Pebbles is having to go back to the vets again

[beckiboo]

Aw, Pebbles! You gotta eat!

I'll bet it is the antibiotic upsetting her stomach, but she will need to keep taking it if there is any infection in the bone. Let us know what the vet says!

 

[booktigger]

I did end up getting her to eat more at teatime (she will eat if she is in the teepee - only prob is it is in teh cat room, and fosters are due in a couple o fweeks), and she is just finishing off the a/d for her supper, which is good, must get her some more this week. It is odd how both times her leg has flared up, she wont eat her normal food, I have to put her on a poor quality (but classed as gourmet) wet food as it is the only other food she will eat - and that is before she is put on meds. There hasn't been any noticeable difference while on antibiotics, so I am telling the vet tomorrow I want x-rays done, I am not willing to wait any longer with meds (she is a nightmare to pill, so am trying to hide it in her wet food, but she is being iffy iwth that too.

 

[xocats]

Your gut is telling you that something is not right with Pebbles.
I would insist on x-rays too.

 

[booktigger]

She is going for x-rays tomorrow, sadly she will have to be there all day, but that could be a blessing. I am going to take her food wiht her as she is a fussy eater. Knowing her it wont show anything, the vet has done 3 blood tests on her cos she thought she had health probs and all came back clear!! But, this has been going on for 3 weeks now, and combined with the weight loss while eating relatively OK, I think is an indicaiton there is something wrong.

 

[momof3rugratz]

Please let us know how is does and what vet says

all goes well..

 

[booktigger]

Not excellent news, I'm afraid. The bone doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t look good, it is a lot shorter than the other one, so the pin wasnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t that successful (prob why there has been a weakness in it for so long, but on the first x-rays it did look like it was necessary to remove it) and there is a lot of changes due to bad inflammation but no sign of bone tumours (one of my worries). She wants her on a high dosage of antirobe (should be fun), and 2 drops of MEtacam for 2 weeks, as she does seem to be in a lot of pain (Which I did know with the lack of eating and movement). If there is no positive improvement in 2 weeks, we may have to look at amputation – which had already crossed my mind, and as she is an older cat, it could take longer for it to heal, but the vet thinks we have to try meds just in case there is a chance of saving the leg. And then when I went to pick her up, the vet showed me the the x-rays and am not sure if there is any chance of saving that leg, or if saving it now will be the best thing long term - you can see signs of arthritis on the x-ray, the leg is quite a bit shorter than the other one - it looks like the two ends of the fracture have joined next to each other rather than in a straight line, there is inflammation there and there is a decrease in the muscle on the lower half of her leg. She didn't eat a lot at the vets either, poor thing (I took her normal food with her!!). We also have Primula cheese and chicken livers to get through the pills, as she has to have 2 a day, which is effectively 100mg - I might end up deciding during the two weeks that it isn't fair to carry on as the vet did say she was in agony, so if there is no noticeable difference or she gets worse, then we will have to have a rethink.

 

[laureen227]

it's a rear leg, right? it's hard watching them when you know they're hurting... i've seen amputees on Animal Precinct, before & after, & it's so obvious they feel better without the limb! what a hard decision for you to have to make, tho!

 

[booktigger]

It is her rear leg, and I know a couple of people who have had to have it done on older cats with no real probs - the more I am thinking about it, the more I just want to ring the vet back and refuse meds, just go ahead wiht the op, but the vet obv has a reason for it. I am not sure if I will go through with the full 2 weeks before making the decision though, as she is barely eating, and has already gone from 4.02 to 3.63kg in 3 weeks, so I can't afford for her to continue to not eat well.

 

[xocats]

It would be a tough decision but I would not hesitate to have my Kitty's leg removed if that would put an end to the constant pain.

I would want to be sure that I had a competent surgeon, who had a lot of experience with such a serious surgery.

Have you done a search in this forum on amputation?

 

[booktigger]

It is a tough decision, but she has had a weakness in that leg all the time I have had her, and now showing signs of being in a lot of pain with it, so I think it is the best thing for her, and that is all that matters.

Hmm, maybe that is why the vet is putting it off??

Not yet, that is my next job. Did read a couple of articles earlier, and spoke to 2 people who have 3 legged cats, and I dont think it will be that bad - certainly not as bad as the cancer diagnosis I had in my head.

WE have had a good evening, I was advised to use Primula for her meds (squeezy cheese in a tube) and she ate both her antibiotics by herself, and 2 more drops for her anti-inflams. And then she ate a full pouch and 20g of biscuits, I am so incredibly pleased for her, she is obviously feeling better. I still dont think it is enough to save the leg with how the x-ray looked, but might be able to buy us some time to build her up. At least she is a slim cat, so not quite as bad for her. My neighbour wondered if they could re-break the leg and reset it, but with signs of arthritis, inflammation and loss of muscle, as well as a short leg bone that may have fused in the wrong place, I dont think it is an option.

