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- Aug 2, 2015
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I am grateful to find this site. I joined because my 11 month DSH kitten, Qbert, was diagnosed with CHF and HCM last week. I'm at the anxious and lost feeling stage as I try to get up to speed and learn about everything. I've had long term terminal maintenance cats before (mostly kidney issues), but this is my first experience with heart issues. I'm pretty sure I'll get through this phase once we figure out the new "normal", but dang is it hard!
I'm pretty lucky in that we think we caught the CHF pretty early. One day I noticed he was breathing heavy, kind of like he'd been running or playing only while napping. It was pretty hot outside, and figured that might be the cause. Then, over the next few days, a whole bunch of other little things tripped my Something is NOT Right radar. Rads showed fluid in the lungs and an enlarged heart, so they started Qbert on a diuretic (furosemide) and scheduled an echocardiogram. The cardiologist found the HCM and put him on plavix (blood thinner) and taught me signs to look for that would indicate going to emergency. (OMG, I'm so grateful I got pet insurance for him!!!) We have another X-ray and blood panel test scheduled for Tuesday to see if the meds are helping with the fluid in his lungs. I'm also really lucky that I have a very supportive vet and staff willing to work with us.
The cardiologist said that if we can stabalize Qbert and if he (and particularly his kidneys) tolerates meds well, we might be able to look into long term maintenance steps.
So far he is tolerating taking his meds ok, although the plavix requires something to hide the taste which he seems to hate. Pill pockets torn in half to make a smaller bit are working for now, We are struggling a bit with eating, although I'm finding he seems to prefer smaller, more frequent meals. (Now to keep the other cats from turning this into a free food atm moment...) I'll talk with the vet on Tuesday to see if she has any suggestions for food. He has moments when he seems normal and playful and kitten crazy, and other moments when he just seems tired (sleeping more). Since he started meds, he's gone back to mostly sprawling when he sleeps.
So that's the rambley bit. I know CHF has a different progression in every cat, but would anyone be willing to share what kinds of things I should look for or that might happen as it progresses? I'm trying to be philosophical and treasure the possibility of a long term journey with my baby but also cherishing the moments because I don't know how long we'll actually have. I also fight my anxiety better when I learn things and understand what might happen (as opposed to all the worse case scenarios anxiety serves up constantly). The internet is full of "these are the symptoms of CHF" and not so much "my cat has CHF, now what"
As a silly (because I need silly or I end up in tears again), furosemide, the diuretic, keeps making me think of Furiosa from Mad Max. Then I go on to "My cat is so badass he takes Furiosa to get better!" :-)
I'm pretty lucky in that we think we caught the CHF pretty early. One day I noticed he was breathing heavy, kind of like he'd been running or playing only while napping. It was pretty hot outside, and figured that might be the cause. Then, over the next few days, a whole bunch of other little things tripped my Something is NOT Right radar. Rads showed fluid in the lungs and an enlarged heart, so they started Qbert on a diuretic (furosemide) and scheduled an echocardiogram. The cardiologist found the HCM and put him on plavix (blood thinner) and taught me signs to look for that would indicate going to emergency. (OMG, I'm so grateful I got pet insurance for him!!!) We have another X-ray and blood panel test scheduled for Tuesday to see if the meds are helping with the fluid in his lungs. I'm also really lucky that I have a very supportive vet and staff willing to work with us.
The cardiologist said that if we can stabalize Qbert and if he (and particularly his kidneys) tolerates meds well, we might be able to look into long term maintenance steps.
So far he is tolerating taking his meds ok, although the plavix requires something to hide the taste which he seems to hate. Pill pockets torn in half to make a smaller bit are working for now, We are struggling a bit with eating, although I'm finding he seems to prefer smaller, more frequent meals. (Now to keep the other cats from turning this into a free food atm moment...) I'll talk with the vet on Tuesday to see if she has any suggestions for food. He has moments when he seems normal and playful and kitten crazy, and other moments when he just seems tired (sleeping more). Since he started meds, he's gone back to mostly sprawling when he sleeps.
So that's the rambley bit. I know CHF has a different progression in every cat, but would anyone be willing to share what kinds of things I should look for or that might happen as it progresses? I'm trying to be philosophical and treasure the possibility of a long term journey with my baby but also cherishing the moments because I don't know how long we'll actually have. I also fight my anxiety better when I learn things and understand what might happen (as opposed to all the worse case scenarios anxiety serves up constantly). The internet is full of "these are the symptoms of CHF" and not so much "my cat has CHF, now what"
As a silly (because I need silly or I end up in tears again), furosemide, the diuretic, keeps making me think of Furiosa from Mad Max. Then I go on to "My cat is so badass he takes Furiosa to get better!" :-)
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