clive is sick! ???

[babolaypo65]

clive just isn't himself. he adopted us about two months ago now. was a homeless out door cat for about six months before he picked us. the vet looked him over when we first got him, and tested him for everything. and gave him shots. he's still mostly an outdoor cat (but doesn't stray from the back yard), and doesnt use a cat box. yesterday afternoon when i got home (temp was about 45f) he didnt come when i opened the door. i kept shaking the cat food box (which always works.) later i heard him meowing unpleasantly at the other back door. i called. he didnt jump the little fence (all strange for him). i went to the other door and opened it. he sorta came in. he spent the next four hours sitting in the same hunched position, meowing in that unpleasant way (sorta low and distressed) off and on.
i went to bed. he just sat there. middle of the night he meowed again. i turned on the light and he was peeing on the rug (never! done that before). its now 645am. he wont eat. when i stand him up he just lies down!
ill call the vet when they open.
no wheezing, coughing etc.
any thoughts?

ps, the dog keep staring at him looking stressed out (they are friends).
thanks:confused:

[smokey the elder]

He may have gotten into something that doesn't agree with him. He should see the vet.

Good luck and I hope Clive feels better!

[neko1]

I agree with smokey the elder- See a vet asap!

[babolaypo65]

:(

took clive to the vet. he has lost almost a pound (in less than a month). is dehydrated, anemic, jaundiced... and the vet heard a new heart murmer. the vet thinks its some kind of liver thing going on.
he was checked in, and given IV fluids, antibiotics, an xray, and blood work and urine work.
the terrible thing is i have to leave town friday! but the housesitter for the dog and cat is great, and said he will handle everything.

this stinks! poor clive.

[NoahsMommy]

Poor Clive....hopefully the vet will be able to fix him up and he'll be back to normal.

Sending prayers your way.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Oh poor Clive! I sure hope you know what the probem is before you leave town, and that he gets better and is his old self by the time you get back.

Get well Clive!

[tatsxxx11]

Oh, poor Clive! Sounds like the poor dear has a lot going on:( I hope they come up with a diagnosis before you leave. Is he feeling any better??? Please give him a get well hug from me. Sandra, Mr. B and Oliver

[babolaypo65]

the vet called. said he is "seriously" anemic. he should be at about 40% and is at 9%. below 12% cats usually need a blood transfusion. they had just called in for a donor cat. they still dont know whats wrong... but suspect its something chronic. since clive's only been living with us a few months, there's a lot we don't know...

[Cataholic]

Poor Clive! Thank you for taking him in so quickly! At least he is in the best place he can be. Hopefully by Friday the vet will know a little something more, and things have improved. Please keep us posted.

[babolaypo65]

I went to see clive. He had his blood transfusion. (a nurse brought her cat in to give him some, I thanked them profusely).
xrays came back normal.

He looked much more comfortable. Had his "color" back. (he's white). Was sitting upright. Lifted up to meet my hand when I petted him. So at least he is comfortable. he ate a little, and used the box.
Tomorrow at 8 the blood tests come back.
im hoping this is something that can be managed with medication. im getting to the end of the savings account...

He looked a little better. At least comfortable.

[sasvermont]

Gosh, what a mess. I surely hope Clive recovers quickly. It seems that he is meant to be with you. It was so nice of you to invest such time and money in an adopted kitty!

Prayers and good healthy wishes coming your way.

Sas:eek:

[neko1]

Well it sure sounds like he is getting the best care possible! I'm sure he'll get better soon!!

[kimlovescats]

Poor clive and poor mom ..... prayers with you that everything turns out ok! Please keep us updated!

[jenluckenbach]

OH, sweet litttle Clive!! I am hugging my dear little white kitty now in hopes that you will feel it. Please hurry and get better, a lot of people are worried about you.

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Poor Clive. :( Sure hope he's feeling better soon, and it's nothing too serious. You really are wonderful to be investing so much in a kitty that basically adopted you. I never knew they could do blood transfusions in cats - interesting.

Hugs for you (and your pocketbook) and prayers for sweet Clive. :)

[Cataholic]

Way to go Clive! Keep getting stronger and better!!! I hope Mommy's pocketbook is spared as much as possible. Prayers on the way to you.

