Hi there.
Would like some guidance/what would you do, type advice.
Situation, my mum and fathers cat. I do not live there, though have in the past and grown up with our cat as well so to speak. So my parents who are both retired, want my say in it though they live with him. I also act as the bridge between vet and them - as sometimes they can't comprehend all the information at once - so after a vet visit I list it out bit by bit for them. If that makes sense. They love their pets and have two elderly dogs aswell.
So our cat - he is turning 16 in a couple of months.
Since birth he has had a heart murmur that was stable enough to let it be.
The last couple of years he's had a slight limp, and cataracts that the vet wasn't too concerned about at the time.
Couple of months ago he had a sudden decline in weight, began going toilet inside, and his fur coat was a bit of a mess (lack of grooming due to lack of energy).
Took him to the vet and they diagnosed him with diabetes. He was given insulin and told he'd be checked again later to see if its helped. On top of this, the vet noticed he would need dental surgery, but at that stage just to leave it so we could monitor his diabetes.
This week specifically I noticed his limp had worsened, and he was less patient with everyone (other dogs, even petting), he was booked into the vets anyway as it was now time to check on his diagnosis.
He has gained a bit of weight, which is good, but the rest of the news isn't.
He needs dental surgery asap as he has developed an ulcer.
His heart murmur has worsened and needs to be treated.
His front leg does not feel good he has arthritis most likely, and his back legs aren't either like he doesn't want to put much weight on them (this is new).
His cataracts have also worsened.
The blood from his diabetes is not stable either, so the vet will change the insulin dosage.
During the vet visit, it was noticed an area of his stomach is particularly sore, so another issue might be happening too.
The trouble is with so much going wrong, how long do you continue for?
We realize that the diabetes is still not under control (as evident from the blood test this week) and this may be causing everything else to worsen. The vet said it might take some time and experimentation to stabilize his diabetes's.
The vet said we can throw everything we can in terms of treatment and he may live comfortably for 1 or 2 years more, but nothing will get better/heal so to speak, and some of his condition may get worse.
That all said... right now he needs the dental work done.
With his heart being like it is it puts him at high risk with dental surgery too. We need to do bloods, a chest x-ray and a heart trace first to see what pressure his heart might be under with surgery, though he is already high risk given age and what's happening.
And also we need to see whats wrong with this area of his stomach.
He sleeps most of the time, and he will play a little with his favourite toy (he has had since birth), and eats fine.
My mum is the one who cares for him, gives him his insulin injection (she is terrified of needles but got over her fear to help him).
But is it fair to keep him going, put him through the dental surgery, knowing he'll have these issues which will not get better, just get stable or potentially get worse?
Yet, I also dont want to feel like we are giving up on him.
My parents are under the impression he's just in pain and are prepared to put him down in a couple of days (our vet visit was today so they are having a sleep over it.) But I did explain that with all the treatment then maybe his pain will be managed. But with the uncertainty it is hard. They recognize he is 15 and on those golden years of life path too.
Any advice, or what would you do, or anyone gone through similar?
Would like some guidance/what would you do, type advice.
Situation, my mum and fathers cat. I do not live there, though have in the past and grown up with our cat as well so to speak. So my parents who are both retired, want my say in it though they live with him. I also act as the bridge between vet and them - as sometimes they can't comprehend all the information at once - so after a vet visit I list it out bit by bit for them. If that makes sense. They love their pets and have two elderly dogs aswell.
So our cat - he is turning 16 in a couple of months.
Since birth he has had a heart murmur that was stable enough to let it be.
The last couple of years he's had a slight limp, and cataracts that the vet wasn't too concerned about at the time.
Couple of months ago he had a sudden decline in weight, began going toilet inside, and his fur coat was a bit of a mess (lack of grooming due to lack of energy).
Took him to the vet and they diagnosed him with diabetes. He was given insulin and told he'd be checked again later to see if its helped. On top of this, the vet noticed he would need dental surgery, but at that stage just to leave it so we could monitor his diabetes.
This week specifically I noticed his limp had worsened, and he was less patient with everyone (other dogs, even petting), he was booked into the vets anyway as it was now time to check on his diagnosis.
He has gained a bit of weight, which is good, but the rest of the news isn't.
He needs dental surgery asap as he has developed an ulcer.
His heart murmur has worsened and needs to be treated.
His front leg does not feel good he has arthritis most likely, and his back legs aren't either like he doesn't want to put much weight on them (this is new).
His cataracts have also worsened.
The blood from his diabetes is not stable either, so the vet will change the insulin dosage.
During the vet visit, it was noticed an area of his stomach is particularly sore, so another issue might be happening too.
The trouble is with so much going wrong, how long do you continue for?
We realize that the diabetes is still not under control (as evident from the blood test this week) and this may be causing everything else to worsen. The vet said it might take some time and experimentation to stabilize his diabetes's.
The vet said we can throw everything we can in terms of treatment and he may live comfortably for 1 or 2 years more, but nothing will get better/heal so to speak, and some of his condition may get worse.
That all said... right now he needs the dental work done.
With his heart being like it is it puts him at high risk with dental surgery too. We need to do bloods, a chest x-ray and a heart trace first to see what pressure his heart might be under with surgery, though he is already high risk given age and what's happening.
And also we need to see whats wrong with this area of his stomach.
He sleeps most of the time, and he will play a little with his favourite toy (he has had since birth), and eats fine.
My mum is the one who cares for him, gives him his insulin injection (she is terrified of needles but got over her fear to help him).
But is it fair to keep him going, put him through the dental surgery, knowing he'll have these issues which will not get better, just get stable or potentially get worse?
Yet, I also dont want to feel like we are giving up on him.
My parents are under the impression he's just in pain and are prepared to put him down in a couple of days (our vet visit was today so they are having a sleep over it.) But I did explain that with all the treatment then maybe his pain will be managed. But with the uncertainty it is hard. They recognize he is 15 and on those golden years of life path too.
Any advice, or what would you do, or anyone gone through similar?
