waiting for the vet to call

i came home yesterday to find my precious Tabitha trying to walk on very wobbly legs. She'd been fine when i left the house that morning. When i picked her up she cried. I got her to the vets straightaway and she felt a lump in Tabs stomach so I had to leave her there overnight and they are due to xray her an hour from now. Tab had a malignant tumor removed from her foot in jan but it was completely removed and wasn't the type to have secondaries. I feel so bad for putting her through this again. She's sixteen now and i don't want her to be in any pain. The vet is going to ring me with the findings and discuss options whilst Tab is still under anaesthetic. I have a horrible feeling i'm going to have to agree to her being put to sleep. I so wanted to be there with her when it happened but it would be cruel to wake her up just to give me time to get there wouldn't it? I know i'm imagining the worst case scenario and she did still look quite bright yesterday but I'm sick with worry. I thought i'd be prepared for this but it's just happened so suddenly.

Oh my gosh I am so sorry you are going through this. I'm sure you can't help but assume the worst but I have everything crossed that he's going to call and suggest treatment for her.
You just have to look at it through totally selfless eyes. You have to do whats best for your baby. If she's going to have poor quality of life and be in pain, you know what you have to do. She would thank you for it.
You did say she was looking bright though so maybe it's not going to come to that. Let us know how you get on. I'm thinking of you and have everything crossed. Healing {{{vibes}}} to Tabitha.

Oh my goodness your poor thing Like Lauren said see what the vet says, because you never know there could be something they can do, but whatever happens we know that you'll be putting Tabithas best interests first.

Were all here for you though no matter what, so let us know what happens.

I wonder if maybe you couldn't ask the vet to ring you early enough so you have time to get over there to say good-bye, if you have to?

i just knew tab would turn out to be a medical mystery. she never does things the easy way. The xray turned up zilch. The vet thinks the lump she felt was probably the bowel although how this explains tab crying when i picked her up i don't know. Blood tests showed she is very slightly anaemic and has signs of a very slight infection probably caused by her fleas. (Yes i'm embarrassed about that. I've tried every brand of flea control i can think of, deflogged the house, shampooed the carpets and check her every day with a flea comb but i think its going to be a case of new carpets). Kidney function is fine.
So she's staying with the vet for another night so they can monitor her and get a second opinion in the morning. The vet sais she really has no idea whats causing it but thinks it could possibly be brain related. I was so wound up i forgot to quiz her on that so i'm going over in the morning to see Tab and ask some questions then.I just can't wait to see her.
fingers crossed.

Originally Posted by yorkiegal

i just knew tab would turn out to be a medical mystery. she never does things the easy way. The xray turned up zilch. The vet thinks the lump she felt was probably the bowel although how this explains tab crying when i picked her up i don't know. Blood tests showed she is very slightly anaemic and has signs of a very slight infection probably caused by her fleas. (Yes i'm embarrassed about that. I've tried every brand of flea control i can think of, deflogged the house, shampooed the carpets and check her every day with a flea comb but i think its going to be a case of new carpets). Kidney function is fine.
So she's staying with the vet for another night so they can monitor her and get a second opinion in the morning. The vet sais she really has no idea whats causing it but thinks it could possibly be brain related. I was so wound up i forgot to quiz her on that so i'm going over in the morning to see Tab and ask some questions then.I just can't wait to see her.
fingers crossed.

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Is it possible that the flea control you are using could have a bearing on this? You don't mention what you used but if you got Revolution or Advantage from the vet and treated her with that, then you will eventually get rid of the fleas. You could also use a flea bomb.

Often over-the-counter flea medications are extremely dangerous to your pet and in some cases can cause death.

This sounds like some good advice. I am praying for you. I know it is hard not to have her there with you.
I hope all is well and she can come home tomorrow.

Originally Posted by Yosemite

Is it possible that the flea control you are using could have a bearing on this? You don't mention what you used but if you got Revolution or Advantage from the vet and treated her with that, then you will eventually get rid of the fleas. You could also use a flea bomb.

Often over-the-counter flea medications are extremely dangerous to your pet and in some cases can cause death.

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It sounds like she might have ingested a poison. The wobbly legs could have been a seizure episode (cats seizure strange). If you've done so much to try and get rid of the fleas it could have been ingested like what Yosemite said.

