Poorly cat

bookemdano

I rescued this cat in may and since then has had many trips to the vets. He has mainly suffered from diahorrea and occasional vomiting. I thought I had this under control as the antibiotics given to him eventually seemed to do the trick. He has been ok for 2-3 months but the last week has been ill again with the vomiting etc.
I spent £72 today which is money I can't really afford but I see it as my duty as I chose to have him. The vet has mentioned an overactive thyroid could possibly be the cause of him eating but losing weight. I'm praying that this isn't the case but if it is I think maybe I should call it a day as the prospect of forcing tablets down his throat twice a day isn't nice for me or my cat.
His age is unknown but I guess he is well over 10yrs old. I want to give him quality of life not just keep him alive for my own sake.
Just had to post on here because feeling really down at the moment..had my previous rescue put to sleep earlier in the year and it never becomes easier.

elvis_girl

Poor you. I had a quick look on the www & it seems theres an operation the cat can have which seems to be more effective (and cheaper i the long run!) than tablets. Could be worth asking your vet about. I know when they get to a credtain age you get scared to take them to the vet in case its bad news, but seemingly this is a very coomon condition in cats.

bookemdano

elvis_girl wrote: »

Poor you. I had a quick look on the www & it seems theres an operation the cat can have which seems to be more effective (and cheaper i the long run!) than tablets. Could be worth asking your vet about. I know when they get to a credtain age you get scared to take them to the vet in case its bad news, but seemingly this is a very coomon condition in cats.

I did ask the vet and she did mention the operation although he would still have to have tablets beforehand to stabilise the condition. Financially I couldn't afford hundreds of pounds to have this done and I think maybe it's unfair to mess him around even more? I would happily use my credit card to pay for the op if I thought it was worth it in the long run for him

asea

My vet gave me something which looks like a pair of scissors that you put the tablet in, open the cat's mouth & it pops the pill down the cat's throat. It sounds ALOT more gruesome than it is.. My cat fought tooth & claw before I got that little gadget, it made both of our lives alot easier..

Is there anyway the rescue centre you got your cat from could help you do you think?

The PDSA can help you if you claim any kind of benefits, I don't know too much about it hopefully somebody with a bit more knowledge will come along shortly...

I hope things get better for you & your moggie quite soon...x

catlover1_2

Poor you ... my heart goes out to both you and your cat ....

just remember that cats are very adaptable and do not tend to hold grudges so the tablets would be only a second or two of unpleasentness per day in an otherwise enoyable 24 hours.

My freind has a cat that needs injections ereryday and apart from when he is actually having his injections he is a very happy little cat .... btw she always gives him lots of cuddles and a treat after the injection.

xx

bookemdano

asea wrote: »

My vet gave me something which looks like a pair of scissors that you put the tablet in, open the cat's mouth & it pops the pill down the cat's throat. It sounds ALOT more gruesome than it is.. My cat fought tooth & claw before I got that little gadget, it made both of our lives alot easier..

Is there anyway the rescue centre you got your cat from could help you do you think?

The PDSA can help you if you claim any kind of benefits, I don't know too much about it hopefully somebody with a bit more knowledge will come along shortly...

I hope things get better for you & your moggie quite soon...x

The rescue centre has now closed down as they lost the use of the barn they were renting. The woman at the rescue centre did provide financial help when I first got him though.
I will have a chat to the vet when the results come through and discuss the options....hopefully it wont be the thyroid but all the symptoms point to this eg fast heart rate, constantly hungry, loss of weight etc

bookemdano

Thinking about it I don't think I could have him put to sleep. I'm sure he would adapt to the tablets if this is what he needs. As mentioned giving a tablet only lasts a few seconds.

henmuffin

Hi, Its a shame about your poor cat. I know the Blue Cross can help with vets fees. It may be worth contacting them. I know vets fees can be really pricey. Good luck .

orlao

Hi

My elderly cat has an overactive thyroid and has to be tableted twice a day which, according to my vet is unusual....so you would probably only have to do the deed once a day! She's a very nervy cat so I thought that it was going to be hell......tbh the first week or so was.....but with fuss and treats it's quite easy now.Still have the odd day when she has to be stalked:D but she really doesn't seem to mind!

Her symptons (sp) were eating loads but losing weight, really bad coat and pooing everywhere, apparently all the food was going straight through her:eek:
The vets did mention the op but I hate ageing animals having a general anesthetic unless a matter of life and death but the op isn't that expensive, a couple of hundred quid was mentioned.....

But......she's great now and I buy her tablets over the net and she costs about £15 a month ( but she is on a larger than normal dose) plus a blood test every six months......I reckon she probably costs more to feed with her "luxury" tastes:rotfl: but like you say, you take on these animals so you've now got to do whatever needs doing.

bookemdano

orlao wrote: »

Hi

My elderly cat has an overactive thyroid and has to be tableted twice a day which, according to my vet is unusual....so you would probably only have to do the deed once a day! She's a very nervy cat so I thought that it was going to be hell......tbh the first week or so was.....but with fuss and treats it's quite easy now.Still have the odd day when she has to be stalked:D but she really doesn't seem to mind!

Her symptons (sp) were eating loads but losing weight, really bad coat and pooing everywhere, apparently all the food was going straight through her:eek:
The vets did mention the op but I hate ageing animals having a general anesthetic unless a matter of life and death but the op isn't that expensive, a couple of hundred quid was mentioned.....

But......she's great now and I buy her tablets over the net and she costs about £15 a month ( but she is on a larger than normal dose) plus a blood test every six months......I reckon she probably costs more to feed with her "luxury" tastes:rotfl: but like you say, you take on these animals so you've now got to do whatever needs doing.

Thankyou so much for your advice. Made me feel a little more positive now. I can't bear losing him just yet

spookylukey

My cat had an overactive thyroid and lived with it from 14 - 19 years of age. She had to have tablets daily but in all the time she was on them I only had to resort to using 'reasonable force' twice. I used to hide them in all sorts of things: Dairylea, wafer thin ham, chicken breast, defurrum treats from the pet shop - I had loads of tricks. The tablets themselves are tiny so really easy to hide.

I didn't opt for the operation at the time as I was worried how she would cope with the anaesthetic - if you're cat is healthy other than the (presumed) thyroid issues then it may be worth considering the op.

I used to buy the tablets (with a prescription from the vet which by law they must give you free of charge) from www.vetuk.co.uk for £24 for 100 with free delivery. Even at the maximum dose of 2 x 5mg tablets a day that's less than £15 a month, bear in mind you will also have to factor in the cost of bloodtests - normally every 3 - 6 months if the cat is stable but if you're struggling to stabilise his levels then more regularly.

Hope this reassures you, let us know how he gets on.