Civvie has swollen abdomen

My one civvie has a swollen abdomen. I had noticed she seemed a little chunky after the holidays, but nothing really crazy. We just went away for a couple days, and I was noticing this evening that she looks pregnant. I know she is not because a)spayed b)indoor only. She is otherwise acting normal, if not more "crazy" than usual. Not acting sick. I do not know for sure about her litterbox habits as it's impossible to tell her poop and urine clumps from my other civvie's.
What worries me is that it does not feel like abdominal fat-it's firm. It also worries me that her brother died of FIP when they were kittens (she is 5.5 yrs old now). And of my 3 cats, she is the most difficult to vet, just like her mom was. Lately she is spazzing over me clipping her claws even.

Is there anything I can do as a mini diagnostic at home? I'l be calling the vet after work tomorrow, unless it seems like a litterbox trip fixed things. Is there anything other than FIP that it can be? I'm trying not to panic. I don't want to google.

 

First thing - how long since you dewormed? That can cause exactly that.

Second thing - Bebo gets all swelled up like that when he has a hairball that can't move. A couple of doses of greasy hairball med resolves that one. Doesn't hurt to give even if no hairball!

If it were FIP, it would almost certainly have happened before now - usually happens with kittens and elderly or immune compromised cats.

Another cause which would require further vet testing is fluid buildup from heart problems. I hate mentioning this one so don't panic over it!

Deworm and hairball remedy - try those first, you'd know fairly quickly with either.

HUGS! Don't panic!

 

Will try those. I've got hairball stuff already.

 

I am not trying to be an alarmist, but a large, firm abdomen can be bad news. I had a cat who had previously had NO health issues at all but who suddenly had that symptom. The firmness was due to fluid/blood that was due to cancer. I lost him very quickly. Since being on this forum, I have also seen that same scenario repeated for someone else here. I hope your situation will turn out to be something much less serious, but I wanted you to be aware of this in case it impacts your decision on whether to try and get her to the vet.

 

We got a little hairball stuff into her last night but likely not enough. The other cats eat it off the tube, but not her!!

She doesn't have a huge pot belly, but if I didn't know she was spayed, I'd think she was pregnant. Another thing that alarms me a bit- I can hear her heartbeat just as well in her abdomen as in her chest. I don't have my stethescope at the house for quality of sound.

DH needs a dr today, so waiting till work is done to see when he can get in, then I'll be making an appointment for Nika. I want dh there in case it is bad news, and she is more "his" cat.

 

Well, I feel rather silly. Her abdomen is seeming normal now after work. She must have just needed to use the litter box and toss a hairball. Keeping an eye on her anyway.

 

That is great!

 

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That is good news.