Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK
Cat Health & Behaviour => Health & Behaviour General => Topic started by: bonnielass on December 25, 2008, 13:02:25 PM
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Went to help out at the local rescue this morning and guess what, i came home with another oldie,his name is Eddie,a stray piked up a while back,as the rescue is full he has been sleeping in a shed at the rescue but he suffers with arthritus in his rear legs and has difficulty walking normal, so i have brought him home as a sort of foster to see if warmth will help him, my question is does anyone know of nything that works with arthritus, hes been having metacam but its not doing any good plus i dont want to keep him on it as there a lot of bad reports, any advice would be very welcome
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Advice one: Never go to a cat shelter alone again - always take an escort that will restrain you :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
About the cat, well I supplement Shadow's diet with glucosamine which is sprinkled over his food. You can get some that is animal-based and another that is fish based (there is one made in NZ based on green-lipped mussells). Other than that, I would seek vet advice and diagnosis to make sure that is what the problem is - if he was homeless he may have been injured by an accident and had the use of his legs impaired by that ...
Another kitty off the streets for Christmas! ;D
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I think BC's advise is good and can't add to that but I think it's lovely that you've given that dear old kitty some warmth for Christmas :)
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A heated bed will also soothe aches. Some of them orthopaedic and are designed to spread the bodyweight so there isn't too much pressure on one area. I got this one for Alice but the small is too small so a medium would be better. This is heated (low energy) and has support.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CONSTANT-COMPANIONS-HEATED-PET-DOG-CAT-BED-MEDIUM-BNIB_W0QQitemZ220332866913QQihZ012QQcategoryZ20744QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262
Changed link as I found it cheaper - I don't think you would get it cheaper than this
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Softie! :evillaugh:
Good on you, though. First things first, get some turkey into the dear soul. ;) I agree with a vet check. His weight may be a factor as is diet. Just keep him warm and well fed until the vets open. Wrap a hot water bottle in a towel if you haven't got a heat pad.
And stay away from the shelter for a while! :evillaugh:
Having said that, I'd probably be the same and this is the reason why I don't volunteer for soup kitchens. :rofl: :rofl:
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Im back there tomorrow :evillaugh: he has been to the vet when he was picked up and they did blood tests etc everything was negative he also had a dental while he ws there so that again is okay when he walks his back legs tend to bend and he also kicks his leg out when he walks as if stretching,no other damage tho, hes just had a plate of turkey and rice(cooked in turkey juice and demolished thelot ,hes now fast asleep on the bed in the spare room with the heater at the side of him, i will try and get some glucosamine when the shops reopen and try that, he doesnt seem to be in pain just a bit bendy with age, they reckon hes 15+ maybe more, it was heartbreaking to see all those homeless kitties altho Phil keeps them dry and well fed, he has loads of ferals kittens in plus the wobby twins, 2 youngsters that have a bit of brain damage stemming from birth, thay havent much hope of being homed, then theres Stumpy , the most beautiful tabby and white with a back leg slightly shorter then the rest, again only young, 2 youngsters that were brought in 2 weeks ago, because SHES HAVING A BABY and didnt want the cats around the baby >:( i could go on and on) but you who have rescues will know all about this senario,thanks for the advice
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Mr T is 15+ and a sometimes shows signs of stiffness in his right back leg. It gets better through the day. I warm my hands and stroke him gently but firmly all around the area. He loves it and it seems to help him :) Sort of kitty massage. When he has had enough, he takes my hand very, very gently in his mouth and moves it away to another area he wants stroked!!
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Blip has arthritis. We have her on Cosequin daily, which we judge has been helpful, but the effect is cumulative so you wouldn't notice any improvement immediately. There are also Seraquin and Cortaflex: it's a question of finding the best one for Eddie.
Blip was on Metacam between July and November and is now back on it under veterinary supervision and following normal blood results after her first course.
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Heat pads are good - whelping pads on ebay are soft and you can move them from bed to bed if necessary -i now have 5 of those and 1 heated bed same as Marks link , but yes, i got a small and it is small !! Its ok for Sophie as she isnt very big and she is nearly 15 and rarely moves out of it except for eating and toileting !
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My 2 have arthritis/stiffness and Byron loves warmth and sleeps next to the radiator nearly all day and Schui loves me to massage his legs like what Wibblechick does (if I don't touch his feet! :evillaugh:) They have Metacam occasionally but only the odd drop as they both have failing kidneys. My vet told me that she has a few dogs on glucosamine doing really well too
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Heat pads are good - whelping pads on ebay are soft and you can move them from bed to bed if necessary -i now have 5 of those and 1 heated bed same as Marks link , but yes, i got a small and it is small !! Its ok for Sophie as she isnt very big and she is nearly 15 and rarely moves out of it except for eating and toileting !