Hopefully its something like this that is episodic and won't repeat.

Originally Posted by yorkiegal

i just knew tab would turn out to be a medical mystery. she never does things the easy way. The xray turned up zilch. The vet thinks the lump she felt was probably the bowel although how this explains tab crying when i picked her up i don't know. Blood tests showed she is very slightly anaemic and has signs of a very slight infection probably caused by her fleas. (Yes i'm embarrassed about that. I've tried every brand of flea control i can think of, deflogged the house, shampooed the carpets and check her every day with a flea comb but i think its going to be a case of new carpets). Kidney function is fine.
So she's staying with the vet for another night so they can monitor her and get a second opinion in the morning. The vet sais she really has no idea whats causing it but thinks it could possibly be brain related. I was so wound up i forgot to quiz her on that so i'm going over in the morning to see Tab and ask some questions then.I just can't wait to see her.
fingers crossed.

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If the lump was in the bowel, then she could be constipated. Did she have a fever? That could also lead to some pain. How is her heart? Was her heart rate fast? If so, get an echocardiogram done today, if you can possibly afford it. I just lost my kitty boy to cardiomyopathy. He had very advanced stages of it, but he had suddenly lost control of his back legs (they weren't wobbly, they weren't working at all). On Spot's last day, my vet was very concerned about his neurologic brain function. It wasn't until after he died that we discovered how bad his heart condition was. Cardiomyopathy can be treated in the earlier stages, and it doesn't show up on x-rays (Spot had several different x-rays done).

Since she is anemic, I would also have them check for haemobartonella. It is carried by fleas and it can cause anemia, weakness and pain (http://www.petplace.com/articles/art...=1&conID=16974)

I wish you the best of luck. Keep us updated.

thanks for the advice everyone. i'm going over to the surgery this morning and will ask about her heart rate and the flea treatment.
She hasn't had a temperature at all and i don't think she was constipated as she'd used her litter tray twice the previous day. The last flea treatment i used was a Bob Martin one from the supermarket and that was around 10 days ago. But i've used that on her before without any ill effects. I've flea bombed the house again last night and will ask the vet what he reccommends i use in the future. I had no idea these could be toxic to cats! I did wonder if she'd possibly ingested some poison but there's no way she could have got hold of any chemicals inside the house. Perhaps it's a plant in the garden? I wish i knew what was causing this because i'm feeling so guilty that it might have been something i did wrong.

Well we're back home! It's so nice to have her back again. We have to go back on Tuesday for another assessment (the surgery is closed over the bank holiday weekend) but in the meantime the vet said to treat her as normal. She's been given antibiotics and something else for the anaemia. Fortunately they were long lasting shots so i don't need to give her any pills. She has eaten a little since she got home and is currently curled up on the sofa after having had a good grooming session. She's not too happy about the large shaved area under her neck.
Unfortunately the ataxia is still just as bad if not worse. She stumbles when she goes round corners, falls over when she shakes herself and just fell now when she jumped onto the sofa. The vet commented that she is tilting her head to one side. Moodwise she also seems to be a bit off, very subdued and frightened by loud noises, however that could just be trauma from the vet visit i suppose.
So i guess its a wait and see game until Tuesday. Incidentally the vet is sure it's not related to the flea treatment and doesn't think it is poisoning. She gave me some frontline combo for the future although i'm not going to bother Tab with that until next week.
Thanks so much everyone for your support and advice.

Hi everyone
I just wanted to come back and share our good news! I can't believe the change in Tab over the weekend. She's almost completely recovered now! She only has the occasional stumble, just once this morning. I've noticed that she's standing with her feet further apart to help with her balance but she is a lot more confident on her feet and doesn't fall over when she shakes her head anymore. Her appetite is great, her coat is the shiniest i've ever seen it and she's a happy cat. We've just been back to the vets today and she was given an anti inflammatory jab. Apparantly she was given one last week too. The vet feels it was probably a brain inflammation and that's why the improvement was so dramatic after the first jab. Looking back at my first post i can't believe i was so negative but it really was so scary to see her like that. We're going back on friday for a check up but that should be the last visit. Her stomach has been fine too and no sign of any pain now.
I'm so pleased i can't stop smiling at her. She probably thinks i'm nuts.