Photo update of Lucas

[momto4kitties]

Thank you Laurie

PA173920 (480x640).jpg

• momto4kitties
• Oct 17, 2012

 

[angels mommy]

Awww, look at that poor little punkin!  Sending him

 and,

Sweet boy!!

 

[momto4kitties]

Thank you He is doing a little better today.  Thanks for all the vibes and prayers. 

 

[feralvr]

OH hun!!! I am so sorry about all of this going on with Lucas. How frightening for you both. I am glad to see you got him to the vet and the vet changed the medications for the week. I do hope and pray this brings some relief for Lucas, and for you. :rub: A tough road right now, that is for sure. BIG HUGS, Tammy.

p.s. Lucas looks so darn sweet in that photo laying in Grandma's closet. He KNOWS he is truly loved. :nod: :heart3:

 

[catspaw66]

Poor baby.  If I don't take my Prilosec EC every day, I get acid reflux so bad I can smell the acid when I burp.  I know what he is going through there.  Lots of healing vibes

for both of you.

 

[momto4kitties]

Thank you all  Lucas is doing a little better, but not as good as I would like.  I didn't give him the ivermectin this week, but I did lower his prednisolone dose and that is making him feel sick too.  He's been vomiting, but he didn't vomit yesterday and today he hasn't so far.  But he looks like his body aches and all he does is sleep.

Last night he was feeling good because he asked me to take him  outside for his night walk.  He was happy and he even purred. that made my day.

I'm very sad because I know it is dangerous to get him of prednisolone, but if he doesn't need it we have to take him off it.  I'm so afraid of him suffering or getting very sick or even dying in the process.  It  is very scary for me. But I will stay strong for him and I'll keep trying.

Tammy

 

[angels mommy]

More

and prayers for Lucas!!!

 

[momto4kitties]

Thank you so much, we really appreciate it

 

[mewlittle]

i seriously need to see how old post are DUH to me

http://www.petco.com/product/116203...n-Free-Chicken-Meal-Formula-Dry-Cat-Food.aspx  you can try this on him if its sold in your area

 

[momto4kitties]

Don't worry about it. We don't have a petco here, only petsmart, but is not im my area, the closer is about an hour and a half away.

Update on Lucas:

It is 5:30 am and I'm awake, Lucas has been vomiting and he looks in pain, I can't take this anymore, I know I shouldn't , but I think I will start giving him the 2.5mg of prednisnolone everyday and not every other day, the withdraway symptoms are too bad.   He is suffering too much. Maybe the long use of pred has made it impossible for the body to produce their own steroids ( I was reading about it), I"m very worried and stressed right now.  I think I will call the vet tomorrow, first thing in the morning.

To make things worse, I hurt my back cleaning the windows and it hurts so bad when I"m sitting... ouch, this is the first time this happens to me.

Need lost of vibes

Hugs, Tammy and LUcas

 

[mani]

It is 5:30 am and I'm awake, Lucas has been vomiting and he looks in pain, I can't take this anymore, I know I shouldn't , but I think I will start giving him the 2.5mg of prednisnolone everyday and not every other day, the withdraway symptoms are too bad.   He is suffering too much. Maybe the long use of pred has made it impossible for the body to produce their own steroids ( I was reading about it), I"m very worried and stressed right now.  I think I will call the vet tomorrow, first thing in the morning.

I was on steroids for a long time with a life-threatening disease.  I found it enormously difficult to come off it, as you need to 'kick start' the adrenals, and when they're not working life feels like it's not worth living.  The doctor gave me a tapering programme, but I did it much much more gently, over months. 

The tricky part in humans is to get down from 5 mg to nothing... I took 5 one day, then 4 the next for a couple of weeks.  Then just 4 for a couple of weeks.  Then 4/3 for a couple of weeks. And so on.  I think the doctor thought I was mad, but I'm really sensitive to medications, and it looks like Lucas is too.

I'd really recommend doing something similar with Lucas.  It worked really well for me, and I didn't go through hell.  Also, you may find that there is a really low dose where he still seems ok, but he just can't go under it. It may be a matter of accepting that you keep him on that dose.

It does mean getting a bit creative with the tablets (I used a scalpal and was pretty good at getting it right).

I really feel for Lucas and you.... Lots of

 

[momto4kitties]

I can't thank you enough for your post! It really helps and it makes me think I should do something like that with my Lucas.  He was on 5mg a day and the vet made me change that to 5mg every other day for two weeks and then 2.5 everyday for two weeks and now 2.5 every other day for two more weeks and this system, is obviously not working for him.

