My senior, male, neutered, diabetic nebelung cat is experiencing constipation, I had recently slowly changed his diet to a raw based diet from royal Canon diabetic pouches,, as i was put off from the vet scientific diabetic diets in the end due to one day reading the ingredients and seeing that my cat was needing something more or potentially he was lacking something, I say this as he was starting to mirander outside like a Billy goat eating all the graass that he could in our backyard. Coincidently, Boof started flickng his head and scratching at his ears, the next day after noticing his discomfort and that he still hadn’t defecate (day 3) i took him to a neighboring vet as our usual vet was fully booked out, I could see crusty brown specs in his ear and a discharge, the vet I took him to gave, me pmp drops to administer 3 drops per ear twice daily for 7 days. She didn’t want to try to much else due to him being a diabetic and also a new patient,
One day later when I was cleaning boofs bedding a spider
Like bug had come out onto our carpet,
I took a photo of it,
It’s definitely some type of tick not sure if it cpmr from out of his ear or if it has anything to do with his constipation.
Boofs appetite has been great this whole time aswel.
Although after eating I have noticed him somewhat whining ND groverling like his pain 🙁
He also vomited twice after having dinner. (biley foaming substance liquid)
On day 5 I took vet into out normal vet who assessed him, she gave him a 24hour anti nausea injection, and assessed him, she said to resume giving lactolose maybe a little bit more and aswel with the subcut fluids,

And still nothing,….

The vet called today to see how Boof was I explained to her that he wants to go to the toilet but just can’t, and his looking pretty squeamish again,
She explained to me that because of it being 6days now with no bowel movements that it can get Boof pretty sick potentially, she explained that instead of taking a stab in the dark and guess that they would breed to take xrays ect bloods and mannualyl remove all feces that’s stuck in him and it would cost $800. Due to Christmas coming up and the overall rise in the cost of living and the renting crisis here, I am just stuck for money at the moment that kills me to say, I have tried vet pay with. No luck…

Is there anything I can try at home please, it’s not at all a situation where I don’t want to pay anyone, it’s by far the opposite and I’m hoping that a friend of family member will reply to me after asking for a lend, which I never do, and I never would expect or be suprised if anyone can help,
My boy means so much to me,
I just gave Boof a 5ml enema of lactulose and more subcut fluids
Is there anything more that I can do please 🙁 🙁

My cat got a large lump under his jaw that formed over night. The vets are closed and the emergency vet is too far and expensive. My parents say they will take him monday but is it safe to leave it untreated for two days? *edit, i should mention the lump is large and does not seem to be causing pain, he is acting normal anyway. I cant tell if its warm or not thou

My 5 yr old cat has been home one day following an overnight stay at the vet for blockage of urethra for crystals. He was given what seemed to be the appropriate treatment of catheter, steroids, antibiotics and a X-ray. He has come home on a five day supply of steroids and diet food. I was expecting my cat would just be “fixed” and back to normal. But he is not back to normal by any means. He is very weak and subdued. This is a normally very active , mischievous cat. My question is this normal response after having been thru this ordeal ? He is eating and drinking well. He is peeing but very little. Often but small amounts. He does not seem to be in pain like prior to treatment. He will go and just lay in the litter pan. It almost seems he is too weak to get out. But he does get out. I’m assuming he might be just like a human with a uti , in that he feels he has to go pee all the time . They did send him home having had a long acting antibiotic. I don’t know if that can make him feel bad. He does seem to be in the side of improving , but very slowly. Is this normal? It’s the weekend here so I can’t call the vet with my questions. I have a great vet group , although I have never seen the vet who took care of my cat before and am disappointed I was not given more post care instructions on what to expect.
Thank you
DWS

Got this 3-4 week kitten who needed a home and appears to have a twisted/angular wrist. He was most likely born with this deformity since I don’t believe his legs cause him any pain. He is starting to walk and it is becoming a bit of a struggle.
Can someone recommend me any options? I don’t want to go to the Vet just now because i know it will end being costly with X-rays and such. Right now i’m considering splinting, but I also want to know other options like maybe messages, etc. He is doing pretty well, but since he does sometimes walk, supporting his leg on the leg twisted (the bone, rather than his paw), i’m afraid it’ll become a future problem when he’s older.

Hi. I have an almost 6 year old lab who keeps vomiting when she eats or drinks. She is otherwise happy and doesn’t appear to be in any pain but does appear to be losing weight (she’s a heavier build). She wants to keep eating and drinking though and not having any other problems. Is there something I can give her to resolve the stomach issue or could it be something more serious?

