Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK
Cat Health & Behaviour => Health & Behaviour General => Topic started by: bunglycat on August 20, 2010, 20:43:17 PM
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I really don''t know what to do any more with her.
Its barely a week since she had this , she is on cystease tablets - 2 per day ,she had an injection last Wednesday and antibiotics which she only finished last Sunday night .
In feb, she had a xray and scan and nothing was found , she hasn''t got stones/crystals or anything else -so they flushed her bladder and she was ok for about 4 months and now she has had it 3 times recently.
She cannot be stressed, she gets on fine with the others ,does what she wants, sleeps where she wants and goes out when i am at home - its not due to Pandora as she got this last week before she came here and its reoccuring at least every couple of months .
She can be a bit skitty at times ,so have ordered a refill for the feliway and some zyklene today (on my credit card as i am totally broke and still owe the vet £150).
The only thing he could suggest last time was if she keeps getting it to open her up and see if there is a problem , which he didn't really want to do .
Anyone think of anything else please !?
I just cannot think anymore on what is causing it and what to do .
Update - she has been in the room and pooed on the carpet (runny) -first time she has ever done this- have rung the vets and he has told me just to give her water tonight and see how she is in the morning - i really don''t know whats wrong with her now !! :'(
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something must be going on with Fifi other than the usual causes of cystitis
what symptoms does she show? is there blood in her wee? does she show she's in pain?
perhaps she needs to be isolated for a short while to see exactly what she produces
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What about diet, what does she eat? if dry, I'd get her onto wet. If already on wet - check the ingredients, things like cereals, grains, veggies, soy extract/proteins (also listed as derivatives of vegetable origin) can be a cause as they alkalise the urine, when it should be slightly acidic.
The runny bum may just be the after effects of the antibiotics, maybe try a probiotic like Fortiflora (link removed to supplier as they let down rescue cats!) - if you don't want to order a whole box, if your vet keeps it in stock, he might let you have a couple of sachets. Lacto B is good too. :hug:
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Not the last time ,but the time before there was blood in the wee ,but not that the naked eye could see -the vet saw it through a microscope-thats when they kept her in (Feb this year) and did all the tests and couldn''t find anything wrong .
She doesn''t seem to be in pain , is going out in the garden as usual and eating and drinking as normal.
She just goes in and out the litter tray and sqats for ages and just does a tiny spot of wee.
Food wise - strangely enough after hardly eating any other food than the RC Sensitive (have tried her on allsorts of cat food over the two years i have had her -and the first year ,she never had cystitis at all !?) She also isn''t keen on ham, chicken, fish ,tuna or any wet food -whiskers, felix -the only thing she eats a little of is Sheba chicken )But the last 2 days she has been watching Winston eat his Felix and then eating a little of what he leaves , i have given her a bit of that for herself and she has eaten some -could that of upset her tummy ?
I did give some of that herbal stuff for colds and runny eyes as she was a bit snuffly a few days ago -could it be that ?
The vet tonight suggested a little yogurt - will have to see if there is any at the shop at the top near me as i don''t eat yorgurt myself. (can''t remember what sort to get is it just plain natural ?)
I have a tiny bit of Lact B left (need to order some more) -but can''t sprinkle it on the wet food as-..... she picks the food out the dish (have tried plate and she does the same ) with her paws and drops it on the floor and then picks about with it . No guarantee she will eat any wet food either .
She is isloated in the spare room tonight and no food the vet said , just water . Its nice and warm in there and she has just got in her heated bed -will be nice and quiet and stress free in there as i am having a bath in a minute and then going to bed as i am shattered and stressed myself due to worrying about them all .
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Poor Fifi and poor you :hug:
This might seem an odd question but how is YOUR life going? Are you stressed at all?
Im asking because Amber gets cystitis and when we looked at her past history everytime she had an attack there wasnt anything that had changed at home but there was stuff in MY life that was stressful. So she had an attack when my parents moved house, when my friend died and things like that.
