my cat died from anesthesia

[whiterabbit]

or so it looked.

She was having a dental cleaning, and then had trouble waking up. Her pupils were dilated and didn't react, she was periodically grasping for air, heartbeat strong. Then she passed away in the clinic in our presence. The vet kept telling she didn't know what was wrong. 

As I googled, heartbeat of a dying cat is weak. My cat was old and had hyperthyroidism, and wasn't eating well for a couple of days, lost weight. She was brought to the clinic because her gum was bleeding, and they recommended surgery (dental cleaning), dental checkup and extraction as some teeth were probably bad. 

The weird part, as I looked her teeth still had a tartar buildup! Her mouth didn't look at all like she'd been through any dental procedure. The clinic performed some emergency procedures as authorized but didn't charge anything. As we came there, my husband and me, I wasn't able to get a clear answer for how long the cat had stayed like that. The vet was like "oh, I don't know what's wrong but she's very sick, do you want to take her home or send to her to a 24-hour emergency? btw, would you consider letting her euthanized?". And she kept calling the symptoms neurological.

Does anybody know what the symptoms were? And does something sound not right?

 

[stephanietx]

I am so sorry this happened to you and your kitty!  I know you're devastated.

 

[whiterabbit]

As I googled, deaths from anesthesia occur when recovering from it, 1-3 hours after waking up. In this case, it looks to me they didn't perform the surgery and wouldn't tell about it.

 

[detroitcatlady]

Something really doesn't sound right about this to me. Very sorry to hear about your loss and having such a bad experience with this vet.

Have you ever taken your cat to this vet before? Was the same vet on staff when you and your husband went there as when you dropped the cat off? Is it possible that they gave her anesthesia but she had a bad reaction so they didn't perform any procedure? But it doesn't make sense to me why they haven't been able to give a clear answer as to what exactly went wrong, they should be able to tell you, someone should have answers.

If you are not getting answers, I would look into this further, as no one should ever leave the vet feeling like they are not being told the whole truth or getting the run around. If it were my cat, I would be feeling very unsettled by this as well. But it seems to me that they did not perform the procedure and just aren't coming out and telling you this. Anesthesia can cause all sorts of reactions and things like this can happen,  but it does sound like there is a lot not being said.

 

[whiterabbit]

Thank you. 

I had this gut feeling yesterday, shouldn't do this teeth cleaning. 

 

[whiterabbit]

We previously went to a different doctor from the same clinic, but she wasn't available. I didn't like this one from the start. Like, she didn't give a good checkup, just "your cat needs dental cleaning". 

 

[nurseangel]

I am so sorry for your loss.  

 

[detroitcatlady]

 
Thank you. 

I had this gut feeling yesterday, shouldn't do this teeth cleaning. 

 
We previously went to a different doctor from the same clinic, but she wasn't available. I didn't like this one from the start. Like, she didn't give a good checkup, just "your cat needs dental cleaning". 

In my experience any time I had a feeling like this I did not take my cat back to that vet and took them elsewhere. Some vets are just too quick to do procedures and don't spend enough time with the animal or do the proper tests to make sure they can handle surgery before performing / giving anesthesia. There can be complications and a good vet will not rush you into it.

 

[whiterabbit]

They kept her overnight and the surgery was supposed to be this morning. Yesterday, I was like "wait, you gave me no time to think about it". 

 

[ellag]

ask for a copy of her medical records and tell us what they say.

 

[whiterabbit]

Thank you, it's a good idea.

 

[inanna]

I'm so sorry for your loss. Had the cat been under anesthetics before? Could the hyperthyroidism have played a roll in her passing? I agree with the others, something doesn't seem right. I hope her medical records can shed some light on the situation.

Again, my heart goes out to you. It's never easy to lose a friend, especially this suddenly.

 

[JMJimmy]

I'm so sorry for your loss. Had the cat been under anesthetics before? Could the hyperthyroidism have played a roll in her passing? I agree with the others, something doesn't seem right. I hope her medical records can shed some light on the situation.

