Way OT (even for this forum!!)

[Acts 2:38 girl]

I really need your help!  It's about our cat (told you it was OT!) For the past few days now she has been super-lethargic.  Basiclly staying wherever she is put down. She has not eaten and drinks a little water.  She has been throwing up clear yellow fluid (yuck - I know!)  and has been peeing on the floor, but it seems involentary because she is covered in it, like she was laying down when she went.   She is about 9 months old, was just fixed a few months ago, and the incision site is clean and healed over.  I called the vet yesterday and he was way to busy to help us, but said it sounded like worms.  So I went out and bought a de-wormer and gave it to her.  He said I would see an improvement within hours.  So far - no results.  I just bathed her because she went on herself.  I wrapped her in a towel and laid her on my sons bed and 1/2 hour later she is still there.  She hasn't even tried to lick herself off at all.  I'm really getting concerned.  I think I'll have to bring her to the vet, but we're really strapped right now, so I thought I'd ask your advice!

[jpreiser]

Did she get into any kind of poison?? maybe something in the garage?? Sounds like she may be having something with her kidneys..Poor thing... Call a local shelter tomorrow maybe they can help out with the vet so you can get her checked out.... best of luck...

[NightOwl]

Andi, poisoning was my first guess, too.  Cats are curious and will taste almost anything that appeals to them.  Many insects and little critters (lizards, toads, and such) also can poison a small cat as their systems contain toxins nature provided for self-defense.

However, worst of all is:  AUTOMOBILE ANTI-FREEZE      

-IT IS DEADLY TO ANY LIVING THING IF INGESTED even in very small  amounts.
================
There are many websites which refer to this and  here is a quote from one of them:[/COLOR]

"Every year, by some estimates, about 10,000 dogs and cats are victims of accidental poisoning by automobile antifreeze. A pet does not have to drink a lot of antifreeze to be poisoned. Most brands of commercial antifreeze consist of 95 percent ethylene glycol, an extremely toxic chemical. Even a few licks of this sweet-tasting liquid can be fatal to a cat or dog. (Ethylene- glycol-based antifreeze is also extremely hazardous to children. A few ounces are lethal.)

For a medium sized dog, ingestion of about 2 ounces (3-4 tablespoons ) is toxic. For cats, as little as 1/4 of an ounce (1-2 teaspoons) can be lethal. Antifreeze poisoning commonly occurs in spring and fall when car owners replace the old antifreeze with fresh antifreeze in their car radiators.

However, poisoning can happen anytime, particularly when a car boils over or when a hose leaks, releasing the antifreeze. As mentioned above, this poisoning happens often to animals who are allowed to roam freely in their neighborhoods, but another high risk group are those dogs who are confined in garages and who may not always be provided with adequate fresh drinking water. These dogs may gain access to improperly or inadequately stored antifreeze or lick spilled or leaked antifreeze off the garage floor. If it is necessary to confine your pet(s) to your garage, make sure antifreeze containers are well secured and your animal has plenty of fresh water.

Another source of antifreeze are the decorative "snow globes" glassware. ** The liquid in the these displays contain* 2% antifreeze and are very toxic..* I recently received of call of a young cat poisoned when ingesting some of the liquid from* a shattered "snow globe".

Both cats and dog are attracted to the smell and taste of ethylene glycol...."
===================================
I sure hope your kitty  is well soon.  Pets are  real family members and when they get sick we  cant help but worry.

[Acts 2:38 girl]

I'm leaning more toward poisoning too, esp. after worming her, and now her lack of bodily control.  Our vet is really good, caring, and affordable.  Hopefully he'll be able to help her.

[angelsmom10]

Not knowing anything about cats, but being a dog lover; I'd try very hard to get to the vet and explain your situation and see about some sort of a payment plan.  Ours have worked with us in the past since they've had our dogs since we have had them.
 
Keep us informed

[birol]

Take her to the vet Andrea, you will be glad you did ..... I know it is difficult under the circumstances, but you don't want it to suffer ....or worse.

[wiininkwe]

Andi, we had a cat at one time that accidentally  got locked into a neighbors garage, and after we got him out the same thing happened to him.  He had gotten into some antifreeze on the floor, as far as we could figure.  His system gradually shut down, going thru stages, and the urinating and lethargy were at the beginning of it.  At last, his eyesight went, everything went, and he died (peacefully) but the vet said there is nothing to do for it, once the antifreeze gets into the system, it begins attacking the kidneys and shutting things down.  And, it only takes a few drops.   I hope that's not what happened to your kitty, it's heartbreaking.  If you know for sure that your cat had no way of ingesting antifreeze, then maybe it can be saved.  At least call your vet, just like you would do your pediatrician if one of the kids was not well.  Get some advice from him(her).  Maybe it's just some bad food, or a  mouse that's been poisened that's causing the trouble.
T

[NightOwl]

I'm glad to see that others are aware of how deadly anti-freeze poisoning  can be because that is what this sounds like to me.  (my first reply in this thread contains details of this in case anyone missed it.)

