1. 

   allisonw
   

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   I took my cat in to the vet today. She has been too uncomfortable to lay down. Turning around all night, can't sit down, growly and hissing at me when I try to hold her.

   Took her to the vet, she's a half pound down from last year. a little dehydrated, worried? Check. Enlarged thyroid? Yah, worried. She is sleeping in a drawer at home because she does not feel well.

   Then the vet tells me there are some blood tests they can run, and that oh by the way, you had your cat in for the exact same thing this week last year.

   Now she appears fine. Coincidence? I am Thanksgivingly crazy? Conspiracy?

   You decide.

   Posted 2 years ago #
2. 

   Cate
   

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   Def a Cat Conspiracy - my little girl is on a food strike. Vet says she's fine, wait it out but I worry.

   Posted 2 years ago #
3. 

   Alonzo Neighbor
   

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   Allison - sorry to hear your kitty is having problems. I had a similar thing happen last year. They did the tests and he had a bad thyroid. So, this year he goes on a hunger strike and his tests come out fine - no thyroid issue. I think diet is the culprit. Could your girl have gotten into something out there that does not agree with her? Maybe something seasonal. We took our guy off all dry food and that seems to have improved things overall, but it's hard to control what they get into if they go outside. Good luck.

   Posted 2 years ago #
4. 

   cc
   

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   I go with the consipracy idea -
   they are in the testing limits stage
   want to keep us all distracted as the long cold nights set in. Then, while we are snug in our beds, with visions of sugar plums dancing.........

   Posted 2 years ago #
5. 

   HeatherHeather
   

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   I had something similar happen to my kitty a few months ago...and half a thousand dollars later (blood tests, ultrasound, etc) she starts eating again and is a-okay. I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth, I'll take all the healthy eating I can get!

   What I did end up looking into was things that were poisonous to cats and take inventory around my house (I have a suspicion that my tomato plant was the culprit even though she would have had to eat a ton of leaves). It's a long-shot, but are there things you bring into the house around Thanksgiving that could be poisonous to her that she is eating?

   Posted 2 years ago #
6. 

   BHS68
   

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   Our cat had something wrong with him - he was lethargic, couldn't keep food down, was losing weight . . . clearly something was wrong. Took him to the vet for the whole menu of tests - blood tests, poop tests, x-rays, you name it . . . $800 later, they said they couldn't find anything wrong with him. For 4 weeks or so, he just got progressively worse, and then one day he puked up a 12" piece of clear plastic strapping (that wouldn't show up in any x-rays) and just like that he wuz back to his old self!

   Posted 2 years ago #
7. 

   PlantLover
   

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   Our girl kitty has mysteriously stopped eating for no apparent reason 3 times. All the tests done, nothing wrong. The vet gave us an appetite stimulant and had us feed her watery food through a syringe and a few days later, she starts eating normally again. He says she wasn't feeling good for whatever reason, stopped eating, and then just didn't start up again. Sounds crazy to me, but after 3 times I have to assume it is correct.

   Posted 2 years ago #
8. 

   Anonymous
   

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   Our old cat has a thyroid problem but it didn't show up as anything but losing weight rapidly and being even more cranky than usual.

   I've heard pointsettias can make kitties feel sick when they eat them and they're around this time of year? Maybe the lethargy is from eating turkey? Cats can also catch cat-viruses just like humans.

   Posted 2 years ago #
9. 

   scarebaby
   

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   My poor kitty is going thru this right now. He hasn't eaten in five days, and the tests so far have cost us $875 and counting. The vet thinks it's lymphoma, but not sure (more tests are needed). I love all the stories I'm reading here but am not hopeful for my little guy. He's so miserable and gotten so skinny. I'm doing the watery-food-in-syringe thing but only getting small bits in at a time...just waiting for Monday when more test resuts come back.

   If it's lymphoma, it might be treatable with chemo. Does anyone know how much that might cost? The vet won't speculate.

   Posted 2 years ago #
10. 

    allisonw
    

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    Well, good news. Tikka's urine did come back showing a UTI. Treatable and fairly minor. She's already perked up.

