Booboo is confusingly not well

[snickerdoodle]

Anybody know anything about using flea treatments on CRF Cats? I have some Promeris in the house from a few years ago, but I called my vet and then the new vet, and my vet said Promeris was fine, the new vet said he would recommend Frontline. I'm scared to use any meds on him like that (Back of the neck) with his CRF. I believe he has most likely picked up fleas from his brief trips outside, and while I know he's anemic and that's not helping anything, I'm just.. totally lost on if I should or what I should use!
Thanks for any info...
He's on the roller coaster today, today started out great but then after he ate and got his fluids he didn't feel much like doing anything else. Mom bought him a comfy small dog bed and he's been sleeping in that, but his tummy has been upset. I gave him 1/4 of a pepcid last night and Mom says he slept through the night. I just gave him another 1/4 because he was doing a lot of swallowing like trying to keep something down.
So worried all over again, don't know what else to do for him!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Sorry, I got nothin' to offer about fleas, since I live where it's too hot foro them to survive (I guess). I have not seen a flea since moving to Arizona!

What has the other Vet said about the anemia? Or your regular Vet, for that matter? Surely there is something you can give him for it? Maybe you can ask your Vet, also, about the best flea product too, for CRF cats?

 

[icklemiss21]

http://www.felinecrf.com/managf.htm

CRF cats are prone to anemia and fleas could increase the risk. Since fleas consume blood, contributing to anemia even in otherwise healthy cats, it would seem that the risk imposed by a flea infestation would be more serious to a CRF cat than any side effects from the use of flea-control medication. However, we recommend talking to your vet before using any flea-control products on your CRF cat.

The manufacturers of the flea product, Revolution, recommend not giving it to "sick, debilitated and underweight animals".

Looking through the other CRF sites, they all recommend Frontline, it may be that Promeris has whatever Revolution has that makes it not recommended

 

[snickerdoodle]

My normal vet is not very proactive with his anemia, or phosphorus binders (he said both of the treatments were too "Toxic" for him and he'd rather not use them unless he just absolutely had to), or anything. The new vet told me (basically right on par with Tanya's CRF Site) she could do a procedure that is similiar in blood doping that some athletes have been known to do, which increases red blood cells temporarily, . It sounds like mini transfusions to me. She told me it was very expensive, though. This was during the consult so I was blasting through all of my questions to get them all answered. Got them all answered, but not thoroughly enough *(my fault)
The pepcid is helping him, and he's bouncy and happy in the morning. I popped open a can this evening and he came RUNNING. He's eating great, but otherwise doesn't seem to feel too good. my vet told me he didn't need another blood test for a month (Which I took as "Don't bring him back here every 2-3 weeks for a blood test!") but I think maybe his BUN has gone back up. I'm back to worrying over him constantly and I'm trying my darnedest not to. He is back to greeting me in the window when I come home from work and back to cuddling and wanting to be around me every second. He is hiding but not for very long. I need to work on the money but I am aiming to get him a date with the new vet within the next week.
I will go out tomorrow and talk to the new vet and get some Frontline. Will do some research about lawn care and getting rid of fleas, ... since we obviously aren't getting rid of the two visitors outside anytime soon. (I believe they are feral, not wanderers or have homes nearby) Boo may not be allowed to outside for awhile

Sorry so long. I'm so worried for my Boo. THank you answering and taking your time to do so.

 

[snickerdoodle]

Quick update: I am thinking his hiding is due to the fleas. He is trying to get away from them (has tried a few spots, alas, to no avail) Will be getting some Frontline today hopefully, he is very active today, greeted me at the window, his eyes are not runny and are wide and bright. He chased Chickster like a bat out of heck earlier this morning, ate ALL NIGHT (Pepcid must be working I guess?) and even more this morning. Then he got his

face after fluids but is back to being active. Thank you all. I am off on a week of vacation so I can be home with him, so we will both be happy about that.

 

[snickerdoodle]

And one more quick update. Doing great this evening. I got him a bag of Royal Canin Mature Adult (Or "Senior") 27. He is EATING IT!! I Got Chickster a bag of Purina One and she likes it. He's eaten a great amount today I am very happy. He has been pretty active today and is now sleeping in a jigsaw puzzle box top. Without further ado I thought I would share a pic I got of him just a few hours ago .. he looks great

Got the frontline, and applied. He is itching a lot more now, I guess those fleas are ticked.

 

[icklemiss21]

He is looking good

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

What a great picture of a handsome boy! By the way, I don't know of a single cat who doesn't like Purina One.

