Saw the ER vet.......got answers

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Kris10mo

Kris10mo

Member Since 2014
Well.....Calley has HBP. Just like everyone thought. This was a much more detailed exam. They checked her BP, they took her temp(which was high), and they listened to her heart.

Her BP was 220, her temp was 103, but her heart rate was strong and steady.

The vet looked at her eyes. She said that she saw evidence of hemorrhage and that there is partial detachment of the retinas. Vet is hopeful of vision improvement....maybe some light/dark type of thing, but warned that full vision is most likely not going to happen. :(

She is wondering about a possible kidney or heart issue as she says that HBP usually does not happen by itself and is rather a secondary condition of something else.

So Calley was given HBP pill today. They gave me Rx for liquid HBP for me to start tomorrow. We go back in a week for follow up.

That is all I know as of now. So the vigil starts....got to watch her for signs of BP medicine reactions.

I feel better knowing what it is that caused the eye problems. The vet says that as well as Calley is going with her lack of sight....that she has probably been going blind over time. So I feel better knowing that is isn't something I missed or caused. She said the hypo episode had nothing to do with the HBP. And that the HBP is what caused the dilation.

Help...those that deal with HBP meds with their cats....I need advice how to give it...what works best etc. Thank you.
 
I'm so glad you got an answer! And it sounds like this vet practice is on the ball.
Good luck with management. You can do it!
 
I am so relieved that you have an answer and a plan in place now...this ER vet sounds perfect!!! High BP is manageable...and it is great to have an answer no matter what. 220 is VERY hypertensive, so it is awesome that you caught this now and can get her started on meds.

ECID when it comes to BP meds. Trix has been on amlodpine pills since April. At first the amlodipine by itself didn't work, so the vet added in benazepril. That did the trick for bringing Trix's BP down into the normal range. At this point, Trix gets amlodipine once a day, and benazepril twice a day (her info is in our signature), but we did have to do several tweaks to get to this point with her dose.

My GA civvie, Mario, only ever needed the amlodpine to control his BP. He was on it twice a day for 2 years before he crossed.

With both of them, I am/was just as meticulous about the timing of their meds as I was about Trix's insulin. I give it at the same time every day. Mario needed it twice a day, so I was very specific about being on a 12/12 schedule with him.

If Calley ends up on a twice a day/12/12 schedule, you want to take her for BP checks about 6 hours after she has the meds, as that should be the "peak"/nadir. If she's on it once a day, I would give her the meds in the morning, and take her in the evening for a BP check if that's possible. For us, Trix gets her meds at 6:45am, and I take her about 6:00PM for BP checks.

Once her BP is down in the normal range, you do still want to take her about every 3 months (or less) for follow up checks, as their needs can change. I've had to make several adjustments for both Mario and Trix - both up and down. It's a bummer we can't check their BP at home!

Didn't Calley just have BW that showed everything was fine? It is true that high BP can go hand-in-hand with CKD and hyperthyroidism, but it IS possible that the high BP is just that - stand alone hypertension. But hypertension in any form can cause issues, so you do want to keep tabs on her kidneys. As I mentioned the other day, I'm pretty sure Trix's kidney issues are tied to uncontrolled high BP.

Sending prayers that her eyes will heal from this. Great job, Kris!!
 
Oh I'm so glad you finally have some answers Kris!!

I can't help with the BP meds question other than general "how to pill" advice, but I sure hope she does well and can regain a little of her sight.

Will the ER vet continue to see her? Most ER vets don't continue seeing patients on an ongoing basis, so you may have to keep up your search for a general vet/internal medicine vet that has the equipment to monitor her going forward.

Sending lots of healing vines and prayers that she'll be able to regain much(if not all) of her eyesight back!
 
I'm so glad you were persistent! Now you have a place to start and there's something you can do.

I want to put this out there for you to consider -- no pressure. You had to see multiple vets to get an answer that so many of us non-vets thought was pretty obvious. Two of those vets didn't do a thorough exam resulting in information that is likely wrong (i.e., complete retinal detachment). Maybe you need to consider finding a vet that listens to you and has what I would consider to be pretty basic equipment (i.e., a way to take a cat's BP) in the office. FWIW, the vet I was using in Chicago took Gabby's BP routinely once she turned 12yo. It looks like there are a couple of cat only practices in St.Louis. They may be worth considering.
 
Max has high BP that is primary BP and not due to kidney or hyperthyroid. He's been on amlodipine for a couple of years now. I suspect it is more common than many believe because it is not checked routinely if ever. I actually asked for it to be checked as a baseline. Max also has a heart murmur but the echo showed it is bengn and he didn't have heart disease. I'm so glad you got it checked.
 