    Posted 2 years ago #
11. 

    Cate
    

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    allison Glad to hear Tikka is feeling better. On day five (yesterday) of Nelly's hunger strike I offered her a can of Fancy Feast which she gobbled down. I swore I wasn't going to have another cat who would only eat Fancy Feast but there you go. And how did she even know about it - did the neighborhood cats stand below my deck and tell her? So much for Science diet.

    Posted 2 years ago #
12. 

    wolfden
    

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    Cate: My little one ate nothing but IAMS Chicken stuff till one fine day she refused to touch that food. I went out and got 8 different brands and guess what she settled for? Fancy Feast Savory Salmon. After a while, I figured I'd treat her to some Mudbay chow and she refused to consider any of the six samples.

    Then last week, despite my better judgement, I bought the assorted Fancy Feast pack from Costco (Savory Salmon + Ocean White fish and Tuna). She loved the Fish-Tuna combo so much she won't eat the Savory Salmon she's loved for almost a year. I am at a loss as to what do now.

    Posted 2 years ago #
13. 

    Cate
    

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    Wolf - Yeah, my girl had been perfectly happy with Science and just stopped one day. I too bought the box of Seafood varieties today. I have six cans of ocean whitefish and tuna that I will trade you for Savory Salmon (Nelly's apparent preference). Oh to be as spoiled as my cat is.

    Posted 2 years ago #
14. 

    PlantLover
    

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    I don't know what they put in the Fancy Feast Elegant Medley chicken Florentine, but it is kitty crack. When my girl won't eat it (her favorite food), then I know she is sick.

    Posted 2 years ago #
15. 

    Chef Wahoo
    

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    The favorite here is Fancy Feast Classic Liver & Chicken. But sometimes, you can outsmart them. Introduce the desired cat food, for example, Friskies. If they like the chunky stuff, make sure it's chunky, etc. Switching textures will usually ruin everything. When you open the can, have a loud conversation about how expensive this food is, how difficult it is to find, and make sure they can hear you. Do this often, even when they're napping. If you're lucky, or an exceptional liar, they'll like the "Really Expensive Cat Food" right off the bat. One thing the vet told us is when they're being fussy about their food, try the poultry-based varieties, since that's what cats naturally eat. And no, I did not ask if there were any rat-based flavors out there.

    Our most slender kitty has decided he likes roasted or rotisserie chicken. He doesn't like human food, but if we're pulling meat from a still-warm chicken carcass, he sits right at my feet, and will actually eat quite a bit of it. He was uninterested in turkey, once it was cooked (but everyone was very interested when it was still raw).

    Scarebaby, I'm so sorry to hear about your kitty, and I hope it's not cancer. I won't speculate on how much treatment may cost, but when a friend's cat had a tumor, surgery and chemo for him was going to cost about $5K. Even with treatment, the chances of him getting better were low, so they just kept him comfortable.

    Posted 2 years ago #
16. 

    Chef Wahoo
    

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    Something else the vet suggested was offering unsalted chicken or turkey broth, if they're really not eating anything. I don't add salt to my homemade stock anymore, so I've usually got some on hand. But she said the low-sodium canned broth would be fine, too.

    Posted 2 years ago #
17. 

    BHS68
    

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    This all reminds me of this . . sorry if it's a repeat or too long . . . .

    Excerpts from a Dog's Diary......

    8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!
    9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!
    9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
    10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
    12:00 pm - Lunch! My favorite thing!
    1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
    3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
    5:00 pm - Milk Bones! My favorite thing!
    7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
    8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
    11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!

    Excerpts from a Cat's Daily Diary...

    Day 983 of my captivity..
    My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects.

    They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets.

    Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength.

    The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet.

    Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a 'good little hunter' I am.

    Bastards.

    There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of 'allergies.' I must learn what this means and how to use it to my advantage.

    Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs.

    I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released - and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded.

    The bird has got to be an informant. I observe him communicating with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe. For now.................

    Posted 2 years ago #
18. 

