Author Topic: Now Bass has a heart murmur  (Read 4047 times)

Offline jezebel

  • Super Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 2789
  • Slave to: Vincent, RIP beautiful Drum & Bass sisters and the lovely Bruce
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #15 on: July 23, 2017, 18:52:18 PM »
Thanks Liz. Bass does like treats and has them often but only in small amounts. :Crazy:
You can't change the world by rescuing one cat, but for that one cat you are changing its world.

Offline Liz

  • Cat Rescue
  • Royal Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 9128
  • Here come the boys!!!!
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #14 on: July 23, 2017, 11:38:57 AM »
Does she do treats at all they can help with the weight gain and Complivit is a marvel has kept some of my oldies going and when ill great stuff, 1 pump equals a full days calories for a 4kg cat - mine get 3 or 4 a day with wet food just mix it through the wet food - it looks like Bovril but do shake the pump as it does need to be mixed as it looks very oily
Liz and the Clan Cats and Dogs

Offline jezebel

  • Super Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 2789
  • Slave to: Vincent, RIP beautiful Drum & Bass sisters and the lovely Bruce
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #13 on: July 23, 2017, 07:19:03 AM »
I hate predictive text, the things my phone tries to write sometimes are extraordinary!
You can't change the world by rescuing one cat, but for that one cat you are changing its world.

Offline Sue P (Paddysmum)

  • Moderating Staff
  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 27527
  • Paddy's Mum (Ginger Imposter) [Nov 90- April '11]
  • Slave to: Moray & Malt + my beautiful lost babies - Barley, Mac, Ross, and Tinks RIP babies.
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #12 on: July 23, 2017, 06:49:27 AM »
Complivit, jezebel - Kindle predictive struck again.  :tired:

Offline jezebel

  • Super Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 2789
  • Slave to: Vincent, RIP beautiful Drum & Bass sisters and the lovely Bruce
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #11 on: July 22, 2017, 18:19:28 PM »
Thanks Sue. I'm going to order some from Amazon.
« Last Edit: July 22, 2017, 18:25:38 PM by jezebel »
You can't change the world by rescuing one cat, but for that one cat you are changing its world.

Offline Sue P (Paddysmum)

  • Moderating Staff
  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 27527
  • Paddy's Mum (Ginger Imposter) [Nov 90- April '11]
  • Slave to: Moray & Malt + my beautiful lost babies - Barley, Mac, Ross, and Tinks RIP babies.
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #10 on: July 22, 2017, 07:08:42 AM »
Liz uses complicit with some of hers to get high nutritional value into them, Jezebel.  I wonder if it would be worth trying?   :hug:

Offline jezebel

  • Super Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 2789
  • Slave to: Vincent, RIP beautiful Drum & Bass sisters and the lovely Bruce
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #9 on: July 22, 2017, 06:11:53 AM »
Thanks for all the advice and good wishes, they really do help!

I just wish Bass would put some weight on, she looks thinner every day. I tried her on kitten food, which she liked, but it didn't help. She'll eat a little Royal Canin Senior Consult, which the vet recommended and which she used to love but is now not so keen on.

I wonder what I used to worry about before I got these two!
You can't change the world by rescuing one cat, but for that one cat you are changing its world.

Offline alisonandarchie

  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • ******
  • Posts: 15500
  • Archie's mum
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #8 on: July 21, 2017, 17:58:33 PM »
My beloved Parki had a heart murmur that was picked up when she was 14 years old. Following this she had ops which were fine. Each time the vet scanned her heart to make extra sure.

She later died from cancer but her heart was fine until the end :hug:

Wishing Bass all the best and am sure all will be ok, but understand the worry :hug:

Offline Lyn (Slugsta)

  • Royal Cat
  • ******
  • Posts: 9733
  • Slave to: Sky. Bridge babies Candy, Stripey, Chivers, Punky, Cleo and Alfie forever loved.
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #7 on: July 20, 2017, 16:12:42 PM »
Hi Jezebel,

It's such a worry when our babies are not well, isn' it? I do agree that more tests at this stage could be too much for Bass and, as has been said, most heart murmurs are 'incidental findings'.

