4/6 Monster still at the falls

[Monster's Mom]

Last post

Hi everyone i just wanted to check in and update everyone. I took both Monster and Angel to the vet last week. I made the appt for Angel and figured I'd take Monster in too, why not. Angel is still vomiting occasionally and she has a bump on her head I wanted to get checked, and also check both of their teeth. Monster was 19.9lbs in November at diagnosis. She weighed in at 18.3 so a little bit of weight lossed. She's going in the right direction at least. She does need a dental and her oily dandruff has returned but otherwise she's doing great. The last BG I got was 72 a few days ago.

Angel on the other hand, not so much. She is in more need of a dental with at least one extraction. One of her molars is pretty bad. The vet looked at her bump and at first said it was a cyst, I was so relieved. Then she poked it to drain it and said no its not a cyst, it is filled with "black material" and recommends removing it and send off for testing.
She also said that she is very painful in her hind end and it is a lot warmer there too, likely due to the inflammation. Asked how she is with jumping and she still jumps fine and gets her zoomies. I had no idea she was in so much pain and feel so horrible. So she said we need to get x-rays of it and see what the best treaent would be. Given the fact she's had her little bump for a while and that it could be some type of melanoma it is quite possible if that's the case then it could have spread to other places and that could be the reason for pain in that area.

So I scheduled Angel for her dental/mass removal/x-rays for this Thursday. I'm nervous about it because she hasn't had anesthesia since she was spayed as a baby. She'll be 10 yrs old this summer and I know that's not necessarily too old but I worry about her. She's more delicate than Monster is.
My hope is that the "mass" or bump is just a basal cell tumor that's benign. That would be the best outcome. I would also like to ask if they could do x-rays of her chest area too. In any case the mass is something bad, then we could see if it has spread to anywhere else but I don't know if that's jumping the gun on it. Since she'll be there, put under and getting images anyway, it makes sense to me, but maybe not the vet, I don't know but I'm going to ask for it.

We could definitely use some healing vines.

I hope you all are doing well and wish all the kitties safe surfing and happy days.

The girls enjoying the nice weather on the patio.

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Hi Regan, good to hear a Monster update and one for her fur sister too. And that you've seen a bit of weight loss with Monster, slow and steady is the way to go.

Sorry to hear about Angel's lump. I think I'd wait to hear about the test results on the lump before deciding if you need to do something else. Benign skin lumps on older cats are fairly common. If it is more serious, then depending on what, it may or may not spread to the lungs but rather somewhere else. Sending you lots of good vetty vines for the visit and dental/bump removal.

 

[Monster's Mom]

Thank you Wendy, it's reassuring to hear the lump can be just a common one that's benign.

I also wanted to ask opinions about Bravecto for flea prevention and Solensia, if it's appropriate for her pain and inflammation should the x-rays show arthritis in her hind end.
I'm cautious about long acting medications for them because if there is a reaction, it's in the system for a longer period of time.

Anyone have opinions, good or bad on either of those medications? I'm thankful for any input.

 

[Tim & Pookey]

On Solensia - it’s hard to say what the percentage is but it seems like a mixed bag of opinions. Some people say it’s a miracle treatment. Others have reactions, or even worse.

The vet thinks Pookey has arthritis (I think partly because he had a little neuropathy when they first saw him). Either way, I opted for Cosequin and just wait and see. Adequan is another one but little smaller of a crowd using it. For me, it would depend how bad the arthritis is and the quality of life if the Solensia would be worth trying. See what the others think though.

 

[Monster's Mom]

Thank Tim, I appreciate your input.

 

[Jessica & Indy]

Indy has been on Solensia for a few years and it has done wonders for him. ECID but I don't think Indy would be around without it in combination with his heading pad under his bed. He doesn't limp anymore and is still able to jump up onto the couch. He is able to get up to my desk and the dining room table with a go-between jump (usually my desk chair). I have heard of people having bad experience, but I am truly thankful that isn't the case for Indy. He gets it every 28 days.

 

[Monster's Mom]

Thank you Jessica, for sharing your experience with it. As I said before, the Vet said she's extremely painful back there and is warm to the touch but she's still jumps and plays and gets zoomies every day. (Especially the post-poopy zoomies) She is excellent at hiding her pain and makes me wonder how much she is in pain when and if she ever shows me.

 

[Jessica & Indy]

Thank you Jessica, for sharing your experience with it. As I said before, the Vet said she's extremely painful back there and is warm to the touch but she's still jumps and plays and gets zoomies every day. (Especially the post-poopy zoomies) She is excellent at hiding her pain and makes me wonder how much she is in pain when and if she ever shows me.

they are masters of that for sure! I just noticed how he started holding himself afterwards. Not as hunched up, etc. Didn't realize how bad it had gotten until he started the solensia and I was like "oh, that made a difference."