    MrINTJ
    

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    i'm not crazy but I know a cat named scarebaby who only appears around this time of year.
    i'm not crazy and it's name is linky and he's so smart that he can point to a website
    i'm not crazy and he is slimy enuf to want us to buy overpriced t-shirts & other stuff
    i'm not crazy but scarebaby is a slimy loser

    Posted 2 years ago #
19. 

    booboo
    

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    One of my cats needed to go on a high protein low carb diet last year and it was so hard to find a wet and dry food that he liked.

    I went through several samples of dry food and finally found one he and his brother would eat. But after awhile he went off of it and decided to become a Fancy Feast dry food whore. At first he liked the Chicken + Turkey but then he decided that was not acceptable so we switched to the Seafood + Ocean Fish flavor. That was fine as long as I bought the 1-pound size. Once I knew it was a sure thing, I bought the 3-pound size and he promptly decided that he no longer cared for that flavor either.

    So now we're into 1-pound bags of their Filet Mignon + Shrimp flavor, which he loves (at the moment). Dare I buy it in a 3-pound bag??!! Thankfully Ballard Food Bank takes open bags of dry pet food... they received quite a few from me last month.

    Fortunately he still deigns to eat specific flavors and textures of Friskies wet food after deciding to decline expensive high protein low carb wet food and I haven't had to resort to Fancy Feast wet food. But something tells me that's just a matter of time <sigh>.

    Anyway, nothing is more frustrating than the kitty 'Oh no thank you' and 'Oh I couldn't possibly' walk-away move... crazy making!

    Posted 2 years ago #
20. 

    biophile87
    

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    BHS68/ LMAO! Thanks for that.

    Posted 2 years ago #
21. 

    MrINTJ
    

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    biopile--please dont do that

    Posted 2 years ago #
22. 

    biophile87
    

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    do what? I'm not ashamed of my dorkiness. Celebrate diversity, man.

    Posted 2 years ago #
23. 

    Streaker Troll
    

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    Speaking of diversity bio, have you heard of Mautam?

    Posted 2 years ago #
24. 

    briana-n-pugs
    

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    Thanks BHS68! It just seems so true! LOL!

    Posted 2 years ago #
25. 

    scarebaby
    

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    No need to insult, INTJ. Yes I have a website, no I don't give a flying f**k if you visit it or not.

    Chef Wahoo - thanks for the sympathy and info....what I'm hearing is somewhere in the range of $2000-5000 for chemo, oncologist, etc. That's a wide range, and makes it hard to make an informed decision.

    Posted 2 years ago #
26. 

    allisonw
    

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    I *heart* biophile's nerdiness!

    Posted 2 years ago #
27. 

    PlantLover
    

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    scarebaby, I had a cat with cancer several years ago and did both chemo and radiation. Ultimately she died. The radiation was really hard on her and I regret doing it. The chemo wasn't as bad and I think it would depend on the cat as to whether I would do it again. It was a different kind of cancer though. I can't remember what each cost.

    Posted 2 years ago #
28. 

    teigyr
    

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    re the cats that like something and then decide they don't, I was told by a vet that they associate food with how they feel. So say they like something and you feed them too much and they gorge and get sick...that'll be it for that food. So it's better to feed them bits at a time more in a grazing fashion.

    They are frustrating though. Rewarding but frustrating :)

    Posted 2 years ago #
29. 

    allisonw
    

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    I've been giving by kitteh a tablespoonful of her favorite wet fud (Trader Joe canned) after every pill....and now she's practically begging me for pills. :)

    Posted 2 years ago #
30. 

    scarebaby
    

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    Plantlover - thanks -- the vet hasn't suggested radiation, I guess because there's no tumor site. Lymphoma is one of those things like a blood cancer, it's diffuse (that's not the word, but I can't think of the word he used right now) throughout the body.

    Posted 2 years ago #
31. 

    MrINTJ
    

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    biophile--you misunderstood me. i meant please dont laugh your ass off -------because it is hot

    Posted 2 years ago #
32. 

    MrINTJ
    

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    scarebaby i dont give a flying ________ what you think
    i do feel for you about your cat. chemo is very hard on them and i have not seen much good come of it. sorry

    Posted 2 years ago #
33. 

    scarebaby
    

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    I know you don't.

