jake not well today

[mandyb]

Hello,
Had to take jake to the vets this morning he has been off his food for two days and just sleeping which isn't like him at all. When we got him there he had a temperature of 104. They gave him 2 injections and some tablets. They dont really seem to know whats wrong have got to take him back monday. But in the last hour or so ive felt his ears and they seem cold now which i think may be a good sign that his temperature is coming down. But hes still not had anything to eat. Just hope hes a bit better tomorrow. Anyone know what may be wrong thanks Mandy.

[angieh]

Very difficult to say Mandy. Have you noticed if his urine and poo look normal or does he go outside? You say he's off his food, but has he been drinking normally? Do his eyes look OK? It's difficult not to worry but it's probably best just to keep an eye on him until he goes back to the vet on Monday. Do hope he picks up very soon.

[mandyb]

Hes eyes look fine and hes not been outside to the loo so wouldn't know about that and hes not been drinking. But the vet gave us a syringe and told us if hes not had anything to drink by tomorrow we need to try and get some water down him whitch I will do. Thank you I just hope he will be better by tomorrow. Mandy

[Shelley123]

sorry to hear Jake isn't feeling very well, hopefuly his temp has come down and he's maybe feeling a bit better. Have you looked in his mouth in case its a tooth infection. Our cat Tom recently became unwell and it was an infected tooth.
Have you tried him with Whiskas cat milk ?
It's such a worry when they wont eat or drink

[mandyb]

The vet checked his mouth no problems there she told us not to give him milk just water. Just letting him sleep now will start his tablets tomorrow. Hope he will feel better soon. Mandy

[mandyb]

Got up this morning Jake still not eating and doesn't seem any better. Starting to get a bit worried now.

[angieh]

He is probably dehydrated Mandy. Try and get some water into him.

[mandyb]

I will do thank you

[Shelley123]

sorry to hear Jake is no better. Like angie says he probably needs water, i hope you manage to get some down him.It's easier said than done and makes you feel cruel. Have yo managed to get his tablets down?

[mandyb]

Yes got his tablets down him. The vet gave me a syringe to give him water. Does anyone know how much I need to get down him?

[angieh]

As much as you can, in small goes - is it a 5 or 10 ml syringe? Put in the corner of his mouth so that the water doesn't go straight down his throat, or he might choke.

I think it's safe to say as much as he'll take. He may be quite weakened, so be as gentle as possible. Wrap him up in a towel if you are worried about him wriggling or scatching you.

[Shelley123]

It's good that you got the tablets down him, now hopefuly they can start to do their job.

[mandyb]

Thanks all im just going to try and get some more down him. I'll let you know how he gets on at the vets tomorrow.

[dandysmom]

It's such a worry when they're ill. Hope the water and medication will help. Have you tried tempting him with something smelly like tuna: sometimes the odor will sort of jump-start the appetite. Do let us know how it goes tomorrow; poor Jake!

[Shelley123]

How is Jake today?

[mandyb]

hi jake still not well been to vets again today another injection. but I've come home from work and got some baby food have got some of that down him he really needs to eat. Not had anything since last thur. Don't know if im doing the right thing by doing this help please worried now. hes got to go back to vets again tomorrow. :cry:

[dandysmom]

I'm so sorry he's not doing well; doesn't the vet have any idea what might be causing this? Glad you got a little food in him; keep up the water, they get dehydrated so easily! Fingers crossed here. Mandy.

[mandyb]

well this is the forth injection hes had plus tablets. Think they will do a blood test tomorrow may be we will know more then. I am going to try and get some more food down him in a bit. Fingers crossed he might feel better tomorrow. Will let you know. Thanks Mandy

[Shelley123]

Mandy,
sorry to hear Jakes not better, it makes you feel so helpless when they don't eat. You have done well to get some food into him. In Oct our cat became ill on and off untill recently. He went through periods of not eating, some of the things i tried were chicken breast pulled into almost threads, chippy fish with batter removed, sandwich beef. You could try slightly warming the food to make it smell more. He also managed some whiskas milk which is full of vitamins.

