words!

i took my 8 year old cat zoe to the vet yesterday morning bc she was drooling. she had not acted like she felt bad at all. we went to the vet around 1130am. there was a small sore or scrape on her tongue, a little nasal discharge from the left nostril, & a tiny tiny bit of gunk in her left eye. the bloodwork showed normal values across board except that she was dehydrated. the urinalysis showed elevated white & red blood cells.

they said she has a bad UTI, gave her a subcutaneous fluid bolus w/ clavamox & buprenorphine to take home. he said that since she tents to chew on & put anything in her mouth that she can, that the sore is probably an injury. he said if she had the sore + elevated kidney values, then kidney disease/failure would be the most likely culprit.

later that night i noticed her the edges of her eyes were a little pink & swollen. that seems to have gone down this morning but the conjunctiva in her left eye on the side next to her nose is red. she is also drooling more this morning & kinda sitting there with her mouth open sometimes. she sounds somewhat congested when she purrs. she doesn't seem to be miserable & breathing seems normal. she hasn't thrown up or had diarrhea.

i am a little skeptical that the UTI, mouth sore, & congestion/runny nose are all just coincidentally happening at the same time, although i guess it's possible. we did end up with the overly thorough albeit very creepy vet yesterday morning, so it's not that i don't trust him really. idk

does the tww vet population have any ideas on this? i have a copy of her bloodwork & urinalysis if you'd like to know specific numbers.

i lost my almost 2 year old cat yoshi back in may to spontaneous subcutaneous emphysema (nc diagnostic lab did a necropsy & could not determine the cause. they kept samples bc it was so weird), so i may be overreacting here, but i'm really really terrified.



[Edited on November 14, 2010 at 9:04 AM. Reason : can't type]

11/14/2010 9:02:08 AM

It's just a cat. Don't worry yourself too much.

11/14/2010 9:17:51 AM

she's my baby. i will worry.

11/14/2010 9:20:19 AM

I have two cats that i like plenty.

Neither are my offspring. they are pets not babies.

i dont know whats wrong with yours, but if you dont know how to check their hydration, just grab the skin at the back of their neck in a pinch and let go. if it snaps back they are fine, if its slow or stays up in the pinch then they are dehydrated. I check ours often.

11/14/2010 11:41:02 AM

yeah we know how to check. I made this thread in hopes that someone had any thoughts about what could be going on & whether the 3 things could be related. blahblah I'm more attached to my pets than you, I get it, & I'm not the first person ever to feel that way.

11/14/2010 1:38:22 PM

yeah. people need to get over the whole "its just a cat" mentality.

i know individuals who do not care that much about their pets and are more protective of their tv yhan their pet. do i agree with that? no....but you dont see me busting in with a im better than you attitude.



but anyway, good luck with your baby!
my penelope just got a really bad eye infection, i was in tears this morning

[Edited on November 14, 2010 at 1:47 PM. Reason : jfwekl]

11/14/2010 1:45:13 PM

thank you
and i hope your kitty's puppy's eye is better soon.

[Edited on November 14, 2010 at 1:54 PM. Reason : species]

11/14/2010 1:52:53 PM

its my puppy. doesnt really matter though

11/14/2010 1:53:47 PM

Are you sure the vet didn't say Upper Respiratory Tract Infection, rather than Urinary Tract Infection? UTI shouldn't be related to the nasal discharge and eye gunk. With the added oral lesion, it sounds more like Calice virus. The Clavamox will be fine, for treating either type of infection. You may want to add a lysine supplement for the viral infection.

11/14/2010 5:19:46 PM

yea i agree...when my cat had an upper respiratory infection she had a lot of the symptoms you are describing

eye junk, lots of drooling, etc. it sounds more like she has a UTI AND an upper resp infection.

if she has an upper respiratory infection you should take her back because they will give you meds for it. and you gotta make sure she is hydrated and eats. which is hard because when they get the upper respiratory infections they don't want to do either. when mine had an upper resp infection, we bought wet food and microwaved it (for like 30 secs, until its warm) because apparently it helps them smell the food better (because they won't eat if they can't smell, or something). mine also got fluids when she had hers because she was running a fever.

just the drooling, eye discharge, etc make it seem like she also has an upper resp infection, so maybe you should take her back and express your concerns?? because they'll give you medicine for it and fluids if she has a fever to make sure she is hydrated. i don't know if she is eating or not, but if she isn't eating as much, try the microwave thing!

