Lethargic Cat-vet Said Not Concerned

[doddsington]

i need advice or help- my best friend Rudy is 11 and we are so intuned with eachother I’m so afraid of losing him.

Since Saturday I noticed he looked disheveled, not himself and didn’t eat dinner that night.

He keeps swallowing, gags, his purr sounds crackly, his meows are silent.

On Sunday the vet did labs and xrays and everything looks normal. Including his lungs. She didn’t see signs of an upper respiratory and she wasn’t concerned other than some poopies that were in there.

She gave fluids and anti nausea and prescribed clavamox incase there’s an infection.

He will get up to eat sometimes but then goes back to his spot he hasn’t gotten better and I miss my kitty. Im depressed and can’t function knowing he’s not well.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I am so sorry about Rudy. Can you get a second opinion? You can get a copy of all of Rudy's records from the current vet and give them to another vet. And, make sure it is a vet within another practice - not the same group, as they tend to support one another in their deductions/conclusions. Not saying you have a bad vet, but Rudy is old enough that there has to be other tests/investigations that should be done.

She didn’t see signs of an upper respiratory and she wasn’t concerned other than some poopies that were in there.

I don't know what you mean by 'poopsies'??

How long did the vet think you should wait to see some sort of change in Rudy with the antibiotics? Did the vet want to check on Rudy regarding possible follow up fluids since he is not eating well (or, drinking, I am assuming)?

 

[doddsington]

Hi thank you! They did belly xrays, and saw poop in there but everything looked normal. She didn’t say he was dehydrated but maybe to just keep him refreshed she gave them to him, and they didn’t really say when he would do better as they didn’t see a reason for him to act like this. They said if he declines to call them. But Im going through a hard time and live paycheck to paycheck and spent my last $300 on that visit I can’t do anything else now until I get paid Friday but I’m scared it’s too late by then.

 

[FeebysOwner]

If he continues any sort of decline, more than already - or doesn't improve any - then by all means call them and let them know you consider it a follow up (free or small add-on charge) to have him looked at again.

I don't normally advocate - and am certainly not a vet - for a cortisone shot, but the steroids might help tide him over until further investigation can be done?? You could call and ask if that would be beneficial at all.

I hope other members have some good advice for you - give them a little bit of time, they will come through, they always do!

 

[Noirele]

It's a good thing that labs and x-ray are fine: we could probably exclude some serious diseases like kidney failure, that would show up in routine labs, and of course pneumonia or pleural effusion.
I think you could wait a couple of days for the antibiotic to work, it's a bit too soon to show any improvement if it's a bacterial disease.

 

[doddsington]

Thank you so much! He just got up to eat so that’s good.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Just keep us posted! I hope Rudy continues to show signs of improvement!!!

 

[doddsington]

Hi cat friends! Rudy is continuing to slowly progress. No more drooling while he sleeps, and has gotten up with his normal routine of following me around while I get ready for work, and expecting his breakfast he’s still slow, and not cuddly, but has played with our new 1 year old kitty as of 3 weeks ago who was dumped at a friends feral cat colony with his kitten food ;( Rudy isn’t drinking water as much as I’d like to see, but I add water to his wet food. Thank you so much for your support, it really means the world to have those who listen and understand <3 hopefully he continues to progress.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Bless you - and Rudy. And, keep telling us how he is doing. We love to know and always want to be here for support!!