My cat is acting strange after taking the drugs the vet gave us

[jan burns]

So I have been forcefeeding her medication and last night and this morning doing it with food. Those squeezables delectables, which she loves ordinarily but not by the squeezable method, just in a bowl but my boyfriend who loves this cat as well went and got about 7 of them, all tuna and I took her and sat with her in a chair with a towel around her and I was able to get half of the tube of creamy delectables into her, of course it got on her chin and my hand but it did get into her and after that she drank some water. Also, I put simple chicken broth in a bowl and she had some. The GoFund is now up to $275 and my daughter Kira asked for $500. I'm not taking her back to that stupid vet who can't even tell me what's wrong and just keeps giving me different medications so the old ones he said to stop and these are more anitbiotics and bronchal in nature, he didn't even tell me that I had to put water in one of the vials with the medicine and if I hadn't read the small directions with a magnifying glass who know what would have happened?

I believe Petsmart, where I got her in the first place, has a plan for people and their animals that is a payment plan monthly and they will do exrays or whatever the animal needs and I am considering this because there is 3 plans and money off to take your cat there and it's just right up the street and I had made an appointment but got so worried that I took her to this odd vet (and often rude) instead but you know how that went.

Those were wonderful articles! Especially the one about Biddy. I am encouraged that this can be managed, that medication was the one that vet gave me at first and then changed them but I still have them and I think i'm going back to that medication and I think it was pills. Thank you for taking the time. Elsa is in the bathtub now just resting and drinking her water. I'm going to check out that petsmart plan because Care credit rejected me.

 

[jan burns]

Those were wonderful articles! Especially the one about Biddy. I am encouraged that this can be managed, that medication was the one that vet gave me at first and then changed them but I still have them and I think i'm going back to that medication and I think it was pills. Thank you for taking the time. Elsa is in the bathtub now just resting and drinking her water. I'm going to check out that petsmart plan because Care credit rejected me.

Just so you know Elsa is not a kitten, it says that under her picture, she is 10.

 

[jan burns]

I did get the lickables, its her favorite and she won't touch it

Correction, yes, she didn't like the lickables in her bowl but she did the squeeze up this morning

 

[FeebysOwner]

Those were wonderful articles! Especially the one about Biddy.

I am glad you found some value in the articles!!!

Just so you know Elsa is not a kitten, it says that under her picture, she is 10.

The kitten designation under her picture and your name is about you being relatively new to this site. Nothing to do with Elsa!!! Here is a TCS link that explains a little bit about how those designations work.
Promotions and Benefits | TheCatSite

 

[white shadow]

Hi jan burns and a very warm welcome to the forum !

What an awful experience for all of you.

Please be careful about the Petsmart thing you've heard about. Get the agreement papers and ask lots of questions.....then, go home and scrutinize it top to bottom....and ask someone who's 'good' with these things to go over it. (you could ask here too - start a new thread just for that) I wouldn't want to see you get into something that ends up a liability instead of a benefit. I'm saying this because of my experience with their staff.....and, (some of them) long ago lost my trust. There are also chains of clinics that offer "plans" and, from what I've read about, they don't always turn out in favour of the pet owner.

In some places there are organizations that own and run hospitals, offering low-cost care based on the owner's income.

If you wanted to post your general location (city and state/province/region) we could 'have a look around' for a subsidized service.

You could also find the animal rescue groups/ASPCAs in your area and ask them about low-cost services.nearby.

I hope there's something in there that you can draw from.

She is so very pretty............any more pics, maybe ?

 

[jan burns]

Yes, I decided against that since they are talking about future problems but I have my problem now. So I have been forcefeeding her the delectables and it is quite messey because they are the sticks you squeeze but i've done it 3 times now and she gets about half of them but for the first time she pooped in her litter box, not much but it's something. I wish there was a product that would just bring her appetite back, she fights a little but I have her wrapped in a towel securely and I squeez out a little and get it into her mouth. she did like chicken broth but not anymore

 

[jan burns]

Hi jan burns and a very warm welcome to the forum !

What an awful experience for all of you.

Please be careful about the Petsmart thing you've heard about. Get the agreement papers and ask lots of questions.....then, go home and scrutinize it top to bottom....and ask someone who's 'good' with these things to go over it. (you could ask here too - start a new thread just for that) I wouldn't want to see you get into something that ends up a liability instead of a benefit. I'm saying this because of my experience with their staff.....and, (some of them) long ago lost my trust. There are also chains of clinics that offer "plans" and, from what I've read about, they don't always turn out in favour of the pet owner.

