When Do You Know It's Time?

[foxxycat]

I glad you will get ultrasound done. Pain meds fluids food n pepcid a.c. n cerenia/zofran are good standard for pancreatitis. I know it seems like your cat will hate you but trust me. It makes a week to 2 weeks for them to get used to a routine. So for now stick to a schedule for meds-in a week it will get easier. Especially if they help.

You can ask about sub fluids too. That's another thing I had good luck with. The food i see may have issues but if hes on pred-it may help supress any inflammation and may give you a window to add other foods.

My angel Floey used to get pancreatitis a lot too. It was related to constipation. We did well on canned pumpkin or miralax. Some cats need both. She loved pumpkin for awhile then she refused it later on so we used miralax in tuna. I mashed up a teaspoon in a wide bowl with 1/4 cup water with miralax added into water before I add to tuna.

You are doing just fine.

My other Cats I give meds and always feed them a tasty treat after. Then they don't fight me as much. And yes they hated the syringe of water more than pulling.
Keep up the good work.

 

[maggie101]

One trick my vet showed me. Get a thin piece of paper. Break apart the pill til it's fine with a spoon or a chicken mallet even, get a syringe filled with a tiny bit of water, and slurp it up with the suringe. Open her mouth on the side, and squirt. Don't need to open her mouth all the way. If she has to have a pill, I corner her or put her in a carrier with an open top. My vet is a pro at it. She doesn't use a pill popper. Tilt her head back, put it in. Squirt some water, and slide your finger down her throat, and blow on her so she swallows. Have to be fast! Not me so the vet does it

 

[maggie101]

I also gave her Fortifora but switched to The Missing Link. It is cheaper and I have better results with it. It's only online

 

[maggie101]

My cat is bone skinny and loosing fur from prednisolone, diabetes, anemia, or old age. 11-5 pds She is on 5 MG but please ask your vet first.

 

[maggie101]

I managed to pill him this morning! Took him to the small bathroom, covered him with a towel and put him between my knees on the floor. I had much better access like that as he was not moving. I got 1/3 Cereni AND Pred in! Very proud of myself!
He doesn't seem to be mad at me right now and even just let me pet thim. This was nowhere near as bad for him as the previous times I tried. If he can continue to let me so this, we should able to manage things much better.

I am jealous!

 

[huxleysmom]

I am at a complete loss. They found NOTHING. His GI track looks absolutely normal, though she says him being on steroids could be a reason why. She now thinks it has nothing to do with IBD, but something in his oseaphagus as he stometimes makes noise when he swallows. The procedure to find out is $900. I cannot afford it. If it is something there, it's either a constriction and he would need several procedures to put balloons in there to widen it up, or it's a mass of some sort. Either way, I cannot afford any of it, so we'll keep him on his current meds and hopes he gets better. She told me that she wouldn't do the pancreatitis test as it wouldn't really change the treatment anyway. He drinks a lot at home and doesn't vomit so he is not dehydrated. I do not know how to feel about any of it. I have spent all of that money, and still we know nothing about what's going on.

 

[arouetta]

The sad truth is that no one other than Bill Gates has unlimited funds. I don't remember your cat's age, but you are basically at the point of choosing between rent or diagnostics, and there's no shame in choosing the former.

Treating symptoms rather than finding and fixing the cause is okay. The guilt will be there, but it's an okay answer. And truth be told, even if you have Bill Gates' bank account, that doesn't guarantee an answer could be found.

I say this as a mother that did have to make decisions and choices for my disabled child.

The only other thing I can think of that others will know the answer, can you get insurance for a cat that is already sick? Even if it's a bit pricy, it might be a good financial trade-off.

 

[maggie101]

The catsight has an article about what to do if you cannot afford it. I remember one option was gofundme
My cat is VERY noisy when she eats. I know eventually her flavored prednisolone in her food and steroid shots will not work anymore. Patience. It will work out in time. She drinks tons of water maybe from the prednisolone. She used to vomit 24/7. Now she does not and eats tons of food. As long as she's comfortable I am not going to do have anymore blood work done. Too stressful for her

 

[huxleysmom]

Thank you for your comment, I really appreciate it. I am struggling with an overwhelming amount of guilt with the idea of not continuing because of financial reasons, but at some point, reality must take over I guess. If his current treatment gives him a good life, I would be happy to keep going like that. Unfortunately, so far we've ended up at the vets office every few weeks because he stops eating. This time it's taking a lot longer for him to get over this rough patch and I have never seen him that lethargic and depressed looking, but the fact is what I am doing right now is the best I can do. Hopefully it'll be enough to get him back to feeling better. If not, I don't want to let him live a miserable life for long. We shall see what happens.

