2/26 Logan AMPS 398, +6 404

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Kelly & Logan

Kelly & Logan

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Yesterday:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=7387

Yesterday recap (had computer issues so couldn't post PMPS):
AMPS 309
+6 347
PMPS 380

Logan is now getting his pred at night - as of Tuesday - DH2B gave it to him Tuesday night (in addition to Tuesday morning) by mistake so we just stayed on the night time schedule. So, yesterday he went up all day w/o the pred.

He's now getting 1/2 5mg tablet once a day. His BGs just keep getting worse. Could the ABs be causing some insulin resistance? We'll be increasing him this weekend - to 4.5 units. I'm worried that there is something else going on that we're missing. I mean, Logan really hasn't been through enough, right?!

His food fussies are continuing. He can have the appetite stimulant tonight. It didn't last very long this time. Can he build up some sort of tolerance to it? I'd like to get him to eat something else, but I don't know what else to try. He won't eat anything but FF and even then, it's a challenge sometimes to get him to eat that. I'm hoping and praying it's the ABs that's throwing off his appetite. :sad:
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

((Kelly)) I'm sure the AB is playing with his appetite. I dread getting them for any of my animals. Have you tried a scrambled egg? Sometimes, that seems interesting when nothing else is.
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

Lydia and Basil said:
((Kelly)) I'm sure the AB is playing with his appetite. I dread getting them for any of my animals. Have you tried a scrambled egg? Sometimes, that seems interesting when nothing else is.
Click to expand...

I've never given him egg. I'm afraid it might make him sick. He has some food allergies and he has a sensitive tummy. Just a speck (so small you can barely see it) of cheese will make him vomit non-stop until he's completely empty.

He's on the ABs for a full 30 days - today is day 14 so we're not even half-way there. UGH!!! He hates me these days b/c I shove all of these pills down his throat. DH2B can't pill him so it falls on me. He's liking his dad a lot more these days!
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

What about sprinkling catnip on the food? Gee Logan...whatcha doing?
maybe the AB is bothering his stomach....that's what it does, right? Are you giving Fortiflora too or some other probiotic? I have to sprinkle the freeze-dried chicken over their food...they really got used to it and really love it.
I hope you will eat better Logan...please please eat and feel better boy!
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

One of the times that Gabby was on metronidazole, it effected her appetite. Inappetance is a notorious side effect of Flagyl in humans (you feel hungry, look at food, but then decide if feels much better to have an empty stomach!) and Gabby's reaction to food was much the same. Isn't the mirtazepine dosed every 3 days? If so, It may be that you're at the end of it's active period.

Does Logan like FortiFlora? My vet refers to it as kitty crack. It may help to attract Logan to his food.

When is Logan due for follow-up labs?
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

Pat+Raja+Shadow said:
What about sprinkling catnip on the food? Gee Logan...whatcha doing?
maybe the AB is bothering his stomach....that's what it does, right? Are you giving Fortiflora too or some other probiotic? I have to sprinkle the freeze-dried chicken over their food...they really got used to it and really love it.
I hope you will eat better Logan...please please eat and feel better boy!
Click to expand...

He used to love Fortiflora but will no longer touch it...same thing with the freeze-dried chicken dust on the food. He'll still eat the treats by themselves, though. I haven't tried sprinkling catnip on his food.

I left his internist a voicemail to see what she thinks of his numbers and the lack of appetite while on the stimulant. She wants us to do a curve this weekend so I'll see if DH2B can do that tomorrow while I'm working.

Sienne and Gabby said:
One of the times that Gabby was on metronidazole, it effected her appetite. Inappetance is a notorious side effect of Flagyl in humans (you feel hungry, look at food, but then decide if feels much better to have an empty stomach!) and Gabby's reaction to food was much the same. Isn't the mirtazepine dosed every 3 days? If so, It may be that you're at the end of it's active period.

Does Logan like FortiFlora? My vet refers to it as kitty crack. It may help to attract Logan to his food.

When is Logan due for follow-up labs?
Click to expand...

Sienne, that's exactly how he acts...he acts like he's hungry and will even eat a bit or two, but then decides he doesn't want the food. I'll try offering him other options and get the same reaction. So frustrating! He did a little better with the dry core mixed w/baby food this morning. He's been on the metronidazole for a couple months now so maybe that's the culprit. The mirtazepine is every 3 days. It was working well for the first 2 1/2 or so days. We were giving it to him every 4 days. This time, it wore off after the first day. Kind of odd. I have a feeling the internist will want to do some follow-up blood work next week. Was Gabby ever on any other ABs? He's on amoxicillin and tmp in addition to the metro. Could they cause insulin resistance?
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

Kelly & Logan said:
Logan is now getting his pred at night - as of Tuesday - DH2B gave it to him Tuesday night (in addition to Tuesday morning) by mistake so we just stayed on the night time schedule. So, yesterday he went up all day w/o the pred.
Click to expand...

I think those steroids take a long time to leave one's system so in a way, Logan's BGs were probably still influenced by the medicine.

So sorry about your challenges in trying to get a finicky cat with digestive issues to eat. I know you said he can't eat beef baby food. Are there any other flavors that you can try? I remember chicken baby food being the only thing I could get my cat Cleo to eat when she had a vertigo episode. Or how about boiled, shredded skinless chicken breast? That's what I revert to for Quincy when he has vomiting problems.

