Vet Can’t Find Anything Wrong

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nikups

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I have 14 yr old, 19lb, DSH, indoor, altered male. (Vet says 18-20lbs is good for a cat his size,he’s a big boy) I noticed problems in the litter box. His feces wasn’t as big as it normally is and was covered in a bloody mucus. He is still eating, drinking, playing, and cuddling normally. I took him to the vet. The first thing that was wrong was he lost 2 lbs without any changes to his diet. She diagnosed him with constipation and told me to give him miralax. Took in stool sample that had the bloody mucus the next day. It came back normal. I gave him the miralax for a week, nothing changed.

I took him back to the vet. He lost another 13oz in that week and the vet (this time it’s the head vet) was worried it was his kidneys or liver. The did a full panel blood test, urinalysis, gave him a another physical and rectal exam,checked him for again for parasites . The vet was surprised, everything came back perfect with the blood test and urine, no parasites. The vet felt no lumps or anything like that in the abdomen or anywhere else. No signs of a blockage or signs that he had gotten into something he shouldn’t have. He did say his feces felt a tad tacky but not so much that he’s extremely worried about it. He can’t find anything wrong. He told me to watch him closely. If anything changes for the worse, bring him right back in. If not, bring him in in 2 weeks to be weighed again and we’ll go from there. He said the blood work doesn’t warrant an ultra sound or X-ray right now but if he loses more weight, that’s the next step.

I’m so worried about him. His poop has always been pretty large and now it’s just small pieces, every couple of days that bloody mucus returns. He’s still eating, drinking, playing and cuddling normally. Besides the pooping issue there are no other symptoms.There are no obvious signs that’s he’s in any pain. How can I know that for sure though?

Has anyone went through anything like this? Is my vet doing enough? Am I doing enough? Is there anything else that I should be looking for? Please, any advice or experience you have would be greatly appreciated. I’ve had him since he was about 6 weeks old. I love him so much. I want to do everything, anything I can to make sure he is ok.
 

Jem

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Was his thyroid specifically checked, I believe it is not included in a "routine" blood work.
Also, you mention he is eating...is he eating as much as he usually does? Do you free feed him dry food? It would be very difficult to know for sure if he is eating just as much as before if that's how he normally eats.
If he's still eating, but not as much, that could cause some constipation and less stool.
At that point, if it is because of less eating, then it's a matter of finding out why. Could it be his teeth? Nausea? Hairballs?
Have you noticed anything else different about him? Licking his lips more? Drooling? Dry heaving? Shedding more than usual? Drinking more?
Does he strain to poop? Has he missed the litter box at all?
 
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nikups

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His thyroid was checked. It was fine.They did other test besides what’s included in the full panel. We don’t free feed. He gets wet food in the morning, dry in the evenings and treats. That’s why I’m sure he’s eating the same. He has always been a big water drinker. Judging the amount he drinks is harder than with the food but the water levels in the bowls seem consistent with what they’ve always been. He’s not shedding more, he’s still grooming. His teeth are fine. No drooling. No licking lips. No hair balls. Anal sacs are fine. He did have this clear gel like substance leaking from his anus but the vet said that was from being constipated. It didn’t have any smell to it. I thought that was wired because it’s a butt, they stink and his didn’t. He vomited once last week before the first vet visit. No dry heaving though. I found a small piece of feces outside the box once, which was what prompted me to get him back in the vet that day. Although I wasn’t 100% sure that he actually went outside the box or if it was just stuck to him and maybe fell off or he scooted because the end of it was smashed into the carpet. I’ve been watching when I hear him get in the box. He doesn’t seem to be straining. He never spends a long time in box, even before this started. He gets in does his business, jumps out. He doesn’t even cover his stool or urine, he never has. His feces could clear a room, now it doesn’t stink anywhere near as bad. That could be because it’s now so small or something inside him is not doing it’s job. There are no obvious signs , besides the drastic change in his defecation habits, as to what could be wrong. I know cats can get constipated sometimes but it’s going on almost 2 1/2 weeks. That’s not normal. The bright red, bloody mucus worries me more than anything. I feel like the vet should at least given him an X-ray instead of us waiting. Am I overreacting?
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. No, I don't think you are overreacting. Bright red blood from the anus usually means something is going on at the far end of the digestive tract (as opposed to black stool which can mean digestive issues closer to the stomach). That combined with weight loss of unknown origins is enough to warrant more testing that might reveal something, such as a simple x-ray.

Wasn't the vet concerned about the blood in his stool?
 

furmonster mom

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My immediate thought is that there is a small, possibly sharp, obstruction in the colon or somewhere close to the end of the intestines. The weight loss tells me that something is interfering with nutrition absorbtion. I'm really surprised that you haven't mentioned an x-ray or ultrasound/sonogram; an x-ray would show anything solid in nature, the ultrasound would show problems with soft tissue.
 
