Ripple- Bony everywhere but with a bubble belly?

Hello, My cat Ripple was born in spring 2003, so currently she is just shy of 11 years old. She has always been a small cat. Several years ago I switched all my cats to a canned food diet, and they have been doing pretty well on that. Ripple used to have a thin, wiry, spotty hair coat and the canned food helped her hair fill in and soften.

Last year I lost my oldest cat, Cherise, to liver disease. Now I am starting to worry about Ripple's body condition. She has always been small and her whole life I have tried to put weight on her, but she is just a small cat by nature. I just weighed her on my bathroom scale and according to that, she weighs 4.5 lbs.  All our cats get equal rations of 3oz can in the morning at 8:45am and in the evening at 6pm. Our other cats weigh 5 lbs, 8 lbs and 9 lbs, on the same scale... but Ripple is at 4.5 lbs. Why would she would be so tiny with a big bubble belly? 

When I pet her, she has a terribly bony spine and her ribs are definitely easy to feel. Again, she has always been small and a bit bony, but it seems more prominent now. Her belly though... is like a bubble, or a little water balloon. I have not taken her to the vet yet. I will take her next week when I get paid. But until then, does anyone have any idea what might be going on with her?

Her appetite ranges from absolutely ravenous when she will eat a 3oz can of food in one minute, and go straight to trying to steal the other kitties food,  to occasional disinterest and lethargy. Last weekend, she got into the rabbit food and ate quite a bit. She vomited 6oz of it and understandably had a loss of appetite that evening. The next day she was eating normally again.

Once in a while, in the morning or after work, when the kitties are very hungry, I will find a clear type of vomit that was always been an issue with both Cherise and Ripple. I have never seen any of our other three cats vomit that clear fluid.

Here are a few photos of her:

She is beautiful! I can't help you, but hope everything is ok with her.

I'm thinking worms maybe.....when was the last time you had her to the vet?

It's been a long time since she last visited the vet, at least three years. I didn't consider worms... What kind of worms do you think it could be? I looked at her butt and I didn't see the "rice". Aren't worms pretty contagious? Wouldn't my other cats be showing symptoms as well?

Well I looked into this a little more and swollen tummy can indicate serious conditions like intentional blockage which is fatal, also it could be bloat or gas. I would get her to the vet asap

There are a lot of different things that can cause a pot belly in cats especially older cats, FIP, worms, heart disease, liver disease, kidney disease.  The sooner you can get her to the vet the better.

I called the vet this morning, and they agreed to hold my check until payday, so I took Ripple in for a checkup...

The vet shaved her neck and took a blood sample. 15 minutes later, he came back and said that her white count was pretty high. So high in fact, that he ran the test a second time with results of 72,000 and 69,000 respectively. The normal white count range for a cat is 5,000-19,000. He said he has never seen a cat with this high of count that didn't have a fever. He said he would expect to see this count in a cat with an infected uterus, but Ripple has been spayed many years ago. He said she has a raging infection somewhere and gave Ripple a shot of antibiotics and sent me home with Baytril, dosage: 1 pill (22.7mg) 1x per day x14 days.

He said he didn't think it was her liver or kidneys. I asked the vet to test for FIP and leukemia and he will call me back with those results. I told him that if it is anything contagious I need to know asap. I didn't have a stool sample to test on short notice, I will have to isolate her and wait for a number two because we have 4 litter boxes shared among 4 cats, so nobody knows who's is whose..

She also doesn't show symptoms of being sick. She is eating well and not lethargic. My poor Ripple. Please say a prayer for her that it isn't something serious..

You did the right thing by going to the vet, because a white count that high definitely means something serious was wrong with her.  Let's just hope it's a bacterial infection so that antibiotics can solve the problem.  Keep us posted.  We'll be praying for her recovery.

The vet called back and said that she tested negative for FIP and leukemia. He did warn me that with her age, this could end badly. I can't seem to wrap my head around a 10-11 year old cat being old. Thank you for the encouragement. I can't bear the thought of anything happening to her so soon after Cherise passed. I am going to feed her a little extra each day to see whether she can put some meat on her bones.

How is Ripple doing?

