Cat with kidney disease has low potassium level under 3.0 mEq/L

[foxxycat]

does this colored stuff have an odor? Is the gums puffy or firm?

 

[tamu708]

does this colored stuff have an odor? Is the gums puffy or firm?

Her breath has a stronger odor. One of her lower canines is slightly bleeding. I brushed them lightly for her. Some of the discoloration is off, but there is still staining. One of her back teeth looks pretty dark with a blackish staining. I am so worried right now. I don't know if I should take her to the emergency vet or wait and keep an eye on her and call her regular vet tomorrow to get her opinion.

I have some buprenorphine on hand. It was originally prescribed for her arthritis. I am wondering if her mouth is in pain and I should give her a dose. She is eating very small spoons of wet food. I also gave her some low sodium tuna juice to drink. I was reading online about stomatitis and hope she doesn't have it.

This is so disheartening. It's like you address one issue and another issue pops up.

 

[foxxycat]

I would give your vet a call tomorrow- Ask about these issues- oral pain would be something that could affect the appetite. Does your vet have an email you can ask about the bupre? I would call the ER vet and ask about the bupre for arthritis-let them know that things are uncomfortable and you are asking for guidance about when to give the meds.

In the meantime don't brush the teeth until some time has passed or wait for the painmeds to take effect. Its got to hurt something fierce.

I have to get my older kitty in for a dental too. She is 17/18 and been fussy about food lately-she only eats kibble now. She was eating wet food for weeks but a month ago she has been turning her nose up at it. Its the only way to get the miralax into her-I may have to syringe it in some tuna juice if she keeps it up. She has early kidney disease so we try to keep her hydrated.

Last night I finger fed some ham babyfood-she was fine for about 6 or 7 licks then growled that she was finished. I can't tell if she has nausea or if her mouth is bothering her but she always bugs us for food. Sometimes I hand feed her. We have never had to do a dental before. She now has tarter and stuff. She wont tolerate brushing but I was able to rub my finger across the front teeth but not the sides. Gonna put some goop on my finger tonight and see if she would allow me to rub the sides of her mouth with flavorful stuff on it. I should get one of those finger brushes-I just know she is a bear to deal with.

Sorry everything is acting up for you!

 

[tamu708]

I gave Sandi a dose of Buprenorphine.  I called the emergency vet and let them know the problem and gave them the names of the current meds she is on.  They said it wouldn't hurt for her to have a dose.  They said it may help with discomfort in her mouth and she would be able to eat better.  She's still eating very small amounts at a time.  I noticed when she starts turning her head to the side and licking a lot after taking bites, I hear an almost clicking type sound.  It almost sounds like a loose tooth.  I just hope her throat isn't getting inflamed if there is some kind of mouth infection.  I will call her vet first thing in the morning.  The poor dear has been through so much.  

 

[tamu708]

I had to syringe feed Sandra this morning.  She wants to eat and is interested in the food but her mouth is bothering her.  She take a lick and bite then start struggling with it and give up.  The dose of Buprenorphine didn't help, just made her sleepy.  I'm going to call her vet in 15 min with an update.  I'm worried she has an infection from this. 

I hope her teeth are not bad.  She could not handle anesthesia for dental work with her age and health issues.  If it is her teeth, hopefully there are other options are available. 

 

[foxxycat]

If you have a specialist around-there are protocals for anesthesia for heart issues-I kept a copy of this procedure in my old email from aol but I got it off the feline heart yahoo group about 3 years ago-they have a dif med they use than the standard type=ask your vet if they are familiar with this. It IS doable. Just need a knowledgable Anestesiaolist.

My old girl is fussy about food too. Its humid as all heck. She finally ate her kibble this morning but only after taking a long drink of water from her outside dish-we keep it on the porch-she splashes it then drinks from it. She wont drink out of bowls in the house. I too have to figure out some other thing for her dental. She has early kidney disease from urine is not concentrating but her blood work is acceptable. But I can tell the heat is bothering her. She goes through periods where she eats a ton of food then hardly takes a bite.. she wont eat wet food anymore=not sure why. we go for her yearly appointment tomorrow and I am going to ask to be sent home with Cerenia as when she is on that she eats. She takes a bite or two then pulls away. She won't let me pill her. She will bite me. Did I tell you she is VERY independent?

Good luck at the vets!

