Hepatic lipidosis--anyone have experience with tube feeding?

[moochy]

I just set up an appointment for the feeding tube for Stubby. She's going to see the vet at 8:40 AM this coming Friday.

Stubby allowed me to force feed her 5 times yesterday. By the time I got to the 4th feeding, Stubby was very stressed out. She coughed up bile and  food when I tried to wrap her in the feeding blanket. These force feedings are just torture for Stubby and it's making things worse.

I told the doctor that the longer we wait, the riskier this operation is going to be for Stubby. This time he didn't argue about it.

Stubby is going to get one of those funnel shaped collars for her neck.

I wish that the doctor had done the operation when I took Stubby in on Monday. The techs at the office said that they've done a lot of feeding tube surgeries so that's one good thing.

 

[denice]

That's the way Patch's was with syringe feedings.  Some kitties take them well and for them a feeding tube may not be necessary but for kitties like ours I don't think it's possible to get enough food in them to turn this around.

 

[pedalgirl]

I will pray that all goes well on Friday. Just keep up the force feedings until then. She needs more food than you can ever imagine!
I think I've got Phradie back on the mend. From my experience I can say you better not taper off the tube feedings too soon. I feel like we lost a week in two days, but she's coming back around. She has eaten a few Greenies per day which is how she started last time she ate. All I want for Christmas is my healthy cat back!

 

[moochy]

Good luck to you and best of health to Phradie. I hope she gains lots of weight and soon.

The force feedings went smoother today. I gave Stubby less food per feeding. And I put 6 hours between feedings so that Stubby would have a better chance to digest the food that she swallowed. Stubby didn't vomit at all today, thank God.

Stubby looks at me like I'm a 6 foot tall monster who's been torturing her ever since I brought her home. I hope that she has the strength to make it through all this. I'm going to do whatever it takes to get Stubby back to normal.

Thank you for the prayers.

 

[moochy]

Took Stubby in for her operation this morning at 8:40 AM. It's 4:00 PM and I just talked to one of the techs at the vet's office. She said that Stubby did very well during the operation. They gave Stubby 1500 cc's of liquid diet. Stubby is a little tired and she's going to stay in the vet's office overnight. 

I'm going to have a couple of beers to celebrate for Stubby!

I'm going to bring her home tomorrow if it's ok with the vet.

 

[denice]

I am so glad the feeding tube is in.  Hopefully she continues to tolerate the feedings.  I think it's a good idea that she is staying at the vets for a bit.  Patches stayed until he had settled into the feedings well which I think is a good thing.  Some kitties have issues initially and I think it's good if they are at the vets until things are going well with the feedings.

 

[moochy]

It was a big struggle trying to get Stubby in for that operation. The vet turned me away twice and wanted to continue force feedings. Stubby was getting so stressed out that she started foaming at the mouth whenever she saw me walking towards her. That poor cat has gone through hell ever since she met me.

Yesterday, I had my doubts and I thought that maybe, at the last second, Stubby was going to start eating out of her food dish. But it didn't happen.

I've never seen this with a cat before and I hope that I never see it again.

I can't wait until this is all over so that I can get to know Stubby the cat.

 

[pedalgirl]

So glad to hear the tube insertion went well. Phradie had to stay 4 days to get her feedings to the point the vet felt she could be maintained at home. You will be amazed how easy it is to feed her. I let Phradie get comfortable in my lap or beside me before we start. Sometimes she falls asleep during the feeding (but never start a feeding when Stubby is asleep-made that mistake once and it startled her so she threw up). It's real important to go slowly or that will also make her vomit.
I still wonder how long it will take for my girl to get back to normal. It sounds like you caught Stubby in time. Enjoy your night off!

 

[moochy]

Stubby came home with me at 1:00 PM today. She is trying to adjust to breathing with a feeding tube in her throat. Instead of breathing through her nose as she normally would, she's inhaling and exhaling through her mouth. It's uncomfortable for her and she makes a groaning noise as the air goes in and out.

I fed her at 1:00 PM when I brought her home. She didn't cough it up. And she wasn't terrified like when I force fed her. I just gave Stubby another feeding at 3:00 PM. I'm supposed to feed her every 2 hours. I mix 1/2 KD critical care cat food with 1/2 Cat Sure supplement. I filled 2 syringes with 10 ml each of the mixed food (warmed to room temp) and I have one syringe filled with 5 ml of water to flush the tube at the end of the feeding.

I elevate the front of Stubby's body on a pillow so that the food flows down to her stomach.

So far so good.

I hope that the feeding tube doesn't irritate her throat so much tomorrow.

 

[denice]

Does she have the feeding tube going in her nose?  Patches had the one that went into the side of his neck into his esophagus.

 

[moochy]

It's in the side of Stubby's neck. I'm going to take a picture and try to post it to this thread.

