just need to settle my mind...

Hello to all, I'm new. A week ago today I had to put my sweet kitty Bandit to sleep after a 2 month battle with a 'mystery illness'. He was never truly diagnosed but the vet suspected 'fatty liver'. Now that I'm constantly hearing about the food recalls I'm starting to wonder if this might have been the cause of his illness. Bandit was only 7 and should have had many more years with me. If any one has any advice it will be greatly appreciated.

Sorry to hear about Bandit! !

Was he eating any of the recalled foods? Either way, really the only way of knowing for sure was to have done a necropsy. It is hard not knowing.

Again, I am sorry for your loss. I am sure he had a good life with you, even though it was short.

yes, we fed him Nutro dry and pouch food. By the end he had lost 50% of his body weight. We forced food, meds (antibiotics, liver meds and an appetite enhancer), nutrical and subcutaneous fluids twice a day for almost 2 months before we finally gave in and had him put down. The entire ordeal was horrible enough but now that he's gone, thinking that this could have been prevented has been driving me crazy.

here's my sweet baby:

I am very sorry to hear about your loss. He was a beautiful boy.

Someone else posted this link in another thread: http://www.petconnection.com/blog/
If you think his death may be related to the food contamination problem, you should get in touch with the the people at the link, as they are trying to get an accurate tally.

I am very sorry about Bandit. It is very hard to see them go downhill. We can only do so much to help. My Kitty was put to sleep on 2-14, she got ill and lost weight so fast. The doc said FIP, but now I am second guessing his diagnosis. She was so bad, nothing would have helped. One thing that stood out was her swollen belly. I am not sure if that is a sign of Kidney failure but he said it was of FIP. I have 3 other cats and they have no signs of any illness. My Kitty Girl was a picky eater and I bought Iams kitten food pouches and special kitty pouches to get her to eat. My only consolation is that she
is not suffering anymore and I held her until she was gone, so she did not go alone. A piece of my heart went with her. Don't beat yourself up trying to figure out exactly what happened. Remember the Good Days and how much
Bandit loved you.

So sorry about Bandit. I know losing a pet is so terrible, espically to something so unexpected.


Please know we are all here to listen/talk.

I'm so very sorry about Bandit and Kitty Girl. (((Big Hugs))) to both of you.

One thing that stood out was her swollen belly. I am not sure if that is a sign of Kidney failure but he said it was of FIP.

Click to expand...

I've had several kitties with kidney failure, and none of them experienced a swollen belly. In fact, their weight loss was the first sign that something was wrong. I lost my Sophie last Oct. after noticing how swollen her belly was. The vet's first thought was FIP, too. After testing the fluid in her belly, the diagnosis was cancer. Probably doesn't help either of you much, but thought I'd mention it.

Again, I'm so very sorry.

So sorry about Bandit .... it is a shame when they go over the bridge... RIP Bandit

Please accept my condolences for Bandit. Fatty liver is usually secondary to something else going on. They get fatty liver because they quit eating. The trick is to figure out why they quit eating. Sometimes you never find out. My cat had fatty liver and went from around 11 lbs to 5.8 lbs in a short time. He spent 3 days in hospital getting IV nutrition and fluids (not sub Q but actually IV in the veins) and antibiotics. With a lot of hard work and coaxing, he has come back like new and is now 12 lbs and getting all his fur back (he lost most of it). It certainly could have been the food Bandit was getting. But did your vet ever do kidney studies? If they were normal, I doubt it was the food. A swollen belly can be caused by many things. The biggest thing is FIP, which is almost impossible to diagnose without a necropsy (after death).

Thanks for everyones kind words.