Opinions on sick cat wanted please.

A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill. I would love to help him but frankly I can
not afford it either right now and am on verge of having to stop
feeding my strays every day. The only other option I can see is for
him to have it PTS instead of having it having it suffer. Opinion
please mainly on having it PTS but willing to listen to any comments.
Thanks.

On 5/24/2013 11:50 AM, kraut / larry stark wrote:
A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill. I would love to help him but frankly I can
not afford it either right now and am on verge of having to stop
feeding my strays every day. The only other option I can see is for
him to have it PTS instead of having it having it suffer. Opinion
please mainly on having it PTS but willing to listen to any comments.
Thanks.

I cannot help with the vet bill. I'm no expert but the symptoms sound a
lot like hyperthyroidism. It requires medication and no, it's not
cheap. I certainly wouldn't want the cat to suffer. It comes down to a
quality of life issue. If the owner can't afford to care for it I'd
first try to find another home for the cat. Nine years isn't all that old.

Jill

"kraut / larry stark" wrote in message
...
A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill. I would love to help him but frankly I can
not afford it either right now and am on verge of having to stop
feeding my strays every day. The only other option I can see is for
him to have it PTS instead of having it having it suffer. Opinion
please mainly on having it PTS but willing to listen to any comments.
Thanks.

Is there a charity like the PDSA, in America, where you can take your
animals for veterinary care when you can't afford private treatment?
Because the cat does need to be looked at by a vet from what you've
described.
Some vets will allow monthly payments, maybe that is a possibility?
I hate the idea that a cat can be cured but there is no money for the vet.

When I was working I built up a fund for veterinary treatment by putting
away a certain amount per month and refused to touch it for anything else.
I know this is not always possible.

My suggestion is that your friend tries local animal charities for help,
otherwise..

Tweed

A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill.
I'm no expert but the symptoms sound a lot like hyperthyroidism.
It requires medication and no, it's not cheap.

Our Chloe is on medication for hyperthyroidism (for similar symptoms).
It is pretty cheap. What isn't cheap is the tests and consultations.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Jack Campin, 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU, Scotland
mobile 07800 739 557 http://www.campin.me.uk Twitter: JackCampin

On Fri, 24 May 2013 14:00:49 -0400, jmcquown
wrote:

On 5/24/2013 11:50 AM, kraut / larry stark wrote:
A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill. I would love to help him but frankly I can
not afford it either right now and am on verge of having to stop
feeding my strays every day. The only other option I can see is for
him to have it PTS instead of having it having it suffer. Opinion
please mainly on having it PTS but willing to listen to any comments.
Thanks.

I cannot help with the vet bill. I'm no expert but the symptoms sound a
lot like hyperthyroidism. It requires medication and no, it's not
cheap. I certainly wouldn't want the cat to suffer. It comes down to a
quality of life issue. If the owner can't afford to care for it I'd
first try to find another home for the cat. Nine years isn't all that old.

Jill

Well I have the cat now and will most likely get it into the vet ASAP
to at least see what the vet has to say and take it from there.

Thanks for all the replies and suggestions.

On 5/24/2013 8:32 PM, Jack Campin wrote:
A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill.
I'm no expert but the symptoms sound a lot like hyperthyroidism.
It requires medication and no, it's not cheap.

Our Chloe is on medication for hyperthyroidism (for similar symptoms).
It is pretty cheap. What isn't cheap is the tests and consultations.

I'm one of the "lucky" (insert a big HA!) here owned by Persia who
turned out to be allergic to the hyperthyroid medication. The medicine
itself wasn't all that expensive but getting the coorect diagnosis *did*
require a lot of tests. Then it turned out she couldn't take the
medication. Aaaaaah! The allergic reaction resulted in more tests and
yet another overnight stay. After that, the only treatment option was
radioactive isotope therapy. $900USD + boarding for 2 weeks. I also
had to take her 130 miles away to a facility licensed to handle
radioactive isotopes. None of it was cheap. She was worth it, the
symptoms vanished. I'm lucky I could afford to do all of that.

Three years later she's got (still fairly mild) kidney disease. The
regular checkups and prescription food isn't cheap.

Jill

On 5/24/2013 8:41 PM, kraut / larry stark wrote:
On Fri, 24 May 2013 14:00:49 -0400, jmcquown
wrote:

On 5/24/2013 11:50 AM, kraut / larry stark wrote:
A friend has a cat about 9 years old that has been loosing wait for
the last 3 or 4 months, throwing up several times a day, eats like a
horse and is always hungry, looks like blood in stool occasionally and
stool is usually soft and very smelly. He is on assistance and can not
afford a large vet bill. I would love to help him but frankly I can
not afford it either right now and am on verge of having to stop
feeding my strays every day. The only other option I can see is for
him to have it PTS instead of having it having it suffer. Opinion
please mainly on having it PTS but willing to listen to any comments.
Thanks.

I cannot help with the vet bill. I'm no expert but the symptoms sound a
lot like hyperthyroidism. It requires medication and no, it's not
cheap. I certainly wouldn't want the cat to suffer. It comes down to a
quality of life issue. If the owner can't afford to care for it I'd
first try to find another home for the cat. Nine years isn't all that old.

Jill

Well I have the cat now and will most likely get it into the vet ASAP
to at least see what the vet has to say and take it from there.

Thanks for all the replies and suggestions.

I can't remember the name of the specific test but please ask them to
check for hyperthyroidism. Unless the cat turns out to be allergic to
the medication (rare, but the way things work in my world, mine was)
it's not difficult to treat. The medication is available in gel form,
pre-measured and rubbed gently into the ear. Much easier than pilling!
Good luck and thank you for taking on the responsibility.

Jill

"kraut / larry stark" wrote in message
...

Well I have the cat now and will most likely get it into the vet ASAP
to at least see what the vet has to say and take it from there.

Thanks for all the replies and suggestions.

~~~~~~
Thank you for taking care of this little kitty. It is treatable if it is
hyperthyroidism.

MaryL

It is nice of you to help a friend... Hope it is going to be ok....