    Thanks about the cat, though.

    Posted 2 years ago #
34. 

    malia
    

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    Scarebaby, so sorry to read about your cat. Those are difficult decisions, and heart breaking times.
    Fascinating how some people use a posting on this forum to be downright unpleasant when someone is obviously suffering. ugh.

    Posted 2 years ago #
35. 

    Jules
    

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    My cat will often wake me up at 4:00 am, run into the kitchen, and stare sadly at her bowl....and turn her nose up at the selections. "what kind of buffet is this, anyway?" I actually opened my eyes the other morning to SEE her bat me on the nose. "Hey! Big Monkey! Wake up! I don't have opposible thumbs! Open a can!"

    Even when she turns her nose up at duck,quail, salmon, chicken, salmon, and tuna, there is ONE thing she will ALWAYS EAT.

    Freeze dried bonita flakes, aka: Kitty Crack.

    Posted 2 years ago #
36. 

    Jules
    

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    Also, check out the RAW food in the freezers at All the Best Pet Care. They will give you samples. The kitty wasn't eating at all, and I tried the turkey, and she went wild.

    BTW, they DO sell freeze dried mouse treats. I shudder to think of how they obtain these mice.

    Posted 2 years ago #
37. 

    zengrey
    

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    Hi. Antonie here in Loyal Heights. Our cat Rufus almost died twice last year. He was throwing up a lot, and had diarrhea. Lost a lot of weight. Doctors said blah blah cysts on his small intestine blah steroids blah. Okay so we put him on steroids. Ever try to give a cat a pill (thanks for not mentioning Greenies to us, B.A.H.!) three times a day? So, then the steroids caused diabetes and kidney failure...so now we're already at around $3000 to keep our cat alive and the doctors at Access Animal Hospital tell us it's going to be ANOTHER $3000 to $5000 to stabilize our cat. When we said that wasn't feasible, they sent us home with insulin, syringes, and an IV with a 'good luck, but he's probably going to die without our help'.

    It's a year later, and he's alive. How'd we do it?

    Cats are not built to eat dry kibble. It's like raising a kid on sugary breakfast cereal pretty exclusively. (Even IAMS and the other fancy stuff). We did a controlled regulation regime (info @ mydiabeticcat.com) and tested his blood sugar level everyday. We eliminated almost all carbohydrates from his diet. He eats either the Fancy Feast Ocean Whitefish dinner or the Whiskas Ocean Whitefish Classic Pate dinner. He also gets probiotic enzymes on his food and takes a quarter of a 10 mg Pepcid in a Greenie pill pocket once or twice a day. We had to give him an IV everyday for a month to rehydrate him, and insulin (1-3 units/day), but he made a full if cranky recovery. Our cat is 11 yrs old, and has lost his big old belly as a result of no carbs in his diet. We feed him a half can of wet food four times a day, and he constantly will try to mooch food from you. But he's alive and well.

    I think I just needed to type all this out to get it out of my system. I hope that any of this information can help you. Thanks for wading through my rant, and I hope your day is going well!

    Posted 2 years ago #
38. 

    PlantLover
    

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    Zen, I have a cat that has been diabetic for about a year - also a kibble addict. We were giving him good, expensive stuff, but it was still carbs. Unlike our other cats who ate a mix of wet and dry, he only wanted kibble. Now he gets pretty much all wet food (mostly Tiki) and maybe 15-20 kibbles of Evo a day if he is good. He lives for that kibble! While at one point he was at 4 units of Lantus 2X a day, he is now at 1.5 2X a day. We do check his levels at close to nadir, but can only do it 1 day a week.

    Is your cat now totally off insulin? Do you think the probiotics helped? What do you give? Or was that for the kidney problems? I would love to get him totally off insulin if I could. Poor guy.

    And yeah, Pill Pockets are awesome.

    Posted 2 years ago #
39. 

    scarebaby
    

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    Zengrey, that's an amazing story, and one that I can learn from. I have always fed my cats dry food with the occasional can of wet as a "treat". But the next cat I get (we had to put our cat down yesterday, for those of you who care), I will be so much more careful what I feed it. Thanks for the great info.

