Health Declines While I Wait For Answers...

[cats_toy]

Hello All,

I am at the end of my rope and sincerely hope you may be able to lend your opinion/thoughts and perhaps some well wishes.

Below is the timeline regarding my situation:

Name of Cat: Claiborne
Sex: Female
Age: 14 (approx)
Spayed

6th Sept. 05 First sign something was wrong. Wasnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t eating, noticeable weight loss. Seemed listless, as if in a dementia state, coughing, hard swallowing, fur unkept.

10th Sept. First visit to vet. Complete check up. Heart murmur detected, Heart rate 208, Anal glands drained. Suggested we test for hyperthyroid.

15th Sept. Complete blood work

19th Sept. Finally got results back, negative on following:

*Kidneys
*White/Red blood cells Okay
*Diabetes
*Liver
*Urinary
*Hyperthyroid

21st Sept. Electrocardiogram

22nd Sept. Electrocardiogram Results: Negative

23rd Sept. Back to vet for another check-up, including stool sample to rule out worms. Informed me vet did not actually see Electrocardiogram. Reading was outsourced then results sent to vet. He is going to get reading back then let me know what his opinion is. Heart rate at this time is 230 up from original visit.

26th Sept. Called twice, still no answer.

Everyday my Claiborne becomes weaken and thinner. I would go to another vet, however, after the target of two hurricanes, and the loss of three cats in a years time, I have exhausted all the money I had to run all these tests again with another vet.

Is this normal, waiting weeks at a time to get an answer? Have any of you experienced this situation? Perhaps I'm so upset and angry that I want answers now, and it just doesn't happen like that.

Thanks to all for allowing me to vent alittle frustration and despair.

Best to you all,

Leilani

 

[gardenandcats]

I would keep calling the vets. Tell them your cat is going down hill rapidly and you want some answeres. The squeaky wheel gets the oil. So be a pest if you need to. I would go into the vets in person if you get no reuslts with calling. Good Luck with your kitty. I hope you find some answeres and she gets her health back!

 

[ktlynn]

Leilani - I would be extremely frustrated, and angry too, if I were in your situation.

I think the heart murmur needs to be focused on more. Ideally, you should take Claiborne to see a feline cardiologist. Heart murmurs run the gamut from being very benign to signalling serious heart disease. They are also rated on a scale of 1-5, with 5 being most serious. A cardiologist would do an echocardiogram, or ultrasound, of Claiborne's heart, which is the best way to diagnose any possible heart disease.

Though it does take time for test results, the particular tests you've had done, especially bloodwork, are all usually completed in 24 hours, so I'm not sure why this has been dragging on for almost 3 weeks. IMO, complete bloodwork should have been done at the very first vet visit.

In the meantime, your vet should have been addressing Claiborne's weight loss. Is she eating on her own, and drinking? If not, you need to start assist-feeding immediately. Though I'm not a fan of Hill's Science Diet products, they do make a very good food called A/D that is used for cats with poor appetites who need increased calories. There is also a liquid diet called CliniCare which is used with cats who have feeding tubes, but can also be syringe fed. Most vets don't keep CliniCare in stock - it usually takes a couple of days to order.

I know you're in a bad place financially, but I strongly advise you to take Claiborne to another vet, preferably, as I mentioned, to a feline cardiologist. She may have a condition that can be successfully treated, but you need the proper diagnosis. Don't waste anymore time with a vet who doesn't even return your calls.

All best wishes to you and Claiborne - please let us know how it's going.

PS - See the "Sticky" near the top of this forum titled "Health & Nutrition articles- there's info on what to do if you can't afford a vet.

Also- if you do go to another vet, you don't need to have the tests you've already done for Claiborne repeated - just request that the test results be faxed to the new vet.

 

[blueyedgirl5946]

I would call the office of the vet who has seen the cat. If no results, I would go in person with the cat.
I hope you get some answers soon.
I am sorry for the loss of your other cats and for the ordeals with the hurricanes.

 

[sunnicat]

I'm not certain, but if you try another vet, can you not ask for your records, including test results, from the previous vet? This could eliminate re-testing costs. I hope you find some answers soon. Sounds as if she is deteriorating rapidly. Good luck to you.