We have a friend who lost a beloved dog from this and his symptoms were like what Andi and Toni have described.  And like Toni's post indicated , Anti-Freeze poisoning is ALWAYS FATAL!  

[NightOwl]

BTW, There is a new and non-toxic anti-freeze available.  I dont know if it is more expensive or how well it works, but it is being recommended as a way to prevent the kinds of poisonings of animals and humans which can occur from ingesting  the old form of it.

[Miss-Teri]

If it was poison, there's really not much that can be done at this point, other than to treat the symptoms.  In the first few hours, charcoal can be given through a stomach tube, but this is when a poisoning is first suspected.  Antifreeze can severely and permanently damage the kidneys so hopefully that's not it.

A vet that's too busy to see you and tells you to get an over-the-counter dewormer should be an ex-vet.  A sudden onset of lethargy and vomiting is something that should be immediately looked at as it's more likely poisoning or an obstruction or something else that needs to be treated IMMEDIATELY.   The incontinence leads me more to agree with the others with poisoning as that would indicate kidney damage.

I'm so sorry!  How's she doing today?

[NightOwl]

A vet that's too busy to see you and tells you to get an over-the-counter dewormer should be an ex-vet.  A sudden onset of lethargy and vomiting is something that should be immediately looked at as it's more likely poisoning or an obstruction or something else that needs to be treated IMMEDIATELY.  

Y'know, I had the same reaction but didnt post  it because I am always saying things like that and everyone will think I'm a sour old grump if I dont watch what I write and let up now and then.  But Terri IS THE ONE THAT WROTE IT THIS TIME!!. :J  :J   (All I did was say I agree.)

Actually, Andi, all of us are thinking of you and your poor sick  kitty with great sympathy ahd hope we are wrong about the poison.  But I tell you what, if my pet had those symptoms and my vet blew me off like that, I would be looking for a new vet ASAP.  Giving an already sick cat worm pills can only make it sicker and more miserable if it has been poisoned and I think it was very uncaring of your vet even if they were terribly busy.      :mad:

[topcat7736]

While antifreeze posioning is always fatal, her symptoms are more of the worm variety. Cats & dogs can have many types of worms and only a stool check by a vet can determine the type of worms they've contracted. General dewormers sold over the counter are junk. When I had my store I wouldn't carry any of them (and I could have sold any of them). A de-wormer, for the exact worms infesting your pet, will also NOT produce instantenous results. An article once said that people who bought a can of Raid & sprayed it on a bug wanted to see the bug shrivel up & die instantly. It's not going to happen in the intestines of your pet.

Hartz Mountain flea & tick collars are extremely toxic to cats & dogs & all Hartz products should be avoided like the plague. Some people put a flea collar on their pet & then use flea powder to assist it. The chemicals used in them are carbamates (typically methacarbamate). Carbamates multiply in strength rather than add. So, a collar and flea powder would put 4 times the lethal dose of carbamates on the pet which could also cause poisoning as they are absorbed through the pets skin. Removal of all collars & washing of the pet will remove the carbamates but it will take time for them to be removed from the pet's system.



It's very difficult to determine exactly what is wrong with your kitty. A trip to a vet capable of diagnosing problems (rather than a run of the mill vet) is in order.

I hope she gets better soon.

[deniski]

poor kitty!  I agree with Night Owl.... try another vet.  But I too have had a kitty that was poisoned, and there wasn't much we could do (we live in a remote area and the nearest vet was 60 miles away).  We rushed her to the vet and got a speeding ticket and the kitty didn't make it anyway.  

I sure hope your kitty is doing better today and that it was just something she ate (not poison)!!

[Acts 2:38 girl]

Thanks for all the imput guys.  Unfortunatly, the earliest the vet could take me was today at 4:30 pm - to late for my kitty.  She was breathing in shutters last night and I used the baby dropper to get more water into her, which she immediatly vomited.  She died over the night.     I don't know how I'll tell the boys.  My oldest DS has had many pets and experienced death, but the younger two were attached to her a lot.  Ever since we got her fixed she's been such a love.  I can't wait to tell the stupid vet this.  :mad:  I can't be as mad at him as I am at myself.  I should've brought her right away.  She was in the garage for awhile, I'm not sure how long, but I shooed her out right away (it's attached to our house)  and DH is really good about not leaving anything on the garage floor, he has spedi-dry on it all the time for spills he's made.  Maybe she got into some of that thinking it was kitty litter and then cleaned her paws??  I don't know, but thatnks for the help and advice.

[birol]

I am sorry to hear that it died   As others steted, there probably was nothing which could be done to save it, if it was antifreeze... Its sweet taste is just too attractive for animals or CHILDREN to resist.

Now you need to go out and get another one immediately ! They will be too busy playing with the new one and soon (hopefully) forget this one. I know it sounds cruel, but, I think it will work ...