Mandy & Rex (GA)
Member Since 2017
One year anniversary post
I am not sure where to start. So much has happened since my last post. I had to let go of my baby Tanner on 6/15. He was 18. Something happened after he turned 18 on May 5th and went downhill rapidly - 7 pounds on 5/22 and on 6/15, he was only 5.5 pounds.
He had hypothyroidism, for which he was getting thyroid supplements for 4.5 years, then was diagnosed with pancreatitis in August 2017. The possibility of SCL had been also discussed, but I didn't do a biopsy. When he stopped eating on 6/3 completely, I knew something was seriously wrong and started syringe feeding and all the meds for a panc flare. It could have been SCL really kicking in or maybe it was kidney failure because we noticed his BUN value went really high on the 5/4 labs and had plans to check again in mid-June. No matter what I did, nothing worked. He was obviously miserable for the last week and continued to lose weight. At the end, other cats were avoiding him so they all knew he was ready. This is the picture taken on 6/9 of Rex washing food off Tanner's face after a syringe feeding (I was learning so hadn't gotten it down pat yet).
I had been concerned about Keena because I brought him home at 4 months old and Tanner was 3 years old so they had a very strong bond from the start to the end. I wasn't sure if it would impact Keena in some way when Tanner left us. I do not know if it really started before, but I noticed he stopped eating well and keeping more to himself. Of course, we were also going through a heat wave. But both Rex and Precious ate well so it really stuck out when Keena didn't eat. I also have Surefeed microchip feeders for all 3. The first one was for Tanner to encourage him to eat more and I bought one at a time and never made it to the 4th. Keena was still eating Dr. Elsey's - mostly at night when we sleep. He was the 2nd one to get one because he was waking me up at 5 AM on the weekend!
But then it got less and less and I knew he wasn't maintaining his weight.
Keena saw the vet on 7/12 and I finally got a copy of his labs. I was hoping a lab guru here could look and see if something stuck out. The vet discussed the esoinophils, saying the percentage should have been 5%, but it is 23%. At this time, I hadn't noticed diarrhea or vomiting to point at IBD. Unfortunately since then, he has had 2 bouts of diarrhea. I had been finding hairballs more often, but couldn't pin it on one cat. Tuesday night, he was super clingy, which means he doesn't feel well. He barely touched his nighttime meal and when he did, he immediately vomited. He slept with me all night, which again isn't normal for him. I found 2 small spots of hairballs when I woke up. Then he absolutely refused his breakfast. He ate okay in the afternoon and ate better, but not 100% last night. This morning, he again refused his breakfast. The cats all get one choice of wet food. The vet also said he would consider administering a broad spectrum dewormer because it is possible he has parasites. Keena is an indoors only cat (everyone is).
Ideas?? Suggestions?? Keena's labs will be uploaded as a thumbnail on here.
I am not sure where to start. So much has happened since my last post. I had to let go of my baby Tanner on 6/15. He was 18. Something happened after he turned 18 on May 5th and went downhill rapidly - 7 pounds on 5/22 and on 6/15, he was only 5.5 pounds.
He had hypothyroidism, for which he was getting thyroid supplements for 4.5 years, then was diagnosed with pancreatitis in August 2017. The possibility of SCL had been also discussed, but I didn't do a biopsy. When he stopped eating on 6/3 completely, I knew something was seriously wrong and started syringe feeding and all the meds for a panc flare. It could have been SCL really kicking in or maybe it was kidney failure because we noticed his BUN value went really high on the 5/4 labs and had plans to check again in mid-June. No matter what I did, nothing worked. He was obviously miserable for the last week and continued to lose weight. At the end, other cats were avoiding him so they all knew he was ready. This is the picture taken on 6/9 of Rex washing food off Tanner's face after a syringe feeding (I was learning so hadn't gotten it down pat yet).I had been concerned about Keena because I brought him home at 4 months old and Tanner was 3 years old so they had a very strong bond from the start to the end. I wasn't sure if it would impact Keena in some way when Tanner left us. I do not know if it really started before, but I noticed he stopped eating well and keeping more to himself. Of course, we were also going through a heat wave. But both Rex and Precious ate well so it really stuck out when Keena didn't eat. I also have Surefeed microchip feeders for all 3. The first one was for Tanner to encourage him to eat more and I bought one at a time and never made it to the 4th. Keena was still eating Dr. Elsey's - mostly at night when we sleep. He was the 2nd one to get one because he was waking me up at 5 AM on the weekend!
But then it got less and less and I knew he wasn't maintaining his weight.Keena saw the vet on 7/12 and I finally got a copy of his labs. I was hoping a lab guru here could look and see if something stuck out. The vet discussed the esoinophils, saying the percentage should have been 5%, but it is 23%. At this time, I hadn't noticed diarrhea or vomiting to point at IBD. Unfortunately since then, he has had 2 bouts of diarrhea. I had been finding hairballs more often, but couldn't pin it on one cat. Tuesday night, he was super clingy, which means he doesn't feel well. He barely touched his nighttime meal and when he did, he immediately vomited. He slept with me all night, which again isn't normal for him. I found 2 small spots of hairballs when I woke up. Then he absolutely refused his breakfast. He ate okay in the afternoon and ate better, but not 100% last night. This morning, he again refused his breakfast. The cats all get one choice of wet food. The vet also said he would consider administering a broad spectrum dewormer because it is possible he has parasites. Keena is an indoors only cat (everyone is).
Ideas?? Suggestions?? Keena's labs will be uploaded as a thumbnail on here.
Last edited:
