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Dooley still challenged
- Thread starter John Popp
- Start date
John Popp
Site Supporter
Another setback as Dooley was vomiting Wednesday morning and wouldn't hold his meals down. Thursday he traveled to the emergency hospital where his IM vet resides and has been diagnosed with pancreatitis. He's been given some meds for abdominal pain and to keep him from throwing up. He's only mustered to eat a few bites so we have resorted to tube feeding him.
He's pretty miserable and lethargic at the moment and I'm getting pretty worried. He's still ambulatory, able to jump on a bed or even up to the top of the kitchen cabinets. Just out of bandwidth as to what I can do for him, if he doesn't start turning things around by morning. Just hate adding the trauma of dropping him off at the vet for an overnight stay if the care isn't going to be different than what I'm giving him at home.
He's pretty miserable and lethargic at the moment and I'm getting pretty worried. He's still ambulatory, able to jump on a bed or even up to the top of the kitchen cabinets. Just out of bandwidth as to what I can do for him, if he doesn't start turning things around by morning. Just hate adding the trauma of dropping him off at the vet for an overnight stay if the care isn't going to be different than what I'm giving him at home.
Carykd7kau
Reincarnated cat Moderator
Praying John.
Many prayers... Sorry to hear this... Get well soon Dooley
John Popp
Site Supporter
Thanks! Unfortunately with Dooley's liver condition, some choices are off the table. He's up and about today, moving slowly, watching the birds and being comforted by his brother. Oddly, when either of them aren't feeling well, they always seek refuge in their carriers.
John Popp
Site Supporter
Can you also share what the ongoing care was for Rafiki? Dooley's diet has a lot of fat in it as his calories from protein needs to be limited. Still waiting to hear back from Dr LISA Pierson on modifying his diet, although the IM Doc won't let me go past 40% modified raw, and the rest is Hills K/D with chicken.
A week ago, I was ready to push ahead with the IM Doc to reduce his medication because of how well he was doing.
Rafiki
Site Supporter
OK John, it's a long one! It was kind of good reviewing all of this anyway.
Rafiki was being treated for liver fibrosis starting in May of 2015. She was initially tested for various poisonings including copper, iron and zync but all came back negative. She was started on prednisone and Mirtazapine for appetite. Prednisone was taken on and off throughout the treatment.
She had been on a raw diet from Darwin but they changed the formula and she wouldn't eat it. I tried several other brands. From May thru November, it was extremely difficult to get her to eat. Once we had her on Atopica, we had to stop feeding her raw because of the risk of toxoplasmosis.
One of the side effects of the liver issue was a B-12 deficiency. This resulted in her getting a smooth tongue. We did the weekly shot for 6 weeks. Then I found B-12 with intrinsic factor so I continued with those for a year. That has resolved itself.
At that time, we started her on Denamarin (Milk Thistle for liver support and SAM-e for anti-inflammatory, anti-cholestasis). She has been on Denamarin fairly consistently up until a month or 2 ago. I now supplement her food with milk thistle.
By August, her liver values continued to elevate. At this point, we started her on Cyproheptadine for appetite and sub-Q fluids. She began a cycle of Cyclosporine and Pepcid AC. By mid August, we had a bit of a break. She was still eating off my fingers but I could get her to eat 6 oz and she started playing a little bit again. We weaned her off the prednisone and the Cyproheptadine. At this point, she was eating cooked chicken and baby food. She would not touch chicken that had been cooked earlier so I had to cook/puree/supplement every individual meal.
By early September, she was taking Atopica (Cyclosporine) but this time we tried the liquid as the pill was freaking huge. We added 2.5 mg of prednisone in hopes of dropping the liver values back into the normal range and she continued taking Denamarin. By mid-September, her B12 values were finally normal.
A week later we were back in hell. It was the first Saturday in 2 months that she did not have a scheduled vet visit. She threw up all night long. Back to the vet again where the ultrasound indicated pancreatitis. She was given pain meds (Buprenorphine), anti nausea (Cerenia), Pepcid and Sub-Q fluids and we were instructed to wean her off the prednisone again. We gave her daily sub-Q fluids for 2-3 weeks.
A month later (October) came our next scare. Tests showed that the pancreatitis seemed to have resolved itself. She had been on only Denamarin for a month. Internal Med vet wanted to get her back onto the cyclosporine to prevent the fibrosis from advancing. About 1-1/2 hours after the dose of Atopica, she started having pain in her rear legs and difficulty walking. Back to the ER we went. Ultrasound showed no evidence of a clot but some abnormalities with the spleen and an enlarged lymph node. He performed a needle biopsy on the spleen (came back negative for cancer). It was a bad reaction to the Atopica. It took about a month for her legs to fully recover. She was taken off of all meds but the Denamarin. At this point, she was in very bad shape and too sick to do further testing. The vet wanted to check her heart function to rule out a clot and do a biopsy on the lymph node but she was not strong enough. He also thought that she might be in complete liver failure but we did not want to stress her out by doing the bile acid tolerance test. Her appetite was shot and I was feeding her small meals of less than an ounce off my fingers every few hours.