11/14/2010 5:33:22 PM

^^definitely urinary tract infection. urinalysis showed that her urine contained high levels of white & red blood cells.

^she had a really really really bad URI when she was just a few weeks old, she hasn't had one since then. with that, she had yellow crusty nasal discharge, red puffy eyes, & sneezed constantly. i guess there's a possibility she has one in addition to the UTI, just with different symptoms. he did mention that the nose/eye probs could be a herpes virus. what would they give her? antibiotics aren't for viral infections.

she is eating. i bought wellness brand canned cat food & i'm mushing it up with warm water a little bit at a time. she eats & drools all over the place while she does it. she drank out of her new water fountain when i first set it up, but i don't know if she has since. i gave her some milk too in hopes that that would be yummy enough to gulp down, but no.

[Edited on November 14, 2010 at 7:09 PM. Reason : ]

11/14/2010 7:06:34 PM

i don't have much advice or much to say, other than err on this side of caution, it never hurts to go back to the vet and get a 2nd opinion or more fluids or call & talk to the vet if you have more concerns, and best wishes for your kitty!

11/14/2010 7:08:30 PM

thank you

the vet is going to call tomorrow morning so i'm going to bring up the eyes & drooling again, press the URI thing. she at least seems to be somewhat stable now. no better, but no worse either. i hope this means maybe tomorrow things will be a little better.

11/14/2010 7:12:47 PM

milk is bad for kitties isn't it?!

yea my kitty had and upper resp infection and her only symptoms were eye discharge (not as bad as yours) and drooling and not eating, so it totally could be.

i don't remember what they gave her. it was an antibiotic though because URIs (or at least hers) was a combo bacterial and viral infection. so the antibiotic was to treat the bacteria (in her nose maybe? i don't remember it was years ago when i first got her)

also: herpes, from what i understand, can be a cause of URIs.

hope she gets better

[Edited on November 14, 2010 at 7:16 PM. Reason : .]

11/14/2010 7:15:32 PM

most cats are lactose intolerant. zoe's not, but she doesn't really like it anyway.

they gave her clavamox when she was a kitten, which is the same thing she's on now. i'll ask the vet if he thinks an antiviral would be beneficial too.

on the topic of milk & her eating though...would buying some of that kitten milk formula be beneficial if she decides she doesn't want to eat?

[Edited on November 14, 2010 at 7:19 PM. Reason : ]

11/14/2010 7:17:03 PM

what it could be is that she has the UTI as the primary problem and due to the stress of that she is having signs of an upper respiratory infection (recrudescence of a latent herpes virus). although she was vaccinated for it, it is not a preventative vaccination, just one to decrease the clinical signs if they do get infected. i hope she feels better soon!

11/14/2010 7:28:47 PM

that's the conclusion i was coming to, and just explaining to my husband! i got her at 4 weeks old, unvaccinated, & VERY sick...so i think what she had then was that herpes virus possibly, and now it's rearing its ugly head. having some logical connection b/w these things makes me feel better, but what caused the UTI still make me worry. from now on she'll be getting wet food soup in addition to the regular dry stuff.

11/14/2010 7:36:25 PM

after my kitty had some problems, in addition to pain meds/fluids/antibiotics, the vet put my guy on a combo of wet & dry food (both of which were Ph balancing food), and recommended switching from a water bowl to a running water drinking fountain to entice him to drink more. he hasn't had a problem since.

my guy just had a little bit of a uti/blockage (which can still be pretty dangerous especially for boy cats), but everything turned out fine. petsmart had some affordable cat drinking fountains too, might be worth looking into if you don't already have one.

[Edited on November 15, 2010 at 3:28 AM. Reason : .]

11/15/2010 3:27:02 AM

Quote :

"she drank out of her new water fountain when i first set it up"

yeah i bought a fountain. it was $25 and made my hagen (they make high quality aquarium filters). those petmate ones are ridiculous. i asked the vet on saturday about the urinary specific food, and he said don't go there yet. i have a feeling that may be in her future though. we can't use science diet rx food bc it has corn. she's not allergic by my dog is very very highly allergic. they use really crappy, cheap ingredients anyway. we'll have to find an actual ultra premium brand. she's loving the warm canned cat food soup though.