In some places there are organizations that own and run hospitals, offering low-cost care based on the owner's income.

If you wanted to post your general location (city and state/province/region) we could 'have a look around' for a subsidized service.

You could also find the animal rescue groups/ASPCAs in your area and ask them about low-cost services.nearby.

I hope there's something in there that you can draw from.

She is so very pretty............any more pics, maybe ?

 

[jan burns]

I am glad you found some value in the articles!!!

The kitten designation under her picture and your name is about you being relatively new to this site. Nothing to do with Elsa!!! Here is a TCS link that explains a little bit about how those designations work.
Promotions and Benefits | TheCatSite

Oh! No wonder I couldn't find a place to change it. Here are other pics I found

 

[FeebysOwner]

I wish there was a product that would just bring her appetite back,

I believe we have talked about transdermal Mirtazapine before. Yes, it does require a vet prescription, but surely one of the vets you have seen would prescribe it, probably over the phone if you asked them about it.

We also talked about FortiFlora as a non-prescription food flavor enhancer. And previously you were given an article of various things to try to get her to eat. If you have not tried them all, start going through the list.

Regarding the tube treats, you can try giving them to her on a small spoon or on a tongue depressor. Some cats will eat food off the floor (a little piece of carpet or a washable rug), or a paper plate. Sometimes, these tactics work. And, if they do you can expand their use with cat food too.

You cannot rely solely on hand feeding her treats right out of the tube. That is just not enough sustenance for her. I would really see if any of these vets will prescribe the transdermal appetite stimulant - it is called Mrataz.

Though I am glad to hear that she pooped!

 

[jan burns]

I believe we have talked about transdermal Mirtazapine before. Yes, it does require a vet prescription, but surely one of the vets you have seen would prescribe it, probably over the phone if you asked them about it.

We also talked about FortiFlora as a non-prescription food flavor enhancer. And previously you were given an article of various things to try to get her to eat. If you have not tried them all, start going through the list.

Regarding the tube treats, you can try giving them to her on a small spoon or on a tongue depressor. Some cats will eat food off the floor (a little piece of carpet or a washable rug), or a paper plate. Sometimes, these tactics work. And, if they do you can expand their use with cat food too.

You cannot rely solely on hand feeding her treats right out of the tube. That is just not enough sustenance for her. I would really see if any of these vets will prescribe the transdermal appetite stimulant - it is called Mrataz.

Though I am glad to hear that she pooped!

Most of those vets were on Petco chat. As soon as we get the rest of the money from Facebook . That is the only thing I can get down her. I think it's the drugs that are making her not want to eat. I'm finishing the asma medicine while tapering her off it just as the directions say on the bottle say. Right now she's in my tub again sitting over the drain with a huge quilt under her cause the faucet drips a little. I swear, I'm the one who needs the drugs!!!

 

[jan burns]

I'm so tired of this. It's been going on for 2 weeks at least. I will take her to that Banfield hospital but after that no more vets. I have a friend who has asma and she takes the same prescription as my cat and says when asma acts up you don't want anything to eat but as long as you drink water you will be ok. I'm not convinced it's asma but I will do the blood work to be sure.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I think it's the drugs that are making her not want to eat.

Some meds can contribute to a cat's lack of appetite, but I thought she wasn't eating well before you took her to the vet to begin with? Flagyl is an antibiotic and like many of them, they can upset a cat's stomach, especially when a cat is not eating well. Prednisolone typically will help with appetite, but maybe not in Elsa's case, or maybe not enough to offset the stomach upset from Flagyl.

I don't know what turned you off about the vet you saw, but sometimes things aren't so easy to determine their cause without additional testing. The cat caretaker should always ask what the additional testing is for and how it might help, to better understand what is going on. But, if a person cannot afford additional testing, then the vet will try to treat the cat based on what they do know from their observation of the cat and what the caretaker tells them about the cat's issues. Sometimes the meds they then prescribe work, sometimes it turns out not to be the right meds, and most times the caretaker will need to follow up with the vet to tell them what is happening, so the vet can have a chance to assess what might be more appropriate. As far as I can recall you have not followed up with that vet recently and told them what is going on now.

Is she done taking the Flagyl? I know you said you were tapering down the Prednisolone but I wasn't sure about the Flagyl. To be honest, two weeks' time in trying to cure a cat from some illness that still isn't actually known is no time at all. I know you are frustrated that Elsa hasn't been cured, but sometimes it is just not that simple.

