Questions about my sick 13 year old Himalayan

ytc158

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A little background....My cat, a 13 year old Himalayan has been fairly healthy his whole life. He is a strictly indoor cat and had a mild case of herpes in his eye that was treated many years ago. Friday I notice he had not eaten all day which was very unlike him as he would always come down at the same time every day. Since then, he has been sleeping practically the entire day, doesn't eat or drink, and used the litterbox once.

He is clearly very weak and lifeless, definitely not himself. We took him to the vet early yesterday morning and had the gamut of tests down including xrays, blood work, etc...everything came back negative but the vet said they thought he had slight gas in his intestine that would likely pass in a few days. He had a small wart on his toe that they clipped off as well that they said was not a problem (he has had this for years) He also noted that one of his kidneys seemed a little smaller than the other but that shouldn't be a concern (didn't get an ultrasound yet). They gave him fluids and when we got home he seemed a little better but after an hour or so just went back to sleep. He didn't eat the entire rest of that day and today we started force feeding him baby food as well as his favorite wet food pureed. The vet also gave us pills that make him eat and we just gave him 1/4th a pill with the pureed food in the syringe.

After we gave him the syringe with the food he sort of drooled some of it out but most of it went down....he immediately jumped down and ran into his box. After which he sat down for a bit and then used the litterbox to pee very briefly. He ran back up stairs, showing signs of life, so maybe he is getting better with the force feeding but only time will tell.

Any advice or anything else I should do please help! I'm not sure if my boy is suffering or if maybe he just has gas and it will eventually pass and he will eat on his own but I just don't know. I hate seeing him this way. Thanks
 

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I'm sorry I have no idea. Keep up the food and water and lots of love. See if there is a specialist around who may be able to help further.
 
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ytc158

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We fed him more of his wet food through the syringe last night and he was taking it well. He seemed to be up for hours with energy running around the house for the first time in 3-4 days which was nice to see. One  thing that was a bit concerning was that he kept running to the litterbox but doing nothing. He went in 3 times within a 30 minute span and just sat in the box for a few minutes each time, nothing. Im hoping this is the gas trying to work its way out but who knows.

As of this morning he is still not eating on his own and we are still force feeding him as well as giving him appetite stimulator once every 3 days.
 

mrsgreenjeens

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Is he peeing ok?  Just want to make sure that going into the litter box and nothing happening isn't signs of a UTI.  

Keep up the assist feeding until he eats on his own again, and that should build up his strength.  Hopefully that appetite stimulator will kick in and he'll be eating on his own very soon.

 
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ytc158

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Yes he seems to be peeing fine, just seems like maybe he is constipated but that could be due to the gas build up. We are still feeding him and although he is sleeping a lot, his energy seems to be up a little so hopefully its a good sign! Thanks for the response
 
 
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ytc158

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He threw up white foamish stuff tonight..just doesnt seem to be the same. We are taking him to the vet again tomorrow hoping they can figure out whats going on this time
 
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ytc158

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After the vet visit this morning they still don't know what the problem is. They said he wasn't constipated despite him running to the litter box and seeming as if he has to go but doing nothing. They took more bloodwork which we have yet to get the results of and we will be taking him back later for an ultrasound. Trying to stay positive but I have had a previous cat who had similar symptoms and it did not end well for her :( Lets hope this is different.
 

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I think the white foam stuff is probably from nausea. You could give him a little laxatone just in case he needs help sliding the stuff out that he did eat. Since xrays showed nothing and no constipation, it could be cystitis where he feels like he has to pee bc of irritation. The last time my boy cat had that problem, it turned out to be that. But I realize you have had all the tests. I did too, and it seemed like it started with one problem, in my boy's case we still aren't sure, but ended up to be a UTI and constipation even tho the first tests showed nothing. He too stopped eating and was very lethargic. 

I will send vibes your way, this kind of thing is always very troubling :-( :-(
 
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ytc158

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Can a UTI be treated or is it very serious. We are going back for an ultrasound later...would this be able to detect a UTI?

It is definitely tough, Thanks for the good vibes!
 
 
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I feel for what you are going through. This is not easy and the worry of not knowing what is causing the problem is really tough. I wonder if there must be something going on with the urinary tract or constipation. Although, your vet says no to the constipation. You can put a little canned pure pumpkin in those syringe feedings once a day. About 1 tsp. That will help move poops along and is safe to give. The fact that your kitty is going in and out of the box is a telltale sign. Ask the vet to run a urine sensitivity culture as this is more exacting on diagnosing a bacterial infection going on in the bladder. As well as crystals or stones in the urine that did not show up in the regular urine test which your vet did in the intial visit, right?? The culture takes a few days to get the results but the regular urinalysis results are immediate. The ultrasound will detect stones in the bladder and will show any changes in the bladder wall as well like inflammation. It won't tell you if your cat has an Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). :vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes:
 
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ytc158

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Thank you for you're support and your suggestions. I will definitely bring that up later today at the vet and see what he thinks. I will also get some of the pure pumpkin and see if that helps.


heres a pic of my boy relaxing in his bed :)
 

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Just want to be sure...you said he was peeing fine. If the "pee pod" is very tiny, its possible that he could have a partial urinary blockage caused by crystals (more common in male cats). Additional signs would include repeated visits to the box, straining and/or crying when peeing. Urinary blockages are very serious. You're already working with the vet, so my best advice at home is observation. Watch what he does, listen to him, and inspect the litter box after he goes in it. Watch for changes and/or warning signs in his bowel movements (blood, mucus, etc.). Report everything to the vet.
 