 

[tamu708]

I talked to Sandra's vet.  I am to pickup some Clavamox and pain medication for her this evening.  Hopefully this will hold her over until her appointment on Saturday.  I hate to keep taking her into the vet's office.  They are also going to give me a bag of subQ fluids.  I will be able to give her a bit of fluids and monitor her breathing.  On Saturday the vet will be able to look at her mouth and we'll see what she suggests.  I will ask about the types of anesthesia that are safe for her if it is suggested to do dental work.  I hope it will be a simple matter though. 

I have never had success with pilling a cat.  When I used to give Thomas his medications, I would crush them, mix with a bit of water and syringe.  He never gave me trouble with it.  He was a very trusting angel.  I use the same syringe method for Sandra. I think the only reason I am able to give her meds is because she is not strong now with her arthritis and other health issues.  But when she was young, it took two people to hold her for meds.  Basil is a nightmare.  The last time I tried to medicate him, he nearly ripped a chunk off my thumb.  I ended up having to take him to the vet's office to pill.  I haven't had to medicate Yunis yet, but I have a feeling he will be difficult.  He's was very shy and skittish when we first adopted him last year.  He's relaxed now and comfortable with us, but as soon as someone tries to pick him up, he bolts.  I'm dreading his vaccine appointment in September already.  I think he will be traumatized.

Good luck to you and your baby at the vet's office tomorrow. 

 

[foxxycat]

I would also ask them to see if Cerenia would help-perhaps a bit of nausea going on with the pain?

Last night I gave Floey the pain meds they sent us home with and it didn't seem to help but I only gave half the dose due to her health-I don't recommend this-but todayI just ordered new foods on chewy and they had some sales so it wasn't too bad. I am still going to stop at the pet store and try a bag of taste of the wild=this was our stand by for about a year. And that soft food. I also ordered freeze dried treats-Floey likes those-the chicken ones from Orijen.

Feel free to ask anything else-also have you tried babyfood to get her eating? Floey only likes to take a lick or two. Honeybee my profile pick loves LOVES babyfood! I can Pill her and pumps but Flo nope. Not gonna happen!

 

[foxxycat]

I found an article explaining all the things to look for in anesthesia of elderly pets-maybe you can print and bring to vet if they don't do geriatric anesthesia.

Its actually well written-if you know your pharmacology its not hard to follow along-has info that I didn't know-basically gives a breakdown of things to watch for-hopefully this puts your mind at ease=the vets are coming around when it comes to these surgeries and treating our animals similar to how they treat humans in surgery minus the drugs that are not compatible for cats/dogs.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3113863/

Keep us posted with your baby!

PS I posted a Q on my facebook asking if people having issues with eating=turns out everyone is noticing their animals cutting back on eating-this heat really needs to GET LOST!

 

[tamu708]

I have Cerenia for her at home.  Yesterday I gave her a dose.  The last time I used it

 
I would also ask them to see if Cerenia would help-perhaps a bit of nausea going on with the pain?

Last night I gave Floey the pain meds they sent us home with and it didn't seem to help but I only gave half the dose due to her health-I don't recommend this-but todayI just ordered new foods on chewy and they had some sales so it wasn't too bad. I am still going to stop at the pet store and try a bag of taste of the wild=this was our stand by for about a year. And that soft food. I also ordered freeze dried treats-Floey likes those-the chicken ones from Orijen.

Feel free to ask anything else-also have you tried babyfood to get her eating? Floey only likes to take a lick or two. Honeybee my profile pick loves LOVES babyfood! I can Pill her and pumps but Flo nope. Not gonna happen!

We have Cerenia at home for her.  I gave her a dose yesterday.  I haven't given her any of this medication in a while as she doesn't have vomiting.  I will ask the vet for some more.  It's always a good idea to have some extra on hand. 

I give her baby food often.  She does like it a lot, but yesterday she was having a hard time with even that food.  This morning, I mixed a spoon of the Wellness Beef and Venison canned food with a spoon of beef baby food with some water and syringe fed her.  I blended the Wellness in the blender to soften it up more.  She took the syringe feeding well.  I used to syringe feed Thomas towards the end. 

 Hopefully Sandi will be ok once her mouth issues are dealt with and she will get back to eating on her own. 

 

[foxxycat]

I am glad you have it.

Cerenia also has some painrelieving properties=they are finding that it works on blocking the pain signals in the brain similar to how it works on blocking the nausea signals in the brain. I am curious to see if it will help. Floey ate like a crazy loon an hour after her injection of it. We don't know why she was being finicky-could be dental pain but they only saw a bit of tarter buildup but she wouldn't let him poke around in her mouth. She lets me run my finger along the gums but I will get a toothrbrush and get her used to that. maybe it will help clean the junk off her gums but I am afraid of hurting her. She was so happy to be outside yesterday eating grass. That's all she lives for-chew grass in her garden then roll on the catnip.

