After the spider was eaten ...

gloriajh

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Hi,
We were gone for about 14 hours, and when we returned home around 1:30 a.m., there was vomit on the rug.

KiKi has never had a problem with vomiting - so I knew something wasn't right. The kids were in their "Nursery", so I knew this was from KiKi.

One of the spots had a black spider in it - one or two of the spots had grass in them - guess he tried to help himself by eating grass (I keep grass inside for the cats).

Don't think the spider was a black widow - nothing I saw makes me think it was - other than it was black.

Background:
About 2 a.m., I called the emergency lines, the people I spoke with were cautious, but didn't really voice concern.

One person tried to get me to tell her how his gums looked - he's black, so are his gums (couldn't really get him to cooperate, either - no help there.)

They just told me to watch him, that if I became more concerned to bring him in - they're open 24/7.

By 3 a.m. he had stopped his vomiting, but was very lethargic (something the tech told me to expect - other than that - I can't say that I felt that I needed to go out in the dark of the night and drive to a place I'd never been - well, not with what I was observing at the time.

If the on-call tech would have been more "scary", I wouldn't have cared about the risks about driving at night even if I had to go by myself.

Today, he appears to be recovering from what ever it was, but he isn't taking in fluids, at least, that I've seen - and only this late afternoon did he eat some meat & meat juice that I offered.

When ever the "kids" are around him they perk him up. Phoebe has been especially loving to him, while Simon picks on him. The "kids" are good medicine for him.

Need some ideas please:
He's trying to urinate with little success.

He keeps climing in and out of the litter box.

He's had some bowel movement - had grass in it - I'm not sure, but I really don't think he's had any diarreah.

I was able to give him a good massage - last night he didn't want me anywhere near his tummy to massage it. I'm a believer in massaging - so is KiKi
. I'd like to think the massage has helped him rest.

Right now, he's resting - hasn't been up to try and go potty - been asleep for a couple of hours in fact.

Of course, if I think he's still not drinking enough, and he's still having problems urinating tomorrow - we'll be seeing the vet tomorrow (Monday).

Because I am usually over protective I'm trying be "rational" instead of overreacting to something that seems as "common place" as eating spiders. (I've been researching on the web, but can't find something to tell me what to be expecting when something like this happens.)

Any ideas as to what may be going on, what kind of things I should be looking for, etc.?

Any info that may help me be a better FurMommy - cause I know, now with three, plenty of things can happen - and they usually happen when the Vet is "closed", and I can't panick with every thing that may occur.

Any good reference books that you can recommend will also be appreciated.

Meanwhile - I guess the questions is: "What should I expect when he gets sick from eating a bug, or spider?

Thanks,
Gloria
 

dawnofsierra

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Goodness, Gloria, this is scary! Judging from the symptoms you describe, I would feel Tiki needs prompt Veterinary attention. Sometimes in the case of a poisonous insect, waiting for the symptoms to either improve or increase will be too late.
 

cathyc

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I would be really concerned about the difficulty in urinating as this could be a sign of a UTI or blockage and if that's the case you kind of need to act fast. Maybe you should call the emergency vet and ask them if eating the spider could cause him to have a hard time urinating. It's possible eating the spider has nothing to do with him being sick.
 

kluchetta

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Originally Posted by dawnofsierra

Goodness, Gloria, this is scary! Judging from the symptoms you describe, I would feel Tiki needs prompt Veterinary attention. Sometimes in the case of a poisonous insect, waiting for the symptoms to either improve or increase will be too late.
Something else you might want to consider is that his eating the spider is coincidental, and he was eating grass because he was sick. Cats vomit and can't go to the bathroom with a bowel obstruction, and also he could be having bladder problems. Maybe a trip to the vet for some bloodwork - and look around the spider, just in case.
 
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gloriajh

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I called the Animal Emergency as was suggested, to see if the spider issues may be the cause of the inability to urinate.

She said:

If there was any poisoning - it would have been from a bite, and the resulting symptoms would have "showed" themselves before now.

Swallowing the poison spider (if it was) wouldn't have caused a problem because the the stomach acids take care of the poison.