I saw someone suggested egg. I wonder if Logan does well with chicken, if that means a chicken egg might be ok. I would just try the egg white part, at least at first. I remember asking about egg on another board, and Dr. Lisa wrote very favorably about egg whites as a great nutrition source.

Good luck! We're all routing for you guys.
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

((Kelly))
Hoping Logan feels better and picks up his eating again.
Not the prettiest of numbers but he has so much to heal, the numbers
will come down.
I never heard of the Fortiflora, what it is, or where you get it.
(I'd like to know though)
Catnip is also a good stimulant, from what I have read, and used on Max.
Maybe he will like that.
Max is hoping to pick him up on the way to the party so I hope he feels better
for the journey.
 
His numbers just get worse. I finally got him to eat about 3/8 of a can of FF and some dry core.

Randi, the fortiflora is a probiotic you sprinkle on their food. Most vets sell it (at least in the US) but it's cheaper to buy on Amazon. I may end up trying the egg white and/or chicken breast. He'll get his stimulant tonight so that should help for the next day or so. He can have turkey and chicken baby food. I tried mixing some baby food with the core this afternoon but he only ate a few bites.
 
((((Kelly))))
I'm sorry you're having such a hard time. I keep hoping every day that your little boy will get his appetite back. Maybe it's just all the meds he's on. Hang in there . We're thinking about you also :YMHUG:
 
I spoke to Logan's internist. She's very concerned that his BGs have started climbing. She feels that there may be something brewing and wants to do some blood work. We're going to take him tonight through the ER to have it done. They can do it in house so we'll get the results tonight. She won't be there, but she said the ER vet can call her at home if he/she has any questions.

She said it's possible that the TMS is causing some side effects. It can affect his liver, WBC, and RBC. If that's the case, we'll have to switch him to another AB. The combination of climbing BGs and lack of appetite (while on the stimulant) has her worried. She said she'd prefer that we didn't wait until next week to bring him in. She wants to catch whatever it is as soon as possible.

This sucks! It's so discouraging and frustrating.
 
Hi Kelly,
Im glad you are going to be able to take logan in tonight, and hopefully nip whatever it is in the bud.

A few things-

a/b's will most often make a cat nauseated. That is probably a big part of the problem

If there is still an infection present, I imagine it would cause Bg's to go up. It often does in UTI's, so wouldnt it do the same with any infection in the body?

When I first started Latte on the pred, her bg's went DOWN. I cant recall how long...if it was days or weeks...kind of a blur. Then they slowly climbed up, the longer she was on it. And, as you can see...she continues to climb the longer she is on it. So, I dont know. It's quite possible there is a build up, aside from the the clearance of the daily dose, that stays with the system. I dont think when I first took her off the pred her BG's went down the next day. I think it took a few weeks. But I dont have that documented. Im just going off more blurry memories as that was a terrible, terrible time for us (UTI's, unable to walk, not eating, etc).

I hope the vet can shed some light on things for you.

Are you still giving the ondansetron?

keep us posted

(((((((kelly))))))) ((((((((((logan))))))))
 
Sorry - I just got back to your condo.

The only other AB that Gabby has been on has been amoxicillin. She tolerated that well. She was OK on the metronidazole for liquipoo but it caused the appetite problems after abdominal surgery. She was also on a fentanyl patch after the surgery so it's unknown how much the AB vs. the opiate, or the combo, were messing with her appetite.

From WCF's condo, she's noted how Meowzi's appetite will drop off by day 3 on mirtazepine. Cyproheptadine is an alternative that is a daily dose. You might want to contact WCF here or on FB since she's wonderful about these issues.

I'm glad the vet wants the BW. It makes sense if numbers are going up to get that checked out. TMP (Bactrim) can cause a decrease in thyroid hormone levels. Hopefully, if they are doing blood work, they are getting a thyroid level. The search I did, did not specify whether this is T4 or free thyroid so check this with your vet.
 
Re: 2/26 Logan AMPS 398

Kelly & Logan said:
The mirtazepine is every 3 days. It was working well for the first 2 1/2 or so days. We were giving it to him every 4 days. This time, it wore off after the first day. Kind of odd.
Click to expand...

Hi there. Sienne asked me to stop by. I guess it's to compare our experience with mirtazapine aka Meowzi's happy pill?

Our typical experience is that it does wear off after about 48-60 hours, which i around 2 1/2 days. In those cycles, she eats really well, 4 oz (usual is 3 oz daily), in the first 24 hours, eats around 3 to 3.5 oz in the next 24, and by the last 24 hrs, she struggles to finish even 3 oz.

We've also had it wear off after the first day, or not even have any effect the first day itself - just this very week, happened to us again. I've been pondering it - this Sunday's dose was the last quarter of the pill, and the pill was first cut on Feb. 7. We're wondering if exposure to light/air (it's kept in a small pill box, but there's still exposure to air b/c it's not in a vacuum) could affect its efficacy. I haven't read anything suggesting it, and I haven't been tracking when it works or when it doesn't until recently - so right now it's just me driving myself with all the what-ifs (I happen to do that a lot ;-) )

ETA: it is also an old pill; we got the bottle more than a year ago I believe, so that may have something to do with it too. Or not ..
 
(((kelly)))
the board must have eaten my post i *thought* had posted earlier. weird.
the last time i mentioned upping the insulin dose you said something about the vet wanting to increase slowly. have you spoken to him about it since then? i only ask because it looks like more insulin is needed, but the vet may have his own reasons for not increasing the dose...
 
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