Thyroid problems in cats

Senior cats can develop many health problems, just like people.  The symptoms are often subtle, as cats hide illness well.  Weight loss is one thing that should make you take your cat to the vet.  Remember that your cat is tiny, so weight loss of half a pound is a lot for some cats.  Drinking a lot of water on a regular basis is also a warning sign.  Both symptoms can be a sign of diabetes, kidney failure, or thyroid problems.  Of these three illnesses, thyroid is one of the easiest to treat.  My girl Scully has hyper-thyroid, and all that I need to do to treat it is to give her half of a small pill twice a day.  It's easy, I break it into 3 pieces and mix it in with her canned food.  The pieces are so small that often she doesn't notice them.  Once she took the medicine, she began gaining weight back.
So if you notice either or both of these symptoms, take your cat to the vet.  Initially it may cost 200.00 or 300.00, but once they know what's wrong, you can get your baby healthier and keep them healthier.  For me it's worth it to keep my babies with me as long as possible.
After the initial diagnosis, your vet will probably want to see them every 6 months or so to take blood and see if the medication is still working well.  If you notice changes before this time, though, it can't hurt to take them in and get them re-checked.

All 3 of my babies are in this photo. Scully is the dark circle at the top, Buddy is the gray girl on the pink blanket, and Max is the playful boy in the pink bed.

Scully sleeping in the window perch

Is your cat a senior citizen?

Did you know that cats are considered "senior" after 10 years of age?  More importantly, did you know that they should have a general check up, along with urine and blood testing when they reach this age?  I didn't know that for a long time.  I've always been on a limited budget, so I only took my cats to the vet if they were ill.  I stopped getting vaccinations for them after my little tortoiseshell girl had a bad reaction to her annual vaccine.  It was quite an awful event for her, as I had to take her to the animal hospital and leave her there for the day.  They told me that she was doing better and that I could come get her around 6 pm.  Once I got her home, though, she developed a bad reaction to the Benadryl that they gave her to counteract the reaction to the vaccines.  Instead of making her calm and somewhat sedated, it had the opposite effect.  My poor girl couldn't sit still.  Her skin would start twitching whenever she tried to lay still.  Because of all of that,  I decided that I would only take my cats in if they were ill.

When my oldest cat was 14, however, I noticed that she was drinking more than usual.  I searched the internet for that symptom, and the results I got said she could either have diabetes or kidney failure.  I read that both were common diseases for older cats, and that because of that, you should have your cat tested for them after they turned 10.  Cats have 2 kidneys, but by the time most owners notice the symptoms of kidney failure (if they notice at all), most often they only have 1/4 of their kidneys functioning.

If I had known this, I could have put my girl Buddy on a kidney diet as soon as she developed the problem, and she may have lived longer.  No vet ever told me this, and I felt guilty for not taking her for regular exams.  So I thought I'd share this on my blog so other kitties could be diagnosed as soon as possible.

Take your kitty in and ask for tests for it's kidneys and for diabetes.  You won't regret it, but if you don't, you may regret that.  My girl is gone now, and I'd do almost anything to have her here for a few more years.

Symptoms of seizures in cats

If you have a cat, I hope that you will read this entire post.  I never knew that cats had seizures.  My two cats were both old - one was/is 15, the other 18, and no vet ever told me that a seizure was a possibility.  My oldest cat had kidney disease for 4 years and was in the late stages of the disease. If I had had ANY IDEA that she could have seizures, and if I had known that sometimes there were no convulsions during seizures - just disorientation, I would have had her at our local vet the day before she died.  I could have prevented a horrible night for both her and I that ended with her being put to sleep.  

The night she went into Status Epilepticus was so horrible that I doubt I'll ever forget it.  On the way home from the animal hospital I became physically sick.  And instead of having a peaceful death, my precious girl suffered from seizures for almost an hour while my Mom and I wrapped her in a blanket and drove to the nearest animal hospital - 45 minutes away.  I held my baby on my lap and looked into her eyes, wide with terror, while I prayed that the seizures would stop.  She began panting and drooling, and her body never stopped convulsing.  And there was nothing I could do but talk to her and pray.  I felt so incredibly helpless.  PLEASE READ THIS AND EDUCATE YOURSELF.  I've put my words in blue text, and everything else is information that I've copied from various web sites.

