My cat was constipated this morning (he has other issues, but this was the key problem this morning). The vet said I could give him Miralax, which I did. I knew it was kicking in because my cat started yowling a bit, most likely because he was feeling cramps. It’s a struggle because I don’t want him to feel bad but I know this is part of the problem with giving a laxative. Does anyone have a suggestion about what I can do “in the mean time” to make him feel better while we wait for him to defecate? Heating pad? Warm rice pad? Cold pad? Just rubbing his belly softly? Thanks!

My cat recent started taking a pill. The first couple days mixing in food worked but now she takes a few licks and is done with it. There must be a taste because she is not having it. How else can I give it to her? We have tried wet cat food, tuna, like a purée kitten treat. She won’t touch it. Am I able to just kinda shove it down her throat? Would icing in a small bit of water and putting in a syringe work?

was wondering if I could ask a question.
About my Shih tzu MeiLing:
MeiLing is not having symptoms. My question is related to lab values. She is 14 years old and just acts tired at times.

1. The paperwork shows that she is positive for Anaplasma phagocytophilum. Her vet did not offer any treatment advise on this or even mention this to me during the visit. I happened to find it later when reviewing her lab work. I have never found a tick on her since I rescued her 9 years ago.

2. Other lab work:
BUN 41, had been 33 year prior, one month after that was 29;
ALT 227 was 134 year prior, one month later 117;
ALP 673 was 668 one year prior and 1040 one month after that;
MCV 59.3 was 61.1 year prior and one month after that was 59.8;
Platelets 504 was 542 year prior and 561 one month afterwards;
Plateletcrit 0.62 was 0.66 and 0.68 one month later.

Based on some of the labs in point 2 the vet started MeiLing on Hepato Tru Benefits which supports healthy liver function and is telling me that we should do an MRI.

I love my dog and would like very much to do whatever is necessary for her health. However, I am retired, living on social security and am not able to afford a monthly payment for health insurance for her much less $1000 or more for an MRI. So my question is, with these labs, considering she is having no symptoms, granted she is not as lively as she once was but she is 14 years old, in your opinion how necessary is it that she have an MRI? Also why would he have not even mentioned the Anaplasma phagocytophilum? Should I seek another opinion?

I don’t expect that I will be able to afford other treatments revealed by an MRI.

I know I am asking a lot here but if you could just help me with a little guidance I would deeply appreciate it.

Thanks for any info you can give me.

Rottweiler, female, 11 years old.

Vertically split nail; under vet care but I think we need to get more decisive.

The vet trimmed the nail half way with local (dog has bad reaction to sedation protocol, narcotics, etc). Still hurt and vet said it would cause undue pain. However, the nail continues on splitting.

How common of a procedure is cutting the nail off all the way to nail bed? How does that improve outcome? How much faster is the recovery?

By what percentage is anesthesia risk lower with such a short procedure? (Has to be anesthesia as explained above). Last time, after anesthetic procedure, she had heart rhythm problems and other problems; became critical and almost died. But was also full of drugs and had pancreatitis as complication of splenectomy. I’d assume the shorter the time under, the lower risk of complications?

I’m concerned about putting her under but I’m also concerned about dragging this out for weeks, taking valuable time from her, and having to do it that way anyway eventually.

I really don’t know what is the best thing to do for her. Hubby leaning toward waiting if it heals but I’m not seeing it healing any time soon if at all. (Photo of the present state of the nail attached.

I’m sad, depressed, concerned, and don’t know what I should decide for her.

My daughter’s 13 yr old male cat started urinating all over the house, occasionally crying out. Is this a UTI? I read something about crystals??

I am trying to reach out to Dr. Magnifico. I have a 10 Month old cat that started to puke and it was unusual for him so I paid closer attention and realized he was going to the litter ofter and straining at first I thought maybe he had a blockage with the puking then after taking him to the vet on 3/31 and after x-rays they determined that he was constipated but at that time didi not have mega colon they had me try Laxatone and probiotics he was still having bowel movements daily so I was was still concerned as he was in the litter often straining though and Then on 4/3 I took him to a different animal hospital because they were walk in and i could be there before i could get ahold of his original vet and I Didn’t think I could afford an ER visit but that appointment cost me over $800 for blood work and X-rays and they gave him Anastasia and manually cleaned him out. at that point I was calling his original vet he he regularly see and originally saw for this problem because the vet that did the procedure just gave me prescription dry food and sent me on my way so I wanted to make sure it was the right action plan to get him back to normal. My original vet never called me back until I called to ask for his records thats when they decided to get him back in. So on 4/8 He started vomiting again and his original vet saw him and said he needed fluids but his stool seemed soft and like it should pass. they gave me pain meds for him fpr 3 days and metocopramide for 4 days. along with a different prescription wet food and Hydracare. Then I noticed on mu bill i was charges for Lactulose which they didn’t tell me wasn’t in stock and i would have to wait to get but it was weekend and they closed so per a megacolon group i am in i gave him 1/8tsp of mirilax a day he still has had at least 1 goof bowel movement a day but the problem I am having is that he is in the litter box straining constantly to the point of falling over and his back side is so swollen and raw! I called the vet numerous times to just ask for guidance and am not getting anywhere I have spent over $1600 which I definitely do not have and I would think by now I would have some answers. All I want is for him to not be in pain. I don’t know if there is anything I can do for his swollen raw bottom. It feels like its never going to end there is constantly poop on his bottom on-top of it I am trying to keep it clean for him but It is so painful for him for me to clean. I guess I just want to know if this will stop or will he be constantly trying to stain and go? They said that his colon can go back down in size since it just happened and he is so you but I just feel so defeated right now!

This isn’t anything urgent but it’s been happening over time.. my dog frequently secretes fluid from her anus; she has had her anal glands expressed multiple times and uses the bathroom normally. She licks her anus afterwards and when I try to get close and/or disinfect the area she gets aggressive. So I just want to know the reasoning as to why she secretes fluid frequently if nothing is wrong with her?

Male Himalayan cat eyes swollen and red and ears itchy
I have A male himilayan who seems to be having an allergic reaction to something but I’m not sure if it’s a reaction or something else. His eye lids are swollen red and puffy and he keeps scratching his ears till they bleed. My vet told me to open the windows and air out the house which I did For 7 hours and it has gone down a bit but he still looks uncomfortable. It has been on and off for the past week of getting puffy and there was a wall diffuser my mother in law kept plugging in and when it was unplugged it got better but then she’d plug it in again. It has now been removed for good and it’s been almost 12 hours and he’s still puffy. Any suggestions or opinions would be greatly appreciated. Nothing else has changed in the house that I can Think of for another cause of allergies or irritation. I am Trying to get him into a vet tomorrow.

live in the Pittsburgh pa area. I have a cat with the nasal polyp issue. …

I live in the Pittsburgh pa area. I have a cat with the nasal polyp issue. He’s 5 yr old. I don’t have $2400 for the surgery at the specialist I was referred to. If you could point me in a direction. He keeps getting cold symptoms every few months. Can they suffocate? I know they don’t breathe out of their mouth. I’m so worried.

Last night about 8pm my dog had lump around her eyes and her mouth was swollen, this morning they have gone down but now she has got some more on her head, they seem to not hurt her but they are very itchy for her.