Why are you feeding BooBoo this new Royal Canin Senior? Just to give him a change? I guess I missed something along the way. Thought he was eating the Hi Tor Neo pretty well with a few sprinkles of KD on top. Well, anyway, don't forget that you can return the Iams Multi Stage Renal for your money back, if he's not going to eat it. (I THINK you tried that, didn't you?) Sorry, my memory isn't as good as it used to be, and I haven't got time right now to go back and read this entire thread!!

 

[snickerdoodle]

It's no problem, this thread has gotten big! LOL. I switched Boo to Royal canin because it was listed on the Dry Food sheet for CRF cats, one of the top 4 with the least phosphorus in it. Chickster really needs to get off the C/D, because for one I can't afford the bag of C/D and boo's supplies together, and she doesn't need, and Boo could use something a bit better. Now I am realizing in the end the pricing comes out the same, if not a little more actually. I'm also just really worried about Chickster eating Dry C/D all the time (She will eat nothing wet at all) and she's gotten pretty chunky. I mean, I ask the vet "But can she eat it?" and they say "Oh yeah sure, it'll just make her fat." And I am thinking, well, extra weight doesn't do anyone any good.... I don't want her popping up wit problems on down the road... Boo really likes his new food and he's eating a lot more than he was eating of the C/D. This way I can also monitor better who is eating how much if I split it up like this.
He is still eating his Neo, still likes it a lot, and sometimes I put a little bit of Fancy Feast/Friskies gravy mixed with a good bit of water on his Neo. Then he really goes nuts over it. But we haven't had a blow out of him going off of his Neo because of the gravy addition (Kind of like, to make it a "real" treat, since wet food used to be his treat) so I am still doing it. He has been absolutely, thrillingly active today and had a really great day. (The BUN level of 77 was during the time I was mixing in Friskies gravy out of the cans and mixing it with water)
I have not tried to return the bag of Iams because it's been opened. I don't think they'll let me return it if I've opened it. So it's sitting in there. Chickster also didn't like the Blue Buffalo too well and that's why I just went ahead and got a big bag of Purina One for like 9 bucks. Pretty nice size bag.
Also, Chickster has been getting really constipated (Been that way since she was a kitten, but all she's ever eaten is C/D, all she WOULD eat) So I am hoping switching to this might help. I'm shocked because Boo went poo all by himself today with no miralax and it was soft. Hasn't had miralax in a couple days.
Also, this Royal Canin, I'm not 100% sure but his stomach issue has quieted down quite a lot since I got it for him. No more swallowing and such late in the afternoon/evening like he was doing.
As for the K/D, he got so fed up with that stuff that he refused to go near anything that remotely smelled like it. So that stuff went out the door completely when I found the Hi-Tor.

So yeah, a change, he likes to have dry and he's eaten it his whole life, but he doesn't gobble this down, he is eating more of his wet than the dry, but he likes the dry. I can even feel the sides of his little belly now, instead of it being all sunk in .. so I think he has gained some weight. I am hoping to get a baby scale sometime, but money is pretty tight.

Thanks guys for all your help.

 

[katkisses]

I am glad that he is doing better!!!!!

 

[booktigger]

I am glad he is doing so well and eating so much. It might be worth trying Iams, I know some places here will take back opened food.

 

[icklemiss21]

I am glad he is doing better

Some places do take back open bags, can't hurt to ask

 

[snickerdoodle]

Anyone have any experience with getting rid of fleas in the yard? The new vet advised me to contact a pest control company. I want Boo to be able to go outside.. I gave him a bath earlier, he's so mad at me right now but I washed him with some dermal soothe that will hopefully quit any itching he may have. He had a couple of mats of hair on his backside and under his front armpit and I Got those out (with aid of a muzzle. yow! Mad cat!)

Thanks for any advice

 

[icklemiss21]

Use diatomaceous earth spread on your yard?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

2 things. First, on the opened Iams KD - they should take it back even opened, as they have a money back guarantee that your cat will like it! How can your cat try it and if you don't open the package. I would definitely contact where you bought it and see if they'll give you your money back. If they won't, then call the toll free number on the package.

Second, on the fleas in your yard, I don't think anything will keep them away permanently unless you keep other animals carrying fleas away. It seems if you kill the fleas there, and then those free roaming cats come back, the fleas will return with them, right? That's what usually happens, if I remember correctly. I would think you would have to constantly spray the yard to kill all "new arrivals". We used to spray our yard with something that we bought at Home Depot or Lowes and attached to a device with our hose which dispensed pesticide somehow (sorry, it's been a very long time and I'm not describing it well). I'd go to Lowes (they're big in your area I think) and discuss with them.

 

[snickerdoodle]

Yes, Lowe's is huge. Right now I'm using Ortho Home Defense on the perimeter of the house, decks and windows to keep out everything. I know we have them outside now because a big fat one jumped onto my foot while I was standing in the open door. It was so sluggish it couldn't do anything and I killed it. So I washed off the decks, sprayed the home defense.. keep Boo inside. The ferals were a big mistake and I wouldn't be feeding them right now if it weren't for my friend having tried feeding them (She had just had her cat pts and I felt too bad for her to tell her not to do it, so that was my fault)
I will check with Lowe's and also check with the vet Monday about a proper shampoo for him. I am so terrified to use any medicated shampoo on him for fleas (Pyrathecin or whatever, which is what I have from the vet and did not use yet)
Thanks guys

Boo's very unhappy right now, I gave him a pepcid after he spit up a bit of foam, only a little, before he went tinkle. But he made a funny dry heave noise he's never made before, so ... risking stressing him even more after a bath and cutting mats out of his fur, I pilled him. I don't think he'll be on speaking terms with me for awhile.
I've tried to dry him as well as I can (Used a hair dryer on low, kept it back away from him and dried him slowly), and he's in a warm room right now but he's sitting on his paws, so it's going to take forever for them to dry. The rest of him is almost dry though. *sigh* I hate stressing him, and I hate it even more when he's mad at me, but I have to try to keep in mind that it's not his fault he's sick and if it were me I'd be acting pretty crabby too...

Thanks again guys

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Oh, I forgot, you've probably got fleas inside your house too! It's a never ending battle with them! We used to (when we lived in San Diego), take all our furbabies in to be flea dipped, spray the yard, and flea bomb the house, all at the same time to try to eradicate them. And, sadly, it didn't seem to last for long!

On another note, I've found that Sven doesn't throw up that white frothy stuff as long as he has something in his stomach, so I make sure he has stuff to nibble on all the time, even it's it's just treats. You can feed him his Royal Canin and call it treats, if you even give them treats...he won't know the difference, just keep something in his tummy! Sven can't even take Pepcid AC because IT makes him throw-up, poor guy.

 

[snickerdoodle]

Poor Sven

I know when I tried crushing a 1/4 pepcid and putting it in a syringe with water, he drooled like crazy. I know it was very extremely bitter. I just pill him now, but he's been hiding under the bed all day.. He got a little irritated with the sub-q's and only got in 150 instead of 200 and he's been drinking water. He isn't scratching now though, and I meant to ask the vet if I could use my pyrathecin stuff.
We had a bad infestation one time where if I stuck my foot over my bed it turned black within 1 minute with tons of fleas. It was a horror movie. We got rid of them though, and haven't had any troubles with any fleas since 2004, but that was because we didn't have all these ferals running around..
Aaaaaah. Well. I'm going to go check on him and try to get him to eat something. I will talk to a pest control company and talk to someone about a good powder to put on the floor (What we did last time, and it worked, just kept the cats out of each room until it was time and we vacuumed)

 

[snickerdoodle]

Okay guys, it may just be me worrying too much all over again, but Boo doesn't seem to be having a very good day today. He wasn't very cooperative with his sub-q's so I had to switch to a 20 gauge and it took longer, but it went better. His conjuctivitis has acted up and I have ointment for it, which I applied just a few minutes ago, just like directed from the vet. He has eaten decently today, he has had water, I just caught him grooming himself and sitting in the window watching a moth fly around with interest (It's dark outside here right now) but otherwise he's been hiding under the bed.
He shows complete alertness to sounds and things, especially the laser light, he's real interested in that when it's on. He curled up with me earlier on the bed which he hasn't done in a few weeks (not for long anyway)
But he's laying on a tv table next to me here and while he's holding his head up and laid partially on his side, I think he is trembling. It's not wet bath trembling (Those were very very faint) but trembling I can see in his ears and head. He was swallowing a lot again so I just gave him a 1/4 pepcid too. Should I call the vet tomorrow and ask them if this is serious enough to bring him in? Anyone have any ideas? I'm concerned about his hiding and trembling, (It's not constant, just every once in awhile) He jumps fine onto surfaces, and even hops and runs and gallops about occassionally. I think I'm worrying for nothing but it's bothersome. He's pooped, he's pee'd plenty, ... Thanks for any help guys.

EDIT: He has been hiding under my Mom's bed, where it's really really dusty, and she thinks this is why his eye is acting up. It's mostly clear fluid coming out with a small eye booger or two sometimes.

 

[threecatowner]

If it was just the hiding, I would think flea-infestation, because that happened in our house last year, and Mickey turned into a total spas.

But the trembling, along with hiding, is concerning - I'd ask the vet.

More get well for Booboo...