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Kristin
i am so happy that you found a doctor who was good. you are awesome for pursuing this and getting an answer. just a thought for you since vet visits are expensive, maybe it would be worth learning how to check bp yourself. this link is just an idea of what's out there for purchase. maybe the good er doc can show you how to do it. it looks like the digital ones can be done automatically. you just wrap the cuff & you don't have to listen....just read the digital read out. it would prob be less expensive to get this if u have to bring her in alot of time to get bp checked. let me know if u are interested in getting this. i would be happy to research the best & most cost effective option for you.
GREAT JOB KRISTEN

http://www.ebay.com/bhp/veterinary-blood-pressure-monitor
 

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I would be very cautious about purchasing veterinary BP equipment to use at home. Unfortunately checking a kitty's BP is not nearly as easy as checking their BGs, and it is my understanding that any equipment a "layperson" could afford is not accurate at all. Plus, only a vet can make dosage changes when it comes to BP meds.
 
oh thanks Amy. that's too bad. well... it was a thought. know she couldn't change the meds. just thought it would be good to know what it was. i'm am EMT so i would prob want to check myself but if it's not accurate then that would defeat the purpose. thanks
 
I know...I really wish I could check Trix's BP at home, too, but from everything I heard, the vet's office is really the only way to do it - at least as of now!
 
good for you for persisting until you uncovered what was going on! way to advocate for your little sweetie!

The only thing i'm wondering is if the BP med you're starting tomorrow, the liquid, has any sugar in it. You might want to double-check before you pay for the prescription.
 
Kristin that is great that you persisted and got an answer about whether it was high BP and now you have medication for it. I hope Calley can regain her vision with the medication.
 
First off...what does ECID mean? LOL. I don't know :). Secondly, the ER vet I saw can be Calley's regular vet. This vet practice is open 24/7 and the ER hours/prices only happen after certain hours, so as long as I schedule an appointment during the day(weekend for me since I work).....I can continue to work with the vet I saw today. Thank god. I won't bother with the local duds any longer. The ER vet is just a few miles away and the exam and care I got today cost less than the vets I saw that didn't do half the work. Sigh.

Julie, very good point about the liquid meds and sugar content. I would hope that the ER vet would have thought about that when prescribing, but ya never know. I will certainly ask about it before I pay. THANK YOU......I wouldn't have thought of that myself.

Feeling relieved, but at the same time, worried that I have to master yet another medical technique with Calley. More meds :( But I want to see if the eyes get better.

Thanks again everyone.
 
Every Cat Is Different. ;) They do like to surprise us. You're doing a super job with Calley. You'll be amazed at the things you will do for your cat. I know that I did things for Zener that were a huge challenge, but anything for our guy.
Liz
 
I am so glad that you got to the bottom of Calley's vision problem -- being persistent pays off. Also glad that you can use the ER vet as Calley's regular vet. It sounds like they are on top of things. My vet routinely does BP checks with both of my cats. If you are interested in finding out more about purchasing BP monitor and cuff and if it is accurate, you may want to send a message to Claudia and Rocket (GA). I know that she had a monitor and routinely checked Rocket's BP. Sending lots of healing vines and hoping that Calley will be able to regain some of her sight with the blood pressure med.
 
Talked with the pharmacist. He had mixed the liquid HBP meds with sugar....so he remixed them at my request with a sugar free version. Thank god. So Julie, thank you for the suggestion. Now I know to ask for it this way from now on. And the price isn't too bad....just $17.00.

I will let you know how the first dose goes with Miss Calley. She is so funny. She wanders into the kitchen....which to mean signals she is hungry. So I feed her. :)
 
What is the name of the medication you have been given? I use amlodipine pills that I buy at Costco and they are dirt cheap. I do have to cut them in half. They can be purchased as capsules from thrivingpets.com in the most usual dose but Max needs 2mg instead of l mg. I put the piece of the pill in an empty gelcap and 90% of the time am successful at getting it down. Once in awhile I find the gel cap and have to give it late like the other day when he got it two hours late.:eek: Did the vet say that you should come back for a recheck BP in about 7 days?

You can buy a machine that is as good as the ones that the vets use but it will cost you close to $1000. I wish I knew a few people that live close to me that would want to share one and then we could help each other out but no luck with that. I worry that Max may be artificially high at the vet's office between the dogs barking and his skittish personality. Forget the cheap ones as they won't work. :( I'm glad you found a good vet and have started the medication.
 