Just seeing if you know anybody in Chicagoland that is able to do somewhat affordable surgery. My cat had unblocking last Monday, model patient & fine til Sat when not flowing as freely, he is trying so hard, I’m trying to gently help him while going. I’m 1400.00 in & don’t want to lose my Lil guy cz of money. He’s trying so hard & I’m losing my mind going thru it all. We have most of the antibiotics & pain meds, just need to get past this, did the overnight at home and stayed up, all went well. 5 days 2 soon…..if could direct us somewhere near Ill go. He deserves to live, not die cz his dad can’t afford this unblocking.

Thanks

Bretster7@gmail.com

If email can give u more contact info

Hello all,

I wanted to follow up on my question about Mercury from two months ago. He had been suffering from recurring urinary blockages, and after several ER visits, I scheduled him for a PU surgery at The Bridge Clinic, a non-profit vet hospital in Bensalem and Philadelphia. The surgery was done on Aug 14th, and the surgeon recommended doing the PU first to see if the stones would pass naturally, which they did. The surgery cost me $1,181.

Unfortunately, the issues didn’t end there. Mercury seemed to recover for about three weeks, but then he started frequenting the litter box and peeing only small amounts, sometimes not at all. He also began peeing outside the litter box and seemed very uncomfortable, especially at night, so I took him for a follow-up on Sep 12th. An X-ray and urinalysis were negative for stones or infections, but crystals were found, leading to a diagnosis of FIC/FLUTD. They suggested Gabapentin for pain and more water fountains and litter boxes (this visit cost $191).

Despite following their advice, Mercury’s issues persisted, so I scheduled another appointment on Sep 19th. The vet confirmed FLUTD and suspected a possible infection at the surgical site, so he received a Convenia and Buprenorphine injection (visit cost: $134). Still, no improvement.

I then took him to his primary vet at Telford on Oct 3rd, where they suspected a different bacterial infection and prescribed Clavamoxin, though I declined a urine culture due to cost (this vist was $170). I also put him on a strict urinary diet (he was on dryMetabolic Urinary food and regular wet food which I diluted with water). He showed some improvement, but then, last Monday, he seemed blocked again. After giving him Amitriptyline, he was able to urinate, and Telford said their only recomendation is a urine culture, and they don’t have any time to see him that week, so I reluctantly agreed to. (Urine culture + 7 Amitriptyline + 14 Clavamoxine was $323), today the results from the culture came back clean, meaning I spent $273 for nothing.

What’s frustrating is that I haven’t spoken to the vet directly since the first visit, only through techs and nurses, and I’m running out of time and money. Mercury is still in pain and struggling to urinate, and I don’t know what else to do.

So if you have any insight or recommendations to what I should do next please let me know because I am at my wits end and have no idea what to do. (I’ve attached the visit’s summaries and the receipt from my last time at Telford to this post)

Hello all,

I posted on here earlier this year asking for some advice about my cat who had a very advanced cryptococcosis infection.
Her right lymph node (submandibular) was swollen the entire time, and the left one but to a lesser degree.

She developed anisocoria and horners syndrome, droopy right eye, and she had a mass that felt like bone on top of her eye.
The anisocoria disappeared after 3 days and her pupils were entirely normal again.

Things escalated last week. Her nose has always been blocked, to various degrees, since she developed the symptoms, 1.5 years ago, but it seemed like she was able to get enough air in with some gasping and mouth breathing. I didn’t know how comfortable she was, but I had to try the last recommendation the vet suggested: 150mg of fluconazole a day. She was on this massive dose for 3 months. (4 kg cat)
Previously, she was on 37.5mg for 6 months, her nose and lesions cleared up and she was able to breathe again (most importantly!)
But, in March, a big lump (cryptococcosis mass) exploded into an abscess. It wouldn’t heal. The vet performed surgery to remove it and other lesions nearby. It was an eyesore, I felt so bad for her. She had a cone on for nearly 3 weeks because the suture area got a bit infected. Raised her fluconazole dose to 75mg a day.

Last week, her nose got much more inflamed and distorted very rapidly. It began bleeding and ulcerating, drying up and then bleeding repeatedly.
She looked so uncomfortable and basically slept all day in various positions to keep her head elevated. When near me or when sleeping with me at night, she’d clamp onto my arm or neck with her teeth to keep her mouth open so she could breathe and fall asleep. I can’t fathom how difficult it was to sleep having to make a conscious effort to get air in through her mouth. I understand cats are not “mouth breathers” and can’t fully relax that way.

