Sick 6 month old sick(wobbly)kitten

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Monicoon

Monicoon

Member Since 2015
Hello everyone. I was hoping someone could give me a little guidance. I have a 6 month old kitten(Sasha) who I took on as a rescue. She has battled upper respiratory issues from the start. The vet recently expressed concern that she could very well have FIP. I have been reading about FIP and came across symptoms that sound just like my kitty in your forum. Is diabetes frequently misdiagnosed as FIP ?? I don't want to loose her because of a misdiagnosis! Sooo sad.... Any input would be greatly appreciated. Monicoon.
 
Hi

I have no idea but perhaps if you describe your cats symptoms in more detail then I am sure that others will help.

I guess the best way of knowing would be to actually test her blood glucose at home.
 
phlika29 said:
Hi

I have no idea but perhaps if you describe your cats symptoms in more detail then I am sure that others will help.

I guess the best way of knowing would be to actually test her blood glucose at home.
Click to expand...
phlika29 said:
Hi

I have no idea but perhaps if you describe your cats symptoms in more detail then I am sure that others will help.

I guess the best way of knowing would be to actually test her blood glucose at home.
Click to expand...
 
Use my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools to assess what you can in your kitten. KetoDiaStix will detect both ketones and glucose in the urine. Ketones in the urine can be a medical emergency. Glucose in the urine can be diabetes or another reason for elevated glucoe in the blood being filtered out into the urine.
These will give you some things to discuss with the vet.
 
phlika29 said:
Hi

I have no idea but perhaps if you describe your cats symptoms in more detail then I am sure that others will help.

I guess the best way of knowing would be to actually test her blood glucose at home.
Click to expand...

Sasha's symptoms are loss of appetite, she was drinking often and not at all now(I am feeding her by syringe a high calorie wet can food vet gave me, I noticed her licking at the litter-floor-rugs- just about anything(wierd), low energy, very wobbly on feet, not getting to litter box in time so I'm helping her( stool was solid noticed it is loose). She seems to have some interest in trying to get around in the morning but steadily declines through out the day. These symptoms are just in the past 2 weeks but becoming more urgent.
 
Lisa and Witn (GA) said:
Has she been to the vet since the wobbliness started? If not, I think that she may need go.
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Yes, she has been twice for this within days of one another. After first appointment she became noticeably wobbly. At both visits she was given b12 shot, steroid shot. In addition, at first visit she was given an antibiotic injection and fluid under the skin shot, at second appointment she gave me a strong oral antibiotic to give at home.
 
Ho
phlika29 said:
Hi

I have no idea but perhaps if you describe your cats symptoms in more detail then I am sure that others will help.

I guess the best way of knowing would be to actually test her blood glucose at home.
Click to expand...

How do I test blood glucose at home?
 
BJM said:
Use my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools to assess what you can in your kitten. KetoDiaStix will detect both ketones and glucose in the urine. Ketones in the urine can be a medical emergency. Glucose in the urine can be diabetes or another reason for elevated glucoe in the blood being filtered out into the urine.
These will give you some things to discuss with the vet.
Click to expand...

Where can I get KetoDiaStix?
 
You can pick up a blood glucose monitor from the store and some test strips. Most US members use region confirm or micro I think. You also need the lancets designed for testing alternative sites (they are bigger).

Once you have those you can prick the ear, draw blood and use the meter to check all is in normal range.

@KPassa cat was young when diagnosed so may now more.

Will get a helpful link in a second

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/hometesting-links-and-tips.287/
 
Walmarts stock Relion Confirm and Micro glucometers. Both are popular with members here.

You should be able to pick up ketodiastix (or similar) at any pharmacy.

I see Sarah has already advised you about @KPassa and her cat, Michelangelo, who was diagnosed with diabetes as a baby. Hopefully Kay will swing by soon and see if there's anything she can advise you about.

Sending healing vibes and gentle scritches to little Sasha.
.
 
Critter Mom said:
Walmarts stock Relion Confirm and Micro glucometers. Both are popular with members here.

You should be able to pick up ketodiastix (or similar) at any pharmacy.

I see Sarah has already advised you about @KPassa and her cat, Michelangelo, who was diagnosed with diabetes as a baby. Hopefully Kay will swing by soon and see if there's anything she can advise you about.

Sending healing vibes and gentle scritches to little Sasha.
.
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I am complete newbie to this so what I'm understanding is that I need the Relion Confirm or Micro glucometer AND the KetoDiaStix in order to perform at home test??
 
Yep.

The glucometer will enable you to do a home test for the concentration of glucose in Sasha's blood by drawing a sample from either the side of her ear (preferable) or a paw pad (alternative site if the ear proves a bit tricky).

The Ketodiastix are dipped into a sample of fresh urine to home test for ketones.