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by booktigger

My neighbour wondered if they could re-break the leg and reset it, but with signs of arthritis, inflammation and loss of muscle, as well as a short leg bone that may have fused in the wrong place, I dont think it is an option.

I imagine that would be far more involved and painful than amputation. At least she's eating again, and taking her meds.

 

[booktigger]

Glad it isnt' just me that thinks it isnt a good idea - and as the two ends of the bone are currently next to each other than in a line, they could try it and find they have fused too much. I am just so pleased she has eaten a decent amount of food and I haven't had to resort to a/d to get her meds into her. And it was so easy to pill her, so fingers crossed she doesnt' get fed up of it. I still think that even if these meds reduce the inflammation that a weakness due to the bone being shorted, signs of arthritis and loss of muscle mean that we either put up with on and off issues, or go for the op - if we leave it, then my concern is that weakness will suddenly give way on her and cause more damage, but will have to speak to the vet about it.

 

[huggles]

Originally Posted by jcat

I imagine that would be far more involved and painful than amputation.

I agree - I wouldnt do this at all. Glad she has eaten a good amount of food

 

[booktigger]

She hasn't had a good day today though, and Ginger is seeing the vet nurse, so will see if I can have a chat iwth the vet, when we have a good day, I think we can do without the op, but then when she has a bad day, she doesnt even get up for breakfast, and isn't interested when you do take her food to her, and hten I realise that we have to do something, and as she has already lost weight, maybe sooner rahter htan later.

 

[laureen227]

Originally Posted by booktigger

She hasn't had a good day today though, and Ginger is seeing the vet nurse, so will see if I can have a chat iwth the vet, when we have a good day, I think we can do without the op, but then when she has a bad day, she doesnt even get up for breakfast, and isn't interested when you do take her food to her, and hten I realise that we have to do something, and as she has already lost weight, maybe sooner rahter htan later.

it sounds like, to me, that she is not consistently improving. i agree - i think you need to do something to improve her quality of life, poor baby

what a hard decision for you!

 

[jennyr]

Nothing I can add but sending good vibes for you and Pebbles - poor thing, it must be so hard.

 

[booktigger]

Have had a chat with the vet, and she is very reluctant to do the op and wants to give her the weekend on meds before making any decision. I can understand why, there is a risk she wont make it, and there is a risk that it will take her the rest of the year to recover, and if there was just inflammation I would feel a lot happer about keeping her on meds, but she has signs of arthritis, a shorter bone and less muscle in that leg - and either one or a combination is causing this weakness in her leg that is no longer occasional, it seems every time I see her walking (which is very rare I have to admit, hopefully I will be able to assess her more over the weekend) and is stopping her going outside, which makes her unhappy, plus I am worried that it will go while she is jumping down and cause more damage, but did forget to mention that to the vet. Vet is upping her Metacam to 3 drops a day, despite my reservations, and if there is no improvement in her eating by Mon, then we will have to see where to go next. IF she has to have the op, she will be at the vets for 2 days and will have to have cage rest when she comes home, luckily I have a very large cage.

 

[xocats]

I would hope that Pebbles becomes an indoor only kitty.
It would take one possible problem out of the equation.
Is there a specialist is your area where you could get a 2nd opinion?

 

[booktigger]

She wants to go out today, and I do live in a very quiet area - the car accident was years ago when seh lived in waht is supposed to be a very rough area. This morning, she only ate because I put the food in front of her and kept coaxing her, but this evening, she has wanted to go out, and ate a decent amount - but it could be connected to the fact that I can't leave food down all day without confining her. The only specialist is about an hour and a half drive each way, so dont want to do that if I dont have to.

 

[booktigger]

Bit of an up and down weekend really. She has had 2 mealtimes out of 3 where she has walked up to the food bowl, but she isn't eating large amounts although does eat more when encouraged to - hopefully that is cos she isn't that active. But, when she does walk, the weakness in her leg is worse than it ever was, and is no longer restricted to just walking on the bed, the floorboards and up the stairs. So will have to see what the vet says, I dont think it is fair on her to keep up with the meds, as she has had 4 days of 75mg Antirobe, I day just on Metacam, and today will be the 6th day on 100mg Antirobe, and will be the 3rd day on 3 drops of Metacam, and while she sometimes seems better in herself, she isn't walking any better, so I dont think it is going to suddenly change if we give her another 4 days on meds (teh vet said 2 weeks, but only gave me 10 tabs).