Vomiting and Loss of Appetite

Question
QUESTION: Hi Carol,

I have a beloved 7 year old domestic short hair (but with some long fluff--she
was a rescue so who knows about her parentage!) cat named Rosie. About 5
days ago now, she started getting finicky about food and throwing up within
a couple hours of eating. I took her to the vet yesterday morning (a vet I trust
very much) and she didn't have a temperature but they injected her with
fluids for dehydration. I tried food at 6 PM yesterday and she had a 1/2 tsp of
wet canned Fancy Feast, then refused anymore. By this morning, she was
much more lethargic, so I took her back at 8 AM. This time she had a fever of
104 (the vet said it's almost better as it's an acute symptom) and they took x-
rays (nothing wrong) and blood (full bloodwork back at 10 AM tomorrow) and
injected her with fluids and antibiotics. I got her home and at about 11:30 AM
she had a 1/2 tsp of wet (vet prescribed A/D) food. Since then, though, she's
been turning her nose up at it. Around 2 PM she used the litterbox for the
first time in days (urine) and then at 4 PM she vomited again (first time in two
days). The vomit was bright yellow but had a small amount of hair in it. I
called my vet who said to sit tight until the morning; hopefully, the vomit was
more a hairball than anything. My vet thinks it's most likely just a viral
infection that antibiotics should clear up, and the fluid shots are keeping her
hydrated in the meantime.

Here's my question: having been a long-time cat owner (and lover!), do you
have any sense of how long these things can take to resolve? In other words,
with her still not eating or drinking, could it still just be a virus and it might
take her 24 hours to come around on the antibiotics? (I'm not supposed to
start the antibiotic tablets until tomorrow night; the vet said the injection is
so concentrated it will last her until then.) I have to go to work tomorrow (I'm
a teacher and tomorrow is my first day back) from 7:30-4:30, and I'm so
worried to leave her alone!

I'm sorry to be so long-winded; I just love this little furball so very much!

Thank you,
Tory

P.S. Rosie has a sister, Guillie, also in the apartment and totally fine.

ANSWER: Tory,

Poor Rosie! She is about the 3rd cat who has had similar problems, some worse, in the last couple of days.

The thing with fevers and vomiting, they are symptoms not causes. And there could be any number of things it could be.

For example: she could have swallowed something and have an intestinal blockage, intestinal parasites, FIP (feline infectious peritonitis), it could be her kidneys (or urinary crystals.), etc. etc. OR it could just be a minor 'bug' that she will snap out of quickly (which I'M sure hoping it is).

Another thought is Salmonella. It is all over the news lately that they have been finding it in animal AND human foods. They are back to doing recalls because of it. You might want to ask the vet about it.
AND I just got a bulletin that Wal-Mart has put the recalled pet food back on their shelves. People are buying it and their animals are getting sick again! It really is scary anymore to not to know what to feed your pets.

I wish I could give you a time Rosie will jump up and be fine, but as you can see, not knowing WHAT is causing her being ill, it's next to impossible to tell WHEN (or sadly IF) she will be feeling better.

Cats are tough and can overcome some pretty large odds if they have a strong will to live. I have had a couple that I kept checking on to see if they were still breathing, and I didn't think they would last the night...but today they are hale and hearty.

About working tomorrow. If it were me, I would drop the cat off at the vet's office on the way to work and pay a day of board. That way you know if she took a turn for the worse, that someone one be there (namely a vet). Plus they can monitor her. If she is still not eating or drinking, they can hook up an IV. And it would take some of the worry off your mind about her being alone.

If you do leave her alone, she will probably just sleep anyway and will be just fine (well, as fine as she can be when she's sick). I would put her in a bedroom or small area that is cool, and put some food, water, and her catbox in there. That way she doesn't have to expend a lot of energy she doesn't have trying to go somewhere.

I am also including a link for an excellent cat illness guide. It is very informative and helpful to keep. And it can answer a lot of your health questions. (If the link isn't clickable, copy and paste into your address bar):

http://www.vetinfo4cats.com/catindex.html

Here is the link for article on the story about Wal-Mart and the new problem of the bad pet food,

http://www.itchmo.com/more-recalled-menu-foods-pet-food-found-in-wal-mart-2463

And lastly...,so you can keep up on the petfood situation click on the following link to subscribe to be sent an email alert when there is a problem with any pet food:

Subscribe/unsubscribe: http://www.itchmo.com/alerts

Please keep me posted on what it turns out to be.
My cats send Rosie a bunch of kitty "Get Well Wishes"! And one, 'my problem child' tried to send her his favorite toy mouse...he kept dropping it on the keyboard!

Carol





---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Carol,

Just wanted to update you on Rosie. I'm still in tears about her on what seems
like a nearly hourly basis! After I wrote you, she did much better that night
(probably a result of the fluid/antibiotic injections). As a result, I left her
home for 6 hours on Wednesday and came back to a kitty who was breathing
hard and wouldn't move or respond to me. I immediately put her in her
carrier and walked her to the vet (thank God they're 5 minutes down the
street!) and a tech immediately put me in an exam room. The vet saw her and
took her temperature which was 105.5. He strongly recommended they admit
her and I readily agreed. As a result, since yesterday (Wednesday) at 4:00 PM,
she has been in my vet's "hospital ward" receiving fluids and antibiotics via IV.
When I called today, her fever had dropped back to 102.8 and she was resting
comfortably but still not eating.

Since her bloodwork and x-rays are clear, the vet believes it is a bacterial
infection. Should I be concerned that she wasn't eating within 24 hours of
being admitted, or can these things take more time than that to resolve? I'm
glad at least that she's getting all she needs via IV and she is being monitored
all day and night.

Thank you,
Tory
ANSWER: Tory,

Thank you for the update. I've been wondering how she is doing. I'm sorry she took a turn for the worse. Being in the hospital is her best shot right now. As long as she has fluids in her, eating is not that important.

My fingers are crossed that the vet is correct in his diagnosis and that she responds to treatment and recovers quickly.

As before, keep me posted.

Carol



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Carol,

So many of the stories on these sites end sadly, so I wanted to give hope to
worried pet owners out there! Rosie was discharged from the hospital this
afternoon, having recovered from her systemic infection (the vet's ultimate
diagnosis). She's off the antibiotics already and I was supposed to watch for
eating and defecating when we got home. Within two hours, she'd expressed
interest in her treats and dry food and also finally moved her bowels (the first
time in a week!). She is alert and playful, if a bit tired from her ordeal. My vet
was wonderful the whole way through, and he's given me his cell phone
number tonight just in case.

Thank you for everything, Carol!

Tory

Answer
Oh Tory...I SO glad to hear Rosie is so much better! Thank goodness! Make sure she doesn't overdo it. If it was up to her she would. Hopefully this is all past now.

It's nice to hear a happy ending! Bless her little heart!
And I appreciate you keeping me informed on her progress.

Carol