 
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ytc158

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After taking him to the vet today we learned he was a bit dehydrated but thats all that came back from the bloodwork. We are now awaiting the ultrasound results, the vet will be calling in the AM. Today he is acting a little more like his normal self. Seems he has more energy, he has been drinking, and even ate a little on his own which was probably due to the app. stimulant we gave him but still a good sign that he is drinking a lot. I will be watching him more closely to see if he is using the bathroom and if there is any blood but i dont think there is anything wrong with his urinary tract. We did mention to the vet about the urine culture and he said if there was anything to worry about they would have seen evidence in the blood. Now we wait until tomorrow but he does seem better for the time being.
 
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ytc158

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So we did get some ok news this morning that it was nothing too serious. There is no cancer which is a relief but there are some smaller things going on in that he has a kidney stone and one of his kidneys is pretty much shriveled up for some reason and not functional but luckily there are 2! The vet thinks he should be fine but if he does take a turn then we will bring him back for some type of pain pill. They still were unable to find the underlying cause of everything other than the fact that he is getting older.

He seems to be slowly getting back to his normal self and he is eating a little on his own, drinking a lot which is great since he was dehydrated, he has more energy than previous days as well.

 

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I'm glad it's not cancer and that he's eating and drinking a little. An older cat with early stages of renal issues will benefit from more water in their diet...wet food (which I think I read you already feed him) with 1/2-1 tsp of water added, and water fountains cleaned regularly to encourage drinking.
 
 
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ytc158

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He has been eating on his own a bit the past 2 days...I'm not sure if its from the appetite pill he got a few days ago or if he is getting better. He does seem to be sleeping less and has more energy but he did vomit once today in the litterbox which was odd.....
 
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ytc158

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Well it looks like he has made a recovery even though we never really found out what the underlying cause was. He is eating wet/dry food on his own and drinking as well. His energy is way up and back to normal. The only thing that concerns me a little is that on 2 occasions he has gone to the litterbox and threw up in it....he has been peeing and pooping fine though and aside from those 2 incidents he seems fine, could this be something to worry about? Im guessing he is still sort of recovering so its not a huge deal, when he did vomit it was very little, not chunks or anything just foam pretty much.
 

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I'm so glad to hear he's doing better.

Its interesting that he vomited twice in the litter box. Have you noticed if he did this right after a bowel movement? My IBD kitty will sometimes vomit a little clear liquid or foam after a bowel movement. Since everything is connected, the contractions of his bowel movement sometimes upset his stomach and produce a vomiting response. Cats with intestinal track and/or digestive issues can have "flare ups" where they'll seem fine for awhile and then all of a sudden act "sick" (not eating, vomiting, etc.). As your kitty ages, he may start to develop sensitivities (more than one, unfortunately) that he did not have before. It may be helpful to keep a log of what he eats and his behaviors. Sometimes it can reveal a pattern or timeframe.
 
 

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I'm so glad to hear he's doing better.

Its interesting that he vomited twice in the litter box. Have you noticed if he did this right after a bowel movement? My IBD kitty will sometimes vomit a little clear liquid or foam after a bowel movement. Since everything is connected, the contractions of his bowel movement sometimes upset his stomach and produce a vomiting response. Cats with intestinal track and/or digestive issues can have "flare ups" where they'll seem fine for awhile and then all of a sudden act "sick" (not eating, vomiting, etc.). As your kitty ages, he may start to develop sensitivities (more than one, unfortunately) that he did not have before. It may be helpful to keep a log of what he eats and his behaviors. Sometimes it can reveal a pattern or timeframe.
 
GoHolistic, I am very intrigued by this. I have noticed that my cat will sometimes (very infrequently thank goodness) vomit after a bowel movement. Is that common symptom in IBD kitties? She doesn't strain in the litter box, and it hasn't been often enough for me to worry about, but your comment did spark a concern.
 

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GoHolistic, I am very intrigued by this. I have noticed that my cat will sometimes (very infrequently thank goodness) vomit after a bowel movement. Is that common symptom in IBD kitties? She doesn't strain in the litter box, and it hasn't been often enough for me to worry about, but your comment did spark a concern.
I'm not sure. Since IBD is an inflammatory condition, I suspect that symptoms may be different for each cat. IBD can affect the upper digestive tract (vomiting, upset stomach), lower digestive tract (diarrhea, colon issues), or both. Maybe others will comment if their IBD kitties do this. My IBD cat will occasionally vomit after a bowel movement...like you said, not frequent, but maybe once every two weeks. It's just a bit of clear liquid (like water almost) or a light-colored foam (not yellow bile).

If you don't notice any other IBD-type symptoms, then it may not be IBD. Maybe her poo was larger than normal or she may have been constipated.


This is not to say that your cat shouldn't be checked out for other issues, especially if you notice black stools or blood or mucus in the stool, or any other odd observations.
 
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