(I felt around his front paws, around his mouth, and he wasn't hesitant about letting me touch him - nothing sore, in other words.)

And, no, the spider wouldn't be the cause of his inability to urinate.
Of course she thought he should be seen by his Vet tomorrow -- like others have said here, there might be something else going on - the spider thing might be the thing to get my attention
.

She said he may not be wanting water because his bladder is full.
I have had some experience with a cat unable to urinate - and KiKi isn't showing signs of a blocked urethra - I mean - he isn't feverish, he does move around, his eyes are bright. He just isn't drinking or really eating.

Update - he has been successful at urinating, so at least he's been able to relieve his bladder.

So, Sisters - all of your suggestions and insight are very helpful - KiKi will be seeing the Vet tomorrow no matter if he seems much better - it's time for his yearly, anyway
.

I wonder, wouldn't he have a temp is any of these symptoms meant he had a UTI, or blockage?

Gloria
 

cathyc

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Glad to hear Kiki peed! I'm always a little paranoid about that having lost a male cat a few years ago to a blocked urethra. I don't even remember if he had a fever but he was lethargic and kept going in and out of the litter box trying to pee. Let us know what the vet says.
 
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gloriajh

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Originally Posted by CathyC

Glad to hear Kiki peed! I'm always a little paranoid about that having lost a male cat a few years ago to a blocked urethra. I don't even remember if he had a fever but he was lethargic and kept going in and out of the litter box trying to pee. Let us know what the vet says.
Cathy -
Today, Monday = it's 10 a.m.
I spent the night watching him, so kinda tired right now.

I'm pretty familiar about a blocked urethra with a male cat. About 15 years ago, the same sort of thing happened to my daughter's cat whom I was caring for - she was away at school. By the time I took him to the vet, he was a pretty sick kitty - so I learned what serious symptoms to look for. They drained his bladder, but the crystals kept blocking the urine because the tip of his urethra was too small to let them pass. So, he had what I would call a life and death surgery - a new thing at the time - but my Vet's husband-surgeon had some knowledge about it - he cut the tip off to make the urethra hole larger. That cat lived to be over 18 yrs. old. A miracle-like surgery!

Seems like life has a way of repeating itself, and this time around, I am watching out for those dreadful symptoms. I've even tried to think ahead by making sure that KiKi gets the healthiest food and water. Well, the water is bottled, but maybe it's too hard?

I don't know how you might feel about this, but, hey - here goes
, I had a "conversation" with the Lord. I told Him that I'd know KiKi was going to be alright when he started to purr again.

All his vocal greetings, all his purring had ceased - except for some groans when I was petting him, or moving him. Man! You know that's not a good sign.

So, when he still wasn't purring, that's when I got online with my sister-team about the situation.

You know, all you guys saw through the problem about a spider - and honed in on the lack of peeing, the lack of water intake. The emergency Tech also confirmed your concerns.

This morning, (about 5:30) as I was moving KiKi (he & I "slept" in the family room until my husband woke me up doing stuff in the kitchen) back to our bed, he didn't move much, but when he open his eyes he was alert enough after being awakend from a sound sleep.

I put him on my husband's pillow (his place when my husband gets up in the morning
) and massaged him a little, not much response, so I just layed beside him and kept touching him, his breathing looked normal. I started scrubbing his head - a sure place to get a purr from him if one would come. (He hadn't responded to this last night.) He stretched, then started purring as I continued to scrub his head and cheeks. To me, this was what I was looking for, and became relieved.

My relief - that's what I needed. Since then, he's been taking in water, a tiny bit of food, and peeing. YEA! He's also wrestling with the kittens, and pretty active - all positive signs.

I'm relieved for sure, but he will still be seeing the Vet. I just don't feel I have to run out in my bathrobe, crash down the Vet's door, and demand help NOW! any longer.


After I call and talk with my actual Vet and make an appointment. I'll let you know the results.

Thank for the attentive ear, and solid advice!
Gloria
 

arcadian girl

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Originally Posted by GloriaJH

Cathy -
Today, Monday = it's 10 a.m.
I spent the night watching him, so kinda tired right now.

