Help needed!

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heatherjo

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Well i finally was able to take of pic of jinx's belly and am hoping that someone might be able to help me. He has been to the vet and put on an antibotic and predinosne. We had to stop for couple of days after i noticed that his poop was red in color. Well his poop is normal again so the vet had me start the meds back up. I am very worried because nothing seems to be getting better. He's really not chewing at himself which is good but i am still thinking about putting a cone on him as a precaution. The first time i saw the vet he expressed his concern with the way his belly looked and warned me it may even been skin cancer. Any help would be appreciated.


Thanks :)

Heather and Jinx


I dont know how to attach the pic help! It wouldl let me add the file
 

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Just a question - how large is that area in the photo, and are there additional areas on his belly like that, or is this the whole affected area? (you mentioned you had to crop the photo)
I have to go to the vet on Tuesday or Wednesday and I'll print it out and ask her if she's seen anything like it.

Carl in SC
 
Well that is pretty much the infected area. There may be a little more above but that pic is the almost the whole area. Now the area around it he has chewed all the fur off. I appreciate you taking the time to respond and show concern. It really does mean alot. This is a hard time for me since i just lost my job and i dont have the money if something is majorly wrong with him. I think i may buy him a cone tomorrow to see if it helps heal. Im not sure how much he is chewing. He is on a antibotic and prednisone. I watch the prednisone and only give it when it seems like he is starting to chew because i know it affects his insulin levels.


Take Care:)

Heather and Jinx
 
This is VERY INTERESTING. I had just noticed week before last that ginger my diabetic foster had what appeared to be a hot spot in between her eye and ear. We tried to go OTJ with Ginger for about twoo weeks and The vet thought it might be an allergic reaction to a food and wanted me to change it. BUT I was uncomfortable since she was eating her nom noms very well and it was the same food I had been giving her for the last six months. I suspected and wondered if it had something to do with her diabetes. Turned out she was not in complete remission and I put her back on .5 BID of Lantus. Within two weeks the spot had disappeared with no changes except the insulin. The spot looked (not as severe) very similar to what I saw on ginger.

Is it possible that feline diabetes is possibly causing this. I know in human diabetes some can get sores on their feet so it strikes me as curious.
 
Possible alternative to cone. Maisey had to have a cone due to a tumor above her eye, it drove her bonkers. When Vinney got a sore spot in the middle of his shoulder blades, I made a jacket for him -like the ones you can buy in the store (but shorter and wider) so he couldn't get to it. Maybe just a belly band would do, out of soft fabric or polar tec fabric.
 
Well i am going to have to look into that. I bought a cone and 2 mins later he had it off. I am just so frustrated with all this. Im unemployed and cant afford all these vet bills if this doesnt clear up because they are going to want to test for cancer. Plus i came home and his poop is a reddish color again like he is bleeding. Thanks for your help and concern :)

Heather and Jinx
 
Hi, I have no idea what to say that would be beneficial - I have never seen this, but how scary. Wishing you both peace of mind & speedy healing :YMHUG:
 
Hi!

When my Porkchop had raw spots, he wore a cone for a while (he was pretty good about it), but what worked even better was putting a t-shirt type garment on him (one made specifically for cats or dogs - he is a big 20-pounder, so I had to buy him a dog shirt). It covered his raw spots so he couldn't get at them.

Just a possible suggestion!
 
Thanks for that idea :) Jinx is 18 pounds himself so he's a little chunky too. I can tell he is unhappy with the cone so i think i will return it and try the tshirt thing. How much do they normally cost?
 
Well i returned the cone and bought him a t shirt. I think he actually likes it. Now heres to hoping that he heals and i get a job tomorrow so i can get him the test he needs if it doesnt heal. I want my baby to be better. I will not give up on him. No Matter what. I will figure something out. Hope everyone else is doing well :)



Heather and Jinx
 
Heather,
My Bob had a vet appointment today and while there, I showed her the picture you posted. Of course, she can't make a diagnosis based on that, but she did ask me a couple questions that I wasn't sure how to answer.
How old is Jinx?
Is any part of that picture a mammary gland?
Is there any other area on his belly with the same issue?

