Very sad about my cat and disgusted with the vet! sorry-long

cookinfreak · ‎03-31-2010

Hi all

I am usually in the kitchen or recipe swap sites but look here quite often and knew I could tell you all how sad I am. I had a calico bob-tail cat. She was 13yrs old. She stopped eating and drinking, so after a couple of days I brought her to ER Vet. Took xrays and said they thought it was the start of asthma. Didn't give her any meds or give any kind of meds at the office. That was $200+. I took her to my own vet, and they said the same thing. I asked why would that make her not eat or drink? They gave her a cortisone shot and said it would take 12 hours to take affect. That also was over $200.00. Brought her home and she hid behind the couch. I tried to give her water with an eye dropper, but she would only gag. 12 hours came and went, and no improvement. She was just so weak and sick that I took her to ER vet again, and this time the vet (different than I saw before) said she had seen this in several kitties she had treated. She had a mass behind her trachea, so the poor thing couldn't eat, drink or breathe! So I decided to have her put to sleep. I can't believe that the other 2 vets said asthma. When I questioned my regular vet about her health problems they said the cortisone would help. I am just so upset about the whole situation but mostly that my poor baby suffered all that time.

cookin

TexasMom1 · ‎03-09-2010

This is so sad to read. I am so sorry for your loss.

lynne6was7 · ‎03-15-2010

I'm so sorry that you and your dear kitty had to go through this, and I'm sorry that you had to say goodbye to her. I wish we could communicate better with our kitties so they could tell us what is wrong. I have a rescue kitty with asthma. She developed it from being kept in a bedroom for her first ten years. It was originally diagnosed because she was coughing - similar to bringing up a hairball - and then they listened to her lungs. Perhaps the vets confused your kitty's gagging with coughing. Although they certainly should have questioned her inability to eat and drink. It does seem as though these vets let you down. Hugs to you.

kittymomNC · ‎08-09-2012

I sympathize so much with you, not only for losing your baby, but what you had to go through before you got to that point. I know that vets sometimes have a hard time diagnosing our fur babies, because they can't tell us what's wrong, and it's very hard when we feel they've made a mistake.

Not to make this about me, but just wanted to tell you a similar experience so you won't feel that it's just you. My baby has had kidney disease for 3-1/2 years. In April, she started not eating, and she would hide most of the time. She was also acting "spacey", looking around as though she was seeing things that weren't there. Took her to my vet, and they thought she might be getting some dementia (she's 16 now). They put her on a med, and two days later I had to take her to the Emergency. They did blood work and said her kidney disease had escalated, but her immediate problem could be the dementia med. Long story short, she wound up on appetite enhancers, nausea medication, but I stopped the dementia meds. She got a little better, then got worse again. (She was getting 2X weekly fluids, then went to 3X after first emergency visit.) Over the ensuing weeks, she was back at the Emergency Hospital, and a couple of emergency trips to our vet. I was prepared to let her go on three separate occasions, it was that bad. I took her off all the meds and she did a little better.

But my vet finally took her blood pressure, and her blood pressure was sky high! She's had to go up on her blood pressure meds twice, but she's back to being the cat she was when this episode started in April. I think now that all of it was due to the high blood pressure, because it can cause all the symptoms she was having. And although I still love and trust my vets, I just don't understand why they didn't check her blood pressure sooner, because now they tell me it's common in cats with kidney disease. I guess all doctors make mistakes sometimes, but it's hard to watch our babies suffer because of it. ${#emotions_dlg.crying}$

hyacinth003 · ‎03-12-2010

So sorry for the loss of your beloved kitty.

So sorry you and she had to go through that.

Hyacinth

mousiegirl · ‎03-09-2010

As someone once said to me, "they don't know anything." I say some do, some don't. When several of my cats, through the years, stopped eating, it was determined by blood work that it was kidney failure, or cancer. The first Vet you took your cat to should have ordered blood work. I never heard of a cat with asthma, and certainly no diagnosis without a thorough work up, and an x-ray is available if the blood work is good. I always say that when an animal stops eating, bad news.

luvmyteddy4 · ‎09-04-2010

Very sorry to hear this, I always thought vet's knew more than regular doctors. You always hope you get a good one especially at ER. You did the best you could.

okBlonde · ‎09-23-2013

My vet has a sign on the wall in the waiting area: ""Veterinarians have the toughest job due to the fact that their patients can't talk to tell them where it hurts"" or something to that effect. I'm sorry about your precious kitty.

Pandalady · ‎05-14-2011

May God bless you during this time of loss, cookinfreak! Hugs and prayers! ${#emotions_dlg.wub}$ Panda

I'm not short...I'm fun size!

mewsmomtoo · ‎03-05-2014

Just want to say how sorry I am that you and your kitty had to go through this. It is so tough to lose them. I also want to say, cookinfreak, I think you did all you could for your little kitty - you knew she wasn't right and you continued to look for help from the vets and no one could have done more than you did. She had you to comfort her and help her and you were there for her when the toughest decision of all had to be made. Hopefully, when the worst of the pain and feelings of loss have lessened, you will be able to see this.