Offline jezebel

  • Super Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 2789
  • Slave to: Vincent, RIP beautiful Drum & Bass sisters and the lovely Bruce
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #6 on: July 20, 2017, 14:01:03 PM »
Thanks everyone, that's reassuring.

It's difficult to know what to do for the best, sometimes. I don't want to keep taking her to the vets for  more prodding and needles (she's as good as gold with the vet but it's obviously stressful for her) but I also don't want anything serious to go untreated.

She has to go back to the vet's in a couple of weeks but just to be weighed, so I'll  tell them no more tests for the moment.
 :thanks:
« Last Edit: July 20, 2017, 14:02:17 PM by jezebel »
You can't change the world by rescuing one cat, but for that one cat you are changing its world.

Offline Judecat (Paula)

  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • ******
  • Posts: 12736
  • Slave to: Emo, Bob and Pippa, Pirate and Merlin. Playing hard on The Bridge, Trouble, Jude, Mogwai and Pussmog
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #5 on: July 20, 2017, 13:31:01 PM »
Trouble was diagnosed with a heart murmur when he was about 16, the vet wasn't overly bothered, just said that we would keep an eye on him.
Oscar Wilde on his adored Mog "The Mighty Atom that purrs and furrs"

Offline Sue P (Paddysmum)

  • Moderating Staff
  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 27527
  • Paddy's Mum (Ginger Imposter) [Nov 90- April '11]
  • Slave to: Moray & Malt + my beautiful lost babies - Barley, Mac, Ross, and Tinks RIP babies.
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #4 on: July 20, 2017, 13:24:49 PM »
Oh Jezebel.  That will have come as unwelcome news, but try not to worry.

Paddy had a heart murmur for the last 5 years of his lifem, and it gave him little trouble. 

They're graded on a scale from 1 to 6, with 1 being the least troublesome. 

Most of them don't need to be treated.  Paddy's certainly didn't, and his was a grade 3.  It meant we had to be really careful in terms of anaesthesia, so dental work became a bit of an art form, with our dentist removing chunks of plaque from rear gnashers with a practised finger, rather than putting him under.

Offline Dawn F

  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • ******
  • Posts: 18579
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #3 on: July 20, 2017, 13:24:12 PM »
I tend to agree, one of ours was diagnosed with a heart murmer aged around 7 and died of something unrelated at age 14, he was on a quarter of an antenol (sp) a day for a few years but when we moved house the new vet took him off

Offline Desley (booktigger)

  • Cat Rescue
  • Purrrrrfect Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 17864
  • Molly, my wonderful babe
  • Slave to: Lucy
Re: Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #2 on: July 20, 2017, 13:12:03 PM »
Most cats live with a heart murmur with no problems, most of my oldies have, none have been put on medication and none of them have died from that - a couple were diagnosed around that age. I wouldn't put her through any more tests at the moment, like you say, she's had a lot this year.
Please spay your cat



Offline jezebel

  • Super Cat
  • *****
  • Posts: 2789
  • Slave to: Vincent, RIP beautiful Drum & Bass sisters and the lovely Bruce
Now Bass has a heart murmur
« Reply #1 on: July 20, 2017, 13:01:05 PM »
Since her thyroid operation in May, Bass hasn't put on any weight (in fact she's still losing a little), despite eating well. Blood tests have shown nothing obvious - her thyroid count is still dropping, albeit slowly.
The vet now thinks she has a heart murmur :scared: and has offered yet more tests but wasn't clear about what would happen if they showed anything wrong. I suppose it depends on the cause, but it sounded so vague that I'm not sure it's worth putting her through any more - she's already been through a lot this year.


Are heart murmurs common in elderly cats (she's 17 this year) and what's the treatment?

You can't change the world by rescuing one cat, but for that one cat you are changing its world.

 


Link to CatChat