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Thread: Any last minute advice for Bella?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Odense, Denmark
    Posts
    206

    Any last minute advice for Bella?

    Hello there, pettalkers!
    It has been af while since our last visit to Pettalk, and right now I'm so happy to see that so many of you are still here that it feels like finding a family again. But this is also a very sad occasion for me and Bella. I am loosing her, and I dare not wait any longer for that last appointment at the vet. She is due to be put to sleep on thursday, but in case any of you have any last minute advice I could perhaps move the appointment to next week while I try out something else. I should have written before but the last two months have been horrible with vets that didn't know anything about hyperthyroidism and it has been af fight to find out as much as I could by myself. I have been too tired and nervous to think straight, and because I don't know any cat-people here it has been such a lonely quest. And it has been terribly expensive, and then it was Christmas and a blizzard hit DK, and transport got almost impossible here.It would be such a comfort to hear just a word or two, whether there is any advice or not.

    In may, 2010 Bella was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and she was put on Felimazole (Thiamazole) 5 mg on a daily basis. She got so sick from the first 2 pills, that I immediately lowered the dose to 2.5 mg/day. The 2.5 mg did the trick, in the sense that all blood values were normal by the 3rd blood test. In the beginning it worked out fine, she calmed down, her huge appetite diminished, and her, eh, poop? got solid again. Only problem was that this development didn't stop! During the months of august and october her appetite got very little, and she would lie down and move very little, and then it got difficult for her to poop, because it was very dry. The vet had no advice to give, and I tried to lower the Felimazole dose once again, hoping that her inactivity was due to too much Felimazole. On december 1st, I finally changed the vet, the last straw being that he asked if I had tried to starve her, when I complained that she wouldn't eat or move! Some advice! The new vet made a new blood test, everything was fine, except the T4, which was too high because I had given her too little Felimazole. The dose was reset to 5 mgs and he also prescribed Noroclav (she had a slight fever) and he took x-rays that showed a little arthritis in the lower back, and for that he prescribed Metacam.

    Then she got a terrible diarrhea from the antibiotic cure and lost 300grams in less than 3 weeks, and when she started on Metacam (orally) she stopped moving altogether. After consulting a third vet during a weekend where she was really bad, I stopped giving her Metacam. This is a month ago. The situation now is that she will not move, and she will not eat and she is down to 3300 grams of the 4000 grams she has weighed up until december 1st. I have tried all kinds of canned or dried food, the vet says its HAS to be industrial food, because its is the only food that works. But all I can get her to eat is a small amount of raw chicken or mincemeat, or shrimps. And she can't have shrimps because they are high in iodine. And I have to give her emulgated paraffinoil every other day for her bowels.

    Before writing this I searched and found that some of you have been in a similar situation, and I also found a thread about Metacam, that made me really mad on my new vet! There are no warnings on the bottles here, and when I looked underneath the label he put on the box, the bottle turned out to be out of date when he sold it to me. I will talk to him about that, regardless of what happens to Bella.

    But what I couldn't find was something about NeoMercazole. Do any of you have any experience with NeoMercazole which contains carbimazole instead of Felimazole which contains thiamazole? I have some, but I dare not change her medication at this point,unless I know more. I think she gets nauseated from Felimazole. Could it help if I divided her dose of 5 mgs so that she gets 2.5 mgs twice a day?

    Oh, what a mess, this is. I hope you can help, but I know this is really the last call for Bella, and maybe I should rather let her go now before she gets worse?

    Lots of love to you all at Pettalk!
    Sus and Bella
    And thank you Karen, for your help with password, etc.!
    Last edited by Sus; 01-11-2011 at 07:50 PM.
    Sus

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    Methuen, MA; USA
    Posts
    17,105
    Hello Sus,
    I am so sorry to read all that has happened w/ Bella. You must be exhausted as well, it is so terrible when our furkids are ill and can't tell us anything.

    I have had 3 cats diagnosed with hyperthyroid, and all were prescribed the Thiamasole. I never had any of the issues you describe with Bella.

    As such, I don't really have any help to offer to you.

