12/30, Dusty PMPS 420. Still shunning the food.

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Michelle & Dusty

Michelle & Dusty

Member Since 2012
Well I'm one worried kitty mama. Dusty doesn't appear to have eaten anything last night, which means she's had *maybe* half of what she would normally eat (probably more like a third). This morning I got up and mixed up a bit of baby food with some water and she had most of that, but was uninterested in anything else. I've currently got a FF anytizer sitting next to her and she's turned her back to it. About 10 minutes ago I gave her 1/4 of a pepcid AC (had to pill her manually because she refused a pill pocket...something I have *never* seen her do). I'm hoping that it will prove a magic pill and she'll start feeling better and, importantly, hungry.

Given her numbers and her behavior, I'm hesitant to shoot. I thought I'd wait for half an hour or so and see if the Pepcid works and, if so, then dose and feed. But if it doesn't work, then I'm at a loss. I have some butorphanol that I could give her, but I'm not sure whether she's in pain (from the enema/manual evacuation). She's currently laying on the bed purring a bit (from petting). But she's on the bed because I put her there...she'd rather be hiding under it.

Eep.
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Oh gosh, I sure hope the pepcid does it's magic and Dusty wants to eat soon. Very worrisome when they won't. I know a few of my cats feel wonky for a good couple days after anesthesia, so maybe that's playing a part. Sending feel better vines and eating vines!
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Do you have ketostix to test Dusty with?

Usually i find pepcid starts to work its magic within an hour.

Please eat Dusty so you can get your juice and start feeling better.
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

I was able to test her for ketones last night and it came back negative, which was a huge relief. I'm also doing a breath check fairly regularly. So far, it just smells like cat breath in there. ;-)

But yes, worried kitty mama. Especially because Dusty is normally such a great eater. Hopefully this pepcid will kick in and she'll rediscover how much she loves food.
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Ugh. It's been an hour and Dusty is just as uninterested in food as she was before she got the Pepcid. She's also very much in a 'leave me alone!' mood. I'm not sure what to do. Just leave her be for a few hours and see how she's doing then? Give her some butorphanol? Get a syringe and force feed her a bit? I still haven't given her her morning insulin, either. Not to mention that my vet has only a half day tomorrow and then is closed on Tuesday for New Year's Day. So I'll be lucky if they could see her tomorrow if this doesn't resolve itself sometime today and, if they can't see her, will have to figure something out to hold her over until Wednesday. (The nearest emergency vet is an hour away. They do have an on-call vet here, but it's the sort of thing where the animal has to be near death's door for them to see it.)

Can I just go to bed, wake up, and have things back to normal, please?
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Hopefully she's just feeling a little 'off' from her recent vet visit, and will have a better appetite soon. I know how stressful it is when you don't know what's going on in your kitty's body/mind, but you're taking such good care of her, and her purring is letting you know that. Feel better, Dusty.

~Josie
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Thanks for the link to yesterday's condo. I'll try to remember to add it going forward. :)

Her stomach doesn't seem to be tender. Or, at least, she lets me pet her on the stomach and doesn't really flinch or jump away. That said, Dusty is super, super Stoic and doesn't really let me know when she's in pain or feeling badly. For example, on Friday when she was super constipated, she'd go into the litter pan and try to poo and not do anything, but she never ever made any sound of distress. So it could be that it is painful and she's just not letting me know. I'm quite worried about pancreatitis. That said, I tend to worry when it comes with her and so I worry about most everything.
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Do you give her Miralax for the hard poo? The human version is fine for cats. We give Zener and Tillie 1/8 teaspoon twice a day with their food and extra water. Miralax absorbs water in the intestine so the cat needs to get extra water. The vet can also prescribe Lactulose.

Marje has written an excellent Primer on Pancreatitis.
Liz
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

I had given her Miralax a couple of times but she didn't seem to like it and her poops seemed fine, so I stopped. That said, once I get this new situation worked out, I do plan to give it to her again. I just need to make sure she's drinking water before giving it to her. :)

And my thanks for the link to the pancreatitis. I think when I take her in to the vet tomorrow (and she'll be going unless there's some miraculous turn-around this afternoon/evening) I'll ask about the snap fPL test, and also about getting more fluids in her since things will be closed on Jan 1. Why couldn't this have happened at some time when there aren't two major holidays within a week of each other?!
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Why couldn't this have happened at some time when there aren't two major holidays within a week of each other?!
Click to expand...
Because it never does!

I would not give a morphine-like drug without knowing what's going on. I'd hold on the butophanol until you speak to your vet. If Dusty will eat baby food, give her baby food.

I'd also get a ketone test whenever you can, especially if you're not giving insulin. I'd give consideration to giving even a reduced dose so you don't end up having numbers in the stratosphere.
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Thanks, Sienne. I didn't give her any of the painkillers as I wasn't sure how she'd react to them on an empty stomach. I did just feed her some watered down baby food with a syringe and got a couple of tablespoons in her. She did quite well with it, actually. And just now she poo'd and, while doing so, it sounded like she still had a lot of gas in her system...so hopefully this is just an extended version of having some bad gas which will soon pass. I'll definitely try to grab a ketone test as soon as she cooperates by peeing. :)

I certainly plan to give her some insulin in her PM injection, perhaps even a full dose (depending on numbers), since it seems she does well with the syringe feeding. I did end up (reluctantly) skipping her AM shot, though, since she was (and is) so unwilling to eat.
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Tes gets just a little Miralax everyday since she sometimes skips. We mix it directly into her food and Miss Picky never notices the difference, no need to try to give it separately. As others have said many cats feel the effects of anesthesia for a few day after. :YMHUG: :YMHUG:
 
Re: 12/30, Dusty AMBG 230. Not really eating or drinking.

