4 Year old Simba is sick

Hello, my dear Simba is sick and is at the vet right now because they are force feeding him and keeping him hydrated through an I.V. We took Simba to the vet about a month ago because we noticed he has lost a little weight. They did blood work on him and took a urine test and only found bacteria in his urine. They gave us Antibiotics to give to him for 7 days to clean it out. He was eating at the time and seemed to be his normal self.

Just recently we have noticed more weight loss, low energy and not eating. They did more blood work today and once again found nothing. They did an xray and found his liver and kidney enlarged but doctor said it may be from his lack of eating and dehydration.

They are not able to give me a straight answer to what may be causing this. He gags from the smell of food but the veterinarian said it also maybe due to abnormality in his liver. They said he will need over night care and an ultra sound from a specialist.

I need some feedback to see if anyone has experienced this. Also does anyone know how much an ultrasound cost and an over night stay is? Please, need some feedback asap. We are picking Simba up in a couple hours to bring him to the specialist. Thank you!

I have dealt with liver issues in three species ..

that you find the big issue ...

Ultrasound and overnight here is 2-4 thousand due to having to go to the vet school

friend a few hundred miles away same thing is less than 500$

Prices vary so much from place to place and clinic to clinic, hon, I'd give yours a call and see if they can't give you an estimate.

I'm so sorry you're going through this. Many, many thoughts that whatever is causing Simba's issues is found and fixed very soon.

Originally Posted by sharky

I have dealt with liver issues in three species ..

that you find the big issue ...

Ultrasound and overnight here is 2-4 thousand due to having to go to the vet school

friend a few hundred miles away same thing is less than 500$

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OMG Sharky!

Herei is much cheaper, Few hundred $$
I hope your cat is ok... Please update us...

Is that Millbrae California you live in?
I used to live in San Bruno and my vet was $150-$300 for ultrasounds.
Not sure what thy charge now.
The ER in San Mateo charged me $800.
My family still goes to the vet I went to over there.

Originally Posted by mews2much

Is that Millbrae California you live in?
I used to live in San Bruno and my vet was $150-$300 for ultrasounds.
Not sure what thy charge now.
The ER in San Mateo charged me $800.
My family still goes to the vet I went to over there.

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Yes, I just came back from an Emergency Clinic in San Mateo. We brought Simba there for some over night care (fluids and force feeding) and to see a specialist. We spoke to one of the veterinarians and he assumed it was liver failure and recommended a huge amount of different test and doing a few blood test as well. He said it would cost minimum $3,000 and at the end there may still be a great chance he may die. He also suggested that putting him to sleep was an option and was up to us. My girlfriend was very upset and he kept drilling her and repeating all the negatives that can happen. I honestly had a bad feeling in my stomach about all this and at the end decided to take Simba back home and to get a second opinion. He said we would have to sign a waiver that we were going to take him home and also that he may die.

Simba has had a respiratory problem since he was a kitten. When we noticed he started to lose weight he was also sneezing. We mentioned this to the vet but just disregarded it.

Can you please tell me the name of the vet you went too please? I need to find a veterinarian that we feel comfortable and trust. If it comes down to it and we have to pay all this money. We would rather do it with a veterinarian that we can trust.

And to all, thank you for your reply and concern. God Bless.

I went to White Ivie on El Camino in San Bruno.
They saved my Coco when she was 10.
The Er vet in San Mateo had said to have her pts.
Coco is now 17.8 years old.
They told me Coco had Diabetes but she did not.
The ER vet in San Mateo did save my Meeko when she was 2 and Stripe.
It depends what dr you get.
Some are very good.
There is another Er vet in San Francsico you can go to
Can you get to this vet?
http://www.yelp.com/biz/all-animals-...-san-francisco.

Originally Posted by mews2much

I went to White Ivie on El Camino in San Bruno.
They saved my Coco when she was 10.
The Er vet in San Mateo had said to have her pts.
Coco is now 17.8 years old.
They told me Coco had Diabetes but she did not.
The ER vet in San Mateo did save my Meeko when she was 2 and Stripe.
It depends what dr you get.
Some are very good.
There is another Er vet in San Francsico you can go to
Can you get to this vet?
http://www.yelp.com/biz/all-animals-...-san-francisco.

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Jacky you are the best
scof0elife many many many for your kitty I am glad you took your kitty back with you... Don't give up!

Originally Posted by mews2much

I went to White Ivie on El Camino in San Bruno.
They saved my Coco when she was 10.
The Er vet in San Mateo had said to have her pts.
Coco is now 17.8 years old.
They told me Coco had Diabetes but she did not.
The ER vet in San Mateo did save my Meeko when she was 2 and Stripe.
It depends what dr you get.
Some are very good.
There is another Er vet in San Francsico you can go to
Can you get to this vet?
http://www.yelp.com/biz/all-animals-...-san-francisco.

