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I've been posting about one of my cats, Taz. She is nine years old and has suffered from rodent ulcers for years. My vet tried to get a culture the first time I brought her in, but was unsuccessful. They haven't tried since. I am told it's an autoimmune issue, and we sometimes get Depo shots (with Clavamox in the beginning, but no Clavamox in over a year). To get a break from the Depo, we've been doing laser treatments - safer, non-invasive, but not helping at all the last three treatments. Taz gets these ulcers every two months at least - she never goes longer than that.
She started having cystitis bouts this month, two in a row with only a week inbetween. She's been on Baytril, and now Clavamox for the cystitis. I'm told it's stress induced, brought on by visits to the vets, naturally! She's never had this before.
So, I cut & pasted the text below from another thread of mine. I'd really like to hear what you think the outcome of not treating the rodent ulcers can be, because we're between a rock and a hard place on this one...
I'm not an uncaring pet owner, trying to wheedle out of a vet visit - I'm trying to chose the lesser of two evils so my cat can de-stress, relax, and heal. I need help figuring this out! Thanks!!
here's the cut & paste, with a little bit of background added;
Taz seems to be doing great - it's nearly impossible for me to tell how well she's urinating due to having two cats & multiple little boxes, but she has a habit of urinating against the sides of the boxes (the other cat doesn't) and she never tries to cover up anything she does in a litter box - how odd is that? - so I can make a good guess as to what is hers. Urine production isn't 100% (based on clump size) but it's a solid 75%. She's super fiesty & playful, it's kinda scary! lol I haven't seen her so engaged in long time. I'm guessing she's lost a little weight based on how lean she looks to me, maybe that's why she has the extra energy. Wouldn't it be something if she's been having blood glucose issues, too, and I didn't know it?
She still has two days on Clavamox to go. I have to decide what to do about her rodent ulcers now. I could bring her in for a quick Depo shot. I don't want to go through the hassle and stress - for me as well as her - of the Atopica right now. (I have talked on another thread how she was prescribed liquid Atopica to try & help her chronic rodent ulcers). Going in for a shot will be stressful for her too, even though it only takes a second. They tell me the stress is what's bringing on these back-to-back cystitis bouts. So is it cruel to wait & watch on the ulcers to avoid more stressful vet visits, or is it cruel to keep bringing her in and having her get full blown cystitis attacks, days apart, then needing to be put on pain/antibiotic meds? I feel I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't - and Taz is the one that suffers. She doesn't seem to know she has rodent ulcers, and my vet says they aren't painful. But what happens if they get too large/deep, and what constitutes "too large and too deep"?
When I was in my regular vet's office a few days ago, she asked how the ulcers looked. They've looked worse in the past, but I can see yellow/white/light colored tissue in the core of one of the ulcers, so it's deep. By the way, they always get that deep, but that's when she gets a shot. I have no idea if it will continue to get deeper. My vet said they can go one of two ways if untreated; they can possibly clear on their own, or get very deep. I'll watch her for a few more days. If they don't get worse, I think I'm going to see what happens if left untreated (hoping with all my might they won't worsen).
Thanks for all your input! Here's a new pic of Taz the other day, feeling better!
She started having cystitis bouts this month, two in a row with only a week inbetween. She's been on Baytril, and now Clavamox for the cystitis. I'm told it's stress induced, brought on by visits to the vets, naturally! She's never had this before.
So, I cut & pasted the text below from another thread of mine. I'd really like to hear what you think the outcome of not treating the rodent ulcers can be, because we're between a rock and a hard place on this one...
I'm not an uncaring pet owner, trying to wheedle out of a vet visit - I'm trying to chose the lesser of two evils so my cat can de-stress, relax, and heal. I need help figuring this out! Thanks!!
here's the cut & paste, with a little bit of background added;
Taz seems to be doing great - it's nearly impossible for me to tell how well she's urinating due to having two cats & multiple little boxes, but she has a habit of urinating against the sides of the boxes (the other cat doesn't) and she never tries to cover up anything she does in a litter box - how odd is that? - so I can make a good guess as to what is hers. Urine production isn't 100% (based on clump size) but it's a solid 75%. She's super fiesty & playful, it's kinda scary! lol I haven't seen her so engaged in long time. I'm guessing she's lost a little weight based on how lean she looks to me, maybe that's why she has the extra energy. Wouldn't it be something if she's been having blood glucose issues, too, and I didn't know it?
She still has two days on Clavamox to go. I have to decide what to do about her rodent ulcers now. I could bring her in for a quick Depo shot. I don't want to go through the hassle and stress - for me as well as her - of the Atopica right now. (I have talked on another thread how she was prescribed liquid Atopica to try & help her chronic rodent ulcers). Going in for a shot will be stressful for her too, even though it only takes a second. They tell me the stress is what's bringing on these back-to-back cystitis bouts. So is it cruel to wait & watch on the ulcers to avoid more stressful vet visits, or is it cruel to keep bringing her in and having her get full blown cystitis attacks, days apart, then needing to be put on pain/antibiotic meds? I feel I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't - and Taz is the one that suffers. She doesn't seem to know she has rodent ulcers, and my vet says they aren't painful. But what happens if they get too large/deep, and what constitutes "too large and too deep"?
When I was in my regular vet's office a few days ago, she asked how the ulcers looked. They've looked worse in the past, but I can see yellow/white/light colored tissue in the core of one of the ulcers, so it's deep. By the way, they always get that deep, but that's when she gets a shot. I have no idea if it will continue to get deeper. My vet said they can go one of two ways if untreated; they can possibly clear on their own, or get very deep. I'll watch her for a few more days. If they don't get worse, I think I'm going to see what happens if left untreated (hoping with all my might they won't worsen).
Thanks for all your input! Here's a new pic of Taz the other day, feeling better!
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