Hoping that Dusty gets better very soon. It's all too sad to see our babies suffer, and feel powerless to do something about it at times. You're doing the right thing, and hopefully she'll bounce back very soon for you. Hang in there!
 
Thanks, Angela and Ann! Ann - I plan on doing just that (ie mixing it in with her food), hopefully starting tomorrow. I don't ever want her to have to have the vet go and clear out her bum again. ;-)

--

Whelp, the numbers don't lie. I think that from here on out I'll stop skipping doses, even if Dusty isn't eating. I just hate to see such high numbers. She's still not eating. She did go grab a small drink of water, but turns her nose up at any offer of food. I finally fed her a bit via syringe. I started with baby food but also got in a few tablespoons worth of FF pureed with water. She's definitely not getting all the calories she needs, but I feel a bit better that she's getting *something*. I just gave her insulin and will repeat the feeding process in about an hour, to make sure she's got something in her tummy before we all go to sleep.

I find it heartening that she hasn't thrown anything up. I think it's pretty clear that she's nauseous...but at least she's keeping the food I give her down. I was also able to get a ketone test, which was negative. Another relief. Now if only whatever it is that's making her feel poorly can leave and she can start eating again.

Did I mention I have another cat who is quite sick (this one - Adele - with a flare up of Valley Fever). It has been funtimes at the house this weekend, let me tell you.
 
Hello.
I hadn't heard of valley fever so I had to go look it up.
Loss of appetite is also a symptom of this .....
How was your other cat diagnosed?

Symptoms of Valley Fever

In cats, the Coccidioides immitis fungus attacks the skin. As a result, cats experience draining lesions on their skin throughout their entire body. In some cases abscesses will appear instead of lesions. In addition to draining lesions or abscesses, many cats also experience a loss of appetite and, as a consequence, weight loss. In very rare cases, the fungus will begin to affect the cat’s respiratory system and the cat may develop a chronic cough. If the fungus does spread to the respiratory system, it can then spread to other tissues in the body and cause lameness, eye symptoms, and neurological symptoms.

While some cats are able to ‘carry’ the fungus without any symptoms, it is believed that cats with lowered immune function are at a higher risk for developing coccidioidomycosis. Coccidioidomycosis symptoms in cats often progress slowly over a long period of time. Medical treatments for the condition are available, but if they are not given in a timely manner the disease can be fatal. If you live in a region where pets are at risk for developing coccidioidomycosis and your cat is displaying any of the above symptoms, schedule an appointment with your veterinarian as soon as possible.
Click to expand...
 
I hope you never have to experience the awful infection that is Valley Fever. It is a fungal infection that is endemic to the desert southwest, where Dusty, Adele and I lived until just a few years ago. Dusty was diagnosed with VF about 8 years ago. She had a mass near one of her nipples and I worried that it was breast cancer. It turns out that it was an inflamed lymph node. Adele was diagnosed about 5 years ago. She was lame in one leg and the vet diagnosed her with VF. Both were on a strict regimin of fluconazole which is very effective against VF. Since moving to WA, though, I haven't been nearly as good as I should be about getting their blood taken (to determine the spread of the infection). Adele is manifesting goopy eyes and the same lame leg, which is why I think she's got a flare up. She's headed to the vet next week for an exam and so I can get another prescription for fluconazole. It's tough with two cats having VF in a place where it is very uncommon, as it is harder to find places that will test the blood and my vet is much more reticent to just give me a longstanding prescription for fluconazole. (FWIW, basically any mammal can get VF. It's actually far more common in humans and dogs than it is in cats. But I lucked into having two cats with it. :lol: )

Adele is going to be treated immediately for VF, but this is a good kick in the pants to get Dusty tested again and get her back on the fluconazole. Especially since the diabetes is compromising her immune system and so she is more likely to have flare ups.
 
Rhiannon...I believe Dusty has already been dx with valley fever.

Michelle....if you think she is nauseous, be sure you ask your vet about a script for ondansetron and try giving that to her. Vets like to give appetite stimulants before addressing nausea but I'd be sure the nausea is addressed before giving her an appetite stimulant.

The Pepcid will only help if she has an acid tummy.

Sending her healing vines...and yes, if you can syringe food into her, I think it's good to be sure you get some insulin into her and keep checking ketones.
 
Thanks for the medication recommendation, Marje! I definitely want the root cause of the nausea taken care of...hate the idea of treating symptoms and not causes. I've written it down and will talk to the vet about it in the morning.

Hopefully, though, things will resolve on their own. Dusty just a second ago actually ate a couple of bites of food! Hurrah! (I did then give her another tablespoon or so of a fancy feast smoothie, since a couple of bites won't hold over for the evening and so I wanted to make sure she had a bit more in her than those few bites. But still! Hopefully this is a sign that she's feeling better. She definitely fought my feeding her much more this time than earlier in the day. :lol:

I hope you're enjoying beautiful Tucson! A good friend from here in WA just visited the town for the first time and sent me all sorts of pictures (Sabino Canyon, Hotel Congress) that made me miss it something terrible.
 
I'm glad she ate some and I hope she will start feeling better. Sometimes you must be insistent about the ondansetron...for some reason, many vets are unfamiliar with it and seem to not understand the concept of treating nausea before giving them something that makes them hungry.

Oh yes...it is beautiful here but cold and rainy! Have a great night and please keep us posted.
 
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