Bloated kitty....

"FaeryKitten12187" u19346@uwe wrote in message news:5cd254f46bc92@uwe...
Niel Humphreys wrote:
My cat is about 11 and 1/2 years old, and in very good shape. She looks
healthy and acts healthy as well. About a year ago she seemed to ba
having
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]

please reply!! Thank you!!

Never fails to amaze me how many people can tell there is something wrong
yet come on here asking instead of doing the obvious and taking the poor
animal to the vet. Not exactly rocket science is it?


so people are a little worried and don't have the money to go and have
x-rays
and surgery done, when there is a possiblity that there is nothing wrong.
I'm
18 and cannot afford surgery if that's the route i'm following, so i wanna
see if anyone HELPFUL has any advice. Obviously you don't think of the
person
on the other end of things....

Only a vet can possibly answer the question you raised, and it is obvious
that your cat needs to see a vet ASAP. Something like this simply cannot be
diagnosed at a distance.

I realize that it may seem that we are taking the easy out by telling you to
see a vet (and that others with financial problems have felt the same way
when confronted with that advice), but it is really the *only* way out if
you want to help your pet. Many of us really *do* understand the economic
difficulties this entails, but our cats are part of our families, and we
take care of them just as we would take care of other family members. I am
fortunate that I do not need to worry about moderate expenses, but I did at
one time. Believe me, I have not forgotten what it was like to worry about
even the smallest of expenses. I got my first cat when I was a graduate
student and soon found that he was seriously ill. I had barely enough money
to live on and certainly could not have considered any luxuries such as a
car (*any* car). So, I took my cat in a carrier on the public bus,
transferred to the route that took me closest to the vet, and then walked
several blocks while carrying the carrier. I made this trip several times
over the next several weeks. My cat needed surgery, and I had no money at
all. I didn't even have a credit card in those days, but I made
arrangements with the vet to pay the bill on time. It took me a very long
time to make all the monthly payments, and I then ate maccaroni and cheese
several times a week so I could afford the specialized diet my cat needed.
Well, it was worth it!! He lived to be almost 20 and was my wonderful
friend and companion. So, yes, I do think of the person on the other end of
things even when I say, "Go to a vet." However, that is the only reasonable
advice in a case like this. Please make whatever arrangements are necessary
and take your cat for an examination. You may even find that the problem is
minor and that it will cost far less to control at an early stage than to
let it progress. Either way, you owe it to your friend to do what you can.

MaryL

"FaeryKitten12187" u19346@uwe wrote in message news:5cd27b2c39bd0@uwe...
cybercat wrote:
so people are a little worried and don't have the money to go and have
x-rays
and surgery done, when there is a possiblity that there is nothing
wrong. I'm
18 and cannot afford surgery if that's the route i'm following, so i
wanna
see if anyone HELPFUL has any advice. Obviously you don't think of the
person
on the other end of things....

The most HELPFUL thing, as you know, is to take the animal to a vet. You'd
find the money if it were for something else. A checkup is what, $25? Use
your
head, and for God's sake don't go on the offensive when you are in the
wrong.
It's your cat, take care of it. Or is it that it is only a cat, so worthy
of
a few
Usenet posts but not the price of a CD?

my cat means a lot to me and if it came down to it i'd sell my car and all
my
belongings to take care of her, i'm just affraid of what i'll hear in
response. the last thing i want is to loose her.

I printed a reply just before I saw this message. Please do not let your
fear prevent you from seeking the care that is needed. Many people have
made that same mistake, both for themselves and for their pets. The irony
is that the problem is often something that *could* have been treated but
became untreatable because of delay. So, despite your fear (which is *very*
understandable), please take your cat to a vet *tomorrow.*

MaryL

The old maxim, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," is
certainly the case when it comes to senior adult cats. a quote on Phil's
site it is so true


What do you expect no offense this is a usernet forum not a ask a vet
advice forum. Vets won't do this for the same reason doctor's won't do this
malpractice. Now I am going to write a response it is not to be taken as
rude, flaming you, belittling you or dressing you down. I am a very blunt
writer, speaker and tell it how it is. If the truth hurts that is your hang
up I always say :-)

The reason people are saying this to you is that you have obviously
discovered a problem that needs a vet visit. If your vet missed this while
the examination occurred. It is time to learn to speak up about the problem
or find a new vet. Just because they are a vet does not mean they know what
they are doing. When it comes to caring for an cat; they are notorious for
hiding the fact they are sick.

I don't mean to be rude but Personally if I can't lay my hands on the
cat, my eyes or observe the cat there is no way to know. Blood works needs
to be done a stool sample examined. I can think of 10 reason right now that
could be the problem that would only require medication. I can also think
of 10 reason that would require major medical procedures. Here are some
examples food allergies, parasitic infection, distended adomen, blockage in
the intestines, diabetes, kidney stones, fluid on the lungs so many things
can be named.