[babolaypo65]

he said he is hopeful. he said after the blood tranfusion they look to see if the marrow starts making its own cells. he was at 9 yesterday. they aid they would be hopeful if he tested at 12 today. he was at 20! so thats good. the blood work came back really wacky, billirubin at 800 (should be below 100), elecrolytes off, etc. and some kind of liver disease. they now think its either hepatits, or something he ate up to three months ago. (pre me). he is eating lots, and using the box lots, and being social. thats a good sign. he's staying tonight again, and hopefully will be well enough to leave tomorrow with some meds. the vet is so nice, he knows i cant afford a biopsy (to *maybe* see whats wrong with his liver). he called a hospital and got a donation of a hepatitis med that is used in both cats and humans. really expensive. so he got a human batch and is making clive little kitty pills (for free).
here's hoping! (brian the housesitter is ready for the additional duties. my secretary donated some canned food (dr's orders for a week).... and the friends who gave me clive (he was living in their back yard) pitched in some money. such good friends!
thanks for the good thoughts. keep them coming.

ps i didnt know about blood transfusions either! the nurse brought her cat and he made a donation. the vet said thats what saved him. because as they were giving him fluids to fix the dehydration they were making the anemia worse.....

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Originally posted by babolaypo65
he said he is hopeful. he said after the blood tranfusion they look to see if the marrow starts making its own cells. he was at 9 yesterday. they aid they would be hopeful if he tested at 12 today. he was at 20!

Way to go Clive buddy!!!! Hopefully everything will go well tonight and you'll be back home in no time. :) Sounds like there are a lot of people who really care about this kitty and are willing to help out a lot (like the nurse & her kitty:eek: ) and the vet is being really nice and doing things for free and getting donations from the hospital too! What a great group of people this lucky kitty stumbled upon. :)

[babolaypo65]

i have to face the unpleasant task of cleaning up the carpet. during the night before he went to the hospital he peed on the carpet. i've tried a couple of "gets rid of cat smells" products but no luck. any suggestions on the best thing to get rid of that smell? fortunately its on a rug over the carpet (with rubber backing). i used my little carpet scrubber too. no luck. tried baking soda too!
any suggestions?:confused:

[jenluckenbach]

if you have or can borrow a "little green clean machine" (like the big wet suction vacs, only smaller) that is the best investment I ever made. Vinegar is also suppose to be real good, but then the place smells like vinegar. Nil-odor is a good brand name if you can find that.

[Uabassoon]

Clive I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better. Corkscrew and Tibby send you head bumpies and they hope you feel better soon.

[emily_the_spoiled]

I am very happy that Clive is doing better:) :)

You can try Nature's Miracle Stain removal (available at Petsmart or any animal place). It works quite well (and is safe with animals. The other thing I tried and seems to work very well (and is faster than Nature's Miracle) is the WoolLite brand of animal stain removal. This should be available in your local grocery store in the laundry section.

Good Luck!!

[tatsxxx11]

So happy to hear Clive is much improved!!:) I'm a big fan of Nature's Miracle! And a black light!!:D Hugs, kisses and nuzzles to dear Clive from Sandra, Mr. B and Oliver!

[babolaypo65]

clive went home today!!! i'm not there. am with family, but the house sitter says he looks great!
thanks for all your positive thoughts!
they still dont know what it was, or if it will reoccur. here's hoping!:D

[jenluckenbach]

That is such great news, but sad that you cannot be there. I am so happy for dear Clive!!

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm just now reading this thread. I'm so glad that Clive is back home and that he's doing so well. I sure hope that he continues to stay well. All fingers and paws are crossed here. Good luck.

[babolaypo65]

clive's been home a week. i got home last night. he's a totally different cat! he has so much energy! the scary thing is, he probably adopted us while low energy, not feeling well. THIS is probably the real clive!! (or the house sitter was pampering him so much he slept LOTS and had lots of pent up energy.) he spent last night. all night. tearing around the room. launching at the bed (and me and the dog) from all angles. goof ball! finally went to sleep around four am. today im going to keep him AWAKE til bed time in the hopes he will sleep all night!
though i wanted to ring his neck a few times last night, im THRILLED at how well he is doing, and hope it lasts.
thanks again for everyone's kind words, and wisdom.:)

[jenluckenbach]

I'll bet that is true. He was sick before, even though you did not know it. THIS is probably the REAL Clive. But still, such great news!!!:D

[Cataholic]

I am sooo thrilled to read that Clive is now SPICY Clive! Way to go Clive!! Way to go to your hooman, too, for going the extra mile for you...I hope this quickly becomes a thing of the past, and you two can get on with your lives. Congrats and Best Wishes!

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm so glad to hear that Clive is doing so well. :)

[babolaypo65]

he did great today. he was in and out. and tonight went to bed with the dog and me (the joys of a laptop). he's still not eating great, but looks good. the vet said he should have as high of calories as possible right now, so he's getting lots of pounce treats (which he WILL eat). he's not eating the wet or the dry. so lots of snacks it is for now.
here's hoping he sleeps through the night!
he sure is a lover! was very cuddly all day today. he's a good boy. but not like ANY cat i've ever owned before...