11/15/2010 8:42:26 AM

^ Have you thought about switching her to a raw diet? Sounds like she would benefit from it a lot.

11/15/2010 11:12:35 AM

you seem to have bad luck with kitties

11/15/2010 1:29:46 PM

first an update on zoe: she was more alert at lunchtime, still drooling but it wasn't hanging out of her mouth like before, eating more. she came to see me when i opened the door, like normal, which she didn't do the past couple of days.

i just got off the phone w/ the vet. the most likely thing is the feline herpes virus triggered by the UTI, but they want to test her for FeLV (although she was tested as a kitten & it was negative) and FIP. she has lost 1.6lbs since april, but since yoshi died in may we've been able to control how much she eats again (she was a little overweight). so we have an appointment for 7pm tonight at the vet. he's going to start her on an antiviral too.

i've been reading about FeLV & FIP, and thankfully neither seem to really fit perfectly. she hasn't had a fever, pale gums, loss of appetite, diarrhea, etc.

11/15/2010 2:04:12 PM

that was supposed to be FIV, not FIP. i misunderstood him on the phone. she is negative for both FeLV & FIV. still think it's most likely herpes virus but there's still a possibility of calicivirus. she's on a 2nd antibiotic now to prevent pneumonia. she's feeling a lot better. her tongue is much less red. she licked my hand & cleaned a little of her back leg

she threw up twice this evening though. i think it's the food. it was beef & she had been eating chicken or turkey before that. she's weird about food. she was also really hungry (first time in a while), and she has a tendency to binge & purge when she's starving...sooo i hope that's all the puking is about.

11/15/2010 9:13:52 PM

I do hope Zo-Zo starts to recover quickly!! I'm sorry to hear that she's not doing hot. But Clavamox is a good, all around antibiotic - so it will kill 2 birds with 1 stone, but I'm glad they added another med to help ward off pneumonia. I'd probably also get her started on some Viralys, or Lysine supplements. As others have stated, she probably got the kitty herp (which is practically expected for any kitty nowadays) and it's been dormant until recently... when she got the UTI and that stress on her immune system caused the flair-up.

I'd probably keep her on the wellness food - it's such a great diet.

11/16/2010 12:19:57 PM

oh i forgot to add that she is getting l-lysine supplements now too.

she fussed until i gave her dry food this morning. i gave her maybe 5-7 pieces, and she's drooling again a little bit...so i think that may have agitated her tongue. no more dry food for right now. she <3 <3 <3 dry food.

11/16/2010 1:15:33 PM

lol that is hilarious...about loving dry food i mean. i'm glad she appears to be feeling better. i think my snobby kitty would prefer to be sick so she could have a 24/7 wet food diet!

also, this is quasi off topic but i feel like you ^ or other people in this thread know...what are the benefits of feeding animals (both dogs and cats) a mixed (wet + dry) food diet?

thanks! and feel better soon, kitty

11/16/2010 1:38:04 PM

For cats it helps keep them hydrated to feed them wet food supposedly.

I'm seriously considering switching our cats over to raw diets. It's cheaper than cat food and I don't have to worry about the fillers and crap put into cat food. My grandmother switched over all her cats and dogs to a raw diet and I couldn't believe the difference it made in just their coats, eyes, etc

11/16/2010 2:33:29 PM

with wet food you're paying $texas for just water, is what i was told in school. dry food helps keep their teeth cleaner too. i'm only feeding wet food bc water intake is a major concern now. otherwise, i wouldn't do it.

^if you buy higher quality food, you don't find so many fillers. just curious, how much does feeding raw cost? it certainly seems like it would cost more, but i have no clue.

11/16/2010 2:39:14 PM

Ideally you feed your cat around 3% of their total weight each day. So for a 6 pound cat that's what, less than a quarter pound of meat? And you make sure to feed them variety. Maybe a chicken gizzard for breakfast and some pig entrails or wee little fish for dinner, etc. You can buy all sorts of animal parts at Grand Asia for cheap, or even at Nahunta, etc. I buy fresh pig ears at the farmers market for next to nothing, less than a buck an ear usually. The trick is variety and watching their weight to make sure they're eating enough (or not too much).

