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nutsie

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I apologize for creating this account just to post this thread, but I've tried reaching out in other social media with no success.

My 4 year old male cat was diagnosed today with Luxating Patella. He doesn't have any significant medical history prior to this and weighs around 12 pounds.

240216980_348787130234703_880137836959731782_n (1).jpg

Before taking him to the vet, he had around 8 episodes under 3 hours where his left back leg would get 'locked in place', leaving him in tremendous pain. Couldn't walk properly, it was horrible.

So after being diagnosed with Luxating Patella, the Patella was put in place and he was given the necessary meds. But at home he still has had several episodes, so I wanted to know if this is normal. It's the weekend and I'm not able to contact my vet, so I just wanted some assurance that everything is going as expected. Seeing him hurt and in pain breaks my heart.

As for the rest, I'd appreciate, if possible, some tips in how to handle his confinement. He's not supposed to run and jump all over the place, so I wanted to give him the best comfort, but I'm not sure how.

Apologize for the long post. Thanks in advance.
 
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nutsie

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Messed up the title. This is not a good start lol 😞
 

vince

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Sorry to be the bearer of potential bad news, but he may need surgery to reshape the knee bones so the patella doesn't keep slipping out of place. It's likely that this will happen again, as you've already found out. Your vet will likely refer him to a specialist to make the final decision on what to do.

No problem with creating an account to ask a question. That's what we're here for. Please do stay in touch and keep us apprised as to how your kitty is getting along.
 
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nutsie

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Sorry to be the bearer of potential bad news, but he may need surgery to reshape the knee bones so the patella doesn't keep slipping out of place. It's likely that this will happen again, as you've already found out. Your vet will likely refer him to a specialist to make the final decision on what to do.

No problem with creating an account to ask a question. That's what we're here for. Please do stay in touch and keep us apprised as to how your kitty is getting along.
Thanks so much for your input <3

My vet made me absolutely terrified of getting surgery, as she was adamant that it had really low success, but is it really that bad? I'm so confused. But I'll keep in touch with her to see what's the best course.

I've been really low, so I appreciate your help and good energy. I'll do my best to keep Kiko updated (forgot to mention his name :blackcat: ).

He's a handsome boy. I have no words of advice, but I did a search of other threads an you might find some help there.

Search Results for Query: luxating patella
Thanks a lot, I really appreciate it. Trying to absorb as much information as I can right now, so reading other's folks experiences is great. Thanks for taking your time helping out <3
 

fionasmom

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Welcome to The Cat Site and you certainly don't have to apologize for coming here! Your boy is very handsome indeed.

I do agree that in a serious case that surgery is probably the best option. You have probably done a lot of research on this and found that if the surgery is done before it becomes severe that the recovery is better.

There is no way that your vet is suggesting that she will perform the surgery, is there? You definitely need a specialist.

I don't know that putting him in a cage is exactly what you want to do unless this is really approaching the severe. Can you put him in a room where he cannot jump? You might have to move some furniture to do this.

Cats on Cage Rest Following a Road Traffic Accident

This article is about cage rest, but as I said I don't know if this is where you are or not.
 
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nutsie

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Welcome to The Cat Site and you certainly don't have to apologize for coming here! Your boy is very handsome indeed.

I do agree that in a serious case that surgery is probably the best option. You have probably done a lot of research on this and found that if the surgery is done before it becomes severe that the recovery is better.

There is no way that your vet is suggesting that she will perform the surgery, is there? You definitely need a specialist.

I don't know that putting him in a cage is exactly what you want to do unless this is really approaching the severe. Can you put him in a room where he cannot jump? You might have to move some furniture to do this.

Cats on Cage Rest Following a Road Traffic Accident

This article is about cage rest, but as I said I don't know if this is where you are or not.
Thanks for taking your time to answer. I appreciate it. <3

Yeah, I don't she'll be the one doing the surgery, her office didn't seem to have the tools for the job. Think she just gave her opinion, maybe pushing for a conservative treatment first. Which makes sense, I think.

