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Tony is not himself
- Thread starter kookycats
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- #22
Took Tony to the vet this morning. Checked his blood and the count remains the same, so it hasn't gotten better, but hasn't gotten worse. Dr. gave him IV fluids for his dehydration, flea pill for the fleas on him (he did say that the fleas were not the cause of his condition). We are going to continue with the prednisone and clavamax, and continue force feeding him whatever food we can get into him. Dr said transfusion is an option, would help, but I feel it would only be a temporary thing. Hopefully the prednisone will help the blood cell issue, but again it could be any number of things. Will just continue for the time being hoping things improve and not get worse. Glad we didn't have to make that final decision today. Don't want to do that unless it is absolutely necessary.
Glad to hear that you didn't have to make any final decisions today Lana. I'm hoping what the vet did and what you will continue to do will help Tony and that he has a lot more time with you. Since his blood count didn't get any worse, that's at least a plus for him. Keeping you all my thoughts and hoping Tony will do well with the meds he is taking.
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- #25
For some reason Tony likes lying in the litter box, he was there all night. Got him out this morning, cleaned him up, brushed and combed him and dried him off, as he was sticky. Now he is lying on his yellow blanket in the family room, drinking water. Won't eat on his own but I force fed him some baby food and some tuna. Vet's office called to see how he is doing. We'll see what happens Mon and maybe do some more blood work to see what is happening.
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Hi, I was looking at some of Jackson Galaxie's Spirit Essences. I apologize, as I cannot remember specifically which one, however, the jist of what I read was, "cats lay in their litterbox to surround themselves with their scent, it makes them feel safe". A cat does this would generally be timid, easily intimidated or perhaps bullied by other cats.
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- #27
Sunday morning - still not eating, only what I force feed. Doesn't look good. I hate to put him thru a lot of tests when the outcome doesn't look good. What would you do? He's 14, severely anemic, red blood cells are being killed off --- what would too many tests do ? - just show a dread disease that will kill him anyway. Sonogram, ultrasound suggested by the lady we adopted tony from. What would you do?
It's obviously not good news and it does sound serious. If more diagnostic work would allow you and help you to end his distress sooner rather than later then that is a compelling reason to have more diagnostic work done. Ultrasounds take about 15-20 min max, are non-invasive and not at all painful and they can reveal a tumor if there is one. Xrays as well. Not all problems can be diagnosed by blood work and if you haven't done any type of imaging work, i would suggest now is the time. He is is somewhere between being in distress and suffering. He doesn't feel well, and one can't feel well with his blood count and lack of appetite. I'm going to try and summarize some of the choices in front of you.
1- Do nothing other than what you're doing now and wait. It's reasonable to assume his chances of recovering on his own are between possible and low. His chances of feeling increasingly worse and in time, dying, somewhere between possible and likely.
2- Do more diagnostic/imaging work that is non invasive and that leads to either a) a diagnosis for which there is no good treatment allowing you to euthanize him sooner and with less time to suffer or b) a diagnosis for which there is a treatment that can relieve suffering and possibly extend his life or c) not lead to a diagnosis. 2 out of those 3 results are positive and good for him and in a sense good for you despite the loss represented by "a".
3- Euthanize him now, without further work.
These are the three things I'd be discussing with my vet Monday morning, and i'd be looking for strong guidance. I can't tell you which ones are best - no one knows him and his condition better than you and your vet, but i will suggest that #1 is personally my least favorite option. Tony is very sick. He is feeling very unwell. I believe that you and Tony are at a point where he needs you and your vet to be proactive in his care/diagnostic work or in letting him go.
I think transfusions before a diagnosis and in advance of imaging is the reverse order of how i would do things. Transfusions are expensive and without a diagnosis i'm not sure why we would be doing one except for palliative care - he would probably feel better at least for a while if he had one. But then what? And of course its important that he be typed before transfused if you went that way.
IMO the effort of putting him through non-invasive imaging work would be minimally upsetting to him especially in comparison to what he is going through now.
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- #29
Thank you for your post StephenQ. I'm going to talk to Dr. Newman tomorrow and ask his advice. I'm thinking it might be best to look into an ultrasound test just so we see exactly what is happening. Then if and when we have to make a decision we'll know we did the right thing. I want to give Tony every chance and not react without a valid reason. Don't want to feel guilty afterwards and think that maybe we didn't check thoroughly.
Then I think some combination of ultrasound and x ray is totally appropriate. There is a good chance you will get some sort of diagnosis and a plan as a result. I've been involved with both and neither is difficult. For the ultrasound they will shave some of his belly, and gently hold him while they apply some lubricating jelly, and then run a the wand over him to look inside. It takes just a few minutes. The xray is even easier.
This is a difficult tie for you and him right now, and its quire possible its going to get harder for you, but having information is important in making the right decisions. My thoughts are with you.
I do hope things are looking up a bit this morning.
We did blood tests and an ultrasound before my last cat was put to sleep. We never got a definite diagnosis and she continued to go downhill, which is when we made the tough decision. It was expensive, but I felt better knowing we did what we could. :nod:
@AbbysMom makes a good point. Even if imaging doesn't lead to a diagnosis, it does give you the peace of mind that you tried, and it does rule out certain conditions which may also be helpful.
I think StephenQ has made a good point, & I agree. Keeping you guys & Tony in my thoughts & prayers!
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- #34
Dr. Newman just called and he would like to try one more antibiotic. He told me the name but I forget it already --- something that starts with a "d' -
dia---something or other). We've gone this far so let's see what happens with this.
dia---something or other). We've gone this far so let's see what happens with this.
Did you have that conversation with your vet? I just don't understand why he wants to keep tossing darts without a diagnosis particularly when most of the causes of low blood count is not treated with antibiotics. Of this list below, i would say none of them is treated with antibiotics, and a link to the article it came from is below.
- Trauma or injury to blood vessels
- Severe parasite infestations such as fleas and hookworms
- Tumors
- Blood-clotting problems from other diseases
- An autoimmune disease
- Feline leukemia virus
- Chemicals or toxins
- Cancer
- A severe or chronic disease such as kidney failure
- Poor nutrition
- Feline immunodeficiency virus
I wish you and Tony luck, i'm not sure I have much more that I can offer besides what I've said previously. I understand if money is an issue but you haven't indicated that it is. I will just mention this one last time, from where i'm sitting, imaging the interior of his body is an important step.
How is he doing, Lana? Sending and 
and 