I try to keep Amber on wet food because she doesnt drink but saying that we have reached the point now where she will only eat felix senior food and then sticks her head in the water bowl and drinks! Its only taken me 10 yrs to teach her ;)
I hope you find something that works without resorting to surgery
love
Tab
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Hi ,
She is no different today - i have given her a zyklene tablet as they came this morning to see if that calms her down/destresses her if its that .
She drinks okay and i left a big bowl in with her last night .
My life isn''t that bad i suppose -i worry about money and i did fall out with my brother over the phone the other night (maybe she picked up on that !?) over money again and the way he always belittles me over having none-but if i did borrow some of him a while ago and not been able to pay it back yet . He moans a lot and isn''t supportive at all and really gets me down at times . I get really stressed myself when the cats are ill as i love them so much and i worry -also apart from the money issue it does stress them more going to the vets and giving them tablets . Fifi seems to think that every time i go to her it either to groom her, clean her eyes or give her tablets .
She hasn''t eaten anything at all since last night and i am unsure about giving her any antibiotics for the cystitis.
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personally I don't see the point in continually treating what may well not be a bacterial infection with abs - they seem to be many vets' answer to anything which stumps them
Tiffany has regular bouts of cystitis, and I am quite sure they stem from an overactive bladder coupled with stress - I have seen her go straight from being harassed by Tosker to trying to wee
one cystease a day seems to keep her stable - the cystitis returned immediately when I tried to reduce it to every other day
a regime of vet visits and medication given orally does not seem to me to be a good recipe for success in beating it for Fifi - Cystease is fine because it is sprinkled on food - I'd give her a break for a few days, go on with the Cytease only, and see how she goes
as long as she seems OK otherwise, of course
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Sorry Gill :hug:
I am in the same boat with Clapton as he has barely eaten for the last 2 days. He really is getting thin & frail :(
Our dinners are based around what we might be able to pill him with. He has trouble eating since his mouth was done and sucks the food; resulting in the pill falling out. We are having pork chops tonight. Not because we want them but because we might be able to put a pill in a bit :shify:
Anyway, there is something else that is 100% safe for bacterial cystitis. It is called d-mannose - it is a form of sugar but shame it doesn't cot the same :evillaugh: apparently, the bacteria are attracted to it, rather than to the walls of the bladder - so it gets flushed out of the body. I have read some good things about it. Apparently is is the form of sugar found in Cranberries.
http://www.sweet-cures.net/ourway.htm
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That looks interesting Mark -but she isn''t eating anywet food , but i suppose you could put it in water and syringe it !?
One thing is she isn''t losing weight -she is a pretty big cat of around 12 years old -last night was the first time i have starved her as thats what the vet suggested as she had been sick and also had the runs .
Today ,she has gone outside and is sitting in Mr Snugs as it keeps drizzling with rain , but i have seen her squatting in the garden .
I am going to plug the Feliway refill in later when she comes in and she has the spare room to herself so she can have peace and quiet , not that its noisy here anyway.
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My cat, Lottie, had cystitis twice in Feb, once in April and again in May, so I know it's not nice to see them keep trying in the litter tray. Like Amber, she's had an xray (and urine analysis) and the vets has put it down to cystitis. Has your vet done a urine analysis? That would help confirm whether or not there are any crystals irritating the bladder or it's bacterial, or probably just cystitis. My vet said in Lottie's case it was down to cystitis and I should look at her diet and stress. If urine gets alkaline, it's more lightly to cause irritation and lots of liquid will flush through the system and keep it acidic. Even if cats drink a lot on a dry diet, their fluid intake apparently is only half of what it would be on a wet diet with no drinking water! Lottie was a real dry cat lover and she's now on about 90% wet with a little water added. I never thought I'd swap her over, but I did. She doesn't drink water or human milk, but I've tried cat milk recently and occasionally she will drink it. I've had a Feliway diffuser on for five months now. Due to cost, I'm going to see what happens if I stop it after this month. The last time Lottie got cystitis, I really made myself relax over it in the hope she wasn't picking up on my feelings. Instead of constantly checking on her, I left her to it. With regard to Cystease, she's now on one every two days and all of this has obviously helped as she hasn't had cystitis for nearly 3 months. I've read before of people having to keep their cats on 2 Cystease a day and upping it to 3 a day. Although, I wouldn't recommend you doing this permanently, it might be worth giving her an extra one for a couple of days.