 

[Staci & Ivy]

Last post

Hi everyone i just wanted to check in and update everyone. I took both Monster and Angel to the vet last week. I made the appt for Angel and figured I'd take Monster in too, why not. Angel is still vomiting occasionally and she has a bump on her head I wanted to get checked, and also check both of their teeth. Monster was 19.9lbs in November at diagnosis. She weighed in at 18.3 so a little bit of weight lossed. She's going in the right direction at least. She does need a dental and her oily dandruff has returned but otherwise she's doing great. The last BG I got was 72 a few days ago.

Angel on the other hand, not so much. She is in more need of a dental with at least one extraction. One of her molars is pretty bad. The vet looked at her bump and at first said it was a cyst, I was so relieved. Then she poked it to drain it and said no its not a cyst, it is filled with "black material" and recommends removing it and send off for testing.
She also said that she is very painful in her hind end and it is a lot warmer there too, likely due to the inflammation. Asked how she is with jumping and she still jumps fine and gets her zoomies. I had no idea she was in so much pain and feel so horrible. So she said we need to get x-rays of it and see what the best treaent would be. Given the fact she's had her little bump for a while and that it could be some type of melanoma it is quite possible if that's the case then it could have spread to other places and that could be the reason for pain in that area.

So I scheduled Angel for her dental/mass removal/x-rays for this Thursday. I'm nervous about it because she hasn't had anesthesia since she was spayed as a baby. She'll be 10 yrs old this summer and I know that's not necessarily too old but I worry about her. She's more delicate than Monster is.
My hope is that the "mass" or bump is just a basal cell tumor that's benign. That would be the best outcome. I would also like to ask if they could do x-rays of her chest area too. In any case the mass is something bad, then we could see if it has spread to anywhere else but I don't know if that's jumping the gun on it. Since she'll be there, put under and getting images anyway, it makes sense to me, but maybe not the vet, I don't know but I'm going to ask for it.

We could definitely use some healing vines.

I hope you all are doing well and wish all the kitties safe surfing and happy days.

The girls enjoying the nice weather on the patio.

View attachment 77716

Hi Regan, So glad Monster is doing well. Always great to get a nice report from the Falls

Wishing Angel all the best and sending lots of healing vines and hope everything goes well

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Neko had really bad arthritis, due to the bony growth from her acro tumour. FYI, I never got xrays done to confirm. I could feel the bumps on her spine myself! Your vet may be able to manually confirm too.

I started with Cosequin, but it didn't do much of anything, I also did fish oil (anti inflammatory). Then I had to up my game. Arthritis treatment comes in three streams, something to help the joints, something for pain, and anti inflammatories. Things I tried to help the joints are Cosequin or similar, then hyaluronic acid (brand Hyaflex) drops. We also did Cartrophen, Canadian product similar to Adequan, which also helps lots of cats. Anti inflammatory meds were the fish oil or omega-3, then Microlactin (sold as Duralactin) which worked better. Note, this is a cow milk based product, so not good for cats allergic to milk or for those with high calcium. For pain management, buprenorphine was a game changer for Neko. Made her a lot more interactive with us and playful again. The other thing that really helped her was acupuncture, mostly the acupuncture lasers. I supplemented with daily acupressure, which the vet showed me how to do. I have seen people try regular lasers or the Assisi loop with success.

In current cat, she's getting Solensia. My vet said it works in about 80% of cats. She had stopped jumping on the bed, but was back to jumping up after starting it.

One more thing that will help Monster is continuing to lose weight. The less she has to move around, the easier on her joints. Ever read this post:

• Feline Pain Scale

 

[Jessica & Indy]

Neko had really bad arthritis, due to the bony growth from her acro tumour. FYI, I never got xrays done to confirm. I could feel the bumps on her spine myself! Your vet may be able to manually confirm too.

I started with Cosequin, but it didn't do much of anything, I also did fish oil (anti inflammatory). Then I had to up my game. Arthritis treatment comes in three streams, something to help the joints, something for pain, and anti inflammatories. Things I tried to help the joints are Cosequin or similar, then hyaluronic acid (brand Hyaflex) drops. We also did Cartrophen, Canadian product similar to Adequan, which also helps lots of cats. Anti inflammatory meds were the fish oil or omega-3, then Microlactin (sold as Duralactin) which worked better. Note, this is a cow milk based product, so not good for cats allergic to milk or for those with high calcium. For pain management, buprenorphine was a game changer for Neko. Made her a lot more interactive with us and playful again. The other thing that really helped her was acupuncture, mostly the acupuncture lasers. I supplemented with daily acupressure, which the vet showed me how to do. I have seen people try regular lasers or the Assisi loop with success.

In current cat, she's getting Solensia. My vet said it works in about 80% of cats. She had stopped jumping on the bed, but was back to jumping up after starting it.

One more thing that will help Monster is continuing to lose weight. The less she has to move around, the easier on her joints. Ever read this post:

• Feline Pain Scale

This reminds me! Indy is also on Cosequin and Fish Oil!

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Add MSM to the list for pain relief. Sometimes you can get it in combination with products like Cosequin. I gave Recovery (powder version) to a previous cat with arthritis and it helped him. That particular product also has some hyaluronic acid and boswellia, another supplement I've seen given by itself.