1/8 - Salem illness update

I guess the last time I posted was on 1/1, when Salem had started behaving oddly on 12/31: walking around aimlessly, staring blankly at walls, walking into corners and having trouble getting out, unable to jump up on anything, not following a hand waved in front of him although he would blink if I made a movement towards his eyes. At that point he would eat only treats and lick up can liquid and baby food.

1/1 - 1/2 : Took him to emergency and specialist hospital. They kept him overnight and did X-rays and blood work. Results: slightly enlarged heart, mild heart murmur, slightly elevated blood calcium, creatinine about 2 (tiny bit higher than last March but not significant), no abdominal tenderness, head tilt to the right and impaired vision but no obvious abnormalities in neurological or vision assessments. They gave an appetite stimulant.

1/3 : At home he seemed about the same - eating very little, disoriented but calmer.

1/4 : Took him to my vet in the morning for an exam and another blood panel. Vet noted the head tilt and that Salem followed the walls while walking around. Gave Mirtazipine for appetite and started him on sub-Q fluids at home, 100 mL per day. In the afternoon we went back to the emergency/specialist hospital for an echo-cardiogram and an abdominal ultrasound. Cardiologist said his heart function is fine with only normal risks of heart failure or blood clots. Ultrasound findings were the same as last July - thickening of the abdominal walls which could be food intolerance, IBD, or lymphoma. My vet and hospital vets were talking about seeing a neurologist and getting an MRI and spinal tap to try to see if this is a stroke or a brain tumor. I wasn't eager for additional stress and the risk of anesthesia for Salem and of course the considerable expense, so put off a decision until Monday.

1/5 - 1/6 : Salem seemed a bit better on Saturday - less aimless wandering and more going deliberately to his water bowl, etc. Still looked very sad plodding around with his head down. Had diarrhea in the afternoon. Sunday he stopped eating completely. I force-fed most of a jar of chicken baby food but in the evening he started vomiting and having more diarrhea. I called for a neurology appt. but they couldn't/wouldn't take him before Wednesday.

1/7 (yesterday) : Despite the huge low point Sunday, I noticed Salem's body language and attitude were much more normal. He's now following my hand if I wave it in front of him, even across the room, walks with his head up and at a normal speed, looks at my face, and just generally seems like Salem again. Took him to vet, who agreed he seems better and it's looking like a stroke which is resolving on its own. The big problem now is that he's not eating, along with the vomiting and diarrhea. Vet started him on Prednisolone for all that plus if the original problem was a stroke it may help with brain swelling.

Today : Last night Salem started showing some interest in food - licked up can liquid and sniffed at food bowls. I force-fed a little baby food. No vomiting, but some 3:00 am diarrhea. This morning he ate a few chunks of freeze-dried chicken and two or three Temptations, licked up maybe a tablespoon of can liquid, and sniffed at solid food. Fluids are going well except he gets restless. He's still at the water bowl a lot. Spends most of his time resting or sleeping in his cat bed or on a towel I put down next to it. Considering he's eaten hardly anything for days he looks surprisingly good - he's grooming a little, his posture is relaxed, and he seems pretty strong under the circumstances. I've been monitoring his bgs once or twice a day and they've been right around 90 - 100.

As you can imagine, this has been hell. Any suggestions on how to get him eating again? Does anyone know how long it should take Prednisolone to work and get his appetite going? He's on 5 mg twice a day. I know it may aggravate his diabetes but that's the least of my worries.

 

Hi guys .. wow, what a rollercoster ride you guys have been on! I'm glad to hear that salem seems to be doing better .. I don't really have any advice as far as how to get him to eat for sure, but I do know that several people on here use fortiflora? on top of the cat's food to get them interested .. some people even sprinkle freeze dried food, like shrimp, to get them interested .. maybe that might help? Please keep us updated if you can .. you're in our thoughts ..

 

Thanks - I hadn't used it for the last few days but now he's drinking up some 'Fortiflora water' - Fortiflora dissolved in a little water. I've had some luck with that in the past, maybe because it settled their stomachs. Will try some on food a little later.

 

Not sure if he's a 'fish' cat but I've been having success with Fussie Cat Tuna & Anchovy "sprinkled" over regular food.
I think the smell is so strong, it attracts them.
(Mine have a cold so nose is blocked so obviously very different to Salem)

 

I don't have an answer on the Pred, but do they know what caused the stroke? Have they checked his BP? High blood pressure can certainly cause a stroke, and it can also be easily controlled with meds. If they haven't checked is BP yet, I would definitely get that done, to prevent another stroke from happening.

I hope Salem continues to improve, quicker and quicker!!!