 

[tamu708]

I found an article explaining all the things to look for in anesthesia of elderly pets-maybe you can print and bring to vet if they don't do geriatric anesthesia.

Its actually well written-if you know your pharmacology its not hard to follow along-has info that I didn't know-basically gives a breakdown of things to watch for-hopefully this puts your mind at ease=the vets are coming around when it comes to these surgeries and treating our animals similar to how they treat humans in surgery minus the drugs that are not compatible for cats/dogs.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3113863/

Keep us posted with your baby!

PS I posted a Q on my facebook asking if people having issues with eating=turns out everyone is noticing their animals cutting back on eating-this heat really needs to GET LOST!

Thank so much for the information!

 

[tamu708]

I am glad you have it.

Cerenia also has some painrelieving properties=they are finding that it works on blocking the pain signals in the brain similar to how it works on blocking the nausea signals in the brain. I am curious to see if it will help. Floey ate like a crazy loon an hour after her injection of it. We don't know why she was being finicky-could be dental pain but they only saw a bit of tarter buildup but she wouldn't let him poke around in her mouth. She lets me run my finger along the gums but I will get a toothrbrush and get her used to that. maybe it will help clean the junk off her gums but I am afraid of hurting her. She was so happy to be outside yesterday eating grass. That's all she lives for-chew grass in her garden then roll on the catnip.

I thought Cerenia was only good for nausea. I'm glad to hear it's also a pain reliever. We have it in pill form for Sandi. I am supposed to give her 1/4 pill for 5 days then 2 days off then start again. I'm going to get her back on it consistently.

I am relieved that I will be able to give her a little bit of fluids again. I know I have to be careful and monitor her breathing. Before when she was getting fluids, she would perk up right away.

I am glad your baby is doing well!

 

[tamu708]

Sandi was readmiited to the emergency vet this evening.  I came home and found her laying on her side and twitching.  I thought she was dying.  I took her in immediately.  She has a very bad infection from her mouth and it's in her bloodstream.  They are going to try to reverse the infection by giving her antibiotics intraveneously.  The vet is not sure if this will even work with all her health issues.  She said there is a great chance she will not make it.  I feel so miserable and have been crying for the past three hours.  I have a feeling she will not be coming home this time.  

 

[donutte]

Oh no, I'm so sorry to hear this Many hugs to you and will think lots of good thoughts for Sandi. Poor girl...

 

[zed xyzed]

That is very upsetting news. I will say a prayer for your sweet Sandi. Please know that we are here for you.

 

[tamu708]

Thanks for the prayers for Sandi.  I just called to check on her.  In addition to the bad infection, the vet said her Crea is at 16 and BUN is 130.  She is also very dehydrated.  They have her on a low dose of fluids and are carefully monitoring her heart.  This is not the same ER vet she was at 2 weeks ago.  This one is close to our house.  The only reason I used a different one last time was because they were able to give her a blood transfusion.  I feel more comfortable with this ER.  The vet said they are hoping the fluids will bring her numbers down.  She said her temp was very low when I first brought her in.  It has now gone up to 97.  She is also on antibiotics for her infection.  They are going to recheck her kidney numbers again after she is hydrated.  

I hope she pulls through.  I'm not going to get any sleep tonight.  

 

[tamu708]

My little angel Sandra passed away this morning.  Despite getting fluids, she was not able to produce urine.  Her kidneys completely shut down.  She went into cardiac arrest.  Her little body was not able to fight.   I was getting ready to go visit her when they called me.  I can't stop crying.  I was hoping she would pull through.  My little sweetheart is gone.  

I am going to go and have her buried in the same pet cemetery as Thomas.  Since November of last year, my whole life has revolved around her; we were so close.  I slept with her Sunday and she kept snuggling her head against me and faintly purring.  I am going to miss her so much.  She was my little angel.

 

[2Cats4everLoved]

I am so sorry to hear Sandra has passed.  I've been following your journey and had been hoping for a different outcome.  It's never easy, which is something I'm finding out about.  

Sandra was very lucky to have such a caring person to take care of her.  I hope you will take time to care for yourself now.  My thoughts and prayers go out to you.  Best always.

 

[donutte]

I'm so, so sorry for your loss Poor little girl, when I read her temperature was low, I immediately thought of Sara (her body was shutting down too when we had her put to sleep), she was very cold. I was hoping she would pull through through.

So many friends are waiting for you at the Bridge, Sandi

to you, Tamu708.