[Kay]

Ask your vet for some Hills AD. It is a prescription diet for convalescent and sick cats. It is high in all nutrients and cats don't need a great amount so it is easier to feed them. You can heat it in the microwave which seems to encourage cats to eat. I have never known a cat refuse it.

The water is really important though and you should be trying to get as much as possible into Jake and as often as possible. Dehydration is extremely serious and has the knock on effect that the cat becomes so weak, due to dehydration not so much lack of food, that they become lethargic and therefore don't eat. If you cann't get enough water in him your vets may need to put Jake on a drip. This can do wonders and turn a real dehydrated cat round so they start eating again.

I am surprised, however, that your vets haven't taken bloods yet. They really need to know what they are dealing with as different anti-biotocs respond differently and some are better than others for certain problems.

I hope you get jake back on the road to recovery soon. xx

[angieh]

So sorry Jake is no better. I hope that you can get him to eat and take some water, as Kay says above that is really important. Years ago my cat had an abscess and wouldn't eat or drink - I managed to get him to lick some water off my fingers and gradually encouraged him to drink more. He recovered. Good luck - positive healing vibes for Jake.

[Leesy]

So sorry to hear about Jake, I do so hope that you can get him to eat some food, hope there is some improvement soon and that all goes well at the vets.

[mandyb]

Hello all
Thanks so much for your kind words. Im glad to say jake started eating this morning. Took him to the vets and they said being that hes started eating by him self they wouldn't do a blood test. Hes still a little weak and thank god hes such a big cat because hes lost quite a lot of weight. But the way he eats it wont take him long to put it back on. Once again thank you Mandy:D

[Kay]

Glad Jake is feeling a little better and has started eating for himself.

I think I would still have had bloods done as there maybe an underlying issue but fingers crossed it is all cleared up whatever it was.

[dandysmom]

Excellent news! But I;m a bit surprised that the vet hadn't done blood work on the initial visit. Hope he continues to improve; keep us posted.

[angieh]

Good news that Jake has started eating on his own. Come on lad, put your weight back on slowly and steadily.

[Leesy]

I am so happy to her that Jake has started to eat again, you must be elated.
Hope he jets back to his full body weight soon:D .

[Shelley123]

That's great news Mandy, you must be so relieved :)

[James]

My field is people health so perhaps I should not really comment - however, this is about cats and they are special :) so here goes:

All the comments made here are excellent advice. I have seen children go down hill very quickly when dehydrated, yet get them on fluids or a drip and they can perk up very quickly. It would be unusual to give a child several injections without knowing what was going on and without bloods (at least) being done you only get part of the picture. As you probably know, symptoms such as not eating can be attributed to many conditions, (IBD / impacted bowel / viral infection etc) so guesswork is a minefield. My wife always says that docs are preoccupied with bowels :) rightly so, constipation and or diarrhoea can be useful indicators so should always be taken seriously, especially when there are other symptoms such as a high temp.

Did the vet explain what the injections were? (my guess would be vitamins and antibiotics / antiviral). Fingers crossed that he continues to eat and gain weight.

[mandyb]

Hi
Yes the vet gave him anitibiotic injections and also one to bring his temp down. She seems to think he had some kind of virus. I'm so happy that hes better now and getting back to his old self. Mandy :D

[dandysmom]

My field is people health so perhaps I should not really comment - however, this is about cats and they are special :) so here goes:

All the comments made here are excellent advice. I have seen children go down hill very quickly when dehydrated, yet get them on fluids or a drip and they can perk up very quickly. It would be unusual to give a child several injections without knowing what was going on and without bloods (at least) being done you only get part of the picture. As you probably know, symptoms such as not eating can be attributed to many conditions, (IBD / impacted bowel / viral infection etc) so guesswork is a minefield. My wife always says that docs are preoccupied with bowels :) rightly so, constipation and or diarrhoea can be useful indicators so should always be taken seriously, especially when there are other symptoms such as a high temp.

Did the vet explain what the injections were? (my guess would be vitamins and antibiotics / antiviral). Fingers crossed that he continues to eat and gain weight.

Do comment, James, I find them very interesting and helpful. I was always told that constipation and diarrhea are symptoms of something else wrong, not diseases per se.