    How old is Bella? One of mine was 8, the other 2 were in the mid teens.

    How does she feel to you? Very very thin? I mean, the Dec weight of 4ooo grams / 8 pounds is a small cat. Now she is down to 7 pounds and a bit. Is her spine all bony? Or is it still covered?

    Is she dehydrated? Has she been given and subcutaneous fluids?


    Oh, for others reading: 4000 grams is 8 pounds 13 ounces. 3300 grams is 7 pounds 4 ounces.
    .

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Location
    Alberta, Canada
    Posts
    22,005
    I have no advice - poor Bella!! Is there a chance she has diabetes?

    I hope you get some advice soon.

    ETA: Randi, a PT member is in Copenhagen, though I don't know how far that is from you. I'll PM her the link to this thread.
    "Do or do not. There is no try." -- Yoda

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2002
    Location
    Santa Paula, CA
    Posts
    27,648
    I'm so sorry to hear this. I've never had a cat with this problem before so I don't have any advice to give you. Hopefully something can help her improve her appetite and health. Do you have any holistic vets in your area? If you do then maybe they could provide her with a more natural remedy. Lots of prayers and positive thoughts are being sent her way.

  5. #5
    My RB Boo was on methamezole for hyperthyroidism and he did well w/it once we got the dosage figured out which took a while. Boo was 19 1/2 when he passed and he'd been medicated for a couple of years before then. He lost a lot of weight, too, but after a while I realized that it was b/c of his age and nothing more. When he died, it wasn't from hyperthyroidism; he had bladder cancer, so I wouldn't want to give you the wrong impression. If we knew how old Bella is, that would help and maybe you could postpone your decision until you know a little more. Please understand, I'm not asking you to decide not to have her PTS but just saying that, if she's younger, maybe there are alternatives. This is for you and your vet to discuss, of course. Please let us know Bella's age. I probably haven't been much help to you but I do know that hyperthyroidism is tricky and it sometimes takes a while for things to calm down. Keep the faythe.
    Blessings,
    Mary



    "Time and unforeseen occurrence befall us all." Ecclesiastes 9:11

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    Copenhagen, Denmark - GMT+1
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    15,952
    Sus, I've sent you a PM.



    "I don't know which weapons will be used in the third World war, but in the fourth, it will be sticks and stones" --- Albert Einstein.


  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Odense, Denmark
    Posts
    206

    Bella is 16

    Hello again, thank you for your kind word and advice. Bella is 16 years old, so she is an old girl, and you are right that old age could be part of the problem. But it is difficult for me to understand, how and why she would age so quickly, after she began treatment with Felimazole. But I know that time is on a different scale with a kitty. And I have never seen old age before, she is my 4th cat and the other ones were clearly very ill (heart, cancer, kidneys) when I had to say goodbye. This is so difficult because it is hard to tell which is which, if you know what I mean. She has a very thick fur, so one cannot actually see bones, but her spine feels sharp underneath, and because she is not moving (I guess) the muscle around her back and hind legs is clearly diminished, and the feels more "dry" and bony all over. But the penicillin cure was really hard on her, and it seems to be impossible to make her gain the weight she lost from the diarrhea (which the new vet also didn't have any idea how to stop). Do any of you know whether it would be OK to give her a about 7 ml. mixture of eggyolk, a little cream and lukewarm water on a daily basis? Just to get her to eat extra calories? Or what can I give her which is fattening but not harmful? She has lost interest in all sorts of things that used to be goodies, like cod roe, tuna, little slices of meat from my lunch. Whenever I offer her these old favourites, she now makes a vomiting movement.
    The main problem still seems to be the Felimazole in the sense that she seems to feel sick when she gets the dose she is supposed to have, but if I try to lower the dose she seems to get fever and the ... I don't know the word... membranes? of the eyes will appear. When do people that have hyperthyroidism feel the most lousy, do anyone know?

    As for tomorrows appointment with the vet, I am thinking that I can always go there without Bella and pay the consultation fee, to be fair.

    I would love to hear from Randi! Are you there, Randi??? Help! Have you changed you phone number??

