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Conference misery::feline_v1

Title:	Meower Power is Valuing Differences
Notice:	FELINE_V1 is moving 1/11/94 5pm PST to MISERY
Moderator:	MISERY::VANZUYLEN_RO

Created:	Sun Feb 09 1986
Last Modified:	Tue Jan 11 1994
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	5089
Total number of notes:	60366

3614.0. "Button's Baffling Illness" by AICAD0::DOLLIVER (Watching my life go by ...) Mon May 21 1990 01:17

 Our cat Button is sick, and we are hoping that someone in FELINE
 may be able to help us figure out what is wrong with her.

 Button is 9 months old, and an inside cat.  Button has never seemed
 particularly strong, but one day at about 4 months she started dripping
 a clear liquid from her nose and mouth.  She seemed a bit weak so we
 kept a close eye on her, but within a couple of days her nose dried up
 and she seemed healthy again.

 In another month she started the dripping again, and this time it
 was worse.  She was weak and wobbly, and didn't seem to have full
 control over her legs.  When we brought her in for treatment, the
 vet couldn't determine a clear cause, but said that it could be the
 result of an internal injury and/or infection, so they gave Button a
 shot of penicillin, a prescription for amoxycillin, and some steroids
 as an anti-inflammatory.  They also checked for leukemia, but the test
 came back clean.  Button improved rapidly, but the problem did seem to
 linger a bit longer than we had hoped.  We returned for a checkup with
 another vet at the same clinic, and Button got a clean bill of health.

 A week ago Button came down with the symptoms again ... way down.
 Strangely, she had bounced spritely down the stairs for breakfast
 in the morning, but by evening she was becoming drenched in her
 drippings, and seemed to be losing muscle control completely.
 We rushed her to the vet, and on the way there she became totally
 limp and we thought we might lose her.

 While the vet was examining Button she lost control of her bladder
 and showed blood in the urine.  Button seemed in a coma, but still
 nothing could clearly be identified as the cause (this is the third
 vet which has seen and been baffled by Button's condition). 
 We asked to try the same treatment that seemed to work before (minus
 the steroids), and the doctor also gave Button a shot of fluids
 since she was somewhat dehydrated.  We also authorized a urine test,
 a general blood test, plus special tests for FIP and toxoplasmosis(?).
    
 Amaaaazingly .. four hours later Button was able to raise her head, and
 two hours after that she was drinking and even took a few bites of food.
 While her recovery has seemed miraculous, she is still a bit slow, and
 is not quite over it yet.  We will be continuing the amoxycillin.

 The vets have conferred with each other but are still baffled since
 all of the tests came back negative.  In fact, the tests came back
 looking so normal that they did not even indicate that Button's system
 was fighting off an infection or anything.  The vets suggest testing her
 for a feline version of AIDS, which seems that it might account for some
 of the symptoms, but Button has never even met other cats except her
 mother Isabelle who is healthy as a lion.

 Has anyone seen symtoms like these before?
 Any an all suggestions will be appreciated.

