Tube Feeding - Potential Problem, Urgent, Please Help

[epona]

Thanks Antonio65 - I'll look those up and see if they are available here.

 

[mazie]

You are from London, England I see. Are you familiar with "Netflix"? There is a series show called "Super Vet" on Netflix. It features a veterinarian from England by the name of "Noel Fitzpatrick" who I believe has his practice in Surrey, England? I have watched his program many times and I do believe he is the best veterinarian in the world, in my opinion. People from all over England bring their sick dogs and cats to be seen by him. You might want to check out that program and then you decide from there. This veterinarian can be googled too, of course. I did not check him out detail, I do not live in England, but if he is legit, you might want to check him out. In my opinion, on what I have seen on his program, he is THE vet to go to!

 

[epona]

You are from London, England I see. Are you familiar with "Netflix"? There is a series show called "Super Vet" on Netflix. It features a veterinarian from England by the name of "Noel Fitzpatrick" who I believe has his practice in Surrey, England? I have watched his program many times and I do believe he is the best veterinarian in the world, in my opinion. People from all over England bring their sick dogs and cats to be seen by him. You might want to check out that program and then you decide from there. This veterinarian can be googled too, of course. I did not check him out detail, I do not live in England, but if he is legit, you might want to check him out. In my opinion, on what I have seen on his program, he is THE vet to go to!

Thank you for the suggestion, unfortunately that's miles away - like a lot of Londoners I don't drive and don't own a car, I can't simply hop off and travel to a vet 50 miles away - it's faintly ridiculous tbh. Just because he is on TV doesn't mean he is the only good vet in the country.

 

[epona]

So, I took Radar to our regular vet today to get his feeding tube sorted out.

As good as our out of hours hospital is in terms of clinical excellence and all the equipment and specialist surgeons, it was good to talk to our regular vet who has known our cats for a while.

I asked him if he thought we were doing the right thing, he said as long as he seems happy most of the time, which we can judge best, then don't worry. He'll recover and won't dwell on the times he's been in discomfort.

 

[pushylady]

That's reassuring. You know that you're doing all that you can for him and this will be temporary.
I would be quite irked at the expensive of that kinked tube, and would want some kind of recognition from the vet who inserted it that they did it incorrectly. As in, how about some money back?!

 

[epona]

That's reassuring. You know that you're doing all that you can for him and this will be temporary.
I would be quite irked at the expensive of that kinked tube, and would want some kind of recognition from the vet who inserted it that they did it incorrectly. As in, how about some money back?!

Honestly, I was really cross at the time - but I don't think they inserted it incorrectly. I think my cat thrashing about in the carrier on the way home (at one point he was upside down with his feet braced against the carrier ceiling) probably just shifted it and caused the kink because the finger-trap suture pulled on the tube slightly.

I was incredibly upset when I felt he needed a top up feed and was unable to do it, and was stressing about taking him on yet another 3-4 hour round trip to the vet hospital on the bus or in a cab (so £30 in cab fares each trip, to save time and stress about going on the bus) because he's no longer as happy with being in a carrier as he used to be (I can't blame him for that, poor mite).

Fortunately today we were able to take him to our regular vet which is 10 minutes away, so much less stress and cost.

EDIT: Also good news, he has eaten 2 pouches of wet today, which is about right for his weight. Please keep your fingers crossed for my little love that he keeps this up!

 

[Antonio65]

EDIT: Also good news, he has eaten 2 pouches of wet today, which is about right for his weight. Please keep your fingers crossed for my little love that he keeps this up!

That's fantastic!
Have you managed to find those supplements? With smaller meals he could have the right amount of calories anyway, so at least he can mantain his weight.

 

[epona]

I have found out where to order those from online, thank you very much! I also need to get some pet scales (have found a suitable baby/pet digital scale with a flat top on Amazon uk - he is being weighed every vet visit, but now we're into what could be a longer convalescence at home without such regular visits, having my own will help monitor). They will be useful for all the cats, Sonic now has a touch of arthritis and has put on a little weight and they are all getting older, so monitoring weights regularly wouldn't be a bad idea at this stage of their lives.

He's still not consistently eating a full amount daily without Mirtazapine so he's not ready to have the tube removed just yet. Unfortunately he brought up some of his breakfast this morning and hasn't eaten since, will give him a tube feed in a bit with some anti-emetic meds if he still seems uninterested. At least this time the feeding tube still seems to be in place after vomiting (he's not pawing at his mouth or retching anyway, will have a look in his mouth and what I can see of his throat before attempting a feed just to be sure).

The weird thing is that he always used to love dry food better, I am very much in the "let him eat whatever he wants" mindframe right now of course, and he runs over to his bowl of dry and kind of pushes the nuggets around the bowl as if he wants to eat them. He did this before he had stitches in his mouth too. I just still think he's a little sore and poorly.