What she did say was -
It could be cancer, but impossible for her to tell.
As a rule, if there is a "mass" on a cat, it needs to be removed. Apparently the percentage chance that a cat mass is benign is much lower than say if it were on a dog. The decision to have or not have surgery would have to be made by you of course, but part of that decision would depend on Jinx's age and current health status (like how safe it would be to put him under anesthesia for instance).
If he is chewing on it or licking it a lot, then chances are it is either extremely itchy, or very painful, and either way, he's trying to make it "go away". For instance, if he had severed pain in his abdomen from pancreatitis, he could be trying to tell you that he's got extreme pain on the inside, and he can't make it go away from the outside, but he sure is going to keep trying.
As far as the bloody/red stool, she said that it would depend on color basically. She told me (and I've seen this at home), sometimes there are bright red drops and mucus, but that could indicate something as simple as tapeworms.
Or it could be very red, or very dark with the red only evident on the "inside" parts of the stool. The cause could range from iritated bowl, infection, or a problem along the intestinal or digestive track. The "darker" the stool, the further along in the digestive process the stool was when whatever is causing the "red" to be present. Any organ involved in digestion could be the problem. Like someone else posted in your other thread, bright red on the outside is probably due to bleeding in the colon area.
I know that most of that information is very "not-definite", but I don't imagine it's easy to make a diagnosis accurately based on just a photo knowing very little about Jinx and his history. I thought I would pass it along anyway, in hopes that maybe something she said will make sense to your vet.

Hope Jinx is feeling better soon,
Carl in SC
 
Thank you for showing your vet the picture. It really means a lot to know that people care. His belly is starting to heal which is good but i do feel like there is something really not right with him. I bought a doggie t shirt for him to wear so he cant reach the spot. I tried the collar but he looked so sad i couldnt make him any more miserable. He doesnt quite seem like himself. Some days he seems ok and others he just seems to sleep and isnt moving around a lot. He is only 8 years old and he has been a diabetic for 3 years now. I am without a job right now so money is a big issue. Im just trying to make sure he is comfortable until i get a job or my unemployment finally comes through. I dont want to have to put him down just because i dont have the money to figure out if it is something minor or more serious. If it was serious i would unfortuanetly have to put him down if it were cancer or super expensive. That is what breaks my heart. I feel like i have let him down. I did notice he was laying on my bed for a long time so i made him go downstairs and put him in the litter box. He almost instantly starts to pee and than poop. Its sad because he has been pooping on the couch and i dont know if it is because he just cant make it downstairs because of lack of energy. and after he was done he just stood there. I had to get down on my knees and call him so he would get out. This seems odd to me. His poop is back to a normal color again. I took him of his antibotic because that was always when his poop had that red color to it. It was always when he was on the med. I feel so stuck and torn at what to do. I dont want him to be in pain. I dont think that he is in pain at least not a lot if he is.

Thank you for you help !

Heather and Jinx
 
heatherjo said:
That is what breaks my heart. I feel like i have let him down.
Click to expand...

Heather,
I said something along those lines to my vet today. Like "I had to do something (to save Bob) because it's MY fault that he got obese and I was feeding him wrong his whole life!" And she (sounding like my Mom) said "Don't ever think that! You've had lots of cats over the past however many years, and you fed them all the same, right? And Bob is the only one who ever got diabetes." She told me not to blame myself for circumstances beyond my control. Right now, your circumstances really suck, and it doesn't sound like you have too much control over them. You're doing what you can, and obviously you care deeply for Jinx. Just keep doing what you're doing, and make his life - whether that's weeks, months, or years from now - as good for him as you possibly can.
Have you been told whether or not he has pancreatitus currently? Have you had his potasium levels checked? I was told today that low potasium will show itself by lethargic behavior and a general "feeling like crap" attitude. Is he showing any signs of dehydration? Bob was severely dehydrated to the point where his joints were actually dry enough to cause him great pain whenever he moved. All of that can be going on at the same time as diabetes. All of it can be causing Jinx's reluctance to move even when he knows he needs to get to the litter box. It also sounds like the red stool is definitely related to the anti-biotic since it stops when you stop the meds. Maybe the vet can prescribe another drug or maybe somebody here has a suggestion for a "natural" anti-b that can fix the infection without adverse effects.

Please, don't be blaming yourself. Just do what you can do. Jinx knows he is loved.

Carl in SC
 
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