A week later I was very happy that I had ordered extra Buprenorphine. She experienced a lot of leg pain and I was giving her pain meds to sleep at night. I think that the nerves were repairing themselves and it was quite painful.
Finally, in the beginning of November, she developed a massive bacterial ear infection. She was given an immediate Dexamethasone steroid shot and a shot of Convenia (anti-bacterial). The culture came back positive for Mycoplasma. The blood work came back stable - liver values were elevated but maintaining. We performed the bile acid test and it showed that she was not in liver failure. She went back 2 or 3 weeks later for a follow up shot of Convenia. Blood tests in December showed normal liver values. It was finally at this point that we could give her raw again and her appetite went thru the roof.
In March, she was shaking her ear again so I brought her back to the vet. No visible discharge in her ear but her liver values were elevated again. Once again she received Convenia and Dexamethasone and her values went back to normal.
She is going to the vet on a weekly basis to deal with the itchy ears. We still do not know what is causing all the debris so we are doing a weekly treatment for 6 weeks. Last week her liver values (AST, ALT) are just a smidge out of the normal range. We will recheck her again in 3 months.
Rafiki was being treated for liver fibrosis starting in May of 2015. She was initially tested for various poisonings including copper, iron and zync but all came back negative. She was started on prednisone and Mirtazapine for appetite. Prednisone was taken on and off throughout the treatment.
She had been on a raw diet from Darwin but they changed the formula and she wouldn't eat it. I tried several other brands. From May thru November, it was extremely difficult to get her to eat. Once we had her on Atopica, we had to stop feeding her raw because of the risk of toxoplasmosis.
One of the side effects of the liver issue was a B-12 deficiency. This resulted in her getting a smooth tongue. We did the weekly shot for 6 weeks. Then I found B-12 with intrinsic factor so I continued with those for a year. That has resolved itself.
At that time, we started her on Denamarin (Milk Thistle for liver support and SAM-e for anti-inflammatory, anti-cholestasis). She has been on Denamarin fairly consistently up until a month or 2 ago. I now supplement her food with milk thistle.
By August, her liver values continued to elevate. At this point, we started her on Cyproheptadine for appetite and sub-Q fluids. She began a cycle of Cyclosporine and Pepcid AC. By mid August, we had a bit of a break. She was still eating off my fingers but I could get her to eat 6 oz and she started playing a little bit again. We weaned her off the prednisone and the Cyproheptadine. At this point, she was eating cooked chicken and baby food. She would not touch chicken that had been cooked earlier so I had to cook/puree/supplement every individual meal.
By early September, she was taking Atopica (Cyclosporine) but this time we tried the liquid as the pill was freaking huge. We added 2.5 mg of prednisone in hopes of dropping the liver values back into the normal range and she continued taking Denamarin. By mid-September, her B12 values were finally normal.
A week later we were back in hell. It was the first Saturday in 2 months that she did not have a scheduled vet visit. She threw up all night long. Back to the vet again where the ultrasound indicated pancreatitis. She was given pain meds (Buprenorphine), anti nausea (Cerenia), Pepcid and Sub-Q fluids and we were instructed to wean her off the prednisone again. We gave her daily sub-Q fluids for 2-3 weeks.
A month later (October) came our next scare. Tests showed that the pancreatitis seemed to have resolved itself. She had been on only Denamarin for a month. Internal Med vet wanted to get her back onto the cyclosporine to prevent the fibrosis from advancing. About 1-1/2 hours after the dose of Atopica, she started having pain in her rear legs and difficulty walking. Back to the ER we went. Ultrasound showed no evidence of a clot but some abnormalities with the spleen and an enlarged lymph node. He performed a needle biopsy on the spleen (came back negative for cancer). It was a bad reaction to the Atopica. It took about a month for her legs to fully recover. She was taken off of all meds but the Denamarin. At this point, she was in very bad shape and too sick to do further testing. The vet wanted to check her heart function to rule out a clot and do a biopsy on the lymph node but she was not strong enough. He also thought that she might be in complete liver failure but we did not want to stress her out by doing the bile acid tolerance test. Her appetite was shot and I was feeding her small meals of less than an ounce off my fingers every few hours.
A week later I was very happy that I had ordered extra Buprenorphine. She experienced a lot of leg pain and I was giving her pain meds to sleep at night. I think that the nerves were repairing themselves and it was quite painful.
Finally, in the beginning of November, she developed a massive bacterial ear infection. She was given an immediate Dexamethasone steroid shot and a shot of Convenia (anti-bacterial). The culture came back positive for Mycoplasma. The blood work came back stable - liver values were elevated but maintaining. We performed the bile acid test and it showed that she was not in liver failure. She went back 2 or 3 weeks later for a follow up shot of Convenia. Blood tests in December showed normal liver values. It was finally at this point that we could give her raw again and her appetite went thru the roof.
In March, she was shaking her ear again so I brought her back to the vet. No visible discharge in her ear but her liver values were elevated again. Once again she received Convenia and Dexamethasone and her values went back to normal.
She is going to the vet on a weekly basis to deal with the itchy ears. We still do not know what is causing all the debris so we are doing a weekly treatment for 6 weeks. Last week her liver values (AST, ALT) are just a smidge out of the normal range. We will recheck her again in 3 months.