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I'm glad that Coco is still with you. As far as the vet in San Francisco. We are willing to go anywhere to find a good quality and honest vet as well as affordable.

Thanks
Coco has CRF and has alot of medicines now.
I suggest you go to th Er vet tonight.
I would not wait.
The price might be high but it will be worth it if he is helped.

Originally Posted by scof0elife

... I honestly had a bad feeling in my stomach about all this and at the end decided to take Simba back home and to get a second opinion. He said we would have to sign a waiver that we were going to take him home and also that he may die.

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A waiver? In the midst of all this, the vet made you acknowledge your cat may die in writing? I'm totally floored.

I have never heard of such a thing, and that would be a huge red flag for me. I commend you for standing your ground in the face of such pressure.

I think you are doing the right thing by seeking another vet; Simba is awfully young for liver issues. God bless you and your kitty!

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

A waiver? In the midst of all this, the vet made you acknowledge your cat may die in writing? I'm totally floored.

I have never heard of such a thing, and that would be a huge red flag for me. I commend you for standing your ground in the face of such pressure.

I think you are doing the right thing by seeking another vet; Simba is awfully young for liver issues. God bless you and your kitty!

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I have had to sign that at EVERY vet here outside my main one for ANY procedure ... it is one of those PC things...

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

A waiver? In the midst of all this, the vet made you acknowledge your cat may die in writing? I'm totally floored.

I have never heard of such a thing, and that would be a huge red flag for me. I commend you for standing your ground in the face of such pressure.

I think you are doing the right thing by seeking another vet; Simba is awfully young for liver issues. God bless you and your kitty!

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Thank you Auntie Crazy. If the veterinarian showed more sympathy instead of a salesman we may have agreed. But it turned out that he wasn't even the specialist but today we will be calling the SPCA Hospital and see what they think.

We were force feeding him every hour last night and then before we were going to feed him again he walks over the dry food and started eating himself. We were very happy to see him do that. We will continue to feed him and give him water.

Originally Posted by sharky

I have had to sign that at EVERY vet here outside my main one for ANY procedure ... it is one of those PC things...

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Hi, Sharky.

You have to sign a waiver acknowledging your cat may die during surgery (I expect that), or you have to sign a waiver acknowledging your cat may die if you take him away from the clinic (as happened with scof0elife and Simba)?

scof0elife,

That's great that Simba's eating. Please keep us in the loop as you can! I will keep all of you in my thoughts, and I'll come back here regularly to check on you. Simba's too young to leave you now!!

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

Hi, Sharky.

You have to sign a waiver acknowledging your cat may die during surgery (I expect that), or you have to sign a waiver acknowledging your cat may die if you take him away from the clinic (as happened with scof0elife and Simba)?

scof0elife,

That's great that Simba's eating. Please keep us in the loop as you can! I will keep all of you in my thoughts, and I'll come back here regularly to check on you. Simba's too young to leave you now!!

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surgery is a given ... but I have had to sign waivers for even a toe nail clip stating death could occur .. I would imagine if you took a an animal out of the clinic against advice you would have to( not saying that happened in this case just a general FYI)

He's EATING? That's a hopeful sign!

I'll be thinking of you, and hoping Simba gets through this unscathed. I'm sorry you had such a rotten experience instead of getting the help you needed.

At this point, it sounds like you need to put everything that vet told you out of your mind, because he seems a bit out of his.

Keep your focus on helping Simba, and projecting a positive attitude, which will comfort him because cats pick up on our fear and anxiety.

May you have a great experience with your new vet.

Have you gone back to the vet? I mean to the other vet? I hope you do go ASAP...

Originally Posted by carolinalima

Have you gone back to the vet? I mean to the other vet? I hope you do go ASAP...

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Thanks everyone. We are taking him tomorrow morning to see a specialist because none were available today. I was recommended a vet from a friend of mine and the clinic seems to have some great reviews. I'm just so tramatized from the last vet we saw. I'm hoping to God that he is wrong.

Simba is taking in food very well and same with water. Poor Simba, he has not gotten any rest today because we have been feeding him every hour.

Originally Posted by scof0elife

Thanks everyone. We are taking him tomorrow morning to see a specialist because none were available today. I was recommended a vet from a friend of mine and the clinic seems to have some great reviews. I'm just so tramatized from the last vet we saw. I'm hoping to God that he is wrong.

Simba is taking in food very well and same with water. Poor Simba, he has not gotten any rest today because we have been feeding him every hour.

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That is fantastic news!!

Sending good vibes for Simba!!

I went through a similar experience last year. I found my new vet because of the experience. She's a straight shooter (sometimes you don't want to hear it, but she tells it like it is!) who makes house calls!


I hope you get a second opinion and Simba ends up making a FULL and happy recovery!! Sounds like he's on the road already!