Cat liver issues

[christymexico]

he was eating it..but now has almost no interest..i have mixed just tiny amounts ff and also tuna water but he gets diareah from that ...since going off the pred his appetite is down..
i check his lips gums fur for dehydration but i just dont see it..his mouth is very juicy and pink ...when he got sick was grey and dry..so im not sure what other indicator to look for...would it show in the blood?
i am waiting on the pred tonite..will get him back on asap..gave him a quarter metronidazole tonight, he had diareah today from the ff/food mix..so i am giving him boiled chicken tonite only..
my vet is on vacation until later this week..thanks for all the help throughout all this..as soon as i get any bloods or any results i always forward them to nyc right away and then we speak that same night..his guidance is first in bennys treatment..the drs here are not well educated.
I will ask about the sub q;s
thanks again
c and ben

[Traci]

How about if you mix only the cooked chicken into the prescription food to tempt him to eat? Use only a small amount, just enough mixed in that he has to eat several kibbles (or bit of the canned), it would help. Either way, as long as you're not making the chicken or the fancy feast the main staple and he is in fact, eating some of the prescription diet, that should be ok.

Just checking, what varieties of the fancy feast are you feeding? Example, mixed fish flavors, tuna flavors or chicken or turkey flavors. Beef is the worst to feed IBD cats, so try to steer clear of that.

The CBC, which is seperate from the chemical blood profile, would show dehydration (as well as indication of infection, or inflammation).

I don't mean to imply you should give sub-q fluids right now, I mean they probably should have been given early on in his diagnosis and treatment. It is still possible he is dehydrated though, so if you can afford the CBC with the bloodwork you have scheduled in June, that would help determine true hydration status. See if the vet agrees.

[Traci]

Here is Christy's Benny! Isn't he adorable! Christy's comments included before each photo:

first pic december 2011..i noticed something wrong



2nd pic was sept 2011..normal bloodwork...normal weight



3rd was in nyc march 4th 2012 a day home from icu



the 4th 5th and 6th is today







his fur is thick and very piece y,,,,his muscles are just gone in the back legs and top of shoulders. hip bones..you name it..gone..i feel his little bones so britlle and then..its very odd..he was a robust man

[Traci]

Christy, other than what we've talked about here and in email, when you get your next bloodwork done for Benny, please take a fresh stool sample to test, and ask the vet to look for liver flukes (an intestinal parasite that can make it's way to the bile duct and to the liver). Ideally liver fluke diagnosis is best done with a fluid or tissue sample (liver biopsy), but this is quite invasive, so sometimes, it can be found in a stool exam. I don't know if either of your vets thought to check for this, but it could be one explanation for the weight loss/muscle loss - liver flukes are sometimes highly associated with cholangiohepatitis. I would think the NYC vet would have caught on to the possibility, but he may have overlooked it and "forgot" about Benny's environment in Mexico and particularly the fact you recently stated he chases lizards - lizards, frogs, toads etc are primary vectors of the liver fluke (it's origin is the snail, then ingested by the lizard, frog, etc, then ingested by the cat).

A stool sample should be collected from his litterbox only hours before the vet appointment. Collect about a teaspoon or so of the stool, put in a sealed glass or plastic container, refrigerate ONLY up to 8-10 hours before the appointment - ideally the sample should be only less than 1 or 2 hours old, and fresh, not refrigerated, but one can refrigerate if necessary, since one can usually only obtain a stool from a cat once in a day or two.

[christymexico]

hi
I am sorry i have been away from here for so long
Benny seems to be doing great
I stopped treating him like a sick cat
me hovering was freaking him out
since i layed off he has flourished
he has gained weight
i took in stool sample but also gave dontral just in case i think was the name
still some soft stool
but he eats intestine food and i steam a chicken breast for him also every nite
his leg muscles are growing back..he is on 12mg pred still, ursodial and denamarin
my concern for him is he moves so slow, the vet here felt him and said he has athritis in his back near his tail, so this has caused him pain in the back end of his body, he sits slowly and screams when our baby cat jumps on him..shes blind so its tough
i have not retested his blood in 8 weeks now
i need to do that soon so i can see whats going on..
are there options for arthritis and the liver?
thanks and hope this finds you well:)
Christy and Ben

[Traci]

What does Benny weigh?

What is the exact dosing/schedule of the pred?

Are you using prednisone or prednisolone?

Is it daily, every other day, or?

Unfortunately, when using pred, it is difficult to add other medications for the sole purpose of treating arthritis. The pred actually should be helping that. A supplement can be used, but I only recommend one type, Cosequin for Cats, (the others on the market are dubious and may contain too little, too much, or none at all of the stated ingredients). Talk to your NYC vet about that.

Most importantly at this point, is what exactly is the dose/schedule of the pred right now?

[christymexico]

Hi
quick thought
when all of this started he got at age 11 stud tail
i lookd it up
and dr here gave me sebus shampoo
now again he has it
and his tail is full of it and painful to touch...looks like flea feces but is not...
his tail almost feels mishapen??
this started before the liver last time
any thoughts??
thanks
im goinng to wash gently as is painful today
thanks
christy

[Traci]

Stud tail doesn't cause a misshapen tail, but may cause fur loss, which can give an "appearance" of a misshapen tail, it is usually only the missing fur or areas of missing/sparse fur that give it a misshapen tail look. If there are skin pustules (like pus-filled bumps), then it could be a case of folliculitis (inflammation of hair follicles), or pyoderma (where infection occurs and causes the pustules). Use the shampoo the vet prescribed, and get a recheck in a couple weeks or so to see if it's working.

If the tail is actually misshaped (like a bone, knotty feeling etc), then there may have been a tail injury or prior injury that didn't heal. Ask your vet to check again to make sure there has not been a bone injury etc.

I asked about the prednisone dose in my last post, can you check on that for me?

[christymexico]

I dont know why my preivious post was not there..i must have hit preview
benny is around 12 puounds now
he is on prednisolone 12.5mg every other day
he is also on ursoidal daily and denamarin
he is eating very well
soft but not runny stools
feels prety good
just his back hurts and he sits down very slow
thats why i took him for the tail
i do have a bottle of corcerin for cats for arthritis its unopened
i was scared to give him anything
i have not done bloods for 8 weeks now
sorry the other didnt show
and thanks again for all
christy and benny

[christymexico]

Hi tracy
also when i washed his tail
its hard to describe
like his tail is wavy
and on the skin/meat not hair
the hair is oily greasy and full of the brown salt like stuff..
but his tail looks very very mishapen all throughout
like someone squeezed and reshaped it with their fingers..
its painful for him, i did not see any open spots or postules to the naked eye
but it is something. for sure
poor guy:/
thanks
christy