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Original poster

Is there anything 'over the counter' for cat pain?

21 replies

Cattykin · 29/09/2023 15:27

Cat has something wrong with his mouth, PDSA said its not an emergency and didn't have any appointments for today even if it was. They said I have to go online and book an appointment tomorrow.

Cat was insured but a mix up with DD meant I hadn't paid it so it got cancelled. Obviously if I got new insurance now it wouldn't be valid for this. I can't take him to a 'normal' vet without insurance as I just don't have the money (please don't make me feel any worse about this)

So with PDSA I can get free treatment for him but it's going to be a few days before he can be seen.

Is there anything at like Pets At Home or anything I can buy OTC?

I have dog metacam but I've read that should not be given.

He's fine in himself but drooling and having trouble eating.

So I've bought him soft wet food, tuna and tinned fish so he can hopefully eat this easier but I'm worried he is in pain :(

OP posts:
Unfortun8 · 29/09/2023 15:32

He really does need to be seen by a vet. Cats are very stoic. You won't have any idea of what's going on with him without a vet visit

Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 15:36

Unfortun8 · 29/09/2023 15:32

He really does need to be seen by a vet. Cats are very stoic. You won't have any idea of what's going on with him without a vet visit

I'm trying to get him seen. I was on phone for over an hour to get through to PDSA I explained the situation and they said they couldn't book it as an emergency.

I can't take him to a private vets because of the insurance mix up. I couldn't afford it. I took my other cat last month (who's insurance is fine) and it was over 500 quid for something very minor!

I didn't even know his insurance was messed up till about 5 days ago as I've moved so they were sending letters to my old address and emails to my old Hotmail account I don't use.

Even if I would have insured him the day I realised it still wouldn't have been valid for this incident.

My pets are always insured. It was just a fuck up with unfortunate timing.

OP posts:
Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 15:38

And I've still not got the money back from my other cats claim, so I have nothing in my savings :(

OP posts:
AutumnFroglets · 29/09/2023 15:41

To answer your question. No.

Painkiller dosage is given by weight of pet otherwise too much can kill.

Why won't the psda give you an emergency appointment? Hope you get help soon Flowers

Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 15:53

If anyone can answer the question please I would be so grateful.

There must be something I can give him in the meantime?

Would a private vet let me just buy some pain relief?

OP posts:
Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 15:54

They just said it's not an emergency as hes not in imminent danger sort of thing.

OP posts:
Butterkist8 · 29/09/2023 15:55

No they won't.

As a pp said, pain control for pets is decided by weight and the nature of the pain.

You cannot just buy pain relief for pets.

AutumnFroglets · 29/09/2023 15:57

Cattykin · 29/09/2023 15:38

And I've still not got the money back from my other cats claim, so I have nothing in my savings :(

I've been thinking a bit here.

Has your vet done the insurance paperwork or is it the insurers holding it back? Either way, they need poking.

Assuming you have been a regular at private vet with both, have you tried telling them of insurance problem and would they be willing to extend a payment plan for you just this once? Some do, some don't, but worth a chat?

Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 16:00

Butterkist8 · 29/09/2023 15:55

No they won't.

As a pp said, pain control for pets is decided by weight and the nature of the pain.

You cannot just buy pain relief for pets.

OK. Thankyou.

I'll ring the PDSA back in the morning and try and sort something.

OP posts:
Unfortun8 · 29/09/2023 16:00

Thing is you don't know what's wrong with his mouth as you can't ask him. So you can't really say he only needs pain killers. What if he's got something wrong with his throat and that's why he can't eat properly? Or has had some kind of neurological thing happen to him? The PDSA won't be able to diagnose it from a phone call. I agree about going to his usual vet and asking if the can do a payment plan

Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 16:03

Unfortun8 · 29/09/2023 16:00

Thing is you don't know what's wrong with his mouth as you can't ask him. So you can't really say he only needs pain killers. What if he's got something wrong with his throat and that's why he can't eat properly? Or has had some kind of neurological thing happen to him? The PDSA won't be able to diagnose it from a phone call. I agree about going to his usual vet and asking if the can do a payment plan

I can't go to the normal vet, I don't want to get into it as its complicated and embarrassing but I'm not even sure he's registered there anymore as there was an issue around money and the insurance and the last communication I had with them questioned us being able to go back there if we didn't clear a debt immediately and I wasn't able to.

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Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 16:05

Basically I owe the vets money and I can't pay them until I get the insurance money back. And they said they won't treat any animals until the debt is paid. The insurance should come through soon, they said its been approved but even when it does I need to pay the vet with that so wouldn't even have the money still for this.

I'm just so overwhelmed.

3 years with Thea ecats and not one incident then 2 in 1 month when my insurance had lapsed, it just beggars belief 😭

OP posts:
Toddlerteaplease · 29/09/2023 16:47

Its really annoying that you can't get anything. As I've really needed it a couple of times., I now always try and have a spare bottle of metacam in the cupboard. I think you need to tell the PDSA that itches in a lot of pain. Lay it in thick so they see him.

Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 17:49

Toddlerteaplease · 29/09/2023 16:47

Its really annoying that you can't get anything. As I've really needed it a couple of times., I now always try and have a spare bottle of metacam in the cupboard. I think you need to tell the PDSA that itches in a lot of pain. Lay it in thick so they see him.

I have metacam but is the 1.5mg one for dogs not the 0.5 for cats and I've read metacam is bad for cats?!

OP posts:
NoSquirrels · 29/09/2023 17:57

Please don’t dose your cat with anything OTC.

Is there another vet in the area? If you don’t want to/can’t take him to a fee-paying vet then you’ll just need to wait until you can book an appointment with PDSA tomorrow. But it’s unlikely you’ll be seen before next week and that’s a long time if he’s not eating. The best you can do if you absolutely can’t afford a vet is book the PDSA appointment and monitor him closely. If his condition deteriorates at all, call back as an emergency.

Todaypicard · 29/09/2023 18:01

Can you borrow money from a family member or friend? Or contact the rspca ? They often give vouchers of people on low incomes (they do in my area at least!)

Todaypicard · 29/09/2023 18:02

And don’t give anything at home. Paracetamol is highly toxic, and the dog metacam isn’t safe (no metacam is safe if you don’t know why they are ill as it could make it worse)

margotrose · 29/09/2023 18:30

There's nothing you can give OTC to cats, unfortunately. Dogs are different as they can safely have paracetamol in small doses.

I would persevere with the soft food until you can get him seen by the PDSA. Cat milk is also a good option to get some calories in him.

Iamacatslave · 29/09/2023 18:33

Is your cat drinking?

DogDream · 29/09/2023 18:35

Do you drive? Call the next closest vet (ie not the one you owe).

Original poster
Cattykin · 29/09/2023 21:54

He's eaten 3 pouches of wet food and he's drinking.

He seems to be alot better. He's stopped making the weird noise and he was sat with my daughter purring his head off.

I think it's something dental but now that's he's eaten he seems much more happy/relaxed.

I'm really going to lay it on thick to get an appointment at PDSA asap

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