The sad truth is that no one other than Bill Gates has unlimited funds. I don't remember your cat's age, but you are basically at the point of choosing between rent or diagnostics, and there's no shame in choosing the former.

Treating symptoms rather than finding and fixing the cause is okay. The guilt will be there, but it's an okay answer. And truth be told, even if you have Bill Gates' bank account, that doesn't guarantee an answer could be found.

I say this as a mother that did have to make decisions and choices for my disabled child.

The only other thing I can think of that others will know the answer, can you get insurance for a cat that is already sick? Even if it's a bit pricy, it might be a good financial trade-off.

 

[maggie101]

The vet also has something to help with lethargic/nausea. Best wishes for you and Huxley!

 

[arouetta]

Broken record...new vet. Yeah, you saw a specialist, but often specialists only see their part, not the whole person. I really think a new primary care vet visit is in order. Either you will receive reassurance that symptom relief is the best it will get or you will have someone who gets better results. I suspect the latter. (I'll admit I'm biased based on my own experiences.)

 

[huxleysmom]

For the reccord this is the 3rd vet Huxley sees.

Broken record...new vet. Yeah, you saw a specialist, but often specialists only see their part, not the whole person. I really think a new primary care vet visit is in order. Either you will receive reassurance that symptom relief is the best it will get or you will have someone who gets better results. I suspect the latter. (I'll admit I'm biased based on my own experiences.)

 

[babiesmom5]

I am sorry that you were not able to get a positive diagnosis today. Often, when we go for diagnostic procedures, it is to "rule out" certain things. In this case, your vet "ruled out" IBD on the basis of what she saw. Yes, steroids could have masked or minimized what showed up in the intestines. But the ultrasound did point in a different direction--esophagus. You now have new information.

Did your vet prescribe any different treatment? Any different medications?

I understand your vet did not do the test for pancreatitis, but did she indicate that Huxley may indeed have pancreatitis in addition to whatever is going on in the esophagus?

Did your vet mention about esophagram or barium swallow? This is a fairly low risk procedure that is helpful in evaluating esophagus lining and detecting stricture or dilation. It is also less expensive and may provide some clues.

Finally, I would suggest an elevated feeding bowl and water bowl. This can help immensely with cats who have esophageal problems as it puts their mouth in line with their stomach. They stay at their food and water bowls longer, and it greatly reduces vomiting or regurgitation. I have one for each cat and it has made a big difference. Check them out at www.classycatdishes.com This is a low cost aid that can really help.

Take each day as it comes. Give Huxley a lot of love and hopefully things will stabilize.

 

[huxleysmom]

She said he could well have pancreatitis and it is not showing, but that in any case, he is already taking the meds she would recommend to treat it, so it wouldn't make any difference. She has basically told me to keep going with the same meds, and even said he could stay on Cerenia long term, but to stop the pain meds and see how he does without it. He is much more alert this evening, and has been awake for hours now, which is an improvement in and of itself. The only procedure she mentioned was basically gonin there with a tube. Nothing else. What are these other procedures you mentioned? I could talk to the vet about it and see if either are a more affordable option. He seems much better this evening. I think me pilling him the pred instead of having him eat it in the food is a more efficient option.
Tonight he is happily cuddling on my lap so he is not too mad at me for everything that was done to him today. He can't help it, he is a lover that little dude!

I am sorry that you were not able to get a positive diagnosis today. Often, when we go for diagnostic procedures, it is to "rule out" certain things. In this case, your vet "ruled out" IBD on the basis of what she saw. Yes, steroids could have masked or minimized what showed up in the intestines. But the ultrasound did point in a different direction--esophagus. You now have new information.

Did your vet prescribe any different treatment? Any different medications?

I understand your vet did not do the test for pancreatitis, but did she indicate that Huxley may indeed have pancreatitis in addition to whatever is going on in the esophagus?

Did your vet mention about esophagram or barium swallow? This is a fairly low risk procedure that is helpful in evaluating esophagus lining and detecting stricture or dilation. It is also less expensive and may provide some clues.

Finally, I would suggest an elevated feeding bowl and water bowl. This can help immensely with cats who have esophageal problems as it puts their mouth in line with their stomach. They stay at their food and water bowls longer, and it greatly reduces vomiting or regurgitation. I have one for each cat and it has made a big difference. Check them out at www.classycatdishes.com This is a low cost aid that can really help.

Take each day as it comes. Give Huxley a lot of love and hopefully things will stabilize.