I'm so glad you found a good vet that you can work with! I hope the meds will help her to regain at least some sight. Kudos for persisting in getting the test done.
 
I talked with my local vet today, not the ER one, as she wanted to know how Calley was doing. I told her I took her to the ER vet and she was found to have HBP. The local vet said that the 220 number could have been due to Calley being scared/nervous and that there is no way to know for sure if she is really hypertensive. So.....COULD Calley be high because of her blindness and multiple vet visits?

Second, I got the meds from the pharmacy and immediately noticed that the form said that is had Ora Sweet on it. I went back to the vet and the pharmacist that mixed it was gone for the day. So.......we'll see if she goes sky high tonight/tomorrow morning with the dose I gave. Calley tolerated it ok.....I just hope she got it down.

I will be calling the pharmacist first thing in the morning to make sure I got the diabetic HBP meds.

I guess i'll know why I test her tomorrow morning.
 
It is POSSIBLE, but not probable, that Calley was that high because of stress. My own vet uses 170 as her "white coat syndrome" cut off point - these vets do know that cats are stressed and that their BP will therefore be inflated and they take that into account. I hate to say it, but I think the vet is trying to cover her you-know-what. Calley suddenly went blind, and her BP read very high...what more evidence does the original vet need that Calley is truly hypertensive? I am still so glad you got an actual BP reading for your sweet girl....sending prayers that her eyesight improves.
 
if you look up Ora Sweet it says they have both sugar and sugar free versions of it. hopefully they gave her the sugar free one. hope she's ok Kristin. i'm so sorry you have to go through this.
 

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I'm glad you've found a new vet who knows their stuff.

A couple of weeks ago I took Neko in for a BP check. They had an emergency so it took 1/2 hour before we got in, there was a barking dog, Neko was shaking (never does that) and growling during her BP check. She checked in at 215. A week later I asked her acupuncture vet to test her. Unfortunately a puppy jumped her carrier in the waiting room :rolleyes:, so she started out at 210, but dropped down to 172-180. Vetty was fine with those numbers. Stress can definitely make some difference if Calley is prone to that.
 
The first vet that wouldn't check her BP said there's no way to know for sure? I agree with Amy, sounds like a CYA statement to me. If there's no way to really tell, then they wouldn't ever prescribe meds for it bc it would be dangerous (in my humble opinion). That, to me, is like saying...well, a cat's BG can be raised because of vet stress, there's no way to really know, but let's put the cat on insulin just in case. Perhaps not exactly the same, but similar enough to me.

I think you've found a good vet to work with now. Keep asking questions and be Calley's advocate!
 
Well done, Kristin. Your persistence paid off. I hope the pharmacist gave you the sugar-free version of the med and that Calley will respond well to it.
You've gotten some great responses here today.
Have a good evening, stress-free!

Ella & Rusty
 
Thanks Nadine for the cute kitty hug. Yep I could use one....but sweet Calley needs it more. I loved her before this blindness...but now I HAVE to be more gentle and slow in picking her up/down and such; announce to her that "mama is here" when I approach her etc.

I sure hope that the elevated BP isn't a stress thing and is for real....not that I want her to be sick of course, but I don't want to be giving her meds needlessly and going for months trying to bring it down, when it isn't really up in the first place. Ack. But I'm going to try to not think that way and just trust the ER vet that she is high. I do think the local vet was doing a CYA backtrack thing. I'm done with local vet...both of them. Going to use the ER vet/animal hospital from now on.....if I can afford it. I know I can't afford to do weekly BP checks at 98$/wk.....that is for sure.
 
*whew* i'm so glad you asked about the meds. You'd think they'd know not to give a diabetic cat a sugary med, but you never know.

If you tell the vet you can't afford the weekly BP check at $98 each, I'd bet they'll give you a break on it. Vets value people who go the extra mile for their pets - and I don't think it's just for the money, but because the vet also values pets and they want to encourage people to do so.

I'm not sure that Elise (tiffmax) was saying that you would get it checked every week, or just the week AFTER you started the meds.
 
You shouldn't have to go weekly on a regular basis; you may need to go a week or two in a row until the vetty is happy with the results of the meds. Any time we've had to adjust Trix's meds, we've had to go back the next week to make sure she's in a safe range, and once she is there, we don't have to go back again for 3 months. But their needs usually do change, so those "every three month visits" are necessary. Also, with my vet, a BP check is a "tech visit", so I don't have to pay for the office visit; only for the BP check, which is still pricey, but cheaper than if I pay for an exam PLUS a BP check. You can ask your vet about that option, too.
 
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