Your cat is almost 12 do you know how old that is in human terms? He is
over 60 years of age http://diabellalovescats.com/agechart.htm
http://www.bettycat.com/home/ages.html
http://www.geocities.com/catcare2000/agecat.htm

Now the part about you being 18! Your point is? You took on the
responsibility of having a pet as you being an adult. Treat your pet as a
child both need to go to the doctor when they are sick. If you can't afford
vet care there are plenty of places that help out people in need of
financial assistance contact your local animal society.

FYI I am not being an a@@ here but you realize that if there is a
problem with your cat and you don't get medical treatment you are committing
a crime and the excuse of not having financial backing will not fly with any
judge or animal control officer. You might love your cat but if you can't
afford to take care of it. You need to find help to. Can you find someone
to help out such as your parents or guardians. Your cat is an older cat
and problems are going to arise more with an older cat such as teeth
cleaning, adult senior nutrition requirements, possible more vets visit due
to age.

There is a lot to consider right now I am not going to be one of the
ones to say get rid of it. You obviously care if you are taking care of a 12
year old cat. BUT A VET VISIT IS A NECESSITY for this incident. Almost any
vet will work out payment plans with you if not find another vet that will.

If you have any questions I and others will gladly help out if I can

here is some reading from Phil's site
http://www.maxshouse.com/caring_for_your_older_cat.htm
and others about older cat care
http://vetmedicine.about.com/cs/catg...iatriccats.htm

Matthew




"FaeryKitten12187" u19346@uwe wrote in message news:5cd254f46bc92@uwe...
Niel Humphreys wrote:
My cat is about 11 and 1/2 years old, and in very good shape. She looks
healthy and acts healthy as well. About a year ago she seemed to ba
having
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]

please reply!! Thank you!!

Never fails to amaze me how many people can tell there is something wrong
yet come on here asking instead of doing the obvious and taking the poor
animal to the vet. Not exactly rocket science is it?


so people are a little worried and don't have the money to go and have
x-rays
and surgery done, when there is a possiblity that there is nothing wrong.
I'm
18 and cannot afford surgery if that's the route i'm following, so i wanna
see if anyone HELPFUL has any advice. Obviously you don't think of the
person
on the other end of things....

"FaeryKitten12187" u19346@uwe wrote in message news:5cd27b2c39bd0@uwe...
cybercat wrote:
so people are a little worried and don't have the money to go and have
x-rays
and surgery done, when there is a possiblity that there is nothing
wrong. I'm
18 and cannot afford surgery if that's the route i'm following, so i
wanna
see if anyone HELPFUL has any advice. Obviously you don't think of the
person
on the other end of things....

The most HELPFUL thing, as you know, is to take the animal to a vet.
You'd
find the money if it were for something else. A checkup is what, $25? Use
your
head, and for God's sake don't go on the offensive when you are in the
wrong.
It's your cat, take care of it. Or is it that it is only a cat, so worthy
of
a few
Usenet posts but not the price of a CD?

my cat means a lot to me and if it came down to it i'd sell my car and all
my
belongings to take care of her, i'm just affraid of what i'll hear in
response. the last thing i want is to loose her.

Well good!! Not everyone feels that way. Take her in the morning.
(Also, every good deed you do comes back to you with things ten
times as good--especially things you do for little creatures that depend
upon you.) You could have her for ten more years. Bloating can be a
sign of something serious that has a simple and cheap solution--could
be constipation!

Now I say after the fact when I posted that you are scared what is
going to happen or what you are going to hear. It is a scary thought
process. every time I take my 6 year old eplilptic cat into the vet for his
problems I braces myself for having to may have to put him to sleep. That
is my biggest fear that I will have put down a friend that I love as much as
life it self tears shed thinking about this But here is somethng to
ponder what if you find out something later that you could have fixed
earlier. The guilt would eat people alive.

There are so many thing that could be wrong. So many simple things that it
could possibly be easliy treated. Please take the furball to the vet to
find out. Please let us know out here was the results were. When we know
what the problem is there are plenty of us out here that have years of
experince in working with cats ( not as vets thou) We will gladly help out
how we can

When you go into the vet remember to do the flollowing

1 Take a stool sample

2 Talk to the vet about what you have observed behavior such as eating
and litter box use.

3 If the cat has been in any pain or acting oddly tell them the small
things can be the victory in diagnoses

4 DON"T BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS bring a note pad ask anything and
write it down the procedures and responses. a informed pet owner is a
smart pet owner

5 You know how much the vet initial visit will be up front. If they want
to do any prcedure inform them you are on a budget and is there
anything that can be done naturaly first. If surgery is required GET A
SECOND OPINION FIRST unless you trust your vet completely


If you got any questions PLEASE ASK

Good luck
purrs and huggs for the furball

Matthew

FaeryKitten12187 wrote: so people are a little worried and don't have
the money to go and have x-rays
and surgery done, when there is a possiblity that there is nothing wrong. I'm
18 and cannot afford surgery if that's the route i'm following, so i wanna
see if anyone HELPFUL has any advice. Obviously you don't think of the person
on the other end of things....