I've done a lot of reading on this and I did find a link indicating that cats are at an increased risk of cystitits if they are overweight. Lottie is 5.45kg which according to the charts is overweight. I got her to loose weight about three years ago, but as she only eats about 3/4 can a day and I want to get liquid in her, I don't really want to cut down.
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It sounds as if she is very stressed and havent you just got a new cat............Pandora?
By her sitting outside by herself in the rain it sounds like she is trying to get away from something............meds, you, other cats??
I have only a little knowledge og cystitus and it was stress induced and Misa had it,,,,,,,,,,,,,it was when Franta was ill ands was getting lots of attention. Misa is very jealous and this brought it on.......nothing has changed and he is still very jealous and can get very upset.
Misa has just started trying to sleep on the bed and tries to flump on top of the birmans to get them off,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,so wondering about Fifi with Pandora ??
I do hope she gets well soon :hug:
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This has been ongoing since Feb this year and the last bout started before i got Pandora .
She has been kept in at the vets -she hasn''t had crystals or stones , she had xrays, bladder flushed and a scan and they all showed nothing .
The last resort is to open her up as there may be a small chance she has bladder cancer !
She goes outside every day usually and loves being outside -the back door is open all the time -just shut it now as its throwing it down and they are all inside .
She has had 2 cystease tabs per day since Mark gave me them last Friday - today she has only had a zyklene tablet to see if it calms her down .
Last night she had the spare room all to herself as Pandora is usually asleep in my bedroom or under my bed, she hasn''t been near her .
Yes, she seems to not be happy with me as i have to give her the pills and groom her - she takes the pills ,but then goes out my way afterwards -obviously thats stressing her -but if i don''t give her the pills she gets worse .
I only had her at the vet 1 week ago with this and she had an injection and antibitics and it got better for 2 days and then started again.
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have you been giving her Cystease orally? if so, try sprinkling it on her food - it seems to be absolutely tasteless
I wouldn't risk going from two Cystease a day to none, though - that is a pretty sure way to have the cystitis return
I have, by the way, found with Tiffany that she will go from trying to wee every 10 minutes to sleeping for hours without bother, so it seems with her anyway to be a very sudden stop start thing
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I am going to give her a tablet in a few minutes -last night she was sick and had the runs .
I have given her Zyklene and waiting till that settles into her before giving her another tablet.
Cannot sprinkle on food as she only eats biscuits and for the last 24 hours not been eating anything !
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I put cystease down Ambers throat and shes fine with it. I feed her straight after just in case it ghets stuck or something but Im guessing she doesnt mind too much as she actually runs to me when I pick the pot up. Im not a week is long enough to worry though I would say try 3-4 weeks and then see. I take Amber to the vets when she starts and an anti inflam is usually enough to sort things out. I do now have some crystal litter so if she starts again I can get a sample but the vet is convinced its idiopathic not bacterial but if it does keep returning she too needs tests for bladder cancer depending on the results.
Amber is sometimes sick after food as she gulps it but she doesnt have the runs so I would guess thats the ab's
I really hope you find a solution
love
Tab
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Wish I had some advice, but all I can say is I hope Fifi stops this cycle of cystitis :hug: :hug:
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Fifi had an injection only just over a week ago the time before this bout .
Anyway, she is no better and still squatting every two minutes -she is off to the vet tomorrow .
She isn''t a happy cat and is now running away from me as all i seem to be doing is giving her tablets -antibiotics and cystease , but are doing no good at all .
I am beginning to think she is either very ill or just not happy here -this has been going on most of this year s- it cannot be to do with Pandora ,who really keeps herself to herself and doesn''t bother too much with my others . Sophie, Winston and Smartie have no problem with her and Fifi has always kept herself to herself .
I just feel awful for her :'( :'(
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Sometimes stress is due to things we cant' see - I know your cat dynamics have changed with illness etc, so I wonder if that has affected her more than you think? Have you tried things like Rescue REmedy and Feliway, at least they aren't medication based, so you aren't putting more tablets into her like with Zylkene. I know how hard it is when you live on your own and have a poorly cat who hates you cos of medication.
