We Have An Epidemic :(

[carole]

Oh Lisa how terrible for you and what a worry.

some of what you describe sounds a bit like what my Ellie has -chronic gingivitis .

I guess it is not that , or the vet would have mentioned it.
It is treated much the same,with antibiotics, pain relief, except long term steriods and there is no cure for it,it can be caused through some of the things you wrote about this illness your cats have, and of course eating is painful and they loose weight, it is often the bacteria in their mouth that they are allergic to, that is what my vet explained to me, and there can be under lying conditions that also cause it like you listed.

I can only hope and pray that you can get the kitties well again, I have only one to deal with and that is hard enough emotionally and financially to deal with so i really have so much empathy for you.

Keeping fingers and all paws crossed for a more positive outcome. HUGS.

[krazyaboutkatz]

I was also thinking that steroids would probably help with this condition. I know that the shots can be expensive but the pills aren't. I just bought 300 pills for Storm and he only gets 1/2 of a pill every morning so this should last him a long time. The cost was only $28. I buy chicken pill pockets and cut them into 1/4's and roll them up into little balls. I then use these to cover up the pill and he thinks he's getting a treat so it's very easy to pill him. When it's time for your cats to get another steroid shot, you might want to try the pills instead to see how it goes since it's much cheaper in the long run. Good luck.

My vet specializes in cats and I'm going to e-mail her about your situation. Maybe she's seen a cat with this before and she can give me some more information about treatment etc. I'll let you know.