I think the link for the medium is about the price we paid for a small?
Alice does curl up in hers sometimes but mostly uses it to sit up in when she isn't sleepy. I am tempted to order as medium one for her.
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Think everyone has given you brilliant advice I just wanted to add to what the others of said well done to you for helping this cat have a Happy Xmas and a warm home
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I do appreciate all the advice given and will keep everyone up to date on this,he is such a lovely cat, never stops purring and loves to be on your knee and gives you loads of headbutts and talks to you all the time, :Luv: he really is the most amazing cat and if i can make his life easier then i will do whatever it takes
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I think it's brilliant that he has a caring, warm home now :hug: My boys have an electric heatpad which I'm sure helps their arthritis and just to make them feel comforted. It needs quite a biggish bed to fit in though. I put it under vetbed type bedding. Vet UK sell them. None of the heatpads or beds are exactly cheap, think it's about £40 incl delivery.
Hope he has a comfy day with you and keeps eating like he did his Xmas dinner x PURRS from my boys to him too x
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I think the bed I linked to is probably better value as you also get the bed + the orthopaedic support probably helps. I ha ve a supply of small £1 fleeces and just put a fresh one on every few days which keeps the bed clean. Also a nicer feel for Alice. The heat gets through a fleece though (it is a really gentle heat) - I notived she hadn't been in it for a few days yesterday and realised the plug had come out of the back. She was in it again when I got up this morning :Luv2:
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Aww, good on you for giving him a good home, my vet swears by Seraquin, i have some here, but the ones who are arthritic wont touch it!! Metacam doesn't do much for Molly either, although I am hoping it will do more for Jeannie. At least he is in a warm house though, that and good food should do the world of good for him.
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The problem with seraquin is they look like horse tablets - far too big for a cat :Crazy:
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oooh you big softie you :hug: Well done on giving Eddie somewhere warm and cosy. Big hugs to all you and all the furries xxxxx
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I think its about time we get some pictures or no more advice :evillaugh: :rofl:
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Seraquin aren't that big Mark, Rosie could manage them and she couldnt manage most cat treats, and they do crush very easily.
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I will try Alice with them again - otherwise I will offer them to someone who can use them.
I just ordered a medium constant companions bed for Alice. We were just looking at her squashed into the small one :( -
Little Willow will be able to fit into the small and will love it :Luv2:
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I decided to have another go with the Norvet powders on Alice's Salmon and she ate it ;D
Hopefully we can help her stiffness with that + her new heated bed :Luv2:
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Did you get the norvet powders from your vet? i have Eddie on glocosamine but not sure if its working hes only been on it for 5 days,hes very stiff on his back legs altho it doesnt stop him moving about,he sleeps in Wizzys little bed with a heat pad and i think thats helping him a bit
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i have Eddie on glocosamine but not sure if its working hes only been on it for 5 days,hes very stiff on his back legs altho it doesnt stop him moving about,
The effect is cumulative, Bonnielass, so it'll be about a month before you notice an improvement. I think it helps Blip a bit.
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Max is a great limper from his arthritis and I've found the heatpad has better effect than the glucosamine, although I'm still keeping him on the glucosamine as he could be worse without it. I think it's about controlling it and keeping it bearable, not really curing. 5 days would be too soon to tell, yup. Hope it does work x
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Did you get the norvet powders from your vet? i have Eddie on glocosamine but not sure if its working hes only been on it for 5 days,hes very stiff on his back legs altho it doesnt stop him moving about,he sleeps in Wizzys little bed with a heat pad and i think thats helping him a bit
Not sure where it came from as one of our fosterers gave it to me. I think with most glucosamine they tell you to double dose or give every day for a vertain period and them you can cut the dose?
I don't think Alice would take more than one sachet on her tiny amount of salmon but just glad that she is getting some.
I think Alice's heated bed helps as it is firm and designed to spread the weight - a bit like memory foam.
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Sorry, I got the name wrong - it is called Noractive
http://www.vetuk.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_242&products_id=19&zenid=75ea2e57e792e73680a90b84f6ea171b
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Thanks for that i may see if i can get some for Eddie altho the heat pad seems to be working very well hes been in it most of today but when hes come in the lounge hes not dragging his back legs quite so much
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The thing about glucosamine and chondroitin is they actually rebuild the cartilege stopping bone against bone whereas the heatpads just relieve symptoms - so I think they are more important in the long run.