My 14 year old cat has undergone a wedge excision of submandibular tumor (AC) with skin flap 12 days ago. Surgery was rather successful, margin was cleared, drain was removed at post op day 6. He started to develop soft swelling (feels like a pouch of fluid) over his wound site and rather noticeably with some tension on the wound. He didn’t seem to be annoyed by the swelling (craving for food as always) and the site wasn’t warm. He was supposed to see the vet in a week time for off stitches. We wanted to consult the vet earlier but he’s out of town, anything we should be aware these couple days? Please help. Thank!

16 year old cat lethargic with labored breathing; has not ate in 24 hours. We took her to the vet this morning and her lungs were clear and her heart sounded good and did not look enlarged. Her bloodwork showed that she did have elevated white blood count and kidney disease but not end stages. Also her electrolytes looked normal. The vet was thinking that a blood clot may have passed but it was not indicated with anything but the labored breathing. She also thought she may have labored breathing possibly due to being in pain from arthritis. She gave her an injection for this that can be given monthly and sent us home with a low dose of gabapentin in hopes that she can rest and recover. She also added fluid under her skin in case she didn’t eat today. So far there is no change in her, if anything she is more lethargic but this could just be the medication. Just hoping someone may be able to give us other ideas of what may be wrong. We are really hoping our old girl pulls through.

My dog needs an echocardiogram. I was quoted $915. I was hoping to find a more affordable option. Is there one?

Seeking Diagnosis/Treatment for Possible Nasopharyngeal Polyp in Cat

Our 5#, 18 mo old cat has been having breathing difficulty for about 6 months. We’ve been to two “regular” vets and one specialty vet. The “regular” vets have done chest x-rays and bloodwork trying to diagnose. We’ve been on multiple rounds of antibiotics, several steroid shots, and a few breathing treatments. The first vet suspected asthma, but none of the meds worked. The second vet suspected lung infection, but again, none of the meds caused any improvement. The cat is acting fine, eating and eliminating normally. No nasal discharge. Sounds like she’s snoring all the time.

We saw a specialist today. She determined that the cat isn’t able to breathe thru her nose much, if at all. We are waiting on lab results for a fungal infection. The next step she suggested would be for CT scan and rhinoscopy to check for foreign body, polyp, or other physical abnormality. I’m ok with sedated imaging, but their estimated cost for that is $4,000. I called MS State University Vet Clinic, and their estimate was also in that range. We’ve already spent hundreds trying to diagnose and treat this. I’m ok with spending more but not $4,000.

Can anyone suggest a vet in the Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi region that we can try?

Anyone have thoughts, suggestions and/or recipes for homemade dog food that provides complete nutrition for large breed dogs, specifically lab mixes. I am interested in exploring what feeding homemade food would look like from both an ingredient and time commitment perspective. Thank you in advance.