Emmy's sick. :(

[slvrwhispr]

Well... I don't have good news, but it's not the worst news. I was out of town for the weekend. DH and my mom say Emmy seemed to be holding the status quo while I was gone. But when I came home and went to greet her, she was rigid. I mean, stiff as a board. If she hadn't been flicking her tail and looking at me, I'd have thought she was dead. I didn't even get my suitcase out of the doorway before I had her in the carrier and to the vet.

We completely re-ran all the labs. The good news is that the x-ray showed all the fluid had resolved from her lungs. All her labs look good -- kidneys, liver are fine. CBC totally normal. No fever. Bright eyed and alert, but she's looking awfully skinny right now. Vet gave sub-Q fluids at the office, hoping that she just needed to be rehydrated significantly. She also sent us home with more fluids to do sub-Q at home for the next couple of days. DH was trained by the Army to start IVs and whatnot, so he's pretty comfortable giving her fluids.

Got a recheck at the end of the week with word from the vet that if she declines even slightly, we rush her right back in. Vet says that given no signs of infection and nothing abnormal on the labs, whatever IS wrong with her is outside of her area of expertise, so if she doesn't perk up with the fluids, then we get to go to a specialist and figure out what's up.

Also, the vet said that if her appetite doesn't perk up with the fluids by tomorrow morning to come in and she'll give a prescription for Valium (VERY low dose) to try and get her to eat, along with some sort of calorie-dense paste thing she had mentioned.

And, now I'm exhausted. I know taking her to a specialist is basically inevitable at this point, but I'm dreading the bill. I had no debt at the beginning of this year and that is certainly no longer the case. *sigh* I'll keep doing it to keep my babygirl with me, but... it's frustrating. And scary. :/

[k9Karen]

I understand the scary part. There is nothing worse than not knowing or understanding why your baby is sick. I went thru something like that with my daughter years ago, so I really understand the feeling. I hope Emmy is well soon, and that you can get the answers you need.

Sending more love and good wishes.

[slvrwhispr]

She's grooming herself again and when I went upstairs for a late night snack, she was following me around the kitchen and nuzzling my legs. That's very encouraging. Will update when there's anything to report.

[E's]

Just now saw latest posts. My thoughts are with you also, SW and family. This latest symptom - the stiffness when you first saw her as you got home... do you mean it was a paralysis, or like that? Guess you and the vet have ruled out some sort of toxin - exposure to and/or ingestion - as the original culprit?.... with ongoing separate reactions?

I've lived up North in houses with basements... nooks and crannies where one pet can get into something or next to something, and the other pets not... [Sorry - an old "Gulf Coaster" talking here: always suspicious of basements ]

[slvrwhispr]

No paralysis, I just mean that she was guarding her pain so much that her limbs were rigid. Scared the pants off me. DH said she ate fine this morning, but since getting ill, she hasn't left the kitchen. It gets the most sunlight during the day and she just stays in the sunbeams. There's utterly nothing for her to get into up there. We have some paint and such in the basement, but it's all on shelves or in sealed plastic bins. Nothing has been disturbed, nothing is leaking. I've already checked.

[Traci]

No paralysis, I just mean that she was guarding her pain so much that her limbs were rigid.

That doesn't make sense, Slvr. Cats generally do not tense muscles like that on their own.

It concerns me the vet did not send a fluid sample off to a lab for further testing, or, if she didn't even offer that to you?!

It concerns me that she has no idea whatsoever where the fluid came from, and didn't pursue it further. I can to some degree, albeit a very small degree, understand she may have been trying to keep costs down for you, but at the same time, having had additional diagnostics would have saved in the long term with a proper diagnosis and proper treatment initiated.

It concerns me Emmy is only 3 years old and the vet has not offered to do a heart workup, particularly from the obvious symptoms Emmy has presented! Nor an immunological/fungal profile (sent to outside lab) to rule out other things this could be mimicking.

While sub-q fluids in small amounts may not hurt, in heart cases, any additional fluids should be done so VERY cautiously. Usually this concerns IV fluids, but depending on the amount of sub-q fluids, it still needs to be judicial use. Try offering canned food with a bit of water added for additional moisture to help keep her hydrated. The lasix probably had a good deal to contribute to her dehydration.

Slvr, I wouldn't wait on this, Emmy's symptoms aren't typical of something that just goes away on it's own. Something caused fluid buildup and the lasix might only be a temporary fix. You certainly don't want something going undetected where it can happen again very rapidly. Just going by your posts, it doesn't sound like the vet has enough experience to even wager a guess, which could be a very dangerous approach in delaying diagnostics/treatment for Emmy and preventing this from happening again.

I'd simply call her tomorrow and get that referral/appointment with the specialist anyway. Whatever the fluid was, I can't imagine it wasn't somewhat bacterial in nature, and it could still be creeping somewhere internally.

Please see my second post in this thread for potential rule-outs to discuss with the specialist. I'm really surprised the vet didn't use that valuable fluid sample and send it off to a lab for analysis.

[slvrwhispr]

The specialist doesn't do payment plans. I need another paycheck before I can take her in... which comes on Friday. I just need her to not become an emergency case between now and then.

The good news is she's DEVOURING food today. That makes me so, so happy to see. Just gotta hang on a couple of days and we'll get her to the specialist. My vet straight up said that if it's a heart problem, she's not equipped to diagnose it, which is why we got the referral. She's ruled out everything she's able, and has given us the tools to carry her over until we can see the specialist.

My boss today told me I'm crazy for spending so much money on a cat. I gave him a look that was apparently intimidating enough that he walked away and did not bring up the subject again. Jerk.

[k9Karen]

You must have given him one of these!!
Some people just don't get it.

[Traci]

I wouldn't even justify a response to your boss - I know the look you gave probably said volumes!

I understand, Slvr, I really do. Please remember, I'm not just posting to you, I'm also talking out loud my thoughts, I just want you to be armed with information so nothing goes unchecked.

Give Emmy a kiss for me, hang in there, and of course, if ANYTHING occurs unusual, don't hesitate to get to your vet in the event it is before your specialist's referral.

[Tina B and crew]

Silver....sorry to hear that Emmy is still having some issues...keeping you in my thoughts and Emmy too. I agree with Traci about the boss...some people just need to learn when to keep their mouth shut.