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#11
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"Arjun Ray" wrote in message ... In , "Dooies B.B" wrote: | I took her to the vets about 8 months ago and due to her drinking lots | more and stuff it was suggested that she did have mild kidney problems, "Mild" is a relative term. You should know that kidneys normally have massive redundancy: there are *no* clinical signs of renal failure until 75% of kidney function has already been lost. | but it was also suggested that at her age perhaps it would be better | not to treat her. This is complete nonsense. Whilst not curable, kidney failure is far from untreatable. Please see: http://www.felinecrf.org/ If your vet doesn't like the idea of a hydration regime (subcutaenous fluids, done at home), then you should seek another vet for a second opinion. Eight months is definitely too long a gap between checkups for a cat with kidney troubles. You should have a full blood panel done to see where her numbers are. | I just find it difficult to watch her slowly stop existing. You do realize, I hope, that it may not just be her arthritis that is troubling her at this point? If she has kidney trouble, the toxins will be building up in her blood, causing her to feel nauseous and tired. | The problem really for me is just not knowing how much she is suffering. If there were a way to make her feel better, would you go for it? If you're willing to answer yes, then please take her to a vet who knows how to *treat* old cats, rather than one who merely commiserates. Of course I would try and make her feel better. I have acted under the advisement of my vet, and it seems I have made a mistake which I will attempt to sort out. However if the treatment itself is trumatic, and will not result in a marked improvement and may well need to be repeated serveral times, then I do wonder if it is the right choice forcing it on an animal who can't understand what is happening, and who may well have other health concerns that already impeed her happiness in day to day life. I have researched the website and it seems that Katie is almost certainly suffering from some Kidney problems. And yes I am aware that her back problems are not likely to be the only thing causing her problems. I do feel that you are attacking me merely for making a mistake based on information given to me from a trusted person. Whist I realise now that the choices I have made up to the point may have adversely affected my cat, she is well loved, and it was not out of choice. My concern has always been for the welfare of my animals, and not of cost or anything else. |
#12
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"bewtifulfreak" wrote in message ... "Dooies B.B" wrote in message . .. Regardless of the choice I make about her life, I do plan to take her to the vets fairly soon, to once again get her checked over. Well, I think this will help you make your decision, as the vet should be able to give you a reasonable idea of just how much discomfort she is in, if any. I love her to bits, and the thought of going up stairs and not seeing her there is difficult. However my family had a habit of prolonging animals suffering in order to gain more time with the pet, and I am very conscious of not allowing my need to be with an animal overrid an animals best interest. Hense I'm looking for advice I think that's very admirable. I know it's a difficult situation; regardless of whether someone we love is nearly gone, or just getting older, we can't help but remember them how they were and feel a little sad that things have changed so much. But I think you won't be able to make an informed choice for your kitty until you get some input from the vet, especially if she's not very obvious about her pain. I hope the vet is able to treat any of her health problems after all, and that she can have a bit more time with you in comfort, but in any case, please keep us informed. All the Best, Ann Thanks for your input. I'm gonna try and get her an appointment next week, it seems the sooner the better |
#13
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"Dooies B.B" wrote in message . .. "Arjun Ray" wrote in message ... In , "Dooies B.B" wrote: | I took her to the vets about 8 months ago and due to her drinking lots | more and stuff it was suggested that she did have mild kidney problems, "Mild" is a relative term. You should know that kidneys normally have massive redundancy: there are *no* clinical signs of renal failure until 75% of kidney function has already been lost. | but it was also suggested that at her age perhaps it would be better | not to treat her. This is complete nonsense. Whilst not curable, kidney failure is far from untreatable. Please see: http://www.felinecrf.org/ If your vet doesn't like the idea of a hydration regime (subcutaenous fluids, done at home), then you should seek another vet for a second opinion. Eight months is definitely too long a gap between checkups for a cat with kidney troubles. You should have a full blood panel done to see where her numbers are. | I just find it difficult to watch her slowly stop existing. You do realize, I hope, that it may not just be her arthritis that is troubling her at this point? If she has kidney trouble, the toxins will be building up in her blood, causing