3/20 Champ AMPS 390, PMPS 299

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Patty & Champ

Patty & Champ

Member Since 2011
I took Champ to the vet on Tuesday as an emergency because I just knew something was really wrong. He jumped off the couch funny and then just hunched on the floor, staring down. I picked him up and he growled at me!! He's never growled at me, ever. Even when I syringe fed him years ago. I put him back on the couch and he jumped off again and threw up a couple times. He wouldn't walk. He just acted like he couldn't move. I got him to the vet as soon as they opened, but Champ's regular vet wasn't working. We saw a vet we hadn't seen before and Champ HATED her. He growled and hissed and just wouldn't cooperate at all. He's never done this to a vet. This is a cat that always has the vet techs singing his praises because he's so laid back and awesome. I finally got the blood work back this afternoon and his WBCs and RBCs are off the chart. There's a notation that his neutrophils look toxic. His kidney values are all normal. A Spec fPL was done and it was normal. When this vet looked at his mouth, I asked her how his teeth looked (he had a dental almost two years ago) and she said she's "seen a lot worse." She wants to start him on an antibiotic, which I agree with, but mentioned Covenia. I said no way. She then mentioned Orbax, which is expensive. She said she doesn't know where the infection is so it's going to be a hit or miss with the antibiotic. I mentioned how red his gums looked to me when she examined him and told her that I really wanted Champ's regular vet to take a look at him (he's a dental expert....actually volunteers to go to different wild animal sanctuaries to perform dentals on big cats, gorillas, etc.). She said she would't be offended at all if I did that. Unfortunately, he doesn't have any open appointments tomorrow so I'm just going to go in when they first open as a walk-in. I wanted to get opinions as to what is a good antibiotic to use if it is a problem with his mouth. I know it's not a UTI (he's peeing normally and in normal amounts). Pancreatitis has been ruled out. I'd like an antibiotic that won't cause tummy troubles if possible. I'm already having to hand feed Champ to get him to eat a full meal, which is only 1 oz. at a time. His numbers are off the chart after being so good for so long. I just want him fixed!!
 
Sending more prayers for Champ. Does his belly seem like the source of his pain? It sounds like this came on very suddenly. I know it's costly, but since his p-titus test came back OK, I wonder if you should do an ultrasound to check for kidney infection or stones or something along those lines. It does sound like you should get him on an AB ASAP.

Please keep us posted!!
 
OH, I'm sorry that Champ isn't well :sad: . I hope that someone can advise you on an antibiotic, I've only used them once and don't know much. Paws crossed on you getting into the vet quick tomorrow. I'm sending vines, and hugs! :YMHUG:
 
Thanks for the prayers and vines!!

Amy - Champ's BUN is 25 and creatinine is 1.7, both well within normal limits. His urinalysis showed a good specific gravity and no bacteria, but he has white and red blood cells in his urine, 2+ protein, and 3+ glucose, all numbers that are very high and nothing that he's had before. Marje is setting up a lab work spreadsheet for me to fill in with his values, but I won't have time to do this until late tomorrow or Saturday.

Everyone keep your fingers crossed that this gets resolved quickly!!
 
Patty --

With blood and protein in his urine, I'd be suspicious of a kidney infection (pylonephritis). This is a hard to diagnose infection and will require a longer course of ABs than usual. This is from the Merck Veterinary Manual:
Pyelonephritis should be treated aggressively with broad-spectrum antibiotics, based on urine culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing, for 4–6 wk. The infection may respond to the same antibiotics recommended for cystitis, but more frequent administration (eg, amoxicillin tid rather than bid) and/or higher dosages are indicated. A fluoroquinolone or a combination of a fluoroquinolone with a β-lactam antibiotic is often effective.
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Fluoroquinolones include ABs like Cipro or Baytril. B-lactams include the penicillin derivatives (e.g., amoxicillin).
 
Patty

The more I look at his labs, I have to wonder the same thing as Amy and Sienne. From Tanya's:
Pyelonephritis means a kidney infection. Pyelonephritis usually occurs because a urinary tract infection has risen into the kidneys. In Chronic renal failure (2001) Dr D Polzin states that "infection at one location potentially places the entire urinary tract at risk for infection."

Pyelonephritis may be acute or chronic. Cats with acute pyelonephritis will often be obviously ill, e.g. not eating, sensitive to the touch, with a fever. Unfortunately, cats with chronic pyelonephritis may not be obviously ill. One of our cats, Harpsie, was prone to pyelonephritis and he would simply be a little subdued. Fortunately, he also became incontinent every time, so we were able to recognise the problem and get treatment started promptly.

It is quite common for nothing to grow in a culture if the cat has pyelonephritis rather than a lower urinary tract infection, particularly if the infection is chronic rather than acute. Some types of bacteria do not grow in a culture. The Merck Veterinary Manual states "A single urine culture can be negative if bacterial numbers are low." Ultrasound may be helpful in diagnosing the existence of pyelonephritis, though this can be of limited value in cats with PKD, whose kidneys already look abnormal. Ultrasound may also help with detecting urinary tract infections, but only if the bladder is full. In both cases you need an experienced operator.
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I'd discuss it with Dr. Hewitt. If it's possible that it is a kidney infection, he would need about 6-8 weeks on baytril.

Sending healing vines and please let us know.
 
Sienne and Marje - Thank you so much for the info!! Dr. Hewitt just emailed me (almost 10 p.m.!!) and said he checked his appointments for tomorrow and is going to get Champ in at 9 a.m. I'm going to print out the info you've given me so I can run this by Dr. Hewitt. I trust both of you as much as him in the knowledge department!! Thanks again!! I'll set up a condo tomorrow as soon as I return from the vet!!
 
Poor Champ! Sending tons of vines for him tomorrow.


We use Orbax for Tess when she gets a UTI and it causes her much less nausea and no vomiting as w/ Clavamox. Orbax is a brand name of Orbifloxacin. This is from the Mar Vista website:
Enrofloxacin, the first veterinary fluoroquinolone, enjoyed great success on the market and was soon joined by Orbifloxacin, Marbofloxacin and others. Orbifloxacin has the following special advantages:

Especially rapid absorption into the body after oral dosing (complete absorption in 46 minutes).

Lower doses are generally necessary, which means fewer tablets to give and often less expense (especially in larger dogs).
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We use the liquid and it is much easier to give her than a pill. I think it's about $60 at the vet. If you have to give it for a longer period California Pet Pharmacy has it for $33.
 
Thank you, Ann!!! I printed out the page from that Pharmacy so I can order it. I have a feeling I'm going to go ahead and use that med if my vet suggests it, mainly because you mention it causes less stomach upset. Last thing I need to do is follow the cat around cleaning up my carpet (since cats only puke on the carpet, not the tile :roll: ).
 
Poor Champ. Sending healing vines his way. Hopefully your regular vet can quickly narrow down and diagnose the source of Champ's issues.
 
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