Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK

Cat General => General Cat Chat => Topic started by: siou2 on March 12, 2010, 00:17:40 AM

Title: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 12, 2010, 00:17:40 AM
Dear all, it's been a while but I need a little info,

My cat Tasha is about 16, I have noticed recently that she seems to be drinking a little more than usual, not a huge amount but nocicable.  Also she has been sick about 4 times in the last 8 days, again not a lot but more than usual & the last thing is that she seem to been sleeping a lot more than usual.  ie go out for 10 min in garden, sleep & eats once in a while, she still has an appetite but not as big as it was.  That isn't a bad thing in her case as she is a big girl 5kg at last weigh in, but still worrying. 

I am going to ring the vet in the morning to get advice from them, but was hoping one of you nice people might be around to give some pointers.  All advice gratefully received, many thanks, Sue
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: maryas on March 12, 2010, 00:27:38 AM
I'm no expert but I would say you need to get her to the vet.  She might be drinking a lot because she's dehidrated with being sick or maybe the food she's eating is too salty.  I've noticed when I give Bonnie a certain food she tends to drink a lot more water.

Good luck at the vet tomorrow - I am sure he will be able to put your mind at ease and help Tasha.

Mary  :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 12, 2010, 00:33:06 AM
Hiya Mary,

you know you could be right, Tasha's been on Whiskas for a bit but I have got in some Felix, so I will she how she goes on that.  Cheers for the reply & Smudgie is gorgeous by the way (Tasha is jet black too - yay for black cats) you must miss him something shocking, anyway thanks for the advice & will catch any others in the morning, night all, Sue
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Gill (sneakiefeline) on March 12, 2010, 00:37:43 AM
agree with mary, sounds like she needs a vet visit  :hug: :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Janeyk on March 12, 2010, 06:47:34 AM
Cats do drink more as they age but also prone to age-related illnesses so would be worth a vet check and maybe bloods doing  :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: blackcat on March 12, 2010, 07:28:25 AM
Definitely a vet trip for this one. Sounds like her kidneys to me - is her breath bad? Are her teeth clean or covered in gunge?
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: clarenmax on March 12, 2010, 09:07:36 AM
I agree on the vet visit, when I noticed Max drinking more it was the first sign that his kidneys had problems, definitely better to err on the side of caution  :hug: :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: harlequin on March 12, 2010, 09:40:30 AM
Definately I vet visit, I'd say. I'd always been told that increasing how much they drink is often a warning sign of other unlying problems. My cat Spice was drinking an unbelievable amount of water and was also having very runny poos. The vet did a blood test and found that he has pancreatitis. The vet said that we've caught it nice and early, so now Spice is on sensitivity food and has to have regular check-ups. He's got another blood test in April, to see how far the pancreatitis has progressed if at all.

I hope Tasha is going to be ok. It may well be nothing to worry about and she may just a thirsty girl in her old age, but it's worth a vet visit to put your mind at rest. Let us know how she gets on. :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: maryas on March 12, 2010, 16:14:16 PM
Hope the vet visit went well Sue - please let us know.

Mary
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 12, 2010, 16:23:05 PM
Hiya All,

many thanks to you all for your advice, Tasha is booked in on Monday, not as quick as I would have liked but Tasha is comfortable at the mo.  I mean I called her in earlier on & she got off a 6ft fence, lol.  I think they might do some blood tests just to be sure, I will let you all know the results.  Battle commences around 8am monday morn, lol. 

What do you all think of Zylkene?  Tasha is the WORST traveller & I have no choice but to use this to calm her, otherwise she literally looks like she won't make it to the vets before she has a heart attack or a stroke.  If anyone has any better solutions that this, well i'm all ears, thanks all, Sue
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: purrdy1 on March 12, 2010, 23:27:31 PM
the vet nurse told me that feliway spray is good for calming cats down, maybe a spray or two in her basket or travel box/carrier before you set off?

None of my girls like to travel, they kind of know its for one place! the vet! :P

Good luck for Monday and snuzzles for the Tash girl! :)

love purrds xx
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: puggy1975 Zoe on March 12, 2010, 23:46:28 PM
Zyklene is good. It works wonders on Tyler . She gets very stressed. Feliway also good
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 13, 2010, 13:58:52 PM
Thanks for the info,

I have some feliway from when I introduced my boy, Taz, he still pesters her though.  He wants to play all the time & Tasha's not interested.  He always likes to jump on her & she hates him.  Anyway so long as Taz stays a paw length away he doesn't get thumped, lol. 

Taz is such a handful, knew I had trouble when I took him for his shots, a little innocent pound of fluff.  Took 3 to sort him & he still ended up swinging from the vets finger, I saved the snigger for when I was stood outside.  He's almost a year old now, still a little sod, but a mardy bum with his ma.  Will have to tell you his story soon, pic underneath.........


Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Rosella moggy on March 13, 2010, 14:02:07 PM
A vote for Zylkene here  :)
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: purrdy1 on March 13, 2010, 17:04:03 PM
 :wow: wow! beautiful boy! xxx
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: maryas on March 13, 2010, 20:05:42 PM
Taz is lovely - need photos of Tasha when she is fit and well.

Mary
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 13, 2010, 21:42:40 PM
No problem, here you go -
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: maryas on March 13, 2010, 21:46:53 PM
Aw bless her - how's she doing at the moment?