her to feel nauseous and tired. | The problem really for me is just not knowing how much she is suffering. If there were a way to make her feel better, would you go for it? If you're willing to answer yes, then please take her to a vet who knows how to *treat* old cats, rather than one who merely commiserates. Of course I would try and make her feel better. I have acted under the advisement of my vet, and it seems I have made a mistake which I will attempt to sort out. However if the treatment itself is trumatic, and will not result in a marked improvement and may well need to be repeated serveral times, then I do wonder if it is the right choice forcing it on an animal who can't understand what is happening, and who may well have other health concerns that already impeed her happiness in day to day life. I have researched the website and it seems that Katie is almost certainly suffering from some Kidney problems. And yes I am aware that her back problems are not likely to be the only thing causing her problems. I do feel that you are attacking me merely for making a mistake based on information given to me from a trusted person. Whist I realise now that the choices I have made up to the point may have adversely affected my cat, she is well loved, and it was not out of choice. My concern has always been for the welfare of my animals, and not of cost or anything else. I think Arjun is very unhappy with your vet. His frustration may fall into terse terms. How would you know? Most people trust there vet and I'm very sorry yours seems to not be up on this as Katie certainly would feel better by now. From everything people have written here, their cats do not fine fluids traumatic. I've watched my cats receive fluids for fever or dehydration and they do not seem traumatized. I'd sure give it a shot. Karen |
#14
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"Dooies B.B" wrote in message
. .. Of course I would try and make her feel better. I have acted under the advisement of my vet, and it seems I have made a mistake which I will attempt to sort out. However if the treatment itself is trumatic, and will not result in a marked improvement and may well need to be repeated serveral times, then I do wonder if it is the right choice forcing it on an animal who can't understand what is happening, and who may well have other health concerns that already impeed her happiness in day to day life. Subcutaneous fluids treatment (often used for cats in renal failure) is not traumatic. It may *look* more so to a person who's never seen sub-Q fluids given, or who has never given them to their pet at home - since a needle is involved. But once you see a vet do it & realize the cat is practically oblivious to the whole deal, you realize it's basically a piece of cake. I gave them to my CRF cat for months, & some people have done it for years, w/ no probs. As you've seen,m if a cat will eat a renal diet, all to the good, & a Potassium supplement may also help if necessary. I also gave my cat Procrit/Epogen injections for her CRF-related anemia - they were even easier to give than the sub-Q fluids. As the person who wrote the website (that I - & as it turned out, also Arjun Ray - provided; well, it really is an excellent site!) discovered, treatment for CRF in the UK - for some reason - is not nearly as prevalent & advised by vets as it in the in US. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon I have researched the website and it seems that Katie is almost certainly suffering from some Kidney problems. And yes I am aware that her back problems are not likely to be the only thing causing her problems. I do feel that you are attacking me merely for making a mistake based on information given to me from a trusted person. Whist I realise now that the choices I have made up to the point may have adversely affected my cat, she is well loved, and it was not out of choice. My concern has always been for the welfare of my animals, and not of cost or anything else. |
#15
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She still has quality of life for a 15 year old. She does what most older
cats do. I would definitely not euthanize her. Gail "Dooies B.B" wrote in message . .. Sorry to cross post but I have a bit of a dilema. My cat is now 15 and a half, and although she still eats, drinks, toilets, and sleeps, she does little else. I know she has some discomfort from her lower back, and probably kidney problems. Other than that and her increased laziness she seems quite happy, purrs when I go to see her, still comes down stairs when she wants more food (I have 3 cats, and they decided they wanted to divide themselves so Katie got the upstairs, and Gizmo and betsy the downstairs), she doesn't come and see me in bed any more and has no desire to go outside (even though she used to go out days at a time). I realise this is just old age and everyone slows down, but I'm wondering whether I should consider taking her to be put down in a month or so rather than forcing her to go on living when basically she doesn't live the most active of lives, and its not that full of interest. I try and spend time with her, but I just wonder if forcing her to live on to the bitter end is the kindest thing to do. Any thoughts would be gratefully recieved. |
#16