 Thanks,
	 Todd, Lisa, and Kendra,
	  and our feline friends Isabelle and Button

T.R	Title	User	Personal Name	Date	Lines
3614.1		CRUISE::NDC	Putiput Scottish Folds - DTN: 297-2313	`Mon May 21 1990 09:17`	7
	Todd - FIV is Feline AIDS. I assume that came back negative. I don't know where you live, but many folks in this file swear by Tufts. Perhaps a trip to a specialist may be in order. Consult your vet(s). Good luck. Nancy DC
3614.2	Saying prayers for Button...	NATASH::ANDERSON		`Mon May 21 1990 09:27`	14
	I am sorry - I don't have a clue....never had a cat with any of those symptoms. However...I do know the pain and anxiety of having a 'baby' that is sick and NOT KNOWING what is wrong with it. Terrifying and a feeling of total helplessness. So, I pray that they find out what is wrong with Button...and then are able to treat her - successfully! We'll be here - praying for good news! Marilyn, Otis and Tiffany
3614.3	Try Tufts	SQM::CINDI		`Mon May 21 1990 09:54`	11
	todd: i agree with .1 - if you live in this area, take buttons to Tufts. they are great there --- my magen was there last year and he is fine now - came down to he's resistant to anti-biotics. keep us posted on buttons. cindi
3614.4	where's tufts?	BEDAZL::ZICKEFOOSE	LENNICE	`Mon May 21 1990 11:52`	3
	pardon my ignorance, but where is Tufts? Anybody got a phone #, address? I'm new to Massachusetts.
3614.5	Tufts University	IAMOK::GERRY	Home is where the Cat is	`Mon May 21 1990 12:04`	4
	Grafton MA...Great place! cin
3614.6	Tufts Phone #	IAMOK::GERRY	Home is where the Cat is	`Mon May 21 1990 12:05`	6
	OOps, The phone # is : 508-839-5395 cin
3614.7		CRUISE::NDC	Putiput Scottish Folds - DTN: 297-2313	`Mon May 21 1990 15:30`	3
	Be sure you keep us posted... We'll be watching for news. Nancy DC
3614.8		CIRCUS::KOLLING	Karen/Sweetie/Holly/Little Bit Ca.	`Mon May 21 1990 15:32`	4
	Could Button be eating something poisonous? Many common household plants are poisonous. Or are there household cleaners, medication, etc. that Button could be getting into?
3614.9		NATASH::ANDERSON		`Mon May 21 1990 15:41`	17
	Just thought of something. When Otis was sick - the vet thought he was eating _something_ he shouldn't have been (i.e. plants, garbage, paper, chemicals etc.)! He did not have any muscle weakness or running nose but he did vomit and had severe diarrhea. Come to find out - he had a reacton to the medicine he had been given for the urinary infection and when he went in to be neutered. I know one of the prescriptions was amoxicillan (sp ?) but I can't remember what the other one was. Don't know if this info helps but thought I would throw in my two pennies.... Marilyn O&T
3614.10	Still looking for clues...	AICADC::DOLLIVER	Watching my life go by ...	`Mon May 21 1990 17:08`	36
	Thanks everyone for your concern and suggestions so far! If the symptoms persist we will probably take Button to Tufts next time. One thing about poisons mentioned in .8. We expected that if she had been poisoned then something would have shown up in the toxoplasmosis test. We are not sure of this, and we will check with the vet, but does anyone here know for sure? We do have some porcelain clay in the basement which she could have gotten into (which is now out of harms way), but we (and the vets) figured that it was so much like a clay kitty litter that it was unlikely to cause any trouble. Button does have a hearty appetite, so she could definitely be munching something that is causing her trouble, but actually her mother Isabelle is the big plant-eater in the family ;-}, while Button seems to stick to food. We have been watching Button fairly closely, and we haven't seen her eating anything unusual yet. We will keep watching. We also wondered if she might be having an allergic reaction to something, but then we expected that some sign of an allergic reaction would have shown up in the blood tests. Does anyone know if this is a reasonable assumption? Or should we continue pursue some sort of allergy testing? It does seem that her immune system is weak at best. Can anyone recommend any commercial or prescription supplements etc. which could be used in an attempt to strengthen her immune system? Thanks everyone for all of your help. We really want to continue pursuing the illness this time until we figure out what is going wrong. It seems that Button has already used up a couple of her nine lives, and we don't want to waste any more. I will keep you all posted on Button's progress. Thanks again, Todd
3614.11		CIRCUS::KOLLING	Karen/Sweetie/Holly/Little Bit Ca.	`Mon May 21 1990 19:09`	4
	Other possibilities -- dried flowers in a bouquet or hat trimming often contain poisonous stuff....lead paint chipping from the walls.... I assume she doesn't have any noticeable burns, such as she would get if she'd chewed on an electrical wire....
3614.12		CRUISE::NDC	Putiput Scottish Folds - DTN: 297-2313	`Tue May 22 1990 08:48`	11
	RE: .10 - Toxoplasmosis is a specific disease and has nothing to do with poisons or toxic substances. And as far as allergies etc showing up in her tests - well, they'd have to be looking for those things. Generally, tests are specific to the factors being tested for. Nancy DC p.s. Might be useful to take her to Tufts while she's "healthy", then they could run some baseline studies that could be checked against when and if she gets sick again. Might give them more info. Of course this is expensive.
3614.13		NRADM::ROBINSON	did i tell you this already???	`Tue May 22 1990 09:22`	6
	Nancy, I think she meant to say Toxicplasmosis..... Sherry
3614.14	allergies are a good possibility	FORTSC::WILDE	Ask yourself..am I a happy cow?	`Tue May 22 1990 14:57`	26
	When obvious medical conditions are absent, ask yourselves: 1) What happened up to 72 hours prior to onset of symptoms? In particular, any special house-cleaning tasks such as polishing/steam-cleaning/rearranging cupboards/closets. You might have disturbed some dust/mold or introduced new chemicals into the environment (allergic reaction). 2) Have you changed brands of normally-used household cleaners, carpet treatment, floor wash, cat box disinfectant, etc? If this is an allergy, you can find, if you look hard enough, a common activity that led up to the reaction. The fact that it gets worse each time indicates you have a real problem and I would strongly suggest you talk to tufts or a vet that specializes in environmental poisoning...it does sound like a chemical-based reaction to ME...but I'm not a vet. I once changed brands of floor cleaner - to Mr. Clean - and mopped the floor in the kitchen. I didn't rinse well, and got a sick cat from her snuffling around on the floor looking for dropped tidbits. I also used a flea treatment on the carpet once, and ended up with a sick dog who also had nude feet and ankles and a naked chest....allergic reactions - the rest of the cats and dogs in the family were fine. Don't overlook anything, no matter how simple and harmless it seems.