Cat with feeding tube

                         Hi! My cat Marley just had a feeding tube placed today. He is still very lethargic. I was just wondering what kind of activity level can he have wile the tube is place. Also it looks like he keeps getting the hiccups. Is that normal? Does anyone have any advice? Thank you in advance for any  replies!

How has Marley been doing so far with the tube in?

You didn't say why he had the tube in, my kitty had one for fatty liver.  He continued to be very lethargic for quite awhile.  If it's fatty liver it's a very slow recovery.  My kitty would sometimes get hiccups.  Feeding him very slowly helped and feeding slowly also lessens the chances of vomiting.

When he started feeling better it was like he didn't even notice that the tube was there.  We had one mishap close to the end.  I heard him jump off the kitchen table and he came in holding one of his paws up and he was moving around like a three legged kitty.  I took him to the vet and one of the sutures for the tube was loose.  Apparently his leg got caught up in the tube when he jumped down but he was okay, just limping for quite awhile.

Hi Hiccups are not normal. Call your vet now about that. Regarding activity as long as it is well wrapped it should be fine.Be careful that he doesn't go anywhere he could get the end of the tube caught on anything. You are talking an E- tube right? the lethargy is pain. Make sure that your vet prescribed pain medication for your cat.

Marley does have hipatic lipidosis. prognosos was 50/50. He doesnt seem to be tolerating the tube very well. he fights me when I feed him so i kinda have to wrestle him down a little bit. Also Ive noticed that some water and food comes out of the tube during feeding. It freaks me out! Not only that there is a gurgling sound during feeding! When I was at the vet yesterday they didnt give me very detailed instructions just a print out telling me what to do.  no pain pills were prescribed :-/

The water and food coming back out of the tube during the feedings definitely isn't normal.  I would call the vet's office and try to talk to the vet.  A partially clogged tube can cause this and I think it is the most common reason.  We had someone else here not too long ago and the issue was excess stomach acid, not sure exactly how that works.  I would definitely make a call about it.

Hi. If you haven't already. you need to get him back into your veterinarian to have them assess the tube and perhaps take an xray to be sure of the proper placement. There should never be a struggle when tube feeding. So if he is fighting you then something may be wrong with the tube and that is a very serious situation. So please take him back in and make sure the veterinarian asses the tube not just a tech. Then have them go over with you in the room exactly what you are to do with the feedings. I could tell you a bunch of tips and things that will help and ask you how much and what etc. But I don't want to do anything to encourage you to feed the cat if there is a chance the placement of that tube might not be good. So please, take him back in. Also ask for pain medication for him. It is a painful procedure and several lectures I have attended say that the depression is pain in cats. They used to call it post op e-tube depression where I worked but it was pain.

Took Marley back to the vet and it was indeed the placement of the tube. It was too far in! When I got home and fed him he was way more comfortable. No gurgling and no regurgitating tube!!!!  

That is great that you got it checked out. Very important. This tube goes in at the neck right? They have a bandage covering all but the last two inches of the tube right?

yes the tube is inserted in the side of his neck and should stop just before the stomach

My Baby came home today after getting her e tube placed yesterday. We have been battling this illness with her for over 1 month now. We initially took her to regular vet who did labs and her numbers were very high and she is jaundiced. That weekend she seemed to get worse and did not eat anything so we took her to the hospital where she spent 3 days in the ICU, they told us she had pancreatitis. She came home with a NG tube and was not eating anything by mouth at this point. She pulled out the NG tube about 5 days later. Since then she had repeat ultrasound and they said her pancreas has healed but she has IBD. They put her on appetite stimulant and prednisone, and still was not getting better. Went back and the critical care vet said that maybe she has lymphoma and that I should put her down. I went back to regular vet yesterday and they recommended an e tube if I still want to continue the fight. I'm not quite ready to give up on her yet, so we had it placed yesterday. She seems to be tolerating the feeds well but just had an episode of vomiting a small amount that seemed to have a small blood clot in it. I am just wondering if this is normal for newly placed e tube?

Hi sorry computer broken. Have to use phone. No not normal.she needs to see the vet that placed the tube. Until then no more feedings. But please see vet ASAP

I agree that isnt normal. the only things that would cause the vomiting is cold food, putting food in too fast, or nausea and they should have her on some medication for that. Keep us posted good luck with your kitty!

Denice said:

 
You didn't say why he had the tube in, my kitty had one for fatty liver.  He continued to be very lethargic for quite awhile.  If it's fatty liver it's a very slow recovery.  My kitty would sometimes get hiccups.  Feeding him very slowly helped and feeding slowly also lessens the chances of vomiting.

When he started feeling better it was like he didn't even notice that the tube was there.  We had one mishap close to the end.  I heard him jump off the kitchen table and he came in holding one of his paws up and he was moving around like a three legged kitty.  I took him to the vet and one of the sutures for the tube was loose.  Apparently his leg got caught up in the tube when he jumped down but he was okay, just limping for quite awhile.

Click to expand...

Feeding our cat with e tube. Do you know if it normal to see the water in the tube 2 hours after flushing. Everything goes in easy for the next feeding or medicine. we just see the water left in the tube, it seems weird to me.

That is weird.  I don't remember seeing that after a feeding.  I would call the vet in the morning and ask about it.  I think usually with a clogged tube the feedings wouldn't go easily.

Hi Becky Mcbeth,

Your story sounds exactly the same as what I am going through. How did yours end up? I just got the feeding tube put in yesterday