Ask questions and share about your pet's health to help others.
Hi! I have a question about my cat who will be 4 at the end of this month. Sometimes when he stretches, I notice that his rear end (particularly his anus) looks like it is protruding. I thought he had a hemorrhoid but then he stood up and walked like normal and it went “away”. I have another cat and I never noticed this on him. It’s not red, it just looks puffy sometimes. He is eating, drinking and playing like normal. I just want to make sure he is okay and he is not in pain or anything or if this warrants a vet visit. I tend to worry about my boys a lot because I love them so much but I don’t want to be “missing” something. Thank you so much!
My ex-feral cat has been diagnosed with a tape worm that the vet had us treat with a round of Cestex (25mg – 1 1/2x’s day for 2 days) this knocked the fecal test from a 4+ to a 2+ and they recommended the same meds again, knocked it from a 2+ to a 1+. Now they say do it again or come in and the cat can get a shot. The cat has had check up’s every year since coming inside, and tape worm was noted once before and meds given at the vet. Now they think she has had it for as long as she has been inside. Told it is a type of worm not normally seen in SE USA, more Pacific NW and could be caught from eating dead fish in a pond or frogs. When she was feral and coming to the door at night she would bring us frogs so this makes sense. Question is, is this type of worm bad for the cat long term? And does it pose any health risks for us? She really gets upset when being given the pills and does not travel well to the vet for shots. Any thoughts are appreciated, wish I could remember the name of the worm the tech told us on the phone.
Hello,
First if this is a tapeworm I consider them more gross than dangerous. So there’s that. Second they are caused by ingesting a flea so we start with treating fleas and tapes. And third (and best of all) all of this can be treated in one easy monthly application of revolution plus monthly. Easy-peezy!
Xox
Krista.
I should add one more thing. If your fecal is being sent to a lab they can help to diagnose it, assist with treating and help with any kind of zoonotic issues. I call them for help a lot. Hope this all helps. And in general very few cat parasites are dangerous to people. But you need to get the exact name of the worm to confirm this.
My cat is a domestic long hair. She gets occasional hairballs every couple of months but tonight yacked up an almost 6 inch hairball. She has been eating, drinking, and defecating fine. Should I be concerned about a bowel obstruction? I have never seen anything like this before. At first I thought there may be a long worm inside of it but threw on some gloves and discovered its just matted hair. I have called multiple vets and can’t get her in for nearly a week. Is this worth an emergency vet visit?
Hello,
It’s very hard for anyone remotely to know whether a pets condition is truly an emergency or not. In general we go by the rule that “if they are acting completely normal it probably isn’t an immediate emergency”
If you have a regular vet I would call them first thing tomorrow and ask to be seen ASAP after explaining what happened. I would also keep the vomit sample and collect a fecal sample to bring in. If you don’t have a regular bet or can’t be seen soon I would go to the ER for peace of mind. I hope this helps. Let us know what happens
My dog had a grape in his mouth and I managed to take it out I don’t know if he ate more but what else can I do he is playing right eating right will he be okay
Hello,
I do t know what size your dog is or if there are any underlying medical issues but one grape isn’t enough to hurt the average dog. My dogs steal them from the wild grapevines and I have never had an issue. We don’t want to feed them but an accidental ingestion of a few isn’t enough to cause damage. Raisins are a bigger concern. I hope this helps. Talk to your vet when you can about this. They know your dog best.
I have a kitten. She was a stray so I’m assuming she is about 11 months old. She recently has stopped eating, drinking, and can hardly move. Within the past few hours we have noticed there’s a knot that’s came up on this inside of her on her side. Please help. She has an appointment in the morning with the vet but I’m worried sick!
Good morning-
I am so glad you already have an appointment scheduled for her. The vet will most likely do a thorough examination and possibly xrays to see what the “knot” you describe might be. You did not specify where on her the knot was- could it possibly be a blockage? That might account for the sudden change in eating behavior. In any case- she needs to be seen ASAP so it is very good that you have an appointment. She may need surgery- so try to prepare yourself for that possible reality. Good luck to you. I hope she is ok!!!
Thank you! I got her to the vet this morning and he said that had a virus. He gave her some medicine and she seems to be doing a lot better now! ????
I’m sorry. This sounds like an emergency and we aren’t staffed or able to manage emergencies online. I how she is ok
My 4 year old cat had a 3 year rabies shot and a distemper shot at about 11:30AM this morning. It is now 9:25 PM and she is having tremors in her leg muscles. It is NOT a seizure but I’ve never seen muscle tremors like this before. She is also lethargic and not eating too, which I know is fairly normal…I’m just worried about her muscle tremors. Does she need to be seen immediately or is it ok to wait until morning to call the vet?