11/16/2010 2:47:53 PM

Quote :

"lol that is hilarious...about loving dry food i mean. i'm glad she appears to be feeling better. i think my snobby kitty would prefer to be sick so she could have a 24/7 wet food diet! "

My cats were the same way at first. They loved dry food, and would barely touch or completely ignore wet food. Eventually I started cutting the wet food into small little kibble sizes and scattering the pieces around on a plate with a little try. That convinced them to get the wet food an honest try.

Once they did that, they stopped being picky, and now they both prefer wet food to the point of fighting each other over it to get to each others plate of wet when they had never fought over dry food before.

Quote :

"i asked the vet on saturday about the urinary specific food, and he said don't go there yet. i have a feeling that may be in her future though."

I remember they had a lot of options, some they said were better for kidney issues, some they said would shift the Ph one direction, some the other direction, and some that kind of neutralized the Ph. The last type is what they recommended for me so that both he & his sister could eat it, even though only he had the problem.

They still both get more & eat more dry food in a day than wet though b/c its cheaper & good for their teeth. But I figure a spread out cost on food for prevention of problems with the wet food is less stress than suddenly needing to spend around $1000 out of the blue on vet bills & over night hospitalization like last time.

11/16/2010 3:01:32 PM

Quote :

"I remember they had a lot of options, some they said were better for kidney issues, some they said would shift the Ph one direction, some the other direction, and some that kind of neutralized the Ph."

i checked the ph on the urinalysis print out and it was 7, so we're not going to mess with lowering or raising it. i wouldn't feed my pet hill's rx diet unless it was the last absolute only available option. it's shitty food and they charge a shit ton for it. so for my dog with hip probs, we're doing a much much much better food + supplements. way healthier.

zoe is very picky about her food. she really really loves dry food, and won't eat any crumbles. if there are no whole pieces of kibble in her bowl, she'll fuss as if she has no food and will not eat the crumbles. she's eating this wet food bc it's the only thing she has available to eat, and she likes to eat (she used to be fat).

Quote :

"Ideally you feed your cat around 3% of their total weight each day. So for a 6 pound cat that's what, less than a quarter pound of meat? And you make sure to feed them variety. Maybe a chicken gizzard for breakfast and some pig entrails or wee little fish for dinner, etc. You can buy all sorts of animal parts at Grand Asia for cheap, or even at Nahunta, etc. I buy fresh pig ears at the farmers market for next to nothing, less than a buck an ear usually. The trick is variety and watching their weight to make sure they're eating enough (or not too much)."

a 6lbs cat is a tiny kitty. we don't have azn stores around here. and i'm not feeding any pet raw chicken/chicken parts, esp a cat. no thank you. variety, at least in pet food, doesn't work well. switching up main ingredients frequently causes GI upset fairly easily. maybe this isn't the case with raw food. idk.

11/16/2010 3:59:48 PM

I feed my cats half a can of wet food each every day or every other day or so. They've both had UTI's before, so making sure they get enough water is important to me. Also, I add a couple tablespoons of water and a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to their wet food and mix it up real well. They like it better with extra water, tho it took them a while to get used to the ACV.

11/16/2010 4:25:40 PM

Quote :

"a 6lbs cat is a tiny kitty. we don't have azn stores around here. and i'm not feeding any pet raw chicken/chicken parts, esp a cat. no thank you. variety, at least in pet food, doesn't work well. switching up main ingredients frequently causes GI upset fairly easily. maybe this isn't the case with raw food. idk."

Uhh, yeah that's not the case with raw food at all lol. Think about feral cats. Are they like, "Yo dawg, I'm on the mouse only diet. Don't you be trying to feed me no robins!" Cat digestive systems are naturally designed to eat raw meat and are not as sensitive to the things humans are to things found in raw meat. Not that you should be going dumpster diving and feeding your cat chicken skins from Ten Ten but raw chicken isn't going to kill a cat like it would a toddler

11/16/2010 4:31:33 PM

you're missing part of the equation there: the processing plant. that's where meat picks up its germs. mice/birds/etc don't go through a processing plant. granted they still carry other diseases, but yeah, with a cat with lowered immunity i'm not risking salmonella.

11/16/2010 4:40:39 PM

Then don't feed them chicken. Those aren't the only animals on the planet Or buy your meat from a reputable source that you trust. Or get a farming buddy to give you the hookup. There's plenty of avenues other than Food Lion superfarm industry meat out there.

11/16/2010 5:01:52 PM