    Lots of love for now!
    Sus and Bella
    Sus

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    Copenhagen, Denmark - GMT+1
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    15,952
    I'm here and I have the same phone no. Call if you want to talk. Or PM me.

    Fister is crazy about Royal Canin's Sensitive, it has 33% protein, 22% fat, but also 7,1 ash, which I don't think is good.

    I looked for the pictures I have of Bella, they are from 2006 I believe. Will attach some here:
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    Last edited by Randi; 01-12-2011 at 07:45 AM.



    "I don't know which weapons will be used in the third World war, but in the fourth, it will be sticks and stones" --- Albert Einstein.


  9. #9
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    Methuen, MA; USA
    Posts
    17,105
    Still praying for Bella, and for you as well, Sus.
    .

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
    Posts
    20,168
    Prayers for your dear Bella and for you too, Sus.
    I meant," said Ipslore bitterly, "what is there in this world that truly makes living worthwhile?"
    Death thought about it.
    CATS, he said eventually. CATS ARE NICE.

    -- Terry Pratchett (1948—2015), Sourcery

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Odense, Denmark
    Posts
    206

    Thanks again and for the pictures!

    Hello again. Thank you for your prayers and kind thoughts. You have no idea what it means to feel that I am not alone in this. And thank you Randi for the pictures of Bella! I remember when we (you, that is) did the "Winter Olympics" of ... what year? and Bella was a harsh and almost fair umpire - those were the days!

    This afternoon Bella has managed to go to the toilet without help from the paraffin oil, and she has become a little more lively and interested within the last hour because it is time for her beloved raw chicken lumps. And I'm just happy to see her eat a little.

    I still don't know what to do tomorrow and tomorrow is closing in on us. Oh, my. I shall leave PT for now, because Bella sleeps near my workstation, and I have noticed that light seems to annoy her.

    Love,
    Sus and Bella
    Sus

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
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    Copenhagen, Denmark - GMT+1
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    It's good to hear Bella has perked up a bit, I hope she'll continue to get better! I have never heard of the medicine she gets, but it might take some time before you see the results, so I would wait. Of course, you know her best.

    Fister and I will keep our fingers and paws crossed for her. Give her some kisses from me!

    Get better, sweet Bella!



    "I don't know which weapons will be used in the third World war, but in the fourth, it will be sticks and stones" --- Albert Einstein.


  13. #13
    Join Date
    Dec 2002
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    My life is God filtered :)
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    14,052
    What a horrible situation to be in - we've all been there at some point. should I take her, should I wait - it's so difficult to tell.

    I've never dealt with the issue of thyroidism but I have had two kitties on Metacam but it was a very low dose (two drops a day) and my vet said that it's not harmful with that low dose for a short period of time.

    As for what you can give her, well I'm sorry I have no advice on that either. Both my kitties told me when they were ready to go - their eyes spoke volumes and I knew it was time.

    I pray that sweet Bella perks up, eats and gives you more time. Kisses to you sweet Bella. What a gorgeous girl you are.
    Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, champagne in one hand and strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming WOO HOO - What a Ride!
    --unknown

    Sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we can't see
    --Polar Express

    Until one has loved an animal, part of their soul remains unawakened.




  14. #14
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Odense, Denmark
    Posts
    206

    My heart says no!

    This is just to say, that we are NOT going to the vet today. Bella perked up a bit yesterday evening, and although I know this may only be for a short while, I just can't say goodbye today. I cancelled our appointment this morning, and luckily, the vet understood this perfectly. Oh, Bella-girl, if this was the wrong decision, then I'm so sorry. Please continue yesterdays good progress, will you?

    Lots of love to all of you on pettalk!
    Sus and Bella
    Sus

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    Copenhagen, Denmark - GMT+1
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    I'm so glad to hear this news and I hope Bella will start eating again. Like I said, it may be because of all the various medicine and vet visits that she lost her appetite.

    Keep getting better, Bella!



    "I don't know which weapons will be used in the third World war, but in the fourth, it will be sticks and stones" --- Albert Einstein.


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