 

[Antonio65]

I understand that the feeding tube is working now, I mean, you tried it and it's working, isn't it?
Yes, keeping trace of his weight is a good idea. Of course you have to keep in account that +/- 50 grams can be the contribute of a meal or a pee or a poop

 

[epona]

I just went to check on him and he was at his bowl having a bit more wet - I'm still offering food little and often to minimize bolt/vomit risk. Will check on him again in a bit to make sure it stayed down.

EDIT: It seems to have stayed down ok, plus he is in fine form - quite lively and very very affectionate

EDIT AGAIN: Simply because I didn't respond to this part earlier: The tube was working when we tried it, but we've not had to use it every day and Radar is a very active cat despite his age so there's probably never going to be any guarantee that it won't kink again. HOWEVER, we have a local cab firm who can get us to either our local vet in normal hours, or the further away 24/7 out of hours vet at any time should he start needing top up feeds for some reason and the tube isn't working again. I know not to leave it long if he isn't eating and the tube isn't right in some way.

 

[Antonio65]

What they adviced me when my sweet Lola had her PEG tube, was to use it regularly to avoid that it got blocked due to not using it.
She had her tube inserted long before she needed to use it (long story), and I was told to start using right away even if it wasn't necessary yet.
I delayed, though, because I was scared by that tube, it was so unnatural to me, I didn't even want to look at it. The vets urged me to use it even to pass some water through it, just to avoid it could get stuck.
So, I could advice to use the E-tube once every other day, to make sure it is working.

 

[epona]

What they adviced me when my sweet Lola had her PEG tube, was to use it regularly to avoid that it got blocked due to not using it.
She had her tube inserted long before she needed to use it (long story), and I was told to start using right away even if it wasn't necessary yet.
I delayed, though, because I was scared by that tube, it was so unnatural to me, I didn't even want to look at it. The vets urged me to use it even to pass some water through it, just to avoid it could get stuck.
So, I could advice to use the E-tube once every other day, to make sure it is working.

OK thanks for the tip, will give it a flush daily even if he doesn't need food as such.

I completely understand about the way you describe feeling about the whole thing - I know it is saving his life (and he has a good prospect of health ahead of him) but seeing a tube in your beloved cat -whether oesophagostomy or gastrostomy - is kind of shocking and requires some mental adjustment from us, their humans.

 

[epona]

He's eaten some more, so he's had a pouch today so far. Will offer him another half a pouch when I go for a nap in a bit, come on Radar, you can do it Everyone is rooting for you

It's when he sleeps for a few hours and doesn't eat anything during that time - rationally, I KNOW that is normal behaviour for a cat his age, but given that I am watching his eating habits like a hawk, it can be really worrying sometimes.

 

[Antonio65]

I, too, would like my cat Pallina to eat more, and more often.
This morning she ate 95% of her can of wet food. I was so happy she was going to finish it off before noon. But then she took a nap, then she stayed on my lap while I was at the PC, then she looked the world under a heavy rain through the window and again to sleep she went. And she's still spleeping, and the 5% of wet food is still resting in her bowl... until dinner time, when I was quite sure she would have asked for a half serving.
Cats... they never do something that pleases us

 

[epona]

Radar has always been my most fussy eater too, which doesn't help - I'm afraid right now to offer anything other than his favourite junk foods in case he stops eating again - he's no stranger to walking up to a bowl of food and going "ugh, no thanks, human you have failed me". I'll worry about that and start offering a wider variety of better quality foods when he has gained his lost weight back and is eating properly.

I love him so much, there's no way I could let him go without fighting for him/huge bills As long as he is still showing he enjoys life and he stands a good chance of recovery, I am there for him.

 

[Antonio65]

As long as he is still showing he enjoys life and he stands a good chance of recovery, I am there for him.

That's the way to go!

 

[epona]

That's the way to go!

I know, I'm just so mentally and physically exhausted and I feel low sometimes. What I needed most right now was some moral support, and you have definitely provided that - so thank you I appreciate it

 

[Antonio65]

I know what hospicing a sick cat means.
And I know what feeling low and helpless feels like. I went through this for weeks, months, I had no energy and didn't even know of this forum... unfortunately I found it a few days before my Lola passed, but the support I had from the members of the Forum was unvaluable. I never found something similar anywhere else!
Be strong, you're going to see the light at the end of the tunnel

 

[epona]

He ate 2.5 pouches of wet food yesterday which is the most so far (he's a small cat, so that's a good amount for a bit of weight gain), by himself, without use of appetite stimulants. He was also lively and affectionate. He's still underweight so needs to keep this up - if he can do this consistently for a week and show some weight gain without appetite stimulants or tube feeds, the tube can come out.

I'm feeling a bit more hopeful today, he did really well. Fingers crossed that he keeps this going (please please please keep eating well Radar, I love you so much).

 

[jcat]

That sounds like real progress!