? Theodore - lethargic / lower appetite

NadineTheodore

NadineTheodore

Member Since 2023
Previous Thread: https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/worried-about-vomiting-and-diarrhea.281470/#post-3103640

Hello,

Theodore today got 1/2 tab of cerenia, I picked up from vet, b12 injection that I am doing once a week, sub Q fluids.

No puke today and no ketones but pee seemed bright orange/yellow neon ish. Foamy too but perhaps because I put a container for him to pee in? Is this color normal for cats? Just wondering if perhaps there's a deeper issue I need to worry about

I am just curious if there is something I should be looking for? His UREA/BUN was slightly elevated above normal range which stood out to me. They believed it was de-hydration. I am just concerned. He seemed normal Sunday even then Monday evening things started to seem off....
 
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This is starting to sound like it could be pancreatitis. Symptoms include nausea, lethargy and picky eating. People sometimes say he’s just not acting right. Treatment is to treat the symptoms which you are doing. I do think he’s dehydrated so don’t worry about the BUN. It’s common in all cats but more often seen with diabetics. It’s actually I think what caused Max to become diabetic and why he didn’t achieve remission as he had chronic pancreatitis fur a few tests before fd.
 
Pee should be yellow (not dark yellow or orange) and clear. How often did the vet say you could give fluids? Once a week not enough. Could be a sign of dehydration or maybe a UTI. What is the volume of pee - normal?
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Pee should be yellow (not dark yellow or orange) and clear. How often did the vet say you could give fluids? Once a week not enough. Could be a sign of dehydration or maybe a UTI. What is the volume of pee - normal?
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Sorry fluids daily 100MLS, b12 = once a week
 
tiffmaxee said:
This is starting to sound like it could be pancreatitis. Symptoms include nausea, lethargy and picky eating. People sometimes say he’s just not acting right. Treatment is to treat the symptoms which you are doing. I do think he’s dehydrated so don’t worry about the BUN. It’s common in all cats but more often seen with diabetics. It’s actually I think what caused Max to become diabetic and why he didn’t achieve remission as he had chronic pancreatitis fur a few tests before fd.
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Should I be taking him to emerg? @tiffmaxee @Wendy&Neko

I am so worried with him snuffing his nose at food. It's just not like him
 
How much is he eating? When did he last eat? I don't think this is an emergency, but I'm not there and seeing Theodore, so I don't have the whole picture.
 
NadineTheodore said:
Should I be taking him to emerg? @tiffmaxee @Wendy&Neko

I am so worried with him snuffing his nose at food. It's just not like him
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No. It’s not an emergency. It might not even be pancreatitis. It could be a uti as Wendy mentioned or something entirely different. You are giving him what he needs. See if you can get him to eat at least half of his normal amount of food. Can you syringe if necessary? They won’t do anything different at the ER. Give the fluids and meds a chance to work. It might not happen overnight.
 
He ate this morning at 4AM, again 6AM (half can FF Trout), ate again this afternoon a bit and I gave him some churu treats this evening as well as a 1/3 can of Ocean Fish Fancy feast but this evening he snuffed his nose at trout, churu, etc.

He was acting completing normally Sunday, a little weird Monday morning (picky), I didn't right away notice any odd behaviour until the evening. He did his regular door scratch to signal "hey feed me" but snuffed his nose and what I had to offer.....finally got something he liked...

This morning he was picky again and I was really concerned because he just seemed tired, didn't even want to play with string
 
NadineTheodore said:
Is there a test for pancreatitis that they could confirm?
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Yes. It’s the SpecfPL. They can do the SNAP version in the office but it just gives a positive or negative instead of a number so if in the gray zone is not helpful. I’d give him a couple days and see if he returns to normal before testing. He’s getting cerenia or ondansetron?
 
Cerenia, is the other one more advantageous? I can request otherwise. He was not happy taking Cerenia. I am just worried too as he had diarrhea Sunday...SUBQ takes a long time to do so hopefully he got the full required amount today. He was starting to get annoyed and pulled it out.
 
Cerenia is got if puking and ondansetron helps more for nausea. You can give both. Do you put the pills in gel capsules?
 
Gel capsules make pilling so much easier because they don’t taste the pill and if they spit it out they don’t get mushy. You can also combine pills into one gel cap. Size 4 and 5 are cat size. I’ve also used 3. The higher the number the smaller the capsule. I’ve often bought them from Amazon but some health food stores might sell them.
 
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That’s interesting. I will keep that in mind.

I am so worried that I don’t know what he has although I am treating the symptoms. Tomorrow is my birthday and I just want him to be better :( He’s in bed with me snoring away. My dad always said the best medicine is sleep. Hope that helps. He had a urine test culture and urinalysis which he was negative for UTI, do you think one could form so quick? He’s been peeing decent today. No accidents or anything like that… I’m wondering if I should ask my vet for clavamox now too
 
Without testing, you don't know if he has a UTI, or what type of bacteria it could be. Antibiotics only work on specific bacteria. So hard to say if Clavamox is a good choice. If he's peeing good sized clumps, and the regular number of times, then might not be UTI.

I got smaller gel caps at a compounding pharmacy. Cerenia is bitter, I found it much easier to give in a gel cap. And I could combine meds in it too, meaning less pilling sessions.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Without testing, you don't know if he has a UTI, or what type of bacteria it could be. Antibiotics only work on specific bacteria. So hard to say if Clavamox is a good choice. If he's peeing good sized clumps, and the regular number of times, then might not be UTI.

I got smaller gel caps at a compounding pharmacy. Cerenia is bitter, I found it much easier to give in a gel cap. And I could combine meds in it too, meaning less pilling sessions.
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thank you both @Wendy&Neko @tiffmaxee

Theodore still isn’t 100% himself this morning but he came down on his own and ate food. At least half a can so I’m grateful I didn’t rush him to emerg with both your advice and he was getting fluids and cerenia at home. Being home is best for him. Poor fella is scared of his own shadow
 
Apologies, just updated. I am getting a calliper this weekend for more accurate dosing because the 3.75 jump worried me that I was always inconsistent. I am also a little sick the last few days so not able to keep as close of an eye so I wanted to keep it safe. He is acting more less himself finally :D
 
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