Keep asking questions - there are lots of people here who can help. :)
 
1) blood glucose testing: meter, test strips for meter, 26-28 gauge lancets (labeled for alternate site testing sometimes)
2) urine ketone & glucose testing: KetoDiaStix or similar
 
Critter Mom said:
Yep.

The glucometer will enable you to do a home test for the concentration of glucose in Sasha's blood by drawing a sample from either the side of her ear (preferable) or a paw pad (alternative site if the ear proves a bit tricky).

The Ketodiastix are dipped into a sample of fresh urine to home test for ketones.

Keep asking questions - there are lots of people here who can help. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks! heres another: How do you dip strip into urine? I'm assuming I hold the strip under her as she's squatting in litterbox?
 
Monicoon said:
Thanks! heres another: How do you dip strip into urine? I'm assuming I hold the strip under her as she's squatting in litterbox?
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If you can manage it, that's the quickest and easiest way! Some members here have reported using a ladle or similar to catch some urine. (My girl squats so low I have to use non-absorbent granules in her llitter tray in order to collect samples.)

Check the bottle the strips come in when you get them. The test is time sensitive so you need to know how many seconds to wait before comparing the strip to the colour chart to get a valid result. (Note: the colour on the strip may continue to change after you have read the strip at the required time but you should ignore that.)
 
Yes sorry forgot about the urine strips. Before remi was diagnosed I just used the pee test strips. Much easier than the blood testing and it will quickly show you whether she has any glucose in her urine.
 
Thank you all!! I'm going out now to get what I need. I'll let you know how it goes :-) And at the very least something more to discuss with the vet! Fingers crossed!
 
Sasha's such a sweetie! I look forward to reading your update. Sending more scritches for your little one. :)
 
Has your vet run any blood tests? Your vet should run a corona virus test, Elisa specific. I would also have the vet run a regular corona virus test that doesn't specify. The Elisa specific test is for FIP, but it can sometimes miss picking it up (it did on my kitty at the beginning). The nonspecific test is much more broad, but may pick up even the common cold (a corona virus). If the Elisa specific does come back positive for FIP, I would suggest putting your kitty down. There isn't anything that can really be done and the animal ends up suffering greatly. Let's hope it's not FIP and is something manageable instead.
 
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ELISA means Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay - its a specific way to test for stuff.
You might have the vet run a respiratory panel for several other types of infection. Spitzer turned out to have a form of Bartonella, not herpes virus, causing his chronic respiratory symptoms. My vet used a respiratory panel from IDEXX.
 
Definitely get her checked for FIP. I'm not familiar enough with it to offer any suggestions, but the ELIZA test sounds like a good route.

How long ago did she receive the steroid shot? The silver lining is that she might have steroid-induced diabetes. If so, this increases her chances of remission, if she is in fact diabetic.

Please let us know how the testing goes!
 
It appears you want this test:
https://www.idexx.com/files/small-a...ories/feline-infectious-peritonitis-virus.pdf

This
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/FHC/health_resources/brochure_ftp.cfm
includes:

Can my cat be tested for FIP?

One of the most difficult aspects of FIP is that there is no simple diagnostic test. The ELISA, IFA, and virus-neutralization tests detect the presence of coronavirus antibodies in a cat, but these tests cannot differentiate between the various strains of feline coronavirus. A positive result means only that the cat has had a prior exposure to coronavirus, but not necessarily one that causes FIP.

The number that is reported from these tests is called an antibody titer. Low titers indicate a small amount of coronavirus antibodies, while high titers indicate much greater amounts of antibodies. A healthy cat with a high titer, however, is not necessarily more likely to develop FIP or be a carrier of an FIP-causing coronavirus than a cat with a low titer. A cat with a high titer is also not necessarily protected against developing FIP in the future.

Other tests have been developed that can detect parts of the virus itself. The immunoperoxidase test detects virus-infected cells in the tissue, but a biopsy of affected tissue is necessary for evaluation. Another antigen test uses polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect viral genetic material in tissue or body fluid. Although this test shows promise, PCR is presently only capable of detecting coronaviruses in general, not necessarily those that cause FIP.

To date, there is no way to screen healthy cats for the risk of developing FIP, and the only way to definitively diagnose FIP is by biopsy, or examination of tissues at autopsy. Generally, veterinarians may rely on a presumptive diagnosis, which can be made with a relatively high degree of confidence by evaluation of the cat's history, presenting symptoms, examination of fluid if it is present, and the results of supporting laboratory tests including a positive coronavirus antibody titer.
 
KPassa said:
Definitely get her checked for FIP. I'm not familiar enough with it to offer any suggestions, but the ELIZA test sounds like a good route.

How long ago did she receive the steroid shot? The silver lining is that she might have steroid-induced diabetes. If so, this increases her chances of remission, if she is in fact diabetic.