Yes, I've put him in a room where he cannot jump. I wanted to ask you though: is it a good idea to let him walk out of it for some minutes? I've done it several times, with precaution of course, and I wonder if maybe I'm stimulating him a bit too much and making him more anxious to get out. What do you think? He's full of energy, so it's hard to see him want to get out, so I'm wondering what can I do to sooth his needs.

Thanks for sharing the article. I'll read it. I'll try to keep this thread update, hopefully with good news.

transferir (1).png
 

silent meowlook

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Hi. It sucks, but I would do strict cage rest and get a consult with a vet specialist in surgery who has experience with cats.
 

fionasmom

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His movement clearly has to be limited; does walking seem to be painful? If he gets too stimulated coming out of the room, I might keep him inside and try to spend time with him. It only takes one tiny slip up for him to decide to run or jump if he leaves the room, even if you had him on a harness.

Getting a large dog cage is an alternative. Not an airline crate, but a wire cage where he could have some room, but not jump or take off. The cage can be moved into various parts of your house which might make him feel as if he as more interaction with you and his environment.

I would consult with an orthopedic specialist about the entire problem. I am sure that your vet is fine, but you don't want her to run interference for you.
 
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nutsie

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His movement clearly has to be limited; does walking seem to be painful? If he gets too stimulated coming out of the room, I might keep him inside and try to spend time with him. It only takes one tiny slip up for him to decide to run or jump if he leaves the room, even if you had him on a harness.

Getting a large dog cage is an alternative. Not an airline crate, but a wire cage where he could have some room, but not jump or take off. The cage can be moved into various parts of your house which might make him feel as if he as more interaction with you and his environment.

I would consult with an orthopedic specialist about the entire problem. I am sure that your vet is fine, but you don't want her to run interference for you.
His walking is not painful, but he's had some episodes without pain. Unfortunately, it has been quite hard to restrain him, as he's full of energy and I don't have a cage, so I had to improvise a small room, but it's isolated from the other areas of the house, which is not ideal. Hasn't run much, but small jumps here and there, when I tried to do a supervised walk with him. A degree of guilt has started to creep on me.

Part of me wants to seek a specialist, the other wants to go through the treatment and see what happens. Not sure if I'm just in denial, but it will be around 3 and a half weeks, so I don't know.

Thanks again for helping out. This has been quite the struggle for me.
 

fionasmom

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Is the treatment that you continue with the meds that your vet gave you? There is nothing wrong with that; however, my experience has been that when something is not improving, especially something clearly orthopedic or related to another specialty branch of medicine, that consulting the specialist is the best move. Most of those doctors will be able to cut to the chase much more quickly than the GP vet and, in the long run, it might cost you less than letting your vet continue to try things that don't work....plus, your baby still does not feel good.
 
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nutsie

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Is the treatment that you continue with the meds that your vet gave you? There is nothing wrong with that; however, my experience has been that when something is not improving, especially something clearly orthopedic or related to another specialty branch of medicine, that consulting the specialist is the best move. Most of those doctors will be able to cut to the chase much more quickly than the GP vet and, in the long run, it might cost you less than letting your vet continue to try things that don't work....plus, your baby still does not feel good.
Sorry for only answering now. It has been a bit difficult.

Yes, the meds are the ones the vet gave me. After a week and a half, it looked like he was getting much better, but unfortunately he had an episode today, so we're back to square one, I guess. His confinement is not the best one, so if we're going through surgery, then we'll need to find an alternative, because he will not be able to recover properly with how things are setup now. Do you have any recommendations?

I'd say part of my anxiety just comes from what the vet said about going the surgery, that it had a really low rate of success, when after reading through some posts throughout the forum, it doesn't seem to be the case.

Thanks again for taking your time to help us.
 

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What a handsome boy!
I think you should remain optimistic and try a second opinion. I had a cat who had the same issue and she was able to sort of pop it in herself eventually and things were OK. Never happened again. I was always aware that it could happen again, it just never did. I think it scared us both when it happened.
I recently adopted another cat who had her hip socket removed because it kept dislocating. She gets along just fine, runs, plays, jumps on things. This surgery happened before I got her and I adopted her two weeks after the surgery. I asked our vet what holds the leg in place and he said the muscles and tendons are still there, the best part is she isn't in any pain anymore.
 

fionasmom

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If you have the surgery, the confinement will be different from what you are doing now, especially at first. The vet will give you specific instructions, but he will probably need a very large crate of some kind so that movement is definitely restricted.