 

[laureen227]

i had to go to 4 vets before i found one that actually did something to try to help Mouse - the others ran test after test, could find nothing wrong [as far as the tests showed] but didn't do anything. even though she didn't make it, at least i feel like the last one tried to help her! keep annoying them - you can be polite, but the squeaky wheel gets the grease!

 

[cloud_shade]

Can you get a copy of the bloodwork? What was the thyroid value? Sometimes, what is normal in a younger cat for thyroid is too high in an older cat. That can be confirmed by testing the Free T4.

Is she eating now? If not, then you need to get food into her. How are her bowels? Is she shedding a lot and having hairballs?

 

[pat]

Originally Posted by cloud_shade

Can you get a copy of the bloodwork? What was the thyroid value? Sometimes, what is normal in a younger cat for thyroid is too high in an older cat. That can be confirmed by testing the Free T4.

Most defintely...I would do the Free T4. My oldest(18+) is still within what would be the normal range for a younger cat, but it kept creeping up consistently until it was the highest it could be and still be in the normal range - we began treating him, as the trend was clear.

I agree with the advice you've received...the increased heart rate needs to be addressed, and while sorting this out, you must get her to eat. A/d is very good for this kind of situation and if necessary, easy to syringe feed.

 

[decadenz]

I really have nothing to add to all that excellent advice given already. Pl do take heed and take action quickly. Either bug the heck out of your vet (who sounds irresponsible to me anyway) or go to a new one. Seems you won't have to re-do the tests so it'll be cheaper than you expect.

All the best to you, I hope your kitty manages to pull off a good recovery soon!

 

[cats_toy]

Thank you all for your support in this difficult time, its greatly appreciated. Claiborne is eating and drinking water on her own however, it isn't enough to keep her from losing weight. I did get the results back from Electrocardiogram again negative. Now it is suggested we do the ultrasound. With the financial support of my sister, we are going trying another vet that specializes in cats only.

What I find so terribly disturbing is the fact we are not the vets, we as cat guardians rely heavily on their knowledge and experience. Yet, they at times seem to be more clueless than we are.

It infuriates me that veterinarians spend a good deal of time in college only to come out knowing little to nothing. Heck, maybe we should all just set up our own labs that way we could conduct our own tests, how much you like to wager, we probably could treat our feline companions in a safer and more timely manner.

Sorry for the rant, but I just had to go there for a moment.

Leilani

 

[beckiboo]

Originally Posted by cats_toy

What I find so terribly disturbing is the fact we are not the vets, we as cat guardians rely heavily on their knowledge and experience. Yet, they at times seem to be more clueless than we are.

It infuriates me that veterinarians spend a good deal of time in college only to come out knowing little to nothing. Heck, maybe we should all just set up our own labs that way we could conduct our own tests, how much you like to wager, we probably could treat our feline companions in a safer and more timely manner.

Sorry for the rant, but I just had to go there for a moment.

Leilani

Just be careful to use your judgement, if you feel your vet is not helping, certainly move on to another. But be careful with too much vet shopping, some vets are just out for money, IMO. Rather than say they don't know what is going on, they will drain you dry financially with no benefit to the animal.

One thing I

love

about my vet, is that he will never do a $50 x-ray, without letting you know that what he is checking for will take $500 to correct. So you don't end up spending a little at a time, with no idea of what he is looking for, and what treatment will involve. Like when my old dog was ill, he suspected lung cancer. Like he said, we could run the tests to see if that was it, but at his age, and his level of arthritis, the tests would be more to let us know what was wrong, then to be able to treat it.

Best of luck with Claiborne. Be sure to take the previous lab results with you to the specialist.

 

[gailc]

I've been really blessed with my vet clinic. There are 6 vet there (for now they are building a bigger clinic). I can usually stop in if an emergency or say with a question and they will always help!! Last yr when Tommie was ill before his diagnoses of FELV they did alot for me-those FELV test had to be sent out but they got the responses within 24 hrs and would call me right away.
I would be frustrated in your circumstance too. I hope you can find a vet who can really help!! Is she dehydrated at all???