Again, my heart goes out to you. It's never easy to lose a friend, especially this suddenly.

I was likely the age of the cat.  Cats over 7 years are not given anesthetics here as a general rule (ultimately up to the individual vet) due to poor outcomes.  They're considered seniors at that point.

I'm so sorry for your loss @whiterabbit

 

[zed xyzed]

I am so sorry 

 

[whiterabbit]

Thank you all very much.

My cat was 15  y.o. She was neutered under anesthesia when she was young, that's it. 

I blame myself for not taking her home right away and thinking it over overnight. The vet said she had to stay in the clinic till tomorrow as she needed to fast. It's for an animal who already lost a lot of weight and ate poorly. Then they said, oh don't worry we'll give her some food (I don't know if they did). Then the next day, oh your cat is just very sick. So, if my cat was very sick, why did you prescribe her this surgery so casually? I'm not even sure she was given anesthesia, not something else, like antibiotics. Another weird part, they talked anesthesia but forgot to get a signed permission to use it. The surgery was scheduled for 8:45 am (the clinic is open at 8 am), but they called *an hour later* asking for a permission to use anesthesia (and emailed the form). So, why this delay?

 

[whiterabbit]

I have to add, it's NOT a 24 hour clinic. 

 

[kittens mom]

You need to ask for cats chart /medical records. Make sure the understand you want complete medical records not a summary.  Even though a summary will contain all the important details it may not include all of the doctors notes.

I'm sorry for your loss. I hope you can find some answers.

 

[jenny82]

I'm very sorry for your loss.

 

[cprcheetah]

Did she have bloodwork performed before the surgery?  Was her hyperthyroidism being treated?  Under control?  That is very risky to put a hyperthyroid cat under anesthesia.  Generally anesthesia deaths are linked to something like liver or kidney problems and/or heart problems.  The liver and kidneys are the main organs that process and handle the anesthesia and rid the body of it from the system.  If they have trouble waking up those are usual the causes.  Sometimes cats may have something else going on that couldn't be detected on and exam and/or bloodwork and they may pass away during surgery.  I work for a vet and unless it's an emergency we don't put sick animals under anesthesia.  We treat them first and them look into it especially at that age.  My cat is almost 17 and needs a dental (not severely) but has kidney disease and seizures, the risks at this point outweigh the benefit.   If her eyes were dilated it more than likely was a reaction to the anesthesia.  Some anesthesia's can actually make a cat blind for 24 hours or longer.  In which case the manufacturer of the anesthesia should be contacted and they sometimes reimburse treatment costs.  I am very sorry for your loss.  It is never easy to lose a beloved pet.

 

[whiterabbit]

Is it usual practice to keep pets on the premises overnight if they have a surgery next day? Fasting required is only 8 hours, but what's the reason to keep a pet in a cage since 5pm, when the clinic closes at 6pm? Other than owners can change their mind. 

They were sloppy with the authorization form, sent it to my husband when he had to send it back quickly, couldn't reach me right away, and he didn't put bloodwork (I would've). Anyway, our cat was diagnosed with hyperthyroid only about a month ago and had a recent blood test. I asked them to review this test before the surgery when we were in the clinic. I obtained a copy the same day, from the numbers, there was a kidney problem, but no failure, and the first vet diagnosed a heart murmur (I still have to retrieve the record). The hyperthyroid was treated with Chinese medicine (we didn't subscribe to any of their options) for less than a month and her symptoms improved, but those remedies don't work quickly. I suspect they didn't review the blood test and the diagnosis, the vet was gone very fast, I asked a nurse who didn't write down anything. I also suspect they didn't give her any food. We couldn't even discuss much, the vet rushed in and out, then they rushed our cat into their facility to keep her overnight. I was talking to an empty room "would it be ok with her?". It was like: you're given an invoice, you pay, you can go.