    Posted 2 years ago #
40. 

    PlantLover
    

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    So sorry, scarebaby. Very, very sad.

    I always fed like you too, until this recent problem. Just like humans, some cats are genetically predisposed to get diabetes and other diseases and diet makes a big difference to them. I have had many cats over my life and fed them like you and they lived mostly well into their teens and even to 20. But if you get one of those ones with the predisposition...

    My vet cautioned me away from the commercial raw food because it is not regulated and he worried about food borne illness. You could do it yourself (there are recipes), but I am a vegetarian and pretty squeamish about meat. So I use the higher quality canned food.

    Posted 2 years ago #
41. 

    Chef Wahoo
    

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    scarebaby, I'm so sorry for your loss.

    Posted 2 years ago #
42. 

    malia
    

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    Scarebaby - that was so fast! I am so sorry.So hard to do.

    Posted 2 years ago #
43. 

    SunriseSunset
    

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    May the kitty you tried so hard to help RIP. It is so hard to let go and so hard to hang on. You did the best you could do given all the twists and turns in the diagnoses.

    Rest well. Your sweet kitty is at peace.

    Posted 2 years ago #
44. 

    gracie
    

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    I had a very finicky eater. At Downtown Dog Lounge they had salmon oil to put over food. He licked at the bottle as I was putting some on his food. He loved it. I think I've seen it at Mud Bay also. Mud Bay suggested probiotic product they had. And for some reason my vet didn't want my cat to take it. Not sure why. He was a great cat and miss him to this day.

    Posted 2 years ago #
45. 

    Jules
    

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    My cat was losing weight at an alarming weight, and the vet (Cats Exclusive, fabulous!) said she had a kidney problem. I was pilling that cat 4 TIMES a day (and I was introduced to Greenies at Bark, thanks Karen!)AND giving her IV fluids. You can imagine how well that was received.

    I took her off kibble completely, and started her on high quality wet food AND raw food. She snarfled down the raw food.

    Two months later, she'd regained the weight, and the vet was amazed, because he thought she was on her way out. That was two years ago.

    BTW, you can get pretty much any cat/dog prescription made up in a liquid form, flavored (salmon, tuna for cats) at the Ballard Plaza Pharmacy. I put it on her food, and sometimes if she's being picky, I just take the plastic syringe and shoot it into her mouth.

    Cats do NOT eat grain in the wild. Cats also do not cook their food, ergo, the raw food.

    Posted 2 years ago #
46. 

    Jules
    

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    I particularly LOVE cat food commercials: "The flavors cats love: beef, turkey, chicken, tuna..." HOW many cats take these critters down in the wild? (OK, I concede chickens.)

    Now if they REALLY made the flavors cats love, it would be mouse, squirrel, rat, vole, chickadee, rubber band and pencil erasers.

    Warning! My sis spent a ton of $$ having rubber bands removed from her cat. Cats, for some unknown reason, like rubber bands.

    Posted 2 years ago #
47. 

    allisonw
    

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    My most recent previous cat was a rubber band muncher. I hadda put them on the doorknobs to keep 'em outta Buster's maw.

    Posted 2 years ago #
48. 

    scarebaby
    

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    Thanks for the condolences. It was fast, but that's the nature of liver cancer, I guess. It grows over a long period of time with few or no symptoms, and then bang! the little guy wouldn't eat, and it was pretty much over in a week. We miss him. But will be rescuing a new kitty in the new year, maybe from PAWS or the Humane Society. Suggestions welcome.

    Posted 2 years ago #
49. 

    scarebaby
    

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    Jules, that's an amazing story!!!!! You're an inspiration! I was doing the subq fluids daily, and feedings with a plunger every hour or two, and that was only for a week, and I felt like I barely had time to feed myself. I'm impressed with your dedication.

    A quick note, if you're feeding any cat with a plunger, syringe or other device that shoots liquids down their throat, it should be done gently, as the fluid can go in their lungs and cause issues.

    Posted 2 years ago #

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