Murphy
1270892 | 
 | | Purred: Thu Oct 4, '12 7:05am PST |  | |  | | Hi, I'm Murphy. I'm a 1.5 year old kitty that weighs only 5.6 lbs. My mom tried finding help on the forums for my issue, but can't seem to find one that fits what is going on with me. There are some cases that have similarities and give her high hopes, but other cases do not make her feel good.
I am up-to-date on all of my vaccines and have been a very normal cat up until now. About a month and half ago, my mom noticed I was losing weight. She thought it was because she switched out my food to something healthier. She would see me eat it, but thought that because it was better quality, it was helping me lose some weight. I was a pretty big kitty. Bigger than my brother! But now, I'm only 5.6 lbs.
I was taken to the vet's on Saturday, Sept. 29th, because last week, I was throwing up white foam every night. Google only told us white foam could mean I'm not eating, so mom thought I really didn't like the new food. I did eat a green bean, but threw that up, too. At the vet's, they noticed my ears were "a little yellow", so they drew some blood. I wasn't happy about it, and the results didn't make my mom happy either. My red blood cell count was at 15%, and the vet said I was on the borderline of needing a transfusion. Also, my liver enzymes were high. When they brought me back to my mom, that's when she noticed my ears were very jaundiced. She feels bad for not noticing it before, unless it just happened suddenly. Anyway, the vet threw out some ideas of what it could be, but suggested I stay over the weekend to get some IV fluids and doxycycline to hopefully help me out. The vet was thinking it could be hemobartonella, liver disease, and other things my mom can't understand.
On Monday, Oct. 1, bloodwork still didn't come back for me and the vet wanted to keep me another night. The doxycycline wasn't helping much. My red blood cells were still at 15% and I was still throwing up. I ate a little bit of dry food, but no wet. I can't tell why I'm not into wet food. On Tuesday, Oct. 2, the vet suggested I get sent to do an ultrasound. They wanted to send me to a specialist but my mom works at another animal hospital (only reason I didn't go there first was because they were closed) so she brought me to her job where an ultrasound was done. Nothing was seen that they didn't already know. My liver was bright, the doctor said. The new vet was going to speak to a specialist about the ultrasound viewing and see what the specialist suggested, but things weren't looking good. They began talking about possibly doing a bone marrow biopsy or that FIP could be a possibility.
On Wed. Oct. 3, my mom brought me my old food. She didn't bring me the new, healthier food she had me eating because she didn't think I liked it all too much, so she went to the store to get the stuff I had eaten since I was a kitten. When she gave it to me, I was eating it! But, sadly, my red blood cell count dropped to 11%. My mom needed to decide if they wanted me to do the biopsy or not. She still isn't sure if she should do it. It could find an answer and it could not. She wants to help me out and wishes money weren't a factor, but sadly, it is. Anyway, I went to the emergency clinic overnight to do a blood transfusion. My mom and dad are hoping this gives me a little more stability for now. They know it's only a temporary fix. My mom picked me up this morning and transferred me back to her job, because staying at the ER is expensive! I handled the transfusion very well. My red blood cell count is currently at 20%. It was 11% at my mom's job, 12% at the ER upon admission, and 20% after the transfusion. I was eating my food really, really well at 4AM this morning and when my mom put my in the cage, she gave me some food, and I was eating that, too.
The vet says that I have to think about if we want to do the biopsy or start on steroids, but there is a risk of starting on steroids without a diagnosis. If it's autoimmune, it could help, but he said if it is FIP, steroids could be harmful. But if it is FIP, that's no good anyway. My mom kind of wants to just start me on steroids, because she doesn't want to believe that it could be FIP, but is worried that could spiral me down faster. She doesn't want to put me through a biopsy if it's going to be inconclusive (it could have an answer, it could not). Can anyone offer us advice? She's hoping I've gained enough strength to eat now and that will hopefully help, but she's not sure. She's read a bunch of different things that make her feel good, but then reads something that makes her feel bad. Can my anemia come from not eating my food, and from not eating my food, can that cause jaundice? My mom likes where she works and the doctors are great, but she has a feeling that they think I have no chance! I'm still acting normal, just sad that I'm not at home. |  |  | |  |
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