 

Thanks - his blood pressure was checked a couple of times and is normal. His heart rate is slow - another reason they did the echo-cardiogram. Oh, and the second blood panel found normal calcium. Whatever caused the stroke, if that's really what happened, we may never know.

PS, vet okayed another dose of Mirtazipine so maybe that'll help.

 

Good luck with all these things you are trying, Camille. I don't have any suggestions, but just wanted to say that I'm glad Salem is acting more like himself.

Thinking good thoughts,

Ella & Rusty

 

been through that 2 weeks ago maybe you should check this group on yahoo, they helped me get her eating again ..feline-assisted-feeding FAF. they are really good. I started with syringes feeding and now spoon feeding and she started eating by her own.

I know how stressful for us when they don't eat, I wish you luck. and sorry that Salem is sick. hope he gets better really soon and get his appetite back .

 

Camille as you know Moonie had some of these symptoms--Throwing up, diarrehea, acting strangely, loss of weight, eating problems & finally U/S found a tumor--I now have Moonie on prednisolone, and she is doing much better!! The prednis. can take up to 5-7 days or more(even two weeks), to work, but you will see more thirst & will be hungrier...I feed Moonie FF beef & Liver which I add water to & make like mush, and she also gets one can of FF Kitten food (comes in tender turkey or ocean whitefish) which I also mix with a little water & make it real soft for her--she seems to like to lick instead of chew...I also give her cooked plain chicken, chopped turkey, or anything she enjoys eating once a day..She has come around, and is doing better...Moonie also sees not as well as she did, but she gets around well..
The Pred. will take down any inflammation & will make him better...If I can help you in any way..you know where to get me..Prayers for Salem's continued recovery..Thinking of you-Hugs & Love from us!!

 

I hope Salem's appetite gets back on track. I'm glad to hear he's acting more himself.

Cheryl/Winnie put the following list of foods that will entice most cats to eat:

 

Re: 1/8 - Salem illness, update 1/9

Thanks so much, Roni, it's reassuring to hear from someone who's been through something similar when Moonie is now doing so well.

Salem continues about the same - he'll lick up can liquid and I'm mushing up food with a little water into a paste, and he licks up a few molecules at a time of that. He's back to eating a few Liv-a-Littles and Temptations so that's good. Last night I even gave him the gravy from a can of HC and he liked that. Not a good diet for a diabetic but right now anything is better than nothing. This morning (1/9) bg was 122 - a little higher but low enough that I'm not considering giving insulin. He was really obnoxious about getting fluids this morning so maybe that's a sign he's feeling a little better - he's still a strong little son of a you-know-what and it turned into a little wrestling match trying to keep the needle in him. Still getting very liquid diarrhea and he may have vomited during the night but it could have been another cat.

Day 3 of Pred - I'm hoping to see some effect soon.

 

No advice to give just tons of vines and well wishes.

 

Please join the assisted feeding forum I posted to you about. You will get some great tips for assist feeding - its not forced feeding.

Two important things
1. DO NOT GIVE AN APPETITE STIMULANT. If you can syringe feed your cat or feed any other way this is better for him. An appetite stimulant chemically forces a cat to eat and have a lot of side effects. Vets often prescribe an extremely high dose. Please trust me on this. An appetite stimulant will back fire and more likely will cause his inappetance to last longer. It is imperative that you do not give any appetite stimulant without first addressing nausea.

2. Your cat is showing classic signs of nausea in cats. Showing interest in food but just sniffing or licking and walking away. Vets in Canada and the US do not seem to be up to speed on nausea in cats. They think if they aren't vomiting they aren't nauseated. When you join the FAF forum let me know and I'll send you the link to the file on nausea and treatment. Vets often prescribe reglan/metoclopromide but this does not work on cats (it does in dogs) unless the issue is stomach motility related. Cerenia is good for acute vomiting but not general nausea. Ondansetron/zofran or dolasetron are the best for nausea. Please get this for Salem asap. Ondansetron is the generic and is available at human pharmacies. I've heard costco has a good price and you don't have to be a member. Thrivingpets online has it for 80c per 4mg pill which is four doses. I paid $9 per pill in Canada - its worth its weight in gold. Pepcid is only good for dealing with stomach acid and yuckiness from this.

I've been actively involved with the assist feeding forum since July of 2008 when Maverick was as close as it gets to dying due to bad vet advice. They help hundreds of cats a year. They are the experts in assist feeding just like FDMB are the experts on diabetes.

Don't think its a rush to get your cat eating again and he will be fixed. Cats will eat when they are feeling better. Focus on assist feeding to get through this and find out why he isn't eating.