I am heartbroken. Late last fall, our family decided to try to find a kitty my son wasn't allergic to. Through a long series of events we found a beautiful pair of Tonkinese up for adoption about 30 minutes away. It was a pair of sisters that had come from the same breeder - but different litters. They were bonded and had to be adopted together, and you couldn't have other pets. We fit the bill. We met them and we all fell in love. And best of all, my son had no allergic reaction.
While we were meeting them I mentioned "this little brown kitty sounds like she's wheezing". Her foster mom replied "oh that's just her, she does that". I wasn't so sure (I had worked for a vet as a teenager) but we were in love and we gave the girls, Tessa and Freya, a loving home. Freya vomited from the minute we got her home. I called her foster mom who said "it's just nerves it will stop". But it didn't stop. I called my vet who prescribed Cerenia. It may have helped a bit, at this point so much runs together, but after a few days the vomiting continued. Her foster mom said, "She didn't vomit much here" But here's the thing - at their house, Tessa and Freya had to live in the basement because of the other pets. And the sweet angel, Freya, almost always went into her litter box to vomit. So unless you saw or heard her doing it, you wouldn't know. I researched, she had exams, she was put on a GI diet. Some days her wheezing would flare up, sometimes she seemed constipated. I tried to get the vet to address these issues. They tried different medications. Finally, they took xrays and they thought she had pneumonia. She went on meds and we went back every 2 weeks for an xray and they thought she was improving. But her appetite was getting less and her tummy was hurting worse. Finally I took her to another vet for a 2nd opinion. They did bloodwork and a urinalysis, but the next day she looked really bad, and I took her to the (very busy) ER for an ultrasound. The ultrasound showed her pyloric sphincter between her tummy and her intestines was hardened. There wasn't much they could do but give her meds and tell me her prognosis was guarded and she might need surgery someday. We brought her home to rest and to make a plan. She spent one last night with us at home. Sunday she declined and I took her to a different ER that was much calmer - I wish I'd known that the first trip. Anyhow, they had to put her right into oxygen, and their plan was to do a CT scan the next day as long as she was stable. Overnight she got worse (this poor girl was only 5 pounds at this point) and their tests showed her stomach was actually pulled up into her esophagus. They said it is very rare, especially in a young cat (she was just 2), and they have no idea how it happened. It could have been a birth defect. They said they could try to do the CT scan, but she might not survive the anesthesia. If she did, she might need a tracheotomy which most cats do not do well. THEN, if she survived all of that, they could try to surgically repair her tummy. And after that, they didn't know if they would find a cause, or if she might have tumors, or if they'd find yet another ailment that she had that caused all of this. They just didn't know. They said she was struggling, even in oxygen. They did not think she would have a good quality of life. We made the gut wrenching decision to have her put to rest. My poor, sweet, beautiful baby. I had only had her for four glorious months, and we all loved her so very much. We were her first real home, ever. I loved my girl so.
We are all devastated, but we couldn't let her suffer any more. She was beautiful and gave us so much joy.
What caused all of this I will never know. She came from an unusual (not healthy in my opinion) breeding situation, she was adopted at 18 months old, and abandoned two weeks later at her vets office. She lived at the vets for a couple months and with her fosters a couple months, until she and Tessa moved in with us. I don't know what happened to my sweet girl as a baby. All that matters to me now is that she was happy in her first, real, loving home. I need to cling to that - knowing she knew she was loved.
Tessa is heartbroken and still looking for her. Tessa has been extra cuddly lately and we are all comforting and getting comfort from Tessa. Tessa Marie and Freya Louise were best friends. Freya loved the sunshine and she loved watching birdies out the window. I'm forever thankful I got to be her mama.
While we were meeting them I mentioned "this little brown kitty sounds like she's wheezing". Her foster mom replied "oh that's just her, she does that". I wasn't so sure (I had worked for a vet as a teenager) but we were in love and we gave the girls, Tessa and Freya, a loving home. Freya vomited from the minute we got her home. I called her foster mom who said "it's just nerves it will stop". But it didn't stop. I called my vet who prescribed Cerenia. It may have helped a bit, at this point so much runs together, but after a few days the vomiting continued. Her foster mom said, "She didn't vomit much here" But here's the thing - at their house, Tessa and Freya had to live in the basement because of the other pets. And the sweet angel, Freya, almost always went into her litter box to vomit. So unless you saw or heard her doing it, you wouldn't know. I researched, she had exams, she was put on a GI diet. Some days her wheezing would flare up, sometimes she seemed constipated. I tried to get the vet to address these issues. They tried different medications. Finally, they took xrays and they thought she had pneumonia. She went on meds and we went back every 2 weeks for an xray and they thought she was improving. But her appetite was getting less and her tummy was hurting worse. Finally I took her to another vet for a 2nd opinion. They did bloodwork and a urinalysis, but the next day she looked really bad, and I took her to the (very busy) ER for an ultrasound. The ultrasound showed her pyloric sphincter between her tummy and her intestines was hardened. There wasn't much they could do but give her meds and tell me her prognosis was guarded and she might need surgery someday. We brought her home to rest and to make a plan. She spent one last night with us at home. Sunday she declined and I took her to a different ER that was much calmer - I wish I'd known that the first trip. Anyhow, they had to put her right into oxygen, and their plan was to do a CT scan the next day as long as she was stable. Overnight she got worse (this poor girl was only 5 pounds at this point) and their tests showed her stomach was actually pulled up into her esophagus. They said it is very rare, especially in a young cat (she was just 2), and they have no idea how it happened. It could have been a birth defect. They said they could try to do the CT scan, but she might not survive the anesthesia. If she did, she might need a tracheotomy which most cats do not do well. THEN, if she survived all of that, they could try to surgically repair her tummy. And after that, they didn't know if they would find a cause, or if she might have tumors, or if they'd find yet another ailment that she had that caused all of this. They just didn't know. They said she was struggling, even in oxygen. They did not think she would have a good quality of life. We made the gut wrenching decision to have her put to rest. My poor, sweet, beautiful baby. I had only had her for four glorious months, and we all loved her so very much. We were her first real home, ever. I loved my girl so.
We are all devastated, but we couldn't let her suffer any more. She was beautiful and gave us so much joy.
What caused all of this I will never know. She came from an unusual (not healthy in my opinion) breeding situation, she was adopted at 18 months old, and abandoned two weeks later at her vets office. She lived at the vets for a couple months and with her fosters a couple months, until she and Tessa moved in with us. I don't know what happened to my sweet girl as a baby. All that matters to me now is that she was happy in her first, real, loving home. I need to cling to that - knowing she knew she was loved.
Tessa is heartbroken and still looking for her. Tessa has been extra cuddly lately and we are all comforting and getting comfort from Tessa. Tessa Marie and Freya Louise were best friends. Freya loved the sunshine and she loved watching birdies out the window. I'm forever thankful I got to be her mama.
