NC for this. My cat had to be put to sleep two days ago and I’m still gutted and can’t stop crying and analysing what happened. I’d welcome any thoughts from anyone with a veterinary background. (Just to stress, DH and I are completely happy with how our vet treated the cat - what I’m struggling with is whether there is anything we could have done differently at home to prevent this, or any info that might help me understand it.) Apologies in advance as this may get long.
Paws was a 7-year-old Maine Coon. He survived an episode of acute renal failure three and a half years ago; at the time he was given only a 10% chance of survival but he came through it. We don’t know what caused it (our cats are allowed outside, so we’re not able to fully monitor the things they do.) After that he had his bloods monitored every 3-6 months and they were nearly always satisfactory, occasionally his kidney values would creep up but then they’d settle again.
This year he seemed to have a run of poor health - first pancreatitis (which he had to be hospitalised for, but survived) then later in the year he developed a herpes infection and had an eye discharge which we treated with the appropriate ointments. This mostly seemed to clear up (although one of his eyes still discharged on the odd occasion) but I gather once a cat contracts this condition it stays for life and I have read that it can lead to other conditions.
Over the last couple of weeks it seemed at times as if Paws was under the weather, and he didn’t always come for his meals (and sometimes ate less when he did come) but it was very difficult to tell what was going on because at other times he seemed totally his normal self - purring, interested in food, wanting strokes, playful/affectionate etc.
At one point we noticed some weight loss and started to watch him more closely, his appetite seemed to be picking up, but we made an appointment with the vet to be on the safe side. That was on Monday of this week. They couldn’t fit us in till Wednesday but advised us to bring him in sooner if he seemed to deteriorate.
Monday evening DH noticed some odd behaviour when Paws was trying to eat, like it was difficult for him to eat and breathe at the same time, so he took him in. They couldn’t tell what was wrong, did bloods and they seemed fine, but an ultrasound and subsequently a CT scan the next day revealed pneumothorax. We don't know what caused it - no injuries as far as anyone was able to tell so I think the vet was going with the theory that he had an infection of some kind, possibly pneumonia. (Cancer was discussed as a possibility but apparently the vet who viewed the CT scan result considered it less likely than infection.)
Vet showed us/explained the scans. A lot of air/fluid in each lung and Paws’s breathing was obviously affected but he was still in good spirits, social/friendly etc, but the vet also told us the lungs themselves looked in poor shape. Later that afternoon vet managed to remove most of the air/fluid, but Paws’s breathing worsened and we were called. Just as we arrived, he crashed and had to be put to sleep. 😿😿😿
I realise there must be a whole ton of variables in the mix here and I also realise no two cats are alike health-wise, but I can’t seem to stop hashing over this in my mind and wondering whether there’s anything we could have done differently. The vet said there wasn't, but I can't help thinking we must have been missing signs/symptoms at home as I just don’t understand the speed of the lung deterioration at the end. I’d welcome any thoughts or opinions anyone is able to give. Thanks in advance.