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On 1 Aug 2003 16:29:04 -0500, "Karen Chuplis"
wrote: From everything people have written here, their cats do not fine fluids traumatic. I imagine you are speaking of subcutaneous fluids as opposed to intravenous? In any case, this depends on the cat. My 18-year-old growled and shrieked when the vet put the IV in and when they took it out. She was very vocal and prone to panic at little things (she was not very bright, God bless her!) anyway. Conversely, one of my current cats is such a stoic she makes not a single sound a the vet's, even when they give her a shot. I've watched my cats receive fluids for fever or dehydration and they do not seem traumatized. I'd sure give it a shot. I sure would too. It might help her. I think my old girl's IV hurt me more than it did her, regardless of her shrieking. Karen |
#17
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"Mira" wrote in message
s.com... On 1 Aug 2003 16:29:04 -0500, "Karen Chuplis" wrote: From everything people have written here, their cats do not fine fluids traumatic. I imagine you are speaking of subcutaneous fluids as opposed to intravenous? I'm not Karen C. but... Yes, fluids for CRF are subcutaneous, not intravenous. Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon In any case, this depends on the cat. My 18-year-old growled and shrieked when the vet put the IV in and when they took it out. She was very vocal and prone to panic at little things (she was not very bright, God bless her!) anyway. Conversely, one of my current cats is such a stoic she makes not a single sound a the vet's, even when they give her a shot. I've watched my cats receive fluids for fever or dehydration and they do not seem traumatized. I'd sure give it a shot. I sure would too. It might help her. I think my old girl's IV hurt me more than it did her, regardless of her shrieking. Karen |
#18
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"Karen Chuplis" wrote in message ... Some cats are drama queens We had a cat that adored another cat of ours. He would follow her around and gaze at her in rapture. She did not like him. There were times I heard horrible shrieking. I mean like a REAL fighting, not just normal stuff. I would rush into the room only to find my male 10 feet across the room from the female, but "he's LOOKING at me" seemed to be vocalized over dramatically. Heh! ;-) This is the same scene I've come across umpteen times - w/ Demelza screeching her head off, at the top of her lungs, at Herrie. "He's *looking* at me!!!" Cathy -- "Staccato signals of constant information..." ("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon After my first three heart attacks over it, I found it amusing that she could carry on so. It just confused him. Karen |
#19
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In , "Dooies B.B"
wrote: | I do feel that you are attacking me merely for making a mistake based | on information given to me from a trusted person. I'm sorry, I wasn't attacking you. As Karen says, I'm very unhappy with your vet. You have been given rather poor advice to say the least. I also got the distinct impression that you had given up - based obviously on the information (or lack of it) from the vet. To some extent, I speak from personal experience. I have a CRF cat. (His case is somewhat different in that he isn't old - only 5 - but that's inessential.) I trusted (and liked) a vet until the day I found her giving a prognosis that I knew was wrong. I knew because in the interim, I had researched the subject. My cat needed fluids immediately but she didn't think so. Basically, her heart wasn't in the fight for my cat's life. So I changed vets. I have stopped going to the previous vet, and I ignore all the reminders and cards she sends. I know it's hard to turn away from a trusted person, but I view it this way: my first loyalty is to my cat, not the vet. |
#20
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"Dooies B.B" wrote in message . .. Sorry to cross post but I have a bit of a dilema. My cat is now 15 and a half, and although she still eats, drinks, toilets, and sleeps, she does little else. I know she has some discomfort from her lower back, and probably kidney problems. Other than that and her increased laziness she seems quite happy, purrs when I go to see her, still comes down stairs when she wants more food (I have 3 cats, and they decided they wanted to divide themselves so Katie got the upstairs, and Gizmo and betsy the downstairs), she doesn't come and see me in bed any more and has no desire to go outside (even though she used to go out days at a time). I realise this is just old age and everyone slows down, but I'm wondering whether I should consider taking her to be put down in a month or so rather than forcing her to go on living when basically she doesn't live the most active of lives, and its not that full of interest. I try and spend time with her, but I just wonder if forcing her to live on to the bitter end is the kindest thing to do. Any thoughts would be gratefully recieved. Have you taken your cat to the vet for a check up and a blood panel , if not why are you considering putting her to sleep ? You don't have a dilema until you find out your cat has something your vet can't treat . Alison |
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