Hello,
It is very hard for me to answer this safely. The advice always has to be to err on the side of caution so that safety comes first. A veterinarian will listen to heart and lungs, take a temp, and assess neurological function and probably give an injectable steroid. We also check mucous membrane color. All of this is done to assess severity of the condition and be prepared to halt it from progressing. The tremors can be pain or anxiety due to pain or discomfort. But without all of the rest of the physical parameters to use as an assessment I can’t tell you whether or not to be worried. I’m sorry. I know that is not cut and dry. But it’s the honest truth. I think you are a Jvc client. If so please pm me on the Jvc fb page and I will call you for immediate help.
Krista.
Thank you so very much for your quick response and the phone call. Your help is very much appreciated!
I have 3 kitty babies, my 18 month old boy however has been having UTI issues. Over the past number of weeks he has been to clinics/ emergency room 5 times.
Trip 1: manual bladder release, sent home with prazosin and gabapentin
Trip2 & 3: blocked, unable to pass catheter at clinic, went directly to emergency room, able to pass a catheter, 2 mucus plugs, full stream, sent home with buprenorphine, clavamox, prednisone and continue prazosin.
Trip 4: pain urinating, only dribbles, first day of no more buprenorphine, went to clinic, full stream, sent home with 10 days of buprenorphine.
Trip 5: hurricane Dorian passed, major stress, stopped urinating, lots of pain. Blocked, extracted urine via needle. Sent home with amitriptyline, acepromazine, prazosin, vernia (her vomited at clinic), and dasuquin.
Yesterday I was paying in change for his bladder to be emptied via a needle. He passed a mucus plug at around 11pm with a few dribbles of urine but has not urinated since. He’s been eating and drinking and is on amitriptyline and acetaminophen. He very much needs surgery right away but I don’t start work again until tomorrow morning (I’ve been on disability for almost 6 months).
I lost our home and currently live on the boat. All of my savings, retirement and even my HSA are completely depleted.
I have spent hours every day contacting and re-contacting national and local places/ entities that could or might help him. I would even let him go to someone or a place that would help him if that gave him his best chance at life. He has a really great chance, but I don’t have the money right now.
Please, I don’t even have enough to euthanize him after yesterday, he needs help. Please help him. In any way you can think of. I just want goin to live.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/scooter-baby
Hello,
Wow that’s a dreadfully dismal story. Where are you? Are you the person in Connecticut? If you can get him to me I will treat him and help him find a home if you are willing to surrender him. I say this because I have no idea what it will take to treat him and I couldn’t even begin to estimate the cost of his care. Maybe we can work something out? I’ll try if you will.
If you cannot get him to me in northern maryland then call everybody and every rescue to see if something can be done for him. Offer them just what you did here. Start a social media campaign. Call and keep calling. He needs to be seen ASAP. I also think he needs an iv and urinary catheter. To start. Sending well wishes and hugs.
I am the person from Connecticut. I can’t find help for him anywhere around here into new York York up to Boston.
Update: he piddled last night 3 times around 7-8pm but now this morning tried to urinate and couldn’t, very loud painful meowing.
I have a friend who is willing to bring him to you to be treated but I can’t leave my first day of work yet until 4pm (government work) to meet him at the NY border.
If rehoming him is the only option I would do it if it saves his life, I would really love to keep him if possible and I would be happy to make payments, I haven’t been able to find any place willing to take payments has been my biggest hurdle. Anything as long as it means the wellbeing of my baby kitty!
How can we make this work? Time to bring him in? Money? Do you have my phone number?
My one year old cat threw up twice on August 23rd, but she was not acting lethargic and was still eating and drinking normally so I thought she maybe threw up because of a hair ball. She threw up again today twice, with one being a very small amount. She is not acting lethargic and is active and playing. She is also drinking normally but she has not eaten as much as normal. Both times she threw up when I was not at home. She did start eating when I got home today though. I also free feed her but haven’t had issues with her vomiting due to eating to fast or vomiting in the entire time I have had her (one year). I’m not sure what the cause of her vomiting could be.
Hi there-
I hate to sound gross, but was her food fully digested? Was the event close to when she was finished eating? If that is the case, she may have just eaten to fast. Also- have you switched foods? Sometimes that can upset a stomach. If she is acting normally and going to the bathroom and being her normal self, I would just keep an eye on her and make sure she stays that way. Any sudden change, I would call the vet. If you have an appointment soon, I would mention it to them.
