My cat has a liquid build up in his belly...

Question
My cat is 14 yrs old and as of recently (maybe 2 months) has generated some sort of condition. He has gained a massive amount of weight and when we took him to the Vet, they collected a milky white liquid substance that is building up. My cat looks bloated, so much now that his spine is starting to show. The Vet wants to put him down, but my cat's daily routine (as much as we can tell), has not changed one bit. He is still regular in his litter box, eats and drinks normally, purrs and plays with us. He doesn't yet understand why he can't jump atop the kitchen counter or bathroom sink to drink, but he is almost half as heavy as he used to be. The Vet suggested to routinely drain this white liquid, but suspects it will build up again. One other alternative is to go with ultrasound/surgery, but as much as we love our cat, we can't really afford spending $4 to $5,000. Basically my question boils down to this: Do you know of any similar condition to what I have described? And if so, is it treatable? I appreciate you taking your time to read my question!

Answer
I am not familiar with this condition. I strongly urge you to take your cat to anotehr vet for a second opinion. If your vet didn't know what it was either and just resorted to putting him down without offering options, then you need to see another vet. However, if he diagnosed the matter and said surgery is needed for sure, then it probably is. I would have to say that if you can't afford the surgery and that is the final diagnosis as to what can be done, the you should discuss with the vet exactly how your cat will proceed if the surgery isn't done and at the first sign of any suffering, you will need to consider putting him down. If he isn't suffering I don't see why you would do that though so waiting seems ok. Since iot seems to me, however, that the answer you got from your vet may not have been absolute, try a second opinion and if either vet cam give you name for the condition or suggest a cause, write me again and I will look into all the options I can for you.