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Seizures are transient and start and stop abruptly. They tend to start with a far-away look in the cat’s eyes, and affected cats may appear needy, agitated and nervous – as if they do not understand what is happening in their surroundings. The cat may tremble and appear to lose awareness of its environment. Affected cats may lose control of their limbs; their legs may become stiff and outstretched, and the cat may also begin to paddle the legs as if trying to swim. Saliva may gather in the lip folds around the mouth, and the cat may not respond when called. It may also breathe or pant heavily, and it may lose control of its bladder and bowels. Some cats chomp their teeth and have facial muscle twitching. They may become temporarily blind, vomit or salivate excessively. Affected cats may also urinate or defecate. The episodes can last from seconds to minutes, and in some cases to hours.

In the time following a seizure (called the post-ictal period), the cat will recover. She may still experience temporary blindness and some post-seizure convulsions. This typically lasts for about an hour, but could last for several days. She may still appear disoriented and sleep heavily for a long time following a seizure.

TYPES OF SEIZURES - BE AWARE THAT THEY MAY NOT HAVE CONVULSIONS OR ANY TWITCHING.  MY CAT WAS DISORIENTED SEVERAL TIMES DURING THE DAY BEFORE HER GRAND MAL SEIZURES STARTED.  IF I HAD KNOWN THAT THIS WAS A SYMPTOM OF A SEIZURE I COULD HAVE GOTTEN HER TO MY REGULAR VET AND AVOIDED THE HORRIBLE GRAND MAL SEIZURES THAT SHE SUFFERED FOR CLOSE TO AN HOUR THAT NIGHT.

Absence of Convulsions: Petit Mal Seizures in Dogs and Cats

Pets that have seizures but don't have convulsions have petit mal seizures. They may appear dazed or disoriented, stop what they are doing and stare into space or up at imaginary stars, but they don't fall down and don't have convulsions. These events are called simple, partial petit mal seizures. Many pet guardians don't notice when their pets have these seizures, and don't seek veterinary care. Unfortunately, untreated petit mal seizures can become generalized convulsive seizures.
There is another form of petit mal seizure in which pets snap at imaginary flies, chew imaginary gum, or bite the skin on their flanks. These behaviors are called complex partial seizures or psychomotor seizures. Because these behaviors are unusual, pet guardians ask their veterinarians about them and their pets receive medical treatment. Without treatment, complex partial seizures can progress to convulsive seizures.

Convulsions: Grand Mal Seizures in Dogs and Cats

With grand mal seizures, pets lose consciousness, fall to the floor, and their legs convulse or paddle spastically. Normally, grand mal seizures last between 45 and 90 seconds. Some pets involuntarily urinate or defecate. During convulsions, blood and oxygen do not circulate to the brain and vital organs, so if convulsions continue for several minutes (status epilepticus), pets die of anoxia (loss of oxygen).
For some time before the seizure, which is called the preictal period, your pet's brain functions abnormally. During this period, which is called an aura, pets may be anxious, seek out the family, or hide under beds. After the seizure, known as the postictal period, the brain recovers in a process that may take minutes, hours, or days. During the recovery period, your pet may be blind, dazed, ravenously hungry, or dangerously aggressive.

Frequency of Seizures: Cluster Seizures/Status Epilepticus

Like drum beats, seizures can occur with different rhythms. Normally seizures are widely separated so that brain cells can recover completely. With some abnormalities, though, seizures occur much closer together than they normally would. These are cluster seizures. When seizures occur so rapidly that they are continuous, this is an emergency called status epilepticus.

Cluster Seizures

When seizures occur more than once in 24 hours, they are called cluster seizures. Cluster seizures are usually caused by toxins or structural problems within the brain that continue to excite neurons even when they are exhausted and would normally be recuperating.

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Unfortunately this last category is what happened to my cat. 

There was around 15 - 20 minutes between the first seizure and the 2nd.  I thought that since she seemed okay, she was okay, and that I could wait until the next morning to take her to the vet.

Status Epilepticus: A Medical Emergency

When seizures last longer than five minutes or occur so quickly that your pet's brain doesn't recover between seizures, your pet is said to be in status epilepticus. This is a medical emergency. Status epilepticus is usually caused by toxins or structural problems within the brain and is difficult to treat with normal anti-seizure medications.