Hi! Thank you so much for your comment! Her food was fully digested I believe. And both times it happened in the hallway outside my room. I live in a shared apartment and keep her food in my room, so it didn’t happen by her food bowl. I’m guessing it was not close to when she was finished eating since her food looked fully digested. I can’t say for certain because both times it happened when I was at school or at work. I did switch her food but the first time that she vomited she was on her old food (which was kitten food) and after that I switched her to an adult cat food since she turned one that month. I’m not sure if stress could cause her to vomit, but I was home with her a lot this summer and now that I am back at school, she’s home by herself a lot. When I come home she meows a lot and rubs up against me, wanting to be pet for a while. I think she may have some separation anxiety, but I am not sure if that could possibly cause her to be sick or if I’m just overthinking it.
Hello,
Based on age alone I think that if I were your vet I would talk to you about intestinal parasites (best diagnosed with a fecal exam sent to the lab) and a discussion of food and environment. I think these are really good places to start. And best for your cats well being. Hope this helps. Please let us know what happens.
I could use some advice to keep my dog from eating cat poop. We have 1 dog and 2 cats. On our first floor there is a mudroom with a pet gate with a cat door. The cats have their litter boxes on one side of the mudroom and food on the other side. This arrangement has worked for 8 years. My daughter’s young cat has had digestive issues for her entire life and would poop on the floor outside the box once a week. We tried all different kinds of boxes and litter and probiotics and food but no changes. She also hates the feel of litter. We tried all kinds and newspaper and towels and pee pads…you name it.
For a month she decided to poop on my daughter’s bed twice a week…which of course was a cleaning nightmare. Sometimes she pooped on the bed while my daughter was sleeping in it.
Finally we found a limited ingredient food that worked along side of a probiotic and her poops are now more manageable for her, less painful I’m guessing and pretty regular. We added a litterbox upstairs to my daughter’s bedroom but she would never use it. We moved it to the large hallway outside my daughter’s room where it was darker and more private and she still didn’t use it. Purchased cat attraction litter and after 1 week she finally used the upstairs box to poop. I held my excitement but it’s been 3 weeks now and no more pooping on the bed. Her poops are also a lot less messy and stinky. Now my problem is if she goes at night the dog jumps right up and eats it. I caught her doing this twice but she was too fast to stop. Other times you can smell that she must have pooped but it’s gone. She’s only going upstairs so I don’t want to take the box away. She’s so picky with boxes and how she sits in the box and how it smells a covered litter box won’t work. There isn’t way to put a gate up in that hallway as it’s a super old house and shaped weird. I’m afraid any change to the box will stop all the good progress. My dog probably gets to the litter box before us about half the time–so it’s not every time. My dog is healthy, eats well, is up to date on everything and is well taken care of. Thanks for your patience with the long explanation.
Clevercat litterboxes are a LIFESAVER. Not even my long-nosed Doberman can get into them. That said, now that the cat’s using the box reliably, can you move it to a room with a gate? You can also get free-standing gates for oddly shaped entries…we use one in our puppy pre-K class to block an egress point, and it works very well.
OH and as far as your dog’s nutrition is concerned…for some reason, most dogs REALLY LIKE cat poop. I’m not sure why, Dr. Magnifico might have an idea, but this seems to be a thing even with dogs which wouldn’t normally do this. I agree it’s gross, and I hope you can find a solution which works for your situation.
Hello Pawbly friends today I have a few questions today about my female dwarf hamster I just realized 2 days ago when I put her on the floor to run around she falls over her back legs yes she can still walk but falls over with ever couple of steps and I have put a video below of her walking and I did some research and found that it could be possible 2 things and I think it might be cage parallelism so I have been doing what online said and giving her plenty of exercise also she has always had a wheel and tubes in her cage but has stop useing them and no longer runs in her ball so I put her on the floor to run for her exercise when I touch it she does not seem like it hurts and she is eating and drinking fine but is their anything else I can do to help her since I don’t have money for a vet please help and also I found a small bump near her private area which I also put a picture of below
Hello,
The colon is the very last part of the gi tract. It is held inside the abdomen by two sphincter muscles. When you stretch these circular muscles can relax and the colon can protrude a little outside of the anus. This would be my best guess at what is going on. But to be sure you can take a video of it to your bet and have them do a rectal exam to make sure it isn’t anything else. Some cats can get a rectal prolapse and this should be ruled out before dismissing this as “normal”. I hope this helps. Let us know what happens.