Hi guys,
Monday morning my girlfriend and I came home to find that our cat, Darling, had been vomiting quite a bit -- over the course of the evening, I think he did it about six or seven times. The first one was a hairball (he's a terrible shedder), but later on it was bile and then just white foam. He was still drinking, however. He also hadn't defecated that day. We were obviously concerned, and Stacey took him in to the vet first thing the next morning. They did an xray and decided that his intestines were really backed up -- they were concerned that he might have some sort of obstruction in his bowls. Well, they gave him an enema and some water for dehydration, and Stacey took him home. He was in a pretty rough way that night, so we took him in the next morning for an ultra sound to find out if he needed surgery.
They gave him the ultrasound and didn't find anything at all -- so it wasn't an obstruction, apparently. I took him home that night, and he seemed better -- they'd given him more fluids and force fed him with a syringe. I put out a bunch of food for him, and water, but he didn't seem interested in either. I took him in the next day for a check up, and the doctor said he looked pretty good -- he didn't have a fever, he was bright and perky, he was urinating, but he still wasn't eating. I brought him home and put out more food and water, and I gave him his favorite treats, which he happily ate, although I only gave him a few. The vet also gave us an IV bag with lactated ringers, an appetite stimulant and some antacids. We've been giving him the fluids in the mornings, and we've been force feeding him some i/d food, and he's been doing pretty well. But he still doesn't have any interest in food or water on his own. He'll walk over to the food (and we've put out about six or seven different kinds, from just straight tuna and chicken to different types of wet foods). He'll walk over, sniff them and maybe give them a lick, but no dice -- he doesn't want to eat or drink.
We fed him this morning after giving him fluids, and he immediately threw it up again -- that's the first time he's vomited since we ruled out intestinal blockage -- but there was a huge hairball in it, so I think that might have had something to do with it. The doc said to give him another antacid and then feed him again in the evening. He's seeming more lethargic this afternoon than he has in the last couple of days, though. He's also due for another appetite stimulant tomorrow.
Darling's six years old, neutered, a male, and big and strong. This is the first medical problem we've had with him since we adopted him from a woman who'd passed away last year.
So, I guess my question for you guys is, how long can we continue to do this? What's the likelihood of him recovering from this and starting to eat again? The vet said that if he hasn't started to eat by Monday, we should start to talk about either seeing a specialist (at great cost, presumably, and this has already cost about $1250), or talk about euthanasia, because she doubts that he'll start to eat again if he hasn't by now.
Anyone gone through this? Is there something we're not doing that we should be/doing that we shouldn't? What can we do to get our kitty back to health again? It's been a real rollercoaster ride, because I went from thinking that he was unlikely to live on Tuesday and Wednesday, to thinking it was only a matter of days before he was back up on his own on Thursday and Friday to feeling really defeated today. I love him, and I want to do what's best for him, so any ideas would be appreciated.
Aaron and Stacey
Monday morning my girlfriend and I came home to find that our cat, Darling, had been vomiting quite a bit -- over the course of the evening, I think he did it about six or seven times. The first one was a hairball (he's a terrible shedder), but later on it was bile and then just white foam. He was still drinking, however. He also hadn't defecated that day. We were obviously concerned, and Stacey took him in to the vet first thing the next morning. They did an xray and decided that his intestines were really backed up -- they were concerned that he might have some sort of obstruction in his bowls. Well, they gave him an enema and some water for dehydration, and Stacey took him home. He was in a pretty rough way that night, so we took him in the next morning for an ultra sound to find out if he needed surgery.
They gave him the ultrasound and didn't find anything at all -- so it wasn't an obstruction, apparently. I took him home that night, and he seemed better -- they'd given him more fluids and force fed him with a syringe. I put out a bunch of food for him, and water, but he didn't seem interested in either. I took him in the next day for a check up, and the doctor said he looked pretty good -- he didn't have a fever, he was bright and perky, he was urinating, but he still wasn't eating. I brought him home and put out more food and water, and I gave him his favorite treats, which he happily ate, although I only gave him a few. The vet also gave us an IV bag with lactated ringers, an appetite stimulant and some antacids. We've been giving him the fluids in the mornings, and we've been force feeding him some i/d food, and he's been doing pretty well. But he still doesn't have any interest in food or water on his own. He'll walk over to the food (and we've put out about six or seven different kinds, from just straight tuna and chicken to different types of wet foods). He'll walk over, sniff them and maybe give them a lick, but no dice -- he doesn't want to eat or drink.
We fed him this morning after giving him fluids, and he immediately threw it up again -- that's the first time he's vomited since we ruled out intestinal blockage -- but there was a huge hairball in it, so I think that might have had something to do with it. The doc said to give him another antacid and then feed him again in the evening. He's seeming more lethargic this afternoon than he has in the last couple of days, though. He's also due for another appetite stimulant tomorrow.
Darling's six years old, neutered, a male, and big and strong. This is the first medical problem we've had with him since we adopted him from a woman who'd passed away last year.
So, I guess my question for you guys is, how long can we continue to do this? What's the likelihood of him recovering from this and starting to eat again? The vet said that if he hasn't started to eat by Monday, we should start to talk about either seeing a specialist (at great cost, presumably, and this has already cost about $1250), or talk about euthanasia, because she doubts that he'll start to eat again if he hasn't by now.
Anyone gone through this? Is there something we're not doing that we should be/doing that we shouldn't? What can we do to get our kitty back to health again? It's been a real rollercoaster ride, because I went from thinking that he was unlikely to live on Tuesday and Wednesday, to thinking it was only a matter of days before he was back up on his own on Thursday and Friday to feeling really defeated today. I love him, and I want to do what's best for him, so any ideas would be appreciated.
Aaron and Stacey