Mary
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Kay and Penny on March 13, 2010, 21:53:12 PM
am I the only one then who has no idea what a 'mardy bum' is? :-[

though I do like the sound of it ;D
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: purrdy1 on March 13, 2010, 21:54:10 PM
she is sooo beautiful!!! she reminds me of Annie cat who i had for 17 years! she was my beloved best friend and constant for all those years....xxxx
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: maryas on March 13, 2010, 22:12:31 PM
Mardy  :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Wikipedia says:

As a word
Mardy is a word in some dialects of English meaning: awkward; un-co-operative; bad tempered; whiney; aloof; stroppy, moody or sulking like a small child. Its usage tends to be more common around, but not exclusive to Yorkshire, the West Midlands,East Midlands and Staffordshire. It is often used in phrases such as "He/She's a mardy bum/mardy cow/mardy butter/in a mardy mood/ mardy mustard/mardy-arse/ throwing a mardy/ having a mardy...." etc.
In music
Mardy bum is a song by UK indie band The Arctic Monkeys, from their debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Janeyk on March 13, 2010, 22:37:19 PM
Taz and Tasha  :Luv2: :Luv2:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Desley (booktigger) on March 14, 2010, 10:08:55 AM
I would pre-starve her and insist on doing full bloods, with her age. Good luck.
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: tab on March 14, 2010, 10:32:03 AM
I had a giggle at mardy bum as thats what mine and my friends cats get called so its a north manchester one too  :evillaugh:

Great photos
love
Tab
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 14, 2010, 11:42:27 AM
Hello all,

never knew there were so many definitions of mardy bum, to me it means really soft, ie when he starts paddling on my knee like he would with his real mum.  As for Tasha she looks fine, think she overheard the word "VET".  She's nil by mouth from midnight tonight, just in case. 

Below are some more pics of Taz when he was really little, when he still had satellite ears!!
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Desley (booktigger) on March 14, 2010, 11:47:06 AM
What time is your appointment? They can drink if they are having full bloods, but food can affect some of the results.
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 14, 2010, 12:14:14 PM
Hiya,

Tashas' appointment is 9.40, so i'll be up at 8am to try & dose her with the zylkene.  Will let her have a little water then.  By the way, how old do cats have to be before they're considered full grown??  Taz is nearly 1 but it seems he's still growing, he eats enough for three  :wow:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Desley (booktigger) on March 14, 2010, 19:16:44 PM
I would take her food away by 9pm at the latest then, it should really be a 12 hour starve. You can leave water down all night though. It depends on the cat and breed, I wouldnt be too surprised at a nearly 1yo still growing, but make sure he is growing and not getting fat.
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 14, 2010, 21:23:54 PM
Thanks for the info,

as for Taz, he doesn't have an ounce of fat on him, lol.  He must work it off when he goes outside & plays with his mates, gets on well with George next door.  Will have to watch him in the future though, he's my spare recycle bin if I don't watch him. Taz will eat anything   ;D
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: purrdy1 on March 14, 2010, 21:50:48 PM
good luck tomorrow! xxxxx :Luv2:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 15, 2010, 08:37:52 AM
Thanks,

stage 1 accomplished, given the zylkene, with only minor damage to my fingers, wonder how long it takes to work........ :shy:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 15, 2010, 10:48:40 AM
 :scared:

Stage 2 completed, been to vet, Tasha's lost weight, she's now 4.5kg (10lb), not a bad thing really.  Since I have starved her they have taken her in for a while to do blood tests, I should know something by the end of the day.....worried sick now  :'(   
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: clarenmax on March 15, 2010, 10:50:42 AM
Glad the vet visit went OK in terms of getting her there  :hug:

Fingers crossed all of the bloods come back fine, are they running a full blood panel to test for everything? 

And don't worry, no point worrying unless you know there's something to worry about ....... although I know that's very easy to say  :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: JackSpratt on March 15, 2010, 10:57:08 AM
 :hug: Hope the results come back quickly.
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Teresa Pawcats on March 15, 2010, 10:59:01 AM
:scared:

Stage 2 completed, been to vet, Tasha's lost weight, she's now 4.5kg (10lb), not a bad thing really.  Since I have starved her they have taken her in for a while to do blood tests, I should know something by the end of the day.....worried sick now  :'(   

Never worry sick about getting results, because what they do show up is knowledge of a condition which can be treated or alleviated  :hug:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Janeyk on March 15, 2010, 11:24:31 AM
Best of luck for the results xx
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: siou2 on March 15, 2010, 16:53:49 PM
Well stage 3 completed, Tasha's home,

The results are........................she's fine!!!! :wow:  Full set of tests done, liver, kidneys, thyroid etc.  Only thing that came back was for parasites but I had wormed her 2 days ago, vet did her again.  Vet said that reading the results, Tasha is doing well, results of an 8 year old. 

Can't believe it  ;D  Husband not happy, he paid.......£150  :evillaugh:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: clarenmax on March 15, 2010, 17:11:54 PM
A small price to pay for for a clean bill of health  :Luv2: :Luv2: :Luv2:

Am so pleased for you xx
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: purrdy1 on March 15, 2010, 20:11:58 PM
 ;D thats great news! brilliant..now sleep easy and enjoy that moggie mousse! :Luv2:
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: maryas on March 15, 2010, 22:52:06 PM
Fantastic news for you both Sue - I am so pleased. :hug:

Mary
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Janeyk on March 16, 2010, 07:26:45 AM
Glad to hear that the results were good  :)
Title: Re: Advice please
Post by: Desley (booktigger) on March 16, 2010, 08:04:07 AM
Am pleased to hear this.