[wayne0214]

I am thinking that perhaps Clive left his former home because his previous owners refused to have him checked by a vet. And then it is possible that they were not aware of his condition. He probablay looked and acted like he was sick before and they either did or did not recognize his illness, but regardless, they didn't do anything about it. Cats have an inner knowing whether they are truely wanted or not. This possibly accounts for his coming to your home for his well being.

...........wayne

[babolaypo65]

you could be right. its hard to know. he was homeless for about four or five months. a friend moved into a house with her four cats. and he showed up the first day. she really couldnt take on another cat (it was july) so she just started feeding him outside. he stayed in her yard and under her house til october. the night of the first freeze she brought him to me! she had asked neighbors. talked about him up and down the street... no one claimed him. she thinks the people she took over the house from left him. poor guy. he is so beautiful. and sweet! dummies.

[Lachesis]

*Shew* Im so so glad to read Clive is doing better!!

[Cataholic]

You mentioned that Clive needs as many calories as possible, and that he isn't eating much of the dry/wet....I ran into this with Tex. He WOULD eat cooked chicken, but, wouldn't touch his other special food..and what I came to realize was if I cut back on the chicken, he would get hungry enough to eat the other food. The treats/chicken doesn't have the full nutrients our kids need..so, keep that in mind when you feed him treats....

[babolaypo65]

thanks good advice. in the end i tricked him. he loves pounce, so i bought some soft tender vittles kind of food and fed him that from the Pounce can. shaking it like i do for "treat time". he ate a whole serving of real food that way. tonight i mixed it with the canned food and he ate some of that too...
he goes back to the vet for his check up tomorrow.
my fingers are crossed (which makes typing difficult!)

[jenluckenbach]

putting REAL food in the pounce can.....VERY clever!!!!!!!!

good luck with the vet.

[babolaypo65]

clive had his checkup. his blood count is now at 30! (from a low of 9, and 19 after the blood transfusion). in the end he has hemobart. while i was away a second vet looked at his charts and suggested adding the medicine for hemobart because he wasnt really getting better. they did and he bounced right back, got his color back, and his energy.
heres a web site about it. its a killer!
http://www.pettribune.com/2000/090100/catsmeow.html
its common in tom cats (which he was), and slow to present.
he's eating well. the vet LOVED my tender food in the pounce can, and gave me some tender kitten food to mix in for more calories.
he has to go back one more time for another blood test, but she's pretty positive.
she said the other vet was really afraid he was going to die. they are really happy they caught it, and in time! (it doesnt show up well on blood tests)

[krazyaboutkatz]

I sure hope that Clive will be able to fight off this disease. Prayers are on the way. All fingers and paws are also crossed.

[Cataholic]

You know, because you cared enough, you got Clive into the vet timely. Here, that was critical. You are to be commended for that. I am glad Clive's condition has been dx/treated. I hope he makes a speedy recovery!!!!!

[tatsxxx11]

What a great Mom to get Clive treatment in such a timely fashion!! Your quick thinking surely saved his life!! All fingers and paws here will stay crossed in hopes for a complete recovery!! Hugs to you sweet Clive! Prayers on their way for a happy and healthy 2003 for Clive and Co.!!:)

[toughCookie]

so glad Clive is better!

[lailamara]

I'm so glad Clive is better. I went through this disease Heamobartonella with by dear Theo. He was diagnosed with it after extensive testing and other problems . They figure it came from a flea bite even though he was an indoor cat !!
It started with pancreatitis which he survived and then hemo. He would crash and we would rush him to the vets and they always thought that it was it but he would revive. They would laugh cause they said he had 99 lives not 9. Theo was 11 when diagnosed so it was more difficult to treat but he was a fighter and had a good quality of life for a few years. There were the problems of not eating and aenemia and on and on. PM me if you need support with this at any time. Again he is young and strong and with your help can have a good quality of life.

[babolaypo65]

thanks lailamara

i might just take you up on that!

[babolaypo65]

clive went for a check up today. he has gained almost a pound back. the vets were thrilled. he had a full CBC so here's hoping it turned out well. the vet was shocked at what a different cat he was again. looked like the cat who first came to visit!:D

[babolaypo65]

he purred last night, for the first time since this whole saga began.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Babolaypo65,that's great news!!!:D I'm so glad to hear that Clive is doing so well. You are such a great Mommy. :)

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Wow, what a tail! I'm so glad Clive is back to his old self, even if it seems like a new self to you. ;) :)

You certainly should be commended on taking him in so quickly, and the vets should be too for doing the blood transfusion and taking it all seriously enough in the first place to catch it right away. And I'm so glad he's purring now too. Sounds like he has certainly found his furever home. :)