 

[foxxycat]

I would continue with the meds. Give yourself a few weeks. See how it goes. It's not uncommon to not get answers. I had a few cats who died from unknown causes. Either I didn't have the money or it was too late to test. and I am ok with it. I did the best I could with what I knew at the time. Chalk this up as a learning experience. Try the pred and Cerenia for a week. Give it time. I use a shelf from a computer desk to raise the dishes up. or use old phone books or encyclopedias. You don't need to spend money. Even a chunk of wood works. Anything to raise it up a few inches. It does help. One cat sips her water with her head back. She snores at night and eats slurpy type but with the dish raised it helps.

 

[huxleysmom]

Yes. I do plan on continuing with his current treatment and see how it goes. Yesterday he ate well without the pain meds, but today again he's left half of his dry food untouched. He has one raised bowl, but I don't use it very often as this silly boy takes a chunk of wet food in his mouth, drops it on the floor and eats it from there! I'll try and use that only and see if that helps. His water fountain is already rather high so I don't think I need to rise it up.

I have reached out to the shelter again and see if they will help me. I am in this position because of them not being honest with me about his health issues so I hope they will do something.

I would continue with the meds. Give yourself a few weeks. See how it goes. It's not uncommon to not get answers. I had a few cats who died from unknown causes. Either I didn't have the money or it was too late to test. and I am ok with it. I did the best I could with what I knew at the time. Chalk this up as a learning experience. Try the pred and Cerenia for a week. Give it time. I use a shelf from a computer desk to raise the dishes up. or use old phone books or encyclopedias. You don't need to spend money. Even a chunk of wood works. Anything to raise it up a few inches. It does help. One cat sips her water with her head back. She snores at night and eats slurpy type but with the dish raised it helps.

 

[maggie101]

I have the Cat Mate water fountain. She drinks from the top level so she doesn't have to bend her head. Only problem is she gets lots of water on her chin.

 

[valentine319]

I agree with waiting a few weeks.

Here's an off label question for your vet. If you need something to increase appetite would 5 mg zyrtec be ok? It's available at any drug store. All of them have propylene glycol in them, I checked and it's such a miniscule amount my vet said not to worry about it. Granted i know you can't mix it in food but must pill or syringe it. But it does increase appetite. It doesn't make them tired but more alert or nothing at all.

Why I Love Zyrtec for Cats
"The best news for felines, however, is not just that Zyrtec seems to help for their itchiness, but also that it may help treat eosinophilic diseases." if your vet says it's fine to try then it could double help huxley.

Just wanted to throw something out there. I crush mine with a spoon, add a small amount of water and suck it up in a syringe. I squirt in the side of the mouth. It doesn't make them foam at the mouth like CM (another antihistamine does).

 

[guindle]

Just a note about when it is time. It is really hard to say. I read so many forums about this to see what people say and they have amazing advice. For me, when it was Skitty's time, I could tell. Her breathing was labored, we tried to treat her heart failure but she never started to get better. She wouldn't eat ANYTHING I tried. Sardines, baby food, gravy, you name it, I tried it. I had to actually assist feed her while we gave her time for the meds to work. She never got better at all. The final day I came home on lunch to check on her and she was in a hunched position, breathing hard, and she had this look in her eyes. It was like she looked at me and said "Mom, I don't want to do this anymore, please" so I laid her next to Goat and told Goat to say goodbye and I took her to let her rest. The vet said that it was time. She wasn't getting any better and putting her through another chest drain wasn't good and that I was doing the right thing. I just knew, it was of great comfort that she let me know she was ready. I am very grateful for that.

 

[huxleysmom]

He was on Zyrtec for a while when we were dealing with his allergies so the vet already okayed it for him. I could put him back on it, especially since he is clearly having a reaction to the fish he tried the other day (wheezing, sneezing and ear scratching are back). Not sure if it ever did anything for his appetite though, but it's something I can try.

I agree with waiting a few weeks.

Here's an off label question for your vet. If you need something to increase appetite would 5 mg zyrtec be ok? It's available at any drug store. All of them have propylene glycol in them, I checked and it's such a miniscule amount my vet said not to worry about it. Granted i know you can't mix it in food but must pill or syringe it. But it does increase appetite. It doesn't make them tired but more alert or nothing at all.

Why I Love Zyrtec for Cats
"The best news for felines, however, is not just that Zyrtec seems to help for their itchiness, but also that it may help treat eosinophilic diseases." if your vet says it's fine to try then it could double help huxley.

Just wanted to throw something out there. I crush mine with a spoon, add a small amount of water and suck it up in a syringe. I squirt in the side of the mouth. It doesn't make them foam at the mouth like CM (another antihistamine does).