What is going on now with the confinement? Is he upset about it?
 
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nutsie

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If you have the surgery, the confinement will be different from what you are doing now, especially at first. The vet will give you specific instructions, but he will probably need a very large crate of some kind so that movement is definitely restricted.

What is going on now with the confinement? Is he upset about it?
Yeah, if we're going with surgery, then we'll need to a get a crate or something.

The first 8 days of confinement were actually pretty okay, but since then, he's gained quite the urge to get outside. It almost feels pointless to restrain him, when I find him jumping around the door... I've led him outside several times a day for 10 to 20 minutes, but I'm not sure now if that was a good idea to be honest. I'm a bit clueless on what to do.

What a handsome boy!
I think you should remain optimistic and try a second opinion. I had a cat who had the same issue and she was able to sort of pop it in herself eventually and things were OK. Never happened again. I was always aware that it could happen again, it just never did. I think it scared us both when it happened.
I recently adopted another cat who had her hip socket removed because it kept dislocating. She gets along just fine, runs, plays, jumps on things. This surgery happened before I got her and I adopted her two weeks after the surgery. I asked our vet what holds the leg in place and he said the muscles and tendons are still there, the best part is she isn't in any pain anymore.
First, thanks for sharing your experiences, it helps a lot.

I think his case might be a bit more serious, sadly. Reading other cases where there was surgery and they led a normal life afterwards gives me some hope. He doesn't showcase pain, but I know cats are pretty good at hiding if they're hurting, unless it's something truly unbearable.

Thanks again. Really appreciate it.
 

silent meowlook

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Hi. Confining cats can be difficult but it can be done. You have to get a very large cage. The size for a large dog. Set it up with a small litter pan that will be secured to the bottom of the cage with double stick Velcro. Use enough cat litter that he doesn't get wet. Attach a water bowl, that has a larger base than top, using Velcro again. Feed on a paper plate to keep things simple. Put a matt at the bottom of the cage, I will actually cut out the area for the bowl and litter pan. Then his bed can go on top of that. They like the circle furry beds. You want the cage to be in an area where he will get some sun but not be tormented by outside cats. You can set up a cheap little fish tank or gold fish bowl for him to watch. They also make a stuffed cat toy with a heart beat for kittens. Sometimes adult cats find this comforting. If you don't want to go through the hassle of the fish tank, you can order a fake butterfly in a jar that is battery opperated and has lights etc for cats to watch. You will want to also have a dark sheet to cover the cage when he needs to calm down.

Most important, you need better living through chemical therapy. Speak to your Veterinarian about using Gabapentin to help him relax.

Cats will adapt to the cage after a while, it just takes some time. And the transition goes much better with Gabapentin. Also you have to not give in to his demands to get out of the cage. Every time you let him out you are reinforcing that his being loud etc will get him what he wants.

If you do the surgery it will be important for him to be confined. If he isn't getting surgery it is also very important to confine him. The more times it slips the less likely it is to heal.
 

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Hi, how is your kitty doing now? I found your thread by searching for luxating patella.

My cat injured her leg a couple weeks ago and has a similar problem, but even the vet isn’t sure if it’s the hip or knee. :ohwell: He examined her and she cried out while at the knee. I think he stopped the exam there assuming it’s the knee? But her xray was okay on the knee, radiologist later said early stage hip dysplasia on the same leg. The vet thinks surgery is needed if she doesn’t get better but I can’t afford surgery for both, am thinking amputation if that’s the case… She’s only 10-11 months old. But she can run and jump fine, has limping episodes for like 10 seconds every few days?

I want to get a second and third opinion but this was like the best vet I’ve ever been to, and he doesn’t know. I don't want to spend another $500 at more vets who can tell me even less and get no answers.
 
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