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Hi,
Yes, got a new Feliway refill and plugged it in tonight and i will be off to the vets tomorrow night with her.
Have only given her 1 cystease tablet this morning and nothing else as i don''t think they are helping, she has been on them over a week .She had it just before Sophie went to the vets and then again when she got back _ maybe she knew she was ill ?!
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This is so sad and if she is running away from you she is badly stressed.............I do hope that the vet can suggest something :hug: :hug: :hug:
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Good luck with tonight, and it is sounding like it is Sophie's illness that has brought it on. She might need a shot of Metacam or some Onsior to help with any inflammation in her bladder.
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:hug: :hug: to you.
I know I was at my wits end when Jess had it constantly.
We're still on 2 cystease a day and a zylkene.
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We are off later on -she has been on cystease for over a week and started Zyklene on Saturday -all to no avail except her hating me for giving her so many tablets :'(
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Lots of good wishes :hug: :hug:
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Fingers crossed for tonight. I'd certainly ask if there is another type of medication worth trying. Let us know what the vet says.
As I said before, my Lottie was a dry cat food lover with the odd bit of Butchers Classic. When I started giving her Cystease, I tried Whiskers pouches as the powder was well soaked up in the jelly. She goes crazy for it the moment I get a tablet out. I know it's a long shot and not all cats are the same, but it might be worth a go if it helps getting the Cystease down her. I think all cats hate taking tablets, so it's not any fun for either of you.
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Tiffany happily takes her Cystease in a quarter tin of Gourmet Tuna with Shrimp, although she will rarely touch any other wet food
and if she doesn't finish it all I pop it away for later
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Sorry this is a late update -but don''t really want to post this news - The vet has found what he calls a mass near her bladder and the prognosis is not good .
He has given her a long lasting antibitic injection and a steroid injection and needs to see her Thursday to recheck his findings .
If this is what he suspects (bladder cancer) its a case of him either opening her up or letting her go -or both -.
I have to see what the situation is Thursday and see if she is responding to the injections, or being the same and maybe in pain.
She is eating tonight -due to the steroid -but when i lifted her up i am sure she has lost some weight - todays weight was 4.6kg .
I feel like someone has put a curse on me and the cats -for almost 2 years now its been one thing after another and all bad - i don''t know what i would do if i didn''t have the others to look after and the support from here and Sheryl and Katherine (sparklecat- who is also having a bad time as now her husband has been ill) ringing me to see how the cats and me are doing.
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I am so sorry and wish I could think whats the best thing to say................just sending these for you and Fifi :hug: :hug: :hug:
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Oh No
:hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
love
Tab
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Aw sweetie, I'm sorry you've had this news from the vets :hug: :hug: I'll keep everything crossed that Thursday's visit reveals some positives for you :hug: :hug: :hug:
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I'm so sorry the vet thinks it's cancer. I hope it's not as bad as you fear and that Thursday's visit brings better news :hug:
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Sorry Gill - just seen this :hug:
Lets hope he is wrong.
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I hope you are okay Gill, I know how heartbroken you are feeling and you know I am always at the end of the phone.
Really hoping for some positive news on Thursday Hun :hug: :hug: :hug:
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fingers crossed very hard the mass is bladder stones
feline bladder cancer is not at all common, so there is reason to hope vet is wrong
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Oh no. I really hope that Thursday brings better news for you :hug: :hug:
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Sorry to hear your awful news.
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So sorry to hear this :( :hug: :hug: :hug:
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If its bladder stones wouldn''t they have showed up in a scan or xray ?
Also she hasn''t been eating much the last few days and hasn''t had a poo either .
She wanted to go out in the garden , but she isn''t very energetic and hasn''t been really for a while .
Smartie is 13 but was still throwing a toy mouse round the kitchen last night and this morning and Winston is always out ,even Sophie with her stitches is completely her old self again , but Fifi hardly ever plays or wants to interact with you .
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really sorry to hear this, I know how much they all mean to you. My friend lost her cat to bladder cancer, unfortunately spraying had been put down to bad behaviour and it wasn't diagnosed until very late - should the worst happen Gill you know you have given her a great life
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Yes stones would show up on an xray but wouldnt a mass?