I took her in to see her vet, 11 days ago, after noticing blood on her paw, and no wound. The vet looked inside her mouth and looked said the fungus was pushing through her soft palate (roof of mouth) into her front teeth. She recommended euthanasia and said she was not going to “get better” in her professional opinion. And that my cat was suffering and it wasn’t ok, I asked outright if her quality of life was ok. She said no. My cat had lost 1 kg since her last visit. This also factored into the vet’s recommendation.

The vet was ready to put my cat to sleep at the time of our consult, but I requested some time to digest and take her home to say goodbye.
Then, 4 days later, I took her in for euthanasia. I wish I had canceled. Am I wrong to feel that she should have died on her own terms?
What she had was like a breathing disability, in other ways she was a strong and vital cat. She was still eating, though appetite decrease by 30 or 40%.
Why did her nose not clear up (while the cutaneous lesions cleared) and in fact get worse after 3 months on a higher dose?
I’m so devastated and confused and wish I could have done more to save her life.
I felt selfish for letting her live this way, knowing there was no hope and I’d just be prolonging the inevitable (probably suffocation).
I am in so much pain recollecting what’s happened.

I wish I had kept her at home and only taken for euthanasia if she had collapsed and refused to eat. Taking her in to have her put down when she still asked to be fed, showed playfulness in some moments, trotting around when it was food time, it felt hasty but also inevitable. I felt I was saving her from experiencing more suffering as the fungus grew.
But, I will never know how it would have gone if I left her. Maybe nature would have performed a miracle, and she would heal, or she would die without my intervention and without pain (like a quick heart attack). I feel so terrible for having made the choice to snuff out her little life when she was still very strong.
She fought the sedative the vet gave, they took her back to insert a catheter and didn’t bring her to me until 40 mins later, saying she was fighting the sedative.
It pains my heart thinking she was in terror during her last hour on earth. When they carried her in, sedated, she looked absolutely petrified and braced. I could see her spirit fighting with all its might.

The vet told me that she had a more thorough examination of her nose and that the masses had hardened/were like concrete all through her nasal airway and that she was breathing through a “pin prick” hole. She said she was never more certain that euthanasia was the right choice.

I am so heartbroken. I still feel like I took her life away too early. Why should it be up to me? I can barely trust myself now.

Hello, firstly thank you for making this site and sharing your message and trying to help both Vets and pet owners do better by and for their sake.
The cold weather in Oregon is setting in, I attached some photos I hope help. I’m trying to figure out the best way to identify and treat this issue.
The following are my observations of the marks located at the base of the tail areas side and underside only, surface level circular with some being slightly more crater like. Hair loss and area effects remain the same after what feels like over a month already. Plasma is typical puss in 2 or so spots, no swelling since first observed till present day, skin near effected area looks okay, over grooming of the area likely but not believing this is a source of pain. We live in a farm setting he is a stray I will watch over like my own and treat as such, I’m not against funding anything from big or small for his care but he’s strictly outdoor hunter and sometimes I wont see him for days. Would be most appreciative to any insight in what this might be or how I can help, likewise if there is a wound spray or dewormer I could purchase he is 100% outdoors and I see no signs of worms but he drinks from bird bath dishes. He will allow me to handle him but only so much I’d be much more worried when his patience runs out. I’d say he weighs about 15 pounds and overall health and appearance / dental is amazing. I always offer him a safe clean area and access to the property I will be buying a breakaway collar with a GPS tracker for him, he’s a farm cat my neighbor and me watch after. Would this be something to just give more time to mend? or should I step in and apply or seek help. Thank you! I will 100% be doing a donation, really wish more Vets were like you or highlighted in the community.

EDIT, the donation link via paypal says this is indelible, you can click 1-2 photos below that say Ads to be redirected to those to donate, if you have a place in mind please add it to the response I’d be happy to donate to your place of choice.

I took my German Shepherd Diesel to a small airport near my house that is all desert (southern Nevada) on 8/17/2024.
He was running and chasing rabbits and was just fine. He is a very healthy dog, 8 years old, and has never had any health issues, not even hip dysplasia. He doesn’t have the common sloping back/angulation in GSDs, but a straight back, which is probably why he doesn’t have hip dysplasia. Anyway, today and yesterday, he started showing signs of limping on his rear right leg, which was much more visible today. He is hardly putting any pressure on the foot, often lifting it up. I gave him some carprofen for pain and inflammation. I trimmed his nails, because they were a little long and it looked like they were pushing up his toes and could have been the source of discomfort. It didn’t seem to help. Since we were in the desert, I checked for any injuries from the rough terrain and for cactus needles. No sign of any, but I am still very concerned. What should I do?