The problem is that your cat cannot be evaluated and examined over the
internet. I'm sure you're well aware that having a pet is a lifetime
responsibility, and that it does cost money. Perhaps you can go to a
family member for a loan, or work out a payment plan with the vet.
Clearly what you have posted here indicates a more serious problem that
we can help you with. Please try to get your cat to a vet as soon as
possible so she doesn't suffer .

cybercat wrote:
The most HELPFUL thing, as you know, is to take the animal to a vet. You'd
find the money if it were for something else. A checkup is what, $25? Use
your
head, and for God's sake don't go on the offensive when you are in the
wrong.
It's your cat, take care of it. Or is it that it is only a cat, so worthy of
a few
Usenet posts but not the price of a CD?

or the price of internet access sigh

"FaeryKitten12187" u19346@uwe wrote in message news:5cd0dba4fb3b8@uwe...
My cat is about 11 and 1/2 years old, and in very good shape. She looks
healthy and acts healthy as well. About a year ago she seemed to ba having
problems eating and was very thin and hardly seemed to eat, that did get
better on it's own and she seemed to be fine again. Lately i've noticed
she
has gotten very fat, but when i feel her stomach she feels bloated. She
cannot be pregnant because she was fixed when she was about 2. So i've
ruled
that out. I was thinking that maybe she just started eating a lot, but i
NEVER see her eat, and even when she does, she only eats a few bites then
walks away. Is there something wrong with her?????


Guesses won't do your or cat any good whatsoever. Have her check by a vet.
Older cats should see a vet at least twice a year.

"FaeryKitten12187" u19346@uwe wrote in message news:5cd27b2c39bd0@uwe...
cybercat wrote:
so people are a little worried and don't have the money to go and have
x-rays
and surgery done, when there is a possiblity that there is nothing
wrong. I'm
18 and cannot afford surgery if that's the route i'm following, so i
wanna
see if anyone HELPFUL has any advice. Obviously you don't think of the
person
on the other end of things....

The most HELPFUL thing, as you know, is to take the animal to a vet. You'd
find the money if it were for something else. A checkup is what, $25? Use
your
head, and for God's sake don't go on the offensive when you are in the
wrong.
It's your cat, take care of it. Or is it that it is only a cat, so worthy
of
a few
Usenet posts but not the price of a CD?

my cat means a lot to me and if it came down to it i'd sell my car and all
my
belongings to take care of her, i'm just affraid of what i'll hear in
response. the last thing i want is to loose her.

Oh, I see. So you think that if your cat has something life threatening and
you ignore it then it will go away and be miraculously cured? - but if you
take the pet to a vet you will have to pay for a cure or hopefully just a
basic check up. Come on, I can't believe anyone is this stupid!

--

Niel H

FaeryKitten12187 wrote:

my cat means a lot to me and if it came down to it i'd sell my car and all my
belongings to take care of her, i'm just affraid of what i'll hear in
response. the last thing i want is to loose her.

You won't know til you take her to the vet. It could be bad news, or it
could be something very simple.

For example, when Maynard was 9 or 10 years old, he had a lump growing
on his side. It felt like half a grape, just behind his shoulder. I was
terrified he had cancer. I rushed him to the vet, expecting them to do
a biopsy which would have to be sent out. Expensive, and a bad waiting
game.

I was lucky. They did a biopsy, and their first test was a simple look
under the microscope. What was it? Fat. In a weird spot, on a very lean
cat. Unusual, but certainly no harm. It cost me $22, and I went home
totally relieved and happy.

Same cat, last May. His ears were yellow. I knew that was a liver
issue, and I took him to the vet right away. But this was more serious,
and it's usually too late when the skin turns yellow. In this case, the
tests were expensive, and the news was bad. But I had 3 days to try
some medication, and I got to spend some special time with him and say
good bye. And he didn't suffer. He was still eating and acting normally
when I discovered his yellow ears. So, even though I could not cure
him, I was able to spare him a long suffering death. Maynard died a
week and a half before his 19th birthday.

In both cases, a trip the vet was in order. And even though the results
were bad in the second example, I was still relieved to know what I was
facing, and to know that I was doing what needed to be done. My only
regret is that I wasn't doing twice yearly bloodwork on him. I thought
once a year was enough, and I was wrong.


Now, to your specific case. There are lots of simple easily fixed
problems (constipation, hairballs, etc) and several more serious
diseases. No way to know without a vet check. You may come home very
relieved with a very relieved cat. You may have some tough times ahead
of you. Either way, you will feel better when you know what it is, and
have some kind of action plan. You will find that worrying is usually
much harder than facing reality, even when reality is what you were
worried about. It just seems easier to deal with it, once you know what
"it" is.

I took Kira in a few weeks ago. She had some growling sessions with
sensitive belly a couple times. Once, she felt bloated. Once I thought
I felt a mass. Both times, I massaged her, and that helped. But I was
still very worried that she might have a tumor or something. She had
also vomitted a couple times.

The vet did a check, felt no bloating or masses at that time. He
determined that it was most likely a hairball I had felt, and that she
was having a harder time passing hariballs, which is common in older
cats. She is also 11 1/2 years old. He prescribed a hairball remedy,
and she has been doing great ever since.

Hopefully, it is something that simple. If so, you and your kitty will
be feeling better right away.