I think I should take matters into my on hands, I will follow your advice.  What I don't know is if I should give Lucas 5mg for a week and start from there or if I shuld start giving him 2.5mg a day for a week and see what happens. 

Thank you for telling me about your personal experience, it is such great help.

Hugs, TAmmy

 

[mani]

I can't thank you enough for your post! It really helps and it makes me think I should do something like that with my Lucas.  He was on 5mg a day and the vet made me change that to 5mg every other day for two weeks and then 2.5 everyday for two weeks and now 2.5 every other day for two more weeks and this system, is obviously not working for him.

I think I should take matters into my on hands, I will follow your advice.  What I don't know is if I should give Lucas 5mg for a week and start from there or if I shuld start giving him 2.5mg a day for a week and see what happens. 

Thank you for telling me about your personal experience, it is such great help.

Hugs, TAmmy

This is guesswork in many ways, Tammy, but sometimes I think that's true of the medical professionan as well, vets included, as we are all so different.  It's my belief that the tapering you were given is optomistic, to say the very least (every second day seems crazy.. it just confuses the adrenals).

How is he going on 2.5?  If he's OK, if it were me I'd do 2.5 a week , then 2.5 one day and 2 the next for a while, seeing how he goes, then just 2 for a while, and so on.  You can closely monitor him, and you know him so well, you'll see how he's doing.  I found getting under 2.5 enormously difficult, but for pussycats it may be a lower strength that is the hard one.

Good luck... I'll be thinking of you a lot and sending lots of

 

[momto4kitties]

I think they are also guessing, the vets.  They never had a patient like Lucas and they don't know what to do about the doses.  What you are telling me sounds like the right way to do it and I will try, he got his 2.5mg today, he still looks sick, but I will wait for  a couple more days to see how he does.  I think the problem is caused by what you say, not getting even a small dose everyday is killing him.  If he is still sick in a couple of days I will give him a bigger dose.  I'm very worried about him and I won't start giving him the ivermectin until I see that he is doing better with the prednisolone, no way. 

Thank you
TAmmy

 

[mani]

I've been doing some research and I can see why the vet wants him off the prednisone.. the demodex already compromises the immune system, and the prednisone adds to that, and may even have been a big part of it happening in the first place.  But then if you feel his coming off the prednisone is making him so miserable, which if probably is, then it really does need to be gradual.

There is so much going on here and you don't know how much the demodex is affecting the poor little guy... and then, of course, the side effects of the ivermectin. 

I'm really feeling for you with this.. Have you tried anything naturopathic for the demodex while you're lessening the prednisone?

 

[mewlittle]

I think they are also guessing, the vets.  They never had a patient like Lucas and they don't know what to do about the doses.  What you are telling me sounds like the right way to do it and I will try, he got his 2.5mg today, he still looks sick, but I will wait for  a couple more days to see how he does.  I think the problem is caused by what you say, not getting even a small dose everyday is killing him.  If he is still sick in a couple of days I will give him a bigger dose.  I'm very worried about him and I won't start giving him the ivermectin until I see that he is doing better with the prednisolone, no way. 

Thank you
TAmmy

hay my brain came up with something is it possible he might be allergic to the meds?

 

[momto4kitties]

that is exactly why the vet wants him of prednisolone so badly, because it adds to the demodex problem.  It is just so difficult, that is why I'm trying to give him 2.5mg everyday now to see if he can handle that. I don't think Lucas will be off pred any time soon, so I'm trying to give him the lowest dose possible that can make him feel well enough to start with the ivermectin again.  Since he is doing so poorly I can't give him the ivermectin now. He is still miserable today, but I will give him the 2.5mg again for a couple of days to see how he does, this morning he started coughing and that scared me to death, I don't know if it is a hairball, but sounded worse and he vomited something white, weird.  Maybe it has to do with the fact that he has acid reflux, I don't know, I just hope is that becaue my boy can't handle a respiratory disease right now.

No, he can't be allergic to prednisolone he has been on it for years and never had a problem and the other meds he is taking are sucralfate and famotidine for the acid reflux, and the prozac, well I don't kow if he is allergic to them, I could take them off it if he continues to be sick, but I think the main problem is that he is suffering from prednisolone withdrawal.

 

[mani]

but I think the main problem is that he is suffering from prednisolone withdrawal.

If that's what you think, then that's the way to go.  Fingers crossed

 

[momto4kitties]

well I'm not sure of anything right now, but I'm so scared, I don't know what to do sometimes. 

 

[mani]

Yes, I know, and I think I'd be the same.

But keep up the steroid idea.. it's a start, and dropping drastically can have horrible effects.  At least then you'll know.