Salty's Back from the Vet's Office...

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Registered: 01-23-2002
Salty's Back from the Vet's Office...
10
Mon, 06-14-2004 - 5:47pm
I left Salty at the vet's today for 5 hours. Her temp was 105.2 when I got her there. They gave her a complete blood count test and her numbers (white blood cells) were at the high end of normal. They said it was because she was fighting her kitty cold (URI). They did a fecal test and she had a parasite (Coccidia). She tested negative for FIV/FELV. They fed her some food and she wouldn't drink any water so they also injected her with some fluids to prevent dehydration. She got a Baytril injection plus something to reduce the fever. Her fever was down below 103 by the time I picked her up. I now have to give her Albon anti-biotic tablets for the next 6 days (to kill the parasite), as well as Baytril anti-biotic tablets to help her get over her infection from her cold. I forgot to ask the exact diagnosis (if it was bacterial as well as viral, etc.) She will go back on the 28th for a fecal re-check to see if the parasite is gone and also to get her rabies and some other vaccinations. Then a few weeks after that she'll go in for one last vaccination. (Is it normal for an indoor cat to need feline leukemia vaccines?) Poor thing! I hope she realizes I'm just trying to help her get healthy & happy. She's content now sleeping on her chair while I have the humidifier going to help with her congestion. When we got home, she ate a few bites of her dry food but still ignored the water. I'll just keep an eye on her.

The vet said after 3 more days or so of keeping her in isolation, I could then let her get acquainted gradually to the other cats. Keep your fingers crossed. LOL!

Thank you everyone so much for keeping her in your thoughts & prayers. She's had a hard time this month, but she should bounce back soon. I'm not looking forward to giving her 2 pills a day. LOL I guess it is best to do them both at the same time?

Have a great week. Lots of purrs from my furbabies to yours!

>^..^<

Suzy

Edited 6/14/2004 5:50 pm ET ET by suzypenguin


Edited 6/14/2004 5:53 pm ET ET by suzypenguin


iVillage Member
Registered: 04-07-2003
Mon, 06-14-2004 - 6:34pm
Awwww... poor little Salty! I sure hope she feels better soon. Not a great welcome to her new home, but at least she is getting the care she needs! You are a great furmom and Salty is lucky to have found you!

It's tough doing things to our furbabies that they don't like - I wish we could just explain that we are doing it to help them! I have to start bathing my Tasha with chlorhexidine shampoo tonight to help fight off her ringworm. The best part is that I have to leave the shampoo on her for 5-10 minutes before rinsing. I wish I could tell her that it will just be about 15-20 minutes total, and that I am doing it for her own good! I know she will probably hate me for awhile.



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Registered: 05-06-2004
Mon, 06-14-2004 - 9:19pm
Sounds like your vet is alot better than the er clinic! Thank goodness you took the cat to be checked. Will she eat can food? It's suppose to have alot of water in it. I read to feed a sick cat chicken soup. I don't guess it would hurt. My vet doesn't give his own cats the feline leuk. vaccine. It can cause cancer at the shot site. He said the more times the cat has the shot, the greater the risk. Some get the shot in their tail(sounds painful) or a leg so they can amputate only that area if cancer shows up. I don't think an inside cat needs the vaccine. I did have a stray scratch one of my outside cats on the nose, I ended up losing 3 cats to leukemia. There isn't an easy answer to this. donna
iVillage Member
Registered: 08-10-2003
Mon, 06-14-2004 - 11:18pm
Suzy,

The feline leukemia vaccine has a bad track record. My beloved and very healthy cat developed cancer and died a few months after receiving this vaccine, when it first came out (about 20 years ago). At the time I thought I was doing the right thing. I have since read as much as I can about vaccines. Many holistic vets use them sparingly. Most vaccines last several years, not the one year we are lead to believe. If you must give vaccines, give only what really seems necessary, one at a time and in different locations on the body. But avoid the feline leuk. vaccine. Keep your cat indoors and healthy.

