carsoncassidy
Member Since 2012
Well... as you read in my 911 post last night, I noticed that my kitty, Kate was having severly elevated respirations. She went from just being a kitty that had her ear poked three times a day to breathing really fast, like 100 respirations a minute at one point. I chose not to take her to the vet last night as it is expensive and I know my cat. I did run to the pharmacy and grab some ketone strips and a thermometer. I never got a ketone reading, but her breathing settled down to the point where I was comfortable checking her every few hours just to make sure she was ok. I fell asleep around 12:30, up at 1, 3, 5 and finally 7am. We got ready and went to the vet at 8am. I left a message last night to let her know we were coming.
Kate's EKG came back ok. Her urinalysis was ok. Temp fine. Chest xrays, not so much. Turns out that everywhere that should be black in her lungs (indicating free air), is greyish/whiteish. Not good... not good at all. Fluid on her lungs. It's not bronchitis or pnuemonia. This is in combination with her little heart murmur is indicative of heart disease and something is going on with her lungs. Now, not only is Katekate diabetic, she's got heart disease and not getting enough oxygen. I have always known that Kate would sometimes have a raspy breath, but last night came on so suddenly. My boyfriend said I was overexagerating things and that she was "fine". Negative... I know my cat. I've had her for 10 years and I know what every move and every meow, whine, moan and growl she makes means. She was breathing hard and laid on the floor next to the bed. When she's sick in any shape, form, or fashion, she can be found in a closet or next to the bed. So when I got home from the vet I gave him a HUGE "I told you so!" or as Sheldon would say, "I informed you thusly".
For now Kate is on Furosemide Syrup, 1cc every 12 hours. It's a diuretic to get the fluid off her lungs so that we can actually look at her heart. Today in the xrays, you could only see a faint outline. My poor baby... Although, she has gained back a pound putting her at 8.3 pounds!!! Much better for her little petite frame... she went from 11 in March to 7 at the beginning of August. Again, she laid by the bed for a day or two and her fur looked like a scruffy cat so I took her in and viola! we have diabetes. We go back to the vet on Wednesday for another chest xray to see how her lungs look after her meds have done their work. Looks like the credit card will be coming out. Total vet bill so far in August, $329. :shock:
Kate's EKG came back ok. Her urinalysis was ok. Temp fine. Chest xrays, not so much. Turns out that everywhere that should be black in her lungs (indicating free air), is greyish/whiteish. Not good... not good at all. Fluid on her lungs. It's not bronchitis or pnuemonia. This is in combination with her little heart murmur is indicative of heart disease and something is going on with her lungs. Now, not only is Katekate diabetic, she's got heart disease and not getting enough oxygen. I have always known that Kate would sometimes have a raspy breath, but last night came on so suddenly. My boyfriend said I was overexagerating things and that she was "fine". Negative... I know my cat. I've had her for 10 years and I know what every move and every meow, whine, moan and growl she makes means. She was breathing hard and laid on the floor next to the bed. When she's sick in any shape, form, or fashion, she can be found in a closet or next to the bed. So when I got home from the vet I gave him a HUGE "I told you so!" or as Sheldon would say, "I informed you thusly".
For now Kate is on Furosemide Syrup, 1cc every 12 hours. It's a diuretic to get the fluid off her lungs so that we can actually look at her heart. Today in the xrays, you could only see a faint outline. My poor baby... Although, she has gained back a pound putting her at 8.3 pounds!!! Much better for her little petite frame... she went from 11 in March to 7 at the beginning of August. Again, she laid by the bed for a day or two and her fur looked like a scruffy cat so I took her in and viola! we have diabetes. We go back to the vet on Wednesday for another chest xray to see how her lungs look after her meds have done their work. Looks like the credit card will be coming out. Total vet bill so far in August, $329. :shock:
