Fatass in rough shape

Fatass, my CRF cat who is 16 1/2 years old, is now blind, and her BUN
and CR numbers are as bad as they were when she was first diagnosed at
the end of May.

Last week my wife noticed Fats was acting a little off, and thought it
might be her vision, so I tested it with the flashlight and by dropping
cotton balls infront of her face, no reaction...Off to the vet we went
at 8pm...

They tested her BP, it was high, and they beleive that the high BP
caused a detached retina in one eye. The other eye was also on its way
out. They prescribed Norvasc.

Even worse, they did another blood test, her BUN is now 133, and her CR
is now 8.3. These are sky high, espcially given that she has been
getting fluids every day since late May.

Over the past two months we got it down from 131 to 66 to 58...Same
with the cr, we got it down from 8.8 to 5.8 to 5.3, but these new
numbers are really bad.

Her weight also dropped from 8.8lbs to 8.1 lbs over the past 5 weeks.
(although she was so fat that at this weight, she just looks slender -
she isn't even close to emaciated.)

Anyway, her daily meds are now 250ml of lactated ringers (with a level
2 heart murmur - but with the kidneys so close to total failure, I have
to up the fluids.), 4mg of Cypro, .75mg of Norvasc, 1/4 pepcid, and 2
Renal Essentials for cats tablets.

She is still eating, albeit with help from the cypro. She finds me,
can walk around the house alright, jumps on the couch and bed, never
had an accident, and likes to listen and smell what is going on
outside...she still purrs like a motorboat, so I am not giving up on
her.

But realistically I don't think she has much time left. I hate the
thought of her being miserable and having to put her in the carrier for
the last ride to the vet, which she hates.

If she goes, I hope she goes peacefully and quickly at home.

Later,


Bluesman

wrote in message
oups.com...
Fatass, my CRF cat who is 16 1/2 years old, is now blind, and her BUN
and CR numbers are as bad as they were when she was first diagnosed at
the end of May.

Last week my wife noticed Fats was acting a little off, and thought it
might be her vision, so I tested it with the flashlight and by dropping
cotton balls infront of her face, no reaction...Off to the vet we went
at 8pm...

They tested her BP, it was high, and they beleive that the high BP
caused a detached retina in one eye. The other eye was also on its way
out. They prescribed Norvasc.

Even worse, they did another blood test, her BUN is now 133, and her CR
is now 8.3. These are sky high, espcially given that she has been
getting fluids every day since late May.

Over the past two months we got it down from 131 to 66 to 58...Same
with the cr, we got it down from 8.8 to 5.8 to 5.3, but these new
numbers are really bad.

Her weight also dropped from 8.8lbs to 8.1 lbs over the past 5 weeks.
(although she was so fat that at this weight, she just looks slender -
she isn't even close to emaciated.)

Anyway, her daily meds are now 250ml of lactated ringers (with a level
2 heart murmur - but with the kidneys so close to total failure, I have
to up the fluids.), 4mg of Cypro, .75mg of Norvasc, 1/4 pepcid, and 2
Renal Essentials for cats tablets.

She is still eating, albeit with help from the cypro. She finds me,
can walk around the house alright, jumps on the couch and bed, never
had an accident, and likes to listen and smell what is going on
outside...she still purrs like a motorboat, so I am not giving up on
her.

But realistically I don't think she has much time left. I hate the
thought of her being miserable and having to put her in the carrier for
the last ride to the vet, which she hates.

If she goes, I hope she goes peacefully and quickly at home.

Later,


Bluesman

If she doesn't, I think you will be able to tell when it is time. SHe sounds
like she is holding up well. THe blood pressure medicine should help.

On Mon 15 Aug 2005 02:23:18p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav
roups.com):

But realistically I don't think she has much time left. I hate
the thought of her being miserable and having to put her in the
carrier for the last ride to the vet, which she hates.

If she goes, I hope she goes peacefully and quickly at home.

Hoping the same. I'm so sorry she's going downhill. So hard to watch
that. Such a helpless feeling.

--
Cheryl

"The clever cat eats cheese and breathes down rat holes with baited
breath."
- W.C. Fields

On 15 Aug 2005 11:23:18 -0700, wrote:


| Over the past two months we got it down from 131 to 66 to 58...Same
| with the cr, we got it down from 8.8 to 5.8 to 5.3, but these new
| numbers are really bad.

Basically, she crashed, and from your description, she's still in
crisis. Your best shot is to take her in for several days of IV
fluids. They're much better at flushing the system than subQs during
crises. Please don't wait: discuss it with the vet.

| Her weight also dropped from 8.8lbs to 8.1 lbs over the past 5 weeks.
| (although she was so fat that at this weight, she just looks slender -
| she isn't even close to emaciated.)

Weight loss is inevitable with CRF, because less body mass means less
creatinine production. Be concerned only about sudden drops.

| But realistically I don't think she has much time left. I hate the
| thought of her being miserable and having to put her in the carrier for
| the last ride to the vet, which she hates.
|
| If she goes, I hope she goes peacefully and quickly at home.

I feel for you. My Scruffy was in a bad way for a month. Then, in
the space of hours it went from bad but bearable - he was very strong
and perfectly healthy except for his kidneys = to hopeless, so fast
that I didn't wait for the appointment in the evening at home I had
already made, but took him in at once. He absolutely hated carriers,
but he was in no shape to protest.

My own personal experience was this: as long as Scruffy was still the
Scruffy I knew, doing his characteristic Scruffy things, I couldn't
and didn't end it. It was a matter of the spirit. And then, when he
fell off a cliff at the end, I didn't wait for him to hit the bottom.
Again, a matter of the spirit. FWIW.

Unfinished album:
http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/...746&uid=514878

I'm sorry Fatass is not doing so well. It is possible that the retina can
re-attach once you get the blood pressure under control. So it's possible
the blindness may not be permanent.

Sue
wrote in message
oups.com...
Fatass, my CRF cat who is 16 1/2 years old, is now blind, and her BUN
and CR numbers are as bad as they were when she was first diagnosed at
the end of May.

Last week my wife noticed Fats was acting a little off, and thought it
might be her vision, so I tested it with the flashlight and by dropping
cotton balls infront of her face, no reaction...Off to the vet we went
at 8pm...

They tested her BP, it was high, and they beleive that the high BP
caused a detached retina in one eye. The other eye was also on its way
out. They prescribed Norvasc.

Even worse, they did another blood test, her BUN is now 133, and her CR
is now 8.3. These are sky high, espcially given that she has been
getting fluids every day since late May.

Over the past two months we got it down from 131 to 66 to 58...Same
with the cr, we got it down from 8.8 to 5.8 to 5.3, but these new
numbers are really bad.

Her weight also dropped from 8.8lbs to 8.1 lbs over the past 5 weeks.
(although she was so fat that at this weight, she just looks slender -
she isn't even close to emaciated.)

Anyway, her daily meds are now 250ml of lactated ringers (with a level
2 heart murmur - but with the kidneys so close to total failure, I have
to up the fluids.), 4mg of Cypro, .75mg of Norvasc, 1/4 pepcid, and 2
Renal Essentials for cats tablets.

She is still eating, albeit with help from the cypro. She finds me,
can walk around the house alright, jumps on the couch and bed, never
had an accident, and likes to listen and smell what is going on
outside...she still purrs like a motorboat, so I am not giving up on
her.

But realistically I don't think she has much time left. I hate the
thought of her being miserable and having to put her in the carrier for
the last ride to the vet, which she hates.

If she goes, I hope she goes peacefully and quickly at home.

Later,


Bluesman

wrote:
Fatass, my CRF cat who is 16 1/2 years old, is now blind, and her BUN
and CR numbers are as bad as they were when she was first diagnosed at the end of May.

I'm very sorry, I know you have done everything you could for her over
the past months. Hopefully, Arjun is correct and she crashed but will
bounce back again. I, too, had a kitty who died of CRF; it's very sad
and hard to know what is best but I would give her time to recover from
this crisis and, as Arjun said, IV fluids might be better than sub-q
for right now.

Best to FA,

Candace

Thanks for the kind reponses everyone. The vet did in fact suggest IV
for a few days, but I was not leaving a blind, sick and scared cat in
an unfamiliar place for that long.

Strangely enough, if appetite is any indicator, she seems to be doing a
bit better over the past few days.

I am not fooling myself with false hope here, but as long as she is
eating she is alright...and she is eating a couple of ounces of wet
food twice a day as well as another ounce or so of dry treats. If I
can keep getting 5-6 oz of food in her a day, along with her meds and
some B-complex, I might be able to pull her out of this crash. (her
2nd in a span of 3 months.)

When she doesn't eat, I will be ready with the syringe to try and get
her past the bad days...

I think I will know when the time comes - but it is not that time yet.

Later,


Bluesman

Much love to you Bluesman and Scruffy.

Sincerely,
Jen

wrote:
Thanks for the kind reponses everyone. The vet did in fact suggest IV
for a few days, but I was not leaving a blind, sick and scared cat in
an unfamiliar place for that long.

Strangely enough, if appetite is any indicator, she seems to be doing a
bit better over the past few days.

I am not fooling myself with false hope here, but as long as she is
eating she is alright...and she is eating a couple of ounces of wet
food twice a day as well as another ounce or so of dry treats. If I
can keep getting 5-6 oz of food in her a day, along with her meds and
some B-complex, I might be able to pull her out of this crash. (her
2nd in a span of 3 months.)

When she doesn't eat, I will be ready with the syringe to try and get
her past the bad days...

I think I will know when the time comes - but it is not that time yet.

Later,

Bluesman


--
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On 16 Aug 2005 07:57:47 -0700, wrote:

| Thanks for the kind reponses everyone. The vet did in fact suggest IV
| for a few days, but I was not leaving a blind, sick and scared cat in
| an unfamiliar place for that long.

I strongly urge you to reconsider this decision. A few days at the
vets is not going to hurt her. On the contrary, if there's anything
that *can* pull her out of the crisis, it would be IV fluids, and not
subQs. Which is more important, her mental state for a short while,
or her prsopects over the longer haul?

Arjun Ray wrote:
On 16 Aug 2005 07:57:47 -0700, wrote:

| Thanks for the kind reponses everyone. The vet did in fact suggest IV
| for a few days, but I was not leaving a blind, sick and scared cat in
| an unfamiliar place for that long.

I strongly urge you to reconsider this decision. A few days at the
vets is not going to hurt her. On the contrary, if there's anything
that *can* pull her out of the crisis, it would be IV fluids, and not
subQs. Which is more important, her mental state for a short while,
or her prsopects over the longer haul?

I second this. Contrary to what you might think, She will be fine at
the vet and needs hospitalization, IMO, based on what you posted.

Best of luck - it's a sad situation.

-L.