Franta has stones near one dead kidney and was shown them on the xray, which was sent to Bristol for advice.
I do hope the vet is wrong too :hug: :hug:
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I would also think that bladder stones would show up on an xray. Is your vet still giving Fifi medication in case it's cystitis?
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Best of luck for today :hug: :hug:
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Good Luck today Gill :hug:
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Thanks -appointment is just before 6pm .
She has been a lot better the last 2 days -but i have been here before and just as i think its sorted , it starts again . We really needs to get to the bottom of why it keeps happening.
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Thinking of you and Fifi Gill :hug: :hug: :hug:
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Hoping it all went well, today for you both xxxx :hug:
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Well , i am afraid Fifi is getting to be a bit of a mystery !
The lump/mass as the vet called it - has vanished !!!! Nothing there and he has felt and squeezed her all over -in fact she weed on the table when he squeezed her bladder ( mindst you ,it was hectic in there tonight and even though i had an appointment for 5.50 it was 7.30 before we go in -add 1/2 hour journey ontop and not sure when she had last been for a wee either) -it was convenient anyway as he managed to get a sample then.
Her wee had protein in and a high PH ? but no blood .
He now thinks its a bacterial infection and given her another injection and to go back in a week .
She has been fine today , very relaxed and wee is normal .
Another baffling thing too is all the time i have had her which is just over 2 years , she would never eat wet food even though it was offered and down for the others too -the only thing she would eat (in a fashion!) was chicken Sheba -which she hooks out of the bowl and eats from her paws !
The last 2-3 days she has been hovering over Winston when i fed him -so i offered her some Felix - she ate some and now will not eat the biscuits at all -only Felix !!!
To say i am totally baffled by this cat is an understatement -even the vet things its a bit odd !
She is back on the cystease and zyklene and we will see what she is like for the next week till we go back !
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The lump/mass as the vet called it - has vanished
How new is their equipment. A mass can't just vanish - although it is great news that she doesn't have one. ;D
If it is bacterial, I really think she would be better off with the d-mannose than ABs as they are probably what gives her the runs.
She sounds like Clapton - he has refused to eat any of the foods that were his favourites before his mouth trouble - he has even gone off chicken and it was his favourite :Crazy:
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He just felt all over her - he did say it could be faeces (but didn''t really think so -but maybe it was !!??)
He gave her an injection but i think it was a steroid injection and only tablets he said to give were cystease and Zyklene.
Yes, its good news but i am paranoid it may start up again soon !
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Glad to hear this, give her a cuddle from me :hug:
(Her body may be telling her she needs to eat the other type food)
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Glad to hear there seems to be no mass now :hug: but how very baffling.
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Very strange indeed, but good news that there now appears to be no mass :hug: :hug:
Maybe cats are like pregnant women, in that sometimes they eat things they've not eaten before, as their body knows is good for them and what they need?
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It's certainly strange that something was found on an xray but can't be traced now. I'm glad to hear your vet is still treating with injections, cystease and Zyklene though. They will certainly help if it's an infection or cystitis and the Zyklene will hopefully keep her calmer with whatever is going on. It's also strange she suddenly wants wet food, but as said before the more liquid you can get through her system the better. Maybe her body is naturally asking for more moisture. Let us know how she is today.
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Very strange but also very positive news! Really hope you can get to the bottom of it and put an end to the recurring cystitis :hug:
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So glad that she didnt have to be operated on - bet you are so relieved Gill :hug:
Will give you a call 2morrow x
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If it were me, I really would be tempted to try the d-mannose as it is the bacterial cases that it is most successful with. The bacteria normally adhere to mannose receptors in the urinary tract but they are more attracted to the d-mannose, so they get flushed out of the system before they can colonise. It could probably be given every 2 or 3 days as a preventative. It is harmless and as far as I can tell, no taste or smell. If she is eating wet food now, it shouldn't be a problem.
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So pleased the mass has vanished and that she is now eating wet food..............please send her here to teach my lot that felix will not poisen them or any other wet food!