I'm pretty familiar about a blocked urethra with a male cat. About 15 years ago, the same sort of thing happened to my daughter's cat whom I was caring for - she was away at school. By the time I took him to the vet, he was a pretty sick kitty - so I learned what serious symptoms to look for. They drained his bladder, but the crystals kept blocking the urine because the tip of his urethra was too small to let them pass. So, he had what I would call a life and death surgery - a new thing at the time - but my Vet's husband-surgeon had some knowledge about it - he cut the tip off to make the urethra hole larger. That cat lived to be over 18 yrs. old. A miracle-like surgery!

Seems like life has a way of repeating itself, and this time around, I am watching out for those dreadful symptoms. I've even tried to think ahead by making sure that KiKi gets the healthiest food and water. Well, the water is bottled, but maybe it's too hard?

I don't know how you might feel about this, but, hey - here goes
, I had a "conversation" with the Lord. I told Him that I'd know KiKi was going to be alright when he started to purr again.

All his vocal greetings, all his purring had ceased - except for some groans when I was petting him, or moving him. Man! You know that's not a good sign.

So, when he still wasn't purring, that's when I got online with my sister-team about the situation.

You know, all you guys saw through the problem about a spider - and honed in on the lack of peeing, the lack of water intake. The emergency Tech also confirmed your concerns.

This morning, (about 5:30) as I was moving KiKi (he & I "slept" in the family room until my husband woke me up doing stuff in the kitchen) back to our bed, he didn't move much, but when he open his eyes he was alert enough after being awakend from a sound sleep.

I put him on my husband's pillow (his place when my husband gets up in the morning
) and massaged him a little, not much response, so I just layed beside him and kept touching him, his breathing looked normal. I started scrubbing his head - a sure place to get a purr from him if one would come. (He hadn't responded to this last night.) He stretched, then started purring as I continued to scrub his head and cheeks. To me, this was what I was looking for, and became relieved.

My relief - that's what I needed. Since then, he's been taking in water, a tiny bit of food, and peeing. YEA! He's also wrestling with the kittens, and pretty active - all positive signs.

I'm relieved for sure, but he will still be seeing the Vet. I just don't feel I have to run out in my bathrobe, crash down the Vet's door, and demand help NOW! any longer.


After I call and talk with my actual Vet and make an appointment. I'll let you know the results.

Thank for the attentive ear, and solid advice!
Gloria
just a word to the wise - cats have been known to purr when in pain and/or sick, or injured.... so purring is not neccessarily a sign that he's better. i wish the best for your kitty tho, hope he gets better soon. nothing worse than having a lovoed one sick
 

sarahp

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I reckon most cat people can tell a happy purr from a sick/injured purr. Their body language is completely different!
 
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gloriajh

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When she called she said she was concerned about dehydration - I told her I had given him the tug on the skin test - that the skin went right back in place, so I didn't think he was dehydrated as he'd been drinking, and eating.

She told me to check his gums, if they were dry or sticky - to get him in, if not then tomorrow would be ok.

(They have one of the Docs out very sick, it's a Monday, and I would probably have to wait until they could "squeeze" me in. I'd rather have an appointment to make sure he got the attention he needs rather than be squeezed in. But....if he was dehydrated - look out here I come no matter if I had to "be squeezed in"!
)

I checked his gums, very slippery - so OK - I made the appointment for tomorrow.

He's had a good day. It's still amazing to me what good medicine the "kids" are for him! He's bright eyed, putting some energy in chasing and wrestling with Simon - sometimes Phoebe. He's being more vocal again - he's a talker and I love it.

Tonight he came to find me because he wanted some meat - it's canned (Wellness). He also has been eating his dry (Felidae) and drinking water if he doesn't get too distracted by two little heads trying to get a drink with him. He wanted fresh grass, so I got him some more.

He doesn't seem to be grooming himself - which gives me pause. Even so, Phoebe is picking up the slack, and he's letting her, and occassionally Simon will put in an effort to help too.

