Help!!

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Hi all,

Lately I've been struggling with whether or not to put my elderly cat down. She has lived a VERY long life (17 1/2 years to be exact) but lately she's been slowing down a lot. She rarely jumps up on the couch to sit next to me like she used to and doesn't jump on the bed anymore unless it's bedtime whereas she used to always sleep on the bed during the day. She's still using the litter box but frequently I'll see a little poop right outside the box and its usually fairly hard. She is eating and drinking, especially her twice daily wet treats, but she doesn't eat as much of the dry as she used to. She is very thin but has always been a thin cat and the last several vet checks he has assured me she is thin but not too thin. She is on several medications which is making me hesitate to take her back to the vet and have her diagnosed with yet ANOTHER ailment which would require meds. She is currently on Azodyl and special KD dry food for kidneys (she didn't like the wet), on eye drops for glaucoma, on Methimazole for hyperthyroid and on Furosemide for a touch of fluid on her lungs. She has also lately been sitting in weird spots and she does take on a odd pose occasionally which I need an opinion on.. I've read a lot about pain in cats and how they mask it and I've heard that they can take a hunched pose when in pain. This is what she looks like:


Do you think she is in pain, or maybe just really old? Do you think it's time to put her down? My family has been begging me to put her down for years for other reasons (she’s had behavioral issues with peeing outside the litter box which has for the most part gone away and yes she got checked out many times at the vet for that) so it's hard to ask their opinion. I've had her for most of my life, so this decision is really hard for me, but I don't want her to suffer either.

Any advice would be helpful. Sorry for the long post. Thanks!

Ashley

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Hello. That's a cute kitty! I agree I don't think he needs to be on anymore medication. Just sounds like hes on his last legs from the natural aging process. He doesn't look too thin. Id say just try to help make his last months/years comfy for him. Maybe a warm cat bed??

Poor baby :/ it looks like she may be in the meatloaf position in the photo. If in pain, a cat in the meatloaf position looks like "Sitting hunched with back arched, paws gathered under the body, nose resting on the floor, and eyes closed." Or averting eye contact and just keeping her head down.

Thank you kittyluv387!

And yes, Fluffscruff, that is what I was worried about. She does sit with her nose pointed down intermittently and she moves very stiffly--I'm thinking arthritis. She's not on any pain meds right now and I don't think I could bare to add another med to her regimen.. Been thinking its time to put her down

It's a really hard decision to consider, but reviewing her quality of life would be helpful in the decision. Does she have more good days than bad? Is she keeping herself well dehydrated and keeping her weight without force feeding? Does she seem happy, alert, or interested? Is her pain manageable? Does she have good mobility? Can she groom and relief herself well? If your answers are yes, or pretty close to yes, she could still have some time left in her to be spoiled
If your answers are mainly no, it may be time to consider euthanasia.

She doesn't look like she feels well, that's for sure.  I have an elderly kidney cat, although she doesn't have the other issues that your girl has.  And my girl is a couple years younger..15 1/2.  BUT, I see her in that position sometimes too . 

With kidney cats, they often have tummy issues, which could be her problem.   Do you give her Pepcid A/C?  Most kidney cats get that, because too much stomach acid is very common for them, and is quite uncomfortable.  Additionally, do you give her sub-q fluids?  That also help immensely.   Does she throw up clear froth, especially early in the morning?  This is another sign of too much stomach acid.

I cannot say if it's time to let her go yet, but if it's just that she's a little uncomfortable and that can be relieved, then it might be worth a try.  Plus, if she seems to be getting creaky joints, there is OTC Cosequin, which can just be sprinkled on her food.  Supposedly it's good for their kidneys too

If you aren't familiar with this website, it's my "go to".  Has tons of information in it regarding kidney disease, as well as other health issues that sometimes accompany kidney disease:  http://www.felinecrf.org/index.htm

Thank you all for your advice!

Mrsgreenjeens--I was never told about stomach issues with kidney disease cats by my vet, but yes she does throw up frothy stuff in the morning lately and she is not on any Pepcid. That would have been nice to know from the get-go! I'm just not sure I can bare to add another 1-2 meds per day to her regimen, though.. I think I am just trying to make myself feel better for thinking it is time to put her down, but I still feel like crap!

ashaley said:

Thank you all for your advice!

