Took dcat to vets for tooth procedure - surprised at the emotion felt !

[Likeagreatcardi]

Our cat has been chucking up several times a day and the vet suspects her teeth .( She's doing lots of overgrooming, so potentially self soothing = hairballs )
She's having bloods , an exray , a ga for a scale & polish and any extractions required .
Took her in first thing and felt really emotional leaving her there . She looked very upset as we were leaving.
Was quite tearful !

So for the results of her blood test . Not thyroid , but worryingly her white blood cells are raised by a large amount that could be chronic infection because of her mouth or potentially Lymphoma . So 10 days of antibiotics and then the get will be in contact to more bloods to check with perhaps a scan to check her out .
So big worry to next 10 days to see if any improvement.

Writing this as a timeline for myself really , and also as dh is burying his head and not wanting to discuss of what it could be . Cat is still not at all well so plan for more blood test on Friday to check white blood cells and sedation tablet to knock her out enough to do a scan . Still vomiting and now not eating much plus reluctantly in having antibiotic .
Also booked in on Monday for GA for x ray for exploratory on teeth to see if anything else going on .

I’m sorry to hear this @likeagreatcardi- please keep us updated and here’s a virtual hand hold hoping your dcat starts to rally soon.

So sorry your girl is poorly @Likeagreatcardi , hope you get to the bottom of it soon x

@zapeze @katkintreats

Thank you . Will come back on Friday .

Not the news we wanted , a scan showed Intestinal Lymphoma which can be common in cats . More blood taken today to check white blood cells and just steroid injections at least monthly or more often if required . All devastated .

I’m so sorry.

Oh I’m so sorry, fingers crossed for you all and your lovely cat xxxx

I’m sorry to hear this, especially as things escalated so quickly. Sending positive thoughts and hoping rapid treatment helps.

@Mathsbabe @nyancatdays @zapeze

Thank you , it will take awhile for it to sink in .

@Likeagreatcardi i’ve been lurking on this thread and from your first post wondered if you would end up here - I’m so sorry that you have.

We had similar with our girl, frequent vomiting and back and forth over a few months. Because she was always otherwise “well” and never off her food or losing weight the vet was never concerned, but when I pushed for scans we got the worst possible news. Did you have a biopsy done? There are two types of lymphoma (small and large cell) and one has a much better prognosis than the other.

@Judystilldreamsofhorses

We saw lots of scan pics and the suspected masses and also something the vet said was fluid build up .
She suggested that a biopsy was quite invasive and not in her best interest , likewise chemo etc .
So for the time being monthly steroid injections or sooner if required .
Can I ask over your dcat , and if its OK what happened and how it all went ?

We did have a biopsy and a load of scans at a specialist place after our vet had done some tests - when we took her in the specialist vet said she thought it was essentially cat IBS, and it was a terrible awful shock. I think we were only referred out because we had very good insurance, and because I was making a bit of a fuss.

I’m sorry to say we had large cell lymphoma which is the worst one, and even with chemo we were looking at best case 12-18 months. With steroids only they said weeks. If it had been treat to cure we probably would have done it, our cat was ten and you would never ever have guessed anything was up with her bar the puking - after that vet visit she wolfed her dinner then caught a mouse pretty much immediately we got home.

We opted to let her go “well” and had her pts the following week. I couldn’t bear the idea of her suffering in any way and going downhill, getting sad and thin. (She also found going to the vet really distressing, and the specialist place was about 40 minutes drive away, so that was a factor too.) On her last day she ate all her favourite things, the sun shone, and she went to sleep with us telling her how much we loved her. It was absolutely heartbreaking (I am crying writing this) but I think we did the best by her.

My gorgeous girl. 🤍 I got the vet to take her paw prints and had one tattooed on my inner arm a few weeks later.

Thank you for telling me that . So sorry for your loss .

I recommend joining fb group IBD kitties for some advice on her gut and IL. The ‘chemo’ can work quite well I believe, depending on what kind of IL it is. I believe it’s just a pill. FYI, I’ve never been able to give pills but the vet showed me how to use a Webbox tasty stick around the pill and I don’t have a problem now. https://www.ibdkitties.net/ibd-or-cancer/

Some info. in that link for you. I don’t want to give advice btw.

Thank you very much .

We were offered two types of chemo - the “best” one (something like chop protocol?) was IV and would have been weekly at the specialist place. The alternative was tablets which our own vet might have been willing to administer if the specialist had liaised with them on it. (But would still have been done in the surgery, just without the 80 minute round trip to the referral place.)

My understanding is that with small cell lymphoma the prognosis is much, much better, but it needs a biopsy to know which one it is.

So sorry for you, OP, it’s absolutely horrible. I’d never even heard of it but the specialist vet said that roads/kidneys/lymphoma are the top three causes of death in cats other than old age. We adopted a little one year old orange boy shortly after (who’s an absolute delight and really helped heal my broken heart) and any time he’s sick - infrequently and with a clear cause because he’s a total wee gannet who eats things he shouldn’t, he was a stray kitten and fending for himself - I spiral out of control thinking what if he has the same.

(Also, I joined several feline lymphoma focussed FB groups but found them incredibly distressing - full of people who were keeping very sick cats alive which should have been let go with dignity long before. Not suggesting that the group pp recommends is anything at all like that, but it’s wild out there.)

Yes, I agree with this. The FB groups can be a bit wild but good for the info. In fact, that website has loads of useful stuff and you may not need the FB group. I haven’t seen the lymphoma groups but they may also be good in terms of info. Important to focus on quality of life for the animal at all times.

I’m sorry to hear this update @Likeagreatcardi , I was lurking on the thread earlier because one of ours has had dental work recently too. So sorry to hear about your Dcat too @Judystilldreamsofhorses to both of you.

Hi OP. I'm so sorry to hear about your cat.
I've lost four cats to lymphoma.
It sounds to me as though your cat is coming to the end.
Wouldn't it be better to let her go? Peacefully, in your arms.
She's lost a lot of weight and she's vomiting. It would be kinder to give her the comfort of slipping away.
It's the last, most important thing a loving owner can do for a dependent animal.

She hasn't actually vomited for a week . We got her diagnosis on Friday and told the vet we want any further treatment to be in her best interests and not ours .
Thriving not just surviving .
The vet agreed , and said we are not at that stage yet . We are taking it day by day .

That might be the steroid. We had a week of no vomiting while we were waiting on the biopsy results and trying to decide next steps. When the steroid wore off she had vomit with blood in (the vet said from inflammation) and that was the point where I said, nope, no more, even though she was otherwise absolutely “well” and it seemed impossibly cruel to say goodbye to her.

It’s so hard and horrible, sending love to you and your cat.

How's your cat today @Likeagreatcardi?