By the way, Baytril is an antibiotic, and as such works on bacterial infections. Respiratory infections are viral in nature and antibiotics do not work on them (as with our common cold). Some vets give Baytril saying a secondary bacterial infection could develop when there is a respiratory infection. Here, too, I feel it is wise to make sure there actually is something the antibiotics are treating and not give it in case something develops. Overuse of antibiotics can cause it's own problems.

Cynthia

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Mon, 06-14-2004 - 11:27pm

Awwww, poor girl, no wonder she doesn't feel good.


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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-23-2002
Tue, 06-15-2004 - 1:11am
Thanks for your positive thoughts for little Salty. She ate a tiny bit of canned food for me, but still no water. I have tried taking her temp with the ear thermometer (the vet said that's ok) but it's a challenge. She feels a bit warm to me, but the temp I registered was in the normal range. She's still real lethargic. I wish she understood what was going on.

How did your bath for Tasha go? I bet it is hard leaving the shampoo on 5-10 minutes. It must feel like an eternity. I'm sure she'll realize you're trying to help once she feels better. Funny enough, giving my dh's cat Thomie a bath a few months after she'd first met me was a turning point for us. She is a very independent cat and doesn't warm up to people quickly. She has longer fur and it was matted around her rear & dirty. I shaved & trimmed her fur in those delicate parts & bathed her. She seemed to appreciate it afterwards when she realized she felt better. From then on she let me hold her, etc. My dh was stunned since he said no one else had been able to do that with her. LOL


iVillage Member
Registered: 01-23-2002
Tue, 06-15-2004 - 1:16am
I agree, my vet did seem to do more for Salty than the ER, though I'm glad they temporarily reduced her temp at least. My vet works at an exclusively cats practice. I did get her to eat a tiny spoon full of canned food (thinking of the moisture content being a plus). She ate a few nibbles of dry food earlier, too. She had some tiny amount of chicken broth yesterday. I will have to talk to my vet about that shot. My cats will be indoor cats, so I'm not sure what to do.

Thanks for the info & for thinking of Salty! :-)

Suzy


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Registered: 01-23-2002
Tue, 06-15-2004 - 1:28am
Thank you Cynthia for the information. I will definitely talk it over with my vet. She tested negative and will be kept indoors, so hopefully we can skip these shots. The Humane Society had given her a FVRCP vaccination. Do you know what that is for? My vet said she'd get a second one of those late this month, but I don't know what it is & I forgot to ask. By law we have to give cats here in Nebraska rabies shots, so she'll end up getting one of those. I wish we didn't have to have those every year.

I don't know if Salty has a bacterial infection along with the viral one. She is congested and ran a fever, which were possible signs of bacterial problems. I hate unnecessary medication also. I put a lot of trust in my vet since she's always done well for our pets and for the cats of various friends of ours. I just want my baby to get better.

Thanks again for the info & for thinking of Salty :-)


iVillage Member
Registered: 01-23-2002
Tue, 06-15-2004 - 1:31am
I think I will give her both pills at the same time. I may wait until evening when dh is home to help hold her. LOL I will let you know how it goes tomorrow.

She is sleeping now. She was crying a bit earlier, which breaks my heart. I keep wondering what she's trying to tell me. I hate seeing her feel so poorly. Hopefully she will get better with each new day.

Thanks from me & Salty :-)


iVillage Member
Registered: 12-01-2003
Tue, 06-15-2004 - 8:17am
I am so glad she is ok and back home!!!I hope she improves each day! Tiger was a indoor cat and I never had him get the FIV shot!!!

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-23-2002
Tue, 06-15-2004 - 11:28am
Thanks for the feedback about the FIV shot. I am really thinking she should not get it now. I will ask the doctor if our other 3 cats ever had it (I don't recall that they did). If not, why should little Salty? They will all be protected indoors.

Hope everything is going well with you & I will keep you updated on Salty's progress. :-)

Hugs,

Suzy