Mrsgreenjeens--I was never told about stomach issues with kidney disease cats by my vet, but yes she does throw up frothy stuff in the morning lately and she is not on any Pepcid. That would have been nice to know from the get-go! I'm just not sure I can bare to add another 1-2 meds per day to her regimen, though.. I think I am just trying to make myself feel better for thinking it is time to put her down, but I still feel like crap!

Click to expand...

When was her last vet visit and check-up? Maybe it's time for that, if it's been several months since a vet visit, and you and your vet can go over what meds are the most important at this point. In my view, a pain med at this point cannot hurt, and will help her feel better if she is indeed in a lot of pain. I understand she is on several meds, as you mentioned in your starting post... but I tend to see a cat in pain when it is in that position. The decreased activity level could also be another signifier of pain, perhaps even arthritis as yet undiagnosed? I also would suggest you stick with feeding her just the wet food that she is eating, and avoid the dry (since she is already eating less of the dry on her own). Try to make sure her water intake is good. Again, though you want to avoid a vet visit out of fear of giving her more meds, I think seeing her vet is a good idea. The state of her health needs to be evaluated, and you and the vet can go over what meds are the most important for her remaining quality of life. Just my two cents!

Best wishes!

I realize you dont really want to add more meds to her regime, probably because of putting her thru it, but you can use empty gel caps and put more than one pill in them, then give her possibly ONE gel cap per day with her meds in it and be done with it.  The Pepcid A/C dose is usually 1/4 pill twice a day, and those are over the counter pills.  But they are bitter, so mixing them in food isn't a good idea.  If she doesn't chew her food to death though, you could try putting in a pill pocket, or wrapping in a pill wrap.  OR, we give our girl her's by injectable, and do it sometimes in conjunction with her sub-q fluids, so kill 2 birds with one stone. 

Poor girl, it looks like she's going through a lot already I understand not wanting to put more on her. I think the biggest thing is to review her quality of life before you decide anything. It may be time for another trip to the vet to talk with them about how she's doing. If she's in a lot of pain and having more bad days than good, it may be time to consider putting her down, but if not it may be better just to do what you can to make her comfortable for now. I went through a similar situation with my cat Zena and we made the decision to make her as comfortable as possible and wait and see how she did. She ended up passing peacefully surrounded by her family and I believe we did the right thing. Just talk to your vet and think about how she's doing day-to-day. I hope you find the right thing to do, I know it's hard either way. Lots of love to both of you.

                 She looks just like my cat that is 16 and one half years. I had my cat's medication for hyperthyroid fixed in a gel form. I can place it on the inside of her ear.

          I did her bucket ;list and she has done everything on that. I can give her some liquid antibiotic once a month because I don't want her to go through

a teeth cleaning. She has a huge appetite. My other cats do not bother her. She is just a little frail senior and I will take care of her until things are terrible.

I asked my son about her when he took care of her and he is a doctor and he thought she was fine. She has little mess-ups with the litter box. I found that when I placed

it right next to her she had mess-ups. She would mark all around the litter box. I put it back in the front bedroom and she is doing better. I couldn't change things on her.

                            Personally, the way your cat sounds I would not put her down. 

Kitty looks a bit peckish. Remember, kidney disease means toxins are not being filtered out of the system properly when kidneys stop their function or its hampered. Sub cue fluids are a MUST for any cat with kidney disease---drinking water isn't enough for them to flush their system. Likely kitty is nauseated from this. If you are comfortable, you can learn to do sub cue fluids at home--I did for my first kitty. The vets can teach you. Also, there are foods you can get to reduce the progress of Kidney disease--ask your vet about this (it won't stop it, but it slows down the process). They are very tastey--my cats LOVE it!

Next, talk about b-12 shots and other things she may be missing due to her condition.  My kitty did this not too long ago and it turns out he had pancreatitis--might want to check for that--it's very painful. Hope kitty feels better soon!!!

Just want to mention to @manyfelines and @darkhorse321, this thread originated almost a year ago, and the original poster never came back after her third post .   Not sure whatever happened to this kitty, but it may not be worth having any discussions on THIS particular thread.