TREATMENT OPTIONS:

Cats that experience grand mal seizures, epilepsy, or seizures of unknown origin are often placed on phenobarbital and/or potassium bromide; how much and how long depends on the severity or history of the seizures. Potassium bromide is often used with phenobarbital if the seizures cannot be controlled by either one of the medications alone; if phenobarbital is causing liver damage in the patient potassium bromide is administered without phenobarbital. Valium is often administered if a cat is suffering from cluster seizures, or if the cat is experiencing seizures due to an injury which needs time to heal. A newer type of anti-seizure medication in humans, Neurontin, has been used to treat seizures in cats with very good results and reduced liver side effects. All of these medications require prescriptions and supervised treatment by a veterinarian.

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If you witness a seizure, use a watch or clock to time the seizure, and record it. Don't attempt to grab the tongue. Pets will not swallow their tongues, though infrequently they will catch it between teeth and cut it. If you place your fingers near the mouth, you are very likely to get bitten.

If the pet has gone down on a hard surface such as ceramic tile, as the pet thrashes, prompt placement of a pillow between the head and floor may help to minimize trauma. The animal generates heat while in the seizure, so do not wrap them up in layers of warm blankets afterwards even if the pet is shivering a bit. Shivering is not due to a low body temperature. If the pet is hitting a chair or other object with feet or legs, try to move them out of the way, but otherwise, there is no need for intervention.

Sometimes a pet will show behavior changes prior to the fit (pre-ictus). If you think a seizure is pending, try to lead them to a soft place such as their cat bed so that when they seizure, they have good padding.

Some examples of this:  Before Buddy's first seizure her head turned like she was looking behind her and she couldn't seem to straighten it.  Before her 2nd seizure she began walking around in a circle.

Symptoms of illness in cats

My sweet girl Buddy in one of her favorite spots (my pillow)

Since my beloved cat Buddy died 6 weeks ago, I've been reading about different symptoms and illnesses in cats. I knew about some signs of illness from Buddy's long kidney failure.  I noticed her drinking frequently in 2008 - that was what prompted me to take her to the vet where they tested her urine and blood and determined that her kidneys had begun to fail.  For 4 years just feeding her kidney diet food was all she needed.  It seemed like she became much worse in a short period, but now I'm realizing how many little signs she was showing.  Unfortunately I didn't know they were signs that she was about to die.  There are so many of them that it would be too long of a post if I tried to list them.  But here's a few little things - did you know that if your cat sits and stares at it's water bowl without drinking much that probably means that it's too sick to drink, even though it's very thirsty?  Did you know that if your cat lays with it's head facing the wall that it is likely that it's in pain or very ill?  Both of these were things that Buddy did in the months before she died, and I had no idea they were signs of serious trouble.  I thought it was odd when she laid facing the wall, but I didn't know that it meant that she was in pain and about to die.  If I had, I would have taken her to the vet the first time I saw it.  I would have saved her from massive seizures and the horrible death she had as a result.
Educate yourself.  Don't expect your vet to do it for you, because unfortunately, most don't.  Go online and READ.  Here's one site with a lot of different symptoms and what they might be:  cat_disease_signs.aspx   And please take your cat to your vet for a check-up once a year, especially if they are over 10 years old.  I know that it can get expensive, but it can save your cat's life, and it can save you the guilt you'll feel if it dies and you find out afterwards that you could have saved it.  In my case, I couldn't save my cat, but if I'd seen signs that the end was very near, I could have made her last days much more enjoyable and ended her suffering sooner.

I'll be posting more about specific illnesses and problems and what to watch for in the next few weeks.  I also welcome any links to other sites that contain quality information about cat's health and signs of illness.



DISCLAIMER:  I have NO VETERINARY TRAINING, just a tremendous love for my pets and a hope that I can spare some one else the horrible experience I went through when my Buddy died.

