Ruffles Update, #11, PT Prayers Helped!

**Freedom** · 03-06-2007, 03:15 PM

Took Ruffles in to the vet again this afternoon. She has lost more weight and is almost skin and bones, poor baby.

Took blood tests and will call me Thursday. Hoping this is just her thyroid and needing a meds adjustment.

I also got some canned food for her. Some Eukanuba Maximum Calorie nutritional stress / weight gain formula, and some Science Diet a/d. Two cans of each for now, until wefind out the blood work results.

Ruffles is 17; I keep forgetting, as I've only had her about 3 years.

She was OK last June at her annual exam, and she weighed 10.8 pounds. Then in January she was down to 8.3, and was diagnosed with hyperthyroid and a heart murmur. Today, she weighs 7.2. So she lost over a pound in 2 months. (It's been 2 months and 3 days.)

She did NOT appreciate having her afternoon beauty sleep interrupted for a vet visit, and she muttered at the vet's the entire time. Doc got a chuckle out of her grumbles! Once we got home, I gave her half a can of the maximum calorie; she ate that and is now catching up on her nap time.

Please keep this older gal in your prayers.

**Mycatownsme** · 03-06-2007, 03:39 PM

I hope ruffles is okay! Poor skinny baby! She will be in my prayers for sure!!

**kb2yjx** · 03-06-2007, 03:45 PM

It is not easy when an old friend is ill. Prayers for Ruffles! Please let us know what the blood work shows....

**DrKym** · 03-06-2007, 04:02 PM

prayers on their way!

**CultureJunky** · 03-06-2007, 04:07 PM

Sandra, I'm sending good thoughts and wishes Ruffles way, and hope she starts to feel better. Hopefully it's just time to adjust the medication and nothing too serious. Paws Crossed

**Medusa** · 03-06-2007, 05:04 PM

A candle burns for Ruffles and you.

Blessings,
Mary

**bjm** · 03-06-2007, 05:09 PM

Emmy, my hyperthyroid cat, is on methimizole to suppress her thyroid. It seems to be helping her. I dissolve the dose in a smidgeon of water, then stir it into the cat food, which Emmy scarfs down.

Has your vet prescribed anything for yours? The methimizole (spelling?) is fairly inexpensive.

BJM

**jennielynn1970** · 03-06-2007, 07:35 PM

Poor Ruffles! I hope that they can regulate her meds so that she will gain weight back and be feeling well again!

**Freedom** · 03-06-2007, 09:42 PM

BJM: Yes, Ruffles started on Tapazole in January. It helped for a few weeks. She is on a small dose, half a tablet in the morning. It is a 5 mg tablet. Ruffles is easy to pill. She was front declawed by her first owner, and had most of her teeth removed (second owner fed her only canned food). So there really isn't anything to hurt me! She is very gentle and sweet, never a problem. They did offer me a liquid form today, chicken flavored! But for now this is working. Thanks for telling me about the other stuff, I will ask Thursday when the vet calls with the test results.

**krazyaboutkatz** · 03-07-2007, 01:14 AM

I'm sorry to hear about Ruffles.

I sure hope that she'll be okay. Lots of prayers and positive thoughts are being sent her way.

**Freedom** · 03-08-2007, 04:08 PM

Ruffles blood work all came back fine! The vet said the kidney function looked excellent, and nothing like she expected for a cat this age! So no new meds, no changes to meds.

It is possible the heart murmur (which the vet calls heart disease) could be causing problems. We could also do an ultra sound of hr abdomen to see if anything shows up. but her white blood cell count is normal, so the vet isn't sure that is an issue.

We are continuing the high calorie foods. She is enjoying them and eating much better. Could all this weight loss be because she can't eat hard kibble any more??? Then I feel badly, that means she was starving!

So in 2 to 3 weeks I will take her in to get weighed and either make another appt with the vet or leave a message with the front desk to tell her the weight is coming back on.

Thanks everyone, I believe PT prayers helped!!