My foster cat, who I am now considering adopting, has been struggling to breathe properly for about 3 months now. He came into the shelter with a suspected URI. However, after months of treatment with antibiotics and a whole swath of other anti viral medications, the vet determined that he wasn’t getting any better and euthanasia is on the table. I want to get a second opinion before we make any drastic decisions. I am doing online research and suspect that perhaps he has a polyp, a tumor, or foreign object in his throat/nose.

While I am dying to explore these other solutions, the shelter told me if I adopt him and take him to a specialist costs could go up to $5,000. I don’t have that kind of money. I am in Olympia, Washington State. Does anyone recommend any veterinary hospital that is more affordable and can explore other resolutions at a more reasonable price? I don’t want to give up on him, but can’t afford to spend that kind of money.

Thank you so much.

hi, i got my cat spayed two weeks back, and she has developed this swelling behind her skin sutures one week after the surgery. there’s no discolouration, or tenderness, or drainage of any kind from the sutures. the swelling itself feels firm, and soft tissue-esque. my cat herself doesn’t show any signs of discomfort/pain either. no loss of appetite, no diarrhoea or change in bowel movements, no change in behaviour, no lethargy, etc.
this is my first pet, so i don’t have any experience in the post-op recovery of cats, and what is considered normal or not. also i live in a super remote area, and the vets in my town are more experienced in cattle, so taking her to them was of no help. they think it’s an infection or hernia. i don’t think it’s either because there are literally no signs of infection, the wound is absolutely clean, and it’s not hernia because it’s doesn’t reduce (and if it were at a strangulated/irreducable stage, there are no systemic signs to support that diagnosis).
the hospital where i got her spayed at is in a different city, and i talked to the surgeon who performed the surgery on the phone, and going by the pictures, he thinks it’s probably a seroma. he absolutely shot down the hernia possibility, because he says they put uninterrupted sutures, so the chances of hernia are very rare.
my local vet has put her on a ceftriaxone plus dexamethasone (intramuscular) regimen, for 4 days to see if the swelling improves or not. but i am not super confident about their judgement since they are not experienced in cat physiology, at all. they didn’t even consider it could be a seroma, i had to explain it to them. i just need to know what are the chances of it being something serious, because if it’s only a seroma, or a reaction to the internal sutures getting dissolved, i’d rather not have her uselessly medicated.

so, tl;dr how does a seroma swelling feel like? and how do you differentiate between a swelling due to seroma, or because of the body’s reaction to internal sutures healing?

Hello. A few days ago, I found a litter of five abandoned kittens. They have been determined to be between four- and five-weeks old. There are three females and two males, and they are all very social. They are eating and drinking well, and we are currently in the process of weening them from formula and kitten pate to moistened kitten kibble.

Unfortunately, on Sunday afternoon, one of the female kittens (who is named Princess Butterscotch) started to show signs of Coccidiosis. Being in the country like I am, I am very familiar with the signs of the parasite. I rushed her to the emergency vet on Sunday evening, where she was diagnosed with Coccidiosis. She was put on a starter dose of both Panacur and Albon for all parasites. I was also given enough treatment to treat the other four kittens at home, because common sense dictated that they were also infected, even if not showing signs. The four whom were healthy before are still doing well. They all get .25ML of both the Panacur and Albon every evening. The last dose of Panacur will be this evening, whereas the Albon was given in an eight-day dosage.

Princess Butterscotch still has diarrhea. It is to the point where she was “poopy butt” (as we so elegantly call it), and she does not always know she is going to the bathroom. She is still eating, drinking, playing, purring, and doing all things that kittens do; however, I am distraught, because as I said, I have seen Coccidiosis in kittens before and know how quickly it can take a turn for the worst.

In all my experiences and my family’s experiences, Albon DOES NOT WORK on Coccidiosis. And even if it temporarily stops the symptoms of Coccidiosis, they reappear within 24 hours of the last dose of Albon. However, it was all the emergency vet carried. I called my regular vet this afternoon for an appointment and to discuss Ponazuril as a possible treatment, as it is the only medication we have ever found to definitely treat a kitten with Coccidia. My vet could not see me due to having no appointments. I called another vet in the area, and they also cannot see me due to having no appointments. The emergency vet I took Princess Butterscotch to on Sunday evening is not open today.

My fear is that I am going to lose this kitten. I know Albon generally takes one to two days in order to really start showing signs of improvement; however, it seems she’s getting worse and not better. I am wiping up all of her little spots on the bathroom floor with bleach cleaner, and I am making sure their litter box stays clean. However, this will all be for naught if she does not make it. I am currently treating her with some Pedialyte in order to ensure she stays hydrated until someone can see her and possibly provide her and her littermates with more effective treatments against Coccidiosis.

