Cat with Stomatitis

My cat has been suffering with gum problems for a year now.  This are the treatments given: dental cleaning; steroid and antibiotics, extractions (14 teeth); continued steroids and antibioics.  The extractions did not take care of his issues.  He needs a steroid shot about every two month to stay comfortable and pretty much normal. My vet does not like giving him the steroid shots because of side effects.  He started him on oral steroids, Apoquel, which is not yet approved for cats. We just started this week.  I think, I am in some sort of clinical trial.  Do any of you know anything about this drug for use in cats? My cat hates the drug; I hate giving him the drug; the cat is 10 years old; he hides from me now.  He is no longer the sweet loving feline I once had.

Do any of you have any successful experience with stomatitis in cats?

I would rather take my chance with the injections and improve the quality of both of our lives.  I need some input on this.

Thanks

Vickey

I have had great luck with the monthly steroid shots.  Some of the younger vets do not realize that CATS TOLERATE STEROIDS VERY WELL, unlike humans and dogs.  I ended up with my current vet because after fighting with a younger vet in the same practice but different office after I TRIED to get some DepoMedrol injected into my newly rescued cat, who was in serious pain from stomatitis, and he too was reluctant i.e. unwilling to even try, but he was fresh out of school and long on book learning and short on experience. The cat got so sick that when he saw him on a Friday he said that now the cat was too sick for a steroid shot but if he was still alive on Monday, he would give him one!!  (No kidding, he really said that!) I showed up first thing Monday with my nearly dead cat who was already getting cold, wrapped in a blanket.  Luckily for me, that young vet had gone on vacation and an older and much wiser and experienced vet was filling in for him.  As soon as he saw my cat, he said "He needs a shot of steroids," and I said THANK YOU, that's what I've been telling [Dr. BLANK] all week!  Needless to say, I followed the older wiser vet back to the other office and am still going to him now, 12 years later.  That cat lived another three years and then went into kidney failure, but he was a a very old cat to begin with, and he had three good years.  I have another one who had stomatitis when rescued in 2011.  He used to get a shot every month but now it has lessened considerably and he only gets one every 2 or sometimes 3 months.  When he starts showing he is in pain, he gets a shot.  He is healthy an happy the rest of the time and has shown no ill effect from the depo shots.  He was 3 to 5 years old when rescued in 2011 so he's 7 to 9 years old now.  Find an older more experienced vet, or one who specializes in CATS, not dogs, and get your cat the steroid shots when he needs them.