TBT: The computer photo problems weren't the only thing keeping us from posting most of last week. That was certainly a problem and I'm glad it "may be fixed" (but it is still awkward and I have to struggle a bit). I'll find out more about that when I get a chance to sit down and load new photos and try re-organize the old ones. But that is a minor problem.
Lori was ill all last week (and this doesn't end in bad news so far). She started acting oddly last Saturday (3rd). She was suddenly having hacking/sneezing attacks several times per day (naturally right after the Vet office was closed for the weekend). It was like she had a hairball she couldn't hack up or had swallowed some small thing she couldn't pass or expel.
Well, that sort of thing can happen. LC once spent 3 days hacking. She finally coughed up a small cotton pom-pom (and I got rid of all of those). An x-ray didn't show it, nor could the Vet feel anything in her stomach. But she was fine afterwards.
Then Monday morning, I realized she wasn't eating. She can be fussy and skip meals sometimes, but I called the Vet in the late afternoon. They couldn't see her until Sat morning. I took that appointment and watched her carefully Tuesday, Wensday and Thursday. In spite of not eating, she was active enough and steady on her feet.
She was very quiet though. She mostly made grumbling complaining sounds. I noticed she had a sudden odd habit of opening her mouth slightly in time with her breathing. I noticed some small wet drops on the sheets near her mouth.
I'm no Vet, of course. But I know some biology, and am analytical, and am reasonably good at diagnoses for some simple issues. I concluded that Lori was sufferring some nasal congestion and possibly some throat or stomach blockage. I also realized that "no eating" meant "no pooping". But she did pee some, so water was getting through her.
I could tell that because I enclosed her in the bedroom alone with me at night with a absolutely clean litterbox in the shower stall. With food and water in the bedroom. She didn't eat anything. I couldn't really tell about water. Cats don't drink much, and any lowering in the waterbowl could have just been evaporation. But I did find a small peepod each morning.
But she napped and slept well, and went outside a few times. Thursday night, I considered bringing her to the Emergency Hospital. But I don't like that place. I've been there several times. The Vets there seem like zombies, don't really seem to care about cats, and there has never been a good outcome.
So I thought "OK, just Friday and then a Saturday morning appointment with the regular Vet" (who has awards and an outstanding reputation plus several very caring Vets on site). But if Lori had shown signs of distress, I would have gone to the Emergency Hospital.
So we went to my Vet yesterday morning. Naturally, I forgot to bring my camera...She was due for annual shots, but we put that off in favor off the eating problem. No need to complicate her situation with shots... Some things interfere with others.
The technician and Vet were wonderful! The tech gathered information, held Lori to her ear (saying she could hear congestion). BTW, I had weighed Lori each day for a week. She went (according to my digital decimal bathroom scale) from 7.0 Monday gradually to 6.4 Saturday morning. The tech weighed her in at 6.5 #. Well, of course they have a more accurate and small animal-oriented scale. But it was nice to know mine was pretty accurate.
Then the Vet came in for a detailed exam. She did the usual temperature check (102F, high end of normal). Then she went for the nose. That revealed a lot! Bright light, wiping, stethoscope-listening at nose/chest/heart/stomach. She even sniffed her butt!
The nasal light was informative. With the light, I could clearly see she was clogged and dripping. I sure hadn't thought to shine a flashlight on her nose. But she kept wiping her paws across her nose, so I didn't realize the extent of nasal discharge.
So here is the Vet's diagnosis... Lori has a Upper Respiratory Tract infection. No smell of food, so no eating. No eating, weight loss and no pooping. She gave Lori an anti-bacterial oral dose and rubbed an ear with Mirtazapine. Provided a 14 day dosage of each. The tech kindly drew a red marker line on 2 reusable (after a thorough rinse each time) dosers. She called it a syringe, but I think of those as needle-tipped. These are just more like eye-droppers.
The Vet also suggested offerring Lori the "smelliest" food I have and warming Lori's food beforehand to release some odors. I'm actually familiar with that. Sometimes, after the last cat meal of the night, there is some left over and I store it covered in the refrigerator overnight.
Since I usually have a cup of green tea in the morning, I start with hot tap water because I M/W it higher before steeping the bag. So I usually warm up the refrigerated canned food in a small tray of warm water anyway. It helps Marley eat his kidney diet food. I should have thought about with Lori.
The Vet say she will call me Monday to see if there is an improvement, and the tech made a 10-day appointment for a return exam visit (and overdue shots). But there is good news already!
The Vet applied the Mirtazapine about 12:15 Saturday. At 6 pm, Lori sniffed at Marley's leftover kidney-care diet food and licked the bowl clean! So I gave her more of it. I guess pig liver has a strong enough smell. Given that Marley's food is prescription, I suppose it isn't the best-balanced diet. But seeing her eat anything after a week was wonderful. Heck, I would have given her my dinner meat!
So things are looking up. First and most-importantly, Lori ate some food. Second, the anti-bacterial oral stuff should clear up the respiratory infection. I look forward to Lori re-gaining her lost weight. I look forward to seeing her running around the yard rather than just walking around and sitting a lot.
I look forward to seeing her grow older. I had my doubts for a few days. Well, I can usually tell what's going wrong with me, but it is trickier with cats. This may not exactly be the most serious problem a cat can have, but by Thursday night, I was imaging the worst. But it seems curable. And anything curable can be dealt with...
Poor picture, but it shows she was starting to eat again!