Need opinions on 18 yr old cat....

candee13

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My good friend has an indoor only cat (PeeWee) which is 18 yrs old. PeeWee has always been in good health with no problems. Two days ago, the cat suddenly stoped eating/drinking. Peewee also threw up and then continued with periodic dry heaves. She took the cat to the vet yesterday (1 day after symtoms occured) and they underwent a series of blood tests and x-rays. The vet gave her a very small dose of anesthetic before doing the x-rays to keep her from moving around. After the x-rays, she was told that PeeWee has an obstruction of her intestine. The Vet administered IV fluids, an antibiotic shot (baytril) and an injection of reglan (for nausea). He then sent her home with the IV kit (w/ baytril mixed in) to administer 3x per day. Vet also gave her Reglan injections to give 1x per day.

I did some researching and found that Bayer, which is the maker of Baytril put a warning out on 7/23/03 that "the injectable form is approved for use only in dogs" and "to restrict the use of Baytril tablets in cats at a dose not to exceed 5 mg/kg/day" due to vision impairments". I also looked up Reglan and found that because it creates contractions to make food go down it is stated that "if stomach obstruction is suspected in a given patient, it is best not to encourage motility and some other anti-nauseal drug is preferred."

Afer the vet visit PeeWee could not walk and was very drowsy which we suspect from the anesthesia. PeeWee remained this way throughout the night and even urinated in the spot she was laying at.

This morning PeeWee can walk but very slowly. Tried to feed her but she seamed as she could not chew and was kind of throwing her food back with a head shake like she was in pain. At this time my friend noticed that one of her fang teeth was totally broken and just hangin there.

So now here are my questions...

1) Do you think that maybe the broken tooth was the problem to begin with an she doesn't have an intestinal obstruction. I wonder about this vet because of the fact that both of the injections were not appropriate in the first place.

2) Should she go back to the same vet about tooth or go to a new vet altogether? This vet does do dentistry. But wouldn't he have found the loose/broken tooth to begin with? I suggested to her a new vet... but what do you think?

3) Should she give PeeWee the Reglan injection still or skip it until she goes back to the vet tomorrow morning?

4) Is it normal for PeeWee to be so "out of it" and unable to walk with only a small fraction of anesthetic for such a long time (18hours) or could it possibly be the injections?

5) Obviously the tooth need to be pulled or given a root canal and to do this PeeWee need to be sedated. Do cats have to be totally knocked out to do this?

6) If she goes to a new vet... should she just skip the $60 bloodtest to determine if 18 year old PeeWee can take the anesthetic since the tooth need to be taken care of no mater what. Or is the test still important because it also show things such as amount the can be administered ect.

7) Can vets request records/test results from other vets like how our human doctors do?

Thanks in advance for any opinions, suggestions and help. I and my friend greatly appreciate it.

Thanks again soooooo much,
Candee
 

amberthe bobcat

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Hmmm..did PeeWee have a broken tooth before it went to the vet or did it happen there? If it did happen there, I would change vets asap. I would hate to think that this poor cat, who is feeling ill to begin with, may have been mis treated at the vets office. The tooth could make your cat stop eating, but I doubt if it would make her vomit unless she had a bacterial infection from having bad teeth.
As for the Reglan, I have not heard of that drug, but a few of my cats did get Baytril without any side effects. Also, being out of it, 18 hours after anesthetic, sounds questionable to me. The cat may be in a great amount of pain from the broken tooth or there is still some other problems. Putting the cat out while doing dental work is ok, I have had a few of my older cats go through this. The vet does that so the cat will not fight or be in any pain while the dental work is taking place.
As for the blood test, it is very important to have the test done for an older cat, such as PeeWee. The vet needs to determine if your cat will be able to handle the procedures. Again, I have had cats go through the same. Yes, another vet can request records, but the laws may be different from state to state. I live in Ohio, and my vet has done this.
I hope PeeWee does get better. Please let us know.
 
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candee13

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Thanks so much for the quick reply! I think the tooth must have been like that before the vet visit or at least loose. The cat wasn't left alone at the vets office. I just talked my friend into going to a new vet in the morning and we are going to try to get the records from the previous vet so maybe they won't have to do blood work all over again. Also had $165 dollar x-rays that will be helpful in determining if there really is a blockage. Can't wait to see what the new vet will say! I will keep in touch! Thanks again Amber The Bobcat!
 
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candee13

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My friend had went to the new vet on Monday after getting all the records and x-rays from the old vet. The new vet looked at the x-rays and determined that there was a little gas bubble not an obstuction. He also tugged on the tooth and it came right out. No anesthesia. Gave PeeWee an antibiotic shot and a vitamin B shot and sent her home. After getting PeeWee ate and drank normal and is doing wonderful today. So it was the tooth the whole time. Thanks again to everyone's replys. Take Care!
 

amberthe bobcat

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I am so happy to hear that PeeWee is doing fine
It was the tooth after all. Glad it wasn't something more serious. I always feel so bad when one of my kitties gets sick. Unlike humans, they can not tell you what is wrong or where it hurts. You always hope that you are doing the best for them
 

hissy

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Wow! Poor PeeWee what a hard lesson to learn to find a competent vet!
 
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