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nikups

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The second visit with the head, he was extremely worried. All the test coming back good is what made him want to watch and wait. I’m freaking out because now the actual feces really has no smell to it. That’s totally abnormal. I’m thinking, like furmonster mom mentioned, the small intestine or the colon.

I trust him, I really do. He‘s a good vet. I’ve been going to his clinic for about 30 yrs. He really cares about the animals. He doesn’t charge an arm and a leg or try to push anything on me that I’m not interested I’m in just to make money. He has me contacting the clinic every 2 days to let him know how things are going. With that being said, this watch and wait feels wrong to me. I’m letting him know when I call in tomorrow to check in right away that I want to bring him back in ASAP.

(Am I allowed to post a picture of the stool to show what is happening right now?)
 

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I'd probably ask for xrays and/or ultrasound at this point. It sounds like your vet is trying into save you money but the bloody stool is very worrisome. Plus the weight loss on top of it, something isn't right and I'd want to get to the bottom of it. I get that they might not help but at least it could check more things off as the problem.
 
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nikups

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I got an appt for Tuesday. With the Covid-19 restrictions in place, my vet (plus many others) is not allowing us to go inside. The vet tech comes out, gets the pet, when it’s our turn we communicate by video call or phone if the person doesn’t have a form of video calling I don’t like it but I understand. This only for scheduled visits. I don’t know what they’re doing about other situations.

So here is what his feces looks like. It’s only about an inch long. The blood was more mucus like when it first started, now it’s just blood, no more mucus.
 

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IndyJones

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That definitely doesn't look normal.

Some cats though have poo that really doesn't smell. Indy's is like that small, doesn't smell but otherwise looks normal but she eats decent food so that's probably why.

In your case something definitely isn't right. Lower GI is the first thing that comes to mind with how fresh that blood is. Is he scooting at all? (dragging back end on the floor)
 

FeebysOwner

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He has me contacting the clinic every 2 days to let him know how things are going. With that being said, this watch and wait feels wrong to me. I’m letting him know when I call in tomorrow to check in right away that I want to bring him back in ASAP.... The blood was more mucus like when it first started, now it’s just blood, no more mucus.
It would seem to be a good vet for them to have you repeatedly updating them, or so I think anyway. Glad you have an appt in the near future. Have you shared this pic with the vet?
 

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I didn't have this situation with a cat, but I did my dog. He was old, too. The vet checked him and couldn't figure out what was wrong either, but by the time we had our second appointment, everything had cleared up (we fed him rice and chicken for dinner leading up to his appointment) I don't really know what we did to clear it up and the vet could never figure it out since it didn't happen again. Would anyone know if giving him rice/chicken until the appointment would be safe? If anything, maybe it will be easier on his stomach and give him some rest while they wait for the appointment?

I really hope everything works out <3 Keep us updated. You have eight paws over here crossed for you, and my fingers!
 

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That fresh blood would indicate something in the colon or rectum because if it were in the small intestine, the blood would have been digested and appear black. That photo really needs to go to the vet and further tests done.
 

IndyJones

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Agree with the above. Please have further screening done. I know this isn't a nice thing to think about, but blood like that is a symptom of colorectal cancer. Hopefully not this but it is something that should be ruled out. At least ask about a endoscopy.
 
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cataholic07

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hmm does your cat have diahrea? it looks loose. Diarrhea and constipation can cause blood in the stool due to irritation. I would do an ultrasound and switch to an easy to digest wet food only (no carragean as that can cause inflammation)
 
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nikups

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That definitely doesn't look normal.

Some cats though have poo that really doesn't smell. Indy's is like that small, doesn't smell but otherwise looks normal but she eats decent food so that's probably why.

In your case something definitely isn't right. Lower GI is the first thing that comes to mind with how fresh that blood is. Is he scooting at all? (dragging back end on the floor)
No scooting. There was feces outside the box once when this first started but I actually think it may have been stuck to him and it fell off. It didn’t look like it a streak, just one end of it was flattened. Besides the blood and small stool, no other symptoms. Those are pretty big symptoms if you ask me. This afternoon he started going into the box more often. He passes small stools every time, every one has been completely covered blood so it’s gotten worse. It wasn’t every time before. Before it was every few bowel movements. I just talked to vet again about an hour ago and he wants me to bring him in first thing Monday.
 
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nikups

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hmm does your cat have diahrea? it looks loose. Diarrhea and constipation can cause blood in the stool due to irritation. I would do an ultrasound and switch to an easy to digest wet food only (no carragean as that can cause inflammation)
No diarrhea. It’s actually normal texture. It’s just small. I feed him Blue Buffalo basics wet in the morning, dry in the evenings. I switch the proteins every time I buy a new bag.
 
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