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Good to hear the mass is gone, hope you can get the cystitis sorted once and for all :hug:
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good news :)
what you need is the veterinarian equivalent to House :)
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Thanks everyone -Mark where do you get the D-mannose from please?
Last night twice when i went in to the kitchen it was wet near the litter trays -but i am sure it wasn''t wee !- it looked clear and a little frothy which i am presuming was sick .
Having 5 not really sure who it was -but the boys were in the room with me , (although Winston was sneezing for ages last night for some reason -he must go where there is something that makes him sneeze !?)Sophie i am reasonably certain was upstairs asleep (although she now has the runs -antibiotics finished over a week ago and i have just used the last of the Lacto B and i need to order some more) Pandora was asleep , so i am presuming it was Fifi -who had not that long ago had a cystease pill !!??
I wonder if the cystease doesn''t agree with her and made her sick ?
If its not one its the other lately !
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Gill, did the vet find the first mass through an ultrasound or just feeling her? If he just felt her, it is nowhere near accurate enough, and I would now be demanding another ultrasound - the research I did last weekend on bladder cancer said that tumours in the bladder dont show up on x-rays, only on ultrasounds
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He found it just by squeezing and feeling her all over -he said it definately wasn''t there on Thursday and couldn''t find any anywhere else.
She hadn''t been to the loo though for 3 days because she wasn''t eating much at all .
She is fine again at the moment -but i find it really odd that she will not touch her biscuits at all now -only eating felix pouches. :Crazy:
She did have a ultrasound in Feb and a xray but there was nothing there then and she was just as she had been last week -the only thing they did then was flush out her bladder -but there was nothing there -no stones, crystals .
When they did the wee test -it had high PH and protein in it, but no blood -not sure what that could mean .?
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Thanks everyone -Mark where do you get the D-mannose from please?
This is the company that seems to come up the most - they are in York http://www.waterfall-d-mannose.com/faq.htm#animals
It is quite expensive but I think
the dose for a cat is tiny. You could email them to ask. You should be able to mix it in her Felix.
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I really wouldnt be happy that a vet would be making me think my cat had cancer and a poor prognosis just off feeling them, especially if she hadn't been to the toilet. Just because she had an ultrasound in Feb doesnt' mean that it wouldnt show something different now. IT is good that she is eating wet food now though, and will make it easier for you to put meds in her food. I know protein in their wee is connected with kidneys, and the ph levels show if the wee is acidic or alkaline (just can't remember which way the scale goes), so there is definitely something going on.
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You seem to be on a real rollercoaster. Most of us assume the vet knows more than we do and you trust what they tell you. I think the only way to find out if your cat really does have a lump is to ask the vet to do tests. If it's not a lump, something this time might point towards an infection or small crystals which didn't show up before and then perhaps a more suitable form of medication can be given.
My cat had a bad sickness bout once while on Cystease and my vet said it was not linked with sickness or any bad side effects.
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Just a quick update -since the injections Fifi has been fine ,she is going back on Friday for another one (long lasting ) .
She is also eating Felix (after not going near it for 2 years ! :Crazy: ) -but that has enabled me to open the cystease capsules and sprinkle into her food ;D
I am also going to get some D Mannose in a week or so when i have paid my vet bill off !!!
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If things seem to be clearing up with treatment, that's great. Hopefully the vet will check her over again for any lump, but I'd ask him to do that. If he can't find anything this time, perhaps you've had a lot of unnecessary anxiety. Keep us informed of how she is.
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:) Pleased to hear that Fifi is doing well now
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Just wondering how Fifi is now.
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Thanks for asking , she is fine with the cystitis at present -now i have another problem with her and its getting her to eat !
She is being incredibly faddy and i have tried her on everything -she is only eating about 1 to 11/2 sachets a day if that .
She won''t eat biscuits (not that i have seen ) , won''t eat the sheba anymore , she ate 1 sachet of gourmet perle and i bought her some more and she won''t touch it now.
I have tried all the felix ones and if i am lucky she will eat a few mouthfuls , she hooks it out with her paws and there is more on the floor than what she eats .
She had her mouth and teeth checked and they cannot see a problem -not sure what to do to be honest .