same time as
dkb817
... I had to put him down on 5/23/18...T TiggerTonks I tried everything, except surgery. He just kept getting more and more constipated.. and fussy with food.. trying to stay away from chicken... It was horrible. Artie would sometimes, yell, as he tried to poop. He also needed almost weekly emergency enemas.. I had puppy pads everywhere for his leakage, sheets everywhere.. was going crazy trying to find food for him.. medications for him....
I was acting like a maniac, demanding emergency enemas at both the regular Vets and the Specialist.. whichever one was more easily available.. The staff hated to see me...
His regular Vet suggested I learn how to do enemas at home.. I felt that was not a way to live... NO, I could not do that to my boy.. My strong, lovable, funny, soul kitty~~~~ that was no way to live..
The only other option was surgery.. which at his age, 14, and with all his issues, was not logical.
The specialist was not for the surgery, also. It is a very difficult recovery period... and sometimes it does not help... I could not do that to him...
The specialist was so supportive.. He always told me, that it is better to let them go, when they are having a good day, then to let them go when they are suffering.. I do not know know which is the way to do it... I still feel guilty that I let Artie go on a fairly emotional good day.. He was eating, but could not poop.. He was walking around with a large piece of poop hanging out of his butt.. I had to pull it out, and it hurt him... Artie had a motility issue. it was not officially megacolon, since the diameter of his colon was not overly enlarged.. he just could not push it out...
So I made the decision, after a ton of tears, after it really affected me emotionally... when I could not do anything else.. I was out of ideas, food, medications left to try, just out of options...
It was down to that... a life of daily home enemas, with leakage around the house; or a weekly enema scheduled at the regular vets..... Not a life for anyone...nevermind my dear love...
It was the hardest decisions I had to make.. akin to my dad going into hospice care and dying at the hospital.... I was a wreck...
It was affecting me... emotionally.. as well as Artie.. Oh how I dreaded that day...
I knew it had to be done... by trying more things, it was just prolonging the inevitable...
I still feel guilty doing it on a fairly good emotional day for him... but he knew it was time.. He knew it... I do not know if I would be second guessing myself if I waited until it was a really bad day... But the Specialist told me, it is better to do it earlier, rather than later... I guess the guilts..
There was no option...
I just want you to know that my heart is there with you... It really is... I am getting teary eyed, just reliving things... I know what you are going through....
and everyone else who has had to deal with this....
(((((((HUGS))))) my heart is with you... breaking for you...
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Thankyou so much for your kind words she seems in no immediate danger today thankfully but i have contacted a mobile vet as she's fearful of travel so i'd rather my last memories of her be ones where she's comfortable in her home not crying in a carrier scared of what's happening, it's weird how you suddenly have the realisation of how much weight they've lost or how long it's been since they played i think you get so caught up in extending their life you overlook what their life is becoming i will let you know how it goes.
Yes, I know exactly what you mean.... looking back at Artie's pictures---I took a ton of them~~~
I realized, when reviewing the pictures, how sick Artie was.. how old he looked, how the expression on his face had changed..How he stopped playing, or even wanting to play...
It all hit me, after things were over..... I think this is what the Specialist was meaning: You do not realized how much our babies are suffering.. so It is better to do it on a fairly good day---so memories are not as bad... You do not feel as if you should have done it sooner..
By reviewing the images, you remember the good times... the fun, the playing, hide and seek, peek a boo, chase... cuddling... You do remember the good times more than the bad...
Cats are so stoic... They have the capability of hiding their pain.. but when Artie kept trying to poop, could not.. and when I ran out of food options.. doing daily sub-q's, at him so many times during the day for medication~~ he would cry out when I picked him up for them.. I knew it was time...
When I was having panic attacks because I did not know how to help him.... .. I was running to all the pet stores, looking at labels... trying to find something he would eat... even people food..
It was all too much... for BOTH of us.... Arte was not living a life... he was just existing, through medications... I was keeping him alive for me.. for selfish reasons.. He was tired.. Sometimes he just cried.. When he was on my lap, he was jumping during his sleep.. so many uncomfortable memories in his subconscious mind...
I am so glad you are using a mobile vet... I had my cousin and his wife take me into the specialist. I sat in the back, with Artie in his carrier.. Artie cried the entire way.. I was a wreck...
I must say at Angell Memorial.. it was all done so compassionately.. a side room, like a living room, with a bathroom, just for this.. and a specific appointment with a concierge taking care of you..
When it wa over, I was going to leave his carrier there... to donate it.. but my cousin's wife wanted to take it home..to use... To my shock, she never used it. She knew I would eventually get another cat, so she saved it in their cellar for me.... It felt weird to first use it for Geoffrey, but now.. it is just part of my furniture...
I am rambling... and it is during breakfast..
I just want you to know that I am with you... and thinking of you... sending you strength and love during this time...
(((((((HUGS))))))
I realized, when reviewing the pictures, how sick Artie was.. how old he looked, how the expression on his face had changed..How he stopped playing, or even wanting to play...
It all hit me, after things were over..... I think this is what the Specialist was meaning: You do not realized how much our babies are suffering.. so It is better to do it on a fairly good day---so memories are not as bad... You do not feel as if you should have done it sooner..
By reviewing the images, you remember the good times... the fun, the playing, hide and seek, peek a boo, chase... cuddling... You do remember the good times more than the bad...
Cats are so stoic... They have the capability of hiding their pain.. but when Artie kept trying to poop, could not.. and when I ran out of food options.. doing daily sub-q's, at him so many times during the day for medication~~ he would cry out when I picked him up for them.. I knew it was time...
When I was having panic attacks because I did not know how to help him.... .. I was running to all the pet stores, looking at labels... trying to find something he would eat... even people food..
It was all too much... for BOTH of us.... Arte was not living a life... he was just existing, through medications... I was keeping him alive for me.. for selfish reasons.. He was tired.. Sometimes he just cried.. When he was on my lap, he was jumping during his sleep.. so many uncomfortable memories in his subconscious mind...
I am so glad you are using a mobile vet... I had my cousin and his wife take me into the specialist. I sat in the back, with Artie in his carrier.. Artie cried the entire way.. I was a wreck...
I must say at Angell Memorial.. it was all done so compassionately.. a side room, like a living room, with a bathroom, just for this.. and a specific appointment with a concierge taking care of you..
When it wa over, I was going to leave his carrier there... to donate it.. but my cousin's wife wanted to take it home..to use... To my shock, she never used it. She knew I would eventually get another cat, so she saved it in their cellar for me.... It felt weird to first use it for Geoffrey, but now.. it is just part of my furniture...
I am rambling... and it is during breakfast..
I just want you to know that I am with you... and thinking of you... sending you strength and love during this time...
(((((((HUGS))))))