 

[moochy]

Stubby's feeding tube.JPG

• moochy
• Dec 27, 2014

This is Stubby and her new feeding tube. The feeding end of the tube is pointing forward between her ears.

You can see that the bandage is wrapped tight around her neck. That's what's making it difficult for her to breathe. I told the doctor that the bandage was too tight but he said that Stubby did ok the night before in his office. He wants it tight so that Stubby doesn't pull the tube out.

That poor cat. I feel so lousy. She is struggling to breathe.

 

[moochy]

This is a picture of the 10 ml syringes and a bowl with some of the feeding solution. The solution is kept in the fridge until it's feeding time. The bowl is placed in a microwave for about 10 seconds so that it's about room temperature for Stubby.

The syringes are cleaned with water after every use and then air dried.

Syringes.JPG

• moochy
• Dec 27, 2014

 

[moochy]

I just took Stubby to the emergency vet. The collar around her neck was too tight and she couldn't breathe. The vet cut the collar off. Another hour or two and Stubby would have died.

I told the vet that the collar was too tight when I picked her up from surgery but he said, "No, it's not too tight".

Now, Stubby is breathing easier but she's has no strength.

 

[denice]

I am glad you took her to the emergency vet.  I don't remember Patches having had breathing issues.  I am glad you got it figured out, too bad your vet did that.  

 

[snugglecat]

This is Stubby and her new feeding tube. The feeding end of the tube is pointing forward between her ears.

You can see that the bandage is wrapped tight around her neck. That's what's making it difficult for her to breathe. I told the doctor that the bandage was too tight but he said that Stubby did ok the night before in his office. He wants it tight so that Stubby doesn't pull the tube out.

That poor cat. I feel so lousy. She is struggling to breathe.

I don't know anything about tube feeding but that even looks tight to me. Poor baby looks miserable. I'm so glad you took her to the emergency vet.

 

[moochy]

That lousy vet almost killed her. She was choking ever since that stupid vet put that collar on her. I told him that the collar was too tight when I picked up Stubby. And Stubby had a hard time breathing while we were standing there in his office. He told me not to worry about it. How many times did he do this to other animals? He's been in practice at that site since 1989. I don't trust doctors. I don't trust doctors. I don't trust doctors!!!!

I called the emergency vet about 1 hour after I brought Stubby home and I asked about her breathing and the wheezing sound she made as she inhaled and exhaled. When the breathing got worse and worse I took her in fast. She started to breathe as soon as that collar was cut off.

Another 15-20 minutes with that chocking collar on and she would have been dead. Her tongue was hanging out. The receptionist at the emergency vet clinic got on the PA and called for triage. The senior tech came out and rushed Stubby to an operating room to get that collar off. The senior tech told me that collar was so tight that it left an impression of the bandage around her neck.

Stubby was so weak after I brought her home from the ER that she just laid in her cat carrier for an hour.  She finally staggered out of her cat carrier to the litter box and took a leak. Then she staggered out and collapsed. She's trying to get some air in her system. Now she's trying to sleep and she's drawing quick breathes. I don't think she slept for over a day. She was just struggling to breathe.

That vet that did the surgery on Stubby is worthless and he's a danger to all the animals that he puts his incompetent hands on. He should get a reprimand for what he did to Stubby or lose his license for a year.

I don't know if Stubby has the strength to live. She just went through surgery and she was weak to begin with. Then she was nearly choked to death because of that vet. She looks very weak.

 

[mytyson]

I hope Stubby is ok!! Hopefully the feedings you were able to give now helped build strength. It breaks my heart to hear everything she's gone through and that stupid vet! She is so lucky to have you looking out for her! My cat would drool at the sight of the syringes too when I was force feeding- but quickly learned to love the tube feedings. I hope the same happens for Stubby Let us know how she's doing today- I hope she is ok!

 

[danacbus]

I hope you are done with that vet! Did you ask the ER to check the tube placement? You already know the first vet is worthless. It will probably be for your benefit to take Stubby to have the tube checked. Also, do you have a plug in the tube to keep air out? A tummy full of air isn't good and with give her an upset tummy. Also, can you ask for a 30cc syringe? A bit bigger and easier to keep clean. I'm so sorry you are going through all this with an inept vet. You need a good one for this type of treatment. Urge you to seek out a different vet to support you and Stubby through this process.

 

[moochy]

Stubby is still weak and she is taking rapid shallow breathes. She's been laying in the same spot for hours. When she decides to move, she takes ten wobbly steps and then collapses. She's extremely weak.

The vet that worked on Stubby should have a collar wrapped around his neck for a day just as tight as he made it for Stubby. But wrap it around his neck after he comes out of surgery and he's laying in a hospital bed. I guarantee you that he would never abuse an animal again.