Food - A cautionary tale - "For want of a nail...."

[Jodi]

Spez, so sorry to hear that your furbabies had such a bad experience!!! Please keep us posted as to how they are feeling. I hope you've seen much improvement by now!!! All paws are crossed for your cats!

[ashley]

I was afraid that I had offended you!

Absolutely not! I thought that I had offended you! Thanks and I hope that your kitties are in good health as mine are!

[ashley]

Just so that you all know.....I bought some Purina for my kitties today.

[Sandy]

Hi,
My 2year kitty was put on Clavmox for an infection . it made him unable to eat or drink . I cooked fresh food for him , but that did not help . He lived about 2 months than we lost him . We were heart broken . I looked the drug reaction on the net and found out it can be toxic to cats . Please ask your vet . my vet finally confirmed this could have caused my babies problem . Sorry for upsetting news.

[jason]

My 2year kitty was put on Clavmox for an infection . it made him unable to eat or drink.

[snip]

I looked the drug reaction on the net and found out it can be toxic to cats.

curious, could you site the url making this claim?

[Traci]

Sandy, clavamox reactions are rare....the most severe being respiratory distress or a reaction necessitating an epinephrine injection to reverse the effect. If your vet fully suspected a severe reaction, he would have administered epinephrine right away. Since two months passed between the administration of clavamox and death, there very well could have been an underlying cause other than antibiotic reaction. What diagnostics, lab work or other means of diagnostics did your vet perform to rule out other causes, and was a necropsy ever performed to confiirm the cause of death? What was the original infection that was being treated?

To caution owners against toxicity of clavamox is counter-productive, since this is a broad spectrum antibiotic capable of a miriad of benefits for a variety of health issues. While no medication is without risks, what you are stating would be rare and a potential isolated case (that is, if your vet accurately confirmed by a necropsy)

[Sandy]

Hi Traci,
My vet was treating my kitty for a blood infection . ( sorry can;t think of the name). She said he would make a full recovery and most cats do . They took a lot of extensive blood tests and xrays to try to find the problem , to no avail, I have a lot of faith in my vet , but she was at a loss as to what was wrong with M. After the medication started he began to throw up all food and water . He was hungry but could not keep anything down .I put all fresh foods in a blender and for a short while he was getting better , but than he started throwing up again. When she examined the substance it had some blood in it. He was wasting away to nothing , of cource my husband and I were heart broken . When this happened she suggested he be put to sleep as there were no more tests to be done. She did say the drug may have had something to do with it . She donated money in M's name to animal research , that is how upset she was over not knowing . She is a very good human bening. Thanks

[Mona]

Sorry for your loss. It must have been a lot to go through, esp with not knowing exactly what was causing the problem.

I do know that HOneybun cannot take Clavamox it contains an extra ingredient besides the amoxicillin. It upsets her stomach, and my daughter also cannot take Augmentin (same as the Clavamox for humans). It also can cause diarrhea and vomiting.

My other cat can take it just fine.

I would like to see the website also regarding the Clavamox.

Mona, Honeybun and Chloe.

[Traci]

If reactions occur with clavamox, it is because it is a penicillin-class drug, and just as in humans, some cats can suffer severe reactions to penicillin. Mild side effects may occur in some cats, such as vomiting or diarrhea, but these are not the same things as suffering from an allergic/analphylactic shock. In any event, if mild side effects do occur, it's always best to consult your vet and change the antibiotic. Should a more serious reaction occur, of course, emergency veterinary treatment is warranted immediately.

Again, clavamox is useful and effective for a variety of conditions....and vets do dose carefully, according to weight, health status of the patient, etc.

Sandy, I am truly very sorry about your loss...

[Sandy]

Hi ,
Thank you for all your kind words, thoughts, and good advice. Hope all our little and big animal's have a healthy new year.
Sandy