 

[jan burns]

So I've been learning some interesting things, Elsa's problems are that she can't breathe through her nose, either from a cold or something she sniffed outside and I threw the Flagl away since it isn't for this, but that crazy bet also gave me Albuterol and Presinolone which will take care of her breathing issues, she's in the tub now, I put a piece of of a board from an old dresser I built in the tub and turned on the shower for the steam and she is sleeping peacefully. Kira and I have been working together to force her to eat and I found the easiest way was to take those small miniature spoon that I have a collection of hanging in my kitchen, and scooping up food and she is swallowing it but if she can't smell them she isn't going to want any food.

Talked to a friend of mine who has asma seriously and she said she takes the prednisolone and she has no appetite either when her asma hits but I'm beginning to think (after much research) that Elsa has a cold, I saw vidoes of cars with colds and how their owner enhaled medicine up their noses but even though she is eating a little, I got her to eat half a can of catfood with the spoon, and these are small cans, she did poop as I said before and is peeing every day but some of this medicine is causing her to have such inbalance that she peed on a rug in the hallway because she couldn't get to her litter box. We will get the rest of the money from the go fund monday so we will take her in for blood tests but i'm sure this is the problem, not asma, but they will know more when I take her to the animal hospital and NOT the one that I took her before, he should have known this was a breathing problem when he did that partial xray and nothing showed up on it or when he checked for water in her lungs.

I have been going through hell with this, thinking i'm going to lose my beautiful cat so you better believe that I am going to leave a negative review of this vet, you could clearly see that she was having breathing problems and he just jumped to asma but I will keep you posted. I have to say that I feel much better about this, I just want my Elsa back!

 

[jan burns]

So I've been learning some interesting things, Elsa's problems are that she can't breathe through her nose, either from a cold or something she sniffed outside and I threw the Flagl away since it isn't for this, but that crazy bet also gave me Albuterol and Presinolone which will take care of her breathing issues, she's in the tub now, I put a piece of of a board from an old dresser I built in the tub and turned on the shower for the steam and she is sleeping peacefully. Kira and I have been working together to force her to eat and I found the easiest way was to take those small miniature spoon that I have a collection of hanging in my kitchen, and scooping up food and she is swallowing it but if she can't smell them she isn't going to want any food.

Talked to a friend of mine who has asma seriously and she said she takes the prednisolone and she has no appetite either when her asma hits but I'm beginning to think (after much research) that Elsa has a cold, I saw vidoes of cars with colds and how their owner enhaled medicine up their noses but even though she is eating a little, I got her to eat half a can of catfood with the spoon, and these are small cans, she did poop as I said before and is peeing every day but some of this medicine is causing her to have such inbalance that she peed on a rug in the hallway because she couldn't get to her litter box. We will get the rest of the money from the go fund monday so we will take her in for blood tests but i'm sure this is the problem, not asma, but they will know more when I take her to the animal hospital and NOT the one that I took her before, he should have known this was a breathing problem when he did that partial xray and nothing showed up on it or when he checked for water in her lungs.

I have been going through hell with this, thinking i'm going to lose my beautiful cat so you better believe that I am going to leave a negative review of this vet, you could clearly see that she was having breathing problems and he just jumped to asma but I will keep you posted. I have to say that I feel much better about this, I just want my Elsa back!

And I did follow up with him, I went to him twice but it's obvious that its a breathing issue, I read up on it and he was supposed to hook her up to some kind of breathing machine since she was having a hard time breathing and he did not explain the medications to me, I had to read the bottle and his whole attitude was just dismissive and even rude, I realize he couldn't do the blood work because of my money issues but I should have still gotten care, not everyone has pet insurance or the large amounts of money I would need. I didn't know anything about what he was going to charge me the second time until I went up to the desk and then she tried to charge me more than he did tell me, because he said the new medication would be free and she didn't know about it at the desk so then she had to go ask him and then took it off the bill but if I hadn't mentioned it I would have been charged even more, it was his whole attitude to us even though he did do a partial xray but it was very hard talking to him.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Most cat 'colds' are not really cat colds. Cats do not get colds like humans do. What is deemed as cat colds are more likely due to pre-existing viral conditions that may not show up until a cat is older when their immune system begins to weaken. This happens to all cats - and humans - as they age. Or cat 'colds' can be allergies from things like dust, pollen, mold, grass, air freshners, cleaning products, and on and on and on. These can occur at any point in time in a cat's life. Some 'cat colds' can lead to a secondary infection, so antibiotics (like Flagyl) are often given because of that.

