Help for Thomas - ARF Kitty

Hi Everyone.

It's amazing the wonderful sites and people you find when you are in most need. I'm new to this site, and like many I've read, I found it because I was searching for answers to my fabulous feline's current health problem.

I'll try to keep this short...but I need some help.

Our 5 yr old cat, Thomas, went to the vet 7/14 with a urinary obstruction. They thought we caught it early enough to not cause any permanent damage because he bounced back at the hospital rather quickly, and was eating, drinking, and being generally a good boy while he was there, and his blood levels looked good. We brought him home after 3 days with AB's and instructions to feed c/d wet food. Thomas HATES wet food, but was eating at the hospital, so we said we would give it a try. 3 days later, all he could think about was his grocery store junk food, which we finally gave in and fed him some in combination with the wet, just so he would eat. About 1 1/2 weeks later, he decided he didn't want to eat - anything. He became weak in a span of 36 hours, and could not make it into his litter box - stopped just outside. So back to the vet.

Initial prognosis was not good - Kidney failure (too early to tell if ARF or CRF) - BUN and Creatinine levels were high - but not so high as to suggest PTS. Our vet - bless her heart - insisted we try subcutaneous fluids. So, on 8/3 and 8/4 he received 200 mL at the vet and we started 2.5 mg of Pepcid AC on Thursday at home for nausea. We began every other day subq fluids at home on Thursday as well.

He's a very good patient at home, only vomits immediately after he gets his fluids, and doesn't fight them. He is eating and drinking ok. and has gained back 1 of the 2 lbs he lost.

He has however developed tremors in his head which sometimes extend down his legs. They don't seem to bother him, and only occur right before he is about to sleep, or lay down. They have happened a couple of times when he is walking and they cause him to stumble. He is very clumsy (fell off the arm of the couch - over estimates jumping onto my lap and almost slides off the other side) on top of it all.

We were back at the vet on Tuesday (8/11) and his blood work is all normal (hooray) and we are weaning him off the fluids slowly for the next month. The vet could not see a cause for the tremors but suggested we stop the Pepcid since it coincided with the beginning of the tremors.

It's been 36 hours since his last dose of Pepcid and there has been no decrease in his tremors. The only change is that he is eating a bit less. He did get another dose of fluids (100mL) last night which may be making him queasy.

The vet is hesitant to think that it could be seizures because there is no chemical indications in his blood work.

Has anyone seen this before and can offer a suggestion?

First of all, welcome to Pet Talk. You're right, you'll find lots of wonderful people here and tons of helpful information.

My RB Puddy had something similar except that I called them "tics". It was from an antihistamine, I think. What helped her in so many ways, especially w/her anemia, was the injection of the B vitamins into her bag of fluids so that she got them while she was getting her treatment. (Otherwise, the needle really stings and why put her through that when she's already getting jabbed w/one needle.) I would talk to your vet about it. Hope this helps. :)

Funny you should mention the B Vitamins.

When I arrived home from work last night, the twitching (I like ticks much better :) ) were much worse than in the morning and he had not eaten, drank or used the litter box at all during the day. I called the vet and they had me bring him in.

They checked his blood pressure, his calcium, phosphorus, and potassium levels, and everything was well within normal ranges. So he remains a mystery.

The vet then thought perhaps he has a Thiamine deficiency, so gave him a shot of a B vitamins along with some other vitamins to see if that helps.

Last night he ate well, used the litter box (woohoo!!!), and was generally a happy boy.

This morning, his ataxia was less severe - he was able to go down the stairs a little bit faster, he was more vocal, and he was moving a bit faster. The ticks are still there, but they are not making him stumble like they were.

They also sent us home with HiVite to give 2 x per day.

Please keep us in your thoughts and thank you!

Good news! I apologize for not responding to your first post, but I honestly had no ideas for you.

Sounds like the B vitamins are a winner! I wonder if he could get regular shots, or are there yummy ones that kitties will eat?

Give Thomas some love and scritchies from me.:love:

I'm sure glad that the B vitamins are helping. It made a world of difference w/Puddy. Better and better....:)

Well, he's now had 7 doses of the HiVite vitamins, and 2 100mL of fluids since I last wrote. He's definitely more active and occasionally will run to his food dish at feeding time. He still has some difficulty with the stairs and balance at times, but overall his balance has greatly improved.

He is still twitching some, but it's not as pronounced as it was before.

He'll be getting the B vitamin shot again at the end of this week, and we'll be evaluating whether or not to cut back his fluids even more.

I'm still concerned about his litter box usage. He's only had one BM since 8/8 - but the vet is not too concerned...so I guess I should not be.

Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers - it's helping!

Well, a sad trip to the vet on Friday. Although his tremors are now gone, and it seems the constipation issue may be over, he is not eating again, and our 14 lb kitty is now down to just over 11 again.

Based on his current behavior (lost, aggression towards my husband, ataxia, and sometimes confusion), the vet is pretty convinced he has meningitis. I'm just starting to research this latest possible diagnosis, and this does not sound good for poor Thomas.

The vet sent us home with some prednisone and a broad spectrum antibiotic to see how he does for the next week. Hopefully this will kick whatever is in his system and help him along.

We are still continuing the fluids and vitamins.

Of course, many prayers sent right now for sweet Thomas and for you. Keep the faythe. :love:

WOW!!! This is sure a tough one to call...I will light a candle for Thomas and one for his family who loves and cares very much for him. Please keep us posted on Thomas...

You and Thomas will be in our prayers.

I will keep dear Thomas in my thoughts and prayers.:love:

MANY prayers for Thomas....:love::love::love:

Thank you ALL for the prayers! Thomas ate a little last night, but it was me holding the food in front of his face until he ate. Fortunately, he kept it down. He seems to be walking a bit better, and is more active. But, he still is not eating much, even though the prednisone is supposed to be a sort of appetite stimulant.

This morning he threw up his prednisone and vitamins, so we had to give them to him again.

I don't want to do syringe feeding, because he has been through so much already, and he's already getting things jammed down his throat 2-3 times per day, depending on the day. But, I may have to start, if he's not willing to do it on his own. This morning I tried feeding him again with the food in his face, and he kept licking his lips and smelling the food, but wouldn't eat it.

Patience, patience, patience.

Silly thought - but coule there be a sore in his mouth or something with his teeth that makes eating really uncomfortable for him?

If this has been mentioned already, I apologize - I didn't read back in the thread.

Sometimes when a furbaby or even a human is seriously ill, the simpler things go by the wayside.

Just a thought.

Hugs and prayers for Thomas.:love:

On one of our many recent visits, the vet did notice a tooth that looked like it might need to come out soon.

I did ask if that would affect his desire to eat, and she said that the gums etc. were not inflamed around it, so she did not think it was causing him any pain.

I will ask again when we see the vet on Friday - thank you for reminding me of that - like you said - sometimes the simplest things can be overlooked.

I would also consider a 2nd opinion. Things can be missed. Good luck and prayers for Thomas, of course.