I am writing regarding my female feline, Esme, who is about three years old.
Esme was part of a feral cat colony near my home who took part in a trap, neuter, release. I was the only one who could come near her for a long time. Late last October or so, she injured her foot, but it didn't appear too bad at the time. She also had a mild eye problem, as if she had walked into brush or something. She started limping and her eye problem got worse, and I was able to get her tame enough and get her to the vet. He did an xray on her foot and said that the cartilage had basically pulled away, likely from an old injury, and it was something she would have to live with. He wasn't concerned with the eye. That was in March.
This past Monday, I took her to another vet. She appears blind, her eye is possibly detached from her retina with mild swelling, and her breathing has been erratic. He did a thorough exam and did a chest xray, that showed she had scar tissue, which makes the breathing difficult. He said it seems she likely had a systemic infection, possibly even toxoplasmosis, and there wasn't much to be done. Since she is still eating and appears fine, he didn't think any type of medication would be good, as cortisone could inflame any infection, and any type of surgery could be dangerous because of her breathing. With her eating well and seeming happy enough, he thought it was best to leave things alone. He also did mention that stress could exacerbate any infection. The only thing he did give was Neomycin/Polymycin eye drops for her eye.
Now, it seems her breathing is worse. It's almost asthma like. As I have had allergies and asthma in the past, that's what I would compare it to, although she has no cough or mucous. I live in a very small town. Although I greatly appreciated the thorough exam the last vet did, I'm afraid that I'm not doing enough to help her, if there is something more to be done or medicine I can give her to make things better. He didn't think she was in pain or suffering, and didn't want to do anything to make her worse.
I have the xrays, and reached out to a specialist 100 miles away (I live in a small town that doesn't always have the best choice of feline-friendly care), but I'm not sure what to do at this point. I'm devastated. I would love another opinion but am afraid of the trip, and I'm afraid that because of her history as a somewhat feral cat (she isn't anymore and is now living in my home) I might have overlooked issues that has made her problems worse if she did in fact have an infection.
Thanks for reading. If anyone has any past experiences with an unknown infection that seems to have ravaged her body, I would love some insight. Did she get an infection from an injured eye and it went untreated and it got this bad? I don't know, but I'm beating myself up over a lot of things and would love to learn more.
Thanks again.
Esme was part of a feral cat colony near my home who took part in a trap, neuter, release. I was the only one who could come near her for a long time. Late last October or so, she injured her foot, but it didn't appear too bad at the time. She also had a mild eye problem, as if she had walked into brush or something. She started limping and her eye problem got worse, and I was able to get her tame enough and get her to the vet. He did an xray on her foot and said that the cartilage had basically pulled away, likely from an old injury, and it was something she would have to live with. He wasn't concerned with the eye. That was in March.
This past Monday, I took her to another vet. She appears blind, her eye is possibly detached from her retina with mild swelling, and her breathing has been erratic. He did a thorough exam and did a chest xray, that showed she had scar tissue, which makes the breathing difficult. He said it seems she likely had a systemic infection, possibly even toxoplasmosis, and there wasn't much to be done. Since she is still eating and appears fine, he didn't think any type of medication would be good, as cortisone could inflame any infection, and any type of surgery could be dangerous because of her breathing. With her eating well and seeming happy enough, he thought it was best to leave things alone. He also did mention that stress could exacerbate any infection. The only thing he did give was Neomycin/Polymycin eye drops for her eye.
Now, it seems her breathing is worse. It's almost asthma like. As I have had allergies and asthma in the past, that's what I would compare it to, although she has no cough or mucous. I live in a very small town. Although I greatly appreciated the thorough exam the last vet did, I'm afraid that I'm not doing enough to help her, if there is something more to be done or medicine I can give her to make things better. He didn't think she was in pain or suffering, and didn't want to do anything to make her worse.
I have the xrays, and reached out to a specialist 100 miles away (I live in a small town that doesn't always have the best choice of feline-friendly care), but I'm not sure what to do at this point. I'm devastated. I would love another opinion but am afraid of the trip, and I'm afraid that because of her history as a somewhat feral cat (she isn't anymore and is now living in my home) I might have overlooked issues that has made her problems worse if she did in fact have an infection.
Thanks for reading. If anyone has any past experiences with an unknown infection that seems to have ravaged her body, I would love some insight. Did she get an infection from an injured eye and it went untreated and it got this bad? I don't know, but I'm beating myself up over a lot of things and would love to learn more.
Thanks again.