There are other airway diseases that involve breathing difficulties. If a vet thinks more testing is needed to determine if this is the case, and a caretaker cannot afford it, then they start with the basics - which is what this vet did for Elsa. What happens in these cases, is the caretaker lets the vet know the current treatment isn't working, and the vet will try something else. If this vet did not do that for you, then it is probably time to find one that will.

I am sorry you feel you had such a bad experience with this vet. This vet may not be the best at communicating, some are like that. Other vets don't go into details if the caretaker doesn't ask questions, as they assume the caretaker understands. Never let a comment go by that you don't understand - always ask for clarifications/explanations and question whatever doesn't make sense to you. Take a notepad with you to jot notes down for yourself so you have them to refer to later. You can even ask the vet to check your notes so that both of you are on the 'same page'. I hope you can build a better rapport with another vet.

Many cats begin to have health issues starting around Elsa's age. She may need long term treatments to help her improve. So, please don't assume this to be an (unlikely) cat cold that will go away on its own. Her imbalance could just as easily be from her lack of proper nutrition causing weakness - it doesn't just have to be from the meds.

 

[jan burns]

I am sorry to say that Elsa died yesterday right in my arms. She seemed to be getting better, her breathing was quiet and she was sleeping, we were going to take her to the emergency pet hospital close to our house but she seemed to be much better but now I absolutely hate myself for not taking her anyway. It was the drugs the vet gave us because before that she wasn't eating but she wasn't in the state she was in yesterday afternoon, she jerked in my arms and then seemed to come back so I was putting her in a box to take and I think she died in my arms because she wasn't moving much but she had so much hair it was hard to tell and she often just laid there. They told us she had already passed and I was unusually calm through the trip there and when the lady told us at the facility, but she charged us for having her cremated and I went through the steps and my daughter seemed to be doing the same thing.

Once I was back in my car I was getting ready to leave when I burst into tears and the car was moving backwards because I didn't put it into park but no one was around and I cried my heart out there. I feel guilty for not taking her sooner but we were waiting for the rest of the money to come through but I should have done something, spent my mortgage money to get her fixed or maybe this was something that couldn't be fixed, maybe something happened that she would never recover from but we will never know. We had fed her that day and given her one of her medication in the morning but her breathing got bad after the drops of arbitol or whatever it was and my daughter reminded me that before getting those medications Elsa was not herself but it definitely worsened after giving her the meds. I've been beating myself up since then and crying since last night, I thought it would be better this morning but i'm crying again, even as I type these words. I know she isn't suffering now but some how that isn't helping me. I should have done so many things differently!!!!

 

[FeebysOwner]

I am so sorry you lost Elsa.

 

[jan burns]

Thank you, and thank you for your help with all this. I'm reaching out about my grief with videos and other help, my boyfriend wants to go out and get another cat but i 'm not ready and the other cat wouldn't be Elsa. She was a rescue cat, I rescued her, I was in petsmart looking for a dog when I went to the windows and there was no dog, but Elso was there and when I came close she lifted her paw on the other side of the glass and I touched it with my fingers on my side of the glass and left but I went back the next day and got her because we had a connection so despit looking for a dog, I brought her home and we had maybe 3 years together. She was 11 and the funny thing was that her vet was the previous owner of the mobile home I have now, he sold it to me and I moved to the desert because I couldn't afford anything in LA county. And shortly after I started looking for a dog but it was during pandemic so I coudln't get one but the pull from Elsa was so strong that I went back and got her, adopted her and for a little while I treated like a princess. Always buying her cut beds to sleep in and a bowl that had her picture on it and name which I will always keep.

I understand that this is a process people have to go through, I talked to someone else on here that her cat had almost the same exact condition, I didn't cry this much when my ex husband died! I want to thank you for your time and advice but I am in no way recovered from this experience and I think it will haunt me for a long time.

 

[DeesCats]

I am so sorry for your loss and I know you did everything possible for Elsa. Please don't beat yourself up with thoughts of would've, could've and should've.

 

[jan burns]

I'm trying not to. I keep crying and I took a bath in my tub that Elsa was fascinated with. She'd lie in it for hours when she was ill. I thought I'd have her for years. This process is new to me. I never had dog or cat die on me. She's no longer in pain, that's what counts but when does this pain subside?