Any advice in the meantime would be greatly appreciated. I have not had this litter of kittens long, but it is difficult not to get attached to such wonderful, loving creatures, and I would hate to lose one because I did not do all that I could to save her life.

Because I know this will be brought forth in mind, none of the kittens are showing ANY signs of Fading Kitten Syndrome. They are all very loving, active, and social. All of them, save for Princess Buttercup, are using the litter box regularly, and they are all eating very well.

Thank you for any and all advice,
One very worried pseudo-foster mother

Please could you give me some advise. I got my dog (1year old) castration due to cryptorchidism. Day1 – After the surgery he was very bruised. Day2 – He was happy, eating, drinking but very sore. Day3- Abdomen started to swell. Day4- Abdomen was very swollen, bruised and slight clear weeping from incision. Visited the vet who said it was fine. Day5- Extreme swelling (see pic) so I took him to the vet again who give more pain/inflammation meds. Day6 -Swelling has ruptured leaving a whole in his abdomen (see pic) Visited the vet again who give 6 day supply off antibiotics and advised to clean twice daily. The vet didn’t clean the wound and advised it didn’t need stitched closed. Day7 – My dogs eaten and drank but has spent most of the day sleeping. I’m so worried that he has a large whole in his abdomen, how’s it ever going to close! Also why would this happen! Thanks for taking the time to read.

HELP!!
I have a 3yo female Pom, Nomi, who is bullying our newly adopted female puppy, Ali.
Backstory: We had a senior Beagle (who recently passed away) and our current 3yo Pom. They got along very well tho the beagle was not in to playing with toys, he would play “wrestle” with Nomi. Nomi never had any aggression toward him (other than don’t go after my food) but she did like to boss him around….stay out of the garbage, don’t lick the dishes when the dishwasher is open sort of stuff. As said, our Beagle recently passed and we just (like yesterday) adopted a puppy, wanting to give Nomi another companion. Nomi is bullying the new pup; will not allow her to play with the toys…(.and we did buy new toys as we knew not to just give Nomi’s toys up for grabs)….will not allow her play freely, nips at pup if she makes sudden movements around her. Normally, Nomi is a very social dog with humans but has never been around dogs other than her beagle brother who was already here when Nomi came to us at 12 weeks old.

I need to know how to calm Nomi down and teach her it is ok for the new pup to play both with toys and in general. I need to know how to effectively “discipline” Nomi when she is mean to the pup without using tactics such as striking her or yelling. I have been giving her lots of praise in the moments when she doesn’t nip or growl at the pup, even treats. We’ve been very cautious to make sure we show Nomi affection right along with the new girl and we do not leave them alone together, and do not feed them together.

ANY help/advice would be so welcome as we want these two girls to get along and be pals for their sake and ours!

