wanda
09-11-2011, 09:50 PM
Hi everyone.
I'm looking for some unbiased advice on Smokey Joe, my 11 year old, neutered domestic s/h.
Smokey had problems with his breathing in August of this year, and after scans and x-rays he was found to have a deformed heart, which his body has been compensating for all his life, but now as old age creeps up, his body is starting to struggle to maintain the compensation. He was very lethargic and, as I said previously, his breathing was a problem.
He was put on Fortekor (normally used for renal failure in dogs, but effective in helping in heart problems for cats) and diuretic tablets, both of which he will now continue to take for the rest of his life. He has done very well on this regime so far, and is back to normal. However, I have been doing a bit of researching over the internet, and the prognosis is not particularly good, generally being months rather than years.
He is now due his booster vaccs, and I have to say, I am in two minds as to what to do. My vet says that the boosters will not hurt him, but although I trust my vet in the sense that he is a good vet, the cynical side of me is very aware that boosters are a good source of income, and do I really want to pump more chemicals into Smokey in what is likely to be the last few months of his life? Then again, what would I do if he caught anything (he does fight with a local tom cat who keeps invading his territory), or if I had to leave him for a few days and couldn't get him into his cattery because his boosters were not up to date?
What would you do?
I would appreciate any and all comments and views.
Many thanks.
I'm looking for some unbiased advice on Smokey Joe, my 11 year old, neutered domestic s/h.
Smokey had problems with his breathing in August of this year, and after scans and x-rays he was found to have a deformed heart, which his body has been compensating for all his life, but now as old age creeps up, his body is starting to struggle to maintain the compensation. He was very lethargic and, as I said previously, his breathing was a problem.
He was put on Fortekor (normally used for renal failure in dogs, but effective in helping in heart problems for cats) and diuretic tablets, both of which he will now continue to take for the rest of his life. He has done very well on this regime so far, and is back to normal. However, I have been doing a bit of researching over the internet, and the prognosis is not particularly good, generally being months rather than years.
He is now due his booster vaccs, and I have to say, I am in two minds as to what to do. My vet says that the boosters will not hurt him, but although I trust my vet in the sense that he is a good vet, the cynical side of me is very aware that boosters are a good source of income, and do I really want to pump more chemicals into Smokey in what is likely to be the last few months of his life? Then again, what would I do if he caught anything (he does fight with a local tom cat who keeps invading his territory), or if I had to leave him for a few days and couldn't get him into his cattery because his boosters were not up to date?
What would you do?
I would appreciate any and all comments and views.
Many thanks.