RIP my beautiful girl

It breaks my heart to say that 2 weeks ago, my sweet, beautiful companion Buddy had an aneurysm in her brain and the doctor at the animal hospital told me she would pass away in the next few hours. The aneurysm had caused Buddy to have seizures non-stop the entire time we drove to the hospital, which was around 45 minutes.  It was one of the worst things I've ever experienced - me holding my girl on my lap, cradling her head and trying to make sure that she didn't choke on her tongue.  I talked to her constantly, trying to soothe her in the hopes that if she relaxed the seizures would stop.  At the very least I hope that I comforted her a little bit.  She looked awful - her eyes were huge, she was drooling and her poor body just continued to jerk.  After all of that, I didn't want her to suffer for one more second.  They had gotten the seizures to stop only be giving her valium AND phenobarbital.  I wanted her to be put to sleep before the medicine wore off and more seizures started.  They brought her into the room that we were in so that I could hold her and talk to her before they gave her the shot.  She was very sedated, so all that she did was look at me and blink her eyes slowly.  I told her I loved her and that I didn't want her to suffer any more so I was going to let her go.  She had brought me so much happiness for 18 years that it was the least I could do.
Now I'm trying to adjust to my life without her.  She's been part of my life for so long that everything reminds me of her.  I miss her so, so much.  I feel an ache in my heart, and I wish so badly that I could hold her again.  My other cat, Scully, also misses her tremendously.  She looks for Buddy every day and calls out to her with an unusual meow.  Scully has spent almost her entire life with Buddy (I found her when she was 8 weeks old), so I'm sure this is confusing to her.
I will write more later in order to pass on information so that hopefully no one else has to go through the same thing.  For now I'm just posting to let everyone know why I'm taking a break from this blog.  It's too hard to write about it at this time.  But I'll be back sometime soon.
Here's my girl, looking as she did more than a year ago, before the disease had really taken it's toll on her.

How can you tell if your cat has kidney problems?

The easiest way is to take your cat to the vet for check-ups once they turn 10 or 11.  Kidney failure is one of the most common causes of death for older cats, and it often goes undetected until most of their kidney function is gone.  Once it's gone, you can't get it back.  If I had known this, I definitely would have taken mine for check-ups instead of only taking her when she got sick..

As it was, I noticed that my cat seemed to be drinking a lot more water.  She always had a drop of water on her chin from drinking..  If it seems like your cat is drinking every time you turn around, you're probably on to something. Also if he/she seems to be urinating more.  You can tell if you are having to scoop the clumps out of the litter more often.  Both are signs that there is a problem.  It could be kidney failure, or it could be diabetes.  The only way to know for certain is to take them to the vet.  They'll take a sample of your kitty's urine and a blood sample.  Once they test them you should have an answer.  If it turns out that your cat's kidneys are failing, your vet will give you some information, and a diet food.  If they're a really good vet, they'll give you samples of several kinds of kidney diet foods, both canned and dried, so that you can try them on your cat and see which one(s) they prefer.  Whichever they seem to like best, you may have to slowly mix it with your cat's existing food in order to get them used to it.

This is actually a huge topic, as there are a lot of different foods and opinions on what you should and shouldn't give your cat, so I'll write more about it at a later post.  This should at least get you started on how to know if your cat's kidneys might be failing.  Kidney failure in it's late stages is a pretty horrible disease, so watch your cat and catch things early.  And if it all possible, take them to the vet when you first notice problems.  I know that it's expensive and sometimes if you wait they get better. But as I learned the hard way, they may SEEM better, but could actually be getting ready to die.  If you wait, they might die a painful death which could have been prevented.

My precious girl a month or so before she died

Water for the dehydrated cat

Hopefully you know that if you have a cat with CRF (Chronic Renal Failure), you MUST keep a supply of fresh water for them at all times.  The water fountains are great because a lot of cats (like mine) are attracted to the stream of water. I was told to always give animals distilled water, so that is what I use.  I've also found that  when I pour Smart Water in my cat's bowl she really seems to enjoy it and acts more perky after she drinks it.  It could be my imagination, but there are electrolytes in it, so who knows?  At this point anything I can do to help her feel better, I'll do.
More tips and links to come.  And to keep it from not getting horribly depressing, I'll try to put some pictures of my jewelry creations in here and there.  Here's a picture of my "baby" sleeping in one of her favorite spots.  For awhile I thought it was just because she loves me, but I realized that since she's lost so much weight, she gets cold easily.  My head gives her a warm spot.  Like I said, anything I can do for her...