Four years ago this week, my dog Connor was released from a Baltimore-area veterinary orthopedic and sports medicine hospital after THREE failed TLPO surgeries and multiple significant infections, which created the beginning of Connor’s end. The reminders of this are coming up daily in my Facebook “Memories” feed, which is why I’m currently wrestling with taking action four years after the fact. Connor completely tore his CCL and the ortho surgeon sold me–HARD–on TPLO for him. This same practice and surgeon had successfully repaired a torn CCL for another of my dogs, Tessa, when she was five and a half years old. Connor was 13, and the surgeon was all but guaranteeing success, citing examples of 12-year-old Great Dane patients who regained great quality of life and movement. Connor fell off a ramp getting out of our car and three of the six screws broke after the first TPLO surgery. The surgeon did a second TPLO surgery, after which Connor went NOWHERE and did NOTHING, and the screws failed again. Plus, the second time, he developed an infection so bad I mistook the stench for a sewer problem I was having in my house. When the vet intern cut off his splint and dressing, what was inside was bright green and smelled horrendous. I’d been mistaking Connor’s crying and balking as stubborness, not recognizing he was in PAIN. The staff whisked Connor away to the back and kept him for more than a week. MONTHS later, one of the vet techs told me they weren’t sure he was going to make it that first weekend (our appointment was Saturday; while they were typically closed on Sunday, they had this staffer with him around-the-clock, doing regular debriding they didn’t tell me about). The third surgery involved an external fixator I was cleaning multiple times a day. When they found out I was doing this, I was yelled at and told to only clean it once a day. I followed the directions–and another significant infection developed. There were multiple instances of their applying splints in ways that hurt my dog, and I ultimately had to move him to another veterinary ortho practice because the surgeon who performed the surgery, the vet who owned the practice and finally the office manager (who had been the final person who would even respond to my calls and letters) stopped responding. Second and third opinions were that Connor developed a bone infection so severe he might not recover–because a fragment of screw had been left behind from one of the first two surgeries. He ruptured a disk in his back trying to manage the awkward splints the first ortho vet used. The second ortho vet did an MRI–discovering the TWO ruptured disks (one was several years old and had been misdiagnosed by the original vet ortho and sports medicine practice as a “congenital defect”). I went ahead with the spine surgery–within three hours in recovery, Connor pushed the baby-gated pen he was in around a corner. The second surgeon was amazed, and said to me, “Younger dogs who recover perfectly well from this surgery can’t even stand at this point–Connor is rearranging the furniture. I can’t imagine how much better he must feel right now to be doing that.” But the leg wasn’t healing due to the infection, and I finally conceded that, despite my best intentions to give him back his mobility and his life, the decision for TPLO actually made his last year of life miserable and then forced me to put him down. (And I can’t even tell you about the in-home “euthanasia” service–it was so horrible I still weep thinking about what happened there, more than three years later.) With this brief (really!) background, would it be unreasonable of me to file a complaint with the state veterinary licensing board? It’s only now that I realize THEY made mistake after mistake, didn’t fully advise me of the situation and options, and caused me to put my dog through pain and misery that wasn’t going to help him improve. I’ve been really fired up about this complaint this week, but then I read your blog about euthanasia and how clients can be unreasonably cruel, and I need to know if you think there would be anything gained from the practice having to answer for their decisions (which include blaming me and refusing to talk to me or treat my dog until I fully paid them ongoing bills that were supposed to have been covered under the “guarantee” they provided in writing.) I really appreciate your taking the time to read this long post and offer your advice.

my 7 year old dog, we aren’t sure of breed, but we think a lab/beagle mix of some sort experienced extreme pain and loss of the use of his back legs 2 days ago. I immediately took him to the emergency vet. They told us med management and cage rest. They brought him to the car with the use of a sling for his hind legs stating he still had some movement of his hind limbs intact. 2 hours later I believed he had declined and had no use. I called back to the vet who made me feel guilty for asking for further evaluation stating she would not put a dog through an MRI and surgery that still exhibited neurological function. He cried all night long and every time I moved him to potty was in excruciating pain. he wouldn’t eat and no longer could void. I took him back to the vet the next morning where he received an MRI and underwent surgery for a ruptured disc. at that point he no longer had deep pain sensation. My question is did that delay diminish his chances of recovery? and what are the odds now? I’m just heartbroken for him and do not want him to suffer. I am a nurse practitioner and very willing to provide the care he needs however I don’t want him to be in long term pain or have a poor quality of life.

So i have a kitten, he is presumably 3-4 weeks old found in a walmart parking lot, and he has lice, taking him to the vet as soon as possible, but im wondering what the best way to get rid of them at his age is? we are currently trying diatomaceous earth and coconut oil?

Hello,

I have two 4 year old cats who are brothers and I want to ask your opinion on what the best diet is for them. Both of them have spurts of throwing up after eating their food too fast (they both have been to the vet recently and had a normal exam) and I just want to give them the best diet possible so they can live a long healthy, happy life. What dry foods do you recommend? Grain free vs with grain? Should I also be incorporating wet food as well? What do you recommend?

About 2 months ago we had a cat walk into our yard in really bad shape. Had a lot of mucus coming out of him and his eyes were plastered shut. We didn’t take him in to the vet but asked and got an oral medication and eye drop as well. Oral medication is clindamycin hydrochloride which was instructed to give 2 times a day. Eye drop is neomycin and polymyxin B sulfates and dexamethasone. Those were instructed to be used 3-4 times daily.

He cleared up and started eating and putting on weight in the following weeks but has got the gooey eyes again now. Finally took him into the vet and he was administered a shot of something can’t remember want to say penicillin and another set of the same eye drops and oral med and was told to bring back in a few days. When we took him back he looked at his eyes and said it was entropion. He never had any tests done on him and was wondering if this is actual proper procedure for this.

We live in small town USA and this is the only vet in town so we are really limited. As of writing this today the cat has begun to sneeze a lot. We do not have a liter in the house but him and another neighborhood cat pretty much live at our house they just come and go as they please. Before shelling out 400 on this cat who is in need of something I am just wondering if this is the right procedure that needs to be done.

The picture with the goo is when he found us. And the pictures of the eye are what they look like currently. Thank you in advance for any suggestions.