Thanks for asking! I am giving her Baytril, half a pill at lunch and half at dinner. I have also increased her rations, she is up to four (3oz) cans a day now, so I think she may be gaining weight. Plus I have seen her try to sneak food from the others as well. I still think she has a bubble belly though and I am wondering if the vet will charge me the same cost to go back and have her blood tested again after we finish the meds. The first visit was $237, which seemed kind of pricey. I know I shouldnt complain about prices, but I do anyway.

I'm so glad that Ripple is eating better.  How long will she be on the Baytril? You said they tested for FIP & leukemia, but it was most likely FIV (aids) & FeLV (leukemia) that they tested for. Wonderful news that those came back negative. There is not a definitive test for FIP and one of the symptoms is a bloated belly, but your vet would probably have mentioned that if there were other indicators on the blood work. Wouldn't hurt to ask the vet about that when you took her back, though, just to be sure.

They did an exam when you went to the vet the last time, so maybe you wouldn't have that cost when you take her back. Nor would you have the cost of the FIV/FeLV test. If they did a full blood panel on her the last time and everything else came back normal, maybe they could just do the CBC. That would save you a little bit, too.

She sure is a pretty girl. I love her gold and white toes!

She had a 14 day supply and we are on day six. I wonder about those tests... I specifically asked for FIP, so I will double check what they actually did. The handwriting on the reciept is illegible.

Let's take the fact that she is hungry and eating as a positive sign and hope the antibiotics can resolve whatever is going on with her. Are the 3oz cans you're feeding Fancy Feast pate? IMHO I'd feed that cute little thing as much as she would eat and as often as you can feed her!

The vet didn't say she' was anemic, right? Getting the fecal exam done as soon as you can would be good to rule out most worms. Roundworms and other nasties often present with a bloated belly. Does Ripple go outside?

If you can swing it, a recheck on her blood work when the vet suggests would be a good idea. Do you know if they did a urinalysis, too? I'll bet they did, since he didn't think it was kidneys (another thing to be thankful for!) but, again, it wouldn't hurt to ask just to be sure anything that would be indicated there has been ruled out.

Lots of prayers for Ripple!

Yes, my entire life is built around procuring Fancy Feast classic for these girls. They really trained me well. I was buying premium cat food, but our town doesnt have a store that sells it, so I had to have it shipped here. I need to buy 360 cans a month now to allow for the extra feedings for Ripple and my other small cat, Wicca. I did weigh Ripple this morning on the bathroom scale and it showed her weight as 5 lbs. So thats positive.

In the warm weather, I take all my animals outside for a little bit. We have a nice, private, fenced in backyard and patio where I let my rabbits run free and the kitties are on a harness and leash. And they are always supervised by me. Its possible she could have picked up worms. Would they be visible to the naked eye in the litterbox?

Angela1573 said:

Yes, my entire life is built around procuring Fancy Feast classic for these girls. They really trained me well.

Click to expand...

It's nice that we humans are trainable!

So glad to hear that she's gained a little weight! Yay Ripple!! Keep it up, girl.

You can see tapeworm segments (rice-looking) with the naked eye, and dead roundworms are expelled through feces and visible (they're sometimes vomited, too). But you couldn't see any indication of live roundworms with the naked eye.

If this were my cat I would consider investing the money in an ultrasound of her abdomen rather than more blood work. I have just recently been through this with my 17 yr old cat and the ultrasound definitively showed what was going on whereas no other test did.

I hope that Ripple is doing well?

Yes, I would like to get an ultrasound. That's a good idea! Yesterday was the last day of her meds, but I think her belly is still weirdly like a water balloon. Even though she has gained some weight, it's just out of proportion. She used to have a slim, concave waist.

She is eating well, as always, but she overdid it the other night and vomited.

I was thinking two things... she used to have terrible stinky farts, but now she doesn't- at least not the deadly ones.

Also, and this is a scary thought... What if she ate some pink fiberglass insulation? There was a piece in the basement ceiling that one of the cats was pulling bits off of. I cleaned it up and threw it away and I didn't really think much of it at the time. But now I am wondering what if she ate some???

There could be so many different problems causing her bloated-looking belly. Have you been able to get the follow-up blood test done to see if her white blood cell count was down? Obviously, she had some kind of major issue going on there. Or the fecal exam to rule out parasites? Regarding the insulation (or any foreign object) possibly causing a blockage, or enlarged organs, the ultrasound would probably reveal any of that. If it is a blockage, that has to be addressed asap. I know, all of that costs money.   She's eating, so that's good. But something is going on with poor little Ripple.