Charlie Cat Update
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| Thu, 12-09-2004 - 12:47pm |
Our newest stray cat Charlie (we adopted him about 4 months ago after he had been hanging around the house for a couple months) has been scaring us lately. A couple weeks ago, I woke up in the morning and found him laid out on his side, panting, and occasionally making these horrible goose-honking noises. He was obviously very distressed. I quickly got dressed while my husband called the vet. Charlie moved a little during this time. It was obvious he was in great pain and trying to find a comfortable position. But when we picked him up he was really limp and cold. I got him to the vet and she wasn't hopeful. She figured he would be dead before noon, but she put him in a special oxygen cage to help him breathe and gave him a painkiller. By noon he was better. By evening he was eating and by the next day he was completely back to normal. She was so shocked! She ran a battery of test and finally decided that he had formed a blood clot in his heart (which is somewhat enlarged) and thrown it somewhere else in his body where it had caused great pain. Then it dissolved and he is all better.
She put him on baby aspirin to thin his blood, but a week and a half later it happened again while I was out of town. My husband had to take him to the emergency vet, who did the exact same thing and got the exact same results.
We took Charlie to an internist who did a battery of tests, but didn't come up with any new answers other than the blood clots. He wants to put Charlie on an injectible medication, which could cost up to $300 a month! We're still waiting to hear about that.
Meanwhile, Charlie continues to be a great cat that everyone loves. He's starting to dread the pill sessions though (baby aspirin twice a week, heart pill once a day, asthma pill twice a day just in case that's what's causing the breathing problems). But no one wants to give up on him. We've ruled out just about every other disease (infection, leukemia, lymphoma, AIDS... you name it, he's been tested for it).
He's our million-dollar kitty. :-) I just wish we knew for sure what was wrong.
Don't you wish they could talk?
B.J.

Ann
"The best thing you can save for your future is your soul"
Ann
Animals are forever - and so is their love.
Arwwww, poor