My kitty is very sick

[Eireann]

Today, I took Kitty to the vet. It was the appointment I mentioned in another thread. She was supposed to undergo a bronchoscopy and bronchial lavage, in addition to having her teeth cleaned.

I took her to the clinic, and as I was talking to the receptionist, I looked at my kitty. She had her mouth wide open, and her tongue curled.

"She's having a problem," I said, and showed the receptionist. The receptionist took us into an examination room immediately, where a vet took a look at her. Then the head vet came in, and I'm glad, because I know him, and he's the best. We put her on the table, and he gave her an injection while I petted her.

"She needs to be X-rayed," he said, "but not now. She could die."

He doesn't know what's wrong. It could be edema. It could be a heart problem. They can't X-ray her yet. They have to stabilize her first.

The vet explained that they're going to put her in an oxygen cage until her breathing normalizes. He gave her another injection, maybe a sedative. He stressed that she could still go at any time.

He also said that this is how it is with cats. When they're sick, they hide it. Then, suddenly, they can't hide it anymore.

They're going to call me later this afternoon. She'll have to stay overnight. After that, nobody knows, least of all me.

I've had this kitty through so many horrible times in my life. She's the only one who loves me unconditionally. She's always glad to see me. Always. We've been through several moves. She sleeps on the bed with me. She sleeps on my feet when I'm at the computer. She drapes herself on me and purrs when I'm reading in bed.

I can't get by without her. I just can't. I came home and screamed and screamed and screamed.

[AnaKhouri]

We know the price when we bring them home, but we are never prepared to pay it. Praying for healing for your cat and strength for you.

[Eireann]

One of the other vets from the clinic called me.

Kitty is still in the oxygen cage. They've given her medication, and she's stable.

The diagnosis is asthma. They're going to start her on corticosteroids. That procedure won't have to be done now, as far as I can see - at least, the vet didn't say anything about it. She had an asthma attack at the clinic, possibly brought on by stress. The vet says that asthma is very common among cats.

She can come home tomorrow.

I haven't been this relieved about anything in a very long time.

[It's me]

Well that is good news!

[Eireann]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed. The vet wouldn't say anything about her coming home tomorrow if she didn't feel that it would be for the best. They're going to call me around noon to agree on a time for me to bring her home.

She was supposed to have her teeth cleaned today, but I'm not about to put her through any more stress. That procedure can wait.

[morgana]

Yeah, mine has asthma as well; very mild. Glad kitty is feeling better.

[Food Lady]

The first post had me crying but I'm OK now. *ahem* I'm glad it's treatable.

[Eireann]

The vet sounded upbeat. She wasn't the same vet who was spreading doom and gloom when my kitty was going through the breathing difficulties. That vet is the head of the clinic, and I think he was giving me a worst-case scenario so that I would be at least a little prepared if things went terribly wrong.

It's so empty at home without her. I have the windows open, knowing that she won't jump up in the one without a screen. I keep thinking I see her out of the corner of my eye. This is the first time since I got her that I've spent a night without her in my living space, and it's the first night she's spent away from my living space. She loves people, so I hope the vets and assistants are giving her lots of attention.

[greek_jester]

I'm so glad that your kitty has something treatable.

How will this work, though? I'm guessing that she won't be getting an inhaler!

[Eireann]

The vet was talking about corticosteroids in syrup form, which is the easiest way to administer it. There are inhalers for cats, though, odd as it sounds.

[Mental_Mouse]

He also said that this is how it is with cats. When they're sick, they hide it. Then, suddenly, they can't hide it anymore.

You have my deepest sympathies. My cat was 16 or so when I started seeing streaks of blood on the floor where she'd been. Naturally, I arranged to get her to the vet... when I picked her up to put her in the carrier, her belly felt like a sack of walnuts. Yeah, cancer, hopelessly advanced. I'd noticed that she'd been quieter and less social, but then she was old and fat, and I've never been in the habit of casually picking up animals.

[Eireann]

She's home!

I just brought her back about ten minutes ago. One of the first things she did was to eat (and, yes, they did feed her at the clinic). I put out some turkey on top of her regular food, and she ate that, too.

She's now lying on the floor, looking around. Her breathing is still loud, and the vet told me that they really aren't sure if it's asthma, something else, or both. She said that cats usually respond very quickly to corticosteroids if they're asthmatic. I told her that when Kitty was on antibiotics, her breathing was much better. The vet talked about the possibility of nasal polyps and some other condition, the name of which I don't remember now. Basically, she wants to know if anything in the airways is restricting Kitty's breathing.

So, now we're talking about what further steps to take. I'm supposed to take her in for a checkup next week.

[greek_jester]

I'm so glad she's home. It's horrible when your beloved pet is ill; you feel so helpless. They look to you for comfort and protection, and not being able to offer it immediately is heart-breaking.

One of our previous dogs, Bonnie (a black lab) ended up with diabetes, so we ended up having to inject her every day for the last 4 years of her life; she also ended up with diabetes-related cataracts. We had to buy a carpet cleaner as she wasn't able to hold it in through the night; we just put sheets down so we could see where she went and cleaned the carpet each morning. Fortunately she was nice and always went in the same place.

When she eventually passed away (her internal organs started packing up; she blew up like a balloon, so we had to have her put down ) we replaced the carpet (thankfully it was on concrete, not wood). It was still worth it to have her the extra 4 years though; she was happy with it, and adapted easily to being nearly blind. She used to love being walked down to the beach at the bottom of the road and sit there listening to the sea and smelling everything. We did have to carry her most of the way back, though, as she'd get part-way up the road and decide she'd had enough of walking... Damn, I still miss her. I miss all our dogs.

[Eireann]

She's now behaving normally. Staying overnight at the vet's must have scared her. The vet told me that when anyone came to check on her, she became excited at having a visitor. The only problem was that when she got excited, her breathing worsened.

She jumped on the bed twice during the night to rub against me. She spent most of the night on the kitchen floor, which is about the coolest place in here (we're having an enormous heat wave). I have a fan going to keep us both more comfortable. She's now behaving normally.

Her fur is thick and glossy. Her appetite is good. She's using her litter box. The vet didn't say anything about any other health problems; it's just her breathing. They would have told me if there had been any other considerations. The blood test a few months ago revealed no infections.

So - we just have to find out what the breathing problem is.