Please let us know how the testing goes!
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Sasha received 1 steroid shot 2/3/15. Also, she became wobbly after this visit. Before this visit she was lethargic but not falling over.
 
Were you able to get a glucometer and test strips? At this point, seeing what her BGs are at is the easiest way to tell if she's diabetic.

What are you currently feeding her and how often and how much?
 
The vet will probably run the ELISA specific corona virus test if you mention FIP (all the vets I have ever worked with have referred to this as an ELISA specific corona virus test. I'm not sure why, as this does not seem to technically be the correct technical term.) I would also still have them run the second test that they refer to as a nonspecific corona virus test.

Edwin has been tested many times over the years, since his sister Irene died from FIP, to ensure that he is not carrying the disease. Some cats can carry FIP and never show any symptoms or have any problems. The ELISA specific has never tested positive for him, but the broad/nonspecific corona virus test has come back positive on occasion. That's why I never got another cat, even though it's possible that it's not FIP showing up in him, just one of the many, many viruses in the corona family.

For syringe feeding of food, the vet should be able to direct you to some really highly calorie dense food. For Irene, I could only feed 2 tsp every 2 hours around the clock or she would begin vomiting. I did this for over a month because her initial FIP test came back negative. The final diagnosis of FIP came only after surgery to place a j-tube for feeding. The vets sent away some of the fluid in her abdomen for testing and that's what finally showed the FIP. Of course, she had already passed before the results came back, but at least it gave me the knowledge to keep testing Edwin.

Good luck and let's hope this is anything but FIP. If it is, let's hope that testing has gotten better in the past 12 years and you'll know sooner rather than later.
 
KPassa said:
Were you able to get a glucometer and test strips? At this point, seeing what her BGs are at is the easiest way to tell if she's diabetic.

What are you currently feeding her and how often and how much?
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Yes, I got the meter & strips. I read a related thread that told me how to draw the blood - very helpful! I got it with the help of my daughter :) Sasha's BG READ 106. Not sure what this means yet. Just finished the test. Also, I'm feeding her 3-6 ml every 2-3 hrs until midnightish then I resume these feeding around 5:30am of IAMS maximum calorie plus canned food. It's very watery- easy to syringe feed!
 
See my signature link Glucometer Notes for reference range. That was a non-diabetic number.
 
I'd be interested in hearing how you two are doing too. I've been thinking about you guys. I'm hoping things are better or, at the very least, you've received some answers about what is going on.
 
Thank you all for your help with my little Sasha. I'm sorry to say that she lost her battle with FIP. It came on so suddenly and took her far too soon. I've never seen FIP before and hope never to again! My only solace is that we did get to love her, and she was so loved, for the time she was here. Although it did not turn out to be, I'm truly grateful for all that I have learned about feline diabetes from this site. It is so comforting to know if I ever need I can turn to people who care as much as you all do. Thank you ALL.
 
I am so very very sorry to hear about sasha. She obviously bought you a lot of love and happiness in the short time you were with her and she couldn't have had a better home.

Fly free and land softly sasha.
 
That is heartbreaking to hear. I'm so sorry for your loss. :bighug:You did everything you could to make Sasha's short time on earth filled with love.:rb_icon:
 
I'm so sorry to hear of Sasha's crossing. It must be very hard for you to lose her so young. Thank you for being there for her so that, even though she wasn't in this realm for very long, she knew what it is to love and be loved in return.

:bighug:
 
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Lighting a ring of candles, in memory of your beloved Sasha.
candle.jpg
 
I'm so sorry to hear about Sasha's passing. I too have seen FIP firsthand and know what a terrible thing it is. I also hope to never see it again. It's always so hard to lose a cat so young and in such a difficult way, but at least you got to love her, and she you, for what time you did have.
 
KPassa said:
That is heartbreaking to hear. I'm so sorry for your loss. :bighug:You did everything you could to make Sasha's short time on earth filled with love.:rb_icon:
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Again, I want to thank you ALL! She passed to a better place February 12 in my arms and I wouldn't have wanted any other way. Ever since, her sibling Simba(not biological- adopted them about a month apart) has this facination(especially when your holding her) with looking up at the ceiling, reaching with her paws & chatting. It's makes me feel like our Sasha is still with us. :) Thank you for the candles, and the purrs, and the prayers, and all the loving thoughts. Xoxoxo
 
BJM said:
See my signature link Glucometer Notes for reference range. That was a non-diabetic number.
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Hello to you all again. It's been sometime. I was wondering about my "old man" Buddy. I just tested his BG today because he's been loosing weight but eating normal to more often and urinating larger quantities. His reading was 86. Input would be appreciated :-)
 
I agree with BJM. A blood glucose of 86 would be in the normal range for a non-diabetic kitty, so I doubt that's what is going on. I would definitely schedule a visit to the vet.
 
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