So - hairballs anyone? I wonder. No hair came with the vomit - could some be stuck in his bowel? Hmmm He's 2 1/2 and he's never had the occassion to spit up a hairball - in fact this is the first time that he's ever vomited.

So, tomorrow we'll know a little more, then I'll let you guys know,too.

Thanks for sharing your concern and valuable input!
Gloria
 
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gloriajh

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This morning when I got up I found a note left by my husband saying that "KiKi was back"!


KiKi was back into his morning routine with my husband.
He had his furdaddy doing everything for him that he is accustomed to have done for him in the morning. YEA!

Our appointment was at 4:30 pm.

Before the appointment time we had a lot of "wellness" signs.
KiKi was running, chasing the furkids - it was like a race track
. His appetite had returned, and he was drinking and peeing - what more could a furmommy want?

Well, she'd like to see some "other" potty business - can't say for sure if he had a BM or not ??

At any rate - all the healthy signs had returned, but wanted the vet to check him out and confirm.

She checked him over very thoroughly - his temp was 101.2. Sounds kinda boring - ain't is GREAT! I LOVE BORING when it's about the health of one of our furbabies!

She felt around his colon to make sure he wasn't stopped up, and felt nothing, his other vital signs were normal, his eyes were clear.

So, we're very thankful!


I can't write enough times how you guys came through for me! I've learned some stuff, had some good "brainstorming", comfort, and support when I really needed it! Thank you all for your contributions and helping me get though the dreadful -vet's office closed - weekend!

With appreciation to Arcadiangirl, CathyC, Dawnofsierra, Kluchetta and Sarahp,
Gloria
 

natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by kluchetta

Great news! Oh, and I've never had a short haired cat have hairballs.
That's great news about KiKi!!!

I have 2 short hair cats and both get hairballs. Chynna usually gets rid of them in her feces. Abby on the other hand is a throw up kitty when it comes to getting rid of hairballs
 
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gloriajh

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Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

That's great news about KiKi!!!

I have 2 short hair cats and both get hairballs. Chynna usually gets rid of them in her feces. Abby on the other hand is a throw up kitty when it comes to getting rid of hairballs
I guess these precious critters are just like people - it's hard to have any set "patterns" about the way they are.
We just have to be prepare for anything, just like our "other" children.


The thing is, at least with KiKi, I would have thought he was "prone" to up-chucking hairballs by now if that was his "bent". But? I guess time will tell.
, or my carpet will!


Thanks, Natalie_ca!
Gloria
 
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gloriajh

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Originally Posted by CathyC

I'm so glad Kiki is feeling better and checked out okay at the vet. I have been checking for an update. It's nice to hear good news.
Thanks, Cathy!
Good news IS the BEST!


Gloria
 
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gloriajh

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Originally Posted by kluchetta

Great news! Oh, and I've never had a short haired cat have hairballs.
Thanks! I wonder, what's your "routine" with them - do you brush regularly, what food do you provide or even, is the water you use hard, or soft - or, have any "special" qualities - like "bottled" or ?

I've been using bottled, but it is "hard" -- Arrowhead --
I also think the quality canned meat would provide enough moisture to help wash those hairballs on through
, hmmmm - just interested because of your success.

Gloria
 

kluchetta

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Originally Posted by GloriaJH

Thanks! I wonder, what's your "routine" with them - do you brush regularly, what food do you provide or even, is the water you use hard, or soft - or, have any "special" qualities - like "bottled" or ?

I've been using bottled, but it is "hard" -- Arrowhead --
I also think the quality canned meat would provide enough moisture to help wash those hairballs on through
, hmmmm - just interested because of your success.

Gloria
I'm probably just lucky. I actually only have 1 short haired cat, come to think of it, She eats Iams and has beautiful shiny black fur. I've only seen her throw up maybe once.

My cat that has the longest hair eats Iams hairball (and I do think she's throwing up less now), but she grooms incessantly. The medium haired cat grooms quite a bit, but I've never seen her throw up. And I haven't had the kitten long enough to tell just yet on him!
 
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